If it is all inhaling and axehaling, I should be able to handle that. Just working my way up to zumba which my wife tells me isn't easy.
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If it is all inhaling and axehaling, I should be able to handle that. Just working my way up to zumba which my wife tells me isn't easy.
I'd be interested in seeing a version history of WD-40.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sancho
With yoga, it really depends on the style and who's teaching. I also have zero interest in the new-agey aspects of yoga, so I sought out programs that were specifically geared toward physical workouts. The Kimberly Fowler video I mentioned at the top of the thread is a good place to start.
Ya, I can't do yoga either. It's too quiet. Tai Chi is also quiet but I find I really like it plus it gives you the whole range of motion like yoga.
Don't eat more than you need. . don't eat any sugar, breathing - yes, is key. . deep, calm breathing is exceptionally good for you.
Honestly, not eating sugar, also, rarely eating meat, is so transformative. . . it really can change your life completely, and it gives you a rather large edge in almost any competitive endeavor. Because when your metabolism, immune system and the rest are freed of that burden, you can easily reach perfect health; and then things will come with so much less effort necessary than before, and you can achieve a ton of things that you wouldn't have been able to before.
I agree that overeating is the worst exercise one can engage in.
You can make exercise out of any activity. For example, one-handing a loaded pizza slice builds dexterity. If several slices must be eaten while practicing, well, sacrifice is often necessary to achieve one's goal.Quote:
Originally Posted by YesNo
All you guys who don't like yoga-haters be haters. Feeling Taylor Swifty here.
I haven't looked up the research, but I read in a book on hypnosis some time back (can't remember the name) that if you visualize yourself exercising, it is almost as good, in terms of things like weight loss, as actually exercising.
For peaceful, enjoyable exercise I heartily recommend hawking. You get to spend hours traipsing through the countryside, breathing fresh air and looking at the pretty wildlife. You have the company of one of nature's miracles on your fist, (which is like carrying a 2lb bag of sugar in your left hand all day) whilst climbing up hills. Good cardiovascular exercise, this. Then, when you see some pretty wildlife which looks tasty (either to you or the hawk) you let slip the bird and it chases the quarry down, with you in hot pursuit. This is when you get a really good workout, as sprinting, all togged up in your wellies and hawking gear with a game bag and a telemetry set slapping around on your hip, boosts the circulation and allows you build on all that good work you'd been doing when you were just climbing hills. You also get to leap over streams, wade through mud, and battle your way through hedges. And when you finally track your hawk down, you will, hopefully, have some really healthy food to put in the fridge or freezer. Game is very good for you, being pretty much fat free. I lost loads of weight when I was hawking regularly.
The only downside is the bird's predilection for squirrels. Nasty things, squirrels. Teeth like chisels. If your bird latches on to one of these, you need to get in quick so it doesn't get bitten. Not much eating on a squirrel either. One time my bird took off after a roe deer. It saw something furry with a flashing rump and must have thought it was jumbo rabbit. You should have seen the disappointment on her face when she got close and realised how big it was!
You lose weight by burning more calories than you consume. Unless you're under some hypnotic trance while jogging you are not going to lose weight.Quote:
Originally Posted by YesNo
My god, have we become so decadent and lazy that instead of exercising and sticking to a balanced diet, we just need to visualize what it might be like to be healthy? Two years ago I weighed 210lbs, after making some lifestyle changes and working at it, I'm now at my proper weight, 180lbs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hawkman
Or maybe just hiking, lol. Although hawks are utterly gorgeous.
Also, Iain, there's an article in today's New York Times Magazine, "The Thought That Counts," which tells about a study by a psychologist of 84 hotel chambermaids. "The maids had mostly reported that they didn't get much exercise in a typical week. The researchers primed the experimental group to think differently about their work by informing them that cleaning rooms was fairly serious exercise-as much if not more than the surgeon general recommends. Once their expectations were shifted, those maids lost weight, relative to a control group ( and also improved on other measures like body mass index and hip to waist ratio). All other factors were held constant. The only difference was the change in mind-set."
It's just one study, but it does seem to demonstrate the power of suggestion.
