Re: Letter to My Trainer (long)

August 13, 2004

> 4) Regarding cardio activity:

>

> I understand that it's necessary. I understand that it is defined as

> sustained activity. What I do not understand is what qualifies and for

> how long. F'rinstance ...

A good introduction to cardiovascular exercise in terms of what heart rate

corresponds to what level of exercise is www.heartzone.com

I found these articles very helpful in particular:

Warning - Fat Burning Programs Can KEEP you fat!

http://www.heartzone.com/warning.pdf

The Meaning of the Five Heart Zones

http://www.heartzone.com/5heartzones.pdf

White Paper on " How to Expand Your Fat Burning Range "

http://www.heartzone.com/whitepaper.pdf

This is information for all endurance athletes but simple enough for

anyone who is exercising, and will move you away from vague guidelines

like " do exercise X for x minutes n times a week. "

Sometimes, what seems strenuous isn't really excercising the heart, and

vice versa, so measuring your heart rate on as you exercise & rest is

necessary.

(Personally I'd love a fancy heart rate monitor but I stick to the

economical

poke-my-neck routine.)

Hope that's helpful.

August 13, 2004

> Yeah, balance, coordination, sort of

>important. Messing with a bunch of dumbbells on a bench isn't exactly

>going to help with that. As he said ... " Anybody can do that. " Toss

>me a truck tire, wouldja?

Your letter seems great, but I think I'm missing some of

the context here ... is your trainer not much

behind you on weight training? Or he just wants you to do more aerobics

too?

FWIW ... I think weight training is hands-down better than cardio. I was doing

a lot of cardio, for a long time. I got really bad heart arrhthmia. Scary!

Someone

on this list (Chris?) pointed out that this is a *common* problem with cardio,

if it is repetitive exercise like is usually recommended. I stopped the cardio,

the arrhthmia stopped. So I started again, the arrhythmia came back. OK, I'm

done with cardio! Another problem is that I would often destroy some body

part in the process ... cycling machines led to the start of my current knee

problem, probably by strengthening one muscle at the expense of others,

which caused my kneecap to scrape on one side.

Weight training does wonders for your balance, esp. if you do things

like squats. I can't do them, I have a bum knee, but I CAN do " one legged "

squats for some unknown reason, and that is slowly healing the knee

problem. If you use free weights, you really have to be aware of the balance

of the weight, which does great things, and also helps in those tiny wrist

and finger muscles.

As for heart rate ... do something you really LIKE or else NEED to do. For me

that is gardening. We have a huge amount that needs to be done. Even trimming

berry bushes takes an amazing amount of energy, lots of bending and hauling.

The next best, for me, is yoga. Really, you aren't moving all that much but man,

I am sweating and out of breath after a good session.

If your trainer doesn't know this stuff, I'd consider another trainer. Or, if

he's good with weight training and is just getting after you to do more cardio,

remind him that YOU are paying HIM for advice, and you want advice on weights.

And do your own research on cardio ... by all means listen to him, but you

aren't his slave, he's YOUR consultant. You're the boss!

But as with anything: do what works for you. If weight training causes you

problems, back off or try a different exercise.

-- Heidi Jean

August 13, 2004

At 02:52 PM 8/13/2004, you wrote:

>As for heart rate ... do something you really LIKE or else NEED to do. For me

>that is gardening. We have a huge amount that needs to be done. Even trimming

>berry bushes takes an amazing amount of energy, lots of bending and hauling.

>The next best, for me, is yoga. Really, you aren't moving all that much

>but man,

>I am sweating and out of breath after a good session.

i really have to agree on the cardio stuff, heidi.

in particular, if you want a good workout, i'd recommend bikram yoga: it's

done in a 105degree room to prevent muscle injury, and it's specifically

geared to be theraputic. it was created by a fellow who was an olympic

weight lifter who dropped 300lbs on his knee. they told him he'd never walk

again...ha! anyway, it's amazing stuff!

www.bikramyoga.com

-katja

August 14, 2004

> FWIW ... I think weight training is hands-down better than cardio. I was

doing

> a lot of cardio, for a long time. I got really bad heart arrhthmia. Scary!

Someone

> on this list (Chris?) pointed out that this is a *common* problem with

cardio,

> if it is repetitive exercise like is usually recommended. I stopped the

cardio,

> the arrhthmia stopped. So I started again, the arrhythmia came back. OK,

I'm

> done with cardio! Another problem is that I would often destroy some body

> part in the process ... cycling machines led to the start of my current

knee

> problem, probably by strengthening one muscle at the expense of others,

> which caused my kneecap to scrape on one side.

