Image: sxc.hu

High weight enlarges your muscle fibers and give you more strength. High reps provides you more energy and endurance. In contrast, 8-12 is the medium range and a compromise between the two. While this may be good as a transitional workout, if you maintain 8-12 reps for most exercises on every day, you’re not going to see the same extreme gains as you would if you bounced between the two polar opposites.

I think a good implementation of this would be to go through your complete body with high weight, then high reps, and last transition to the medium range of reps and then back up.

Post from: EveryJoe

Is 8 to 12 Reps Really the Best?

Yes, and in that order.  Thanksgiving is just a few days away, so I’m not going to fight it.  I’ll eat–too much–first, then this weekend, I’m going to turn my whole body upside down and do a cheap mini-detox.

What’s that going to involve, you ask?  Well, it’s going to be a simple regimen, really, as far as the steps go.  A little less easy when it comes to my ever-waning will power  :-).  I normally love the leftovers from Thanksgiving.  This year, though, I am going to love my body instead.

I’m going to get started this Friday by eating very light meals, and removing the caffeine and sugar from my diet during the day.  Lots of water, no coffee, no tea, no sodas.  Just simple, basic food in small bites.

Then I’m going to take it up–or down–a notch, depending on how you look at it, and just do unsweetened fruit juices and water throughout the rest of the weekend.  I’m going to try and drink about three liters of water during the course of each of these days.  Kinda makes my tummy ache a little thinking about it, but that’s the plan.

Then on to the skin brushing.  Skin brushing is best done before you bathe or before you go to sleep.  It’s relaxing, and helps stimulate the lymphatic system, which helps your body rid itself of toxins.

Here are some tips for skin brushing:

-Using a medium-soft brush, brush from your feet upwards onto your legs

-Brush your lower back using upward strokes

-Brush across your shoulders, and downward towards your heart

-Brush the back of your neck in a downward motion

-Brush your abdomen in a circular clockwise motion.  This can be really soothing, too.  I love this one

Now nothing I’ve talked about here involves adding any detox formulas to your daily routine.  Just free and uncomplicated steps to see if you can get yourself feeling better, and get your body moving in the right direction.  Not for or against any remedy, just thought it would be more useful to offer a couple of easy, low-cost methods to help you get your bodies running more smoothly after the annual American pig-out we all enjoy so much.

Peace.

Post from: EveryJoe

First I’ll Gorge Myself, Then I’ll Detox :-)

Regardless of what level your practice is at–beginner, intermediate, exploratory or advanced–the eight limbs of yoga (ashtanga) are vitally important stops along the way to the ultimate goal of transformation.

My last post focused on sustainability, and living a simpler, more beautiful life.

To continue along that thread, I wanted to talk a little bit about purity, or saucha, one of the observances belonging to the second limb.

Saucha is purity that operates on many levels. And it’s this purity of thought and action that can lead us to a more sustainable, contented lifestyle.

On a daily basis, we aspire to cleanliness for our bodies by washing ourselves, maintaining clean, organized homes, eating well and drinking clean water. Even more importantly, we must also aspire to an intellectual “cleanliness,” by not polluting our minds or speech with negativity, or clinging to emotional and physical obsessions. In other words, we must strive to find a balance that will provide us with a prescription to helps us keep ourselves clean, inside and out. This is such an important concept, as saucha is itself a pre-condition for experiencing the fullness of yoga and enlightenment.

It is believed–and true–that cleanliness and order within our minds and our lives helps lift our self-esteem and reinforces our knowledge that we are in fact deserving of good experiences. It helps improve our personalities, so we can experience the ultimate proposition of our practices–balanced self-awareness. And on a very practical level, when we feel pure and clean, we can be clear and precise about our intentions, unfettered by the imbalances that can often plague our bodies and our minds.

Every day we can practice purification in a variety of ways. In addition to the basics like bathing and taking care of our teeth, there are some less obvious ways we can achieve purification. I like to take mindfulness walks in nature (yes, all year round), singing, chanting my own personal mantras, burning incense and other natural oils, brushing my tongue (I know, but it does help), fasting from sleep or food for a day, and much to my friends’ delight, mona, which means refraining from talking for a day. I have all but removed watching television (haven‘t quite been able to remove it entirely J ) on a daily basis, religiously clear out clutter and excess, recycle, and laugh–a lot. These are all great and practical ways to purify your mind and your environment.

In yoga, there are several methods that are used to purify energies. My very favorite is the practice of tarka, which is a daily reflection on our activities and how we respond to them, done at the end of each day. Or you can use your own creativity to incorporate new purification techniques into your life to bring you more joy. The rituals themselves are important, but it is the acts and the intentions that are crucial.

I know this seems like another layer to add to your very busy lives and days. However, incorporating some of these techniques will move you much closer to achieving the purity of mind, spirit and body we are all trying to strive for with our own practices.

