Fantastic Five Fitness Tips for Tired Summer Training

Vacations. Guests. Long out of town weekends. Road Trips. And just plain lazy summer days all contribute to reduced summer exercise frequency. Oh, I know, many of you are doing extra cardio outside. But, I also know that a lot of you aren't!

Even in my studios where we rant and rave, and beg and plead with our clients to get attendance up to where it needs to be to make progress, attendance is down. Maybe it really is the economy. If that's the case now is in fact the BEST time to pick up your exercise volume ...to look and feel healthier, increase your productivity, reduce stress, sleep better, and on and on.

Here then, are my Favorite Five Fitness tips for Fixing Flat Summer Programs

1. Get a Grip!

Changing how you grasp a bar can dramatically alter the kinetics of a resistance exercise, and create exciting new interest in upper body pushing and pulling exercises. I also frequently find that people with joint ailments (the rotator cuff in the shoulder in particular) can avoid impingement and discomfort by experimenting with grip adjustments.
Alter the width of where you grasp a bar, the rotation of your wrists (palms up or down), or change the bar entirely. A Traditional grip is palms facing down when your hands are extended on a plane in front of your eyes. Change your routine by continuing to use a traditional bar grip, but vary the distance of where your hands grasp the bar to recruit additional or different muscle fiber groups. Two or three inches narrower or wider are usually sufficient. Try varied grip widths for chest, triceps, and shoulder presses to effectively train muscle groups on range of motion boundaries not normally recruited with a 'monotonous' grip position.

Try using a reverse grip for lat pull downs, seated pulley rows, supported T bar rows, and single arm movements of the same. Selecting a different bar or cable attachment can also introduce variety into an otherwise mundane program. Experiment with straight, cambered , EZ curl, V-shaped, and rope attachments for arm exercises. Choose between straight, cambered, wide grip lat, wide grip cambered, and bent lat bars for back & traps.

Use your modified grip (or bar choice) consistently for a minimum of 2 to 4 weeks, then try another one! But don't switch more frequently than that: the initial adoptions from a varied grip will be neurological; the muscle strength & fiber growth you're looking for occurs only after primary neurological adoptions are complete, so don't switch too often!

One Critical piece of advice here: if you are unsure of the proper movement, or the safety of the exercise, DO consult with a fitness expert before experimenting. Modifying grip and bar choice changes joint rotations that can be unsafe for the uneducated.


2. Be Promiscuous

Hey, it's OK ... it's just a workout! But you'd be surprised and amazed with how much fun, exciting, and refreshing training with a new partner or trainer can be! And effective! Here's bonus a tip for you: training with a partner or trainer is one of the true key elements to reaching heath and fitness goals you never before thought possible. Knowing that someone is expecting you to show up for a workout - someone who will hold you personally accountable for making it to that fitness appointment dramatically improves the likelihood that you will actually show up! Having someone help you with a few forced reps, and assist with some negative repetitions not only increases the safety of your workout, but it increases intensity as well.

If you've been with a partner or trainer for more than 6 months, try making a change for a while. If you like your partner current partner/trainer, try forming a small club of 'workout buddies'' and rotate through the group periodically. Not only will you make new friends, but you'll grow if only through a handful of favorite tips, tricks, and techniques we've all collected over time. More likely, however, is that you'll also change the tempo, repetition rate, sequence of exercises, and content of your split routines. All of this puts your body at a high state of 'nervousness' which encourages neurological adaptations required for increased muscle group recruitment. Especially with today's hectic schedules, you can never have too many workout buddies, and some of the best workouts I've ever had have been 'reunion' workouts with former partners from high school and college.

Finally, I strongly recommend AGAINST training with your significant other. Your workout needs to be free from the baggage and agenda from that relationship if you truly want results.


3. Know and Feel your Pain

Herb Brooks was right: "...you must grow through pain." Realize, first, however, that not all pain is good!

Being able to understand, recognized, and differentiate good pain from bad pain is a key element in making consistent progress towards your fitness goals. The burning sensation felt from fully exhausted muscle groups is due to the accumulation of a waste product known as lactic acid. Excessive lactic acid buildup is also responsible for muscle soreness after your workout. Generally speaking, it is a good pain giving you reassurance that you've recruited otherwise inactive muscle groups and have trained them to momentary exhaustion. Even so, training muscle groups to exhaustion with high intensity exercises should be moderated to avoid over training.

