That's life though.
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Sunny and warm today, with air temperatures in the 60's. The west wind is howling; 30 gusting 45. I'm not a big fan of the wind but there's nothing I can do.
Not a big fan of the radiculopathy (nerve pain) I'm dealing with either.
What I've found out over time is that fighting through the pain while hiking/running/scrambling is no fun at all but yields several benefits.
The immediate benefit is that while it hurts to exercise, the pain is always much less on days I work out. On days I don't work out, the pain is worse.
Working out also loosens stiff joints and muscles, leading to easier movement in general and better overall mobility.
Working out improves my cardiopulmonary fitness. Yesterday I did the Rockport mile walk test, which is one way to measure cardio fitness. My score was 52 and my VO2 Max was 35.41. Those numbers were 81 and 41.9 last June. I didn't test when I began exercising again, but I have unquestionably improved.
Working out improves my mood and my feeling of wellbeing.
Working out makes me stronger and more fit, and that carries a great many benefits.
So the contract is this. Work out and get better/feel better.
Or don't.
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Today I did three miles. I sprinted (as best I could) on up-slopes. Joint geometry and the lever effect of upright mobility means that impact forces are spread out over space and time when I'm running uphill. That's an excellent thing for my radiculopathy. Running downhill is similar but a bit more jarring. Running on flat ground is far too jarring. So I sprinted up-slopes, jogged down-slopes, and power walked on the flats. That was two miles, the remaining mile was glacier scrambling, which yields excellent high intensity work and is also, perhaps strangely, sparing of the nerve problem.
After finishing I felt great.
Feeling great is in the contract.
Imagine that.
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On my cool down after working out today I saw a woolly bear caterpillar out motivating around.
Woolly bears are basically tiger moth caterpillars. They hatch from eggs laid by the adult in spring. They spend the growing season gobbling up caterpillar food. In the fall they find a place to burrow in so that they can hibernate over winter. In general they are most often seen in the fall as they gallivant around looking for winter shelter. During the winter and while they hibernate they produce a natural antifreeze which prevents cell damage from the frosty conditions. In the spring they emerge and find a place to wrap themselves up in a cocoon and pupate. At the end of this process they emerge as adult tiger moths. The adults only last long enough to breed and lay eggs. They don't even have mouth parts to eat with. The adults die, but their eggs hatch and they live on in a new generation.
Be well and embrace the blessings of liberty.
"Rockport mile walking test"
ReplyDeleteI learned something new today. I had never heard of this test and now I am going to try it.
Thanks Shaun.
You bet, Marc.
DeleteIt's a decent test to measure baseline fitness and progress. It's convenient and doesn't take any special gear. I get a kick out of being surprised by my creaky old carcass. It can do some amazing stuff. :-)
Thanks for stopping by and commenting Marc!
My routine is a faint shadow of yours. One mile walk with the dog, and 100 reps on a cardio machine I own. This, along with a strict eating plan has me down below 270 from 300 a year ago. Goal is to have my chart go from morbidly obese to obese. Long term target is 190 lbs. Age 75, and still on the OEM knees.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I sincerely admire your dedication.
That's great WSF!
DeleteI appreciate your kind words. I myself need to be more dedicated to a strict eating plan. That's the part of fitness I struggle the most with.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
Sweat equity is what an old coach of mine called it when I was younger, a lot younger. While we are still sweating it out, I now call working out just a part of life that needs to be done, because if you don't, you will be done a lot sooner and be a lot more miserable than when you don't do it. The aches and pains don't really go away, they just seem to be easier to ignore after a good workout. Running uphill is hard, but you are correct it is easier on the old joints and you get more bang for your efforts. Keep up the great work. :-)
ReplyDeleteNeeding to be done is a very true statement. The work is really hard, but the rewards are great. Something in me really appreciates the marked increase in workout efficiency that fighting gravity brings. It always feels like I'm getting a special deal. ;-)
DeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting Harold!
Working it!
ReplyDeleteI need to get off my substantial butt soon and get back into things.
It can be miserably hard to keep active in the winter. I really have to fight my selfish brain on that because that part of me wants conditions to be perfect. It also knows that slogging through in miserable conditions deserves a self administered pat on the back and enables more pure enjoyment on the nice days.
DeleteSometimes I've got Oddball on one shoulder and Moriarty on the other.
"Sure...suppose the wind is howling?"
"There you go, more negative waves! Have a little faith, Baby, have a little faith!"
Thanks for stopping by and commenting Sarge!
Sweat equity is what you put into getting healthy, good health is what you get back!
ReplyDeleteDoesn't seem to be a free lunch, does there?
DeleteOh well, it's more fun this way.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!