Tabata Friday

It's a lovely fall Friday here in Calgary.  The leaves outside my window are turning a gorgeous golden yellow, the sky was lit up like cotton candy only a few hours ago, and now the sun is shining.  It looks like it might be a great afternoon for a walk along the river!

But, alas, I do have to work for most of the day.  Earning my Holistic Nutrition designation will hopefully earn me some flexibility in my work hours in the very near future but for now I am still sitting behind a desk.  It could be worse!

I love tabata workouts.  You can pick a few exercises and do them anywhere - they are my go-to workouts when I travel because I only need 16 - 20 minutes, some floor or park space, and my running shoes.  Because this is such a beautiful day, I thought I would put together an effective tabata workout that can be done anyway - yes, that includes in the great outdoors!  So get your shoes and get outside!

Begin with a 3-4 minute warm up. A quick, easy warm up for most exercise routines can including the following (perform each move for 15-20 seconds):
* walk in place
* side to side toe taps
* hamstring curls with a shoulder squeeze
* high knees side to side with overhead reach
* job in place
* log jump, side to side
* butt kicks, with biceps curl
* high knee run
* vertical jump / skipping without the rope

Tabata #1:   Power Squats
(If you have never done these, start with regular squats before moving into the jump.  For Power Squats, start standing with arms comfortably by your sides.  First, jump and squat so your feet are about hip-width apart, keeping your hips back, chest up, and ensuring your knees do not come forward of your toes.  From the squat position, power jump back to standing and immediately jump back into a squat.)

Tabata #2:   Plank Jacks
(One of my absolute favorite exercises, start in a plank position - either on your elbows or your hands - and jump your feet out like your are doing a jumping jack on the floor.  Jump back to starting position and repeat as many times as you can.  If you have access to floor or carpet slides, add these in for some extra resistance!)

Tabata #3:   High Knees
(Stand up straight and lift your knees, with your abs, up to hip level with each repetition.  Keep pushing though! Add in your arms by either keeping them straight out to your sides at shoulder height (like a T) or with each knee lift, reach above your head with your opposite hand like you're climbing a wall or picking apples! Apple picking is very fall-friendly, right?)

Tabata #4:   Squat Burpees with a Push Up
(Begin standing, jump your feet back with your hands on the floor like you're in a plank position.  Do 1 push up.  Using your abs, jump your feet towards your hands, landing with feet about hip-width apart in a deep squat position.  Repeat without standing in between burpees.)

Tabata #5:   Single Leg Squat
(Alternate legs for each interval so that you perform this exercise 4 times per leg.  Start standing; lift right leg off the floor and extend it out in front of you.  Squat at least halfway down to a seated position and push off your heel to return to the starting position.  Repeat with left leg lifted for the next 20 seconds and alternate.)

For a nice cool down, walk for about 30 seconds either on the spot or around the area.  Perform some side-to-side steps, leg swings, and hip circles to keep the blood flowing.  Once your heart rate has returned to normal, do 3 deep breaths and stretch.  A good stretch routine for this tabata circuit would be:

• quad stretches, 20 seconds / leg
• calf stretches, 20 seconds / leg
• hamstring stretches, 20 seconds / leg
• side bends, 20 seconds / side
• cross-body arm stretches, 20 seconds / arm
• chest stretch, 20 seconds
• upper back, 20 seconds
• hip stretch, 20 seconds per side

 Enjoy!  I hope everyone is experiencing the beauty of nature today and that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving long weekend!

My Perspective on WHY 10,000 Steps a Day is Better for Our Health

Andrea Bocelli’s Con Te Partiro fills the room.  The clock rings 5:00 am - time to get up and hit the gym before heading to the office.  My fiancé and I have a morning ritual that can still be a struggle to initiate, especially when the frigid cold of winter penetrates the house.  Coming up with new ideas to keep myself interested in my workouts is challenging but I know, in the end, I am exercising to maintain my health.  In fact, I have become so in tune with exercise that I am officially one of those active people who try to take the stairs or walk further than needed more often than not.  I even stand at my desk most days with my head popping up over the cubicle walls, enduring the quizzical and judgmental looks from people walking by.  It’s not just my morning hard core workouts that will keep me healthy; moving as often as possible throughout each and every day is where the true health benefits shine. 

