• Follow us on Twitter
  • Join our Facebook Group
  • Join me on Google Plus
  • Add me on Linkedin
  • RSS

Adam Bockler

  • Home
  • Portfolio
  • About
  • DDP Yoga
  • Blog
  • Contact

Archive for category: Fitness

How to Add Cross Training to Your Workouts

0 Comments/ in Fitness / by Adam Bockler
March 8, 2019

Originally published on HVMN by Nate Martins.

Dedicated training is something to be admired. Many athletes strive for the ability to get up and get out every single day whether it’s for a specific race or event or even, simply driven by a goal. Often that can mean adhering to a training plan based on both repetition and incrementally increased difficulty–monotony and overuse be damned.

But you may get hurt. Or plateau. Or experience a disruption in your training schedule. These can all be detrimental to accomplishing a goal. Then there’s also that inevitable boredom of doing the same training day in and day out. You swear that footprint on the trail was yours from yesterday.

Enter cross-training, an exercise program usually employed outside of these intense training blocks to add some variance (physically and mentally) to workouts. It keeps the body guessing, and has many athletes reap the benefits for their main sport: decreased injury potential, and added strength to the most-used muscles.

Here, we’ll detail the science behind cross-training, how to work it into your schedule, and some new exercises to try. Your main sport will thank us.



This is Your Body on Cross Training

Simply put, cross training is training in another discipline in improving your main sport. The options are almost limitless–runners can strength train, swimmers can paddle board, cyclists can do yoga. The goal is to supplement your main sport with training that’s beneficial for certain muscles, movements, or even, your brain and mood.

For most athletes, the inclusion of cross training into a workout plan is triggered by an injury sidelining them from regular training. I was no different–hours of basketball and running led to knee pain (from patellar tendonitis, known as “runner’s knee” or “jumper’s knee”). But I was stubborn. When I should have stopped the joint-pounding activities, I continued to beat them like a drum. It got to a point where the pain wasn’t worth the workout, but I couldn’t give up working out all together. So I started swimming and incorporating yoga into my routine, which delivered positive and painless results.

Turns out, I’m not alone. Up to 56% of recreational runners experience injuries, with most of those relating to the knee.1 Supplements can help (like glucosamine, which promotes the development of cartilage), but up to 75% of those are overuse injuries.1

Cross training benefits your main sport

Since a majority of injuries happen due to time dedicated to a single sport, cross training can help prevent injuries for the simple fact that it forces athletes to spend less time training singularly. Cross training doesn’t just maintain activity by reducing the risk for injury–it also can increase performance.

A study of 27 male runners were assigned one of three different resistance training regimens (in addition to their normal endurance training): heavy resistance, explosive resistance or muscle endurance training. In all three groups, running endurance performance increased.2 The heavy-lifting group, in particular, saw improvements to high-intensity running characteristics, like sprinting at the end of the race.2

The benefits of cross training aren’t just physical; there’s also a potential mental benefit of switching it up. Mental fatigue can impact physical workouts–you may be less likely to workout knowing that you’re facing the exact same exercise every day. Especially if an athlete is in-season or training for a specific event, cross-training can provide an exciting challenge. It’s easy to be training heads-down; cross-training can help you see the forest between the trees.

 

Implementing Cross Training

Divorce yourself from the idea that cross training takes away from your regular training schedule. While you’ll inevitably be spending time away from your sweetheart sport, absence makes the muscles grow stronger.

There are three main groups of cross training for endurance athletes: strength training, aerobic low-impact work, and aerobic impact work, and each can be part of a cross-training program.

 

Strength Training

Touching upon all major muscle groups is important for effective strength training.

Incorporating strength training into an endurance regimen can enhance physical fitness, as it did in this meta-analysis of distance runners.3 Even just 30 minutes per week, once or twice a week, can suffice. And it doesn’t necessarily have to be done in a gym; you can take the at-home approach to incorporate plyometrics or things like push-ups.

Regardless of where you strength train, a full body workout will maximize the time you spend training. Consider hitting all the major muscle groups such as arms, chest, shoulders, back, core and legs (more on this later).

 

Aerobic Low-Impact Work

Probably the reason many athletes experiment with cross-training: take stress off those weary joints and reduce injury risk.

Low-impact activities or no-impact workouts can be done two or three times a week. It’s easily implemented, as it can replace an active recovery day or even a harder workout day depending on the exercise; so for those who think they’re losing gains because of cross-training, you may actually find yourself enjoying the cross training more than your main exercise.