Plan to train to train each body part to complete exhaustion (and feel the burn that comes with it) no more than once per week, and less so after age 40. The burning feedback from lactic acid is much different from that which you feel when joints, tendons, and ligaments are strained. Especially as you hit the mid years of your life, not all pain is equal, so learn to differentiate the good from bad. Pursue active rest to reduce lactic acid buildup,but completely rest when you have an injury. If in doubt, check with a trusted personal trainer.


4. Have a Ball!

A medicine ball, that is. They're inexpensive (less than $20 each), and can introduce new fun into an otherwise tiring routine! Did you know that medicine balls have been used in in physical therapy since 1000 BC! Sizes and shapes vary from 1 Kg to 11KG, but all medicine balls will be soft enough to bounce on a firm surface (like a wall or floor). Indeed, it's ability to absorb impact is what makes a ball a medicine ball. Most balls with come with brief instruction guides for things to try. A few of my favorites are:

1. Walking diagonal lunges with a gentle hand to hand shot-put-like overhead toss (glutes deltoids, balance);
2. Explosive seated overhead throw and catch against a flat wall (lats, abs),
3. Sit-up and overhead throw to partner (abs, lats);
4. Explosive squat position basketball chest pass against a wall (gluts, delts, tris); and
   
5. Russian Twist - balance on your butt with feet lifted off the floor and rotate ball in a twisting motion (abs, obliques);

And if you think training with a medicine ball is for wusses, try a few single arm supported dumbbell rows: support yourself in a plank-like position atop of the ball with one fully extended arm while grasping a very light dumbbell in the other. Balance on the ball with the extended arm while knocking out a few single arm dumbbell rows. You'll train Tris, Delts, Pecs, Core, Traps, and Lumbar with just this one exercise.

5. Get Roped!

One of the most effective cable attachments ever invented is the rope attachment. Part of what makes it so effective is that the flexibility of the rope allows the exercise range of motion to follow a more natural joint motion than any fixed bar ever could. Use the rope attachment for:

1. Split triceps pushdowns from a pull down pulley
2. Single Arm triceps pushdowns ... try grabbing both rope ends, or just one;
3. Split biceps curls from a seated row pulley
4. Single Arm biceps curls
5. Seated Crunches from a pull down machine

Unfortunately, rope attachment 'evolutions' have actually reduced it's effectiveness in some ways. Back in the 70s we simply threaded heavyweight marine mooring through the eyelet of the cable buckle. While crude, it required that you both: 1) establish a firm grip on each end; AND 2) manage balance between the ends of the rope. Today's rope attachments normally have huge knots on each end and a fixed buckle in the middle. While still effective in providing quality and gentle joint kinetics, the grip and balance benefits of a free, unknotted rope have been forgotten. Not to worry though ... just thread a hand towel through the attachment buckle for a similar enough effect!

One thing to note with most ropes, however: unlike it's metallic cousins, ropes will absorb and hold moisture from your gym brethren, so be sure to wash your hands immediately after your workout to leave the fungus at the gym!

Cross Training Ideal Summer Diversion

The dog days of summer are officially with us! Daylight that starts early and ends late. Clouds do their best to shelter us from the burning sun above, but are only marginally successful, because when the sun pokes through, it's hot, hot, hot!

For whatever reason, it's just really hard to get the body going in these conditions. Whether it's the heat and or the humidity, it's simply not inspiring weather to crank up the intensity ... or easily extend your workout.

So, now is a perfect time to introduce or better incorporate some cross training into your regular exercise patterns.

If you're like a lot of folks, you've got a good routine well established: strength train 3 or 4 days per week; 2 or 3 moderate cardio days; and a long slow cardio event on the weekend.

It's all good. Actually, that's terrific! Because if you've found a way to get that much exercise into your life you're well on your way to accomplishing anything you'd like to achieve with your fitness program. And your life. You're approaching Fitness Fung Shui!

But with the summer doldrums settling in, now's a good time to break out of this groove a bit. And some cross training is the perfect solution!

For starters, new exercises elevate the body's nervous state. A lot of energy is spent sending electrical impulses around your body. And when you perform a foreign exercise, your body is in a heightened state of alertness, generating even more electricity. As a result, you'll burn more calories simply by trying some new exercises.

