If you have taken on a fairly demanding physical activity for this year's wellness challenge, here's my advice: be kind to yourself! Below are some ways that you can be kind to yourself and minimize risk of injury when you are working your body harder than usual.
1. FIRST - Make sure you have learned proper form for your activity. One way to do this is to get some coaching here if you're trying something new. You should be very careful to not strain your neck or back (i.e., respect your spine, eh!). And, as you are starting to work on your form, start with very little resistance (weight). You won't be perfect right away, but make it a point to always use good form.
2. Work to increase your overall flexibility, especially for the limbs you will be working. Flexible limbs and torso support a wider range of motion. That allows your exercise activity to be more effective.
3. Be aware of your balance, especially if you are doing free-standing activities. You can find exercises and activities online to improve this, or talk to a trainer, coach or physiotherapist.
4. Keep your workout area as uncluttered as possible, especially your floor!
5. Make sure any equipment you are using is in good working order. Tighten the collars on your weights if you're using them. safe.
6. Start ahead of your target start date by ramping up. If you want to start with 25 pushups/day on day 1, maybe start with 15 a week ahead of your target date and try to add 2-3 every other day until your target.
7. Make an approximate plan. It should be flexible in case you get invited out for dinner on a workout day (I wish!), but should also guide you by comparing your actual progress to your goals. You can realize right away if you need to bump it up, rather than being WAY behind at the end. Which is say too discouraging - so try your best to avoid that!
8. If you set a reasonable goal, and stick roughly to your plan, and if you work on flexibility and ramp your effort up, you stand a much better chance of being successful in your activity goal.
Support your own success: be kind to yourself!
Thursday 31 January 2019
Wednesday 30 January 2019
A Short Story About Wellness - Part III
Update from Marilyn:
In 2018 it was my intention to do a virtual walk from Croydon, in the south of England, straight up north to Harrogate, where my sister currently lives. I thought it would be fun to "visit" her for Christmas. My granddaughter plotted out the route for me, breaking it up into 5-km blocks, which I was to colour in as I completed them.
The first lap was easy, Croydon to London, only 20 km. Then I embarked on the stretch from London to Leicester (Pron. Lester), which was 175 km, with no towns on the map until the 135th km. That seemed rather dull, so I moved off the main motorway, and went through several towns, Luton and Milton Barnes on the way, reaching Leicester at the end of the summer. It was obvious by now that I would never get to Harrogate by Christmas, but decided to see just how far I could go. The weather was against me; the snow came early, and there was a lot of ice, which made it impossible to use my walker, so I was not able to do any walking outside of my formal Fitness class which happened twice a week. As a result, I only made it as far as Nottingham, a total of 242 km.
After Christmas I started the new year 2019 by attempting to finish my journey, but because of very poor walking weather, my progress has been slow. Right now I'm heading for Sheffield, and at that point I'll move over to the A 1 motorway and make a Bee-line for Harrogate. I aim to "arrive" in the summer, a total of 388 km.
I think for my Feb Challenge I will pledge to spend half an hour each day doing exercises that I have learned at my fitness class. I know my legs are getting weaker, so I'll carry on walking as well. Good luck to all of us!
Love, Mom
In 2018 it was my intention to do a virtual walk from Croydon, in the south of England, straight up north to Harrogate, where my sister currently lives. I thought it would be fun to "visit" her for Christmas. My granddaughter plotted out the route for me, breaking it up into 5-km blocks, which I was to colour in as I completed them.
The first lap was easy, Croydon to London, only 20 km. Then I embarked on the stretch from London to Leicester (Pron. Lester), which was 175 km, with no towns on the map until the 135th km. That seemed rather dull, so I moved off the main motorway, and went through several towns, Luton and Milton Barnes on the way, reaching Leicester at the end of the summer. It was obvious by now that I would never get to Harrogate by Christmas, but decided to see just how far I could go. The weather was against me; the snow came early, and there was a lot of ice, which made it impossible to use my walker, so I was not able to do any walking outside of my formal Fitness class which happened twice a week. As a result, I only made it as far as Nottingham, a total of 242 km.
After Christmas I started the new year 2019 by attempting to finish my journey, but because of very poor walking weather, my progress has been slow. Right now I'm heading for Sheffield, and at that point I'll move over to the A 1 motorway and make a Bee-line for Harrogate. I aim to "arrive" in the summer, a total of 388 km.
I think for my Feb Challenge I will pledge to spend half an hour each day doing exercises that I have learned at my fitness class. I know my legs are getting weaker, so I'll carry on walking as well. Good luck to all of us!
Love, Mom
Tuesday 29 January 2019
A Short Story About Wellness - Part II
I mentioned Mom's experience with our wellness challenge. From the first year to now, she has kept up with her walking, and with her exercise classes. It has become so much a part of her life that, to be honest, I had kind of forgotten about it. Last I had heard, she had decided to do her "virtual walk" over somewhere in England, where she was born.
As we were getting ready for this year's challenge, it suddenly occurred to me, "I wonder where Mom's at these days." I hadn't heard much, so I was even wondering if maybe she had shelved the idea. I recalled something about the "traffic" on the Motorway.
So I thought I should ask her about it. Next blog, I'll share her response.
As we were getting ready for this year's challenge, it suddenly occurred to me, "I wonder where Mom's at these days." I hadn't heard much, so I was even wondering if maybe she had shelved the idea. I recalled something about the "traffic" on the Motorway.
So I thought I should ask her about it. Next blog, I'll share her response.
