What do YOU do to stay in shape?

[Prit]

I do death by rowing machine twice a week, with free weights (very similar to Paddy's description above) another two days a week. Usually long walks with the dog at weekends, and if the walk is with my daughter on her horse, it's more of an endurance run.

[Waleed Y. Majeed]

Stand up and walk around a machine for about 7 hours + lifting between
150-200 boxes with approximately 400-500 letters in each every day at work.

On weekends (if I'm off work) I rest!


waleed

[Erich]

cycle long distances when I am not writing books or working in the trees, long distances I mean 50 miles upwards of 125 plus when time permits. As Frank said get one it may save your butt physically as well as your pocket book during lean times which are coming soon.

E ~

[Pseudonym]

This is dedicated to everyone who ever attempted to get into a regular workout routine.

Dear Diary,
For my birthday this year, my daughter (the dear) purchased a week of personal training at the local health club for me.
Although I am still in great shape since being a high school football cheerleader 33 years ago, I decided it would be a good idea to go ahead and give it a try.
I called the club and made my reservations with a personal trainer named Belinda, who identified herself as a 26-year-old aerobics instructor and model for athletic clothing and swim wear.

My daughter seemed pleased with my enthusiasm to get started! The club encouraged me to keep a diary to chart my progress.
________________________________
MONDAY:
Started my day at 6:00 a.m. Tough to get out of bed, but found it was well worth it when I arrived at the health club to find Belinda waiting for me. She is something of a Greek goddess - with blond hair, dancing eyes and a dazzling white smile. Woo Hoo!!

Belinda gave me a tour and showed me the machines.. I enjoyed watching the skillful way in which she conducted her aerobics class after my workout today. Very inspiring!

Belinda was encouraging as I did my sit-ups, although my gut was already aching from holding it in the whole time she was around. This is going to be a FANTASTIC week-!!
________________________________
TUESDAY:
I drank a whole pot of coffee, but I finally made it out the door. Belinda made me lie on my back and push a heavy iron bar into the air then she put weights on it! My legs were a little wobbly on the treadmill, but I made the full mile. Belinda's rewarding smile made it all worthwhile. I feel GREAT-!! It's a whole new life for me.
_______________________________
WEDNESDAY:
The only way I can brush my teeth is by laying the toothbrush on the counter and moving my mouth back and forth over it. I believe I have a hernia in both pectorals. Driving was OK as long as I didn't try to steer or stop. I parked on top of a GEO in the club parking lot.

Belinda was impatient with me, insisting that my screams bothered other club members. Her voice is a little too perky for that early in the morning and when she scolds, she gets this nasally whine that is VERY annoying. My chest hurt when I got on the treadmill, so Belinda put me on the stair monster. Why the hell would anyone invent a machine to simulate an activity rendered obsolete by elevators? Belinda told me it would help me get in shape and enjoy life. She said some other rubbish too.
_______________________________
THURSDAY:
Belinda was waiting for me with her vampire-like teeth exposed as her thin, cruel lips were pulled back in a full snarl. I couldn't help being a half an hour late - it took me that long to tie my shoes.

Belinda took me to work out with dumbbells. When she was not looking, I ran and hid in the restroom. She sent another skinny b*tch to find me.
Then, as punishment, she put me on the rowing machine -- which I sank.
______________________________
FRIDAY:
I hate that b*tch Belinda more than any human being has ever hated any other human being in the history of the world. Stupid, skinny, anemic, anorexic little cheerleader. If there was a part of my body I could move without unbearable pain, I would beat her with it.

Belinda wanted me to work on my triceps. I don't have any triceps! And if you don't want dents in the floor, don't hand me the damn barbells or anything that weighs more than a sandwich.. The treadmill flung me off and I landed on a health and nutrition teacher. Why couldn't it have been someone softer, like the drama coach or the choir director?
________________________________
SATURDAY:
Belinda left a message on my answering machine in her grating, shrilly voice wondering why I did not show up today. Just hearing her voice made me want to smash the machine with my planner; however, I lacked the strength to even use the TV remote and ended up catching eleven straight hours of the Weather Channel.
________________________________
SUNDAY:
I'm having the Church van pick me up for services today so I can go and thank GOD that this week is over. I will also pray that next year my daughter (the objectionable one) will choose a gift for me that is fun -- like a root canal or a hysterectomy. I still say if God had wanted me to bend over, he would have sprinkled the floor with diamonds!!!