Additionally, if you've been in the 'groove' for a while, you'll hit a wall after not too long. The body adapts to the exercises, becomes fit, and then finds the routine merely ... well, routine! You don't need (and shouldn't) go to extremes to alter your exercise program, but you should change it somewhat significantly at least every 6 weeks. Fitness professionals call this periodization. And without going into the science of adaption, just recognize that a bit of cross training can be tremendously helpful with your program.

Finally, no matter how gentle you are with your joints, and no matter how careful you are to hydrate and stretch, if you're into your middle aged years, overuse of specific body motions can introduce pains, strains, and injury. Repetitive stress can set in. Sometimes it's diagnosed as tendinitis.

Using new or foreign exercises allows highly used muscles and joints to recover a bit while others are utilized. And this is the greatest benefit to cross training.

Here, then, are some specific cross training ideas:

• For cyclists, it means running a bit
• Run Some Hills
• Run some Sprints
• Get in some Extra Resistance work
  
• For runners it means ...
• a bit of swimming
• or some Extra Resistance work
• Ride Your Bike
  
• For folks on the FT program, where we completely handle your program periodization, it primarily means changing up your long, slow cardio event.
• Other Fun Ways to add some cross training to your program:
• Kayak for a morning, afternoon, or evening
  
• Go for a day hike (run?) in the woods
• Run on a sandy beach
  
• Rollerblade out on of our great bike paths
  
• Rollerski ... but get some instruction 1st ... some skills are needed
  
• Swim, then swim harder or longer
  
• Do some Rock Climbing
• Join a league and play volleyball, soccer, hockey, or lacrosse once a week
  

Get Fit in Just 6 Minutes a Week!

And get a PhD in just 2 weeks! Or getting filthy rich in 6 months with your part time, home based business! Is it human nature, or just American to be so drawn to the super shortcut?

To wit, new buzz around the 6 minute workout is with us again. Last month, The New York Times Health section published an article on getting fit with only a few, short, but very high intensity workouts per week. Studies in Japan on rats, and in Canada on humans have found that short, intense bouts of exercise not only achieved comparable fitness levels to subjects who completed much longer, but much less intense exercise. Also ... and here's the kicker ... they also achieved the same endurance benefits!

While encouraging indeed, as the old adage goes, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is.

For starters, the short duration, extremely intensity workout regimen isn't entirely new. Check out Crossfit.com for a peek at some of the zaniest things I've ever seen to create additional physical stress on the body. The principles applied are simple enough: shock and overload the body so that it must adapt. Trainers all over the country do the same thing with their clients, but they do so in a more controlled, safe and moderate way.

Perhaps a military, 20 something body can tolerate, even thrive, on short bouts of extreme overload and shock. However, people new to exercise, and those in their middle or golden years will simply break eventually with that kind of approach!

Don't get me wrong, intense exercise has it's time and place in an overall exercise program, but to use ONLY extremely intense exercise is complete nonsense!

Yes, it's true that when you exercise at extremely intense levels your calorie demands could be as much as 10 times that at a moderate level. And it's also true that that kind of exercise promotes fitness adaption that can only be achieved with those kinds of intensity levels.

But it fails to do many favors for your tendons, joints, and ligaments. Or your skeletal alignment. Tweek your back a bit sprinting up a hill with a 50 pound pack (crossfit.com) ,and you'll develop headaches, sleep poorly, and develop other aches and pains.

More importantly, however, this type of program irresponsibly ignores the numerous and various benefits of complementing that type of intensity with less intense work.

Lower intensity exercise has been proven to help boost the immune system and fight off infection. If you exercise intensely with a viral infection, you'll only prolong the infection, whereas moderate or low intensity exercise can actually help you fight off the bugs.

Additionally, regular, moderate intensity exercise has been shown to help prevent osteoporosis.

Not to mention that high intensity cardiovascular exercise does little to help develop joint strength and stability that can be only developed with sufficient and proper resistance work.

And if that's not enough, you'd also be missing out on the many and varied benefits of 'regular' exercise: Increased Energy Levels; Reduced Stress; Sleeping Better; Better Sex; Eating Healthy, Avoidance of Depression; Reduction in the Risk of Developing Heart Disease and many Cancers; and on and on and on.