Cycling, swimming, and rowing are some of the most popular low-impact workouts. For flexibility and core exercises, yoga and pilates are go-tos. And you may even be able to work out longer and more frequently using these types of workouts due to the lack of stress they cause the body (swimmers can work out every day, and they’re hitting all the major muscle groups). For example, if you planned on running 45 minutes, you could easily spend 70 minutes cycling.


Aerobic Impact Work

Maybe the reason you’re reading this article is because of too much aerobic impact work.

If you’re training, the amount of aerobic impact work will likely be higher (and maybe your only focus during that training block). But in the off-season, or times when you’d like to give your body a break, aerobic impact work should be done once or twice a week. As a general rule, cross-training is meant to limit the impact on the body.

Typically, cross training is meant to offer your body a break from the impact it faces during regular training. You can play team games, train runs, circuit train or do CrossFit as a cross-training method, as the impact is likely different from your normal routine. But be mindful: any impact work still puts a strain on the body.

Types of cross training are strength training, aerobic low-impact, or aerobic impact

The Importance of Rest

Before getting into the specific exercises to try, remember the need for rest. Your muscles are asking for it.

The goal of every training session is to break down muscle and without recovery, a portion of that work might be wasted. During recovery, the body begins the process of rebuilding what has been broken down.

Muscle protein synthesis can increase by as much as 50% in the hours after a workout, helping encourage muscle growth.4 Concurrently, muscle fibers are rebuilt. These processes are a normal part of the exercise, and recovery allows the muscles to become stronger. Fluid restoration is also key, as it helps deliver nutrients to organs and muscles through the bloodstream. And acids (via that hydrogen proton associated with lactate) accumulate during workouts–so recovery provides time for the body to restore intramuscular pH and blood flow for oxygen delivery.

In-season, professional triathlete, Kelsey Withrow, is laser-focused on training. When she’s not training, it’s all about recovery.

“As a professional triathlete, I focus all my time on swimming, running and biking. The rest of the time is for recovery.”
-Kelsey Withrow, professional triathlete

Even though cross training is meant to give the body a break from regular training, it’s still is a source of stress and requires recovery time (or you might burnout). For most athletes, it’s difficult to slow down. Many of us are goal-oriented, hardworking and ultimately–a bit stubborn. Budgeting recovery time is essential, as is providing your body with the necessary fuel to recover properly.

Supplementing recovery may help expedite that process and get you back in the saddle faster. HVMN Ketone has been shown to improve recovery by decreasing the breakdown of intramuscular glycogen and protein during exercise (when compared to carbs alone).5 It also expedited the resynthesis of glycogen by 60% and protein by 2x when added to a normal post-workout carb or protein nutrition.6,5

Doing the same exercise can be mentally exhausting, leading to mental fatigue that wears down on your desire to even do the workout. Research has shown that the mind is usually a good gauge of the body,7 with a mental strain reported by a questionnaire being closely related to stress signals in the hormones of the body. By switching it up with cross-training, and also ensuring rest days, the mind will get a chance to recharge too.

 

Cross Training Exercises

Now is the time to incorporate cross-training workouts. The exercises below touch on several different areas of exercise, from strength training to both low-impact and impact aerobic activities.

You can begin by folding in some additional exercises to your existing workouts. Runners may try hills or cyclists may try 30-second sprints–this isn’t cross-training exactly, it’s just extra training. The benefits of cross training come with learning something new and focusing on different areas of the body that regular training can neglect.

Try working some of these exercises into your routine. It’s important to pick which is best for your personal needs.

 

Swimming

Swimming

Benefits: Aerobic and cardio workout without the joint or muscle impact

Concerns: Technical ability can limit the quality of training

How to try it: Ensure you have the proper equipment (goggles, swim cap, fins, etc.), check lane times at your local pool, familiarize yourself with technique

A great whole body workout, swimming is one of the low-impact exercises most often used for recovery or cross training. Interestingly, reports show many people enjoy water-based exercise more than land-based exercise.8

Swimming works the whole body; it increases heart rate without the joint-pounding stress of running, it builds endurance and can also build and tone muscle. Because of these benefits, it’s a great option for recovery–a study showed that patients with osteoarthritis showed reduced stiffness, joint pain, and overall less physical limitation.9

It also torches calories. Swimming has shown improved body weight and body fat distribution when compared to walking.10 An average person can burn almost 450 calories when swimming at a low or moderate pace for one hour. At an increased pace, that could go north of 700 calories. For comparison, running for one hour at a leisurely pace burns about 400 calories.

