Wow! Time sure flies! I have been traveling for what seems like an eternity and let my blog slip into the foggy past.
Speaking of fog, I was in San Francisco recently and rode a bike over the Golden Gate Bridge, through Sausalito and Tiburon, up toward the huge Sequoias of the Muir Woods, and back to San Francisco. What a fantastic ride! Going out in the morning, the bridge was shrouded in fog. The towers were just emerging out of this Sherlock Holmes like mist and the fog horn was blasting a haunting and curiously lonely sound every 15 seconds. Looking over the railing, I could barely see the gray water crashing against the pilings. It is truly weird how such a scenario can make you feel like you are about to fall into a murky abyss---even with a shoulder height rail to hold on to.
I was stopped and fumbling through my jacket for my phone to call Jim (my life long friend and workout partner who had phoned me when he was running across the same bridge months earlier). I had on gloves and felt like I was going to drop the phone in the bay just trying to get it out of my pocket. I looked down at the water one more time and decided I needed to move as far from the railing as I could just to keep from being drawn over the side. It was eerie. Eerie, but cool too. I felt fine when I started moving again.
Much later, coming back over the bridge, the sky was robin egg blue and there must have been 1,000 sail boats on the bay, sails fully billowed against a stiff breeze as they all seemed to race for a common prize---joy.
Who needs a gym? I don't need no stinkin' gym!
Yours in health,
Walt
Friday, November 13, 2009
Thursday, October 8, 2009
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.
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.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
RUNNIN' LIKE A DOG
When I completed my regular stretching routine this morning, I walked out into our beautiful garden to take in what was turning out to be one of those glorious high desert fall days. I thought, What a day to go to the track! I immediately called my life long bud, Jim, he instantly changed his plans, and we were on.
We met at the Santa Fe High School track an hour later for a bout of interval training. Jim had to be at a wedding in less than two hours, so we decided on sprinting repeat short distances at a fast rate. Well, fast for two dudes in their mid sixties.
As usual, my other best friend was tagging and wagging along---my Labradoodle, Howdy (Howdy Doodle). To say the least, he is exuberant about life. I was watching the joy on his face as he ran circles around us. I was thinking, why can't I be that happy with such a simple pleasure?
And then it occured to me that I absolutely was that happy, that joyful. I was outside in the warm New Mexico sun, with my two best friends, running and laughing and getting ecstatically breathless. I was adding so much to my well-being on so many levels, and it didn't cost a dime.
That was what I was talking about in an earlier posting when I said exercise routines need to be fun, not really routine at all. Now, I know that every trip to the gym or every time you push "Play" on your remote to fire up your current exercise video is not going to bring this level of satisfaction. However, if you are not at least approaching this cheerful state at least 25% of the time, I suggest you give some serious thought to what types of recreation (read re-creation) you can do for yourself that will provide the exercise you need for the body, while tickling those powerful intangibles that make you really, really happy. Even it is just for a few minutes each week, it is just flat out good for the whole being. And, it is so motivational to keeping up the good work. Kinda like when I scratch Howdy behind the ears and say "good boy!"
We met at the Santa Fe High School track an hour later for a bout of interval training. Jim had to be at a wedding in less than two hours, so we decided on sprinting repeat short distances at a fast rate. Well, fast for two dudes in their mid sixties.
As usual, my other best friend was tagging and wagging along---my Labradoodle, Howdy (Howdy Doodle). To say the least, he is exuberant about life. I was watching the joy on his face as he ran circles around us. I was thinking, why can't I be that happy with such a simple pleasure?
And then it occured to me that I absolutely was that happy, that joyful. I was outside in the warm New Mexico sun, with my two best friends, running and laughing and getting ecstatically breathless. I was adding so much to my well-being on so many levels, and it didn't cost a dime.