Again, it belongs in an overall fitness program, but simply can't stand alone.

Top 10 Healthy Summer Vacation Tips

Summer's here and it's easy to miss or avoid exercise while on 'vacation.'

Just remember though, that your metabolism NEVER quits, and all of those extra calories looking back at you will either be converted into heat through exercise, or land smack on your backside. If you have a lot of driving to do, your total calorie requirements for the day could go down by as much as 50%!

Here then are my top 10 tips for maintaining good health and fitness while planning and taking a vacation.

1. Plan Active Vacations that include hiking, cycling or backpacking. Instead of yet another year inside an air conditioned museum, hike the canyons, paddle the boundary waters, or backpack a national park.
2. Discuss Exercise with your traveling partner(s) before you hit the road. Which cities and parks will offer exercise opportunities. Plan for exercising at least half of the days you travel.
   
3. See sights in new cities by cycling. You'll avoid a lot of auto traffic and get healthier in the process. Bike shops everywhere will rent bikes, and have tips and maps for safe riding in urban areas. Better yet, get a bike rack and take your own bike with you! Stow it in your room at night if you don't have a great rack locking system. Trek, Lance, and I Believe in Bikes.
4. If you can't bike, then walk. And don't skip the stairs!
5. Pack active and exercise attire accordingly. At the very least, pack a pair of running shoes! But it's also pretty easy to pack a small gym bag. You're a lot less likely to exercise if you don't have proper attire!
   
6. Get a Healthy Breakfast Every day. Plan for a clean, high protein breakfast to start your day night. Hard boiled egg whites; skim milk; low/non-fat cottage cheese; yogurt. A good protein meal should carry you well into the afternoon.
   
7. Avoid deep fat fried foods. This tip goes for always, but especially if you're traveling, you may be spending half of the calories you would otherwise spend on a normal day, and can NOT afford the extra, heart clogging calories while sedentary.
8. Eat Clean while in the car. If you're on a road trip impose and enforce a Healthy Foods Only Rule: water, fruit, nuts, and jerky are reasonably healthy and relatively low calorie. My favorite convenience store on earth is Kwik Trip. They have cheap bananas, fresh fruit, sweet baby carrots, and great tasting skim milk.
   
9. Exercise First. If your day includes a planned exercise event, do it first thing in the morning so that all of the uncertainty of travel won't get in the way of your workout later in the day. Plus, touring can be draining and dehydrating; you'll feel less motivated later in the day.
   
10. Carry your bag or pull a cart if you golf. You'll spend almost 3 times as many calories as you would if you dump your butt into a rider.

Oh, and here's a bonus tip! (guess that's 11)

1. Stretch. And then stretch some more. I am always shocked at how out of place I look when stretching at highway waysides. EVERYONE should be stretching there. Warm up a bit first with a brisk 5 minute walk, then stretch every muscle group you can find ... then stretch it again!

Eight Simple Summer Fitness Tips

I have to believe that world calamity and global economic stress have a lot to do with it, but there's been a distinct theme within a few of the commencement speeches I've tuned in to over the past few days: appreciate life; it's the only one (of this sort) you get! And so, with all of the elaboration around simplicity, it occurred to me that a few simple, basic fitness tips would be in order this week.

Indeed, every once in a while it makes good sense to simply remind ourselves of a few of the most basic things that you can do to enrich your life and enhance your lifestyle. So, here are my Eight Simple Summer Fitness Tips ...

1. Lift Weights two to four times per week. As described in detail a few weeks ago, increased lean body mass increases your metabolism which significantly increases your calorie burn. Load bearing exercise also helps prevent osteoporosis ... a threat to both men and women.

2. Move More. Use the spread office suggestions from my January blog. Cut your own grass. Walk your own dog. Walk down the hallway to check with a colleague instead of phoning her. Park in remote areas of every parking lot you park in. Use the stairs. All of these simple, additional body movements add up quickly in the long run.

3. Ride your bike to work at least once weekly. Check our May blog to begin your new commuting life style. You'll look better, feel better, be healthier, and reduce your cabon footprint all at once!

4. Eat Clean. The June issue of The American Journal of Medicine reports that Americans eating 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables daily has gone from 42% in 1988 to 26% in 2006. One thing is for sure: if you don't buy them, you won't eat them, so be sure to spend at least 25% of your total grocery shopping experience in the produce section!