Outside of the aerobic benefits, swimming (and water training, like deep-water running) has shown to improve cardiovascular health and lung capacity.11,12,13

To incorporate swimming into your cross-training routine, first find a place to swim. Then gather the necessary tools (like goggles, swim cap, fins, etc.), and brush up on the form before jumping in the pool. Try it one to three times a week for 30 minutes to start.

 

Cycling

Cycling

Benefits: Low impact, aerobic, and strength building

Concerns: Risk of injury and cost of equipment

How to try it: For outdoor cycling, get a bike properly fitted and map your cycling route. Or find a bike / spin class at your local gym. For beginners, try cycling 45 minutes to an hour

Another low impact workout, cycling is a great way to reduce stress on those joint while still clocking in the aerobic hours.

Similar to swimming, cycling burns calories at an impressive clip, anywhere from 400 – 1,000 per hour depending on the intensity of the ride. And since cycling is also a resistance exercise, it’s not just burning fat–it also builds muscle.

A systematic review analyzed the benefits of cycling, showcasing a myriad of results. There was a positive relationship between cycling and cardiorespiratory fitness, cardiovascular fitness, and general fitness.14 Whether on the road, the track, or in the gym on a stationary bike, the benefits of cycling as a cross-training mechanism stem from the fact it’s a low impact, muscle building, aerobic workout. It can help athletes train if they have experienced an injury.

There are several ways to train on a bicycle. You can ride hills to build muscle and strength, or do shorter sprints to build speed. There’s also an option for endurance, with riders cycling hundreds or thousands of miles over the course of a long session. For beginners, get a feel for the workout on a stationary bike. As you advance, visit a local bike shop to get your bike properly fitted.

 

Strength training

Strength Training

Benefits: Increased muscle strength, bone density, injury prevention, mental health

Concerns: Improper form and too much weight can lead to injury

How to try it: Find a gym with the proper equipment and build a training plan, picking exercises that target both the upper and lower body.

Many endurance athletes don’t consider strength training as part of their workout routine, but it can help prevent injury while improving strength for your main sport. For runners, maybe that’s improved core strength for economy. For cyclists, maybe the outcome is a higher power output. Regardless of your sport, strength training is imperative to improving endurance for runners15 and cyclists.

In a study of postmenopausal women, high-intensity strength training exercises showed preserved bone density while improving muscle mass, strength and balance.16 It can also help prevent injury. In a study of soccer players who strength trained in the offseason, hamstring strains were lower (and that group also saw increases in strength and speed).17

“You spend so much time beating your body down in-season, but I find that I’m healthier and stronger when I lift. With long distance, being strong helps. I try to put on a lot of muscle during a short period of time.”
Kelsey Withrow, professional triathlete

The mental benefits of resistance training have also been documented; studies have shown it improves anxiety and depression.18,19

A good strength training regimen will focus separately on different muscle groups. There are several options for lifters of all different levels, but starting with some simple bodyweight exercises (like push-ups or pull-ups) can allow you to build toward free weight training, weight machines, or rubber tubing. A meta-analysis of periodized training–varying your strength training workouts–has shown results for greater changes in strength, motor performance and lean body mass.20 So don’t get stuck doing the same routine over and over again. A good way to push yourself is to incorporate overload training into some of that strength work.

If you’re strapped for time, a full-body workout once or twice a week (with dedicated recovery time) should suffice. Make sure to also spend some time nailing down form in the weight room, as improper form and too much weight can lead to injury.

 

Yoga

Yoga

Benefits: Increased strength, mobility, flexibility, and mood

Concerns: Improper form can lead to injury

How to try it: Find a studio and pick a class level that’s appropriate for your skill level.

An ancient practice designed to create a union between the body and mind, many athletes seek out yoga for its ability to increase strength and flexibility while also promoting mental health benefits.

Yoga can improve performance by targeting specific aspects of flexibility and balance–one study, which took place over the course of 10 weeks in male collegiate athletes, saw improvements in both balance and flexibility.21 In older adults, studies have shown improved balance and mobility.22 Strength is also a target of many yoga programs, especially in the core. Even a study in which a specific pose (sun salutation) was used six days per week for 24 weeks, participants saw increased upper body strength, weight loss and endurance.23

But with yoga, the body is only half the game. It has been shown to decrease cortisol levels (the stress hormone),24 along with the ability to lower levels of depression, stress, and anxiety.25 There have even been studies which showed overall quality of life improvements in seniors.26 Maybe part of these mental benefits are linked to better sleep quality. One study illustrated that a group participating in yoga fell asleep faster, slept longer and felt more well-rested in the morning.27

Yoga isn’t an aerobic workout, but it stretches muscles, builds strength and has been shown to improve mood. Because it’s low-impact, yoga can be done every day. Typically gyms or studios have beginner classes, and they will typically last between 60 and 90 minutes. Athletes can use yoga as recovery days, so between one and three sessions per week would be perfect.

