Fit for Life…Everyday Exercise 2 of 10

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PUSH-UPS! This is the second exercise of ten in the functional fitness series. Remember a functional exercise will engage your body in multiple planes of movement (front/back, side/side, rotational, etc.) or engage multiple joints at one time during the course of the given exercise.

During the push-up exercise several muscle groups in the chest, arms, forearms, shoulders, triceps, back, and neck work simultaneously. And because push-ups are performed in a prone, front leaning position, they also help develop core and shoulder stabilizing strength which aids in good posture.

push_up_progression

The above graphic illustrates the body position progressions for the push up exercise. For the standing push up, moving the legs further away from the wall will make the push up more difficult. After the wall push up, the next transition would be to a table or counter height push-up. When performing the last two push ups variations (knee and classic), make sure the wrists are directly below the shoulder joints.

How To Progress: You should be able to complete 2-3 sets of 8 to 12 repetitions of each push-up variation before progressing onward to the next level of difficulty. Instructions for performing a push-up in the classic position follow below. Use those guidelines to adjust and modify your hand and feet positions for all push-up progressions (wall, counter, knees, toes).

For the classic push-up, start on your hands and knees, with hands a little wider than shoulder-width apart. You may angle your hands to accommodate a position that feels best for your wrists. Knees can be spread from hip to shoulder-width apart; find a position that feels comfortable for you, engage your core and butt muscles and raise yourself up to a high-plank position. The closer your feet are together, the more challenging the exercise will be.

Your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles; no sagging or piking at the hip. You will use your core strength to maintain this body position throughout the downward and upward phase of the exercise. As you lower your body down towards the ground, make sure that you achieve at least a 90-degree angle at your elbows; lowering your chest to the ground will increase the intensity of the exercise. Pause for a moment in the downward position before pushing yourself back up into the starting position.

Once you master the basic push-up, you’ll be ready to add some variety to this exercise. Here’s a brief list of the different types of push-ups you can perform to further strengthen and challenge you:

  • Narrow (diamond) push-up
  • Single leg push-up
  • Spiderman push-up
  • Staggered push-up
  • Decline push-up
  • T push-up
  • Push-up to Forearm Plank to push-up

If you would like explanations or pictures for the push-up variations, just attach your comments or questions to this post. Functional fitness exercise number 3 of 10 will be posted mid-week. In the meantime…drop and give me 10!

There are no shortcuts when it comes to fitness. You have to make an investment and stay committed. Lifelong changes are a series of daily commitments strung together. You must recommit every day and stick with it for the long haul. Exercise is work, and sweat is the sign that you are working. (The Athlete’s Way ~ Christopher Bergland)

The Long View & Baby Steps

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Fit for Life…Everyday Exercise 1 of 10

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SQUATS! This move is at the top of my list because it accomplishes so much for us by targeting the major (largest) muscles of the lower body together with multiple joints (hips, knees, ankles). The core (abdominals, spine and obliques) is also activated and as such this exercise helps enhance balance.

How To: The basic squat begins by standing tall with your feet hip-width distance apart, shoulders relaxed and head held high. Look straight ahead to keep your neck in line with the rest of your spine. Hold your arms straight out in front of you (this is best if you need extra balance) or place your hands on your hips. When you’re ready, keep your core tight and maintain a neutral spine as you slowly squat down (as if you were about to sit in a chair behind you). Be sure to keep your heels firmly planted on the ground and to keep your torso upright. Pause for a beat before slowly returning to the starting position. Repeat for 8 to 12 repetitions.

body-weight-squat

Add 1 or 2 repetitions to your daily squat routine; when you can complete 3 sets of  squats (12 repetitions each set), then you are ready to add some variation to your routine. I’ll list a few options below.

  • Prisoner Squat (with hands held behind head)
  • Plié squat
  • Curtsy squat
  • Squat jump
  • Squat jack
  • Squat with side kick
  • Split squat (also known as a lunge)

If you would like explanations or pictures for the squat variations, just attach your comments or questions to this post. Functional fitness exercise number 2 of 10 will be posted soon…in the meantime, keeping squatting!