5. Eat Smart. Smaller meals digest better than larger ones. And they help keep your stomach smaller. Don't eat big meals before bed time. Do eat breakfast every day. Don't get crazy on the carbohydrates, and limit or eliminate highly saturated fat content foods from your diet.

6. Get enough rest each day. Proper rest assists with recovery from exercise. It also effects your job performance, and is critical to regulating insulin. Researchers have also found that proper rest can reduce your risk of developing cancer.

7. Stretch Daily. Certainly, you can do yoga to improve your flexibility, but a simple home stretching regimen is plenty sufficient for most people. More important than anything else is that you build a mere 10 to 15 minutes of stretching into your day.

8. Hydrate. Develop the habit of carrying a water bottle with you where ever you go. Drinking plenty of water helps you digest food better, increases muscle and joint flexibility, and helps keep your breath fresh!

But if this all seems like a lot of simple tips, and therefore, no longer simple at all, here's a bonus tip ...

9. Make incremental adjustments. Changing habits takes time, effort, and determination. Rather than attempting to tackle all 8 of these tips tomorrow, pick and seriously focus on just one for each of the next 8 weeks.

10 Things you Need to Know Before Hiring a Personal Trainer

A good friend of mine from decades gone by shot me an email from California a few weeks ago. A mutual friend from the same era was about to turn 50, is desperately overweight, and a group of his friends are chipping in on a Personal Trainer for him. Any recommendations?

As it turns out, all of the folks in the industry I did once know in the Bay Area were either no longer in the industry, or had moved. So, I really didn't have a recommendation. But I had plenty of suggestions about how to get started, and quickly realized that finding the right trainer isn't entirely straightforward. In fact, it was downright complicated, confusing, and 'noisy.'

So, here then are my top 10 Tips for Finding the Right Personal Trainer.

1. There is no licensing requirement in most states. Unlike chiropractors, nutritional consultants, and massage therapists, Personal Training does not require licensing. It's been suggested that states require licensing for the entire 25 years I've been in the industry, but it never seems to find any traction. In fact, you don't need a degree, nor do you really even need a certification to operate as a Personal Trainer. You yourself, in fact, could call yourself a Personal Trainer and no one with any authority could force you to drop the declaration. While all of our trainers do have degrees from 4 year programs in exercise science related fields, and it does in fact make them better trainers, some trainers get along just fine with practical experience and energy. Simply recognize that without formal kinesiology and physiology training, you do assume higher risk of injury.

2. That said, most Personal Trainers will at the least boast certifications. And what a mess! You'll see ACE, AFPT, NSCA, ASCM, and UBYA along with dozens, perhaps hundreds, of others. It's a verifiable alphabet soup out there, and unless you're actually in the industry, you really wouldn't know the difference between a B6T from CYA and an Advanced Certification from NTSE. I've personally completed a few myself, see them daily on applications from trainers, and even I get confused! Some certifications, like NSCA an ASCM are very technical and difficult to obtain. Others are web based and can be completed with just a few hours on the internet! And even then, authenticating the certificate will be a challenge. So, you'll need to do some research and don't be shy about directly requesting a copy of your potential trainer's certification. If certifications are all your trainer carries for credentials (unlike an actual degree), be sure to go online and look at the curricula. Oh, and be sure to ask about the currency of their CPR certification.

3. Nutritional Education is normally not part of most programs. In fact, even the degreed programs our staff has completed are light on nutritional education. And trainers will be all over the map on nutritional advice. Be extremely cautious if your trainer-to-be spends a lot of time pitching supplements. First, many states, Minnesota included, prohibit the 'prescription' of diet unless you are a licensed nutritionist. But a lot of trainers make significantly more profit from pushing and selling supplements than they do from training. If you find your trainer recommending more than a single supplement per day, or a month's supply of pre and post workout supplementation, your best bet is to simply walk away.

4. Training women is much different than training men. I've run into a lot of male bodybuilders over the years who make Personal Training their profession. Highly accomplished themselves, a lot of these guys know a great deal about training young male athletes, and are quite good at it. But it takes an entirely different type of training, and an entirely different style of personal interaction to work with women, children, seniors, or special needs clients. Training an athletic, healthy 20 -something is much, much, much different than training a 50 something woman who hasn't done much exercise in the past 20 years! Make sure that the trainer you interview has experience and positive results with someone just like you!

