STALENESS STIFLES RESULTS & KILLS MOTIVATION

If you have ever gone to a gym on a regular basis, you must have noticed the hapless folks endlessly plodding along on the treadmill, clomping up the stair climber, or mindlessly gliding along on the elliptical machine. Most of these folks will be reading or watching TV---anything to stave off the boring numbness of sameness. Many of the people who have incorporated resistance (weights) into their schedule to maintain strength are also locked into a routine that does not vary. Day after day, they do the same thing over and over.

While you might admire their discipline, the truth is they are making pitiful use of their time. Now, I am not saying that it is a waste of time, anything is certainly better than nothing. However, they would be much better served by putting away the book, turning off the TV, and paying attention to what they are doing and above all, varying their workouts.

For instance, research shows the programs that incorporate "Intervals" are far more effective for cardiovascular endurance than those that advocate long, slow, dreary, joint destroying workouts. Plus, they are much more fun, invigorating and require much less time. Truly far greater bang for the buck.

Lets assume that you are one of those guys that pokes along on a treadmill at about 3 or 4 miles an hour for 45 minutes, frequently looking from your TV to the clock on the wall to see how much more you have to endure. If you have seen a doctor and know that you do not have any physical issues that would rule against it, and after a 5 minute warm up at a slow speed, why don't you try cranking up the speed to somewhere between say 4.5 & 7---gradually--- until you are jogging at a rate that leaves you moderately breathless after 20 to 30 seconds. (If jogging hurts your knees, fine, either race walk or change to the elliptical or stationary bike that will eliminate the jarring effect of running.) When you have reached the allotted time for that interval or you feel very breathless, reduce your speed until your heart rate has diminished to the point you are breathing comfortably and then increase your speed again for 20 t0 30 seconds. Do this for 8 t0 10 rounds and then do a cool down comparable to your warm up.

You should be finished in about 30 minutes and feel far more invigorated than if you had just plodded along at a slow, steady pace for 45 minutes.

There are many ways to put spice and greater effectiveness in your workouts. Be patient and hang with me, we will get to lots of them.