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May 25, 2012
Free classes at Ballet Austin on May 30
Just because you’re older doesn’t mean you should ditch the exercise class.
Half the reason I bike, swim and run as much as I do is so I can hike and backpack when I’m in my 60s and (hopefully) 70s.
With that in mind, consider this invitation from Ballet Austin’s Butler Community School: Anyone age 55 and older can drop by for free fitness classes from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. and again from 5:30 until 8:30 p.m. on May 30, National Senior Health & Fitness Day. It’s part of the national “Get Moving … Start Improving!” initiative, and organizers say the school is the only professional ballet only professional ballet company participating in this national event
The class lineup includes Arms & Abs, Better Balance & Movement, Pilates Mat, Beginning Ballet, Turbo KickÂŽ and Ballet Fit.
The school is located at 501 West Third Street. For more information go here or call 476-9051 or 476-9151.
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February 20, 2012
Gaining confidence and comfort through running
Six or seven years ago, I launched the Fit City column in the Austin American-Statesman with an article about why I hate to run.
I got tons of email on that, with most people telling me why I shouldn’t be the fitness columnist at the newspaper.
They missed the point.
I’ve been swimming as long as I can remember. My mom says she tossed me in the pool and I chugged right across, then asked her if I was doing it right.
But running bored me. My feet hurt, I got side stitches and I couldn’t keep up.
For my article, I interviewed experts. They helped me realize what I was doing wrong.
I was wearing ill-fitting shoes. I was trying to run faster than my natural pace. I needed to find people I could talk to while I ran, so I didn’t get bored. Maybe, they suggested, I should run with a group.
So now I’ve done all that.
And one 25K trail run, one marathon, a 20-mile race, about 10 half marathons and numerous 5Ks and 10Ks later, I can officially report to you that I love to run.
I reaffirmed that yesterday, when I ran the LiveStrong Austin Half Marathon.
I ran it alone; none of my running buddies signed up this year. That didn’t matter. I felt so blissfully happy running up Congress Avenue toward Ben White Boulevard, swinging around the corner and blasting down South First Street I got teary eyed. I high-fived people along the course. I encouraged people who looked tired. I whooped and hollered and had a grand time out there.
Something’s happened since I started running.
I’ve gotten more confident.
I’ve gotten more comfortable.
And somehow, weirdly, I’ve gotten a little faster.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m far from speedy out there. But I realize now that if I start off at an easy pace, I can build into it. The second half of the run is nearly always my best. I feel strong and capable, and I can’t stop thinking things like ‘I am so lucky I can do this!” and “I feel so happy right now!” as I go.
This year, I set a PR in a 5K and a half marathon. I’m right on the hairy edge of breaking 2 hours in the half, which, for me, seems unbelievable.
I’m not even sure how it happened.
I’ll still consider myself a swimmer first, but today I’m a runner too. And thankful for it.
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January 27, 2012
I am a swimmer
If you had to describe yourself in a handful of words, which ones would you choose? I’d include “swimmer” in my list.
Even though I run a few times a week and ride my bike to work, when it gets down to it, swimming is how I define myself. It doesn’t mean I’m particularly fast. It’s just that it’s that big a part of my life.
I love the water. I love the way it presses in all around me, offering up a full-body hug the whole time I work out. Something about that cool resistance brings me alive in a way nothing else does.
And I love the way I feel when I’m done with a hard workout — a delicious sense of fatigue soaking my body and a clear mind.
The water’s forgiving. It doesn’t jolt your knees or give you road rash when you fall. It sparkles when you dip your hand into it; it muffles the sound of the outside world.
Swimming makes you look inside, too. I can sort through problems or flesh out a story I’m working on all in my head, while I’m knocking off laps. And what other workout can you do while fully reclined?
That’s why I swim at least four times a week. I show up at practice before the sun rises, eager for a coach to holler instructions at me. Coaches can push me to swim faster and stronger than I ever thought I could.
Many of my favorite memories involve swimming: Plunging into an ice-cold lake at the top of a mountain in New Zealand, leaping off a dock into Echo Lake near Lake Tahoe, skinny dipping in Lake Austin, chugging up and down the shoreline during camping trips in Michigan, swimming clear around Manhattan Island with a relay team last summer.
Swimming makes me happy.
What words do you use to describe yourself?
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January 2, 2012
Calendar lets you log exercise
Every January, I unwrap a fresh Streaming Colors Fitness Journal.
It’s a habit I started way back in 2004, when I discovered the calendar, which features a little empty box next to each day of the month. You fill in the box, according to your own color-coded system, based on what type of activity you do each day. (I use purple for swimming, red for running, orange for water skiing and yellow for bike commuting, but you can set it up however you like.)
I’ve got eight years of calendars stuffed in a desk drawer, and I can check back and tell you exactly how far I swam on July 7, 2007, or how far I ran on Sept. 26, 2010.