Once you move closer to that purity of mind through daily, prescriptive actions, you’ll see your own transformation begin to take place, with an enhanced clarity of thought and awareness.  New, comforting and pure.

Peace.

Post from: EveryJoe

The Pure Bliss of Yoga

Yes, yoga has taught me yet another lesson. You don’t need to spend a lot of money or be a conspicuous consumer to be happy or have nice, meaningful things or a beautiful existence.

One of the key lessons of yoga is that it teaches you to appreciate the simpler things in life. To be present. To be in the moment. This practice alone has not only helped to quiet my mind, in recent months it has also saved me a lot of money.

In fact, my shopping habits have changed significantly. I buy less processed, ready-to-serve foods and eat more healthfully and more simply. I’m cooking at home and packing my lunch a lot more, and it is making a big difference.

Instead of heading out to malls, I now spend my time looking for vintage and resale shops, and I am finding a lot of bargains, not to mention a lot of cool, unique and thoughtful items for my home and my wardrobe that aren’t mass-produced.

Now I will say this–it does take a little more time to shop this “new” way. But even that aspect alone is an exercise in mindfulness for me. It has taught me that I don’t need to scoop up every new and shiny thing that I see, but instead to take the time to really scavenge through and find what I am looking for. And I feel a lot better when I return home from shopping these days. I know I have spent the time and have been aware of every purchase I make, which has really helped me fight off the urges and impulses that used to leave my credit card on the verge of melting, and my bank account deflated.

I am also finding that I value things now, much more so. When I go back and look at what I have purchased, having taken the time and put some thought into it, I am finding that I really like what I have brought home much more than in the past. Those old shopping days when I would spin through a mall, bring home bags of stuff and often wind up disappointed that I had spent so much, and gotten so little satisfaction are over. This change in my way of thinking has really transcended across every area of my life, and now it is saving me money and making me feel more peaceful and content. That’s really saying something.

Now that I am thinking about it, I am going to sign off, hit my mat and see what else awaits me. It’s really quite a journey. It’s helping me in even the most unexpected ways.

I would love to hear about everyone’s journey toward a more sustainable lifestyle. There are so many creative ways to think about improving your daily life that are as unique as each individual in the universe. Let’s really be sustainable together, and share some of these ideas with each other.

I can’t wait to hear.

Peace.

Post from: EveryJoe

A Simpler Life Can Be Beautiful

I know I write a lot about yoga. But I also love running, and yoga actually is helping me increase my productivity on the road.  I used to run long distance before getting into my practice.  I loved it.  It was relaxing, gave me time to think, and reduced stress, too.  What it also did, I found, was make me a little less flexible. And, on occasion, I would even find myself hobbled and sidelined.

Now that I combine the two, I am finding it is a great fit.  Yoga keeps me limber and increases my flexibility, which helps me prevent the injuries I used to experience when running was my primary form of exercise. The constant stretching and breathing exercises I practice in yoga help me maintain my strength and focus, which are very important.  I found that when I wasn’t stretching as regularly as I am now in my practice, that demanding activities (like running) would more easily strain my muscles, joints and tendons, sometimes causing unnecessary injury to my feet and legs.   

Yoga also reduces the tension in my body, which can easily increase the risk of injury, and sometimes cause permanent damage.  And if you’re just a wee bit uncoordinated–like me–the added benefits of increased coordination, balance, concentration and endurance that yoga can bring to your running life are invaluable.

So if you’re a part-time (like me) or full-time runner, I think you should really consider adding yoga to the mix.  It really does help stretch your muscles and increase the flexibility that you can’t always get from a good run.   It will open up tight hips, improve your body’s alignment and help prevent hamstring injuries (ouch!).  

Do them together, and I promise you will see results.

Peace. 

Post from: EveryJoe

My Running Practice

That’s right.  Got the results from my physical last week, and they were awesome. I am never sure–at least not since my bout with breast cancer a few years back–how the test results are going to come out.  But I felt pretty good going in, and I have been working hard to change my diet, de-stress whenever possible, and just plain take care of myself.

After meeting with my doctor, one message came through loud and clear–my diet is doing amazing things for my health.  I grew up a die-hard, meat-eating carnivore.  In my late 20s I changed that up somewhat, my thirties, even more so.  Now in my mid-forties, I have all but wiped meat out of my diet.

I eliminated the meat at first because my family history is not so good on the cardiac side, but at first it was a half-hearted attempt.  And to this day, I still haven’t completely kicked Thanksgiving turkey off of my plate.  But for the most part, I am meat-free, and feeling very good.  The sluggish days where my diet and its high concentration of animal fats ruled are gone, along with the lingering side effects I used to feel.  

