cardio – F Words that are not 4 Letters

Wall Pilates: Cardio and Strength Training Benefits

I’ve recently started a Wall Pilates workout. Although I’ve experimented in the past with many different types of workouts: strength, cardio, aerobics, walking, running, yoga, etc, I had never tried Pilates. I think I always viewed it as something requiring a lot of flexibility, and I’ve never been very flexible. But I’ve been seeing Wall Pilates workouts and testimonies a lot lately, and it intrigued me as something that seemed doable, and that could lead to results. One of the aspects that really appealed to me, was that it seemed to incorporate both strength training and cardio, so I was very interested to see if that really was the case.

Wall Pilates is a slightly different version of traditional Pilates, which was created by German physical trainer Joseph Pilates in the early 20th century. Pilates’ goals are core strength, stability, and flexibility, and focuses on breath, cervical alignment, rib stabilization, pelvic mobility, and abs. Wall Pilates has the same focus. Pilates is practiced worldwide and is practiced by over 12 million people.

I’m not someone who goes on an exercise plan and then abandons it after several weeks. I’ve been a faithful, consistent exerciser for over 25 years. It’s essential to my life and I always make time for it. The level and variety of my workouts has definitely changed over the years. Prior to having kids, I could have hour-long strength training workouts focused on a limited number of body parts, multiple days a week. Twenty years later, my workouts are shorter, and less intense. Sometimes I’ve focused more on cardio, and other times, more on strength training. And I do like to change things up. I think novelty makes things more interesting and experts agree, it’s good to have variety and also to challenge your body in new ways.

I’ve never had a gym membership but I’ve built up enough equipment in my basement to tackle most programs. It doesn’t really take much. You could probably create enough of a challenge, and have the ability to change things up, with three or four sets of dumbbells. I also have a yoga mat, some resistance bands and ankle weights. In the past I’ve used a weight bench, barbell and free weights, but that’s not part of my routine these days. And, of course, my most important piece of equipment is YouTube. Regardless of your fitness level, or the type of workout you’d like to try, there is a video out there to guide you.

So I was excited to try Wall Pilates. As a complete beginner, I knew I would need some help getting started, and, as with most exercise programs, there are many ways to help you take the leap. Wall Pilates is no exception. There are books, apps, gym classes, and videos. While many options require a paid membership, or subscription, lots of free options do exist. Although I have always been opposed to paying to exercise, I realized I had no idea where to start with my new Wall Pilates program, and decided to purchase an app, Yoga Go, which costs about $15 a month. I also used Rachel’s Fit Wall Pilates, a free program available on YouTube.

The Yoga Go option was designed specifically for me. I answered some questions when signing up as to my preferences for workout length, fitness goals, current fitness level, and comfort level with Pilates. And I could respond each day to how I felt about the workout. Responding that it was “easy,” would mean a slightly more difficult workout the next day. I really liked this feature. Rachel’s Fit Wall Pilates gave me the opportunity to dive right in with the Day One workout. Both options advertised a 28 day program, which I thought was a good amount of time to see if I liked the exercises, and if they yielded results. In my case I was looking for some toning in my abs, glutes and thighs, with some ability to get my heart pumping, and was also looking for some lower numbers on the scale.

Requirements were simple: A yoga mat and some clear wall space. You do need a decent amount of wall space as some moves are done with your back on the floor and feet on the wall, and others are done standing, with your back against the wall. I set up in my basement and needed to remove a couple of framed photos from the wall in order to leave space for full movement. Both Programs offer good video, with verbal instructions for moves, which is good, because most of the moves were not familiar to me. I found Rachels Fit Pilates to offer more down to earth explanations, enabling me to sometimes figure out a move just by listening. But I also viewed it on my laptop, which meant that if I needed to look at the visual, I could see better than the Yoga Go app which was on my phone. I often needed to pause both versions–but Yoga Go in particular–to allow time to move between positions and figure out the mechanics of the next movement. The Yoga Go phone app workout also required me to move the phone occasionally as the workout progressed, depending on whether I was doing a move standing up versus lying on the floor. That was a little cumbersome. Another feature of the Rachels workout that I really liked, was she often showed a basic version of the exercise, and then a more challenging version, so you could adjust the workout to fit your fitness level, or your energy level on that particular day.