Obsessive, yes, but something about that simple act of coloring in that box actually does motivate me. I can’t stand to leave a square white; I’ll go to yoga class or tick off another bike ride partly so I can add color to my calendar.
You can even set the calendar up to log other habits, like flossing your teeth or drinking more water or eating more fruits and vegetables.
I love it.
It’s available online at www.streamingcolors.com.
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December 30, 2011
What's your New Year's resolution?
How did 2011 stack up for you?
Did you meet your fitness goals? Did you exercise regularly? Did you eat more fruits and vegetables and fewer processed foods?
Lots of you posted on the Fit City fan page on Facebook yesterday, telling me about your 2011 fitness highlight.
Among the responses? Finishing the Trek Women Triathlon. Learning to swim butterfly.
Completing an Ironman triathlon. Keeping up with a group of college track team members on a run up a mountain. And losing 30 pounds with ATX100. (Way to go Pat!)
What I love about this time of year is that we can start fresh. No matter how 2011 turned out, we can clear the slate and begin anew.
That doesn’t mean setting an insurmountable goal. The key, I think, is making it attainable.
If your current exercise routine consists of walking from your car into your house after work, add a neighborhood stroll to your to-do list. If you’re stopping by McDonald’s more often than you should, start packing a healthy lunch. Sign up for a 5K, even if you need to walk it instead of running.
If fitness is already part of your routine, consider helping a friend reach some goals. Schedule a weekly walk or run with someone who isn’t as fit as you are. Show them that if you pick the right activity, exercise doesn’t have to be something you dread.
And if you set a big goal, like running a race, bicycling to work or cutting sugary soda out of your diet, tell someone about it. That’ll make you more apt to stick to it.
I’m already lining up my fitness events for 2012.
On my list so far? The Big Bend Ultra 25K, the 3M Half Marathon, a multi-day bike ride through Big Bend Ranch State Park, the Zooma Half Marathon, the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim (this time as a two-person relay!) and more bike commuting.
It’s almost January 1.
What are your resolutions? How do you plan to stick to them this year?
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December 12, 2011
What's your favorite workout song?
Your favorite workout song probably varies, depending on whether you’re sprinting, pumping iron or practicing yoga.
At www.RunHundred.com, you can browse through some of the most popular, sorting them by genre, tempo or era.
The website recently released its list of top 10 workout songs for winter 2011:
- Tim Berg — “Seek Bromance” (Avicii vocal edit), 127 BPM
- Katy Perry — “The One That Got Away,” 135 BPM
- Alexandra Stan — “Mr. Saxobeat” (Maan studio remix), 126 BPM
- Flo Rida — “Good Feeling,” 129 BPM
- Wolfgang Gartner & Will.I.Am — “Forever,” 128 BPM
- Hot Chelle Rae — “Tonight Tonight” (Goldstein remix), 118 BPM
- Taio Cruz & Flo Rida — “Hangover,” 129 BPM
- Enrique Iglesias, Pitbull & The WAVs — “I Like How It Feels,” 129 BPM
- Kaskade & Skrillex — “Lick It,” 128 BPM
- Kelly Clarkson — “What Doesn’t Kill You (Stronger),” 117 BPM
What’s your favorite workout song?
(AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)
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December 8, 2011
Don't drop the exercise when it gets cold
Has the cold weather put a damper on your workout routine?
Sometimes it’s hard to keep chugging away when temperatures drop below freezing.
You’ll feel better, though, if you do.
I’ve had to modify my routine this week. I swim at Rollingwood Pool at 7 a.m. three or four mornings a week. I usually make the 8-mile trek to the pool by bike, but when it’s storming or below 28 degrees, I just can’t do it.
That happened earlier this week. Instead of biking, I drove to the pool (I know — gasp!) for practice.
Swimming itself is sublime when it’s cold out. Jumping into a steamy pool in the dark of winter is like hopping into a cup of warm tea or diving under a snuggly blanket. The water feels soothing and cozy — as long as the pool is heated.
Sometimes, even if temperatures are in the 30s, I manage a dip in Barton Springs. The water there is roughly the same temperature — about 70 degrees — whether it’s August or December.
The swim itself isn’t too bad, at least for the first mile, but it’s the jaunt from the pool up to the changing room wearing a soggy swimsuit that makes me shake like a wet Chihuahua.
I like to drink something warm after I finish. Otherwise I’ll be chilled for hours.
I actually prefer running when it’s really cold outside, too. Just remember to dress in layers, wear long tights, gloves and a hat, and don’t stand around after you’ve finished, letting the sweat make you numb.
Remember, even if it’s cold outside, you can get dehydrated. Drink up!
And don’t let the chill keep you from being active.
How have you been coping with the cold? Are you keeping up with your exercise schedule?
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November 29, 2011
Longtime Jazzercise instructor Katie Gordon retiring
Four years ago, I wrote about madcap Jazzercise instructor Katie Gordon, whose devoted students loved her as much for the non-stop banter she kept up during her hour-long classes as they did for the lung-busting, sweat-inducing workouts.