I see cardio differently, not as " better " or " worse " than weight training.

Cardio is really exercise for the heart muscle and in most cases, weight

training does not have that effect (unless you can really sustain 65%+ max

heart rate for over 30 minutes doing weight lifting).

I've trained with many buff guys who couldn't sustain effort required for

fighting

in martial arts, cycling or whatever. Cardio definitely has a place for

overall health in my book, just like weight training. Of course, everyone

has to do what's most do-able.

My training partner has a sometimes painful heart murmur that did not

disappear with adolescence, but it actually gets better with cardio.

Injury is usually a function of improper training and pre-disposition (and

often overzealousness). It can happen to every active person whether its

cardio or weights.

But destroying something with repetitive motion takes a while. My partner

injured herself so that she could not train for more than a year, and it was

all

preventable by better technique, more rest, and listening to her body.

What you describe, minus arhythmia, sounds like my partner before

she changed her whole approach. It took damaged knees, feet and

shoulders before things changed, but thats the way her personality was.

I would never touch an " exercise bike " personally, because a lot of them are

crap or don't fit right. We have road bikes on rollers for indoor training,

and

its a lot better that way. Also, not stretching the quads can easily lead to

misaligned knee caps after cycling or squating.

High-rep squats with no weights ( " hindu squats " ) are really good for

transitioning between cycling and weighted squats for treating bad knees

and maintenance. We do a couple hundred of these squats once or twice

a week in addition to weights & cycling, and it keeps the knees feeling

good.

August 14, 2004

On Thu, 12 Aug 2004 20:03:03 -0400

" F. Jewett " <mfjewett@...> wrote:

> F'rinstance, just talked to a friend today about starting this, and he was

> the one that brought up the balance and coordination. Strength doesn't

> do you squat unless you can USE it. DUH moment, but he had to say it

> out loud for me to actually think of it consciously (I believe I've

> actually pointed out in the past, a number of times, that I'm a bit slow

> .. errrrr .. occasionally). Yeah, balance, coordination, sort of

> important. Messing with a bunch of dumbbells on a bench isn't exactly

> going to help with that. As he said ... " Anybody can do that. " Toss

> me a truck tire, wouldja?

LOL! Actually balance and coordination are helped by the use of free

weights as opposed to machines. I'm not sure if you are working out at

home or at the gym but in either case freeweights of some sort will

improve strength, coordination and balance all at the same time.

> Blah blah, enough, here's what I wrote out - so far:

>

> At 07:55 PM 8/12/04 -0400, you wrote:

> >Reasons why I wanted to start weight training (formerly " What Are My

> Goals? " ) ...

>

> 1) First off, there may be a terminology difference - to me, " weight

> training " , " strength training " and " resistance training " are all the same

> thing. So keep that in mind. If there's a major difference for

> people " in the know " let me know, and I'll adjust my terminology accordingly.

Although I'm sure others might tell you otherwise, right now I wouldn't

worry about all that. Maybe later but not now.

> I won't force myself to do something that just

> doesn't quite fit into my life/lifestyle - even if it's only for six weeks.

Good idea

> I need to find things that I can do to accomplish my goals long-term -

> forcing myself to do something alien to my nature is not going to do squat

> for me long term, even though it might bring immense short-term results.

Just remember though that what seems foreign now can become " second "

nature. I think you will find lots of testimonies along that line

regarding diet and exercise.

> 3) That said (in a long rambling fashion) ... weight training ... from

> everything I've been told/read/heard/seen:

>

> 3A) It will increase my energy level.

Most definitely

> 3B) It will increase my resting metabolic rate.

Yes

> 3C) It will increase my strength.

Yes

> 4) Regarding cardio activity:

>

> I understand that it's necessary. I understand that it is defined as

> sustained activity. What I do not understand is what qualifies and for

> how long. F'rinstance ...

>

> To my mind, shovelling that dirt out of my driveway should qualify. I

> grab the wheelbarrow, grab the shovel, and start working. Shoop shoop

> shoop shoop shoop. Move the wheelbarrow, empty the wheelbarrow, bring it

> back. Shoop shoop shoop shoop shoop. This is sustained activity, I

> do not stop until either a) I'm done with that bed; or something hurts

> or starts to feel weak. If , then I just take a break and go right

> back to it half an hour later. This means a minimum of 30 minutes of

> this, to me, sustained activity, and usually closer to an hour. Then

> break, then back to the same ole same ole for as long as it takes to finish

> my goal/bed of the day.