Fit for Life…A Functional Exercise Plan (A Series of 10)

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In recent years, ‘functional fitness’ has become a buzz word in the fitness industry to sell and package a wide array of exercise programs to potential training clients. Whether sports specific or generalized training is sold, functional fitness terminology is used so frequently that it often means different things to different populations.

For purposes of my Fit for Life Series, I define functional fitness (exercise) as a strength training plan which involves performing work against resistance (preferably body weight resistance) in such a manner that the improvements in strength directly enhance the performance of movements found in those activities of daily living. Yet, before I continue with a discussion of functional fitness, I would first like to define the dual components of fitness.

The health related  components of fitness measure an individual’s cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility and body composition (% fat vs. lean tissue). The skill related components of fitness rate an individual’s agility, coordination, balance, power, reaction time and speed.

Used in this context, a functional, Fit for Life, exercise plan would train your body for life, rather than for a specific sport or for a certain aesthetic appearance. This type of training is especially helpful for older adults because it addresses muscle imbalances and asymmetries, and it addresses improvements (strength, flexibility) for the ways we move  throughout our daily activities.

There are five basic movement patterns that we use in everyday life:

1. Bend-and-lift movements. In the gym we call it squatting, in everyday life it’s getting in and out of a chair or squatting down to lift a bag of groceries from the floor. Bend and lift movements require strength in the glutes, quads, and hamstrings, but also plenty of stability in the core, and flexibility in the knees and ankles.

2. Single-leg movements. You’ll often train single leg movements in the gym with a variety of lunging movements. In real life, single-leg movements are called for when you walk, when you climb or descend stairs, or when you bend and reach forward on one leg to get something from the floor. Like the bend-and-lift movements, single-leg movements require combined strength, stability and flexibility with an added element of balance over a changing center of gravity.

3. Pushing movements. Pushing movements typically involve your upper body pushing forward (opening a store door) pushing overhead (putting an object on a high shelf) or pushing to the side (lifting your torso from a side-lying position). In your workout you can train for pushing movements with pushups, overhead presses or side planks.

4. Pulling movements. Pulling movements in your activities of daily living might include pulling the car door shut, pulling the sheets down from the top shelf of the linen closet, or pulling your suitcase off the floor. In your workouts you’ll train for pulling movements by developing core stability, strength in your back and shoulders, stability in your shoulder blades and flexibility in your shoulders.

5. Rotational movements. Your thoracic spine rotates with every step you take and any time you swing a golf club or tennis racket. Any time you reach across your body or twist through the spine, you’re engaging in a rotational movement. This complex movement pattern requires a great deal of core stability and strength to support the spine during the rotational motion.

Over the next few weeks, I will post ten articles. Each article will fully describe and illustrate the activities I believe are the best exercises to perform each day to improve fitness and function for life.

My next blog entry will describe the basic squat exercise with options for various progressions as improvements in strength are realized. I look forward to sharing my thoughts and these training tips with you, my blog reader in the days ahead; I invite your comments and questions should you desire to engage in a conversation on this topic.

Paradoxically, it’s the emptiness of things that lets us glimpse their full capacity. Most musical instruments are hollowed out, because if they weren’t, there would be no music. Guitars are hollowed out. String instruments are hollowed out. Drums are hollowed out. Reed instruments are hollowed out. This is a great example of the necessity of emptiness in order to make music. It’s true with our lives. Each of us is an instrument that experience hollows out in order to have our souls release their song.
(The Endless Practice ~ Mark Nepo)

Of Music and Paradox

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Beginning Again…Mindful Transformation

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Transformation: change in form, appearance, nature, or character.
A form resulting from any such change; a metamorphosis.

With the advent of the autumn season, my senses are on full alert. This is my favorite time of year, when the cooler daytime temps move in synchrony with the shortening day light hours. These autumn days are greatly anticipated after the intensity of the summer season in the southwestern desert. And yet there is always a foreshadowing sadness with the arrival of the shortening days; because what comes with all the exterior, seasonal changes, naturally motivates me to move inward ~ physically and emotionally; to curtail outdoor activities in favor of indoor pursuits. This prompting, this inward wrapping around and into, seems to be preparing all creatures, great and small, for the coming season of rest and renewal. The crispness of the air on the wind foretells that wintertide is near.