Gordon, who has been leading Jazzercise classes at the Austin Recreation Center for 30 years, is retiring. Her farewell class is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 3.
Expect a standing ovation when Gordon, who has shared the drama of her life with possibly the city’s most devoted group of exercisers, leaves the stage the final time.
Students and instructors from all over Austin will attend the class to thank her for the years of fitness, friendship and fun.
Jazzercise, a combination of jazz dance, resistance training, Pilates, yoga and kickboxing, all set to music, will continue at the Austin Recreation Center, 1301 Shoal Creek Boulevard, even after Gordon quits.
Kate Henrichson, 33, Gordon’s associate for five years, will take over the class. Henrichson has been doing Jazzercise since she was 12 and attended classes with her grandmother and mother, also a Jazzercise instructor.
Gordon, though, will be dearly missed. Some of her students grew up in the class, others met and married through it. Just one glimpse of the Energizer bunny of an instructor is enough to motivate even the least likely exerciser to burn off a few calories. For years, she cracked jokes, shared personal stories and offered a shoulder to lean on.
And, remarkably, she never gasped for breath.
We wish her a relaxing retirement.
Here’s a link to a story I wrote about Gordon on Jan. 22, 2007.
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November 14, 2011
Wanted: Buff bodies
I’m looking for more buff bodies to feature as Fit Folks.
If you’re interested, write, in 200 words or less, what you do to stay fit and why you love it. Include your age and a photo of yourself doing whatever it is you do to stay fit, and email it to me at pleblanc@statesman.com.
If you’d like to be featured as one of our Outsiders, write, in 200 words or less, where you go for your best outdoor adventures and why you love it. Include a photo of the place and email it to Kathy Blackwell at kblackwell@statesman.com.
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September 27, 2011
Reasons to embrace the heat
If you tied me down and forced me to give you five reasons to embrace this infernal, melt-your-bike-shorts heat, here’s what I’d tell you:
- 1. Water ski season apparently will last until November.
- 2. Survive your training runs now and you’ll run like the wind when it’s 60 out.
- 3. Biking in sandals!
- 4. A cold beer just doesn’t taste the same in winter.
- 5.
Dang. I just couldn’t come up with that fifth reason.
Anyone got one?
(Photo by Austin American-Statesman photographer Jay Janner.)
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September 1, 2011
Tapering is tough
I have to tell you, tapering sucks.
After months of training hard, it’s torture to turn off the adrenaline, tone down a workout, or even — heaven forbid — skip a practice. But experts say a taper, that period just before an event when you ease back on training and trust that all the hours you’ve put in have prepared you, is the best insurance of performing well on race day.
That’s what I’ve been doing this past week, in advance of Friday’s 8-mile fund-raising swim for Colin’s Hope. It’s not a race, but for me it’s a very, very long way.
I’m happiest when I’m exerting. I love the way it feels to wear my body out.
I ride my bike to work almost every day. I swim four times a week. I run twice. I usually squeeze in a water ski session and a yoga class, too. And it turns out that my job also requires the occasional butt kicking from a fitness professional.
I’m so exhausted by the time I get home every night that I’m asleep by 9:30 p.m. so I can get up and do it again the next day. (Yes, this drives my husband crazy.)
I know I need to rest in order to do my best on Friday, so I’ve been easing back. It turns out it’s harder to skip practice than it is to go.
I feel like every last drop of fitness is slowly draining out of my body. Like I’ll never be able to swim all the way from City Park to Walsh Landing. Like I’ve somehow become a slug in one week’s time.
I want nothing more than to go for a long run or knock myself out swimming.
How do you feel when you taper?
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August 1, 2011
Even minimal exercise reduces risk of heart disease
You probably already know that it doesn’t take much exercise to lower your risk of heart disease.
Even two and a half hours of moderate-intensity physical activity per week — per week, for heaven’s sake! — lowers the overall risk of heart disease by 14 percent, according to a new review in Circulation, the Journal of the American Heart Association.
The review, which analyzed 33 already published scientific studies, showed that people who exercised even more had progressively lower risks of coronary heart disease.
It also showed that people who exercised less than the U.S. guidelines of two and a half hours per week had a lower risk of heart disease than those who didn’t exercise at all.
The take-away? Every little bit of exercise helps, and more is better. (To a certain point, of course.)
The key, I believe, is finding something that you love to do, that you don’t think of as “exercise,” and that becomes ingrained in your lifestyle.
I’m lucky because I’ve found that.
For me, it’s swimming. (Or barring that, biking. Or hiking. Or possibly even running or water skiing.)
If I don’t do something every day, I get grumpy.
What happens when you don’t get your daily fitness fix?
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July 27, 2011
Top workout songs
The right music can make you run faster, pump more iron and push yourself harder when you exercise.
I checked with RunHundred.com to find out the top workout songs for the first half of 2011. The list is based on 15,000 votes cast by subscribers to the website, which is run by former Austin resident Chris Lawhorn.
