A Little Fitness Humour

Neck Exercises to do at the computer while looking up Olympic Medal Standings and Office Humor

Stop Avoiding Exercise

Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.  ~Edward Stanley

Most of us have avoided exercise for one reason or another at various times. Try to determine why you don't exercise or why you don't keep at it.  Search out simple workout tips that will help you stay on track without having to spend more time, money, or effort on exercise.

Try to clearly understand the benefits of an exercise program and what you are trying to accomplish. Usually,we are more motivated to do things that we'll benefit from. The more we benefit, the more motivated we are.  You will benefit tremendously from consistent exercise. For most of us, that's very motivating!

Your Choice

You can choose to work on your fitness in a facility like this:

or

In a setting like this:

Snow/Frost Feathers

Strength Training

Just love this picture!

Reminds me that we all need to continue to strength train well into our eighties!

New Route Today

We tried a new route today just outside of town. Great weather, company and scenery.

Would highly recommend this route for beginners to intermediate level snowshoers.

Sixth Street Extension

I mentioned earlier that we love to train, walk, and hike on the Escarpment because of the hills, valleys, scenery, and absence of cars. (Our dog loves it, too!)
Without having to run, I am able to get a great aerobic workout which is also low impact. By altering the pace and depending on the length and gradient of the hill anyone can work at their proper level of difficulty.

Today my husband and I decided to walk up the Sixth Street extension which basically goes straight up the Escarpment. It was early in the morning, very cold -15 C, no wind, and the sun was just coming up!

The Walk up the "hill"  or "Mountain took approximately 25 minutes, and about 15 - 20 minutes to come down.

Often we will see deer and wild turkeys on this route.

(Or signs that they have been around recently)

Wild Turkey and deer tracks beside my foot.

What a great way to start the day!!

Strength Training

I just love this picture!

Strength Training

Today I started with my strength training program. Strength training can reverse many of the problems associated with aging. Chris Crowley and Henry S. Lodge explain this extremely well in their book, Younger Next Year. When I retired, a friend gave me that book and I found it to be very informative. It basically describes how you can turn back your biological clock-  even into your 80’s.

After numerous upper and lower body exercises, which also included my core muscles, my husband and I drove to the Niagara Escarpment to go for a snow shoe for our aerobic workout.

Aerobic exercise is mainly about our muscles’ ability to endure, while strength training is primarily about our muscles’ ability to deliver power. Ideally we strength train 3-4 times a week and try to get in a good aerobic workout 4-5 times every week.

Our town does not have any “hills”.  So we love to hike and snow shoe in and around the Bruce Trail which provides the extra benefit of hill climbing in a beautiful environment.

Again, the weather was almost perfect for our hour and a quarter hike, minus 6 degrees celsius (about 20 degrees F) and sunny with little or no wind.

Got to Start Somewhere!!!

DAY 1

This really isn’t Day 1. 

This is my first entry on this site. 

(Day one was really many years ago!!!!!)

Today, we decided (my husband and I ) to snowshoe along the Bruce Trail just west of Collingwood Ontario. It was great to get outside on such a beautiful day. It could have been so easy to just stay inside and read by the fire. Which is what we will do after the hike.

One of our greatest motivators is our dog, Bailey. What a trooper!! We often take our son’s dog with us, as well. They both love the freedom and exercise (and smells that fresh snow seems to magnify).

Our dog is the little one!

The sun sure makes a difference.

Snowshoeing is a great activity. It tones your entire body while providing an excellent cardiovascular workout; it strengthens leg and heart muscles and improves delivery of oxygen to muscles. It is also a low impact activity which is great for our knees, hips and ankles. We also use Nordic Walking Poles which help with balance and safety and also provide an excellent upper body work out. (More on the poles in a later post.)

We snowshoed for approximately an hour and fifteen minutes. My husband thought it was more like an hour and a half. I told him I subtracted 15 minutes for his picture taking breaks.

Being outdoors in a beautiful setting is certainly a way to keep us motivated.

I hope that future posts will provide you with all kinds of ideas to help you Stay Motivated and Fitoplay!

Your comments and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Let's Get Started!!!

Finding the motivation to keep our fitness routine going can be a real challenge…but it’s well worth the effort.  With proper instruction and a step-by-step approach, the majority of people can begin a fitness program. For those that have sustained an injury in the past or have medical problems that could lead to injury (i.e.: high blood pressure or diabetes), you should approach any new physical exercise program with caution. If you are not sure, please consult with your physician before starting any new program.

Your comments about why you find it so difficult to start and or maintain a fitness program would be appreciated. I will gladly try to address your concern in future posts.

2010 Winter Olympics - Inspiration

Hopefully, the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics will help to motivated this younger generation to become more active.