Exercise

I shall not cover all the mechanics of how to warm up or stretching. Firstly, is warm up necessary? For 2.4k-race, I would say “yes.” Really all you need to do is to do several jumping jacks and jogging on the spot.  This is to increase blood flow to warm up the muscles for the upcoming strenuous work ahead. You definitely do not want exhaust too much energy. Just do enough (about 5 minutes) so your hands feel warm and heart begins to start pumping faster.

Secondly, should we stretch before exercise? There is no doubt that stretching is vital right after any workout.  But opinions vary when it comes to stretching. One physiologist states that stretching before warming up is like stretching a “dry spaghetti” and may “wear” the tissues. He recommends a warm up first before stretching. I fully agree with him and found that I have significantly less sore during the run when I follow his 2-Step protocol. Feeling sore in muscles can discourage you and adversely affect your performance.

Proper breathing is probably one of the key to running efficiently for longer period of time than your body is accustomed. Most of us work in some office building sitting at computer. Our posture is usually slouching forward and this constricts the lungs from “opening up” freely and restrict deep breathing. You will soon find this type of “shallow breathing” do you a disservice on the running track.

I have personally tried “2 breaths in and 2 breaths out” for years but found that I always end up very tried after the run, even if its less than 4 laps (or 1600 meters). This was thought by one of my cousins, Clara, who is a fantastic distance runner.  But alas, it didn’t really suit me as it did her. Recently, I tried what I called Synchronized Breathing which allow me to simple customize to my needs and work with my fitness level as it improves. According to Metabolic Typing science, we need oxygen to metabolize or “burn” the food we take in. Hence, it makes sense that an efficient breathing system that suits your body’s during a specific workout will maximize energy output, consequently, running performance.

Have you ever wondered how often you should exercise? Some will say 2 -3 times per week, while some sources will tell you to exercise up to 5 times per week. Again, understand that our bodies are not the same. We have different genes, hours of rest, recovery time, exercise experience, medical history, age, food, rest, fitness level, physical limitations, commitment, goals and so forth. Learn to “listen” to your body.

The key here lies in 2 words: Rest and Recovery. If you don’t have enough of either, you will not perform better and may even fall sick. A fact I discovered though experience. Most adults will do well to rest for at least 1 day. This is to allow torn muscles to repair, grow stronger, get rid of waste such as free radicals produced during exercise. Rest simply means sufficient sleep.  You must sleep enough. You can eat the best foods or supplements, but without restful, uninterrupted sleep you will not have maximum recovery.

So how do I know I am rested and recovered? Which better person to ask them yourself! Seriously, ask quietly to yourself, how much more distance can you cover as compared to the previous exercise, say 2 days ago. If you ran 2 laps and you feel that you can probably run 3 or 4 rounds this time based on your energy levels and how you feel, then this would be the day you should run. On the other hand, if you feel you could not do more than 2 laps or less (not due to laziness, of course), then you should postpone your training to another day.

The benefits of customizing your own exercise is that you will be less likely to overstrain yourself and fall sick. You see when your free radicals are high, your immune system will be low and you become more susceptible to flu and cold viruses. Proper supplementation can certainly help to neutralize and remove free radicals, but never to replace sleep. Due to late nights watching TV and work commitments, some may find that their recovery rates are 3 to 5 days. My recommendation is simple, weigh your priorities and if you were serious about you fitness in the first place, rest early. Get at least 7 hrs of sleep.

Here’s a simple Protocol to Customize Your Exercise:

• Day 1-Start your run. Go as far as you can. Talk to yourself a little, while you are running to test whether you are going too fast or too slow.  Some call this the “Talk Test.”  In other words, if you can’t talk without grasping for more air, then your are probably running too fast.
• Day 2-This will be 1 to several days after you determined you have sufficient rest and can run more rounds or run faster in the same number of rounds.
• Day 3 and Beyond-Apply principles laid out on Progressive resistance.  Achieve your goals and maximize genetic potential.

What you are doing by increasing the number of rounds or increasing the speed in each round is called Progressive Resistance. Basically, you keep increasing the load on yourself to run faster or run further. Consequently, you become stronger and fitness improves.

The trampoline is probably one of the best non-impact exercise for any starter or even those whose fitness are at the intermediate level.
You can purchase it from most fitness stores for below S$100.

I intentionally left this last, since I assume most of my readers already agree that some form of exercise is better than none. One church pastor told me that exercise is not so important citing from a passage in the Bible that “bodily exercise profiteth little.” (KJV) For the most of us, quoting this passage is just a glorified excuse for not exercising. I personally don’t believe the bible to be inaccurate here.  The people in biblical times walk for long distances to get to places with much physical work. There are no buses, no trains or cars.

Sedentary lifestyle as described leaves us lethargic, but adding some exercise has many benefits. There are more than I can list here, but here are my favorites:

• IMPROVE IMMUNE SYSTEM
• REDUCE LDL (Bad cholesterol), TRIGLYCERIDE Levels
• CONTROL HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE
• REDUCE STROKE AND CHD (Coronary Heart Disease)
• LOSE EXCESS FAT WEIGHT
• PREVENT DIABETES
• Help you  FEEL and LOOK GOOD
• IMPROVE FITNESS BY INCREASING YOUR BODY’S ABILITY TO UPTAKE OXYGEN
• REDUCE COLON AND BREAST CANCER RISK
• SLOW AGEING PROCESS AND IMPROVE BONE DENSITY.
• SLEEP BETTER

4 Principles Regarding Exercise

Principle 1: Understand and belief that it WILL BE MORE PAINFUL and EXPENSIVE not to exercise than to do so.

Principle 2: Doing some form of exercise that require you to breathe hard and perspire is BETTER THAN not doing at all. More exercise is not necessary better. Insufficient rest can make you fall sick easily.

Principle 3: Don’t give up on yourself even if you fail many times-I have. Find an activity you enjoy doing or with your friends.

Principle 4: Be CREATIVE.

Activity such as jogging, fast walking, climbing the stairs up the high floors of your apartment, bicycling, skipping or jump ropes are all great exercises. Some prefer sports such as table-tennis, badminton or soccer. As long as you can maintain the activity and keep going and not stop for more than 20 to 30 min without any activity, it’s considered exercise. Hence, SHOPPING is strolling the malls is not considered exercise. (Sorry ladies.)

(Note: Always check with your doctor if you are not sure if you are not sure your current health status before you begin any exercise program.)