abasket, yes it is really special to be able to celebrate both holidays at the same time this year with family and friends who celebrate each. Tomorrow we will be at my sister and brother-in-law’s. He’s of Italian descent first generation American so he will be making lasagna, meatballs and sausage, my sister will be making potato latkes. There will be a tree, stockings and a menorah. And in attendance will be his daughters from an earlier marriage, their husbands/s.o., his first newborn grandkid, my wife, our kids and their spouses, our grand-daughter, my parents. It will be very special to have everyone together, particularly with the first grandkids on each side of the family. And I have no doubt the occasion will contribute heartily to the weight gain I’ve been working on
Given the climate this year and all the national discord and disparity, perhaps it not a coincidence that these two religious times are simultaneous - an acknowledgement, appreciation and respect for “belief” in many forms.
I love the blend of foods MK. I hope that we will do the same some time this week. And some family walks at least, to walk some of it off!
IWatch report #3. It just froze on me and I attempted to reboot it. Apaarantly, I really don’t know what I’m doing because it started emitting an emergency type of beeping and then auto called 911. Can you picture my explanation to the dispatcher “My new IWatch has developed independent AI and decided on its own to call you.” I think they’re sending guys in white coats with a big butterfly net for me!!
LOL, Michael! Enjoy the gathering - it is great that so many generations will be celebrating together!
We went to a park by the lake and strolled a bit watching the sunset. Not a major walk, but Mr. noticed that he got 10 Fitbit stairs just by walking from the lake to the parking lot. Off to make the beef dinner!
IWatch report #4. Did 60 minute indoor ride using my Wahoo Kickr connected to Trainer Road on my laptop. This time, I remembered to turn on the workout app on the IWatch (well, 6 minutes into the warm up I did). The ride I did consisted of a 10 minute warmup followed by 5x7 minute work intervals with 3 minutes rovers in between and a 3 minute cool down. I selected indoor cycling as the activity in the exercise app on the IWatch and off I went.
At the end of the ride, the IWatch showed 449 calories burned. The Kickr/Trainer Road program showed 499 kilojoules of energy expended which for cycling corresponds to the number of calories. Taking into account that I delayed turning on the IWatch exercise app for 6 minutes, it seems pretty much like the 2 systems tracked calories pretty consistent with each other.
Both devices also measured heart rate, the IWatch from the wrist and the Kickr/Trainer Road program from a Bluetooth chest strap. The IWatch was often 2-3 bpm higher than the chest strap but then would settle in to be pretty spot on with the chest strap except during very high intensity segments and during transitions to low intensity recovery segments when the IWatch was frequently 5 or more BPM higher.
The big difference between the two was that the IWatch was limited to just hr and calories burned. No other metrics were available either during or after the ride. In contrast, the Kickr and Trainer Road software offered many other performance metrics. My conclusion is that if you are looking for a serious training tool, the IWatch is inadequate. If you are looking for just basic feedback, it is fine.
Thanks to deb, Bunsen, Classof2015, MOWC and Michael for your helpful advice! To clarify, I was two weeks away from beginning another cycle, so the situation’s not quite as dire.
And yes, my SI joint’s been out of whack basically since my last marathon in September. I took two weeks off from running immediately after, but apparently it wasn’t enough. I’ll definitely be looking into a second opinion, because whatever I’m doing isn’t working. At this point, I can’t walk more than a mile without it going crazy, so I need to do something. Can anyone with lower back issues suggest some good, safe forms of exercise? Without working out every day, I kind of lose my mind.
And MOWC and dmd, sounds like awesome racing years! dmd, I might be trying a sprint tri too if I’m out of long-distance for an extended period.
writeandrun, in your initial post about this you stated that just about every exercise you’ve been given in PT seems to aggravate the situation, so not knowing what you’ve actually been given to do and not having a good medical diagnosis of what’s going on, it’s tough to know what to suggest.
That being said, as a general matter, for people with low back issues, you want to do core strengthening exercises that do not involve heavy compressive loads that would cause postural compensations and put a lot of stress on your lumbar region. Keep in mind that “core” is a lot more than just abs. It’s all of the muscles that are involved in supporting and stabilizing the pelvis in a neutral postural position and during motion. That means abs, glutes, hamstrings, hip flexors, abductors, erector spinae muscles, quads. So I would do the following (not necessarily in this sequence):
Quadruped Arm and Leg Extensions with a Theraband.
Hip bridges on the floor. As you progress elevate feet on a step bench and the stability ball.
Body weight squats. As you progress, add a stability challenge like a Bosu.
1 Leg Heel Taps on a Step Bench. As you progress add more risers, hold a light dumbbell, use a Bosu for a stability challenge.
Obliques side leg raises with your back to a wall and pressing your heel against the wall. As you progress, use a Theraband for resistance and add an ankle weight.