What are the other factors that stayed constant? My initial reaction is that once given the idea of cleaning as exercise, those maids likely approached it that way and were more vigorous in their work. Does it also say by how much exactly their weights and measurements changed?
Those are very good questions but that's pretty much all it says about that one study, Calidore. The whole article was pretty fascinating, though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by qimissung
Oh I definitely believe in the power of suggestion. I think mindset and perception is incredibly important for things like aging, and even weight loss and exercise... but I would need to see a follow up study on those 84 chambermaids, determine if such things have staying power. I've read studies on mindset and boosting or slowing metabolic rates, and there isn't much proof that it works.
*edit*
And I almost forgot... earlier this year I listened to an interesting audiobook, 13 Things That Don't Make Sense by Michael Brooks. Most of the chapters I was expecting; why we haven't come up with a Grand Unifying Theory for the universe, how is it that the first organic life came to be on Earth, dark matter and dark energy, and so on... but then there was a chapter on the Placebo Effect, and that was perplexing. Scientists don't know to what extent or even why the placebo effect works, only that it is far more dynamic than we once believed. Indeed, there are some popular medications and medical therapies/treatments that won't have the desired outcomes for patients unless they are fully aware that they are taking the medication, and or what to expect from certain therapies.
That is if they were unknowingly slipped the medication, it would have little to no effect on them. So I'm left wondering if that is what the chambermaids experienced, the placebo effect?
The placebo effect is discussed in the article. Here it is, by the way:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/26/ma...-set.html?_r=0
Good article.
"The mind is a terrible thing, and it be stopped in our lifetimes."
I think we can have it both ways in the case of the hotel maids. By both ways I mean, calories in-calories out, as well as the power of positive thinking. Deep in the human psyche there is a need to do work as efficiently as possible, to save energy so to speak. But then take that work and call it a healthy exercise program and all of sudden movement is prioritized over efficiency. I'll bet the maids who thought of it in this respect took more steps while doing their job, made more trips back and forth to the cart in the hall, took the stairs instead of the elevator, etc. And if you hooked them up to an activity monitor I think it'd prove it.
Papaya and I are in the Fitbit club. The Fitbit is a little digital doohickey you wear on your wrist and among other things it tells you how many steps you take each day. I can guarantee you I move more when I wear it than when I don't. I'll make two trips to the barn carrying smaller loads rather than one big trip. I don't skip my daily run as much. I park farther from the building. I absolutely don't take the elevator. Every week they e-mail you a summary in which they tell you your average daily step count, how many miles you went that week, how many active minutes you had, and here's the kicker - they give you these little digital badges for milestones: 100 miles, 500 miles, 1000 miles, I'm embarrassed to say how much I enjoy getting a new badge.
This sentence from that article makes sense to me:Quote:
Originally Posted by qimissung
When we are “actively making new distinctions, rather than relying on habitual” categorizations, we’re alive; and when we’re alive, we can improve.
Although I try to pay attention, I realize I don't do it often enough.
I like gadgets. It looks like a potential Christmas present. Don't they have apps like this for your phone?Quote:
Originally Posted by Sancho
Yep, Ya gotta download the app to your phone or tablet and then it'll automatically synch itself, but Ya gotta buy the doohickey - 'bout a hundred bucks. It's got a motion sensor of some sort and a Bluetooth connection. I probably won't replace it when it breaks. By then, with any luck, there'll be a smart watch that incorporates all that happy horsesh*t into one device. Then I'll be back down to one wrist. Woo-hoo.
Hopefully by the time it breaks there will be something better. I like the idea of not having something on my wrists. No wrist watch either. I assume the phone is more accurate.
I got my sons fit bits for Christmas. They don't use them. They said it was more useful for people who run, and they lift weights.
I bet you are so right about those chambedmaids, Sancho. I know I'd step more lively if I thought I was getting some benefit out of it.
I am having second thoughts about getting my wife one for Christmas. She doesn't need to lose any weight, but the present might imply that I think she should.
Good thinkin', Y/N.
You could get her a new mop and a bucket.
Wait, no, hmmm, scratch that.