Remember: listen to your body. Athletes always want to push the limit, and many may scoff that yoga is difficult (compared, say, to running). But extending a stretch too far, or practicing yoga without learning form, can lead to injury.

 

Other Exercises

There are different activities that may be considered cross training, outside of the usual suspects we detailed above.

Hiking, for example, is a great way to build strength and get outside during a recovery day. Same goes with exercises like kayaking or stand-up paddle boarding28–these can help build upper body strength while encouraging an athlete to get out of their comfort zone (literally, and figuratively).

“I spend a lot of time training indoors, so getting outside is a lot of fun. I’ll do one long run per week outside, and I’ll bring my dog. It’s a reset for me.”
Kelsey Withrow, professional triathlete

We wouldn’t recommend team sports because there’s a risk of injury. But tennis might be an exception. While there are of course injury concerns with every sport and exercise, tennis has shown to improve aerobic fitness, lower body fat percentage, reduce risk for developing cardiovascular disease and improve bone health.29

For more passive cross training, think about everyday things you can do to improve strength and balance. Even investing in a standing desk, or sitting on a medicine ball at work can encourage better posture and more movement overall.

 

Cross Training for Athletes

During peak training season, athletes feel the grind. You’re putting in the hours with a race or event or goal in mind, laboring over the same path, the same laps, the same routine, with little variance.

Cross training is meant to serve as a break, but one that’s productive. It can be a break from your normal routine, both physically and mentally. But it can also invigorate the mind, providing it with a new task to learn, a new challenge to face. And of course, the physical benefits of testing the body in new ways are evident.

To incorporate cross training, try one or more of these exercises a couple times a week. See how you feel. You’ll likely find one you enjoy more than others, one that maybe provides better results than the rest. It’ll take some time to find a balance.

What’s your cross training routine? Let us know in the comments and share your experience.