[statemachine]

You should have picked an older trainer,one that has quite possibly had layoffs from training and knows what it's all about.Not a youngster.33 years away is far too long to whip yourself into shape in a hurry.

[AAA]

In winter hit the cross country skis, in summer a 2 mile run every couple of days, play basketball or somesuch twice a week, row (real water and real boat - screw the machines), hit the weights sometimes (though I disagree about the free weights - use the machines to isolate and do NOT risk injury. At my age the problem is not putting on muscle but avoiding it :), watch the weight training!

[statemachine]

Disagree about isolation...somewhat.Really boils down to what "in shape" means to you.Too much isolation isn't "real muscle",according to some.Squats,deadlifts and the benchpress with a bar,or better yet dumbells can't be beat provided you make sure you are flexible enough,and technique is proper before proceeding.If somebody has been away for decades,possibly the machines are a better choice.Real rowing is great!Compare it to power cleans,just more reps.Anything that puts a smile on your face is good.

[Paddy Keating]

A wonderful post from new member "Pseudonym"! I'd hate Belinda too! LOL! Statemachine's responses are spot-on. Compare his attitude to that of your bunny boiler gym mistress. I've been off for three months, convalescing from a boxing-related brain stroke, and for what it's worth, getting back into my free weights and my isometrics this past week has been tougher than I anticipated. Instead of triple 12-rep sessions, for instance, with 30kg weights on the cable cross-trainer for upper body condition, I'm doing triple 36-rep sessions with 10kg weights. I could go at it harder but what's the point? It's not about punishment. It's about pleasure, the pleasure of, for example, being able to see my wedding tackle without needing a mirror. OK, so that's a guy's take on it but I am sure you know what I am getting at. Getting back into it after 33 years is not going to be easy for you but do not let body fascists like Belinda put you off. As Statemachine said, some of these gym instructors are young and keen to the point of aggression and not therefore the most suitable instructors or guides to help people like you along the way.

I think you should certainly find an older, calmer instructor or even just a friend who can be your mentor in order to help you establish a weekly routine you can follow by yourself, without any need for someone yelling at you and discouraging you. In most gyms or, rather, serious gyms frequented by serious people, there are members who will always help newbies or born-agains out and there are always people at your level, with whom you can work out on an informal basis. If the gym to which you went isn't like this, change your gym. If there are loads of loud, aggressive men and women on steroids, change your gym. Find one with a nice atmosphere, a good range of equipment and free weights and try that out. People who are overweight and out of shape are welcomed and encouraged in serious gyms. That's part of the whole experience, part of what makes it a part of your weekly routine that you soon find you cannot do without.

I don't know you but I can imagine where you're at from your post. So, instead of killing yourself with punishing rounds of sit-ups and other forms of torture to begin with, focus for a while on getting that body moving, that heart pumping and burning that grease off. People sneer at exercise bicycles because they are a staple prop in sit-coms etc etc but, trust me, if you start off with 15 minutes a session on the bike, building up by five or ten minutes a week, the aim being sessions of at least 40 to 45 minutes, this being the minimum time to gain real benefit from it, you will start noticing all sorts of beneficial effects after just a month or two. You can alternate with the 'ski machine', which gives you more of a body workout, and with the rowing machine, as long as your back is up to it.

Do that for a month or two and come back and tell us how you feel. You might also want to play around with some light free weights, say 5 or 10 lbs, working out your arms and shoulders and your diaphragm. It's hard to describe here but, assuming you find a decent place with serious members as opposed to steroid junkies with personality disorders, don't be shy about observing others and copying what they do. And never let anyone push you into trying to up the ante before you are physically and mentally ready for it. You're not in competition with anyone else. You're in competition with yourself. Remember that and you shan't risk breaking or tearing anything as you begin the struggle to bring your body to a better place and, along with it, your mind and your whole attitude to life.

