Diet/Exercise/Health/Wellness Support Thread

interesteddad · December 2, 2012, 1:13am

Amen, hops:

I look forward to checking out your blog. Hips are tough to train because, at least for ol’ (formerly) fat guys like me, it takes a year or two of committed effort to hip exercises to get to the point where you can really fire the glutes. I’m doing all these exercise now that I first did a year or two ago, and going “OMG… it’s like a different exercise”. I now realize that the reason I struggled so much with balance on one leg exercises and with stuff like front plank lifting an arm and leg is that I simply didn’t have the hip strength to stabilize my body. I’m still not where I want to be, but I’m far enough along to really appreciate that nothing works right without the hips.

I think it’s like core training. You just have to commit to working on it every workout.

The New Rules of Lifting for Life warmup routine is heavily focused on hip mobility. A bunch of stretches (that you see NFL players doing). Carioca, which is all about getting the hips swiveling (I can’t believe that I still haven’t done a face plant!).

BCEagle91 · December 2, 2012, 8:53am

I did those two - 12 on each side. The YMCA is my favorite place for doing that as they have those box-like tables at varying heights. I pull one forward and then put a weight bench or stability ball next to me so that I won’t fall down. For me, the squat itself is pretty easy - the hard part is balance.

Also found a 40 pound kettleball. They only go up to 35 pounds in the fitness room. This one was on the huge TRX machine.

Freezing drizzle is supposed to be over soon today.

tom1944 · December 2, 2012, 9:01am

I just tried the single leg squat with one leg out in front and I could hardly do it. I checked a you tube video and they showed someone doing single leg squats standing on a box with their leg off of the edge. That looked easier- is that how you each started doing them?

BCEagle91 · December 2, 2012, 10:09am

That’s how I have always done them - sometimes with weights, sometimes without. I don’t think that I have the flexibility to do it with leg in front though I may give it a try later on.

BTW, the single-leg squat puts a lot of stress on the knee.

BunsenBurner · December 2, 2012, 10:20am

Squeezed a 4 mile ran into my morning schedule, now back to work. :)

interesteddad · December 2, 2012, 12:09pm

Tom:

The version with the leg sticking out to the front is called a pistol squat. The problem with this version is that forces the lower back to round. By standing on something, and giving the leg room to hang down, you take the lower back out of it.

There are two ways to progress the exercise. The way Mike Boyle teaches it is to squat down to the butt touches a box.

[Baby</a> Boomer 1 Leg Squats - YouTube](<a href=“Baby Boomer 1 Leg Squats - YouTube”>Baby Boomer 1 Leg Squats - YouTube)

Then move to a squat without the box:

[1</a> Leg Squat- Static/ Unsupported - YouTube](<a href=“1 Leg Squat- Static/ Unsupported - YouTube”>1 Leg Squat- Static/ Unsupported - YouTube)

Here’s an excellent video from Coach dos Remedios, college strength coach and buddy of Alwyn Cosgrove in California, in the video takes it even further and has you start from a sitting position.

[BID</a> VID - Single leg Squat Progressions - YouTube](<a href=“BID VID - Single leg Squat Progressions - YouTube”>BID VID - Single leg Squat Progressions - YouTube)

If you have the right combination of boxes, you can do this elevated by standing on a low box and sitting to a higher box or chair.

I’ve now gotten rid of the box and and I’m doing the squats standing on a 16 inch weight bench with my leg hanging off to the side. I just barely touch my foot down at the bottom, but try not to put any weight on it. The balance issue is compounded by the padding on top of the bench, though. I’m doing it on a slightly “unstable” surface from a balance standpoint. But, “balance” is really another word for hip stability…

I believe that an even better way to start the exercise would be to stand on a box and hang on to a TRX to “de-load” it.

Here’s another series of videos, showing a progression from easy to hard by Kevin Carr, one of the trainers at Mike Boyles:

I don’t think I’ll be doing this version any time soon.

[With</a> a 160 lb weight vest](<a href=“1 Leg Squats- Double Bodyweight - YouTube”>1 Leg Squats- Double Bodyweight - YouTube)

<hr>

BC:

I think the main value of the single leg squat is to reduce the stress on the knee by strengthening the hip and the ability to stabilize the leg with the hip. Boyle uses it as a key exercise for athletes coming back from ACL surgery. If I recall, he doesn’t consider an athlete ready to play again after ACL surgery until they can do single leg squats. Of course, that’s could be little different for someone who has messed up cartilage and bone on bone knee pain.

interesteddad · December 2, 2012, 12:14pm

I checked last night. I’m doing my kettlebell swings with 44 pounds these days. 12 reps with that weight is enough to get my attention, for sure. I was really pleased with some of the sets in burpee fusion the other day. I felt like I developing good power. I don’t feel like I need to go up in weight to get a good workout!

sewhappy · December 2, 2012, 12:20pm

The 90 minute walk/run with the neighbors yesterday after being away traveling all week. It wrecked me. I was shot for the day. Today I’m putting up holiday stuff. Maybe will use the horrible treadmill in the basement. Maybe not. When my body feels like this I usually let it rest.