Lawhorn writes about music for Marie Claire and Men’s Journal. Whenever he comes across a song that seems good for a workout, he posts it on the site. Every week, he sends out a list of those new songs to Run Hundred subscribers.
It’s free to sign up or browse the database. Songs are searchable by genre, tempo and era.
Here’s the latest list, sorted by beats per minute:
- 105 BPM - Adele - “Rolling In The Deep” (Jamie XX Shuffle)
- 122 BPM - Jason Derulo - “Don’t Wanna Go Home”
- 125 BPM - Katy Perry - “Teenage Dream” (Kaskade Remix)
- 127 BPM - Deadmau5 - “Sofi Needs A Ladder”
- 128 BPM - Maroon 5 & Christina Aguilera - “Moves Like Jagger”
- 129 BPM - Cee Lo Green - “F**k You” (Le Castle Vania Remix)
- 129 BPM - LMFAO - “Party Rock Anthem”
- 129 BPM - Pitbull, Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer - “Give Me Everything”
- 130 BPM - Tiesto, Diplo & Busta Rhymes - “C’mon” (Catch ‘Em By Surprise)
- 150 BPM - Avril Lavigne - “What The Hell”
What have you been listening to as you work out this summer?
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July 18, 2011
Don't forget to hydrate
I read in Lower Colorado River Authority meteorologist Bob Rose’s excellent weather blog this week that the average date of the first 100-degree day in Austin is July 11.
Yes, that’s right. And we’ve already had more than 30 days over 100 degrees and it’s only July 18.
I ran 7 miles on a recent morning and could have wrung out my shorts and jog bra when I finished.
As athletes, it’s important to stay hydrated when it’s this hot and dry.
Here are some tips from the American Council on Exercise:
- Drink 17 to 20 ounces of water two to three hours before the start of exercise.
- Drink 8 ounces of fluid 20 to 30 minutes prior to exercise or during warm-up.
- Drink 7-10 ounces of fluid every 10 to 20 minutes during exercise.
- Drink an additional 8 ounces of fluid within 30 minutes after exercising.
- Drink 16-24 ounces of fluid for every pound of body weight lost after exercise.
Now if we could just hydrate the land …
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May 25, 2011
How many calories did you just burn?
Want to know exactly how many Starbucks lattes you can burn off by washing and waxing the hull of a sailboat or conducting an orchestra?
Check out this website, which tells you how many calories a 150-pound person burns doing hundreds of activities, then compares that to the calorie equivalent in grande Starbucks caffe lattes (made with whole milk), McDonald’s Big Macs, glasses of wine, Snickers bars, cans of Coca-Cola or carrots.
The website breaks down activities into broad categories like home repair, water activities, music playing, lawn and garden, dancing and more. Within each category are dozens of more specific entries.
Under lawn and garden, for example, you’ll find calorie counts for raking the lawn, digging a sandbox, laying sod, planting trees, picking fruit or weeding.
It’s fun to peruse. Bathing a dog burns 238 calories per hour. Sexual activity (moderate effort) burns 88 calories per hour. Sitting on a toilet burns 68 calories per hour.
This morning, I burned about 748 calories during my hour-long swim practice. That’s the equivalent of 2.8 caffe lattes, 1.1 Big Macs, 9.5 glasses of wine, 2.7 Snickers, 3.6 cans of Coke or 24.9 carrots.
Then I rode my bike to work, which burns about 544 calories per hour. I’ll do an hour and a half pedaling by the time I get home tonight. Compare that to 68 calories per hour riding in a car!
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May 24, 2011
Exercising when you travel
I get twitchy if I sit still too long. I’m happier if I crank up my heart rate for at least an hour every day, no matter where I am. When I travel — especially when I’m visiting friends or family who aren’t physically active — I need to get outside and move, or else I’m a less than ideal house guest.
But it’s hard to travel with a bike, and sometimes I don’t have access to a swimming pool or lake when I’m on the road. But running? Toss a pair of running shoes in your bag and you can get exercise almost anywhere you go.
I got back last night from a trip to Baton Rouge, where I attended my niece’s high school graduation.
I got up early and logged a 4-mile run in my neighborhood before climbing into the car for the 8-hour drive to Louisiana. My rear end definitely thanked me for the attention. So did my husband, who knows it’s a challenge for me to sit still that long.
I brought my shoes along on the trip, too, and on a hot and muggy Sunday morning I headed to the lakes around the Louisiana State University campus for a run.
One of the best ways to get to know someplace you’re visiting is to go for a run or a walk. This time, I watched egrets wading along the shoreline, admired sturdy cypress trees rising out of the water and ogled stately old homes in the area as I trotted along the hike-and-bike trail.
How do you get your exercise when you travel? What are some of your favorite out-of-town places to run or walk?
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April 22, 2011
Nike Training Club comes to Austin
Nike has a cool new free (yes, free!) fitness application for the iPad that guides users through a series of full-body workouts, with video clips to demonstrate each exercise.
