What To Do In Winter? Get Fit! (pt3)
There are lots of things that gardeners do in the winter months, but one that rarely gets mentioned is getting fit. In this three-part series I explain how I stay in shape during the winter months.
So far in this series I have discussed the importance of maintaining muscle mass in later life, and the warm-up and progressive resistance training (PRT) aspects of my regular exercise routine. In this final installment I discuss what I do to maintain balance, and range of motion - what I call “Easy Days” (note: they’re only easy insofar as they are not as hard as the hard days). But first, and short discussion about the importance of balance.
Balance matters
I am pretty sure that most doctors would agree that falling down is bad, and that doing balance exercises is a good way to avoid falling down. Strangely, I started doing balance exercises years ago (in my late 20s) after talking to a wrestler in a gym. I was remarking at how impressive his deadlifts were (wrestlers are amazingly strong) - and how pathetic mine were by contrast, and that I was always worried about hurting my back. He asked me to do a couple lifts, watched me, then said, “look man, your problem is that you don’t know how to stand up”.
He took me over to a device in the gym called a “Bosu ball”, which is a hemisphere (half a sphere) designed for balance exercises. He then flipped it upside down, so the round part was facing down. I stared down at the precarious platform, and a sign on the bottom said, “Warning - this side increases your risk of falling”. The wrestler said, “Climb up!” He then told me to get my balance - just to get comfortable standing on it for a few minutes - which I managed to do - then told me to bend/squat down, touch my toes, then stand up. It was very hard, and I was very unstable, but I did it. He then told me to do that ten times every time I come in the gym, and that it would train me to stand up properly (you fall down if you don’t do it right). Over time, I worked the Bosu ball into my workout, and the exercises discussed below are the result of that process. For the sake of information, and added value, I’ve made a video on using the Bosu ball (plus a look at what gear I have) just for you Substack readers, which you can see below at the end of the article.
Easy Days
On Tuesdays and Thursdays I do lighter workouts (easy days), that focus more on balance and range of motion - but they also have an element of progressive resistance training, and work many muscle groups. I start with the warmups mentioned last week, and then I do the following:
Barbell clean and press (5 reps) I use a barbell, but these can also be done with dumbbells, or with a single dumbbell, or a kettle bell - you can even start with just a broom handle and work up from there. Progress slowly with this exercise, increasing weight very gradually. Maybe start with a 5 lb weight in each hand, or even less, and work up from there. This exercise works the whole body, and even doing 5 can get the heart pumping. I inhale partially before the lift, then exhale while lifting to standing position, then take a deep breath while in standing position, then exhale as I lift the bar over my head, then back down to a standing position, breathe deeply, and exhale as I set the bar back down - and repeat.
[source]
Now I do some core exercises:
Plank for a 32 count. I breathe in for a 4 count, then out for a four count (in 2,3,4 - out 2,3,4), until I get to a count of 32. Sometimes I go higher if I am feeling really energetic, but the 32 count is the minimum.
Superman for a 32 count. Inhaling and exhaling in four-counts, in rhythm with the contraction of the back muscles (up 2,3,4 - down 2,3,4, etc.).
Now I do a compound exercise:
Barbell clean and press to max. I do as many as I can, with the best form I can manage. I say to “max” - but given the risk of injury with this exercise, I always stop short of failure. When I feel any sensation of weakness at all I stop. I increase weight when I’m able to do 12 repetitions for an entire month. When I started this I was using 20 lb dumbbells (40 lb total weight). Now I use the barbell (10 lb) and about 30 lb on each side, for a total weight of 70 lbs. I reveal this detail to show how slow the progress can be - I have added 30 lbs over 3 years…. very slow progress :)
Now I do another core exercise:
Dead Hang for 32 count (breathing in 2,3,4 - out 2,3,4…).