I well know this pull towards the interior; it comes naturally to me, an introvert by nature; and like all introverts, I flourish in the solitary, inward pursuits of the mind and body. So even though I highly favor this season, with its inward draw, I struggle with this transition more than any other time of year. This is the time of year when the holidays and celebrations typically require an outward extension: into our families…into our communities…into our finances…into excesses of every kind it seems. I think perhaps this is why I often struggle to transition happily into the wintertime, because it so often brings requirements to expand, to get outside of myself.  That is not a comfortable ‘transformation’ for this introvert to make.

The journey of living requires us not just to understand, but to enter. Transformation begins when we stop watching.
The Endless Practice ~ Mark Nepo

But what does comfort have to do with growth and change and transformation? Nothing! Comfort has nothing to do or associate with change! Maybe this is why I feel compelled to write about this time of year so that I may remind myself to stay vigilant…especially in regards to my interior, to stay open and not closed down. I want to remind myself to stay on guard, to be aware of those situations, and those stressors, which may trigger me to excuse myself from the very opportunities which could trigger growth and renewal.

I have a hunch that I am not alone in this end-of-year struggle. It seems that once the days grow cooler and shorter, the desire to huddle and linger indoors is as natural as the changing colors of autumn leaves. And the activities that center and quiet me…the walks and runs out of doors, become more challenging to keep on my calendar. As a personal trainer, I have noticed that many of my clients likewise struggle to keep their health and fitness goals on track during this season. Surely there must be a better way to transition into year’s end, especially if we have positively progressed in the months leading up to this juncture.

“To strengthen what is possible, we can imagine and spend equal time with what might go right as with what might go wrong.” Mark Nepo

But is it possible or even reasonable to actually plan, and act, and expect that this year could end on a positive note rather than on a negative, back sliding one? Or is that just wishful thinking? No, this season can be different; but I recognize that it must begin with an intention; my intention; my over-arching purposeful act to make a change. I will begin again by entering…via this record…my intention to depart from the habitual ‘turning in’ (closing down) and instead use that habit to prompt myself to open outward, to soften. Even as I write these words I can hear that other voice within, full of complaint and denunciation. I have struck a chord, I must be on the right track!

Yes, it is my privilege to choose what I will believe and hold as truth; And I believe that what I think, ultimately propels me in one direction or another. My beliefs have the power to alter (transform) my behaviors and actions. So begin again, I will; it only requires a disposition and a readiness to move, to activate:  body…mind…spirit.

Hop To It!

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As a personal trainer, I’m often reminding my clients of the importance and value of continued resistance training through their 6th, 7th and 8th decades. For those folks who run into these later decades, leg strength and power can be maintained and even increased with regular weight training and agility exercises. This fact has been examined and proven over and again in many controlled scientific studies with aging athletes.

It’s a running fact of life: Runners get slower as they get older. But a new report suggests that strengthening the ankles and calves could help aging runners stave off the slowdown. (Runner’s World)

I like to keep things simple for my clients because they have busy lives, and adding a heavy physical training schedule to their to-list is not an effective way for them to maintain their physical fitness. This is why I am a BIG fan of incorporating jump rope sessions into all my clients’ training programs.

For runner’s especially, jump rope provides an opportunity to improve one’s aerobic endurance, coordination, balance and lower leg strength. Jumping rope is the ultimate full body work out. In 10 minutes, a jump rope session can torch 100 calories, more or less. So pick up your jump rope and get started today. If it’s been awhile since you’ve jumped rope, you probably won’t be able to jump continuously for 10 minutes; but don’t let that deter you. If you’ll keep at it, you’ll be able to add another minute or two to your hops and skips in short order.

Consider the graphic below which illustrates the full body work out you gain while jumping rope. Without reserve, I can make this promise to you just like I do with my clients, if you’ll jump rope three or four times a week for 10 minutes at a time, I promise you that within 1 to 3 weeks, you’ll notice improved gains in your stamina, power, speed, and agility. So what are you waiting for? Hop to it and enjoy stronger lungs and legs!

jump_rope

 

My Privilege?