Scientific Citations

  1. Van mechelen W. Running injuries. A review of the epidemiological literature. Sports Med. 1992;14(5):320-35.
  2. Mikkola J, Vesterinen V, Taipale R, Capostagno B, Häkkinen K, Nummela A. Effect of resistance training regimens on treadmill running and neuromuscular performance in recreational endurance runners. J Sports Sci. 2011;29(13):1359-71.
  3. Yamamoto, Linda M; Lopez, Rebecca M; Klau, Jennifer F; Casa, Douglas J; Kraemer, William J; Maresh, Carl M. The Effects of Resistance Training on Endurance Distance Running Performance Among Highly Trained Runners: A Systematic Review. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: November 2008 – Volume 22 – Issue 6 – p 2036-2044 doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e318185f2f0.
  4. MacDougall JD, Gibala MJ, Tarnopolsky MA, MacDonald JR, Interisano SA, Yarasheski KE. The time course for elevated muscle protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise. Can J Appl Physiol. 1995 Dec;20(4):480-6.
  5. Holdsworth, D.A., Cox, P.J., Kirk, T., Stradling, H., Impey, S.G., and Clarke, K. (2017). A Ketone Ester Drink Increases Postexercise Muscle Glycogen Synthesis in Humans. Med Sci Sports Exerc.
  6. Vandoorne, T., De Smet, S., Ramaekers, M., Van Thienen, R., De Bock, K., Clarke, K., and Hespel, P. (2017). Intake of a Ketone Ester Drink during Recovery from Exercise Promotes mTORC1 Signaling but Not Glycogen Resynthesis in Human Muscle. Front. Physiol. 8, 310.
  7. Steinacker JM, Lormes W, Kellmann M, et al. Thaining of junior rowers before world championships. Effects on performance, mood state and selected hormonal and metabolic responses. J SPORTS MED PHYS FTTNESS 2000;40:327-35.
  8. Lotshaw AM, Thompson M, Sadowsky HS, Hart MK, Millard MW. Quality of life and physical performance in land- and water-based pulmonary rehabilitation. J Cardiopulm Rehabil Prev. 2007;27(4):247-51.
  9. Alkatan M, Baker JR, Machin DR, et al. Improved Function and Reduced Pain after Swimming and Cycling Training in Patients with Osteoarthritis. J Rheumatol. 2016;43(3):666-72.
  10. Cox KL, Burke V, Beilin LJ, Puddey IB. A comparison of the effects of swimming and walking on body weight, fat distribution, lipids, glucose, and insulin in older women–the Sedentary Women Exercise Adherence Trial 2. Metab Clin Exp. 2010;59(11):1562-73.
  11. Broman G, Quintana M, Engardt M, Gullstrand L, Jansson E, Kaijser L. Older women’s cardiovascular responses to deep-water running. J Aging Phys Act. 2006;14(1):29-40.
  12. Cider A, Sveälv BG, Täng MS, Schaufelberger M, Andersson B. Immersion in warm water induces improvement in cardiac function in patients with chronic heart failure. Eur J Heart Fail. 2006;8(3):308-13.
  13. Sable M, Vaidya SM, Sable SS. Comparative study of lung functions in swimmers and runners. Indian J Physiol Pharmacol. 2012;56(1):100-4.
  14. Oja P, Titze S, Bauman A, et al. Health benefits of cycling: a systematic review. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2011;21(4):496-509.
  15. Hoff J. Maximal Strength Training Enhances Running Economy and Aerobic Endurance Performance. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise: May 2001; Volume 33 ,Issue 5, p S270
  16. Miriam E. Nelson, PhD; Maria A. Fiatarone, MD; Christina M. Morganti, MD; et al. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2015;141(5):428.
  17. Askling C, Karlsson J, Thorstensson A. Hamstring injury occurrence in elite soccer players after preseason strength training with eccentric overload. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2003; 13(4);244-250
  18. Gordon BR, Mcdowell CP, Hallgren M, Meyer JD, Lyons M, Herring MP. Association of Efficacy of Resistance Exercise Training With Depressive Symptoms: Meta-analysis and Meta-regression Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials. JAMA Psychiatry. 2018;75(6):566-576.
  19. Gordon, B.R., McDowell, C.P., Lyons, M. et al. Sports Med (2017) 47: 2521. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-017-0769-0
  20. Fleck SJ. Periodized Strength Training: A Critical Review. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 1999l;13(1).
  21. M Jay Polsgrove, Brandon M Eggleston, and Roch J Lockyer. Impact of 10-weeks of yoga practice on flexibility and balance of college athletes. Int J Yoga. 2016 Jan-Jun; 9(1): 27–34. doi: 10.4103/0973-6131.171710
  22. Tiedemann A, O’rourke S, Sesto R, Sherrington C. A 12-week Iyengar yoga program improved balance and mobility in older community-dwelling people: a pilot randomized controlled trial. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2013;68(9):1068-75.
  23. Bhutkar MV, Bhutkar PM, Taware GB, Surdi AD. How effective is sun salutation in improving muscle strength, general body endurance and body composition?. Asian J Sports Med. 2011;2(4):259-66.
  24. Katuri KK, Dasari AB, Kurapati S, Vinnakota NR, Bollepalli AC, Dhulipalla R. Association of yoga practice and serum cortisol levels in chronic periodontitis patients with stress-related anxiety and depression. J Int Soc Prev Community Dent. 2016;6(1):7-14.
  25. Michalsen A, Grossman P, Acil A, et al. Rapid stress reduction and anxiolysis among distressed women as a consequence of a three-month intensive yoga program. Med Sci Monit. 2005;11(12):CR555-561.
  26. Oken BS, Zajdel D, Kishiyama S, et al. Randomized, controlled, six-month trial of yoga in healthy seniors: effects on cognition and quality of life. Altern Ther Health Med. 2006;12(1):40-7.
  27. Manjunath NK, Telles S. Influence of Yoga and Ayurveda on self-rated sleep in a geriatric population. Indian J Med Res. 2005;121(5):683-90.
  28. Schram B, Hing W, Climstein M. The physiological, musculoskeletal and psychological effects of stand up paddle boarding. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. 2016;8:32.
  29. Pluim BM, Staal JB, Marks BL, Miller S, Miley D. Health benefits of tennis. Br J Sports Med. 2007;41(11):760-8.

Why I Ditched the Fitbit Charge HR

0 Comments/ in Fitness, Martial Arts / by Adam Bockler
January 10, 2016

This past week, news broke about a class-action lawsuit Fitbit Charge HR now faces due to inaccurate and dangerously low heart rate readouts.