Neither option offered broader advice, like how often should I workout, and when, and should I alter my diet? It’s possible that that information is available somewhere in the programs, but I was not able to locate it after a quick search, and it never came up during the actual workouts. I would have appreciated something like that. I’ve always been a firm believer in rest days, and my schedule does not really allow for a workout every day. I had the impression that the 28 day programs were every-day-for-28-days which surprised me. I continued to take off days while I worked through both programs. I did complete 28 days of both programs, but it did take me longer than 28 days to accomplish that.

I like that the workouts are short, most in the range of 15-20 minutes, which allowed me to double up on some days, doing both the Yoga Go and the Rachels. Or I sometimes added a walking workout to one or the other of the Wall Pilates workouts. I also added in an occasional upper body dumbbell workout, as I felt the Pilates didn’t emphasize this as much. Rachel’s Fit did incorporate one or two days of light upper body moves with weights, but Yoga Go never did. I did often feel sore the next day, particularly with more lower body workouts, and I was sometimes out of breath, more from the strain of the movements than from high energy movements. I did find some of the moves to be challenging, both in the mechanics, and in the sheer muscle and flexibility components. If you were just watching the video, it would look easy and not very challenging, but the completion of the moves was more strenuous than I expected.

I would definitely say that there is a strength component to Wall Pilates, which is most often done with only your body weight for resistance. If you think body weight alone can’t garner results, do a few pushups, and then let me know what you think! Pushups are generally considered to be one of the best full body strength builders out there. But I agree with most experts, who say that if you really want to build visible muscle, you will need to incorporate weight bearing exercises into your daily routine. But make no mistake, Wall Pilates is still a workout. I often struggled to complete the repetitions, and felt soreness the next day. You may not be entering a bodybuilding competition following completion of the program, but it WILL build muscle, so it can change how you look. .

Cardio? While Pilates is not high impact aerobics like running or jumping, it does still improve cardiovascular health by raising your heart rate and lung capacity. When your exercises pick up the pace, or require more stamina on your muscles, you are also working your heart. I frequently found myself breathing hard even though I was performing slow movements. In addition, the slow, fluid movements and focus on breathing and proper form, can be relaxing and lead to reduced stress, which is always a win.

Pilates and Wall Pilates are easy on joints and limit risk of injury. As with any strength exercise, proper form is important, so go to a class with an instructor, or watch a video to be sure you’re maximizing your benefits and minimizing injury risk. Pilates includes a lot of stretching, which can improve your flexibility and range of motion. If you’d like to test this theory, pay attention to your flexibility as you begin the program, and then check it at the end to see if there has been improvement. One simple way to do this is with the old standby of reaching to touch your toes. Pilates is a great workout to try if you’re a beginner exerciser, recovering from an injury or an older adult. Or if you simply prefer less intense workouts.

After completing both programs, I did see some toning. Nothing drastic, and no real weight loss, but to be fair, I did not alter my diet at all, which I’m sure would have resulted in more noticeable results. I think the most telling factor is that I’m going to continue working the program, albeit selectively. The Yoga Go program will continue to get more challenging as I rate each workout, and with Rachel’s Fit, now that I’ve completed the full 28 days, I can go back and choose which workouts to do, so if I want to focus more on abs, I can do that particular workout for a period of time. I do still hope to have continued results with toning and improvement in flexibility and balance, as these are functions that can be beneficial in performing all of our daily activities. And I’ll continue to add in other types of workouts, and try new things that come along, so I never get bored with exercise, which is such an important factor in my life.

Does Exercise Improve My Weight Loss When Fasting?

When it comes to weight loss, diet is much more influential than exercise. It’s a truth I denied for many years. In my late twenties I became very active and lost weight and fortunately, incorporated exercise, both cardio and weight-bearing, into my daily routine. As often happens, I eventually plateaued, and my weight loss stopped. I always hoped that I could exercise enough to be able to eat whatever I wanted. Turns out the opposite is true: If you eat properly, you can exercise less. I recently discovered intermittent fasting, and after about a year, I think it’s safe to say that this is a way of life for me.

Simply stated, fasting is going without food or flavored beverages for a period of time. Black coffee and water are two of the limited number of beverages that will not “break” your fast. It’s important to note that fasting has many benefits in addition to weight loss. The basic premise is that while in a fasted state, our bodies not only go into “fat burning” mode, but also “cell repair” mode, which causes your body to use stored energy to clean up damaged cells and expel damaged cells and toxins from your body. In addition, fasting can reduce inflammation, improve digestive health, heart health, and brain health, all of which will help prevent disease and contribute to better overrall health as you age. Fasting doesn’t cost anything, requires no equipment, and is easy to incorporate into any lifestyle because you pick when–and how long–you fast. For more information on fasting, check out some of the books by Gin Stephens, Jason Fung, or James Clement.