How about a Lexus?
Yeah, that's definitely the kind of present she should request first.Quote:
Originally Posted by YesNo
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sancho
That's is pretty accurate. I noticed that before Fitbit I would walk through the tank farm, with the Fitbit I walk around the tank farm. True Story: A guy I work with walks in the morning. One morning a police officer stopped him to say one of the neighbors reported somebody suspicious in the neighborhood. The police officer asked my friend why he was weaving around the cars. My friend answered "Because I'm trying to get my steps". hahahaahaha
I don't have the wrist type Fitbit, I have the cute magenta one that you can put in your pocket or belt. I don't think it does as much but it's less intrusive.
I was doing okay at the old Power 90 workouts and wanted more variety than just those two routines over and over, so I've promoted myself to the Power 90 Master Series. This was created after P90X and is much more polished than the original Power 90. It consists of six workouts: three cardio and three strength. I've run through all of them twice now just to get acclimated, and holy cow, I'll be here a while. These routines are not only longer and tougher than the originals, but they have a much greater variety of moves, which are also often more complex in themselves. Entry-level strength aside, my questionable coordination and balance make some of these pretty difficult, so this will take quite a bit of practice. Thankfully, Tony Horton is very good about suggesting modifications for different skill and fitness levels--I need both.
It's amazing how many sadistic variations of pushups and squats people can dream up. Here's a few of the former you can try at home for fun (I'm lucky to do more than a few of any of these):
* Sphinx pushups: Start in plank, but resting on your elbows instead of your hands. Then push yourself up using your triceps.
* Pike Press: Start in a high Downward Dog and raise & lower yourself while holding that pose, thus mostly using your shoulders.
* Plank > pushup > side arm balance > plank > pushup > other side arm balance > repeat
Squats include things like the One-Legged Russian Ruble Squat, which involves standing on one leg while squatting down to pick up a bottle cap at your toe, straightening up while passing the cap to your other hand, and squatting and replacing the cap on the floor; then stand back up and repeat--all ideally without letting the other foot touch the floor. Hah.
I also picked up an inexpensive heart rate monitor (the Polar FT1 @ $40, recommended by Consumersearch), which I understand will let me know should my heart stop during aerobics. Got one positive from it right away: My resting heart rate is a pretty good 53.
Now the nervous-making part. I've just gotten medical coverage, which I haven't had in 15 years and very seldom used when I did. I now have to schedule my first checkups in probably more than 20 years. Not too worried about the physical, but I doubt I'll be as lucky with the dental.
I'm not technically overweight, but I'm as fat as I've been in about six years. I obsess over my weight and find this extremely distressing. But a few months ago I bought a sweet two-hundred pound punching bag at a pawn shop and since then I've been attacking the poor thing with furious determination for two or more hours a day, and have lost about fifteen pounds in that time. Kickboxing is my favourite form of exercise, I have been doing it for years now, and this is the first time I've had in my possession an actual heavy bag, all my previous bags having been jimmy-rigged poor-man's improvisations, the last consisting of a hockey bag filled with dirt and old clothing, duct-taped in the areas it split open at. It is very nice to have a sturdy, resilient thing to let fly my fists, elbows, knees and shins at.
I've also been doing skip rope, running on the spot and jumping jacks.
Went on my usual run this morning to make room for the Turkey tomorrow.
I'll likely hit the trail early, early tomorrow morning to make room for desert.
I lost my fitbit. I don't know what happened. It was in my pocket at lunch and when I got home it was gone.
I hope you find it. Did you check your car?
On a side issue, but relevant to the thread, I have considered looking for some self-hypnosis app to listen to on my phone. My problem is that I understand an optimal maximum weight for me would be about 179 pounds given my height and weight. I am about 185 pounds or so, but I don't check often nor do I have a fancy digital scale.
Does anyone have any recommendations for self-hypnosis apps to loose a small amount of weight, say, 10 pounds?
New Year's Resolutions anybody?