5. Personal and Professional Boundaries vary significantly. Dating your personal trainer is completely unprofessional. We had a trainer on staff a few years ago who came in with a fresh haircut. He looked good with it, and I told him so! He responded that he "...had just learned that most personal training clients fantasize about their trainer, and that if our clients were going to fantasize about him he at least wanted to look good!" Honestly, I can't confirm the statistic. And I don't know why clients sometimes tell us the things they tell us ... we're really not psychologists! But with regular, close contact, and regular (sometimes overly) personal conversations, the illusion of a friendship sometimes surfaces. However, if your Personal Trainer is a true professional, dating ... and even casual fraternization ... is completely over the line. A true Personal Training Professional begins and ends his relationship with you with your training session. Directly ask your personal training candidate what her policy is on dating clients.

6. Scheduling issues are likely to exist. Anyone who's worth training with is going to be busy enough to be at least slightly unavailable to train you at your preferred time. At least initially. For FT MSP, we normally wedge the 1st few weeks of training into a mutually acceptable, but awkward schedule for new clients. Over time, things eventually converge to at least mostly acceptable for the client. As you might expect though, before and after work hot spots will always be on the schedule. Be sure to check your would be trainer's schedule for the next few weeks before writing your check.

7. Turnover is extremely high in this industry. Due primarily to the lack of parental guidance mentioned above, Personal Training is an extremely high turnover industry. One statistic recently showed an average trainer turnover of about 6 months. Because, like you, I need to get out of my office to exercise, I personally see this kind of turnover all the time at the big boxes where I exercise. Very few trainers work independently these days. Most are employed by and paid through their fitness facility. When they leave, any unused sessions they still owe you will likely get brokered to other trainers in the facility. This could be good (perhaps even great!), or bad, but you need to ask about turnover and session transferability should your training candidate move on. And what if the trainer you hire simply doesn't work for you? Personality friction sometimes exists. If a few sessions go poorly, can your unused sessions be trained by a colleague? Or sister facility across town?

8. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Anyone who promises you that you'll loose 25# in the next 25 days is selling snake oil. Oh, it can in fact be done, but it won't be safe, and it won't be permanent. If your ultimate objective is to incorporate safe, permanent, positive changes into your life, be sure that your trainer understands that. Be sure that you're clear about your goals, and don't let your don't let your trainer change them into dreams. In fact, one of the most unfortunate consequences of how most trainers are now employed is that those that do well in the big box gyms do so primarily because they can sell better than other trainers. And one of the reasons for why turnover is as high as it is is because thousands of highly skilled, enthusiastic, would-be exercise professionals are horrible at selling. It is truly tragic that schools are churning out skilled exercise professionals, and the 1st thing their employer asks them to do is become a salesperson! So, if it starts to feel like you're being 'sold' something from your potential trainer, chances are that she's better at selling than she might be at training. If you're not answering a lot of questions, but are instead listening to a lot of promises, you're talking to the wrong person.

9. Do the research. I like to compare hiring a trainer to hiring an orthodontist. If you don't have teenagers, this won't make complete sense, but a trainer, like an orthodontist is someone who ...

1. You will see very frequently and need to at least like a little bit;
   
2. Needs to have acceptable availability with your schedule;
   
3. Is reasonably easy to get to several times per week. You don't want to be stuck in traffic for 40 minutes just getting to your trainer. You'll be late frequently, and you'll also come to dread the event, which will eventually reduce your attendance, which makes reaching your goals nearly impossible; and, finally ...
   
4. Needs to have proven results for patients with your specific background and goals

So, be sure to ask for and call several references. Make sure that those references are like you. Ask them about scheduling, results, nutritional advice, and socialization policies. Ask, as well about basic things like personal hygiene. Are they always cleanly shaven, with fresh breath, and without body odor? This might seem like it's getting a bit too personal, but I can assure you, you don't want a trainer in your face with bad breath or body odor. And very, very few people will actually volunteer that her trainer has BO unless you specifically ask them.

