Have a Plan

Greetings! I read a page on the Beachbody on Demand website. They have a “workout of the day” schedule. Each day the site promotes different Beachbody programs with a rotating workout from the various trainers. It’s a good marketing strategy, for sure. I like the full body approach to the plan. Here is their weekly schedule:

Monday: Plyo

Tuesday: Upper Body

Wednesday: Cardio+Core

Thursday: Yoga/Pilates/Recover/Stretch/Rest

Friday: Lower Body

Saturday: Cardio

Sunday: Total Body Resistance

Of late I have roughly followed this schedule. I run as a substitute for the stretch/recovery and cardio days. It’s been fun to pull out some of the old DVDs I haven’t used in a while. I certainly can feel some of the specific muscle groups that I have not been isolated in some time.

Not everyone wants to or should exercise every day. However, I encourage you to aim for five days a week. Also, take a cue from Beachbody and add variety to your workouts. There are two distinct benefits. The first is not to overwork one area or your body, and the other is to add variety to your exercise program.

Keep it Fresh. Run.

Tom

Parks and Paths

Greetings! Let the good time roll. In the most recent post, I celebrated path extensions in a local park. This type of discovery remains a happy trend. I found the same true for small parks in Acworth and Dallas. Both of these parks are close to a campus where I teach. I hadn’t stopped in the Dallas park for a run in over a year. Since that time a labyrinth of trails have been carved out in the woods and winding around a couple of hills. During my run, I saw a variety of wildlife, including a turtle. Mountain bikers are welcome on the paths, which are fairly demanding.

In Acworth, the city built a new park next to an existing one and joined the two with a bridge. The two tracks are very nice with lots of open green space in the middle. There are restrooms at both, along with extensions of the paved trails for each. The extensions make for very nice connectors to downtown and other small parks. One nice bit is in the process of building the new park, a swampy area was drained. This created a path for running along the utility easement.

Local governments are doing a fair share to make it easy to get out and exercise. So do it. Run.

Tom

Truth in Advertising

Greetings! Some years ago, I ran in a local park which advertised having nice running trails. There was one wooded trail. Albeit it a good trail, and close to a water fowl filled pond, the loop was barely a third of a mile. Recently, as part of a longer run, I ducked back into that part of the park. I encountered a great surprise. The park now really does have multiple trails. In the years since I last ran there, signs have been added for three additional loops. The existing trail now has a couple of extensions. 

Thanks and kudos to the city and county for fantastic work. I have no idea how long the new trails have been in place, but I’m very happy I know now. 

Explore the Known. Run.

Tom

Long Life Running

Greetings! Consumer Advocate, Clark Howard, gave a teaser during the morning news radio broadcast. He mentioned something most people can do to add length and wellness to life. It worked, I listened through the next segment to hear his report. Clark briefly discussed a recently published article suggesting even with as little as five minutes a day, running can improve your overall health and add time to your life.  

I located the article online and have included the link below. It’s an interesting read. Of course, I am biased as a long-time runner, nonetheless, the data is compelling, and I’m fond of the outcomes.  

  

Enjoy: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/12/well/move/an-hour-of-running-may-add-seven-hours-to-you r-life.html?_r=0  

  

 Tom 

  

Purchase my new bedtime story for the digital age, Good Night Alexa, at this link. 

Thanks for your support!! ~ Tom

Stairs in Syria

Greetings! The First Few Hours post reminded me when I visited Damascus, Syria. This marked my first trip out of the U.S. I had mentally prepared to experience a world much different from Atlanta, GA. What I didn’t plan for was running. Of course, I planned to run while in Syria. I intended to go out to run very early in the morning. The one exception would be the day we arrived. To preserve The Streak, I had to exercise as soon as we arrived. Our group reached the hotel at 11:00 pm local time. I had no clue how crowded the streets would be at that time of night, with pedestrians and a sea of cars, mostly taxis.

Formal and informal driving in the city was unbelievably aggressive. Drivers constantly changed lanes with no signal other than a quick toot of the horn. Add in the dark of night, street signs I could not read and I quickly determined I needed and alternate exercise plan. This was a time before fitness centers appeared as a mainstream amenity in hotels. I found the stair well. It was a big hotel. I ran the stairs up and down with an occasional loop on the roof top for half an hour. It was mind numbing and fairly challenging on my legs.

The next day before dawn I braved the traffic, not much had changed in the few hours since we arrived. It made for a horrifying yet memorable experience. I now have a bevy of cardio and resistance exercise that can be completed in even very small hotel rooms.

Find a way. Run.

Tom

Purchase my new bedtime story for the digital age, Good Night Alexa at this link.

Thanks for your support!! ~ Tom

Galapagos Costars

Greetings! Like most passengers on our Galapagos Island cruise we expected to muse about the Beagle expedition that brought Charles Darwin to the area in 1835, and to be amazed by the magnificent plant, animal and marine life of this unique place. On all fronts the trip did not disappoint. However, an unexpected costar, or several thousand of them, stole the spot light after sundown.

The Galapagos Islands have very little light pollution, which makes the night sky a glorious sight to behold. Our position at the equator gave a stunning view of the stars as they wrapped around the horizon. I felt like I was in my own personal planetarium. The Milky Way was distinct and the bright lights of the sky seemed close enough to reach up and pluck them. Stars majestically twinkled and Shannan saw two meteoroids entering the atmosphere, and thus becoming a meteors, or as most folks say, “she saw two shooting stars.”

Seeing the starry nights ranked high amid my favorite parts of the trip. Make no mistake, the Galapagos Islands are among the great wonders of the world.

Shine like the stars. Run.

Tom

First Few Hours

International travel always brings numerous and wonderful opportunities. Sometimes our travel schedule creates situations such that I have to run between connecting flights, or as soon as arrive at our destination in order to preserve The Streak of daily exercise. It’s no hassle for me as I love running in the first few hours in a new place. The new environment generally gives off many signals we have arrived somewhere different than our own, the types of vehicles on the road, the smells in the air, the landscape and the climate.

My first run in Quito, Ecuador, only a few hours after we landed, fit the bill. Our guide told me about a park close to our hotel. In the few minutes before I reached the park, I had taken note of crowded public transportation and the mass of people out preparing for the run-off Presidential election to take place later in the day. Police and election personnel blocked streets near voting stations. Meanwhile vendors set up shop anticipating a good day of business with long lines. Voting is mandatory in Ecuador.

The park itself proved a new experience. At 6:00am 20 or more adult men were playing pick-up games of basketball. Carolina Park has something for most, fields for a wide variety of sports, open green space, art, refreshment stands, walking paths, playscapes, water features, and a big blue running track.  Yes, blue.  Inside the blue track were the typical track and field accoutrements along with oversize tires for cross-fit style workouts. I’ve never visited a park like this one anywhere. It’s a great asset to the area.

The run prepared me for the many other distinctly Ecuadorian encounters we had on our city tour and visit to the Middle of the World Museum.

Don’t Wait. Run

Tom