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privilege: a right, immunity, or benefit enjoyed only by a person beyond the advantages of most; an advantage or source of pleasure granted to a person.

This morning’s meditative reading had me reflecting on what it means to be privileged. Long before the sun rose today, I was deep in contemplative thought, and surprised that I do not often think of myself as privileged. Namely, that it is my privilege to love Jesus. I can’t recall actually cataloging this honor as a right of mine, though I know this is truth for me to my very core:

It is a privilege to love Jesus. It is the best experience in life! Do we take the time to tell Him so? Do we express with words the beauty of our Savior?  If we show His beauty with our lives, others will say, no wonder you love him! (Our Daily Bread, Keila Ochoa)

Imagine my surprise then when I proceeded to my next reading for the day (Morning and Evening ~ Charles Spurgeon) which began: “What a state of privilege!” This reading  thereafter expounded on the wonder-filled benefits bestowed to all who believe in Jesus. It is too wonderful for me to think that we, as created beings, have become, through our Creator, objects of Divine delight!

Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son. (THE MESSAGE) Ephesians 1:4-6

So often when I hear the word ‘privilege’ I associate it with negative connotations. Perhaps you do too. But for today at least, I am grateful that my eyes have been opened anew to the great honor and privilege I have been given by the Divine One who lives in me!

How Beautiful by Twila Paris

To the Full

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Have you ever noticed how the universe has a way of getting our attention when it’s time for us to learn a life lesson? How it seems like every other conversation we have, or book we read, or music we hear, or sermon we attend, or movie we watch, there is a recurring theme or word or message seemingly designed solely for us; if only we have ears to hear, eyes to see, and a will to put into action.

My most recent message from the universe has provoked a question, an intrigue, an examining: What does living life ‘To the Full’ look like? on the outside? on the inside? How can I know if I’m living my life to the full?

But then I wonder, is it even possible, to live life each and every day, with such focus, verve, and single-minded application? Conceptually I embrace this maxim one hundred percent! To the full ~ full steam ahead! But in practice it almost seems wearisome and in-humane, like putting one more item on my already over-done to-do list.

You are going to have to give and give and give, or there’s no reason for you to be writing. You have to give from the deepest part of yourself, and you are going to have to go on giving, and the giving is going to have to be its own reward. There is no cosmic importance to your getting something published, but there is in learning to be a giver.
Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird

As I’ve given some thought to this probing question, I’ve had time to consider how others live their lives to the full. And I’ve noticed something about those folks who seem to have overflowing, abundant, successful lives. Whether writers, runners, artists, mothers, fathers, teachers or business professionals: every ‘full’ life requires the giving of oneself…to one’s craft…to one’s multiple roles and responsibilities. Their purposeful repetition is required, EVERY – SINGLE – DAY. A full life cannot wait for fleeting inspirations or soaring energy levels. A full life needs each one of us to show up, with sleeves rolled in expectant anticipation.

Will I journey through my days as a sleep walker? a jaywalker? a bull-dozer? a butterfly?

When I came across the attached photo of the dog seemingly flying through the air, it was then that I realized the ultimate answer to my question: What does it feel like to live to the full? Life lived to the full feels like FREEDOM. Life lived to the full feels like JOY. Life lived to the full feels like OPPORTUNITY.

So, how can I know that I am living to the full, as “someone whose gate has been left open”? First of all, I think a life lived to the full is one in which I engage in meaningful, enjoyable activities, (running, writing, traveling, reading, having fun with family and friends); but I also know that a life lived to the full is spent in giving ourselves away for the sake of others. Because I am someone’s wife, mother, daughter, sister, employer, coach, friend, etc., I am the only one who can ‘show up’ and give my time and attention to those with whom I have relationship.

Living an abundant life means I can live and spend the moments of my life in lavish, giving, extravagance, as though I cannot outspend myself! This is what life is for, it is for the living of it…to the FULL.

And so we must ask ourselves: Are we feeling with our minds? Thinking with our hearts? Making every empathic leap we can? Are we witnesses to the world around us? Are we climbing on the shoulders of those who paved the way for us? Are we using every last bit of ourselves, living these lives of ours, spending it, spending it all, every single day?
Dani Shapiro, Still Writing