The Fitbit Charge HR is the only heart rate monitor I’ve ever used. I first bought it in February of 2015 to use for DDPYoga, but also because I was curious about how many steps I was getting in a day (turns out, it’s not a lot). Back in June, I said I was underwhelmed with its performance. No matter how hard I was working, sometimes my heart rate was barely breaking 100 (and my zone is 134-154). Or, sometimes I’d be near my zone, and literally seconds later I’d be back in the 90s again.

In December, some people on the private Facebook group for DDPYoga certified instructors were asking about new heart rate monitors. DDPYoga instructor Christina Russell commented that the DDPYoga Performance Center uses the Wahoo Tickr X because it’s the most accurate they’ve tested. With some Christmas money, I bought the Tickr X.

I wanted to see how the Fitbit did compared to the Tickr X, so I put them both on at the same time. It only took me a few workouts to see that the Tickr X killed the Fitbit in direct competition.

Obviously, this isn’t a scientific comparison. But, with each workout, my heart rate was about 10 bpm higher on the Tickr X compared to the Charge HR. That number may not seem like much, but look at the difference in calories burned.

Also, my right shoulder was sore during these workouts, so I wasn’t necessarily looking to get into my target zone and stay there. Instead, I was just looking to stretch out a bit. So keep that in mind.

DDPYoga – New Year’s Eve

Fitbit Charge HR Dec 31 2015Tickr X Dec 31 2015

On New Year’s Eve, I did a lower body workout so I wouldn’t have to use my arm as much. I don’t remember which one, but I was using the DDPYoga Now app (which is pretty cool, by the way).

Martial Arts – New Year’s Day

Fitbit Charge HR Jan 01 2016Tickr X Jan 01 2016

When I was training with my karate instructor, he told me about a tradition he’d had at one point – training your whole system on New Year’s Day. I kind of did that. I warmed up with some DDPYoga stretching before doing the old Yang-style tai chi chuan form, followed by the five Hsing-i elements and the animal forms I’ve been taught thus far. After that, I reviewed my karate forms and ippons, taezus, and kihons in 2 directions. If the should would’ve been feeling better, I would have done 8. Notice the downward trend at the end, which was me trying to remember some of those wazas since I haven’t actively practiced them in eight months.

DDPYoga – Jan. 02

Fitbit Charge HR Jan 02 2016Tickr X Jan 02 2016

This was probably Stand Up 2.0. The average bpm was closest here, though there are still widely varying numbers.

After this workout, I decided to ditch the Fitbit entirely. I know I don’t get as many steps as the “gold standard” of 10,000, and I’m tired of feeling inferior to people telling me they have three times as many steps as I do for the day. I know I think I’m sleeping 7 hours, but may really only be getting 5.5 hours of sleep (as we compared Fitbit stats, a person I went on a date with was shocked at how restless I was). And I know, with pretty convincing supporting evidence, that my heart rate is better measured with the Wahoo Tickr X than the Fitbit Charge HR.

Metamora Park District Offering Evening Yoga Class

  • DDPYoga - Evening Yoga in Metamora
0 Comments/ in Fitness / by Adam Bockler
October 16, 2015

I hear you loud and clear, Metamora. You want evening yoga? You’re gonna get it.

Through a partnership with Metamora Parks & Recreation, I’m happy to be bringing DDPYoga to central Illinois for the first time ever.

What’s DDPYoga?

Well, first of all… It ain’t your mama’s yoga!

DDPYoga is a fitness system that combines elements of yoga, traditional fitness, sports therapy, and dynamic resistance to create a kickass workout.

With it, you can:

  1. Burn fat standing still!
  2. Increase your cardio without running, jumping, or lifting!
  3. Get more flexible!

The best part is you can do all of this with minimal joint impact.

What I like most about the DDPYoga workout is that you can make it as easy or as challenging as you want. People of literally all ages and fitness levels can do DDPYoga.

See some more inspirational transformation videos with this playlist:

What Are Some More Details About DDPYoga In Metamora?

Classes will be held Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. in the Metamora Park District activity room starting January 5.

The first session will last 13 weeks, with the last class finishing on March 31.

A minimum of 8 people must sign up for the session, but we’ll have to limit it to about 15 people because of the space.

How Do I Get Started?

Edit: Learn more about my current DDP Yoga class offerings here.

Burning Fat with Chinese Martial Arts: An Experiment with the Fitbit Charge

  • Adam
0 Comments/ in Fitness, Technology / by Adam Bockler
August 29, 2015

Several months ago, I made what I considered to be a startling discovery: I am consistently in my fat-burning zone when I do Chinese martial arts forms.

