Category: Exercise

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Exercise Fitness Home Injuries New York

Exercises for Better Posture

..according to WebMD:

Exercises for Better Posture

Make these posture-boosting exercises a regular part of your workout. Remember to exhale strongly and pull in your core muscles as you work — a key principle in both Pilates and yoga.

1. Core Stabilizer: Single Leg Extension. This exercise trains your core muscles to work together to stabilize your pelvis.

Starting position: Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor, and hands behind your head. Press your low back into the floor, and curl your head up off the floor.
Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Slowly pull one knee into your chest, keeping your low back pressed to the floor, while extending your other leg straight at about a 45-degree angle off the floor. Keep your abdominals pulled in and your low back on the floor. If your low back arches off the floor, extend your leg higher toward the ceiling. Switch legs. Start with five to 10 extensions on each side.

Variations to increase intensity: Double-leg extension: Pull both knees into your chest, then extend both legs straight at about a 45-degree angle, using your core to keep your low back on the floor.

As you extend your legs, extend both arms overhead, reaching in the opposite direction from your legs.

2. The New Crunch. The new crunch works the rectus abdominis and obliques. It’s also called a “curl up.”

Starting position: Lie on your back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Press your low back into the floor. Place your hands behind your head, or reach your arms toward your knees if it doesn’t create too much tension in your neck.
Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Curl your head and shoulders slowly off the floor. Hold, then slowly lower back down. Repeat until you fatigue.

Variations to increase intensity: Extend one leg straight at a 45-degree angle toward the ceiling.

Hold both legs off the floor, knees bent, with your shins parallel to the floor.

3. Pilates Roll-Ups / Yoga Sit-Ups. These exercises work the rectus abdominis, obliques, and transverse abdominis.

Starting position: Lie on your back with your legs straight, your feet flexed, and your arms reaching overhead on the floor. Press your low back into the floor.
Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Roll up in slow motion, reaching your arms off the floor, then your shoulders and head, rolling up one vertebra at a time until you’re sitting up with your abdominals still pulled in. Slowly roll back down. Repeat three to five times, adding more as your core gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity:  Cross your arms over your chest as you roll up.

4. Crossovers. Crossovers work all the core muscles, focusing on the obliques.

Starting position: Lie on your back with your hands behind your head, your chest lifted off the floor, knees pulled into your chest. Keep your low back pressed into the floor.
Action: Exhale strongly and pull your navel in and up toward your spine. Pull one knee into your chest while extending your other leg straight and rotating your torso toward the bent knee. Slowly switch legs, pulling the other knee into your chest and rotating your torso toward it while extending the opposite leg off the floor. Repeat five to 10 times, adding more as your core gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity:  The closer your straight leg is to the floor, the harder the work for your core. Try extending your leg just inches off the floor, making sure your lower back stays on the floor.

5. Cobra Pose: Back Extension. The cobra pose strengthens the erector spinae and other low back muscles.

Starting position: Lie on your stomach with palms flat on the floor near your ribs. Extend your legs straight behind you, and press the tops of your feet into the floor.
Action: Exhale strongly and pull your abdominal muscles in and up toward your spine. Lengthen out through your spine and slowly raise your head and chest off the floor, using only your back muscles. Do not push down into your arms to press up. Keep your hip bones on the floor, and gaze down at the floor to relax your neck muscles. Slowly lower back down. Repeat three to five times, adding more as your lower back gets stronger.

Variation to increase intensity: Reach your arms long beside your head. Keep your elbows straight.

6. Plank Pose. This exercise strengthens the obliques and transverse abdominis, as well as your shoulder and back muscles.

Starting position: Start on your hands and knees with your palms under your shoulders. Extend both legs straight behind you, toes tucked under, into a position like the top of a push-up. Pull your abdominal muscles in to prevent a “sway-back,” and gaze down at the floor.

Action: Hold the plank until you’re fatigued. Rest and then repeat. Keep your abdominals pulled in and up so your low back doesn’t sag as you exhale.

Variation to increase intensity:   Forearm plank: Balance on your forearms instead of your hands.

 

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Exercise Fitness New York

Patella Femoral Syndrome

from: http://www.patellafemoralsyndrome.net/
from: http://www.patellafemoralsyndrome.net/

It looks like I have Patella Femoral Syndrome.  I thought this overview of the problem was pretty good.