Monday 28 January 2019
A Short Story About Wellness - Part 1
The first year we did the "10,000 Kettlebells for Parkinson's" challenge, a rather unexpected thing happened. My mother, Marilyn, decided that she wanted to participate. That's not the unexpected thing. Actually, it is sort of how she rolls - she's usually up for a good challenge.
Mom had been living with Parkinson's disease for a number of years by that point, and her physical world was beginning to shrink. To her apartment building, to her apartment, to her chair. It was catching up with her and she was really beginning to seize up. That's also not the unexpected thing.
Mom reasoned that there were not a lot of things she was physically able to do, but she could still get around a bit with her walker. She decided walking was something she could try. So she did it - she walked a bit each day and kept track of it. Nope - not the unexpected thing.
This is the unexpected thing. She started being able to walk farther, and for longer periods of time. Her muscle stiffness began to decrease. Even some aspects of her tremors improved. She joined a fitness class. Her walking in the hallway evolved into a "virtual walk" down the trans-Canada highway, where she covered over 90 miles (okay - just that year. She is still going!)
To say we were all impressed is a serious understatement. Not so much surprised, as impressed. And very pleased to see before our eyes how regular activity could sort of march back the clock a bit for a senior with a degenerative disease.
Our vision is that everyone would realize that many small small steps add up. Small steps taken in a direction accumulate and carry you further and further along. If you head toward a goal - those steps move you forward.
Here is the take-away: small, regular steps toward a goal will carry you toward better wellness. Conversely, of course, no goals, and no regular "investments" will keep you pretty much stuck where you are.
So pick a goal, and get out there moving toward it!
Mom had been living with Parkinson's disease for a number of years by that point, and her physical world was beginning to shrink. To her apartment building, to her apartment, to her chair. It was catching up with her and she was really beginning to seize up. That's also not the unexpected thing.
Mom reasoned that there were not a lot of things she was physically able to do, but she could still get around a bit with her walker. She decided walking was something she could try. So she did it - she walked a bit each day and kept track of it. Nope - not the unexpected thing.
This is the unexpected thing. She started being able to walk farther, and for longer periods of time. Her muscle stiffness began to decrease. Even some aspects of her tremors improved. She joined a fitness class. Her walking in the hallway evolved into a "virtual walk" down the trans-Canada highway, where she covered over 90 miles (okay - just that year. She is still going!)
To say we were all impressed is a serious understatement. Not so much surprised, as impressed. And very pleased to see before our eyes how regular activity could sort of march back the clock a bit for a senior with a degenerative disease.
Our vision is that everyone would realize that many small small steps add up. Small steps taken in a direction accumulate and carry you further and further along. If you head toward a goal - those steps move you forward.
Here is the take-away: small, regular steps toward a goal will carry you toward better wellness. Conversely, of course, no goals, and no regular "investments" will keep you pretty much stuck where you are.
So pick a goal, and get out there moving toward it!
Saturday 26 January 2019
Competing With The Noise
Some days, I wonder if I have anything meaningful or encouraging to say. I'm completing with a bazillion devices and inputs that bombard us all the time. So I'll make it short and sweet:
Spend February investing in your own wellness. Wellness involves many aspects of life. I want to promote wellness, and the idea of adopting an attitude of constant wellness-boosting. After our wacky idea three years ago (doing 10,000 Kettlebell swings in the month of February), the project lives on, and the month of February has become iconic to me now as "wellness month". Amid all the noise, distraction, and unending flow of information, carve out some time during February to invest in yourself. Every year!
Make it a priority to be more well at the end of every February than you were at the start. And, while we are all at that, we want to use this wellness-boosting challenge to tell as many folks as we can about Parkinson's disease and encourage them to support Parkinson's research.
Find some kind of meaningful activity that will improve your wellness, and make a point of doing it throughout February. I hope you will consider doing this for two reasons: 1. to improve your wellness, and 2. to support Parkinson's disease research (more info here).
Spend February investing in your own wellness. Wellness involves many aspects of life. I want to promote wellness, and the idea of adopting an attitude of constant wellness-boosting. After our wacky idea three years ago (doing 10,000 Kettlebell swings in the month of February), the project lives on, and the month of February has become iconic to me now as "wellness month". Amid all the noise, distraction, and unending flow of information, carve out some time during February to invest in yourself. Every year!
Each February, challenge yourself to improve some aspect of your own wellness.
Make it a priority to be more well at the end of every February than you were at the start. And, while we are all at that, we want to use this wellness-boosting challenge to tell as many folks as we can about Parkinson's disease and encourage them to support Parkinson's research.
Find some kind of meaningful activity that will improve your wellness, and make a point of doing it throughout February. I hope you will consider doing this for two reasons: 1. to improve your wellness, and 2. to support Parkinson's disease research (more info here).
Tuesday 22 January 2019
Welcome to the 2019 Challenge!
It's hard to believe that we're starting the fourth annual challenge! Things will run pretty much the same as in previous years:
1. Find yourself a fitness challenge to do for the month of February
2. Do it - have some fun and increase your fitness
3. Support Parkinson's research (we support the Royal University Hospital foundation in Saskatoon). Read more about this.
Stay tuned - there will be more to come as we get rolling for our fourth year!
Richard
1. Find yourself a fitness challenge to do for the month of February
2. Do it - have some fun and increase your fitness
3. Support Parkinson's research (we support the Royal University Hospital foundation in Saskatoon). Read more about this.
Stay tuned - there will be more to come as we get rolling for our fourth year!
Richard
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