How long?

I am making a nuisance of myself to my friends by asking them what they would like to know about fitness.  One friend, and presumably more than one, would like to know how long it takes to get results when we start working on our fitness.

It depends.

 

Which is a crappy answer, but be patient with me for a moment.

 

Some kinds of fitness activities make us feel better basically immediately.  We get a mood burst on the very first day we begin walking.  Most of us will notice a pretty good improvement in our cardio within a week or two assuming we aim for five or six days per week of about half an hour of work.

 

Weight training can take a little longer.  We get faster results if we work two or three times per week than we do if we have one workout per week.  If we’re doing two weight workouts per week, we should notice that we can increase the weights in about a month.  Changes in body size can also occur in that time period, but results will vary depending on what we’re eating.

 

So the slightly nuanced answer is that, with reasonable effort, we will begin to feel better somewhere between right away and in a month.

 

Go play.

Monday Workout: Coordination

This week we’re doing some exercises that challenge our coordination.  Three rounds.

 

step ups	30
renegade rows	20
reverse lunge twist	10
squat raise	30
reverse flies	20
front raise	10
clean and press	30
flies	20
pretty princesses	10

The Amazing Stickie and Split Squat Pulldown

When the Amazing Stickie wants to work on movement integration without going to Pilates, she chooses exercises like the split squat pulldown because lots of body parts have to move in a coordinated fashion.

 

She begins holding light dumbbells overhead, one foot forward and one foot back.  Then she bends both knees and lowers the weights to her shoulder level by bending her elbows.  She returns to the starting position.

Stickie likes to do sets of fifteen on each side. 

Bad Ideas

I talk a lot about reasons to work out.  Today I’m going to talk about reasons not to work out.  (Yes, I believe we are all better when we work out, but why we do it matters.)

It’s a bad idea to work out because someone else thinks you should.  Even me.  When we work out for someone else, we resent the process.  Working out is hard enough as it is.  We don’t need to carry somebody else’s goals for us, too.

 

It’s a bad idea to work out because we think we are inadequate the way we are.  We’re not.  We are worthy human beings whether we do a single rep or not.  People who go to the gym are not better than people who don’t.  When we do go to the gym, we do better if we go because we know we are worthy of care.

 

It’s a bad idea to work out when we are sick or hurt.  Rest is as much a part of health as working out.  Working through pain is just… painful.  There is no virtue badge for doing the work anyway.

 

We can do this.

In and Out

Don’t get me wrong:  I like working out.  Cardio is my favorite mind-altering drug.  I love the feeling of efficacy I get from lifting weights.  My Pilates practice keeps my body actually capable of moving.  I would be an even more stressed human being without my yoga practice.

But.

 

When people tell me about their hours and hours of workouts, I’m not impressed.  I think:  but don’t you have other stuff to get to?  Don’t you have a life?  (I’m not trying to harsh anyone’s happy place.  If the gym is yours, you go!)

 

What impresses me is people who get their workouts done efficiently and effectively.  They don’t screw around with half-baked systems.  They work hard and they go home.

 

Go play.

Monday Workout: Christmas in June

It may be hot outside, but we’re pretending it’s Christmas inside this week.  Here’s how the twelve days of Christmas workout works.  On the first “day” we do one push press.  On day two, we do two goblet squats and one push press.  Day three is three overhead presses, two goblet squats, and one push press.  And so on.  Yes, I do know that this means we will have done 42 burpees before we are done.  Yes, I also know that I’m not really your true love.  Have fun!

 

1 push press

2 goblet squats

3 Overhead press

4 1 leg squats each leg

5 deadlifts

6 burpees

7 pushups

8 renegade rows

9 mountain climbers

10 jump lunges

11 kb swings

12 plyojacks

 

The Amazing Stickie and Skier Jumps

The Amazing Stickie wants to work her abdominals, get some cardio, and get stronger, all at the same time.  So today she is doing skier jumps.  She has no idea what this exercise has to do with skiing.

She begins in plank position.  Then she jumps both feet to the left and back to the right.

 

Sets of 30 are good.