Typically patients will complain of localized anterior knee pain which is exacerbated by sports, walking, stair climbing, or sitting for a long time, often called the “Theater Sign” or “Movie-Goers Sign.” The pain from prolonged sitting is thought to occur because of the constant pull of the quadriceps muscle on the knee cap while sitting, which causes its impaction against the hard and unyielding surfaces of the bones of knee joint. Descending stairs may be worse than ascending. Unless there is an underlying pathology in the knee, swelling is usually mild to nil.

Causes

Patella femoral pain syndrome may be caused by overuse, injury, excess weight, a kneecap that is not properly aligned (patellar tracking disorder), or changes under the kneecap.

My physical therapist says my knee cap is not correctly aligned.  I will have to do physical therapy twice a week and have 4 home exercises to do.

Exercises

Straight Leg Raise – Straight leg raising exercises help develop muscles of your lower body, including your hips, glutes and thighs.

Sit on the floor with your injured leg straight and the other leg bent with foot flat on floor. Pull the toes of your injured leg towards you while tightening the muscles on top of your thigh. Raise your leg 6 inches off the floor. Hold for 5 seconds and slowly lower your leg. Repeat this 5 times.

Patella Femoral Syndrome

Band Resisted Clam shell – The band resisted clam shell exercise is great for strengthening and mobilizing the external hip rotators.

side-lying-leg-lifts

Side Leg Lifts – Side leg lifts work the abs, especially the hard to get at obliques, as well as the inner thigh.

Lie on your side with your legs stacked and your head resting on your arm. Tighten the muscle in the front of the top thigh and lift that leg into the air. Hold for one count, lower to touch the bottom leg and then lift again.

Wall Squat with Yoga Block – The quadriceps, or front of thigh, are the targeted muscles during this exercise but many other muscles get a workout also. The butt, hip, calf, back of thigh, low back, abs, and side abs are all used during this move.

Standing, place an exercise ball against a wall and align it in the small of your back. Position your feet a step, to a step and a half in front of your body such that when you squat down your knees will not protrude past your toes. Place a yoga block between your knees and squeeze.   Hold yourself in this position while actively squeezing the block between your thighs.  Maintain the pose as long as you can, allowing yourself to come in and out of the pose when you have to, working your way up to being able to hold the position for 1-2 minutes.

 

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Exercise Fitness New York sports Weight Yoga

Starting The Day With Yoga

75 minutes of Anusara yoga this morning with Ursula before running all my errands!  The Crunch gym description says:

Based on the teachings of John Friend. This class balances an opening to grace and the higher self with strong attention to alignment. The result is a strong synthesis between mind body and spirit. Taught in the Vinyasa style, Anusara Yoga is open to all levels. 

The class went really well so I expect to continue with the yoga classes at least twice a week.  With two to three kickboxing classes a week and walks/runs in the park, I will have a full weekly workout schedule.

After dinner with two old friends, I now possess the name and address of an acupuncturist and a chiropractor.  On my list of to-dos is to make an appointment to see them.

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Exercise Fitness Home

Lots of Ab Exercises This Morning

I met with my trainer at Crunch today and we focused on abdominal exercises.

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Exercise Fitness New York

Week 2 of the Couch to 5K Begun!

Woo hoo!  I completed the first of three iterations of Week 2 of the Couch to 5K in 8 week podcast!!!  It took me a couple of minutes longer to do the 3.5 mile loop of Prospect Park but, in my defense, my body is one big soreness.  My arms aren’t really functioning after two personal training/kickboxing sessions. My knee is also occasionally buckling as I walk [just to keep it interesting LOL].  I am hoping that I’ll get over the hump by next week.  Of course, now that I look at the website, I should have waited a couple of days before I began Week 2.  Here is the link to download an excel spreadsheet that lays out the program. 🙂

Week 2 comprises a 5 minute walk followed by 5 intervals of a 2.5 minute easy jog and a 2.5 minute walk.  The podcast finishes with a 5 minute walk.  The added 30 seconds on the easy jog weren’t  problem but it could have been that my jogs aren’t very fast…. I am PSYCHED that I could finish it despite my fatigue from the week.  Woo Hoo!

I need to focus on stretching my quads a bit more.  I like the site’s suggestion although I don’t see myself doing this on the streets of New York in winter…

Quadriceps Stretch

Kneel on your knees (without resting back on your heels). Lean back with your body erect and your arms to the side. Hold for 15 seconds.

 

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Exercise Fitness New York sports

December 31st….Looking Ahead To Better Health!

We’re back from our cruise and Christmas dinners!  We are also almost at our historic highs for weight and Body Fat%.  Bad news….

