By design

We are taking a trip down South for a few days to see the family and indulge in Faux Thanksgiving (Faux Thanksgiving is doing the whole turkey day thing the weekend beforehand so no one stresses about stuffing and football games on the actual Thanksgiving.  Oddly there is not yet a greeting card for such a thing)

It's a long drive which means a lot of sitting.  This often drive me nuts.  Sometimes I think I can feel my muscles and joints crying out "use me".

Over the years I have toyed with the most effective rest stop stretches and mobility moves to take the edge off the forced inactivity.  twisting the spine, extending and flexing it, stretching out the hips, glutes, and hamstrings. 

The mechanics of what works for me are not that important since they may not be the same for you (or they might and if you want to know more contact me). Rather I wanted to cover, again but in different words a little bit about design.

We were built to move, just like a cars oil can get thick and stagnent if it's let sit to long, or the rubber on the tires drys and cracks if it just sits, we work best when we move. 

Muscle helps pump blood which oxygenates tissue, movement of joint especially the trunk and where the limbs meets the torso circulates lymph fluid that does not have a heart to help move it around.

Health is a basic bi-product of movement.  Before getting caught up in what is good, better or best types and amounts of movement, stick to the basics.  Move, it's what we are designed for.

The love hate relationship

Lunges, it's a four letter word 150% more potent than the regular four letter word.

They can hurt (the good hurt of lactic acid build up and delayed onset muscle soreness) they can be tedious, they can be challenging. They never give us a break, if they ever get easier it usually means you are doing something wrong.

And yet this monster is one we must face with stony determination.  It is the fire we must walk through (keeping proper spinal alignment) on occasion to get to the other side.

Why.

Few moves have more real life bang for the buck.  Here is a list of some of the things the lunges does for us.  I suggest copying it onto your hand and keep reading it as you tell yourself the burn in your quads don't burn at all.

* Large muscle groups worked - The shins, thighs, hamstrings, glutes and hips comprise well over half your lean muscle tissue.  Gender and genetics play a large role in the variability.

     Muscle use up calories, fat is the storage form of calories (okay you savvy people I know that's a huge simplification but for practical purposes let us not quibble), hence the more muscles we use in any movement the more calories we burn, hence lunges are near the top of the list for energy consumption moves (fat/calories are just energy. Not something Satan sent to make you feel bad about yourself)

* Way many things going on at the joints - You could say that the lunge is the hat-trick of lower body exercise except it's not, it's better. 

    When doing the lunge you are articulating (moving) the joints of the ankle, knee, and hip.  These three joints need to work together (well) to move gracefully and have coordinated interface with the ground (you cannot imagine how fun it is to use the word interface in a fitness article).  Uncoordinated interface by the way would be akin to walking on stilts.

* Real world - The lunge has a couple of things going for it that the squat does not.  Please don't think I am bad mouthing squatting.  I am not. (in no small part because guys that can squat huge amounts of weight are really really scary)

     When lunging you are balancing yourself, however briefly, on one leg as you transition.  If you have been looking around the fitness world you know that balance itself has become a field into itself.  When holding yourself on one leg there are a lot of stabilizer muscles that get called into play to keep you from tipping or slopping over (okay that was not as much fun to insert as interface, but close).

     Those stabilizer muscles are your best friends when it comes to not getting injured when something unexpected happens (think banana peel, dog wrapping his leash around you legs, missing a step on the stairs).  They are the one the job quick response guys that keep joints from getting dislocated, or tendons getting strained.

* Real world II - Forward momentum.  Ever trip getting up? Standing still?  Well even if you have (please no need to raise you hand) I will bet that you've tripped far more often walking, running, etc.  The moment you begin to move forward your center of gravity has shifted and you are by definition off balance.  That physics talking not me.  Lunging teaches your body to REFLEXIVELY be able to handle momentum, moving weight forward and, if necessary, breaking it's forward motion.

So yeah, a long post to be sure but the lunge deserves it, and YOU deserve the lunge.

All the best,

Steve

     

Think INside Your Box

                                     ...A little more common sense.

What is strength training?

Is it lifting barbells?  Pushing cars?  Getting up off the floor? Doing pull ups?

Short Answer: If getting up off the floor is hard, that is strength training.  If if you are doing pull ups for 15 minutes that is NOT strength training, if you are pushing cars..well leave your phone number please just in case I leave the headlight on when I get home tonight.

What is aerobic/cardio training?

Is it walking?  Is it running? Is it running up hill?  Is it cycling?  Boxing.

If you are running up hill carrying a 30lbs backpack walking is not cardio training (in a meaningful way).  If you are walking and you need to take a rest every few minutes then it is (and stick to it !!)

Forest for the trees Part I

Been there done that?

Ever notice that when you have a sore tooth your tongue won't leave the spot alone. Keeps returning to it even though you already know it's there and sore?

Then throughout the day it becomes the background of everything you do and think.  Good news is a little less good.  Bad news a little worse, etc etc. The day takes a little more out of you.  You know what I mean, we have all been there.

So what does this mean to me?

Think about that and think about what that means insofar as counting calories. In you are constantly thinking about calories and food values, where will you mind be?  Where will you attention be turned.  What will be the color of you mood as a result of this?

        Something to think about as we move about in the real world

Breathing 101

Yes, I am pretty sure everyone reading this article knows how to breath (of course we are entering Halloween season and I would hate to miss out on the whole Zombie Chic thing), so I am aware that you may think a wee word on breathing is a waste of your precious time, so rather than TELL you things let me ask you things.

1. How many muscles are involved in inhalation and exhalation.
2. Does use it or lose it apply to those muscles
3. Do the breathing muscles need to be stretched like other muscle in the body
4. Are breathing muscles attached to bones or anything else like other muscles in the body

If you are shocked (okay maybe shocked is to strong a word. Maybe we are just talking one of those zaps you get from dragging your feet on the carpet) by what you don't know or never even thought of we need to talk.

The Long List Use it or lose it

      "Use it or lose it"

It's a common enough refrain.  We hear it in the gym often enough, and even in "The real world"

It's pretty obvious on first blush.  Don't use your legs, they get weaker, weak enough and you can't walk.  Same for any body part you care to name.

I would like all of you (especially you who are standing in the back) to take just a few minutes so ask yourself where else could you apply that phrase.  In the gym and out.

If you have read my previous post you already have one answer, now I challenge you to take that axiom beyond it's normal bounds.  Actually the ability to "think outside the box" is an example of this.  The less we do it the less we are able to do it, conversely the more we challenge our mental status quo the more skilled we get at it.

Alright, the gauntlet is thrown,  I want to know what YOU came up with.

Shake hands with your neurons

Show of hands, who has heard it's important to keep your brain active throughout your life by challenging it with activities like crossword puzzles, sudoku, and memory training (Anthony Hopkins memorizes a poem a day).

If you hand went up stay tuned, if it didn't go educate yourself and come back in a jiff.  We all will still be here.

The concept of "use it or lose it" applies to a lot of things in life, and that includes cognitive function (ability to think and remember and make associations.) We have recently been bombarded with the idea to do mental exercises to keep our brains sharp as well as physical exercises to keep our minds sharp.

But let's pull back a moment.  What is exercise but movement?  And what is movement but your brain (a mass of interconnect neuron cells) telling your body what to do and your body reporting back that it did it?

Same movements all the time and there is nothing new under the sun.  The brain says been there done that.  End of story.

My question to you, what happens when you learn a new movement pattern?

Fire up those little grey cells and let's hear what YOU think.