Now I do a balance exercise:
32 360s with medicine ball on Bosu ball. This exercise involves standing on the Bosu ball, maintaining balance, and then passing a medicine ball all the way around my waist, catching it with the opposing hand, then reversing the entire motion the other way (just watch the video - it’s impossible to describe). This is an advanced balance exercise. Proceed gradually if you want to master it, be patient, and be careful! For some people it might make sense to start with just a small unweighted ball - then getting a 1 or 2 lb medicine ball, and working up from there, and starting with fewer repetitions and working up to 32. As mentioned in the video, avoid balls that are over 6” in diameter. Smaller diameter is better.
Now I do another core exercise:
Now I do a balance exercise:
32 eye-level side to sides on Bosu ball. This exercise involves standing on the Bosu ball, maintaining balance, and then passing a medicine ball from left to right, at eye-level - tossing it from hand to hand. This is very hard to do at first. As mentioned above, for some people it might make sense to start with just a small unweighted ball - then getting a 1 or 2 lb medicine ball, and working up from there, and starting with fewer repetitions and working up to 32.
Finally, I do an “isolation exercise” - the dumbbell standing lateral raise . I actually do this on the bosu ball just to make it more interesting - but that’s not necessary. The main point is to isolate the shoulder muscle, but in a way that is less intense than the clean and press. Start very small with this exercise. A small soup can is probably a good starting point. I currently do 12 repetitions with 5lbs in each hand. That doesn’t sound like much weight - but with the arms extended straight, it puts a lot of stress on the shoulders. With an exercise like this, I will not increase the weight until I can to 20 reps with 5 lbs, and even then, will bring it up very gradually. If you have never done these before - start very light - like 1 lb, do 5, and see how it feels the next day.
Easy is a state of mind…
“Easy days” are essentially a day of shoulder exercises with balance exercises and core exercises - but the use of the clean and press - because it works so many muscles - complements the “hard day” workout. The muscles get a bit of a rest because they are not working as hard, but they are still getting used. It mimics the deadlift, working the back and legs - but with less weight than the deadlift from the previous day. Then getting it up to the chin works the back again, but also the forearms and shoulders. Then getting up over the head works the shoulders and triceps (which were also used for pushups the previous day - but with pushups I’m bearing more weight ). The use of the Bosu ball also makes extra demands of the core muscles.
Bad days
Some days’ I’m just not feeling it. Maybe I’m fighting off a cold, or didn’t sleep well, or am feeling lazy or whatever. On those days I try really hard to just do the warmup part of the workout, the plant and the superman. That takes like 5 minutes. Usually that snaps me out of my funk and I decide to keep going - but sometimes I stop there and say the hell with it.
Bad Weeks
The ideal schedule for me is working out at 5:45am, 4 days a week, Mon to Thurs. That gives me three days to recover and heal - and I just do fun “active living” stuff on the weekends. Of course, some weeks, life gets in the way due to illness, competing priorities, or whatever and some days I just can’t do it. On those days, I try to do it later on, in the evening - but it’s rare that I do. I hate working out in the evening. So I miss a day - and try to pick it up later in the week - but honestly, I rarely do that either. For me, Three days, with two of them being “hard days”, is the typical compromise. If I can only do two days, I like them both to be hard - but if they are back to back, then one is hard and the other is easy. Sometimes I let it all go to pieces and blow it - but I get right back at it the next week.
Final Thoughts
I’ve done this series to give an example of how to stay in shape during the off-season. It’s tailored to my needs, and my lifestyle, and the kind of physicality that I want to maintain. In my garden I pick up heavy rocks, and on my property I pick up heavy logs. I also do downhill skiing, and hiking, and lots of other things that require a degree of physicality and athleticism to do well, and to avoid injury - especially if one wants to continue to do them into one’s 50s and beyond. With all that having been said - I know it’s not for everyone - and I think the most important thing is to be doing something, and to begin that thing at your level - but with a goal of gradual improvement over time. If that’s something you’ve been contemplating - try committing to something for one month and see how you feel. I think it will make a difference!
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