Nike reps were in town this week to lead a group of University of Texas students through one of the workouts. One dropped by the newspaper office to show me how to use the app, called the Nike Training Club.
If you can’t afford a personal trainer, the Nike Training Club is about as close to a good substitute as it gets. And — important to me — it’s intuitive and easy to use on an iPad.
Once the app is on your iPad, you can choose from beginner, intermediate or advanced workouts. A couple dozen options are available under each category.
The workouts are geared toward women, with super-fit athletes illustrating correct form in everything from easy jogging to squats.
Each workout lasts 30 to 45 minutes, and the app logs your sessions. As you reach certain milestones (1,000 minutes, for example), you get special messages and rewards. (Like a 15-minute workout with Lea Michele of Glee. Hilarious!)
The app launched in January, and is updated regularly with new workouts. Some of the sessions require basic equipment like dumbbells or a medicine ball.
A class based around the Nike Training Club workout will be offered to UT students through the RecSport department’s Texercise offerings starting in June.
UT is the only university Nike has teamed with to offer the classes.
“We know Austin has such a great fitness commitment,” said Katie Kulczyk of Nike. “The great weather, the energy, the vibe of Austin. You can just see it wherever you go.”
Who’s tried it?
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April 8, 2011
Hydrobikes on Lady Bird Lake
Spotted: A new way to get some exercise on Lady Bird Lake.
A hydrobike looks like a mashup of a kayak and a bicycle. You pedal, it floats, and the two of you glide over the water, like a modern version of Our Lady of the Lake.
Austin Water Bikes is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. (earlier by reservation) daily. Rentals are $22 an hour or $13 a half hour.
Owner Todd Kirk has set up a rental table along the hike-and-bike trail, just below the Hyatt Regency Hotel at 208 Barton Springs Road. He’s currently offering $5 off an hour’s rental.
I haven’t tried it yet, but I’d like to. It marries two of my favorite things — water and cycling.
I can just picture myself cruising up and down the lake, counting turtles and blue herons, and racing the occasional nutria.
For more information go to www.austinwaterbikes.com, email todd@austinwaterbikes.com or call 200-6555.
Anybody tried this yet?
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January 7, 2011
Best workout music of 2010
What kind of music makes you push harder, run faster, lift more or exercise longer — or at least try?
According to Runhundred.com, songs you recognize and that have a fast beat.
“If it’s somewhere within five beats of 125-135 beats per minute and it’s popular on the radio, that will account for 90 percent of the most popular workout songs,” says Chris Lawhorn, a columnist for Marie Claire and Men’s Journal who started the website.
Runhundred.com features a database that allows visitors to sort songs by genre, era or tempo to find music that matches their workout.
“If you’re trying to match your pace to your music, you want a different tempo when you’re doing crunches versus running on a treadmill,” Lawhorn says.
The 2010 list includes several familiar names (Lady Gaga, Flo Rida and Black Eyed Peas) and some you might not recognize because they’re European (R.I.O. and Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina).
Without further ado, here is Runhundred.com’s list of the Best Workout Music Of 2010:
The top hits so far in January are: Christina Aguilera, “Show Me How You Burlesque”; Enrique Iglesias, Ludacris & DJ Frank E, “Tonight (I’m F**kin’ You)”; Black Eyed Peas, “The Time (Dirty Bit)”; Taio Cruz & Ludacris, “Break Your Heart (Mixin Marc & Tony Svejda Radio Edit)”; Mike Posner, “Please Don’t Go”; Shakira & Pitbull, “Rabiosa”; Keith Urban, “Put You In A Song”; Auburn & Iyaz, “La La La”; Jamaica, “Think I Like U 2”; and Katy Perry, “Firework.”
What do you listen to when you exercise? Why? (Photo of Lady Gaga by Associated Press)
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January 3, 2011
Try new fitness classes for free at GetFit! 2012
Looking for a new way to keep your fitness goal in 2012?
On Jan. 15, you can try an array of fitness and Pilates classes offered at Ballet Austin’s Butler Community School — for free.
GetFit! 2012 is scheduled for 3-6:30 p.m. at the school, 501 West Third Street.
And don’t worry. Dancing isn’t required.
The class lineup includes Arms & Abs, Ballet Fit, Below the Belt, Body Sculpting, Body Stretch, Feldenkrais, Intro to Pilates Machines, Pilates Ballet Barre Workout, Pilates Cardio, Pilates Cross-Sport Workout, Pilates Mat and Pilates Thera-band Stretch. A Zumba class, new to the school’s lineup, will also be previewed.
The event starts at 3 p.m. with an instructor meet and greet, refreshments and signups for Pilates apparatus sessions. Classes are open to adults and children ages 10 and up.
Participants get specials on future Butler Community School classes and courses. Genesis Today and Kind Bars will provide food and drink samples, and Scott & White Healthcare will provide free health screenings.
For the entire GetFit! 2012 schedule, go here. For more information call 476-9151
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November 24, 2010
Are you on a fitness streak?
