Diet/Exercise/Health/Wellness Support Thread

Parent Cafe
5821

<p>Kind of a mongrel workout today.</p>

<p>I started off with a fantastic five minute Mike Boyle warm-up that is designed to - over time - increase flexibiity of the spine, the ankles, the hiips, and the shoulders. Two back mobilty exercises, one for the ankles, one for the shoulders, and then three types of squats: split squat, side squat, and “rotational squat”. Then, a one leg dead lift, stretching the stability ball forward touch the wall. Great struff. I’m making this a standard part of my warm up for a while. It’s all pretty easy stuff, but terrrific at stretching and making joints more flexible.</p>

<p>Then, I added five pounds to my dumbbells (30 pounds each) and did eight bench presses on the stability ball and eight one-arm rows. with each arm. Then, eight bulgarian split squats on each leg, and box jumped up 12 stairs. This is all stuff that I’m trying to ramp up or get more comfortable doing, but it’s really hard to do when i’m gassed from an exercise circuit.</p>

<p>Then, it was on to the pyramid intervals on the Airdyne, which was pretty much brutal. I don’t think these things will ever get easy. </p>

<p>4 x 8 seconds (16 seconds rest)
4 x 20 seconds (40 seconds rest)
4 x 40 seconds (80 seconds rest)
4 x 60 seconds (120 seconds rest)
8 x 10 seconds (20 seconds rest)</p>

<p>50 minutes. 81% average heart rate. 96% max heart rate.</p>

5822

<p>

</p>

<p>Hardly seems worth it for 20 pounds. I can’t imagine that any doctor would even do that surgery unless you were way more than 20 pounds overweight. I know it’s hard to get crankin’ on a plan to move more/eat less, but it’s just like quitting smoking. The very idea that you believe you need “help” to do it undermines the very mindset of positive motivation and vizualization that it takes to be successful over the long haul. It’s a real catch-22, a trap.</p>

5823

<p>Wow, iPod nazi, Yuri Elkaim, has a killer 2-minute or 4-minute workout today that can be done anywhere with no equipment:</p>

<p>[4-Minute</a> Cardio??? | Yuri Elkaim | Online Fitness Trainer](<a href=“http://www.yurielkaim.com/587/4-minute-cardio/]4-Minute”>http://www.yurielkaim.com/587/4-minute-cardio/)</p>

<p>I might have to give it a go. 30 seconds of each exercise for a 2 minute set with no rest in between. I might be able to do this. 60 seconds of each with no rest for a 4 minute set. I know I can’t do that. I bet this is a LOT harder than it looks.</p>

<p>Three sets with two minutes in between for a killer 15 minute or 30 minute workout. I may start working this in as a bad weather allternative to walking or airdyne intervals.</p>

5824

<p>I changed up my routine today…no gym! I went to the MOA and walked for over 10,000 steps (approximately 5 miles) at a quick pace and then shopped for the rest of the day. Ipod says I burned well over 500 calories. Yay! Tomorrow is back to the gym and weights. My knee is stiff and achy since I didn’t bike. Funny how that really makes a difference.</p>

5825

<p>See how many people know what you mean by MOA. I sure do!</p>

5826

<p>MOA: I know! Have logged a few miles there myself. Eased some of my shopping guilt…</p>

5827

<p>Even the ol’ fat guy can figure that one out and I. Do. Not. Do. Malls. I had to go to the Apple Store in a mall to get my iPod and I broke out in hives.</p>

5828

<p>MOA… :slight_smile: of course I do know, although I have never been there. Someday, someday…</p>

<p>Just like I-dad, my DH breaks out in hives if he has to step inside a mall, although he can tolerate a few minutes inside the local Nordstrom just to get to the cafe. :)</p>

5829

<p>OK, I found a free version of Mike Boyle’s mobility warmup circuit that I did (most of) today:</p>

<p>[T</a> NATION | Essential 8 Mobility Drills](<a href=“The Essential 8 Mobility Drills”>The Essential 8 Mobility Drills)</p>

<p>For the back mobility, I haven’t taped together my two tennis balls yet, so I did two variations. First was a stability ball crunch, focusing on fully wrapping back around the ball. Second was another Boyle exercise. Sit cross-legged on the floor, bring your hands to your ears, elbow out. Rotate about ten degrees to the right, stop, and slightly tilt your head and spine and right elbow down and then back up. Rotate about ten more degrees and repeat the tilt. Continue in stages until you have rotated about 90 degrees to the right, tilting at each step. Repeat to the left. It’s bascially a stretching, back mobility warm-up, perfect for making it a little easier to turn around and back down the driveway.</p>

<p>**#2 Ankle Mobility: **There’s a video so it’s pretty self-explanatory. This is fantastic. Boyle believes that many injuries and knee pain are caused by stiff immobile ankles and the modern tendency in sports to rigidly tape ankles. If the ankle is more flexible, there is less stress on the knee.</p>

<p>#3 Leg Swings: Here’s something that may [explain[/url</a>] this one a little better. Keep the back foot firmly planted and pointing straight ahead. The point is to rotate against the fixed ankle.</p>

<p>#4, #5, #6 Split, Lateral, and Rotational Squats: These stretch the legs and loosen the hips and thighs. The video is self explanatory for the split squats. This [url=&lt;a href=“Squat Matrix - YouTube”&gt;Squat Matrix - YouTube]shows</a> all three](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube). The second two squats stretch the inside of the thighs like crazy. These are really fundamental moves that are very challenging for ol’ stiff fat guys. This the perfect way to work on them and loosen up, just a little bit, each day.</p>

<p>#7: Wall slides: The video is self explanatory. This one is fantastic! Hits that tightness right between the shoulders. I know you know that one!</p>

