Planking - The "New" Craze

Okay, who wants to plank with me?

If you're unfamiliar with the new craze sweeping the globe, it's high time you got on board. (Board! Plank! HA!) For the uninitiated, planking is the act of lying in a prone position, arms to your sides, in a "stiff-as-a-plank" style. It has apparently become a fad overnight. See the wikipedia article here. People are finding more and more unusual - and occasionally dangerous - places to plank. It can be irreverent, fun, childish, daring, or artistic. But what I like best about it as a fitness enthusiast, is that it's a damn good core exercise!

Planking, in the exercise sense, has been around for awhile now, friends. Yep, it's not just your average hipster trying to make a name for him/herself who invented this behavior. Fellow fitness junkies who want a rock hard core have been planking for years now, since your basic crunches and sit-ups are just not "cool" enough. What's so great about this isometric (aka: stationary, non-moving) exercise? Um, how about EVERYTHING. It targets the core without overworking hip flexor muscles (as you might in a sit up), can be modified to make it more or less intense, and requires very little space and no additional equipment. Rad!

Here's how to perform a plank in your own home. Unlike the current trendsetters, you want to start in the quadruped position with your forearms on the ground, your feet behind you, and the rest of your body straight as can be. No drooping midsection, no butt in the air. Now, hold it. Should look something like this. Try for 30 seconds to start with, gradually progressing to 60 seconds or more.

You can make this exercise a little easier by putting your knees on the ground, as you might in a non-military (aka: "girl") pushup, or you could make it harder by alternating punching out with your arms as you hold the plank. There are a ton of variations out there. Side planks, planks with arms or legs on a stability ball, planks with one leg raised in the air, etc. The possibilities are endless.

So go ahead and plank! Plank in the park! Plank in your room! Plank at the gym! And feel cool knowing that you're not only rocking out to the newest, hippest trend - you're getting a great core workout to boot! Yeah!

The Beauty of Muscle Soreness

As I write this entry, my legs are screaming at me. The other day, I did a delightful number on my lower body, complete with back squats, tuck jumps, hamstring curls, calf raises, band walks, a hill interval on the treadmill, and lunges...among other exercises. There's nothing like a good leg day to make a girl feel great.

And the subsequent muscle soreness that comes along with a hard workout? With few exceptions, this same aching, throbbing, hobbling, dull pain that makes it harder to roll out of bed in the morning...is a good thing! Delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is a sign that our muscles are rebuilding themselves, bigger, faster, stronger. DOMS is a sign that we worked out to overload - that is, we put more demand on our body than it was accustomed to before. And overload is the only way to make progress in our fitness goals.

The big myth about DOMS that we need to get away from if we want to have an understanding of our body's beautiful adaptive mechanisms, is that it's caused by lactic acid buildup in the muscles. This is an old wives' tale still floating about at gyms and in less-than-reputable fitness magazines. Instead, DOMS is caused by microscopic tears at the level of the muscle fiber. More tearing = more soreness. Now don't freak out! While the idea of tearing a muscle conjures up all sorts of images of slings and braces and other medical equipment, this tiny microscopic tearing is exactly what we want to happen if we hope to build bigger muscles and get stronger. Provided we give our muscles sufficient time to recover, our bodies will repair muscle fibers so they can handle the stress we put on them. That is, they will register the overload and adapt to the new and changing environment to make sure we are better able to handle it the next time.

How can you tell the "good" pain (DOMS) from the "bad" pain (injury and overtraining)? Truthfully, it's not always easy. But here are a few tips:

• Delayed-onset muscle soreness typically goes away after a few days of rest, while injuries often take much longer to heal.
• Strains, sprains, breaks - these injuries tend to come on fast, and generally, you can tell even during a workout that you've done something to injure yourself. DOMS often doesn't present until a day or two AFTER you've worked out.
• Are you feeling sharp, shooting or stabbing pains? That's likely an injury - go see a doc!
• Injuries are often visible - you can sometimes see bruising, redness, or swelling at the site of an injury.

Don't let a fear of soreness scare you away from exercise! One of the best parts about starting a consistent exercise routine is that DOMS tends to very quickly get less and less as you get used to moving your body against resistance. I've met athletes and fitness buffs who crave DOMS, finding it more and more difficult to make their muscles sore as they are accustomed to years of intense training. But for the average joe, DOMS may make exercise a fearful prospect. Don't sweat it - there are ways to deal with muscle soreness that will greatly improve one's exercise experience. Including:

• Anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, can reduce pain when it gets intense. (As always, get medical advice from doctors if there are any reasons why OTC pain meds may be contraindicated.)
• REST! Take time between your workouts to recover. If you intend to workout every day, make sure you are alternating the muscle groups you focus on. Did you work your arms yesterday? Give 'em a break and work your legs the next day.
• Warm up and cool down properly. Ease into your workout with a good warm up to get the muscles ready for exercise, and cool down with some easy aerobics and stretching. Don't skip these parts of your workout!
• Progress at a moderate rate. Don't believe for a second that every time you head to the gym or start your workout that you have to do better than the time before. Such a tactic is a path towards overtraining and injury.
• Listen to your body, and treat it well. Eat well. Get enough sleep. Hydrate.

Delayed-onset muscle soreness is a beautiful thing. It's the body doing what it was designed to do - adapt. Take it slow, take it one day at a time, but don't let a little soreness get in the way of pursuing your fitness goals.

