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!

Personal Training School!

I'm in school to be a personal trainer, y'all!

This week was my first week at the National Personal Training Institute. NPTI is a six-month program involving both in-class and hands-on training for the future personal trainer. Topics covered include: fitness assessments, nutrition, program development, business development, anatomy and physiology, etc. Four days a week for the next six months, I'll be in a class with fellow fitness junkies, learning and sweating side by side.

Lemme tell you: I AM FREAKING SORE. My body is not yet used to using these muscles. I am hobbling around the house like a 98-year-old granny. I am having a hard time lifting my arms over my head to reach the high things in cabinets.

BTW, lifting my arms over my head would involve shoulder abduction in the frontal plane of motion along the anterior-posterior axis of rotation. See? I'm learning things.

My agonizing screaming muscles aside, I am loving this class so far. The instructor, Alan Wiest, is informative, passionate about what he's teaching, and generally concerned with how we progress as students and trainers. Three days in, and I already feel that I've learned a lot of valuable information. I'm on pins and needles in anticipation of what I'll learn in the next six months!

What I learn in class, I'll pass along here. Yay!

Plodding Along

Today, I got back to running after taking about a week off. I've been admittedly a little slack in the exercise department lately. Can you blame me? Like most every other red-blooded American, this holiday season has me a little lazier, a little slower, and a little more forgiving of myself when I don't exercise. Don't get me wrong - two days ago I was back in the bikram studio, sweating like a champ. And today, I ran my "long" route (perhaps a quarter-mile longer than my "short" route), and felt pretty good while doing it. But I started off at a nice, slow pace, and stayed pretty slow for the entirety of the run.

I'm even giving myself permission to cut this blog entry a little short...because it's not about doing everything superbly, all the time. It's about continuing on, not stopping. It's about plodding along, carving out time to stay engaged.

So I ran today. Not quickly, not pushing myself too hard - but I ran. Over 3 miles. Hooray! :)

Blue Talon Bistro Turkey Trot...Year Three!

Today was a Bikram day - challenging class, as always, with the most challenging teacher. Found myself to be a bit frustrated that she sped through the savasanas and the fixed firm pose, but ultimately, I did pretty well! I came home to my wonderful boyfriend, who was preparing delicious, homemade chicken potstickers and hot and sour soup. Ahhhhhh.

I've been a little slack on the running front this week, which may be why I've also been a bit slack on the posting front. But I wanted to document my wonderfully fun experience at the Blue Talon Bistro 5K "Turkey Trot" this Thanksgiving. This race is the first race I ever ran (see the pic to the right), and I've been running it for the past three years. The turnout gets bigger every year, as more and more people in the Williamsburg, VA area and beyond decide to put themselves through a road race before stuffing themselves with turkey and pumpkin pie.

This year, my boyfriend, brother and grandmother all braved the cool November air and early hour to watch me huff and puff my way to the finish line. This course is beautiful and interesting, beginning in the center of Colonial Williamsburg (Merchant's Square), winding through parts of the William and Mary college campus, and finishing in front of the Blue Talon Bistro. The weather was just perfect - not too cold, just right for running. People of all ages were out there, smiling, breathing hard, and pounding the pavement for bragging rights and reasons that belonged just to them.

I LOVE racing. Love it. Not because I expect to place - ever.

(Truthfully, I have only ever placed once in a race. I finished second out of all EIGHT women who were running in a 5K trail race in Roxboro, NC. I have a little trophy sitting on my dresser from it.)

I race for so many reasons. I race for the camaraderie, seeing fellow runners to my right and left, ahead and behind, all working hard and trying their best. I race to keep myself motivated during my daily exercise. Knowing that I have a race coming up pushes me to get out of bed and get the running gear on, even when I'm not 100% excited for it. I race for the variety. Every race gives me a change in scenery, where roads have been blocked off and marked JUST FOR ME (and everyone else running), and I can run safely in a new route.

I would recommend a structured race for almost everyone who enjoys running, walking, or biking. They're not hard to find. Search Active.com or SPORToften for races in your area, or plug into your local running or biking clubs for options. Local sports equipment stores often organize or keep tabs on events in the area. Whatever your reasons - fun, competition, variety, etc. - a race could be just the thing to add spice to your exercise routine, and create for you a new appreciation of your exercise of choice.

(For me, it made the mashed potatoes taste that much more scrumptious when I knew I had "earned" them!)