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| The Road to 100 Fit Tip #2, 2008 —
If You Always Do What You've Always Done,
You WON'T Always Get What You've Always Got
For many of us, all we want to do is maintain what we have. We are fine with our weight. We are fine with our strength. We are fine with our endurance. We are fine with our shape. However, contrary to popular belief, if you always do what you’ve always done, you WON’T always get what you’ve always got! This is especially true with the body. Even if you are on an exercise program, you can’t just keep doing the same old thing and expect to get the same old results. Why? Three reasons:
- Adaptability. Your body is an amazing machine. It will adapt to almost anything. So if you do a certain exercise program for an extended period of time, say one year or more, the body will figure out a way to do the routine with less and less energy. In other words, over time, you will get less out of the same workout.
- Overcompensation. If you continually train one part of the body at the expense of another, you will develop an imbalance and the body will overcompensate. This could lead to inflexibility, muscle imbalance and injury.
- The natural aging process. I hate to tell you but we all age. And as we do our bodies change. The workout program that worked well for us in our twenties may not work so well in our thirties. And what we did in our thirties may not work in our forties. And so on and so on.
What is the solution?
Vary your program continually. Modify your program every three to six months. The term is cycling. Cycle, or rotate in new exercises on a regular basis. For example, for the first three months emphasize walking and upper body strength exercises. For the next three months use an elliptical machine and concentrate on lower body strength exercises.
Modify your program every week. Strength train once or twice a week. Walk or jog on a treadmill once or twice a week. Take a group exercise class once or twice a week. Take a yoga or boxing class every now and then.
Just like with our spouses and significant others, the important thing is to keep our bodies guessing. Never let your body get bored and tired of the same old same old. If you do, just like in a romance, the energy will go right out of your routine. That is the key. Never let it get TOO routine!
Answer to last week's fitness quiz:
What is tachycardia?
An unusual fast beating of the heart
Answer to last week's Question of the Week:
What is your New Year’s Resolution?
Lynne writes "To be more considerate of other people’s time."
This week's fitness quiz:
What is arrhythmia?
NEW FEATURE! Question of the Week(Selected answers will be published. All answers will be posted on the Uncle Vic Message Board. Please answer in two sentences or less. Please include your first name or if you wish to remain anonymous, your intitals)
What do women want?
Corny Joke of the Week:
Two wrongs don't make a right, but two Wrights make an airplane.
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