We are a sedentary society. We get into our cars (or, if we are more economical, catch the nearest bus), find the closest parking spot (or bus stop), walk to our desk, and plunk ourselves down for 8+ hours.  We rarely get out of our seats, except to grab endless cups of coffee and attend to the inevitable bladder issues that arise from such quantities of fluid.  Now we hear that this sedentary lifestyle is leading to an increase in heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, cancer and dementia.  Monthly reminders to walk more and sit less creep into magazines and online health forums.  Companies promote walking challenges, reminding staff to hit 10,000 steps each day in an effort to reduce sick days and promote overall wellness in the office.

Sitting is apparently killing us yet most people continue to avoid walking.  Where is the disconnect?  You would think being told your chances of major illnesses are huge the more you avoid standing and moving, but this scare tactic is still not working.  There has to be a reason people continue to ignore the now-familiar advice to accomplish their daily 10,000 steps.  While they have good intentions, the doctors and health advocates who preach that moving more will save our health simply miss some vital information that really helps people understand the ‘why’ behind these endorsements.

Why should moving more help reduce our risk of major disease?  Well, the reason for moving more boils down to toxic build up and how our bodies cleanse themselves.  The body systems that aid in elimination and detoxification – namely, the liver, the circulatory system, and the lymphatic system – rely heavily on exercise and skeletal movement to move debris, toxins and other nasty particles out of the body.  The lymphatic system (also known as our immune system) destroys and flushes out the bacteria, viruses, toxins and various chemicals to which our bodies are exposed. Lymphatic fluid can only circulate by skeletal movement so the less the body moves the more toxins sit stagnant. Think of the lymphatic system as the garbage collector; if the system is functioning, garbage in will be processed and removed, but if the process stops, garbage just keeps piling on until it overflows, taking out the poor workers who just can’t keep up with its removal!

A toxic body is a sick body.  Toxins are in the air we breathe, the foods we eat, the cosmetics we apply, and the water we drink.  Toxins do not play nicely with our delicate genetic makeup and our organs can only handle so many toxins before they begin to fail.  And fail they do.  It is not a surprise that diseases in sedentary people are on the rise because not only does this type of lifestyle impede detoxification, many of these people feel they are too busy to take the time to find healthy meal options, choosing instead more convenient, processed foods.  Our bodies are in a constant battle to fight against the toxins they naturally produce, like free radicals in energy production, and against the toxins we willingly, and abundantly, expose ourselves to each day. 

We also put a huge load on our livers, the body’s major detoxification organ, and it is in the liver where ingested and inhaled toxins first come for neutralization and removal.  An overburdened liver causes weak immunity (inflammation - the beginnings of disease) and blood sugar imbalances (Type 2 diabetes); any free radicals the liver cannot neutralize will enter the bloodstream and cause damage to other cells, tissues and organs (dementia, cancers).  Free radical damage affects the arteries and leads to atherosclerosis, a condition where arteries become constricted with excess cells, cholesterol and debris, reducing blood flow to critical organs, such as the heart and brain.  The more toxins are circulated in the body, the more impeded the immune system’s ability to remove debris, mutated cells and other bad guys. 

The more frequently you move the more enhanced your skeletal muscles’ assistance in circulating disease-fighting lymphatic fluid.  Increasing the flow of lymphatic fluid helps move the toxins it carries towards the elimination organs.  Lack of exercise also slows down your cardiovascular system and its circulatory process, which is vital to the elimination of built-up cholesterol that can cause heart disease.  Weight gained from sitting too much and not moving enough can also mess up your body’s hormonal system, leading to heart disease and Type 2 diabetes.

Movement, therefore, helps keep my body healthy and balanced.  By 4:00 pm, I head home, excited that I have reached at least 8000 steps by this point in my day.  Moving regularly not only improves my body’s detoxification process, but it also helps keep me feeling refreshed, alert and motivated.  I know, too, that my organs work hard to keep me healthy, so I provide my body with a little extra TLC through concentrated greens and antioxidant-rich berries and vegetables.  It’s not only important to move more each and every day, but it is vital that the food we choose be as free from toxins as possible to help support our sensitive, yet miraculous, immune systems and livers.  Keep moving and get in your 10,000 steps each day and your body will thank you!