Workout Without Weights

For those introverts among us (read: me!), the best workouts can sometimes be those we enjoy in the privacy of our own space. In our own homes, we can crank the music to eleven, wear the ratty workout clothes we wouldn't let our best friend see us in, workout in front of the ol' idiot box, and make fools of ourselves while learning how to get fit.

What follows is my idea of a beginner/intermediate workout that can be done at home, without the fancy equipment. No one should get the idea that working out is only available to those who can afford dumbbells, or Bowflex, or a spandex unitard.

**Disclaimer: Working out, while generally wonderful for people, is also inherently risky. Moving the body in ways it is not accustomed to can cause injury. Best bet? See your doc before starting ANY workout program to make sure you're ready for exercise. And follow my instructions at your own risk. M'kay?**

WARM-UP:

- Is it a nice day? Go for a 5-10 minute brisk walk/jog in your neighborhood. Rainy? Stay inside and alternate between walking in place and jumping jacks for the same amount of time, 5-10 minutes.

- Come back inside and do some dynamic stretching exercises. Do 10 each of the following:

• Arm circles - Putting your arms out to the side, make big arm circles like a helicopter blade. Reverse directions and repeat
• Hugs - Give yourself a hug. Yes, really. Then open your arms as wide as possible and repeat.
• Toe touches- Stand in a wider-than-shoulder-width stance, with your arms out at the side. Without bending your knees, touch one opposite-side arm to the foot. (Accuracy does not count - if you can't touch your toe, touch your shin. Whatever your body can do)
• Lunges - Step out far with one leg and bend the knee. Push back with the same leg. Repeat with opposite leg. (Click here if you're having trouble with the technique.)

All warmed up? Then let's begin. Make sure you rest for 30-90 seconds between each set of exercises below, and listen to your body. (In other words, increase the rest if you find yourself out of breath, or decrease it if this is a cakewalk.)

Core Exercises:

• 25 Crunches - To ratchet up the intensity, hold a heavy book over your head as you crunch up.
• 20 Opposite arm and leg raises - On your hands and knees, raise one arm straight out and the opposite side leg straight out. Repeat with the other arm and opposite leg. Don't let your midsection sag! Keep a straight back as you complete this exercise.
• 25 Russian Twists - See technique here

Upper Body Exercises:

• 10x2 Push-ups - If necessary, you can do these with your knees on the ground, or even on the wall or a set of stairs.
• 10x2 Suitcase Curl to Press - Grab a suitcase (or a small bag/duffel...anything with a handle will work). Fill it with whatever makes it a good weight for you. Curl the suitcase up to chest level, then press it overhead while rotating your forearm. Bring it back down and repeat. Do the reps on each arm.
• 10x2 Triceps Dips - Find a sturdy chair. Do this. (In the image/video, the guy has his feet elevated for added intensity. That's great, but you can always leave your legs outstretch or even bent on the ground.)
• 10x2 Suitcase Lateral Raises - Grab your suitcase again. Raise your arm out, until it's level with your shoulder. Repeat on each side.

Lower Body Exercises

• 10x2 Body weight squats - With your feet positioned at just-wider-than-shoulder width, and toes pointed out slightly, bend your knees and lower your body slowly. Return to starting position. For added intensity, pick up that heavy book or suitcase and hold it overhead. (If your balance is not great, try these squats next to a wall, and don't let your butt go below your knees.)
• 10x2 Split squats - Step out with one leg a couple of feet. Bend both knees and lower your body. Repeat 10 times, then alternate legs and do it again.
• 20x2 Leg raises - While lying on your side, raise one leg high in the air. Slowly lower it down. For added intensity, make sure it takes at least 5 seconds to lower your leg to starting position.
• 10x2 Calf raises - Find some stairs in your house with a handrail. Let your heal hang over the edge of the first stair, with the ball of one of your feet on the step. Holding onto the handrail, slowly let your heel drop. Raise yourself by standing on "tiptoe", holding the handrail for balance. Repeat on each leg.

Cool Down - Brisk walk around the neighborhood again! (Or walk in place if need be.) End with some static stretching. (Good examples are found here.)

I can't emphasize enough the importance of listening to your body as you do this routine. Basic rule of thumb: if it's too painful, don't do it. Check with your doc for a routine better suited for you. And feel free to adjust the sets and reps as needed. Are 10 pushups too many? Make it 5, and maybe do a couple more sets with rest in between. But rest assured, getting active is just a matter of overcoming the inertia of our daily lives. Start moving and great things will happen, I promise!

Personal Training School, continued

It's been awhile since my last post, hasn't it? A quick recap:

1) I've been in a vocational program called the National Personal Training Institute since January of this year. I'm loving it, learning tons, and getting stronger each and every day. I hope to be a "Professional Fitness Junkie" in the coming months.

2) I have another race coming up! It will be my second year participating in the Running of the Bulls 8K in Durham, NC. I have about a month left to train, so I have some miles to log. Of course, I will post results and pictures here as soon as they're available.

3) I hope to be updating this blog more often in the coming weeks, especially since it's now a class assignment! (*wink, wink* Hi, classmates/Alan!) Topics that I hope to post more about: women's lifting (especially the dreaded fear of hypertrophy), the importance of functional training, nutrition myths and facts, creating a balanced fitness program with limited time, and much, much more.

More to come, always! Glad to be back on the blog!