Walking – Vibrant Life

12 JAN

Workout Without Equipment

It’s not unusual for people to feel that they can work out only if they have a fully equipped gym with a large assortment of equipment. Nothing could be further from the truth. The only things you need to work out are motivation and determination.

There are basically two parts to a workout–cardiovascular (or aerobics) and strengthening (or toning). Most people are under the impression that aerobic exercise should leave you gasping for air. The reality is that working out aerobically should actually feel quite comfortable. You can work out aerobically without equipment by (in order of difficulty):

Walking

Hiking

RunningIf you are just starting an exercise program, begin by just walking in your neighborhood and try to avoid any hills. As you walk you want to feel a little out of breath and be perspiring moderately (barring high heat and humidity). If you had to describe your level of exertion on a scale of 1 to 10, it should feel like a 6 or 7. Remember that this should feel like a level that you could comfortably sustain for 20 minutes or more.
Read more …

12 JAN

Volkssporting: A Whole New Kind of Walk

If last names had anything to do with predisposing one to a sport, I guess this would be mine. Although swimming, bicycling, snowshoeing, roller skating, ice skating, and cross-country skiing also fall under the “volkssport” heading, walking is the main event, and the majority of volkssporting events are organized walks (the walking segment is sometimes referred to as volksmarching).
Read more about Volkssporting: A Whole New Kind of Walk …

12 JAN

Five More Reasons for Walking

The skeletons in my workout closet are many-an unused athletic club membership, a dusty NordicTrack, a lonely ab-buster. All purchased with the best of intentions. But, alas, they have all fallen to the same fate: while they may have physically challenged me, mentally I was “bored out of my gourd.” Consequently, I became a fitness failure, a workout wannabe.

Then one day my family upset me. Husband, sons, the cat; I can’t remember which one started it, but in the end I decided to take a walk to blow off steam. After 10 minutes I felt better. And after 20 minutes the argument seemed miles away.

18 SEP

Tummy Delight

I’m officially done with my sugar and junk-food binge! I’m so desperate to get out of my maternity clothes and back into “regular” clothes that I’m willing to do whatever it takes to achieve that. So, since last week I’ve taken up walking like I said I was going to do. But instead of going to the gym to do my workout, I bought an at-home walking DVD called Leslie Sansone Walk at Home, Walk Slim. I figured since there was no way I was going to make it to the gym with the current circumstances I would bring the gym home to me. Good idea, don’t you think?

Fat Walk

Well, it’s the beginning of another week, and it doesn’t look anymore promising than last week. I’ve finally made a game plan on how I’m going to get back into shape after the birth of my son. However, because of extreme fatigue from dealing with my children, I haven’t been able to start it. And it’s not the exhaustion from the baby, because the baby is doing great! In fact, he is sleeping 4-5 hours at night already. Instead, it’s my almost- two-year-old daughter who’s giving me a run for my money. She is the one who has been getting up every two hours at night. Last night she woke up at 2 a.m. and never went back to sleep; she just screamed all night. Lucky me! This vicious cycle with her has been going on for the past seven days. My husband and I have been getting roughly about two hours of sleep a night between her and the baby. Doesn’t that make you feel bad for me?
Read more about Fat Walk …