Category: Hawaii

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Hawaii

First Day At Golf

We joined the Mid Pacific Country Club in Lanikai!  We picked up a couple of used golf club sets at Roots & Relics in Honolulu.  Mid Pac has a gorgeous golf course and we can walk there easily. Although I’ve never played before, Bill and I played 9 holes this morning.  Bill did well while I picked up my ball a lot but the  day was great and we had fun.

This photo of Lanikai Beach is courtesy of TripAdvisor

I was surprised at how little the clubs cost relative to all accoutrements.  Golf bogs,  golf bag carts, shoes, an club-appropriate clothes….  We are looking forward to checking out the gym, dining rooms and social events at the club while we are in Hawaii.

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Exercise Hawaii Home

Getting Back Into It in Hawaii

Between the knee and hand/arm issues, I’ve not done regular, strenuous exercise in over a year. We have committed to getting back into it. This morning, we walked 2.5 miles and played a bit of tennis before the rain came down.

I was happy doing basic hula hooping in the living room while listening to 1980’s music. 10 minutes in one direction and 10 minutes in the other. Hula hooping burns 210 calories in a 30-minute workout, or 7 calories per minute. I wore my Fitbit Blaze tracker and got credit for steps as I did the work out.  It was a win-win!

I wrapped up with 20 push ups so today wasn’t completely cardio-centric.

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Hawaii Kickboxing

Restarting Kickboxing Workouts

For the past few months, I have been working out with my Body Opponent Bag using the FigCentury BOB XL with Base is a full-size, life-like mannequin.ht Trainer app.  I had limited myself to only to boxing rounds but decided I would do a basic kickboxing training session today.

My warm up was 2 minutes of jump rope and the 10 minute workout I included under Guidance/Exercises on this site. (Do it twice and you’ll burn about 170 calories.)

Minutes: Combination Moves:
0:00–2:00 Jab, cross, hook, uppercut lead with left (30 seconds each)
2:00–4:00 Jab, cross, hook, uppercut lead with right (30 seconds each)
4:00–5:00 Front kick (30 seconds each, left and right)
5:00–6:00 Roundhouse kick (30 seconds each, left and right)
6:00–7:00 Side kick (30 seconds each, left and right)
7:00–7:30 Combination (left foot forward): Jab, (L), uppercut (R), Front kick  (L)
7:30–8:00 Combination (right foot forward): Jab, (R), uppercut (L), Front kick  (R)
8:00–8:30 Combination (left foot forward): Jab, (L), cross (R), Roundhouse kick (L)
8:30–9:00 Combination (right foot forward): Jab, (R), cross (L), Roundhouse kick (R)

I did the Fight Trainer basic kickboxing session at a really slow pace and was doing well.  Unfortunately, I realized that I completely forgot how to do a back kick!  Just in case anyone else wants to refresh her/his memory:

 

 

 

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Beach beach stretches Hawaii stretch Travel

Lazy Exercises on the Beach

Thought I would try to do some easy exercises while I lay on the beach (while not attracting lots of attention):

  • Hand Finger Forearm Strength TrainerHand Exercises: Using a Hand/Finger/Forearm Strength Trainer, I did a hundred repetitions while suntanning on the beach.
  • side-lying-leg-liftsSide 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.
  • Two-Knee Twistback pain, low back pain, yoga for back pain, back pain relief, yoga for back Lying on your back, bend your knees into your chest and bring your arms out at a T. As you exhale lower your knees to ground on the right. Keep both shoulders pressing down firmly. If the left shoulder lifts, lower your knees further away from the right arm. Hold for 1-2 minutes each side
  • Forward Seated Bend:  There are many benefits of this posture, the main and most obvious one is to provide a complete stretch of the entire backside of the body from the back of the head through the heels.  seated-forward-bend
    • Sit up straight with your legs together, stretched out in front of you. Point both feet straight up towards the ceiling.  Be sure you are sitting straight up on the sitbones with your spine straight.
    • Inhale, and stretch your arms up over your head. Following the direction of your hands, at the same time lengthen the entire spine upwards
  • Sphinx:  back pain, low back pain, yoga for back pain, back pain relief, yoga for backLying on your stomach, prop yourself up on your forearms. Align your elbows directly under your shoulders. Press firmly through your palms and the tops of your feet. Press your pubic bone forward. You will feel sensations in your lower back, but breathe through it. You are allowing blood flow into the lower back for healing. Hold for 1-3 minutes.
Categories
Exercise Hawaii Home Injuries

Fixing my Feet

Along the way, my Plantar Fasciitis seems to have flared up again.  Plantar fasciitis is caused because the tough, fibrous band of tissue (fascia) connecting the heel bone to the base of the toes has become inflamed.  Overweight women, like myself, are more likely to develop the condition.  Walking a lot on hard surfaces makes it worse, so our long walks into town were making it worse.  The pain classically occurs right after getting up in the morning and after a period of sitting. The excruciating pain in my heel bone was often felt worse after (not during) exercise.

According to my research, stretching is the best treatment for plantar fasciitis.  I found this exercise to be the most helpful:

  • Plantar fascia stretch: Stand with the ball of your injured foot on a stair. Reach for the bottom step with your heel >until you feel a stretch in the arch of your foot. Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds and then relax. Repeat 3 times. After you have stretched the bottom muscles of your foot, you can begin strengthening the top muscles of your foot.

FootCareMD suggests the following

  • Lean forward against a wall with one knee straight and heel on the ground. Your other knee is bent. Your heel cord and foot arch stretch as you lean. Hold for 10 seconds, relax and straighten up. Repeat 20 times for each sore heel. It is important to keep the knee fully extended on the side being stretched.
  • Lean forward onto a countertop, spreading your feet apart with one foot in front of the other. Flex your knees and squat down, keeping your heels on the ground as long as possible. Your heel cords and foot arches will stretch as the heels come up in the stretch. Hold for 10 seconds, relax and straighten up. Repeat 20 times.
  • Plantar Fascia-Specific Stretching Program
    From American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) http://www.aofas.org/footcaremd/Pages/footcaremd.aspx
      1. Cross your affected leg over your other leg.
      2. Using the hand on your affected side, take hold of your affected foot and pull your toes back towards shin. This creates tension/stretch in the arch of the foot/plantar fascia.
      3. Check for the appropriate stretch position by gently rubbing the thumb of your unaffected side left to right over the arch of the affected foot. The plantar fascia should feel firm, like a guitar string.
      4. Hold the stretch for a count of 10. A set is 10 repetitions.

The good news is that my foot feels so much better!  We have even begun playing tennis in the mornings.

Here is a great list of exercises that you can follow. Plantar Fascitis Exercises-1.  Stick to it if you have problems with foot pain, plantar fasciitis, and or heel pain.

I also use the Active Ankle Dns Dorsal Night Splint Active Ankle Dns Dorsal Night Splint when I go to bed.  It’s been very helpful too.