Episode 9, Your Life an Owner’s Manual, Show Notes

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Diet and Exercise Goal Cont. Cardio and Stretching

Desired Outcome: A lean, strong, attractive and flexible body with the endurance to perform all of our favorite activities.

Desired Means: Delicious and interesting food with sufficient variety. Flexibility to “cheat”, eat out, or at parties without a problem. An exercise program that does not take too much time and that is enjoyable. What we do must be sustainable for life, we are not interested in a short term fix.

Cardio Exercise

These are activities that cause your heart to pump blood vigorously and your lungs to move a lot of air. The purpose of your heart and lungs is to deliver oxygen and nutrients to cells throughout your body and to carry away the waste products from those cells. Pushing your body regularly to pump more blood and deliver more oxygen has wide ranging impacts on the body.

  1. It improves the ejection fraction of the heart
  2. It improves lung capacity
  3. It increases the development of blood vessels including the development of collateral circulation in the heart muscle.
  4. It improves insulin sensitivity and burns glycogen in the muscles.
  5. It burns fat in the muscles.
  6. It improves circulation
  7. It elevates metabolism for a period after exercise
  8. It improves the competence of the whole body to do the things you love to do

Refresher

  • The best exercise is the one you will do
  • Make exercise enjoyable by choosing intrinsically enjoyable activities or by adding enjoyment to less intrinsically enjoyable activities.
  • Variety mixes up the stress on the body and keeps things fresh.
  • Recovery is critically important. Do not over train

 

Key Points

 

  1. Injury is most likely when you are learning a new activity. No matter how fit you are a new activity can stress your body in new ways. It is far too easy to overdo if the activity is a fun and social one in which you feel it is necessary to “keep up”.
  2. Accidents are most likely when starting a new activity and when you are completely comfortable with an activity and no longer cautious. An accident can ruin everything. Learn the safety rules for any new activity and start slow and easy. Remember you want to do this activity for the long haul. Remember also that the purpose is to have fun and have some physical activity. If you achieve these two objectives you are a winner!
  3. Equipment that fits, is properly adjusted etc. is both safer and more fun to use.
  4. Know what motivates you and use this knowledge to your advantage.
  5. Benefits accrue from regular exercise. Injuries come from infrequent exercise.
  6. Remember to hydrate. High heat and low carbs require electrolyte replacement. Our recipe of the week is for an all-natural, homemade electrolyte replacement drink that tastes like a margarita!

Some of our favorites:

 

  • Wii and Kinect
  • Aerobic Dance
  • Tennis
  • Golf
  • Kayaking
  • Biking
  • Water Aerobics
  • Elliptical
  • Walking/ Hiking
  • Rowing Machine
  • Cross Country Skiing and Indoor Trainer
  • Treadmill
  • Stair Climbing
  • Yard and House work

Adding Enjoyment

 

  • Music, podcasts, audiobooks
  • Books, magazines, Kindle
  • TV, DVR, other recorded video
  • Exercise TV shows

 

 

Stretching

 

  • Improves range of motion and performance in sports
  • Helps to prevent back pain
  • Helps to prevent injuries
  • Most stretching activities also involve balance and core strengthening

Our favorite is Yoga but any well designed stretching routine will provide similar benefits. Pilates has many similar benefits. Warm up stretching is done at the beginning of a workout but developmental stretching is best done at the end of a workout or when thoroughly warmed up.

http://www.christianyoga.us/vid_clip.htm

Recipe of the week: Homemade Margarita flavor electrolyte replacement.

Tip of the week: Pre-hydration

Tool of the week: Moto Active system.

Book of the week: Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen By Christopher McDougall