Bromfield · December 2, 2012, 1:05pm

Away this week; managed workout on the elliptical trainer 3 days @ 30 minutes (gym at a hotel–better than nothing) and a 3 mile walk the last day.

IDad: I’m not in Cambridge–live in Central MA. Not close to Mike Boyle’s gym either. Thanks for posting the Crossfit article. Re-scheduled appointment next week.

BCEagle91 · December 2, 2012, 1:10pm

My ability to do single-leg squats is inversely proportional to how
much tennis I’m playing. Tennis causes damage and the damage is healed
with rest.

hops_scout · December 2, 2012, 1:30pm

I don’t actually do “single leg squats” like what idad is talking about. All of mine are done Rear Foot Elevated Split Squats. Stick that rear foot into a TRX strap and watch out!

interesteddad · December 2, 2012, 1:44pm

Bromfield:

You’ll find a good place. Fortunately, the whole group training approach seems to be catching on, not only with Crossfit gyms, but with bootcamp classes and so forth. It’s just a question of finding the right one.

I’m with you on the fancy gyms. I just don’t use enough of the frills to warrant the cost. My short-lived membership at Planet Fitness actually worked out pretty well. They had what I needed in terms of equipment and the price was right ($10 per month). I think the ideal scenario would be a place like the Cosgrove’s place in California. Small group training, targeted at adult general fitness clients. Those places are out there, but they are usually small “studio” setups and you probably have to stumble into finding the right one.

I’m probably just an old fuddy-duddy, but, at my age, I really don’t want to get hurt exercising, when the whole point is to be more active without aches and pains!

hops_scout · December 2, 2012, 2:16pm

I’m bidding on a Jungle Gym XT set-up on ebay at the moment… Would like one for the house…

tom1944 · December 2, 2012, 5:12pm

%k eliptical and treadmill sprint combination

pullups, lat pulls. corner barbell row, tricep extentions, push downs and bench dips

MomofWildChild · December 2, 2012, 6:56pm

It was 65 degrees this morning- first bare legged run in awhile! 7.7 miles instead of the 8-10 planned. Yesterday was a busy and tiring day and 7.7 got me over 35 for the week, so I’ll take it. I’m over 1900 for the year now, so it’s looking good for making the 2000 if I don’t get hurt or sick.

MichaelNKat · December 2, 2012, 8:41pm

Started out to do a ride this morning with my 2 favorite riding companions, nationally ranked women racers from a local race team who can kick my butt any day of the week. It was supposed to be a sunny day with a high of 58. At 10:00, it was 42 degrees out with fog so heavy that we couldn’t see more than 2 car lengths ahead. We never left the parking lot. Ended up going home and spending an hour and a half doing wattage training on my indoor trainer. Yuck! My butt was killing me after an hour. Oh well.

dstark · December 3, 2012, 1:59am

I haven’t posted in this thread for awhile.

I lost 22 pounds in 9 weeks. I am down to 158 pounds. My weight is good, and more importantly, my wife says I look good. :)

I don’t know what I am going to do now. Try to maintain or try and go for a big push down to 140 pounds. I would do this over time.

I think my weight is very good for every day living, but in the back of my mind, I would like to try and run a marathon. Because I have had surgery on my left knee, I would want my weight to be very low before I ran one. Not that I could run one, but I think I might like to try.

I have an 80 year old friend that has run many marathons. His last one was two years ago. If he could do it at age 78…

Anyway, it is just thoughts right now.

MiamiDAP · December 3, 2012, 8:16am

Many people are swimming in their 80s. Actually, anybody who swim relatively regularly, continue all the way till they are capable of moving and there is nothing special about it. 
Anybody who can run at any age is a hero in my eyes, 15 y o, 55 y o, 75 y o. Kuddos to all, but no envy. Running is a torture, I have never met anybody who enjoys it, even if they actually love it, it looks like a torture, all that sweating and pounding…
Anyway, you, guys are heros!!!

mommusic · December 3, 2012, 8:21am

MiamiDAP–I had to cut back on the swimming because of grinding in my shoulders. I don’t know if I wore them out or what, but it’s an awful sound and I can’t swim any distance anymore.

I guess I could still do laps kicking with a kickboard but that’s pretty boring. :D

MiamiDAP · December 3, 2012, 8:35am

^There are alway ways to adjust in swimming. I have swam thru the pain and it has helped me a lot. I would not quit, but swimming is never boring for me. Swimming is the time of such a deep relaxation, most of very technical problems get solved without any type of push, the energy gain is unbelievable and cannot be explained, I am still at loss about that. The fact is I cannot stop moving after swimming and our outside walking is much easier. But there are much faster people in a pool, so I imagine that my speed is why I am not tired after my 1.5 hrs. It is my personal time, complete, disconneciton, I will not give it up as long asI can move, nothing else is comparable, smell of chlorine makes me happy the minute I am there.

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