Exercise is also important for many reasons that don’t include slimming down. Regular exercise can improve your mood and energy, improve sleep, and reduce or eliminate risks for many ailments including high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, arthritis, and some types of cancer. As always, talk to your doctor before beginning a new diet or exercise plan, particularly if you have a chronic health condition like low blood pressure, asthma, or joint pain.

So fasting and exercise can both be very beneficial to your health. The question I’m asking today is, will exercising while fasting improve my success rate when it comes to weight loss?

Working out during your fasting period has been shown to multiply your fat burning efforts. Research shows this number may be as high as a 20 percent increase. When exercising in a fasted state, your body has no choice but to burn calories in stored fat, rather than in food you’ve recently eaten. Insulin is the magic component that causes your body to gain weight. Both fasting, and exercising, can drive that number down. So it makes sense that combining the two will exponentially improve those results. The benefits are present in both cardio exercises and strength training exercises.

In one recent study, all the participants ate junk food every day. Some of the participants exercised after eating breakfast. They still gained weight. Another group exercised during a fasting period and gained no weight, even with the same bad diet. The benefits may be less valuable for certain types of individuals. Other studies have shown that working out during a fasting period may affect performance negatively, and may affect how well your body builds muscle, so fasted exercise may not be best for endurance athletes, or those trying to build larger muscles.

If you’re new to fasting, it is suggested that you get your body used to a fasted state before doing more intense workouts. Build up by starting with walking or cycling. And always drink plenty of water. This is important with both fasting and exercising. The diet you choose during your “eating window,” (the period when you are not fasting), will also affect your results. It’s always good to avoid sugar and simple carbohydrates, focusing more on complex carbohydrates like vegetables, beans, and whole grains. Be sure to get enough protein and healthy fats like avocado, nuts, seeds, and olive oil.

But for most of us who have incorporated either fasting, or exercising into our daily routines, it is likely safe, and in most cases beneficial to weight loss, to incorporate both of these activities at the same time.

The Order of your Exercises Matters. Probably.

Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

So maybe you’ve just begun a new exercise program, or maybe you’ve been exercising for years. Either way, good for you! It’s so important to our physical and mental well-being! Does your plan consist of cardio? Strength training? Both? Whatever your strategy, you may have wondered about the order of your exercises and whether or not it makes a difference. The answer is. . . It depends.

The question you need to ask yourself is, “What is My Goal?” The bottom line is that you have the most energy and strength at the beginning of your workout, so based on what you want to accomplish, you need to perform the high priority and/or more complex exercises first.

So if your goal is to improve strength and muscle, focus on those activities first. In one study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, researchers compared the following workouts: only strength training, running then strength training, and cycling then strength training. The exercisers did fewer reps during their strength training exercises if they had just run or cycled vs doing their strength movements first.

And within your strength training workout, you’ll want to complete the exercises that require more strength and energy at the beginning. In most cases this means the more complex moves involving multiple body parts (for example, squats) before single body part moves (like biceps curls).

Now if your goal is to run a marathon, then you would do well to perform your running activity prior to your weight-bearing exercises, when your energy level is at its highest.

If your goal is simply to improve your overrall fitness, then the order doesn’t really matter at all. A recent study published in the journal “Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise” determined that over the course of 24 weeks, participants gained the same increases in both muscle mass and aerobic capacity whether they began their workouts with strength training or cardio.

Here are some guidelines for prioritizing the different aspects of your workout:

When incorporating both cardio and strength training, start with the one that more closely aligns to your goal, as whichever you do first is probably going to get your best effort and yield the most results
Alternately, do your cardio and strength training on different days altogether
Do harder, more technical and/or full body movements before smaller muscle movements
If you want to show your smaller muscle groups some more love, try working them prior to a cardio workout, or by themselves on a rest day
Do exercises requiring the most energy first; think burpees before triceps extensions
If you’re working different body parts on different days, change up the order you complete your sets, as once again, the first exercise is getting your best effort
Do your core/abs last; many other compound exercises also engage your core, so you don’t want an exhausted midsection when doing your pushups
Work different body parts on different days (for example, chest, shoulders, biceps, then back, triceps, then legs, abs); by doing this and then alternating exercise order on each day, all body parts get a chance to get the most maximized workout

Help Your Kids With an Early Start to Physical Fitness

I’ve been practicing good physical fitness for about 30 years. That sounds like a long time, but I actually didn’t start to think about my health in this way until after I was married. I was relatively active as a youngster. I grew up next to a school and so had easy access to an area well suited for sports. Basketball, wiffle ball and kickball were daily occurrences while the weather cooperated.