PK

[Cott Tiger]

Old-style weight training for toning rather than building, involving ten or so exercises a session, each exercise involving a series of twelve or fifteen movements, each series repeated three times with short pauses in-between. Free weights vastly preferable to guided weights, as the whole mind and body has to be concentrated on balance and muscle group isolation. Otherwise you risk doing yourself serious harm.

Day #1 for shoulders and arms, day #2 for torso, day #3 for legs. Break for one day with some swimming...or just riding one of my old but fast and heavy motorbikes for that vibro-effect as we don't have jacuzzis here. Then maybe a cardio session involving an hour or so on a bicycle or ski machine, with some light isotonics and pull-ups. Finish up in the hammam or sauna, followed by a cold shower. I sometimes train in a boxing gym and occasionally spar but it's getting hard to find places in this town where they do old-style boxing as opposed to kick-boxing, which I find terribly vulgar.

This is augmented by swimming, walking and some running, although the city in which I live does not lend itself to running. I eat normally, in terms of not feeling guilty about large plates of steak and chips, washed down with a bottle of wine. But I avoid junk food, excessive beer and strong liquor, the latter being a principle culprit when it comes to having to let that belt out by an another hole. Mind you, Tequila isn't too fattening. I also keep it down to one main meal a day, in general.

PK

I’m firmly from the PK school of thought when it comes to keeping in shape.

30-60 mins of cardio and then lose weights, in a very similar vein to paddy’s regime. I try and do that two or three times a week (try being the key word there ) and also play football every week and regularly rock climb/fell walk. I also occasionally do a 10km run, but my ankles aren’t great nowadays so I avoid the impact of road running more than I used to.

Regards,

André

[TimoWr]

[Annelie]

What is your bike Timo?

How far and how hard do you ride?
Oh yes, where is your helmut?

[TimoWr]

I have several bikes. My main rig is a titanium Merlin Extralight with a mix of Campagnolo Record gears, Powerarms cranks, Schmolke handlebar, Thomson seatpost, Syntace stem, Zero Gravity brakes, etc. Here with training/cobbles wheelset...



...and here (with last years saddle and bartape) with wheelset for climbing (mainly in France, using the house of my parents as base)...



Apart from that I have a cyclocrossbike with mainly the same components and a custom aluminium frame for autumn and winter training...



As to how far and how fast: at the moment I do daily rides between 80 and 120 km. Over the past 18 days I did 1205 km. No clue how fast because I skipped the computer this season. But judging from distance and time it's mostly between 25 and 30 km/h. Which means doing 30 to 35 km/h on straights (avarage goes down due to traffic lights, crossroads and city traffic at the start and the end of a ride). All figures are for solo rides. I sometimes train with two or three fellow cyclists but most of the time I ride alone (others simply don't do the milage I do).

Helmet: I never wear one when I'm not in a group ride.

[phylo_roadking]

As a motorcyclist I have to agree with Timo...

..not over the lack of a helmet - over a group of cyclists being one of the most dangerous things on the road LMAO

[Annelie]

I used to ride regularly but after a few near misses (cars) I found myself now nervous in traffic.

I have a Lemond Versailles Women's. Mine is loaded with Bontrager and Shimano.
its a great bike and I like to do about 60 K which I find is enough for me.
My speed is determined by whether or not I am doing hills or flat ground.
"Always wear a helmut."

My regular routine though is three days a week running steps on a mountain.
I try to do between 1500 and 2100 steps up each time...making sure not to do the same amount
each time.

Other days are spent at the gym. Using certain machines and free weights.

[statemachine]

Used to do a lot of mountain biking...safer than the road.Still have an aluminum Offroad proflex with rockshox,but most of the aerobic is spent with my dogs these days.