Exercise and Fitness

[Hwy]

I sit all day on my job. Then do alot of sitting after I get home from work. My one nephew made a comment to me a couple years ago that I had a beer belly.

Of course I don't, because I don't drink beer! But this did prompt me to think about my physical condition.

I know just the mention of exercise might seem a bit tedious to some people. But I wonder, isn't talking care of ourselves, and our bodies a part of living as God would want us to live?

Wouldn't this include both a healthy diet and exercise?

[4given]

Ahhhhhhhhhh, the dirty exercise word ! 

You are probably correct Hwy. In which case I must admit error in the matter. Not always eating right, and seldom exercising.

[Hwy]

The toughest part is getting started. The second toughest part is remaining motivated and following through.

It's the second part I struggle with.

[mikelectronica]

I exercise regularly (or did before I caught the flu from heck) but still can't keep the weight off. The muscles sort of balance things out.
I've never been one to exercise daily though. Your muscles and/or cardiovascular system need some time off to recover. My regular routine would be four days a week of cardiovascular and 2 days a week of strength training.

[4given]

You've all made me feel guilty

I must begin a regular exercise program. 

[mikelectronica]

I don't know if you've you've heard of Jack Black....some might think some of his humor is insensitive but I think his movies are really funny.
Anyway I was watching FitTV quite a while ago and all these stars were talking about how they stay thin and attractive, well Jack Black
says something like "The Stretching and warmup beforehand is great, the rest is horrible." If you know what he looks like you kind of get an idea of why it was so funny to me in a nice way

[Hwy]

I exercise regularly (or did before I caught the flu from heck) but still can't keep the weight off. The muscles sort of balance things out.

My problem is just the opposite. I can't seem to keep enough weight on. I'm working on that though, and have recently purchased something from GNC called "Weight Gainer 1850". It's a poweder you mix in milk that's loaded with calories and protein. It's also got a good supply of aminos.

[mikelectronica]

I exercise regularly (or did before I caught the flu from heck) but still can't keep the weight off. The muscles sort of balance things out.

My problem is just the opposite. I can't seem to keep enough weight on. I'm working on that though, and have recently purchased something from GNC called "Weight Gainer 1850". It's a poweder you mix in milk that's loaded with calories and protein. It's also got a good supply of aminos.

Lifting weights is great for that. I mean aside from getting stronger, that's the main thing it's for. As for the weight gain powder, that can help just gain any sort of weight, but you'd need strength training to gain muscle. My brothers like that. You could probably see the outline of his abs if he started doing crunches. Hasn't hurt him with the ladies lol.

[Hwy]

At my age Mike I don't think I have the ambition to lift weights  As far as my abs go they have been replaced with midriff bulge. So you might say my abs are ABSent 

What I need to do is lose the gut, and gain some weight in other areas. I do have some exercise equipment that I can do some light weight strength training on. But I don't think I'll end up weight lifting any time soon.

It would be nice to gain a little bit of lean muscle mass too. Although my main concern is to gain about 15 - 25 lbs and slim the belly by about 2-3 inches. Then maybe seeing my abs again might be a remote possibility one day. 

[mikelectronica]

Well you don't have to lift everyday, or lift half a gym.. and I actually knew of one respected bodybuilder who considered machines often to be superior for sheer muscle stimulation because you don't have to balance or worry about coordination. I can attest that the first few times I bench pressed heavy (well, heavy for me) balance was a limiting factor. But it probably won't come without some effort.

[Hwy]

I actually own two pieces of equipment.

The first - Gazelle - you know it's that ski motion thing you stand on and it actually can provide a good cardio workout. I'm slowly working myself up to a 20 minute rep, and would like reach the point where I can do that at least 3 - 4 times a week without feeling like a whipped dog afterwards.   

The second - Total Gym - the one Chuck Norris promoted. You can actually get some fairly decent strength training exercise on it. But it has it's limitations and I'm sure working out with weights would probably produce more of the results you've mentioned. With this one you can gradually increase the intensity using your own body weight as the resistance.

So you might say I have all the necessary things to get in better shape for a man my age. I just need to apply myself more, which is something I've been working on in conjuntion with the weight gain powder I mentioned previously.

[4given]

How expensive is the Total Gym?  I once heard it carrys a weighty price tag. No pun intended. Something to the tune of $1,000 or more. A bit more than I would choose to spend.

[Hwy]

Yes they can be expensive, but I only paid a little over $300 for mine, tax included.

The current models you probably see advertised on television are around $1,500 maybe higher. I just bought an older version (brand new) at Dunham's Sports.  It does the exact same thing as the newer models, with less of the frills.

If you have a store where they sell sports and fitness equipment in your community you could probably do the same thing. There were even a few lesser versions of the Total Gym available for around $200 when I checked.

[4given]

On a whim I did a Yahoo web search and located Dunham's home page. http://www.dunhamssports.com

They do have version avaliable for less than $400. This is not unreasonable and within the range I'm willing to spend.

Thank you for the information Hwy!

[mikelectronica]

Dunham's is my favorite places I can get to without a long drive.

[Hwy]

They do have quite a selection of sports, fitness, and weight training equipment. I'm not a regular there, but I do know they have most everything you might be looking for.

Wal-Mart also has a fairly good selection of basic stuff, if you don't like to order online, or can't find a sports store in your area. I'm sure just about anyone can find a Wal-Mart within reasonable driving distance.