Tuesday, January 25, 2011

If I Don't Post Tomorrow, It's Because I Died.

This past Sunday was the last of my $300 worth of yoga classes, and while I enjoyed them tremendously, my weight loss has stalled and I have to try something else to lose those last 8 pounds before the end of the school year.

I tried a new class tonight, which was much better than the one I did last week. Last week's had too much "choreography" for me--I had to learn to do a bunch of things, and then do them in order, and then do that for an hour! I'd watch, and by the time I figured out somewhat what to do, it was on to something else. Way too fast for me, couldn't do it, so I left.

Tonight's class was more of an aerobic circuit-training kind of class. We jogged around the room for a few minutes, then did high knee running around the room, and then did "butt kicker" running around the room. Then we broke up into groups, each group doing something different, and rotated through each exercise. This group might be doing jumping jacks with hand weights, this group might be doing mountain-climbers, that group might be doing crunches, etc. That I could do.

For a little while.

I learned that 20 minutes of a leisurely pace on the elliptical trainer each morning when I wake up is not enough to gain or claim any cardiovascular fitness. There were a couple of times in that class tonight that I felt lightheaded enough to need to rest, that's how bad a shape I'm in. I thought it was a 30 minute class, but in reality it was 50 minutes--I left at the 27 minute mark, during a rest break. I'll know better when I go back next time, and will strive to make it 35 minutes.

This is definitely the class for me. But I can already tell I'm going to be paying for it tomorrow, mainly in the hamstrings and quadriceps. So if you don't see any posts from me tomorrow, you'll know why.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cycling is a pretty good way to get some fitness. I started riding a couple of years ago. Slowly I have worked up to the point where I now ride about 75-100 miles per week. I'm in my mid-40's.

It can be expensive, but it doesn't necessarily have to be. For example, you can buy a used bike off CraigsList, or you can buy a new one in a bike store.

Once you achieve a reasonable level of fitness, group rides are within reach. A couple of the guys in one group I ride with weekly are over 80 years old, and they ride 30+ miles.

Here's a good place to get questions answered, if you have any:

http://www.bikeforums.net

KauaiMark said...

Well...I hear that Zumba works and looks like fun. At least the music is catchy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyWou608KJg

Mr. W said...

Tae-bo my friend. Get his Tae-Bo II Advanced dvds...and you are set. They are about an hour long, but you can learn the moves at your own pace and you save tons of money.

It's what I used the first time around losing weight. I did look them up and they are expensive now (like $45 used). I read its because Billy Blanks doesn't own these videos and the company that does won't release them again. It's a shame...great workout.

You could go the P90X way, but only if you have a pull-up bar handy. Or if you like that guy he also has 10 minute trainer videos which is like P90X-light. I did 30 minutes worth the first night (3 videos, which is fine) and I was so sore the next day.

Mr. W said...

well I guess you can get the VHS version, which is what I have for $14...well worth it.

http://www.amazon.com/Tae-Bo-II-Ripped-Advanced-Two-Pack/dp/B00005NRQG

Erica said...

I swear by Crossfit. I lost 40 lbs and got incredibly more fit in about 6 months of classes.

If you look it up, don't let the videos scare you, its scalable to any fitness level.