But I didn’t really think about what was healthy, and as I entered my teen years, and socializing became a bigger part of my life, there were fewer basketball games and more card games, and I started to gain weight. I could sense my endurance diminishing in the rarer cases that I found myself needing to run, or participate in something active.

When I finally started to take my health more seriously, I had a lot of starts and stops. I did some research, set up a small gym for myself in the basement, and began teaching myself how to work out. It wasn’t easy. I know I slipped many times, telling myself I was too tired, or too busy. But I started to get into a routine. It was easier for me to work out in the evenings, so I got right to it when I got home at the end of my workday. I alternated cardio (back then we called it aerobics) workouts with strength training, spending 30-45 minutes a day. I started to see results. And I liked it. My arms were more defined, and I had abs! I slowly lost some weight and I felt great. I became addicted to the way I looked and felt.

My workouts have changed frequently over the years, sometimes more intense, sometimes less. Sometimes a greater focus on cardio, sometimes strength training, but I have always maintained a schedule and a routine. I might take a week off during the busy holiday season or when things are crazy at work, and I have changed my workouts to mornings now, but staying physically active is still a big, consistent part of my life.

One thing I’m certain of: It is much easier to stay in shape, than to get out of shape and have to get back in shape. So I frequently wonder, would things have been easier if I had started my journey to physical fitness earlier, as a child? And would the benefits have been greater?

Many of the ailments that plague adults, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity, have their roots in early childhood. By starting an exercise routine early, these maladies can often be avoided. So it seems to make sense that teaching kids about physical fitness at an early age is a great idea.

Children are the recipients of the same physical benefits as adults when it comes to both cardio and strength training exercise:

Increased strength and endurance
Increased flexibility
Improved posture
Increase metabolism
Enhanced motor skills

In addition, there are numerous non-physical benefits that can be particularly helpful to children:

Psychological well-being
Improved sleep
Setting, and working toward goals
Improved self-esteem

So how can you, as a parent, get your kids on the right path? Kids naturally love to move and play, so encourage this whenever possible. If their screen time seems to be higher than usual on a particular day, head outside for a game of tag or hide and seek. If the weather is preventing you from going outside and you’re looking for some indoor inspiration, check out kids workouts on YouTube. With your smart tv you can display the workout on a big screen and the kids will feel like they’re attending a fun class. Here are some more suggestions to help you get started and stay on track.

Make physical activity part of your daily routine, from the time kids can walk
Engage in lots of active play time both indoors and outdoors
Try lots of new activities and make it fun
Let them know about the benefits of staying active and how they’re keeping their bodies healthy
Make it part of a daily routine much like eating, brushing teeth, and sleeping
Exercise with them and emphasize benefits like improved strength and endurance

As they get older, you can make physical activity more structured: Okay we’re going to work out now so our bodies stay strong and healthy! Kids as young as 6 or 7 can understand a routine and also benefit from more structured routines, like strength training. If you’re not sure how to start with something like this, find an online resource to be sure you’re doing it safely. In particular always:

Consult with a doctor before beginning a strength training routine, especially if any medical conditions exist
Warm up and stretch before exercising
Use proper form
Stay hydrated
Be sure to take days off between strength training workouts
Don’t forget to breathe!

No matter the age of your kids, you can still institute some healthier habits. If they’re a little older you may need to start slowly with small changes, or exploit an activity you know they already enjoy by offering to take them to the skate park or basketball court. Like most behaviors, a good role model is the best teacher, so let them see you being active and exercising even on days when you can’t convince them to join you. By building these good habits early, you’re helping them to be healthy and preventing undesired medical conditions like obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. In addition you will likely see their confidence and self-esteem improve as they see the benefits of regular exercise. So what are you waiting for? Go grab your kids and get active!