That was what I was talking about in an earlier posting when I said exercise routines need to be fun, not really routine at all. Now, I know that every trip to the gym or every time you push "Play" on your remote to fire up your current exercise video is not going to bring this level of satisfaction. However, if you are not at least approaching this cheerful state at least 25% of the time, I suggest you give some serious thought to what types of recreation (read re-creation) you can do for yourself that will provide the exercise you need for the body, while tickling those powerful intangibles that make you really, really happy. Even it is just for a few minutes each week, it is just flat out good for the whole being. And, it is so motivational to keeping up the good work. Kinda like when I scratch Howdy behind the ears and say "good boy!"
Friday, September 18, 2009
It is clear that I am just starting out with this blog and it is important to me from the beginning that all who come to this site believe in my sincerity and enthusiasm for helping folks get "Fit For The Ages". I will not endorse any product that I do not personally have the utmost faith in based on in depth research and personal testing. In fact most of my postings will have nothing to do with endorsements of any kind. There are just a few products with which I feel nearly everyone would benefit. I would be short changing my readers if I did not mention them.
That said, I am dying to tell you about my love affair with my TRX.
If I were on a desert island, I would definitely want to have my TRX.
In fact, it is far and away the most important item in my exercise tool kit. Weighing less than two pounds, I can take it anywhere and, trust me, I do.
So, just what is a TRX?
Well, it is an elegantly simple apparatus designed by a Navy Seal. Don't get nervous, most anyone can easily use and benefit greatly from it. With this single piece of equipment you can perform over 240 body weight exercises. It is great for strength, balance, cardio and core conditioning.
It is essentially a glorified parachute strap with adjustable handles that you can throw over a door or around a beam or tree limb and get a great whole body workout where ever you are. Instead of me reinventing the wheel trying to describe it in detail, please click on the TRX banner on this blog for all the information you need to decide if it is for you. Please do not be put off by the youth and conditioning of the subjects you see on this site. I promise you, if you are not paralyzed, you can use this piece of equipment.
I use my TRX almost daily, as do most of my clients. Whether they are a 400 pound woman just starting back on a healthy lifestyle, an 82 year old man, or very fit and strong athletes, (these are folks I have personally trained using the TRX) they all receive optimal benefits in all areas of conditioning.
So, check it out and give it a shot. There is a money back guarantee.
This is one of those things where, after you try it, you are likely to slap your forehead and say, "Wow! How simple, why didn't I think of that". I know I wish I did.
Yours in health,
Walt
That said, I am dying to tell you about my love affair with my TRX.
If I were on a desert island, I would definitely want to have my TRX.
In fact, it is far and away the most important item in my exercise tool kit. Weighing less than two pounds, I can take it anywhere and, trust me, I do.
So, just what is a TRX?
Well, it is an elegantly simple apparatus designed by a Navy Seal. Don't get nervous, most anyone can easily use and benefit greatly from it. With this single piece of equipment you can perform over 240 body weight exercises. It is great for strength, balance, cardio and core conditioning.
It is essentially a glorified parachute strap with adjustable handles that you can throw over a door or around a beam or tree limb and get a great whole body workout where ever you are. Instead of me reinventing the wheel trying to describe it in detail, please click on the TRX banner on this blog for all the information you need to decide if it is for you. Please do not be put off by the youth and conditioning of the subjects you see on this site. I promise you, if you are not paralyzed, you can use this piece of equipment.
I use my TRX almost daily, as do most of my clients. Whether they are a 400 pound woman just starting back on a healthy lifestyle, an 82 year old man, or very fit and strong athletes, (these are folks I have personally trained using the TRX) they all receive optimal benefits in all areas of conditioning.
So, check it out and give it a shot. There is a money back guarantee.
This is one of those things where, after you try it, you are likely to slap your forehead and say, "Wow! How simple, why didn't I think of that". I know I wish I did.
Yours in health,
Walt
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
What do you want from the time you invest in your workouts?
My criteria are as follows:
Let's look at each of the four criteria individually.