It's not really a new years resolution as I started it two weeks ago but it's close. I love Coke and all things sugary and carbonated. Love. Sooooo... I made a deal with myself that if I can go without pop (soda for you non-midwesterners) until March 30 I can put a down payment on a trip I really want to take in July. I've also thrown fast food in the picture as well. That used to mean anything with a drive through but now Panera has a drive through and I don't necessarily consider them fast food so I'll have to come up with another definition.
Good one. I should probably do something like that, although my weakness is the bakery, which kicks out the Panera drive-through - "Would you like to add a bakery item for 99 cents, sir?" - "Yes...yes I would. In fact I'd like to add a dozen bakery items, thank you very much. Oh hey, is that a Krispy Kreme across the street?"
Luckily, Santa noticed that I lost my fitbit and brought me a new one. Now the old one will reappear any day now. Today I took 1775 steps today! My biggest exertion today was putting on decent clothes to open the door for the pizza man.
I resolve to lose 10lbs over the winter. I resolve to do more cardio at the expense of weights. I may even get a fitbit! I am curious papaya, can you give me a brief eval on yours? What you like and don't like about it?
I have been thinking about and sort of meaning to post here for a while. . .
1) you can do anything - you can get to any health you wish to, if you want to. .
The most important things are what you eat and above all, drinking enough water. . . If you only drink water when you're thirsty, you're not drinking anywhere near enough. . . It is possible to drink too much, but most people - at least around here - are dehydrated a lot of the time. When you are, then your other organs suffer, because your body is always depleting itself of water, and when it doesn't get enough through drinking, it takes water from the brain, liver and kidneys. . .
So that alone is like huge, #1. . . then, eating healthy foods, natural foods. . .that accounts for so much.
But then, it's not just what you eat, but how you eat it. . . if you eat something in an anxious state of mind, or angry, it can actually do your body some harm. . .
Then - besides these things, there are like, literally hundreds of things, sort of secret things, you can do to keep yourself in perfect health. . . I won't go into all of them here - but things like relaxing. . . stretching. . . Above all how you feel about yourself, how healthy you believe you are, makes a bigger difference than you might think. Chapter 4 of Varieties of Religious Experience, about healthy-mindedness and the mind-cure movement (of the 19th century) is an extremely interesting and useful treatise on the subject.
Besides the mental aspect, mental formations and what not, there are other secrets (not because nature is tricky, but because she is sublime) to reaching perfect health. . . connected with the relaxation one. . .there's a method you can use, sort of a shortcut to meditation. . . it's more or less a physiological 'button' that you can do to send waves of relaxation throughout your body. In a very calm, peaceful, state of mind (because it's mutually beneficial to the technique), close your eyes, and gently roll them up towards the back of your head. This relaxes muscles and tension, and strengthens them, because relieving stress is usually one of the best ways to strengthen the body. . . My dad taught me this ever since I was a little kid. . It's super, super, useful and beneficial - more so when coupled with the literally dozens of ways you can give yourself small edges in the health and wellness area. Using it - when you're tired, when you've got a difficult task - can allow you to perform at a much higher level for much longer. . . For instance, if you ever have to stay up for longer than usual, especially if it's a whole lot longer, this method is invaluable.
Time I use is usually just 15-30 seconds.
So - anyway, as long as you believe in yourself, you can basically accomplish anything as far personal health is concerned. Don't let anything hold you back from achieving whatever state of healthy body you wish to achieve.
That's interesting about the eye/meditation thing, Nikoli. I'll give that a try.
I finished the 70 yoga classed in 90 days thing at the end of November. I think I made it to 45-50. Which is fine. I was weak, still am, so I was really doing it more to challenge myself to go to more difficult classes, which I did, and to go more than twice a week, which I also did. I guess my New Year's goal is to keep it up. Right now there's a little tension between that and going to see some movies that are out. There's a fair number that I want to see, but I also want to keep making progress physically. Namaste, y'all!
My Fitbit broke. I'm free! Free at last!
Congrats on finishing the yoga run, qimissung!
I do hope you like it. I've been aware of it since I was a kid, and like I say, it can help you in any endeavor, especially when used in conjunction with other meditation techniques. Healing and relaxing- very useful.Quote:
Originally Posted by qimissung