Are you on a streak? Do you know someone who is?
I’m looking for people who’ve been doing some form of fitness — yoga, hula dancing, weight lifting, whatever — every day for a long period of time.
I’ve got swimming and running covered. I’m open to just about anything else.
If you can’t let a day slip by without a Jazzercise class, a bike ride or a pilates session, post here and let me know about it.
I’ll feature the best ones in an upcoming Fit City column in the Austin American-Statesman in early January.
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January 29, 2010
Title Nine offers February fitness camp
The Title Nine store in Austin is organizing another six-week fitness camp.
The classes, led by awesome personal trainer Sarah Stewart, will focus on building core strength, improving agility and some cardio. Workouts will be modified to accommodate all abilities and injuries. All levels are welcome.
For those who are interested, Stewart will conduct optional fitness tests and body fat analysis at the start and end of the six weeks. Weekly prize giveaways are also planned.
The sessions start Monday, Feb. 1 and end Thursday, March 11.
The group meets Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Each class begins with a 15-minute Q&A with Sarah at 6:15 p.m., followed by an hour-long class starting at 6:30 p.m. at Title Nine-Austin, 500 N. Lamar Blvd.
Cost is $250 cash or check made payable to Kinetic Movement Systems.
To RSVP, email Paige at ppape@titlenine.com or call the store at 512-322-9902. Space is limited so register early.
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January 7, 2010
UT cheerleader still tumbling away
In honor of tonight’s national championship game between the University of Texas and Alabama, a word about a former Texas Longhorn cheerleader …
Pam Merker cheered for the Longhorns for three years, starting in 1977. That’s her in the photo above, at age 20. And her wearing the same uniform at age 50.
Pretty amazing, no?
Merker wrote me earlier this week to tell me about her cheerleading days, when she’d tear across the field in a series of 10 back handsprings every time UT scored.
“That first year, (I) did hundreds of flips to fire up the Longhorn fans because Heisman Trophy winner Earl Campbell was scoring lots of touchdowns,” she wrote. The Longhorns went 10-0 in 1977, and Merker cheered in the national championship game between Texas and Notre Dame. (The Irish, led by Joe Montana, won the game 38-10.)
Merker, 51, will be watching the game tonight from her Fort Worth home. She wants you to know that she can still do 10 back handsprings across a football field. In fact, she’s got a mat-covered practice room set up next to her den, where she also teaches tumbling classes.
“I practice what I preach,” she says. “Being so strong, flexible and fit has been my lifestyle since I was a little girl. I have done basic exercises my entire life and I want to be a motivator for children, as well as adults, to get excited about being active and healthy.”
Merker was a competitive athlete most of her life. She was a tumbler and ran track growing up, earning a track scholarship to the University of Texas. She won the Collegiate State Pentathlon championship in 1977. After college, she competed in body building. At age 38, she was third runner up in the Ms. Fitness America Pageant.
She began suffering chronic back pain in her late 40s and was diagnosed with a degenerative disc. Today she does daily stretching exercises to keep back pain at bay.
“This daily 10 minutes has made such a difference in the way my body feels for the rest of the day,” she says. “ I have taught my students to do two basic exercises in their beds first thing in the morning and to also show their parents so the whole family can get into the habit, just like brushing your teeth.”
To do the first exercise, lie on your back and roll up, using your arms and reaching forward into a pike. Hold the pike a few seconds and roll slowly back down. Shoot for 10 roll-ups.
To do the second exercise, lie on your stomach with your hands by your chest and push your upper body up into an arch, straightening your arms like a half pushup. Your legs should be straight and hips should remain on the bed. Try to do 25.
Both of the exercises combine strength and flexibility.
“Doing them in your bed is more comfortable — like having your own big, padded exercise mat,” she says. “And just think — when you get out of bed in the morning, you have already knocked out a great mini-workout!”
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July 25, 2009
Sound off on exercise etiquette
I’m sensing some tension of late. Maybe it’s the heat. Let’s get it all out, folks …
What kind of behavior really bugs you when you’re swimming, biking, running or pumping iron at the gym? I think we can all use a reminder of proper exercise etiquette.
Clearly, a lot of swimmers are annoyed by people who don’t want to share a lane at Deep Eddy Pool. What else drives you nuts?
People who won’t yield the right of way on the running trail? People who shave in the sauna at the health club? People who grunt like baboons when they hoist heavy weights at the gym?
Sound off! What’s the most appalling thing you’ve seen?
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March 27, 2009
Taking the CrossFit challenge
Whew. Just had my butt kicked at a noon-time CrossFit session. And I didn’t even do the whole workout!
I’ve been hearing about CrossFit for a while now. It started in California, and it’s sweeping the country. Austin’s home to four CrossFit locations. I visited CrossFit Central, on Burnet Road just north of RM2222, where Carey Kepler taught me some basic moves and released me to join a co-ed class. (That’s Carey in the photo with me, above.)