<p>**#8 - Big X Band: **I don’t know yet. Don’t have a band to try it, but I’m going to try it.</p>

<p>The whole thing takes about 5 minutes. The idea is range of motion, so no weights, no huffin’ and puffin, just moving the joints back and forth. Apparently, if you do this every day to warm up, your flexibility will increase dramatically in a matter of weeks. Boyle starts every day with his professional hockey players, NFL combine trainees, etc with this simple routine. Something even us ol’ fat guys can do!</p>

5830

<p>Day 2 of jury duty. I haven’t been picked yet, but I haven’t been excused yet either (please don’t pick me, please don’t pick me, please don’t pick me) so I decided to get up early and do my long run before I go. I felt exhausted yesterday after half a day sitting bored out of my mind and the next half watching the voir dire (please pick them, please pick them, please pick them). Anyway, I am going to attempt 3.12 miles, go to the store for cat food, take son to school, shower & look presentable, drive through rush hour traffic and get to court, all before 9AM.</p>

5831

Good Luck blankmind!!! :wink:

5832

<p>I’ve been off of my exercise schedule due to traveling, injury, catch-up work, and so on. (At least that’s my excuse :slight_smile: ) Monday I got up at 5:15 AM to swim laps at the HS only to discover when I got there that it was dark and locked: unexpected storm day due to power failures. Grrr… so later I went to the gym and did upper body machines and 45 min on the treadmill. I decided to switch to higher weights and fewer reps (two sets of 6 instead of three sets of 12), and yesterday and today am definitely feeling it in the muscles!</p>

<p>This AM got up at 5:25AM to swim laps. Success: 30 laps of mixed strokes, about 30 minutes! Amazing to arrive back at house at 6:45 with the sun up and feeling energized!! </p>

<p>I’m thinking my desired new routine will be to swim MWF (not available TT and weekends), go to gym TTS.</p>

5833

<p>I’m going to Philadelphia tomorrow night to see my youngest D (she’s in a theater production at college) and we’re staying in the downtown area. Anyone familiar with the city–I’m looking for suggestions on places to do some fast walking (prefer parks and such). D is at Bryn Mawr and I’ll go to a spinning/yoga class with her one morning. The hotel has a fitness facility, which I can use but I’d prefer to get outside and do my fast walking. It’s been cold and rainy in the Boston area and I am tired of training inside–looking forward to being outside this weekend. </p>

<p>I do know what MOA is. I guess I could go to King of Prussia Mall–which is a pretty large mall too and not that far from D’s dorm. I’m sure she’d find the time to go with me, especially if I tell her we can look around after walking.</p>

5834

<p>I know what MOA is.
After 5 yrs of pain that is not getting better but worse I have broken down and made an appointment with a hip specialist. Yesterday was a terrible day of tennis. My mobility is so hampered that I think I only won one game. The right leg has no power. Chiropractor and massage have worked on aligning the hips and releasing the psoas muscle but it only helps briefly. As long as I can remember I have had one hip that is higher. My legs are the same length.</p>

5835

<p>DD was in St. Paul last summer doing an internship and somehow never managed to spend a day @ MOA. Can’t believe it!</p>

5836

<p>mom60…ohhhh…I hope they figure it out for you! Being in pain and having limited mobility is awful. Sending you healing thoughts and prayers and hope that the specialist can make you feel better! :)</p>

<p>Way to go Consolation! I admire any one who swims for fitness. I can swim but I really don’t enjoy water in my face and I always had trouble timing my breathing. I do like working out in the morning! Good Luck with your new routine!</p>

<p>Upped the resistance on my biking this morning and didn’t have any knee pain! Yay! I really pushed myself and was soaking wet. I was so happy to see my HR climb and stay over 85% for most of the hour. Walked on the dreadmill for 30 minutes to cool down and then did some machines and my push ups and tricep dips. My exercise buddy hates the dips/push ups and thinks I am trying to hurt her. :wink: Finished with some resistance bands and am now exhausted, hungry and a little tight but happy!</p>

5837

<p>nminn:</p>

<p>I was listening to a Mike Boyle podcast where he presented something that could be interesting with your knee pain.</p>

<p>He said that he has stopped using a lot of step up exercises in his training because he found so many athletes where the act of stepping up from the floor aggravated knee pain. Now, he uses one leg squats – basically squatting down with one leg hanging off a step. It’s the same basic force on the knee, but it doesn’t aggravate knee pain. He believes that the pain occurs when there is no tension on the knee (standing on the floor) followed by tension on the knee (stepping up), where a movement that starts with tension on the knee and keeping tension on the knee does not hurt.</p>

<p>This is certainly the case with the mild knee pain I’ve felt doing step ups or walking up a steep hill while squats don’t bother my knee at all.</p>

5838

<p>Bromfield- it really would depend on WHERE you are in the downtown Phila area. Not all of it is very safe. If you can pick up the Schuylkill River Trail near the art museum that would be good.</p>

5839

<p>MOW–Hotel is at Rittenhouse Sq–it’s 19th St. and Walnut. We have stayed there other times when we visited D. I could just walk the city blocks nearby, but it’s not my favorite kind of workout. Could I walk to the trail you mentioned? I have been to the Art Museum, so I know where it is in relationship to the hotel. Would it be better to drive there?</p>

5840

<p>I don’t know about safety, but it looks like you could pick up the River Trail right at Walnut, just a few blocks from your hotel and walk it all the way up to the art museum. I can’t imagine that would be deserted or unsafe in broad daylight. You can see the trail clearly on Google Maps, satellite view.</p>

<p>Personally, I would walk over to [Morimoto’s</a> restaurant](<a href=“http://www.morimotorestaurant.com/]Morimoto’s”>http://www.morimotorestaurant.com/) for lunch or dinner!</p>