To put that into perspective, my heart rate is usually 10-20 beats per minute higher doing martial arts than it is doing DDPYoga. I do DDPYoga to burn fat and to build muscle, so imagine my surprise when I noticed that martial arts get my heart pumping faster than a program that touts itself for its heart-rate-jacking, fat-blasting workouts. (See my experience with using the Fitbit Charge HR for DDPYoga here.)

I’m not knocking DDPYoga here. In fact, as I write this, I’m just a few hours short of acquiring the teaching hours I need to become certified.

What I’m saying is that Chinese martial arts have almost a stigma attached to them. Many consider them to be just a way for old people to stay healthy as they age. And yes, while that’s true, it’s only one aspect.

Chinese martial arts help people burn fat.

I’ve experimented a few ways – doing my tai chi chuan form and Hsing-i forms without any other workout for the day, doing those forms after DDPYoga workouts ranging in length from 20 to 40 to 60 minutes (which is usually my favorite) – and the bottom line is that Chinese martial arts raise your heart rate and allow you to get into your fat-burning zone.

Let’s take this morning, for example.

Adam's Fitbit Charge HR data shows his average heart rate at 122 beats per minute

This is what my heart rate information looks like doing DDPYoga Mix Tape.

 

I started off doing the DDPYoga Mix Tape routine – one of the most challenging 35 minutes in that set. I was able to raise my heart rate quicker than I’m usually able to, shooting up into the 120s fairly early. (Remember, my fat-burning zone is 134-154.) I peaked in the workout at 159, and you can easily see from my chart that I backed off pretty quickly. Overall, I stayed at 122 average beats per minute.

It should be noted here that it’s hard for me to get in my fat-burning zone. Even when I’m putting all my energy into it, I’ll still see myself in the 120s, about 10 clicks below where I should be.

This might have to do with the placement of my Fitbit Charge HR. It needs to be placed on my wrist just right. I usually wear mine so that the sensor is on the top of my wrist, but for working out, I’ve found it works better when I turn it inside. If it wobbles from punching or it slides from sweating, I can see myself going down 30 bpm. Literally. So, I may be in my FBZ without even knowing it sometimes.

Adam's Fitbit Charge HR data shows higher beats per minute than DDPYoga

An 11-minute workout incorporating tai chi chuan and Hsing-i chuan forms yielded more beats per minute over a longer period of time.

After I finished that, I went to go do my tai chi chuan form outside in the park since it was nice out this morning. That took me about 5 minutes. I followed that with the five Hsing-i chuan element forms and the four animal forms I know so far. Even though I was only working out about a third of the time with martial arts, this chart looks like I’m staying in my target zone longer. It’s been that way on other workouts, too – I’m consistently noticing myself in the 130-150 range.

The kicker here is that I don’t feel like I work as hard at Chinese martial arts as I do at DDPYoga. That’s usually the reason why I do it at the end of my workout, so I can cool down. With DDPYoga, I’m drenched at the end of the workout, “sweatin’ and swearin’,” so to speak. But with martial arts, what I feel like would be a “light” workout can still put me in my zone.

So, if you’re looking to complement your main exercise program, think about martial arts. In addition to all of the great values martial arts teaches, they’re also a fully capable weight-loss and muscle-building system.

If anybody has any heart rate advice related to martial arts, please comment.

How The Fitbit Charge HR Changed How I Do DDPYoga

  • Source: DDPYoga
9 Comments/ in Fitness / by Adam Bockler
June 14, 2015

You probably know by now I’m an advocate of the DDPYoga fitness system. I first picked it up in August 2013 after listening to Diamond Dallas Page talk about it at length during a profanity-laden episode of the Steve Austin Show.

However, after hundreds of workouts, I only picked up a heart rate monitor for the first time this year. It was the Fitbit Charge HR, and it has dramatically changed how I do my DDPYoga workouts.

Why wear a heart monitor?

The main principle of DDPYoga is engagement, or dynamic resistance. It’s a tensing of the muscles so that the more you flex, the more blood you pump to your muscles. The more blood you pump to your muscles, the faster your heart has to beat. And the faster your heart beats, the more fat you burn.

If you are operating at your maximum heart rate for up to 25 beats per minute less, you’re engaging in aerobic cardiovascular exercise. Think running, walking, biking, skiing, or doing DDPYoga. With this type of exercise, you are burning fat as your fuel source.

In anaerobic exercise, in which you exceed your maximum heart rate for a long time, you burn sugar as your fuel source, and that requires more recovery time. Think sprinting or weightlifting.

Dallas implores people to be wearing a heart monitor at the start of each workout so that your body is in its optimal fat-burning zone. If you exceed it, he recommends heading into the Safety Zone position for a few seconds so you can lower it.