Intensity report: Whipped hand and rear end with jump rope whirling at the speed of sound. Quads blown from trying to learn proper deadlift technique. Ego bruised from the humiliation of it all.
Upside: If you really want to feel alive, get sweaty in a hot gym, CrossFit may be for you.
Today’s session started with jumping jacks and running and core-strengthening exercises. For the main set, we had 20 minutes to see how many sets of three different exercises we could do: Double-up jump roping (where you twirl the rope twice every jump, thus the self-whipping), muscle-ups (complicated maneuvers on the hanging rings, just like the ones Vince Vaughn used in “Old School”), and “clean lifts” with the medicine ball (again, coordination required.)
The cool thing about CrossFit is the exercises are modified for folks who aren’t in tiptop shape. You’re essentially racing yourself, seeing how many sets you can do in a given time frame. And if you’re into the competitive thing, you can try to be everyone else’s score. They’re all written on a dry-wipe board on one wall. Go get ‘em!
Loved the instructors. At 44, I seemed to be the oldest student, but I bet the Level I (beginner) and Women’s Only classes would be more diverse.
I’ll be writing more about CrossFit in an upcoming article in the print version of the Austin American-Statesman.
Got an exercise class you think I should visit? Post it here!
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March 16, 2009
MizFit: A little sweat will do ya
In a recent video blog (in which she wore a tank top that showed off a pair of extremely well-toned arms), Carla Birnberg reminded viewers they don’t have to live, breath and die exercise to look fit and fabulous.
The Austin blogger does 30 to 35 minutes of cardio exercise most days, plus a little yoga and 20 minutes of weight lifting several times a week. Definitely a doable plan, even if, like Birnberg, 39, you have a 3-year-old daughter. (That’s Carla with Emma in the photo below.)
“I wish I could tell them that less is more, it’s not about being in a gym all day,” she says. “If you’re in it for the looks, that’s the wrong thing to do.”
Austin Monthly Magazine named Birnberg’s blog, MizFitOnline, one of the top three health blogs in Austin. She’s also part of Oprah Winfrey’s Virtual Digital Blogging Network.
A former personal trainer and gym owner with a masters degree in counseling, she moved to Austin eight years ago. Today she’s a freelance writer and full-time mom. She’s been blogging since 2001, when she posted daily for Musclejournal.com.
She started the MizFit blog in February 2008. She posts a video and issues a weekly challenge on Monday. Tuesday is for exercise or self-help tips, Wednesday she answers reader mail, Thursday she turns the reins over to a guest blogger, and Friday she links to other blogs.
She doesn’t make any money from the blog. She simply likes to help people. And she says blogging is fun. (It is!)
“I love the feedback. I love the immediacy. It’s almost like stand-up comedy — you know if the joke has gone over as soon as you do it,” she says.
Check her out!
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October 9, 2008
Physical Activity Guidelines
Adults should get two and a half hours a week of moderate aerobic physical activity. Children should get an hour or more a day.
That according to the new Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
If you ask me, that’s pretty pathetic. I think everyone ought to squeeze in double the amount of exercise that the guidelines recommend. An hour a day is even better.
And don’t tell me you don’t have enough time. Plan your exercise first, fit in the rest of your life around it. Your life depends on it.
According to the report, “Regular physical activity reduces the risk in adults of early death; coronary heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, colon and breast cancer, and depression. It can improve thinking ability in older adults and the ability to engage in activities needed for daily living. The recommended amount of physical activity in children and adolescents improves cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness as well as bone health, and contributes to favorable body composition.”
The guidelines are based on the first thorough review of scientific research about physical activity and health in more than a decade.
Here are some details from the guidelines. What do you think?
- Children and Adolescents — One hour or more of moderate or vigorous aerobic physical activity a day, including vigorous intensity physical activity at least three days a week. Examples of moderate intensity aerobic activities include hiking, skateboarding, bicycle riding and brisk walking. Vigorous intensity aerobic activities include bicycle riding, jumping rope, running and sports such as soccer, basketball and ice or field hockey. Children and adolescents should incorporate muscle-strengthening activities, such as rope climbing, sit-ups, and tug-of war, three days a week. Bone-strengthening activities, such as jumping rope, running and skipping, are recommended three days a week.
- Adults — Adults gain substantial health benefits from two and one half hours a week of moderate intensity aerobic physical activity, or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous physical activity. Walking briskly, water aerobics, ballroom dancing and general gardening are examples of moderate intensity aerobic activities. Vigorous intensity aerobic activities include racewalking, jogging or running, swimming laps, jumping rope and hiking uphill or with a heavy backpack. Aerobic activity should be performed in episodes of at least 10 minutes. For more extensive health benefits, adults should increase their aerobic physical activity to five hours a week moderate-intensity or two and one half hours a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity. Adults should incorporate muscle strengthening activities, such as weight training, push-ups, sit-ups and carrying heavy loads or heavy gardening, at least two days a week.