All the above qualifies. You really do not need all the cardio that is

usually recommended. While there are some benefits, aerobics is

overrated for fat burning, IMO. Good food, weight training, and some

sustained activity is just fine. Heck, there are even studies showing

that powerlifting and olympic lifting done regularly provide the same

heart benefits that aerobics do.

I gave up doing anything specifically for its aerobic value LONG ago. I

just couldn't get over the boredom factor long term. So all my aerobics

are things I *like* to do or must do because of work or something, they

are never things I have to do (but don't like or just tolerate) because

of exercise.

> Anyway - the point of those examples is that I need to find ways to work

> the proper activity into my existing life.

Sounds like your game plan is just fine

> Dem's my goals, dem's my questions. Can we work with this? How?

It will work.

War, the God That Failed

http://tinyurl.com/2npch

" They told just the same,

That just because a tyrant has the might

By force of arms to murder men downright

And burn down house and home and leave all flat

They call the man a captain, just for that.

But since an outlaw with his little band

Cannot bring half such mischief on the land

Or be the cause of so much harm and grief,

He only earns the title of a thief. "

--Geoffrey Chaucer, The Manciple's Tale

August 14, 2004

>i really have to agree on the cardio stuff, heidi.

>in particular, if you want a good workout, i'd recommend bikram yoga: it's

>done in a 105degree room to prevent muscle injury, and it's specifically

>geared to be theraputic. it was created by a fellow who was an olympic

>weight lifter who dropped 300lbs on his knee. they told him he'd never walk

>again...ha! anyway, it's amazing stuff!

>www.bikramyoga.com

>

>-katja

wow, 105 degrees! I don't know that I could move at all in that!

Though I guess in the current heat wave it would be

a close experiment! I'll have to look into it ...

However, Katja, anyone who is running a *farm* really can't

need cardio! I mean, when you are sitting at a computer all

day barely moving, doing something to specifically get you going

is one thing. But gardening *is* aerobic, and farming even more so.

-- Heidi Jean

August 14, 2004

At 09:17 PM 8/12/04 -0700, you wrote:

>, since you have hypoT you will need to be very careful about heavy

>exercise even when optimized on meds as the increase in activity may

>cause your body to need more hormone. This is true of a long hike,

>mowing the lawn, weight training, etc. etc. There have been many

>discussions on the about.com thyroid website forum about this very

>topic " increased need for meds with exercise " . Some people increse

>their T4 some increase their T3 and some increase both slightly on the

>days they exercise. Obviously you would have to see how you feel after

>a little experimentation, but you can also get a free T3 and free T4

>blood test to see if you are getting below midpoint in the ranges (most

>do well at midpoint or higher). You will really run your body down if

>you try to do anything heavy without being on enough hormone. Also, if

>your ferritin is low this will also cause you to experience exercise

>intolerance. It would be a good idea to get the free t's and a ferritin

>test done and get them raised if low, before starting anything too

>strenuous.

I had all the T's tested just before I switched from Synthroid to Armour -

all but TSH were smack dab mid-range. Flipped over to Armour, starting

at 1-1/2 grains, but noticed a slight decrease in energy, so upped it to 2

grains a few months ago. Been fine ever since, and that big ole formerly

huge goiter is almost disappeared before my vewwy eyes!

I'll pay more attention to energy levels after the weights, though. I've

only done it twice so far - the first time was pretty light and I

definitely felt an increase in energy that day. Yesterday (second

session) she really worked my arse off, and I felt really tired for the

rest of the day - but I attribute that more to being rather short on sleep

all week. We'll see how it goes next week.

Thanks for the info.

MFJ

If I have to be a grownup, can I at least be telekinetic too?

August 14, 2004

At 05:55 AM 8/13/04 -0400, you wrote:

>A good introduction to cardiovascular exercise in terms of what heart rate

>corresponds to what level of exercise is www.heartzone.com

>

>I found these articles very helpful in particular:

>

> Warning - Fat Burning Programs Can KEEP you fat!

