Thursday List: 7

Here are some good starting exercises for weight training:

 

1.     squats

2.     deadlifts

3.     bench press

4.     flies

5.     rows

6.     kickbacks

7.     chest lifts (some folks know these as crunches, but the Pilates way is better!)

Reflect: Strength 2

Those of us who would like to gain some strength will perhaps not be surprised to learn that, like all the other skills we’ve been talking about this month, habit and routine help.

When we’re first starting out, we might want to commit to one weight workout a week.  We’ll see more progress when we increase to two non-consecutive days a week.  Most of us don’t really need more than three weight workouts a week, but that will depend on our goals and on how we structure our workouts.

 

In general, we don’t want to work the same muscle groups two days in a row.  The way strength training works is that we do damage to our muscles when we work them and they heal stronger.  (That’s an oversimplification, but it gets the point across.)  People who want to work out on consecutive days do things like alternate between upper body days and lower body days.

 

The specifics of our workouts will be dictated by our goals (remember:  endurance, hypertrophy, max strength, power), but the mechanics will work similarly.  We will do a number of reps of an exercise at a weight.  We’ll increase the reps until we’ve hit the target for the kind of goal we have, then we’ll increase the weight, reducing the reps back to our starting number.  In short, we’ll alternate increasing reps and weight.

 

A trainer can help plan and track all that data.  You know how to find me!

Reflect: Strength

There are both formal and informal ways to evaluate strength.  (Spoiler alert:  there’s a workout in the last week of the year designed for evaluation!)  Hit me up if you want to talk about getting into the nitty-gritty.

Some of the evaluation of your strength training routine will depend on what your goals are.  There are, very loosely, a few categories of goals:  endurance, which is exactly what it sounds like, hypertrophy, which is a fancy word for building big muscles, max strength, which again is exactly what it sounds like, and power, which is exerting a lot of force in a short period of time.  If the weights you use are getting heavier over time, you’re probably doing fine.

 

Another way to think about how well the workouts are working is to see how our everyday tasks are going.  If schlepping the groceries is not a problem, great!  If you need to move the couch and you can, also great!  Problems lifting the Pekinese?  Maybe not so great.

Monday Workout: 12 Days of Christmas

No, it’s not quite Christmas yet, but just to make sure that everyone gets a chance, we’re doing the 12 days of Christmas workout this week.  It’s tradition, like getting coal in my stocking.  Hmm.  Are those two things related?

Anyway:  here’s how the workout works.  On the first “day” of Christmas, we do one push press.  Hooray!  One down!  On the second day, we do two goblet squats and one push press.  You see where this is going.  By the twelfth day, you will be absolutely sure that I am not your true love, but you will have had a great workout.  And yes, I do know that you will have done 42 burpees by the end.  I’m not sorry.  I got you strength, bragging rights, and fatigue for Christmas.

 

Try to keep rest periods to between the days, but if you can’t, don’t fret.  Now you’re safe until Christmas in June.

 

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

 

Thursday List: 6

Need some balance exercises?  Here are some.  Do both sides.

 

1.     Stand on one foot.

2.     Single leg squat.

3.     Single leg deadlift

4.     Calf raises and single leg calf raises.

5.     One leg dumbbell pass.  Stand on one leg holding a dumbbell.  Pass the dumbbell from hand to hand around your body five times in each direction.  Then change legs.

6.     Do anything on a BOSU, wobble board, or turntable.

Reflect: Balance and Flexibility 2

What do we do if our balance and flexibility are not where we’d like them to be?  Well, we practice.

 

Balance is something we can practice almost anywhere.  It’s a great thing to work on while brushing our teeth or waiting for the microwave.  One of my clients works on her balance waiting in the checkout line at the grocery store (she’s one of my heroes, just sayin’).  First we practice standing on one leg.  Then we try single leg squats.  Calf raises on two legs and then eventually on one leg are also great.  Just be sure when you’re first starting out that there is something available to hang on to if you need it.  Use as little support as you can while still feeling safe.

 

Flexibility is also one of those things that thrives on routine and habit.  A few stretches at the end of a workout help a surprising amount.  If we want more, Pilates is fabulous for gently inducing flexibility, as is yoga (hire your friendly Pilates instructor!).

 

The more we gain these skills, the more we see them percolate holistically (periodic reminder that I am from Berkeley and am allowed to use that word) into our lives. 

Reflect: Balance and Flexibility 1

This week, we’re going to reflect on flexibility and balance.  Today we assess and tomorrow we address.

Flexibility makes life a lot easier, both literally and metaphorically.  (Sometimes a little literal flexibility can help us achieve some metaphorical flexibility too!)  For those of us who do not have osteopenia or osteoporosis, testing flexibility is pretty darn simple:  reach for your toes.  If they’re farther away than they used to be, it’s probably time to work on flexibility.

 

Balance also makes life easier and is also pretty easy to assess.  Stand on one foot.  Now stand on the other one.  How long can you stay there?  (Yes, I know the second foot is harder.  Our bodies like success, so we do the easy side automatically.)

 

These two skills, together, help us react to the unexpected in life.  If there’s anything we can expect, it’s the unexpected.  Flexibility and balance help us bounce back when we suddenly find ourselves walking off a curb we didn’t notice or when we have to dodge a rogue shopping cart in a parking lot.

 

Building them into our routines is 100% worthwhile.