Cardio Favorites 2

My other favorite cardio exercise is swimming.  I have said, semi-seriously, more than once, that my personal aromatherapy scents are chlorine and sunscreen and maybe a hint of grape soda because those are the smells of my childhood summers.

Swimming is a great cardio exercise for a bunch of reasons.  It’s not an impact sport, so it’s easy on the joints.  The water provides resistance, so it’s a good amount of work.  The work is in water, natch, so there isn’t that uncomfortable sweaty feeling.

 

There’s a funny thing about swimming for me.  I am not a particularly great swimmer.  I couldn’t do a flip turn to save my life and I have never met a pair of goggles that I like.  What’s great is that it doesn’t really matter.  I get a perfectly good workout and I have a fabulous time.  Over time, I am improving, but I don’t have any Big Goals about swimming, except not drowning.

 

Go play.

Cardio Favorites 1

For years, August has been, to be polite, not my favorite month.  I have learned not to plan to get anything in particular done during August.  This year, my coping strategy is:  lean into my favorite things.  All month, I’ll be highlighting my favorite fitness things!

This week, I’m starting with my favorite cardio exercises because there really is nothing better for lifting mood than getting in some heart-pounding work.

 

My very favorite cardio comes from bikes.  There is no quicker way to make me feel like an ecstatic nine-year-old than to pop me on a bike.  I like the kind of work I do when I ride, I like getting outside, I like zooming around.

 

When it is dark or wet, I have my spin bike, which is nearly as good.  The scenery isn’t much, but I have good music and a distinct lack of excuses to get going.

 

What’s your very favorite?  (More of mine tomorrow!)

Monday Workout: Upper and Core

One of the things we’re working on this week is weight bearing on the upper body.  For bonus points, all the exercises that work on that also work on our core strength.  Three rounds.

 

step touch	30
renegade rows	20
hip rotations	10
step ups	30
good morning/deadlift	20
diamond pushup	10
woodchoppers	30
skullcrushers	20
plank up down	10

  

Thursday List: 8

More possible interdependencies to explore:

 

1.     Yoga and stress reduction

2.     Cardio exercise and anxiety management

3.     Exercise/movement and general mental health

4.     Outdoor time/movement/sun exposure

5.     Hydration and mood

6.     Sleep and performance

7.     Pilates and balance work

8.     Social interaction and movement

Interdependence: Work, rest, eat

Workouts, as we know, don’t occur in a vacuum.  It’s hard to breathe there.  (Sorry/not sorry for the joke.)  Our workouts are part of the larger picture of our lives.

This means that we can’t just keep working out more and more.  We may try to do that and we find that it doesn’t end well.  We get frustrated because we’re working so hard and we’re not getting the results we want.

 

Workouts require the support of adequate rest and good nutrition.  If we’re not sleeping and we’re living on sugar and caffeine, we’re not going to sustain a healthy workout load.  We need all the pieces of the puzzle.

 

So:  eat well, sleep well, work enough to get tired and hungry.

Interdependence: Pilates and weights

One way that interdependence plays out in workouts is in the synergy between weight training and Pilates.

As everyone knows, I offer both personal training and Pilates.  When asked which one someone should do, I usually say that both are good, and not because I want more business.  Both are good, and they’re better together.

 

Here’s why.  Weight training increases our strength.  It’s where we build lean body mass, encourage our metabolism, and acquire what we think of as “tone.”  Those are all good things.  However, if we want the most benefit from the work we do with weights, we need to hone our form.

 

This is where Pilates is so beneficial.  In Pilates, we train our proprioception (five dollar word for “knowing where our bodies are in space”).  We work on our alignment.  We challenge our stabilizing muscles.  We open up both our range of motion and our control of that range.  When we apply our Pilates skills in our weight training context, we get better results.

 

Conversely, when we bring our strength to Pilates, we open up more of the repertoire.  We can tackle some of the challenging exercises without worrying that our basic strength isn’t up to them.

 

All that said, some of us do better starting with one or the other.  If you want guidance, you know where to find me.

Monday Workout: Extra

End of the month means extra challenge!  We’ve got a little of everything in this workout:  balance, cardio challenge, lateral movement, stability work, and, of course, weights.  Four rounds.

 

1 min cardio
Bulgarian split squat	30
flies	20
Arnold press	10
squat raise/tick tock	30
bench press	20
windscreen wipers	10