>http://www.heartzone.com/warning.pdf

>

> The Meaning of the Five Heart Zones

>http://www.heartzone.com/5heartzones.pdf

>

> White Paper on " How to Expand Your Fat Burning Range "

>http://www.heartzone.com/whitepaper.pdf

>

>This is information for all endurance athletes but simple enough for

>anyone who is exercising, and will move you away from vague guidelines

>like " do exercise X for x minutes n times a week. "

>

>Sometimes, what seems strenuous isn't really excercising the heart, and

>vice versa, so measuring your heart rate on as you exercise & rest is

>necessary.

>(Personally I'd love a fancy heart rate monitor but I stick to the

>economical

>poke-my-neck routine.)

>

>Hope that's helpful.

It is, thanks. Hadda laugh at the economical routine, too.

MFJ

If I have to be a grownup, can I at least be telekinetic too?

August 14, 2004

At 11:52 AM 8/13/04 -0700, you wrote:

>Your letter seems great, but I think I'm missing some of

>the context here ... is your trainer not much

>behind you on weight training? Or he just wants you to do more aerobics

>too?

We talked a while yesterday (while she was busily making me find body parts

and muscles I didn't know I had), and basically she was getting after me

about doing more cardio because of one of my stated goals of finishing

losing the rest of my excess weight - use up more calories etc. etc. etc.

>

>FWIW ... I think weight training is hands-down better than cardio. I was

doing

>a lot of cardio, for a long time. I got really bad heart arrhthmia. Scary!

Someone

>on this list (Chris?) pointed out that this is a *common* problem with

cardio,

>if it is repetitive exercise like is usually recommended. I stopped the

cardio,

>the arrhthmia stopped. So I started again, the arrhythmia came back. OK, I'm

>done with cardio! Another problem is that I would often destroy some body

>part in the process ... cycling machines led to the start of my current knee

>problem, probably by strengthening one muscle at the expense of others,

>which caused my kneecap to scrape on one side.

Not to mention the stark-raving boredom of " machines " .

>

>Weight training does wonders for your balance, esp. if you do things

>like squats. I can't do them, I have a bum knee, but I CAN do " one legged "

>squats for some unknown reason, and that is slowly healing the knee

>problem. If you use free weights, you really have to be aware of the balance

>of the weight, which does great things, and also helps in those tiny wrist

>and finger muscles.

Well, there are some things with the free weights that I can't quite

automatically do properly (I end up swinging a wrong way or moving

something else I'm not supposed to move - balance) but I'm getting better

at it. Most things I haven't had a problem with - as long as I'm

concentrating on what I'm doing instead of shooting my mouth off.

>

>As for heart rate ... do something you really LIKE or else NEED to do. For me

>that is gardening. We have a huge amount that needs to be done. Even trimming

>berry bushes takes an amazing amount of energy, lots of bending and hauling.

>The next best, for me, is yoga. Really, you aren't moving all that much

but man,

>I am sweating and out of breath after a good session.

>

>If your trainer doesn't know this stuff, I'd consider another trainer. Or, if

>he's good with weight training and is just getting after you to do more

cardio,

>remind him that YOU are paying HIM for advice, and you want advice on

weights.

>And do your own research on cardio ... by all means listen to him, but you

>aren't his slave, he's YOUR consultant. You're the boss!

Well, we discussed different options as far as what she would consider

" proper " cardio - she seems to be more fixated on the continuous extended

upping of the rate to a certain number for a certain amount of time.

That's why we had the " discussion " of what constituted " exercise " . So

she's going to not harp on me about going for long fast walks or buying

machines, and I'm going to continue what I've been doing all along for

" exercise " - such as ... *gasp* ... surprise surprise! ... gardening!

Sheesh - not to mention that pile of dirt, which will be replaced with a

huge pile of mulch as soon as I get the dirt out of the way. LOL.

I've basically committed myself to follow this course for the full six

weeks (one of which has already passed), in combo with getting back to my

" proper " diet (bring on them salads, chickie!) and see what happens. I

have good hopes that there will be some major differences. After my

time with her is done, I've got my other friend mostly convinced to help me

out more with the weights - all I have to do is be NICE to HIM, which is a

lot easier on my checkbook.

Thanks for the advice!

>

>But as with anything: do what works for you. If weight training causes you

>problems, back off or try a different exercise.