Yours in health,
Walt
My criteria are as follows:
- Safe. If I get injured, it is a major drag on my progress, my motivation and my enjoyment, which brings me to my second priority.
- Fun. If my workout is not fun, I can guarantee you, I will not keep it up.
- Effective. If I am not seeing the results I planned or dreamed of, this is also very discouraging and, therefore, not fun.
- Efficient. If I start spending vast quantities of time in my workouts, my family, friends, and career let me know in no uncertain terms; and, long workouts usually mean I am not getting the most out of each session.
Let's look at each of the four criteria individually.
- Safe. In order to meet this criteria, I must know what physical limitations you may have, and your current level of conditioning. I have a form that we can fill out together in less than 10 minutes. That is usually sufficient, but if there are any indications that I should confer with your physician before we begin, I would ask for your clearance to do so---your safety and health being paramount.
- Fun. I will want to know what you really enjoy doing and then try to incorporate the workout routine with those favorites. I have designed routines around gardening, cooking, and even reading! Yes, you will get out of breath from time to time, but only to the peak of it being a pleasant and invigorating sensation. There is no need to feel that you have been brought to the edge of death in order to receive marked benefit.
- Effective. If the program is going to be effective for you, we will have to look at your specific goals ( if you do not have any concrete goals, I can help here too) and then we will agree on the level of exertion that will be required to achieve those goals on a timely basis.
- Efficient. While a good program requires daily attention---OK, at least 6 days per week--- I will not be recommending more than 30 to 45 minutes per session. I guarantee that you will feel sufficiently "worked-out" and surprisingly refreshed in that amount of time. Also, with just this level of commitment, you will see astonishing results.
Yours in health,
Walt
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
This blog is for folks over fifty who want to get in the best shape of their lives and stay there---Fit For The Ages.
A bit of personal history might be appropriate to begin. When I was 59 I was taking a stress test at the New Mexico Heart Institute in Albuquerque because I had arrived at their Emergency Room the day before complaining of pain in my chest and legs. Early into the test, the doctor abruptly shut down the treadmill and pushed a nitro-glycerin tablet into my mouth, instructed me to lie on a gurney that whisked me into an ambulance which drove me directly across the street to the hospital.
To this day I do not not know what had upset the kind gentleman so much, but one of the team of doctors wrote into my record that I had early stage heart failure. Several other doctors have told me that diagnosis had no basis. I know I never really believed it either. But, the whole episode really got my attention. The bottom line was very clear, I was in really bad shape.
Not long after that, I was sitting on my back porch (portal if you live in New Mexico) with a couple of my buddies enjoying one of only about 4 cigars I smoke in a year, along with some very fine tequila. We do this once a year, when one of our wives leaves town, we commandeer that house for what has become our legendary, annual camp-in. It used to be a camp-out, but we have become wiser with the passing of years.
Surprisingly enough, something good usually comes out of these rare but rascally nights. That year Jim, my best friend for more than 50 years, had just watched his 20-something daughter compete in a triathlon in Hawaii and so he challenged our select little group to compete in an Olympic distance triathlon within the year.
Well, one of the guys, George, had completed well over 50 "tri's" and even won some of them. He was in his early 40's. Stuart was in his early thirties---still in velvet---and was in great shape. That left Jim and me, the two Methuselahs of the group, but Jim had the edge because he had a life long habit of jogging. Me? I thought I was in fair shape until my little cardiac wake-up call just a short time back. I had been involved in martial arts for years, but then again that was years ago. More recently, I had been doing some yoga and weight lifting.
After the other guys had enthusiastically jumped on board, all eyes were on me. I admit I wanted to bail on this challenge, but what was I going to do as they fixed me with their expectant gazes---chicken out? Heck no! With just a modicum of kicking and moaning, I signed on.
