All articles, tagged with “biking”

I’ve gotten a lot of questions about exercise, so I thought I would write about what has worked for me. Here’s some food for thought when it comes to either starting or varying your exercise routine.

I found an interesting quote from Carol Welch about movement (which I translated into exercise) today:

“Movement is a medicine for creating change in a person’s physical, emotional and mental states.”

Exercise is different for everyone, so there is no “catch-all” prescription for a successful routine. Choose what’s right for you.

Here’s what I do to keep it fresh since I exercise 5 to 6 days a week for 50 to 51 weeks out of the year (I take off a full week to let my body just BE).

Ten Tips To A Better Exercise Routine in 2010

1. As you do indoor cardiovascular training (i.e., running, elliptical training, rowing, etc.), become aware of sensations in your body and just observe them. Also, observe your breath at different times during the workout. This meditation in motion keeps your mind from focusing on how much longer you have to go.

2. Try doing cardio activities outside in an inspiring setting. It’s so much easier to enjoy the workout when you’re surrounded by beauty. In the winter, try cross country skiing.

3. When lifting weights or doing resistance training, focus on the muscle group that you are training as you lift. Feel that muscle as you perform the movement. Visualize that area receiving benefit from your work.

4. Find a training program online or in a magazine that gives you a fresh new approach while guiding you through a time period that is long enough to effortlessly form a new habit.

5. Find an exercise friend. This could be someone you exercise with or it could be a friend that you report your exercise activity to in a short e-mail. It’s fun to exercise with someone else or to embark on a new program with someone else. That accountability also helps you form a habit.

6. Write out some fitness goals. You could specify weight loss goals or you could write out your routine before you start. You can keep track of your reps and sets in a notebook with weightlifting, but you could also project some targets for the next week, month or three months. Check in with these goals once per week and revise whatever is necessary.

7. Try different forms of exercise. My fitness routine includes weight lifting, mountain biking, indoor cardio, Qigong, yoga, walking around the neighborhood, hiking in nature, cross country skiing, riding my bike to errands and whatever else helps me to stay in shape and have fun.

8. If you’re trying to get started, start by setting a time each day that you will begin to associate with movement. Writing down your plans will further solidify your intention. You could start by saying, “I will walk for 20 minutes after dinner,” or “I will walk up and down the steps a few times before breakfast.” As soon as you associate a certain time of day with planned exercise of some form, you end that struggle to get your routine started.

9. Do some form of stretching in the morning. This doesn’t have to be a formal practice, but I really benefit from yoga after I awaken and meditate. A morning stretching routine eases you into the day and energizes your body. It also makes it easier to exercise later in the day because the intention for good health is there and your increased flexibility makes exercise more effective.

10. Start today! The longer you wait, the more likely it is that you won’t start. If you’ve already started, congratulations! I hope some of the ideas above will help you to be more creative in your approach.

Let’s end today’s post with two more inspiring images from Sanibel Island, Florida at sunrise.

At one time or another, all of us have heard that when we “feel the fear and do it anyway,” we make some pretty significant discoveries about ourselves. Well, here’s a story around that topic . . .

First, a little background.

1. When I was 18, mowing the lawn at my dad’s house on a nice late summer day, I ran over a nest of bees in the ground and got stung by 17 bees. It was a painful experience and it really freaked me out.

2. In college, I got stung on my arm by a yellowjacket outside a fraternity house and my forearm nearly doubled in size. I declared to myself at that point, “I’m allergic to bees.” No one ever told me that, by the way. I guess I just declared it for added drama.

3. Every time I mow the lawn (up until last weekend — I’ll explain in a minute), I stop the mower in its path if there’s a bee in front of me and wait for it to move (for both fear and insect welfare reasons).

4. Last Saturday, Candice and I were listening to an audiobook about business planning and the author shared a story about how he overcame his fear of sharks. He also asks the listeners to consider their greatest fears because overcoming them usually leads to success in many areas of life. You can probably guess what one of my biggest fears has been since 18 years of age.

5. One more tidbit. At dinner with my family on that same Saturday night, there was an extended conversation about bees, their disappearance in China, and beekeeping.

OK, you’re up to date now.

On Sunday, I went mountain biking — something I do almost every weekend when the weather permits. The trail, West Branch in Ravenna, has some pretty gnarly sections in which we ride over huge boulders and/or tree roots for extended periods of time.

It takes quite a bit of focus and strength, but it’s really fun. It’s actually spiritual for me and my riding partners because we need to be completely in the present moment (see last week’s blog about presence entitled “Feel Better Now”). It’s good to be present in order to stay on the bike and to improve one’s riding skills.

We rode all out for about two hours and we were coming to the end of the trail. The end of this trail has an 8-inch wide balance beam/bridge structure made out of trees which are cut in half. The narrow bridge is about 150 feet long, so we’re all pretty excited when we make it to the end!

Well, we made it across the beam and we were going home because the trail was nearly completed. But, when I went off the end of the tree bridge and landed on some logs that were on the ground, I was suddenly covered with bees that began stinging me. Naturally, I began swatting them and yelling for my riding partner, but the bees kept following me even though I started riding pretty quickly.

We rode to the end of the trail with great urgency and some of the bees followed me all the way to the parking lot. I think I was stung about nine times. What an experience!

Here’s the thing.

Obviously, it didn’t feel good, but the odd thing is that the pain was much less intense than I would have ever predicted. Suddenly, I felt a strange calm come over me because I realized at that moment that my fear of bees was irrational and that I had been building it up for 20 years.

No swelling, no allergic reaction, easy breathing. In fact, some fellow mountain bikers that were aware of what was taking place were freaking out a little bit, saying things like, “the first 20 minutes is when anaphylactic shock kicks in, the skin will be covered with red spots, etc.” Even as they presented me with this worriesome information, I felt cool and collected.

It wasn’t until I got into the car that I reviewed the events of the previous day (points 4 and 5 listed above). I was amazed. How many other things do I fear in that way that hold me back from living with total freedom? It was very liberating for me.

Now, the guy from the audiobook that I discussed chose to overcome his fears by jumping into a tank of sharks. I definitely was not planning to confront my bee fear. But it happened anyway and I am thankful because I let go of a part of myself that was really limiting.

We all have opportunities on a daily basis to do things that feel “uncomfortable” that might ultimately help us. I’m not telling you to go drive down some dark, country road with your lights off. I’m talking about the kind of things that are keeping you from doing, being and having what you want.

I feel like I have a new resolve to approach my fears with this experience over the weekend because the bee phobia was huge for me. So, go ahead and try something you’ve always wanted to do but were too afraid, or honestly tell someone how you feel, or just follow your bliss. It probably won’t sting as badly as you imagine when you decide to do it.