>

>-- Heidi Jean

>

August 14, 2004

At 09:13 PM 8/13/04 -0700, you wrote:

>> F'rinstance, just talked to a friend today about starting this, and he was

>> the one that brought up the balance and coordination. Strength doesn't

>> do you squat unless you can USE it. DUH moment, but he had to say it

>> out loud for me to actually think of it consciously (I believe I've

>> actually pointed out in the past, a number of times, that I'm a bit slow

>> .. errrrr .. occasionally). Yeah, balance, coordination, sort of

>> important. Messing with a bunch of dumbbells on a bench isn't exactly

>> going to help with that. As he said ... " Anybody can do that. " Toss

>> me a truck tire, wouldja?

>

>LOL! Actually balance and coordination are helped by the use of free

>weights as opposed to machines. I'm not sure if you are working out at

>home or at the gym but in either case freeweights of some sort will

>improve strength, coordination and balance all at the same time.

Yeah, I noticed that. In context, what my friend was trying to get

across with the truck tires comment was that while it's all well and good

and wonderful to be messing around on a bench or whatever, it loses some of

its usefulness if it's not translatable to real life - as in managing

awkward loads and tasks - balance-wise. Easy to grasp a dumbbell and

move it around, but a manhole cover? A 150-pound sack of flour? He was

trying to point out other aspects.

>Just remember though that what seems foreign now can become " second "

>nature. I think you will find lots of testimonies along that line

>regarding diet and exercise.

True. I'm not discounting that at all - I could provide my own

testimonies up to this point. At this point I'm going to work with what

I have and try to work other things in as I go along. I don't mind going

for an occasional long fast walk, but I'm sure as hell not going to do it

every day, I just don't really enjoy it that much. There's only SO much

scenery, ya know?

>I gave up doing anything specifically for its aerobic value LONG ago. I

>just couldn't get over the boredom factor long term.

Bingo. Been there, done that.

Actually, I was rather surprised that I didn't get more of an argument out

of her. She simply explained her thinking on it and I told her I'd work

on it. I DO have an annoying tendency to expect the worst sometimes.

:-D

MFJ

If I have to be a grownup, can I at least be telekinetic too?

August 15, 2004

> -----Original Message-----

> From: T Virgil [mailto:virgil@...]

>

> I see cardio differently, not as " better " or " worse " than

> weight training.

> Cardio is really exercise for the heart muscle and in most

> cases, weight training does not have that effect (unless you

> can really sustain 65%+ max heart rate for over 30 minutes

> doing weight lifting).

But why would you want to? No powerlifter would train by squatting without

weight or bench-pressing a bar for half an hour to train those exercises,

because they understand that the way to maximize strength is to lift heavy

weights. Intuitively, one would expect the heart to work the same way--that

the best way to strengthen it would be to exercise at high intensity for

brief periods of time. Of course, intuition is often wrong, and certainly

the heart is different from skeletal muscles in many other ways. What

evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic exercise

is the best way to strengthen the heart?

August 15, 2004

> What

> evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic

exercise

> is the best way to strengthen the heart?

For as long as people have engaged in running, swimming, fighting for sport,

climbing etc, they have understood that endurance isn't developed by " high

intensity for brief periods of time " .

Of course, any exercise may strengthen the heart, but there's no shortage

of musclebound guys who can't last doing any kind of sport that

requires cardio. That would suggest that lifting weights isn't the " best "

way

of improving cardio fitness. Was your question meant to be facetious?

Nobody ever said cardio has to be done at a monotonous pace (which

some people seem to assume is meant by " sustained " exercise).

Interval training is part of conditioning too. Its always nice

to do things that you can do outdoors or with a bunch of people.

August 15, 2004

>> What

>> evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic

> exercise

>> is the best way to strengthen the heart?

>

> For as long as people have engaged in running, swimming, fighting for sport,

> climbing etc, they have understood that endurance isn't developed by " high

> intensity for brief periods of time " .

>

I believe that you should research, for instance, the Tabata protocol. I

won't argue 'which is better', but it is not correct to claim that high

intensity, short duration, exercise cannot develop endurance.

August 15, 2004

> >> What

> >> evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic

> > exercise

> >> is the best way to strengthen the heart?

> >

> > For as long as people have engaged in running, swimming, fighting for

sport,

> > climbing etc, they have understood that endurance isn't developed by

" high

> > intensity for brief periods of time " .

> >

>

> I believe that you should research, for instance, the Tabata protocol. I

> won't argue 'which is better', but it is not correct to claim that high

> intensity, short duration, exercise cannot develop endurance.

