Pushin too hard?

Happy New Year one and all. 2K9 was rife with mostly good stuff and just enough not so good stuff to make me really appreciate the good stuff.  Here I am going into a new year, hopefully armed with the knowledge gained from mistakes of last year.

Successful weight control

Eating less, or cutting back on fat in your diet, won’t keep the weight off. What you really need is a good balance between the number of calories you consume and the number you burn. And the only way to do that is to exercise.

No resolutions

Tricks to help avoid holiday weight gain:

TDF

Tour de Foothills. I enjoyed the ride this year. Instead of trying to catch and stay with the big dogs this little dog just paced himself and was surprised to find I was not a wrung out lifeless lycra clad potato sack as I took on Baldy Road. The SAG stop at the top of the climb was still stocked with chocolate chip cookies as I arrived so this made for a good enough place for a quick pit stop. I rolled out armed with a back up water and my cookie. Life was good (until that cookie hit my stomach, note to self: cookie bad!!!)  But at least it was time for the payoff fast descent!! The traffic lights were a mild annoyance, but when rides give me lights, I practice baiting skills, I'm easily amused.Traded pulls with a guy on a Pinerello back to the finish line extravaganza that wasn't and waited for my wing man to roll in. The food was better this year but the non vegetarian lasagna had, shall we say, a dearth of what makes it non vegetarian, just say'n... All said and done I finished the 62 mile ride in under four hours with only one SAG stop and stayed awake during movie night with the wifey later. Looking forward to next year.... No stops.
Faster Than Some Slower Than Most....

Spinning 101

The Spinning program has five basic movements and three hand positions. Unlike typical group exercise classes, where the choreography is endless, the core movements of the Spinning program do not change.

Spinning is for strengthening the cardiovascular system (heart and lungs) and to train our bodies to burn stored fat for fuel. If your goal is muscle hypertrophy, hit the weight room.

Ladies. Unless you are spinning with a great deal of resistance over a lots of time, you need not fear, you will not develop Russian power lifter thighs!!

Cycling shoes and heart rate monitors are very useful tools if you are serious about training and not just sweating. Shoes enable you to incorporate the proper leg muscles and heart rate monitors let you know precisely where your work effort is. If you goal is to target fat, harder is not necessarily better.

Recovery

Having a difficult time working adequate recovery into my program. Taking this weekend to do nothing. This will be a challenge as I can hear the voices calling, go long.

Core exercises for improved balance and stability

Did you know that "core" muscles include the muscles in your pelvis, lower back, hips and abdomen? To get these muscles to work in harmony, leads to better balance and stability, whether on the playing field or in daily activities. In fact, most sports and other physical activities depend on stable core muscles.

Whats your favorite core exercise?

Work the core!!!

Exercise guidlines

For the average healthy adult to maintain health and reduce the risk of chronic disease:

• Do moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day, five days a week or do vigorously intense cardio 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week. To lose weight or maintain weight loss 60-90 minutes of activity may be necessary.

• Do eight to 10 strength-training exercises, eight to 12 repetitions of each exercise twice a week.

Live Long and Perspire

Breathing

Do you breathe using your diaphragm when exercising? That can sometimes be the difference in relaxing the mind and body to get through that last rep or finish that final sprint to the coffee shop ahead of the pack. Getting oxygen to the exercising muscles is key.