In the cold and way too early light of the next morning, as the other guys were sitting around the internet planning which event to sign up for, I was nursing a cup of black coffee and wondering how I could gracefully undo last night's folly.
Since nothing came to mind and they had now decided on the date and place of my execution (twelve months later, in Hawaii) I decided I had better get humping. That day I walked to the dirt road behind my house and attempted to jog up the lower portion, the part that wasn't too steep. I made maybe 50 yards before I stopped to look for my lungs and to wonder if maybe that doctor had been right after all except maybe I was in the final, not early, stage of heart failure because I sure felt like it right then.
The next day I pulled my old mountain bike from a mountain of dust, thinking I would log 10 to 12 miles on the flattest stretch I could find close to my house. I literally got less than one mile when discretion urgently asserted itself over valor. My God! Was I really in that bad shape? Oh yeah, no doubt about it.
I was determined to rectify this situation, and being quasi-retired, I could devote lots of time to training and---more importantly for this blog---I could dig deep into the science of fitness. That is exactly what I did. I enrolled in the Santa Fe Community College and finished their semester long offering with a 98 average. I became a Certified Personal Trainer with two prestigious organizations, NASM & ACE (National Academy of Sports Medicine and American Counsel on Exercise). I earned one advance certification with NASM as a Corrective Exercise Specialist.
I learned that getting in far better shape than I could ever have imagined was far easier and more fun than I (or you) could ever have imagined, using the new proven approaches I was soaking up from every source I could find. This was nothing like the old "run till you puke" stuff I remembered from my high school coaches---frustrated dentist, all of them.
I ran three triathlons in that next year, placing second, third and first. Now, you should know that it is not all that hard to place in the top three when it only takes a few seconds to call the roll in the 60-64 age group. But still, I'm just saying, I set the goal of finishing and I exceeded my expectations.
The following year I switched to the 50 and 100 meter sprints and the long jump. this was much more to my liking. In the Santa Fe Senior Olympics, I swept every age group from the whipper-snapper 50 year olds on up in each event. I won in times that are very competitive nationally. I know, I am tooting my own horn and it does feels a little weird. But shoot, I am trying to get you folks to see that if a guy who was being rolled into the New Mexico Heart Institute on a gurney not too long ago can do that much that soon; what might you do with the right guidance?
I have been working exclusively with the over 50 population in the Santa Fe, NM area for the past 4 years and I have worked out hundreds of protocols for men and women to reach their varied goals. I have also worked with special populations who have significant limitations.
The picture of me, which I will post when I can figure out how to do that---yes, I admit to being more that a little challenged in the computer arena; well, that picture is totally real, 100% un-fooled around with. So stay posted and see if the level of fitness you see reflected there is something you aspire to. It so, great! Maybe we can develop an online way for me to get you the information you need to work your own magic.
This is clearly the first step in a fledgling project. It should be interesting to see where it takes us. Are you in?
Yours in health,
Walt
A bit of personal history might be appropriate to begin. When I was 59 I was taking a stress test at the New Mexico Heart Institute in Albuquerque because I had arrived at their Emergency Room the day before complaining of pain in my chest and legs. Early into the test, the doctor abruptly shut down the treadmill and pushed a nitro-glycerin tablet into my mouth, instructed me to lie on a gurney that whisked me into an ambulance which drove me directly across the street to the hospital.
To this day I do not not know what had upset the kind gentleman so much, but one of the team of doctors wrote into my record that I had early stage heart failure. Several other doctors have told me that diagnosis had no basis. I know I never really believed it either. But, the whole episode really got my attention. The bottom line was very clear, I was in really bad shape.
Not long after that, I was sitting on my back porch (portal if you live in New Mexico) with a couple of my buddies enjoying one of only about 4 cigars I smoke in a year, along with some very fine tequila. We do this once a year, when one of our wives leaves town, we commandeer that house for what has become our legendary, annual camp-in. It used to be a camp-out, but we have become wiser with the passing of years.