The Tabata protocol is a refinement of interval training and is quite

intense

cardio in nature. It falls into the endurance training I already wrote

about.

I really doubt that most people just starting out on a fitness program would

or should engage in interval training of that nature.

Note that I was referring to an abbreviated heavy weightlifting routine as

something that is unlikely to develop endurance.

August 15, 2004

>>>> What

>>>> evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic

>>> exercise

>>>> is the best way to strengthen the heart?

>>>

>>> For as long as people have engaged in running, swimming, fighting for

> sport,

>>> climbing etc, they have understood that endurance isn't developed by

> " high

>>> intensity for brief periods of time " .

>>>

>>

>> I believe that you should research, for instance, the Tabata protocol. I

>> won't argue 'which is better', but it is not correct to claim that high

>> intensity, short duration, exercise cannot develop endurance.

>

> The Tabata protocol is a refinement of interval training and is quite

> intense

> cardio in nature. It falls into the endurance training I already wrote

> about.

>

> I really doubt that most people just starting out on a fitness program would

> or should engage in interval training of that nature.

>

> Note that I was referring to an abbreviated heavy weightlifting routine as

> something that is unlikely to develop endurance.

>

That's true. You also said categorically that " endurance isn't developed by

" high intensity for brief periods of time " . While a beginner probably

shouldn't do something as intense as a Tabata protocol, I would think that

even a relative beginner could benefit from a more efficient, but less

intense, Tabata-like routine.

August 16, 2004

> -----Original Message-----

> From: T Virgil [mailto:virgil@...]

>

> > What

> > evidence do we have to indicate that moderate and sustained aerobic

> exercise

> > is the best way to strengthen the heart?

>

> For as long as people have engaged in running, swimming,

> fighting for sport, climbing etc, they have understood that

> endurance isn't developed by " high intensity for brief

> periods of time " .

>

> Of course, any exercise may strengthen the heart, but there's

> no shortage of musclebound guys who can't last doing any kind

> of sport that requires cardio. That would suggest that

> lifting weights isn't the " best " way

> of improving cardio fitness.

I was responding to this, specifically:

" Cardio is really exercise for the heart muscle and in most cases, weight

training does not have that effect (unless you can really sustain 65%+ max

heart rate for over 30 minutes doing weight lifting). "

I was questioning the value not of cardio training in general, but of the

sort of training referred to in the parenthetical comment, as opposed to

high-intensity interval training. I also question the value of the sort of

endurance engendered by extended cardio workouts. Back in high school, I ran

8 miles a day for several months. As a result...I got very good at running

eight miles. I realize now that I was just wasting time and energy. I'll

never need to run eight miles, and I could have gotten a better cardio

workout in 10-15 minutes of hill sprints than I did in an hour of running.

For the record, there are types of weight training, such as high-volume

dumbbell/kettlebell snatches, that do give a very effective cardio workout.

If you haven't already, you should try it at least once. Grab a pair of

25-pound dumbbells (give or take--as a reference point, I'm 6'/185), and do

a set of 20-25 snatches with them. Then tell me about endurance.

August 16, 2004

I'm must confess I've only briefly skimmed this thread and I'm pretty

clueless about these topics, not really understanding exactly what

folks are referring to (my exercise routine is pretty simple and

mostly unresearched), but as far as cardio stuff being boring, can't

you just dance? I mean, what can be better than getting your groove

on to some wild and crazy stuff (I'm not talking foxtrot here)?

That's gotta qualify for aerobic activity or whatever... It's really

pretty bizarre that people go to gyms and use all these wacky machines

to get their heart pumping. And running and jogging--that's some

pretty bizarre stuff too, unless it's for the psychological benefit...

Mike

SE Pennsylvania

The best way to predict the future is to invent it. --Alan Kay

August 16, 2004

>as far as cardio stuff being boring, can't you just dance? I mean,

what can be better than getting your groove on to some wild and crazy

stuff (I'm not talking foxtrot here)? That's gotta qualify for aerobic

activity or whatever... It's really pretty bizarre that people go to

gyms and use all these wacky machines to get their heart pumping. And

running and jogging--that's some pretty bizarre stuff too, unless it's

for the psychological benefit...