The best part–my doc told me I possess the physical fitness, blood pressure, cholesterol, flexibility, endurance and bone density (yea!) of someone half my age.  So it’s really paying off.  I never thought much about the longevity aspect of it–I just wanted to purify my little engine and feel better, but added longevity…wow, what a bonus!

I do owe a lot to meditation and yoga, too.  Especially the low blood pressure.  Training my mind and body to relax and be present has also made a huge difference.

Still on the fence? I hope not.  I know it isn’t for everyone, but at least give yourself the added edge of increasing the amount of vegetables and fruits in your diet.  That step alone can really help a lot.  And put down that sugar, too.  I’m living proof it is never too late.

Peace.  

Post from: EveryJoe

Living Proof–A Greener Diet Can Help Keep You Young

I decided that since I know for a fact now that it’s a mental block that keeps me from running, I can’t use it as an excuse anymore. So, since this is summer in Seattle, which means it was raining, I popped in Accepted, one of the most underrated and hilarious movies ever, cranked up the volume and hopped on the treadmill.

 I had to resist the urge to get through my mental block by running until my lungs exploded or my legs gave out, cause I know I would burn out and never be able to keep it up.  So I did about 3 miles alternating running and walking based on how I felt. I tried not to go too fast because of what    said, so I ran at 4.5 mph and walked at 3.  It felt like a good pace that i will keep for a while before increasing. Gotta build that baseline.

It’s funny, because I am a trainer and I know all the logistics of running (proper form, how to build endurance, when to up pace/time) but I have trouble keeping up with it. I think the progression is too slow for me, but I really want to do this this time, So I have to be patient, another thing I am NOT good at. 

 It wasn’t so bad.  Although I felt bad about not being able to take Porkchop outside, aside from that, it was a good run. I haven’t been really exhausted after a workout in a long time so it felt good to collapse on the couch afterwards (after some stretching of course), all sweaty and spent.

Has anyone read Chi Running? I’m thinking about picking it up, but wanna know if it’s worth it. Thoughts?

Post from: EveryJoe

There’s Always More to Learn

Can someone just not be “good” at running? I have tried and tried and tried for the last couple months to work up my endurance and speed and it just isn’t happening. I am lucky to get a ten minute mile and even then I do intervals (2 minutes running & 1 minute speed walking and even then I only get up to 3 miles). It never seems to get any easier. Do you have any suggestions on ways to work on endurance? I do elliptical and the bike sometimes but don’t feel like I worked out as hard.

Rachel- My answer would have to be yes. You know why? Because I suck at running too.

I know you must all be doubled over in shock, with your jaws on the floor, but I, Kelly Turner, personal trainer and fitness blogger of the year (I just gave myself that award) have zero endurance.

That’s not to say I haven’t tried.  Growing up, I never did any sports that required a great deal of endurance, or a lot of running of any kind. I did gymnastics and played volleyball for a few years. These are more quick, explosive sports, so I never really trained for anything longer than a minute and a half floor routine. 

After I got too old for sports (isn’t that sad when that happens?) I wanted to teach myself to run. I had visions of being one of those runners that gets up every morning at the crack of dawn and has 15 miles under their belt by the time 8:00am rolls around.  It seemed so simple: just run as far as you can.

Not so simple.

 I started doing the whole run a bit, walk a bit thing, to slowly increase my endurance, but it never worked. No matter what I did I still felt like I couldn’t go any further after a few laps around the track. OK, 2 laps. Literally.

I got side aches, I got bored, and there was nothing to keep me running. There was nothing to not stop me from running. So I would soon give up. I tried all kinds of programs, I tried treadmills (which held my attention for a bit longer) but I still couldn’t make it very long running.

So is there a physical trait that some people have that dictates who can run for hours and who can barely make it a lap?

Sort of.

People are born with fast twitch and slow twitch muscle fibers. You cannot change the amount you have of each, and everyone has a different ratio. Slow twitch muscle fibers are made for endurance activities, while fast twitch is made for explosive bursts of movement. The more of slow twitch you have, the better your body will be at long edurance runs.

Truth is, I have no idea if I have more fast twitch or slow twitch muscle fibers. I DO however know why I can not and will not ever be a runner: I hate it.

There is no doubt in my mind that with a strict program i could train my body to be able to run miles. It might even be at that point right now, but I still can’t. You know why? Its boring. I get side aches. It’s hard. There is no one chasing me or making me run, so since I don’t enjoy it, I stop. Im sure if I had to run for my life, I could go for hours, but when it isn’t life or death, I can’t push myself to keep going.

So my question to RACHEL is, can you not run because your body physically will not let you (you collapse, your heart explodes, your legs give out and you scrape you face on the sidewalk) or do you just stop because you feel like you can’t?

And my question to you RUNNERS out there is, is it honestly easier for you or do you just enjoy it so much so you push through the boring hell of it all?

Post from: EveryJoe

Q and A: One For Me and One For You, Dear Readers