- Older adults — Older adults should follow the guidelines for other adults when it is within their physical capacity. If a chronic condition prohibits their ability to follow those guidelines, they should be as physically active as their abilities and conditions allow. If they are at risk of falling, they should also do exercises that maintain or improve balance.
- Women during pregnancy — Healthy women should get at least two and one half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic activity a week during pregnancy and the time after delivery, preferably spread through the week. Pregnant women who habitually engage in vigorous aerobic activity or who are highly active can continue during pregnancy and the time after delivery, provided they remain healthy and discuss with their health care provider how and when activity should be adjusted over time.
- Adults with disabilities — Those who are able should get at least two and one half hours of moderate aerobic activity a week, or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week. They should incorporate muscle-strengthening activities involving all major muscle groups two or more days a week. When they are not able to meet the guidelines, they should engage in regular physical activity according to their abilities and should avoid inactivity.
- People with chronic medical conditions — Adults with chronic conditions get important health benefits from regular physical activity. They should do so with the guidance of a health care provider.
For more information about the “Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans,” visit www.hhs.gov or www.health.gov/paguidelines.
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September 14, 2008
Step more, eat less in September
Time to step up, Austin.
America on the Move wants you to take 2,000 more steps a day — about a mile — and eat 100 fewer calories — the equivalent of a pat of butter.
Why? Because more than two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, costing us $150 billion a year in health care costs for diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease and hypertension, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
The non-profit is pushing its third annual STEPtember campaign to help people to curb that expanding waistline. You can register online to get daily dietary and activity tips, and enter to win prizes at www.americaonthemove.org. Then, from Sept. 20-27, Austin area YMCAs will celebrate America on the Move Week with special activities.
America on the Move recently commissioned a survey of residents of 10 cities around the country, including Austin. They found out that 36 percent of Austin residents say a physician has recommended that they lose weight. Sixty percent said they weren’t more active because they lacked motivation.
Actually, Austin’s not quite as bad off as other cities. Nationwide, nearly 40 percent of those polled said a physician has told them to lose weight. Fifty percent said lack of time stood in their way; 46 cited lack of motivation as their main reason not to get active.
There’s more, too.
The survey showed that 64 of Austin residents reported gaining and retaining weight in the last five years. (Nationwide, that number was 55 percent.) Sixty-five percent of Austin residents gained 10 pounds or more; 32 percent gained 5 to 10 pounds. (Maybe it’s all those University of Texas students, putting on the freshman 5?) Nationally, 66 percent gained 10 pounds or more and 31 percent gained 5 to 10 pounds.
More stats from Austin: Thirty-five percent of those polled said they worried about the weight of their children, and 32 percent said that their children get too little activity each day. Forty percent said they didn’t think they got enough daily physical activity for good health, and 46 percent said they exercised just once a week or less.
Nationally, 39 percent said they worried about the weight of their children, and 41 percent say their children get too little activity. Fifty-nine percent said they didn’t get enough daily physical activity and 44 percent said they exercised once a week or less.
Not good, folks.
According to the U.S. Surgeon General, most adults needs at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day to maintain health.
The good news? Adding 2,000 steps and cutting out 100 calories can help the average adult from packing on one to two pounds a year.
Hop to it!
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September 3, 2008
What's your exercise routine?
People ask me all the time what I do to stay fit. Mostly, I have fun.
I swim with the TeamTexas swim team at the Dell Jewish Community Center three or four times a week for an hour, and once more at Barton Springs with my swim buddy Brian. I ride my bike to work once a week (round trip 15 miles) and water ski a couple of mornings during the summer. I run twice a week, too — a short run of 3 or 4 miles and a longer weekend run. (That’ll ramp up soon; I start a marathon training program on Saturday.)
On the weekends, I can’t sit still for long. I’m either biking or kayaking or gardening or hiking at a park in my free time. I do it not for the workout, but for the relaxation — the exercise is the bonus check at the end of the day. As much as I love to sit on the couch and watch a good football game now and then, I get twitchy if I can’t get outside for a while every day, too.
Like most everyone, though, some days I just don’t feel like getting out of bed to swim or run or bike. Usually, I get over it and just go. I never regret the decision, because exercise tends to wake me up and make me feel perkier the rest of the day.
But sometimes I give in and snuggle under the covers for an extra hour. I think it’s OK to skip a practice now and then. If you’re exhausted, your body needs rest. You can’t perform well if you’re tired, so you’re better off catching up on a little downtime, skipping exercise for a day, and jumping back into it a day or two later. You’ll get a quality workout when you hit it again, rather than one you just dragged through.
Experts say that recovery days are just as important as tough workouts to strengthen your body. Listen to them!
For me, the mental rest is crucial, too. It’s easy to get caught in the rat race of logging as many miles or hours as you can exercise. The older I get (I’m 44 now), the more I know that’s true. I’m not (sadly) 30 anymore. Sometimes that’s hard to swallow.
Listen to your body. Sometimes you need a break. For me, it’s OK to take one.
What’s your routine? When do you take recovery time?
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