10. Find out who the boss is. Who do you turn to if your trainer crosses that personal/professional boundary. To whom is your potential trainer eventually accountable? What is the background of the guy in charge? How long has she been in business? And what about their professional network: what professional and business associations do they belong to? What is their presence in the community like? What is their wellness sphere of influence like? Do they work with and have strong relationships with other wellness professionals in massage therapy, chiropractic care and nutrition. A quick google of the boss' name can give you a lot of information!

Preventing Osteoporosis with Your Long Slow Cardio Event

Osteoporosis is a bone degenerating disease that leads to potentially dangerous (even deadly) bone fractures. Commonly discussed as a risk area for aging women, if you're thinking that this problem is just for the girls, think again! Recent research at the University of Wisconsin shows, that while "While a 50-year-old woman faces a lifetime risk of 50% for an osteoporotic fracture, anywhere from one in eight to one in four 50-year-old men face that risk."

Further, the complication and death rates for men are higher than for women.

But wouldn't you know it ... one of the best ways to avoid osteoporosis is to maintain a regular resistance program! If you're not regularly exercising, we can certainly help you with that. Additionally, now that we're basking in 15+ hours of daylight, your long slow cardio event can help there too!

Because if you're following our prescribed cardiovascular programming recommendations your weekly cardio efforts will include:

1. One short duration, high intensity event (SDHI)
   
2. Two moderate duration, moderate intensity events (MDMD)
   
3. One long duration, low intensity event (LDLI)
   

Sundays, early mornings, and late evenings are perfect times to get out and complete that Long Duration, Low Intensity (LDLI) event.

But just what, exactly, is Long Duration? And Low Intensity?

Generally, you'll want the long duration, low exercise event to be measured in hours, preferably closer to 2 or 3. But it shouldn't feel exhausting.

You'll want to pick up your heart rate just a bit, but not so much that you're really challenging your circulatory or respiratory systems. The increased blood flow provides much needed nutrient rich blood to your muscles, bones, and joints.

Under the stress of more intense exercise (resistance or cardio), muscle fibers, tendons, and ligaments all get damaged a bit. This is by design, as the rebuilding/recovery that follows makes them stronger, longer, or leaner. It also increases bone density, which is why it's particularly effective in avoiding osteoporosis.

Additionally, conversion of energy sources to energy produces a toxic waste product called lactic acid during exercise. The more intense you exercise, the more lactic acid you produce. This waste product is the primary reason why you may feel sore after resistance exercise: your body doesn't like the lactic acid hanging around muscle groups. Stretching can help help eliminate lactic acid buildup, but we mostly depend on the circulatory system to flush it out.

Your LDLI then, provides an important niche role in assisting with your recovery: upside nutrition for your recovering tissues, and increased blood flow to remove lactic acid waste product.

If you have a heart rate monitor we can tell you exactly what range to be in for this exercise.

Or ...

• You can enroll in our Targeted Cardio Program and get one for free!;
  
• You can use the perceived exertion scale;
  
• You can use this handy minute rule tip from RealAge.com.

But before you start thinking "... hey, I'll just do that daily then ..." , do recognize that this only has practical value within a comprehensive program that includes prescribed resistance training as well as more intense bouts of cardio work. It's part of the puzzle, but a lost puzzle piece by itself.

Exactly what you do for your Weekly LDLI will depend enormously on your current fitness level, but here are a few suggestions.

Walk. The lakes, the rivers, and the bridges all have excellent separation from traffic. And the intensity of a brisk walk is exactly in the right range for LDLI exercise. Again, check this handy tip from RealAge to gauge intensity.

Nordic Walk. If you want to do even than better than just walking, start nordic walking. Long popular with the skiers for summertime training, nordic walking has a leg up on just plain walking in that with the use of hiking poles you:

• Engage your entire body in the exercise
• Improve Core Strength and Stability (lower back and abdominals)
  
• Increase Shoulder and Arm muscular endurance
• Improve the safety and stability of your walk, especially for geriatrics

... thereby burning an additional 45% more calories than with walking alone!!!

You can stick to the urban trails, or get onto the many city and county park hiking trails (Hennepin County Parks, Ramsey County Parks). You can get your hiking poles at REI, or one of the many area cross county shops: Finn Sisu in St. Paul, or Gear West in Long Lake.

Ride your Bike. Check out my May 7th blog entry on commuting by bike to work!