So how do you know what your fat-burning zone is?

DDPYoga uses the 180 formula developed by Dr. Phil Maffetone.

Take 180 minus your age. Then, modify that number according to the rules listed on his site.

I follow 180 minus my age, minus 20 to know what my target heart rate zone is.

180-26 = 154. 154-20 = 134. So my target heart rate zone is 134-154.

How did the Charge HR help?

When I first got my Charge HR device, I did the quick and basic Energy workout to get a gauge on how it worked. Remember, I hadn’t ever used a heart rate monitor in 18 months of DDPYoga practice.

Initially, I was underwhelmed. My heart rate hovered around 100, which wasn’t close to the 130s I needed to reach just to be on the lower end of my fat-burning zone. “Maybe this thing just needs to get used to me working out,” I thought. After all, everybody’s different, so maybe there was some kind of calibration phase it needed to go through.

Later on, though, it dawned on me that I might not be fully engaging my muscles to make use of the dynamic resistance upon which DDPYoga is based. I made some adjustments, and found out that my heart rate was indeed going up throughout my workouts. With effort, I can make my heart rate soar. Not as easily as they do in the video above, but it works nonetheless.

If you’re having trouble getting into your fat-burning zone doing DDPYoga, try this guy’s video:

Four months after starting to use a heart rate monitor for DDPYoga, I’m seeing some results of using my heart rate monitor. The wrap and burn stretch on the Strength Builder (and Mix Tape) workouts on the DVDs has gotten me into the 130s, and the Mix Tape in general is the workout that keeps me the most engaged with my highest heart rates. I’m also still surprised to see I have consistently high heart rates when I’m doing Broken Table crunches. For a move that doesn’t seem like much, it sure shoots that heart rate up.

However, I still can’t find consistency in when to expect my heart rate to go up and when it won’t. For example, I noticed a drastic increase in my heart rate when working outdoors than indoors. This was especially apparent when I was doing punches a few weeks ago in the park and noticed my heart rate soaring into the 140s, a number not typically seen in my living room during the same exercise.

What to know about customizing the heart rate on the Charge HR

You have to customize your heart rate on the Charge HR if you want to follow the DDPYoga method of calculating it.

  1. Open up the Fitbit app.
  2. Go to Account.
  3. Go to Heart Rate Zone.
  4. Select that you want to use a custom zone, and then enter the Upper Limit and Lower Limit.

The caveat is that even though you select custom zones, Fitbit will still use its default zones when plotting your graph of heart rates throughout your workout. It will show you your custom zone with the graph, but it doesn’t really explain much (like what your zones are).

Tell me what you think

Now, it’s your turn to sound off with your experiences to one or any of these questions:

  1. What are your experiences like with using the Fitbit Charge HR for DDPYoga?
  2. How does the Fitbit Charge HR compare to other heart rate monitors for DDPYoga?
  3. What DDPYoga exercises do you find help you get into your target heart rate zone?
  4. What other fitness activities do you do with your heart rate monitor, and how does that compare to when you do DDPYoga?
Page 1 of 41234

Recent Posts

  • How to Add Cross Training to Your Workouts
  • Three Reasons Why You Should Join a MOOC
  • Why I Ditched the Fitbit Charge HR
  • You Don’t Need To Be An Expert If You Can Fight Like A Physicist
  • Metamora Park District Offering Evening Yoga Class

RSS Latest Posts at ONEFIRE

  • 5 Alternatives To Organic Social Media For Driving Website Visitors And Converting Them Into Contacts
  • How Well Does Organic Social Media Drive Website Visitors And Convert Them Into Contacts?
  • How To Get The Most Out Of Your Organic Social Media Marketing Strategy
  • 5 Strategies For Improving Lead Capture at Trade Shows
  • Play Time: Why Gamification Fits at Trade Shows
  • SEO 2018: What You Need to Know
  • 4 Reasons to Bring a Touch Screen to Your Trade Show

Categories

Archives

Search

About Adam

Adam Bockler is a freelance marketing consultant and a certified personal trainer. He's a DDP Yoga Level 1 instructor and a multi-time USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame inductee.

Search

Categories

  • College
  • Dating
  • Dublin, Ireland
  • Fitness
  • Life
  • Marketing
  • Martial Arts
  • Media
  • Podcasts
  • Technology
  • Wrestling

Latest From @adambockler

  • Error: Invalid or expired token.

© Copyright - Adam Bockler - Wordpress Theme by Kriesi.at