Surprisingly enough, something good usually comes out of these rare but rascally nights. That year Jim, my best friend for more than 50 years, had just watched his 20-something daughter compete in a triathlon in Hawaii and so he challenged our select little group to compete in an Olympic distance triathlon within the year.
Well, one of the guys, George, had completed well over 50 "tri's" and even won some of them. He was in his early 40's. Stuart was in his early thirties---still in velvet---and was in great shape. That left Jim and me, the two Methuselahs of the group, but Jim had the edge because he had a life long habit of jogging. Me? I thought I was in fair shape until my little cardiac wake-up call just a short time back. I had been involved in martial arts for years, but then again that was years ago. More recently, I had been doing some yoga and weight lifting.
After the other guys had enthusiastically jumped on board, all eyes were on me. I admit I wanted to bail on this challenge, but what was I going to do as they fixed me with their expectant gazes---chicken out? Heck no! With just a modicum of kicking and moaning, I signed on.
In the cold and way too early light of the next morning, as the other guys were sitting around the internet planning which event to sign up for, I was nursing a cup of black coffee and wondering how I could gracefully undo last night's folly.
Since nothing came to mind and they had now decided on the date and place of my execution (twelve months later, in Hawaii) I decided I had better get humping. That day I walked to the dirt road behind my house and attempted to jog up the lower portion, the part that wasn't too steep. I made maybe 50 yards before I stopped to look for my lungs and to wonder if maybe that doctor had been right after all except maybe I was in the final, not early, stage of heart failure because I sure felt like it right then.
The next day I pulled my old mountain bike from a mountain of dust, thinking I would log 10 to 12 miles on the flattest stretch I could find close to my house. I literally got less than one mile when discretion urgently asserted itself over valor. My God! Was I really in that bad shape? Oh yeah, no doubt about it.
I was determined to rectify this situation, and being quasi-retired, I could devote lots of time to training and---more importantly for this blog---I could dig deep into the science of fitness. That is exactly what I did. I enrolled in the Santa Fe Community College and finished their semester long offering with a 98 average. I became a Certified Personal Trainer with two prestigious organizations, NASM & ACE (National Academy of Sports Medicine and American Counsel on Exercise). I earned one advance certification with NASM as a Corrective Exercise Specialist.
I learned that getting in far better shape than I could ever have imagined was far easier and more fun than I (or you) could ever have imagined, using the new proven approaches I was soaking up from every source I could find. This was nothing like the old "run till you puke" stuff I remembered from my high school coaches---frustrated dentist, all of them.
I ran three triathlons in that next year, placing second, third and first. Now, you should know that it is not all that hard to place in the top three when it only takes a few seconds to call the roll in the 60-64 age group. But still, I'm just saying, I set the goal of finishing and I exceeded my expectations.
The following year I switched to the 50 and 100 meter sprints and the long jump. this was much more to my liking. In the Santa Fe Senior Olympics, I swept every age group from the whipper-snapper 50 year olds on up in each event. I won in times that are very competitive nationally. I know, I am tooting my own horn and it does feels a little weird. But shoot, I am trying to get you folks to see that if a guy who was being rolled into the New Mexico Heart Institute on a gurney not too long ago can do that much that soon; what might you do with the right guidance?
I have been working exclusively with the over 50 population in the Santa Fe, NM area for the past 4 years and I have worked out hundreds of protocols for men and women to reach their varied goals. I have also worked with special populations who have significant limitations.
The picture of me, which I will post when I can figure out how to do that---yes, I admit to being more that a little challenged in the computer arena; well, that picture is totally real, 100% un-fooled around with. So stay posted and see if the level of fitness you see reflected there is something you aspire to. It so, great! Maybe we can develop an online way for me to get you the information you need to work your own magic.
This is clearly the first step in a fledgling project. It should be interesting to see where it takes us. Are you in?
Yours in health,
Walt
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