>

> Mike

I LOVE to dance! No special equipment or attire required, just

understanding (or deaf) neighbours. ;-)

~

August 16, 2004

At 03:21 AM 8/16/04 -0400, Mike wrote:

>I'm must confess I've only briefly skimmed this thread and I'm pretty

>clueless about these topics, not really understanding exactly what

>folks are referring to (my exercise routine is pretty simple and

>mostly unresearched), but as far as cardio stuff being boring, can't

>you just dance? I mean, what can be better than getting your groove

>on to some wild and crazy stuff (I'm not talking foxtrot here)?

Your timing is impeccable, as always. As a matter of fact, that's

exactly what I did yesterday.

MFJ

If I have to be a grownup, can I at least be telekinetic too?

August 17, 2004

At 05:50 AM 8/14/2004, you wrote:

>At 11:52 AM 8/13/04 -0700, you wrote:

>>Your letter seems great, but I think I'm missing some of

>>the context here ... is your trainer not much

>>behind you on weight training? Or he just wants you to do more aerobics

>>too?

>

>We talked a while yesterday (while she was busily making me find body parts

>and muscles I didn't know I had), and basically she was getting after me

>about doing more cardio because of one of my stated goals of finishing

>losing the rest of my excess weight - use up more calories etc. etc. etc.

OK, that makes sense.

>

>Well, we discussed different options as far as what she would consider

> " proper " cardio - she seems to be more fixated on the continuous extended

>upping of the rate to a certain number for a certain amount of time.

>That's why we had the " discussion " of what constituted " exercise " . So

>she's going to not harp on me about going for long fast walks or buying

>machines, and I'm going to continue what I've been doing all along for

> " exercise " - such as ... *gasp* ... surprise surprise! ... gardening!

>Sheesh - not to mention that pile of dirt, which will be replaced with a

>huge pile of mulch as soon as I get the dirt out of the way. LOL.

OK, that makes sense. FWIW, here is my understanding of fat loss and exercise.

When you do something like sprints or lifting weights, you are using a LOT

of energy for a short period of time, and the muscles are in " anaerobic " mode

....

and basically they burn sugar (glucose/glycogen). So while weightlifting helps

lose fat in the long term, in the short term it mainly burns sugar.

Now when you do something aerobic (meaning, there is enough oxygen) like

sitting around doing nothing, or gardening, or bicycling, the body will usually

burn fat (plus a little sugar). This is especially true if you haven't eaten

for a bit, which is why some folks recommend doing exercise on an empty

stomach. Doing nothing will burn some fat, but gardening will burn more.

The advantage of gardening over sitting around is that you are likely to

spend more calories ... and more time ... gardening. Actually gardening

is MUCH better than machines in this regard ... even just cutting down berry

bushes, I'll end up doing 3-4 hours just because I lose track of time, and

it really does burn fat.

Now I do my gardening mainly on an empty stomach (because of the Warrior

Diet) which helps burn more fat, plus I have more energy (not digesting food)

plus I don't have to stop for lunch. Gardening is also the only exercise besides

weightlifting that has been shown to increase bone mass. It's also the only

exercise I've found that saves you money and makes your house prettier.

So get out and hoe!

-- Heidi Jean

August 19, 2004

At 04:44 PM 8/16/04 -0700, you wrote:

>OK, that makes sense. FWIW, here is my understanding of fat loss and

exercise.

Worth a lot, thanks. Always nice to have the short sensical version.

>even just cutting down berry

>bushes, I'll end up doing 3-4 hours just because I lose track of time, and

>it really does burn fat.

Me too.

>Gardening is also the only exercise besides

>weightlifting that has been shown to increase bone mass. It's also the only

>exercise I've found that saves you money and makes your house prettier.

>So get out and hoe!

Yes MA'AM! *salutes*

In the middle of a long session of dirt-slinging this afternoon, the cat

woke up so I came in to get his food. Figured while I was in hear, I'd do

the economical poke-my-neck trick just to see what was going on. And

danged if it didn't turn out to be right up there where she " wanted " it to

be, and I'd already been doing it for longer than she " wanted " it to be.

HAH!

MFJ

Who loves it when a plan comes together and she gets to say HAH!

August 23, 2004

I have been questioning how the recent threads on exercise relate to native

nutrition but that being said, I love to dance and recommend le Roth's " 5

Rhythms " dances if you have a teacher in your area.

http://www.ravenrecording.com/index2.html Whether you believe the " practice "

part of it or not, they are hella fun!

Anton <michaelantonparker@...> wrote: