On 02/02/2012 04:46 PM, Warp wrote:

>    1 hour of cardio each day, 6 days a week.
>
>    "Cardio" means that your heart rate raises, you sweat and you have to
> breath slightly more heavily than normally.

Right. So if I break out my heart monitor again, measure my resting 
rate, and then find a suitable level of intensity to raise it a little, 
then I just need to figure out how to work an hour into my schedule.

>    It doesn't really matter how you achieve this, but walking/jogging is
> a good way. (The advantage in your case is that it makes your leg muscles
> fitter at the same time, which should be a bonus.)

I find it interesting that all this dancing has had no noticeable effect 
on my legs, but my shoulders and arms are now significantly more muscular...

>    I recommend a 7-10 km route.

At school one time, they took us on a 5 mile walk. It took us over 8 
hours to complete that. (5 miles is, what, 8 km?) I think this might be 
a bit extreme.

I do sometimes take a walk around the site at work in my lunch break. 
One lap, maybe two. That's probably about a quarter of a mile, maybe. 
Then again, I'm not going to do that on a day like today.

> Start walking it at a relatively fast pace.

I always find that makes my shins hurt. (Which is odd, considering that 
there's no muscle there...) Perhaps I'm doing it wrong. Or maybe my 
office shoes just aren't very good for walking in.

>    Not on asphalt! Find a nature trail or similar softer route.

That's /definitely/ not going to walk in my office shoes. ;-)

>    No slacking off. It doesn't matter if it's raining (just take an umbrella)
> or you are feeling lazy. No excuses.

More importantly, I need to work it into my schedule such that 
scheduling issues don't constantly prevent me from doing it.

>    I can assure you that if you follow this for at least 6 months, you'll
> be fitter than you have ever been in your life.

In fairness, me being "fitter than I've ever been in my life" wouldn't 
mean that I'm particularly fit. :-S

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Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> > 3) Go swimming. Buy a book on "Total Immersion" swimming, and learn to
> > swim properly. Then swim several times a week until you can do 30 laps
> > without stopping.
>
> I can't swim.
>
> Or rather, I can't swim more than about 6 feet or so without stopping
> due to exhaustion.

Assuming that you *can* swim, but you're just unused to it: do a length, rest.
Do another, rest. Do that for 30-45mins each time you go. Go at least twice a
week. You'll be surprised how quickly you become able to do many lengths without
having to stop. Doesn't matter what stroke you do, or even if you're doing it
efficiently or not.

Of course, swimming is not necessarily convenient if your time is short, and
hardly ever free.

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>> I can't swim.
>>
>> Or rather, I can't swim more than about 6 feet or so without stopping
>> due to exhaustion.
>
> Assuming that you *can* swim, but you're just unused to it: do a length, rest.
> Do another, rest. Do that for 30-45mins each time you go. Go at least twice a
> week. You'll be surprised how quickly you become able to do many lengths without
> having to stop. Doesn't matter what stroke you do, or even if you're doing it
> efficiently or not.

Erm... if I can't swim more than a few feet, how am I supposed to do an 
entire length?

> Of course, swimming is not necessarily convenient if your time is short, and
> hardly ever free.

Too true.

(I hear it's quite good non-impact exercise though...)

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Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> Erm... if I can't swim more than a few feet, how am I supposed to do an
> entire length?

I assumed you were exaggerating. You'd go further than six feet just by kicking
off from the side!

> (I hear it's quite good non-impact exercise though...)

It's very good. Good cardio, and works many muscle groups at once. Aside from
drowning or being kicked by fellow swimmers, it's also very difficult to injure
oneself :)

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On 03/02/2012 11:54 AM, Bill Pragnell wrote:
> Invisible<voi### [at] devnull>  wrote:
>> Erm... if I can't swim more than a few feet, how am I supposed to do an
>> entire length?
>
> I assumed you were exaggerating. You'd go further than six feet just by kicking
> off from the side!

Well, yes, but that isn't exactly "swimming", is it? Take a run up and 
jump in and you can go further still - right before they throw you out. ;-)

>> (I hear it's quite good non-impact exercise though...)
>
> It's very good. Good cardio, and works many muscle groups at once. Aside from
> drowning or being kicked by fellow swimmers, it's also very difficult to injure
> oneself :)

Yeah, aside from the whole "being completely surrounded by an efficient 
asphyxiant", it's really safe. :-P

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Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> >    I recommend a 7-10 km route.