Fortunately, we are looking forward to better eating habits and regular exercise next year.  I have begun the Couch to 5K in 8 week pod casts at http://runningmate.podomatic.com/.  You are supposed to do the Week One pod-cast 3 times in one week.  It comprises a 27 minute podcast with a 5 minute walk followed by 4 intervals of two-minute jogs and three minute walks.  I’ve done two of the three workouts for the week and have had to ice my ankle already. 🙁  I will need to work on it; wearing an ankle brace this morning helped.  I am also rewarding myself and buying a new pair of sneakers.

Week 1 of the 5K 101
Week 1 of the 5K 101
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Exercise Fitness Kickboxing Massage New York sports

Kickboxing Session Then Qi Gong Massage

I had a pretty good work out session with John Salgado this afternoon.  My stamina is awful, however, and my knee has not improved very much at all.   After my work out, I went to get a massage at Wu Lim Qi Gong Master, 179 Grand St (between Baxter St & Centre Market Pl) in Chinatown.  It had great reviews on Yelp so I thought I’d give it a try.  Jack, the masseur, was amazing.  I was a bundle of knots so it was a pretty painful session but I’m so glad I went.  As Jack said: “No pain, no gain”.  So was I frightened?  Yes, a little bit….  but I’ve had some fairly lousy massages recently, so I was getting desperate.  Clearly, my back and legs still need a lot of work but I have hope that my knees will ultimately benefit from further Qi Gong massages.  Woo Hoo!

I have to say that it was gratifying when the masseur said that it was clear I work out.  Was he referring to all the knots or that I actually had some muscles?  I prefer to think it was the latter.

I am including a video on how to do some facial massages for relaxation by .  I was doing the facial massages as he spoke and thought it was pretty good.  Enjoy!

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Exercise Fitness New York sports

Kickboxing and Martial Arts

I didn’t do any kickboxing drills today at the gym with John Salgado –  we focused again on circuit training.  Today’s rounds included bicep curls on the bench, followed by leg lifts and v-sit ups.  The second station used the gymnastic rings for pull-ups and then moderated dips.  At the last station, I used the stability ball for various kinds of bridges and sit ups.

Juny’s comments on her Kuk Sool Won practice was inspiring.  It brought back memories of my Hapkido classes in London at Chang’s Hapkido Academy last year.  I really enjoyed the classes, and although I didn’t continue my studies I have very fond memories of my time there.  I wish them all the very best. 🙂

I thought I would include a short video demonstrating some of the Kuk Sool Won wrist locks. 

ki bon soo 1-15 (yellow and orange belt) basic joint locks with pressure points and throws

 Find more of these videos on mrblackbelt42’s channel

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Exercise Fitness Kickboxing New York sports

Tired and Sore But Proud Of Myself

Ironman Locking Sit Up Inversion Table - OrangeI went to see John Salgado again this morning [three days in a row!!!] and did circuit training with another of his clients. We had rounds of dips, Bosu Ball push ups, pad work, and medicine ball crunches. One of the circuit training stations was using wooden gymnastic rings for pull ups, very much like Frank uses the TRX straps. I think that I’m showing some improvement but overall all I could think about was that I was tired. LOL

I did a cool down on the small trampoline, trying to loosen some of the tightness in my joints.  Additionally, I got to try something new today: an inversion table!  It was fun although I only stayed in it for a few minutes.

I thought this video demonstrating boxing pad work drills was good.  Enjoy!

Here’s the link to 6 Bosu Ball exercises by RealSimple,com

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Exercise Fitness Kickboxing New York sports

Kickboxing As A Tranquilizer

I have to admit that I was in a fairly foul mood all day- no particular reason, just internally roiling.  As I made my way to midtown this afternoon..running errands, navigating my way around tourists who walk at a snail’s pace and then stop for no reason at all… I thought that I should have a flashing light above my head that warned people away. >:-(

My mood improved dramatically as soon as I started to really work out.  Yes, after the mobility exercises and warm ups and a few minutes into the excruciating dip exercises I became happy.  How strange. It happened too quickly to have been caused by endorphins.  It may have just been the opportunity to really move instead of being cooped up at the dentists office or the subway or trailing behind really slow folks on the street.  Woo hoo!  At least I was good this afternoon.  Let’s see if I feel that good again after tomorrow’s session.

Here’s a video that walks youthrough the proper way to do a dip.  I must admit that I do a modified version of this and keep one foot on the bottom bar so I have help in going up and down.