Meeting 3 Wednesday

Today I've got a few links for you, and a little info on target heart rates. We're still working on goals, and setting up our individual plans. Then we'll talk about what I'm going to call Designer Walks.

Please open this first link in a seperate window. I'd link it to do that by itself if I knew how. I'm hoping one of you will tell me so I can do it that way in the future, so you don't have to leave the page.

Stretching for walkers--See the model? Isn't she pretty? Well, none of us are that fit, so we aren't going to achieve these stretches fully at the beginning. But the images are the best I could find for perfect body alignment, (and full copyright compliance, pmsl) which is what I want to emphasize. Keeping your body in good alignment is very important to prevent muscle injuries, and learning to hold your body in position for these stretches is a very good beginning. The side benefits are improved posture--which is slimming--and improved balance. Maybe by the end of the program, some of us--**not pointing any fingers--will experience fewer falling accidents.





Strength training full body This is a great resource site, well organized. Use it!!



Target Heart Rate

Measuring your heart rate, the beats per minute, can tell you how hard your heart is working. You can check your heart rate by counting your pulse for fifteen seconds and then multiplying by four to get the beats per minute. A normal heart rate varies by age, as well as weight and other health factors such as muscle mass --the actual weight of your muscles--versus bodyfat, and any underlying medical conditions.



This chart shows target heart rates for healthy people of different ages. When you're just beginning an exercise program, aim for the lower rate--50%--as your fitness improves, you can exercise harder to get closer to the top number--85%.

How to take your pulse

Designer Walks

We're going to be designing individual walking plans that will fall into four catagories. We will have Daily Walks--the base of the program, plus Challenge Walks (these will be fun, I promise!), as well as Places & Faces walks that will take you out & about, away from your regular routine, and my evil plan, Designer Walks, where you might have to do a little play-acting to complete the assignments.

Today's Assignment:

Design your Daily Walk. Even if you can't do the full thirty minute walk yet, make a 30 minute plan that starts at your front door and then follows as easy and level--flat--a surface that you can find. You should walk at a comfortable pace, but not a stroll. You can either go one direction for 15 minutes and then retrace your steps home, or you can design loop or square. The second choice is usually the best as it avoids the montony factor--you have the option of walking it in reverse, I promise you'll see different things! You can map out more than one Daily Walk, but each has to be the same length and terrain type.

Today's Walk: 15-30 minutes at a steady pace, finish with 5-10 minutes at a more controlled, slower pace than your usual walk. Just take it down half a notch, it gives your muscles as well as your heart a nice slowdown. At the halfway point raise your arms & give yourself a good stretch. You can pause to stretch out your upper body, or you can do it as you walk.

**Tyger Tyger Tyger Tyger Tyger