esrosedotblog

WORKOUT

I have a new workout routine. It is self-designed and monitored. So far it is working. That means that I am suitable sore after the strength part, suitably wiped after the cardio, and not hurting anything that is not supposed to be hurt. For an older guy, this last part is important. Some of the pieces get tender if misused.

I am doing two one-hour cardio sessions a week; bike and elliptical. Then, same week, I do two days of a cardio-weight circuit; full body; three to four exercises per body part; two sets each; short breaks; higher reps; slightly lower weights to exhaustion at the end of the three part exercises.

I mix up the order of parts in each day's circuit and week to week; start with the large muscles; end with the small; and keep a 90-110 pulse rate throughout.

Oh. And one day one hour plus around a hilly loop (Sunday) and one day off (Saturday). Two days cardio strength, two days pure cardio. Got it? Whew. I am puffing from just the typing of it.

I have used a 'trainer' since I was fifty. That is another way of saying 17 years. It has either been a real one or a virtual one; computer. Both work pretty well as I am kept on plan and on target and have goals to keep. I started using a competent authority way back then because I looked at a picture of me in a bathing suit, sitting on the edge of a pool in St. Croix and was not pleased.

I got back from the trip and called my friend Ken who had already started working with a guy. He had been nagging me to do the same. I thought I would give it a whirl. Fortunately Trainer Bob was not one to patronize or pander. It was his way or the highway. He kicked my ass. And kept on with it. Eventually he had me running a few miles to the gym in the morning, doing an intense hour with him, then running home.

Bob passed me to his buddy who was just getting his creditation; fresh meat. He was a runner and got me running hard on non gym days; eventually for long distances and doing fun runs up to 10K or so. I did this for a few years. Then, a foot gave out (neuroma—nerve bundle) and I had to curtail the heavy running.

The gym moved, got big time, went bankrupt and we moved on to another place, got another guy and then did off and on assisted training until we moved out here.

At first I did it myself then I got involved with another trainer. He was a sly one; a really old body builder. Way older than me. Creaky old. He hung around the gym and would give free advice. Of course, it was the kind of thing that would be obvious if you saw it from the outside; but before I knew it I was paying for the advice. I couldn't get rid of him. This went on for quite awhile until he got sick and eventually died. He was in good shape right to the end!

Since then, I have been using the MensHealth computer deal; a virtual trainer. There are a variety of workouts. They have been very good. The last one I used was a high intensity, arduous routine, and I think that while it gave amazing results (I am muscly) it tired me out. Eventually I rethought the need for a 'trainer' and so, here I am on my own again. For now this is working really well. But, that is not all. There is the other side of it. Calories in equal calories out; the deep dark secret of weight maintenance. I have been a calorie counter since I started running. You have to eat well when you run or you don't run. It is the other end of the problem actually. I would lose weight and had to keep up. Now, I gain weight if I don't keep in balance. Same deal. Count the calories.

Oh. About the calories in. I had also been on the MensHealth diet program for awhile. I used it to lose 35 pounds two years ago and stayed with it. But, now I know it by heart. Basically it is 2000 calories a day with a balance of carbs, protein and fat that uses almost all the available foods. It is a food pyramid diet. I don't do fads. Did you know that people are showing heart damage after as little as a year on the Atkins or South Beach? Bill Clinton had stopped his cholesterol meds and been on the South Beach. Ask him how it worked. He was thin though. And so on.

I know that very few people are interested in this but it is good for me to write it down. I am done now.

Note: The body building pictures and the comics are all from another time. Charles Atlas was a constant mentor in all the comic books and magazines when I was a kid. Somewhere in the zeitgeist, he still speaks to me. His franchise is still very much alive. Go visit him! Dynamic Tension!