Lateral walking in a semi squat position with a Theraband looped around your ankles.
Planks - lots of them, front and oblique. As you advance, add a stability challenge with a stability ball.
1 Legged Romanian Dead Lifts - first just with body weight, then with a light dumbbell, the add a srability challenge.
In doing these, form is paramount to not only getting the benefit but also to prevent postural and muscular compensations. Understanding how to appropriately program these exercises progressively is also important. I would urge you to first get a good medical diagnosis and then find a trainer or PT locally who can guide you on how to properly perform these exercises. Hope this helps.
Michael - lol, sounds like a struggle for dominance between you and the iWatch - I hope you win!
The doggie is hanging in there, but his quality of life is poor right now. We’ll be watching him daily to see if/when a tough decision may need to be made. Sigh.
My 2016 count:
6 half marathons (the 7th was actually in the last week of 2015)
2 10Ks
3 5Ks
writeandrun- the problem is that if your SI joint has rolled out, none of the exercises will help unless a PT pops it back in. That was my experience over many years, at least. THEN you do the exercise to train the surrounding muscles/tendons to keep it in place. That’s where all the bridges, etc come in.
Bizarre weather- 60 degrees and humid. I overdressed and wound up taking off my 3/4 length sleeve shirt at 3 miles and tying it around my waist. I was running in a sports bra on Christmas! I also wore capris, which was dumb since it was shorts weather. I totally forgot how to dress for 60 degrees. Anyway- 6 Christmas miles done! WildChild is off on the bike.
Merry Christmas to all! We had a great evening last night at my daughter’s church service followed by Chinese food at a friend’s house and Christmas-ritas (festive Margaritas) and sparkling wine.
We don’t really do Christmas, so today was very low key. I went to an early morning yoga class with a friend, did a 5-mile run, and walked with the family about 3 miles round trip to the movies (saw La La Land).
Since I’m interested in more basic data, the Apple Watch is probably fine for me. And since I’ve got some SI issues, I need to look closely at those exercises, Michael.
Fireandrain, if you are thinking of getting the Apple Watch for its other features, then yes, its basic exercise capabilities will probably be fine for tracking current heart rate during exercise, exercise time and calories burned. If you are not interested in a watch that integrates with your IPhone and is part of the Apple ecosystem, then you would probably be better served by a $100 Polar HR monitor.
I have a hard enough time with my Garmin - the Apple watch sounds far beyond my abilities!
40 degrees and misty this morning, but happily had a friend who wanted to run this morning so we got in a good 6 miles. Nice course, gentle rolling hills. Glad it’s done! The two glasses of red wine I had last night would have made it really easy to stay in bed!
Reading Michael’s frustration with forgetting to tell the Apple Watch that he was working out … the thing I like best about the Fitbit Flex 2 that I bought in September after losing my One is the automatic exercise tracking. It does accurately pick up walks, runs, lap swimming, cycling, and calls my dog agility sessions “sport”. It does not do heart rate. I’ve had one erroneous bit of tracking in four months: yesterday it called a 12-minute session of dishwashing (hand washing glasses) a single lap of swimming… I think I must have gotten it wet.
My major complaint is that it needs to be charged every three or four days.
I charge my Alta almost every night- or sometimes every other night. It doesn’t need to be charged that often, but I have battery anxiety, and it’s easy to just stick it on the charger in the bathroom since I don’t sleep with it on.
4.1 miles this morning. 60 degrees, windy, humid. It is SO hard to do go run since I’m so out of my normal routine with other people here in the house, breakfast food lying around…
We have a Big Important Bowl Game to watch this afternoon (from the TV room - no way was I driving to Shreveport…) so I won’t get to do my “normal” evening news treadmill run. I know everyone is on the edge of their seats about the Camping World Independence Bowl…
However, I DID meet my mileage goal for the year of 1850 miles with today’s run. I kept raising the bar during the year on RunningAhead (it keeps track for you of how many miles to do and how much per day to get there…) and went fro 1500 to 1700 to 1750 to 1850. I plan to reduce it next year.
^^Great job meeting - and exceeding those predicted goals!
59 degrees here now but POURING rain. I was able to get out this morning when it was about 55 and take a 3 mile walk. There was still ice in the neighborhood near the curbs and while crossing the roads so I ruled out running. Like MOWC, with more people in the house, late nights to sleep and our traditional family breakfast, I didn’t want to lose more sleep by getting up earlier and leaving the neighborhood to exercise. Walk fast is still a good workout.
Temps will drop overnight BUT hopeful that the pouring rain now for a few hours will dissolve most of the remaining ice on the roads - most of our snow is disappearing - yeah!
Back at the beach after an overnight trip to my father’s in MA. Excellent roast beef dinner last night with my brothers and their families. Took the pup for a longish walk early this morning – it was 13 degrees! Needless to say we walked very fast.