> At school one time, they took us on a 5 mile walk. It took us over 8 
> hours to complete that. (5 miles is, what, 8 km?) I think this might be 
> a bit extreme.

  It's not extreme at all. A walking speed of 5 km/h isn't even very fast.
Making 7 km in 1 hour is not only possible even for a slightly less fit
person (at least after a while), it's quite an optimal amount.

  You won't get fit by walking a quarter mile. (Nor if you walk significantly
less than an hour every day, nor if you don't get sweaty and with a raised
heart rate.)

> > Start walking it at a relatively fast pace.

> I always find that makes my shins hurt. (Which is odd, considering that 
> there's no muscle there...) Perhaps I'm doing it wrong.

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shin_splints

  It can be alleviated with proper shoes and walking on proper terrain.
Other than that, there's no easy solution, but usually it gets better
when you get fitter.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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Darren New <dne### [at] sanrrcom> wrote:
> 3) Go swimming. Buy a book on "Total Immersion" swimming, and learn to swim 
> properly. Then swim several times a week until you can do 30 laps without 
> stopping.

  The proper swimming technique is absolutely crucial.

  If your technique sucks (which it does for most people who haven't been
taught, or taught themselves from a competent source, the proper technique)
you'll lucky if you can swim 25 meters in one go, especially if you are
unfit. With the proper technique, however, even a very unfit person can
swim 2 km in one go with ease. (Personal experience.)

  (The above is true only for warm indoor swimming pools of course. Swimming
in a cold lake requires at least 10 times as much effort even with the
proper technique. It's a real killer.)

  Swimming is an excellent form of exercise, but its downside is that it
does not stress your bones at all. Regular exercise that stresses your bones
is important to prevent many old-age diseases like osteoporosis.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> >> Any other suggestions?
> >
> > Usualy, about 20 to 30 minutes per day of moderate effort will improve
> > your stamina.

> Right. So moderate exercise for longish duration then?

  You are already slacking off, do you see? That "20 to 30" minutes is
immediately sounding a lot more tempting than the 1 hour I suggested.
That's the path to failure, I tell you...

  (I'm not saying 20 minutes a day isn't enough to raise your fitness.
However, in my experience it's not efficient enough if you want relatively
fast and good results.)

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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Le 03/02/2012 19:33, Warp nous fit lire :
> Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
>>>> Any other suggestions?
>>>
>>> Usualy, about 20 to 30 minutes per day of moderate effort will improve
>>> your stamina.
> 
>> Right. So moderate exercise for longish duration then?
> 
>   You are already slacking off, do you see? That "20 to 30" minutes is
> immediately sounding a lot more tempting than the 1 hour I suggested.
> That's the path to failure, I tell you...
> 
>   (I'm not saying 20 minutes a day isn't enough to raise your fitness.
> However, in my experience it's not efficient enough if you want relatively
> fast and good results.)
> 
The key to exercise is:
rather short daily than long weekly.

3 times 40 minutes per week is better than 3 hours once a week.
(if you want some impact on weight, you need a session of at least 40
minutes, otherwise you are running on free sugar instead of fat)

I know that, but fails to practice it.

PS: you should choose if you want to work on the fast or long lasting
muscles.

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Le_Forgeron <jgr### [at] freefr> wrote:
> The key to exercise is:
> rather short daily than long weekly.

> 3 times 40 minutes per week is better than 3 hours once a week.
> (if you want some impact on weight, you need a session of at least 40
> minutes, otherwise you are running on free sugar instead of fat)

  True, but 3 times a week is not enough if you want to see some real
improvement.

  About 3 times a week is good if you are already very fit, and simply
want to maintain that fitness. However, if what you want is to *get* fit,
it won't be enough. (Or, at the very least, it will be very slow.)

  If you want some serious improvement, it's better to have an hour of
cardiovascular exercise *at least* 5 times a week, preferaby 6. (It's
good to have at least one day of rest per week. If nothing else,
judeo-christianity got at least that right.)

  It's a mistake to exercise too little, too infrequently and/or
improperly (from a cardiovascular perspective; for example walking
too slowly so that you don't sweat, or thinking that leisurely riding
a bike on flat terrain counts as exercise).

  Of course this doesn't mean you have to kill yourself. The exercise
doesn't have to be extremely tiring. A good rule of thumb is if you
sweat, your pulse fastens and you have to slightly breath more heavily,
but you are still able to talk without much effort. (This way you'll be
able to get through the entire hour, which, as said many times, is
important.)

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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