Cardio Nation

So, I've focused a lot on working the muscles, including the brain muscle with meditation and yoga (or rather, relaxing it). Apart from my breathless run in with a very large set of stairs, I haven't talked too much about cardio.

Both weights and cardio are important. Weights help build muscle, which increases strength, makes your body more able to deal with stress (from exercise), and can raise your metabolism. Cardio helps with weight loss, improves lung and heart health, increases bone density (if there's impact involved), temporarily relieves depression and anxiety, gives you confidence and reduces stress.

But what is cardio, really? I mean, you've got marathoner friend A, who swears by running, social friend B, who busts a move in group exercise, intense friend C, who does nothing but cycle, and loner friend D who ergs her heart out on the rowing machine.

Running
I admittedly don't have much experience with running. I joined the track team my senior year of high school, but the meets were the same day as my piano lessons (a fact I wasn't disappointed to learn), and I was the slowest person with the least endurance on the team. I did continue jogging through the summer following my senior year, but stopped when I got to college. Tried to take it up twice - once in college I went on a 2 mile run, and it was hell. Then I went to Alaska in 2003 and didn't have any workout equipment. At that point, I didn't know what else to do for cardio, so I went jogging. I hurt for three days.

I occasionally flirt with the idea of running. I'm more of a social exerciser, so it's hard to motivate myself to go running on my own. I've thought about joining a running group, but I feel like I'd really be slowing them up (or end up on my own). C and I have talked about running when the weather starts getting nice again, since neither of us are runners, so we'd be starting at the same level.

My other concern is that I've had plantar fasciitis, and it's always hovering right under the surface, waiting to pop out and scream "HAHAAA! It's time to take three months off of exercise while I make you feel like you've got nails reaming your heels! Wheeeee!" I'm not sure how to run to minimize my risk of it flaring up again. Any suggestions?

Cycling
There are two kinds of cycling - road cycling and group exercise cycling. Road cyclists tend to be less into the social dimension of the activity...they're there to push themselves as hard as they can, and they've even got the padded shorts and pocketed shirts to prove how serious they are. I find road cycling difficult, because you have to deal with cars on the road or people and animals on the bike path. It's nice having scenery and getting outdoors, but I like the fact that on a stationery bike I can close my eyes and just push myself to the music.

Then there's cycling class, which really goes from A to Z in style. You have instructors who take you up 30 minute hills, raising your resistence continually the whole time, while they shout "PUSH!!!" (true story), you have instructors who vary the workout but keep it super-intense, others who are supportive and give you options for modification, others who give you imagery of your whole ride (now on your left, you'll see a wonderful view of the ocean as you sprint up to the front of the pack). Every class is different, especially because of the music.

The other thing is that a lot of cycling newbies are intimidated by the spin room, so they're reluctant to try it. It's usually dark in there, and my gym even has UV lights we can turn on overhead (though we don't usually use them). The music is loud and the instructor is often loud too. People come out drenched in sweat. But what I always tell people is that you can take it at your own level, nobody can actually see if you turn your resistence up. So if you're already going gangbusters (or if you want to take it easy), just pretend to turn the dial if you feel pressure to do so. Spinning is one of the only exercises I do that makes me really sweat. Step gets my heart rate up, but not nearly the same way spinning does.

Group Exercise
Saying "I like group exercise" is kinda like saying "I like books." Your next question would be "well, what kind of books?"

Step - my favorite. This is what got me into teaching. It's partly the choreography, because it's always changing, and there's a real feeling of accomplishment when you complete a class and do well (or a drive to do better next time), and it's just also really awesome to see everyone doing all the dancy moves on the step all in unison. It is challenging the first few times, because step really is a foreign language. If you don't know what an L-step, basic, scissor, or straddle are, then the first few classes are going to be a study in how to end up going the opposite direction as everyone else. But if you can stick out those first few classes, it only gets easier. And step is great for the "the hour's already over?!" factor.

Cardio kickboxing - a bit different from martial arts, this is aerobically modified martial arts. In other words, kicking and punching the air (or, occasionally, pairing up and punching pads). Great workout for the core, legs, and shoulders, as well as the sweat factor. The music in these classes are generally pretty rockin', as you need a faster tempo and a heavy downbeat to really get into the punching swing of things. I like teaching kwando spar (with the pads and gloves), because it's a sociological study to see how people deal with punching each other. People who know each other (or have been to a class a while) aren't at all timid about hitting strongly (especially if they've just had a fight...marriage therapy charge can be paid out to me directly, thanks). People who don't know each other, however, get these grins on their faces because they're nervous about punching, since it's not normally a socially sanctioned exercise. They smile to cover over their hesitation, but then they smile because it's just so satisfying to take those gloves and smack the pads in front of them.

Zumba/Hip hop - zumba is Latin dance aerobics. I honestly haven't done much of either, though I have taken them occasionally. My problem with both is that I'm used to step, which is a shoulders back and upright format. Then I go to zumba and hip hop and my upper body just isn't that pliable in the way they're asking me to be. I can move my hips (though, seriously, how sexy can I really feel in sneakers?), but my upper body looks really awkward in the mirror. It's definitely fun though.

Rowing
When I got to college, I tried out for the crew team. I really liked the workout (it was kind of a bootcamp thing), but the women's crew team met at 5a every morning. Um, no. Seeing as I'd go to sleep at 2a, and I'm not much of a morning exerciser, I don't think so. In my sophomore year, though, I did sign up for a rowing class. This consisted of sitting on an erg machine facing a window and erging for however long the coach told me to. I kind of enjoyed it. I'd listen to NPR and erg away. I haven't done much erging since then, but I do remember it being a great workout for the whole body.

There are other great cardio options too - jump rope is one of the best exercises that really gives you bang for your buck in comparing time with energy output. 30 second of jumping rope can totally take your breath away. There're jumping jacks, burpees, leaping side to side, lateral shuffles, among many others. What's your favorite cardio? Which makes you sweat the most? Do you mix it up, or are you a one-cardio loyalist?

Friday Rant....and Thanks: Gym Edition

So for the past year, I've been teaching Tuesday night spinning at a small independent gym in my neighborhood. Now, I'm all for supporting the local indie business (the Evil Empires of Walmart, Costco and the chain bookstores are a rant for another day), my mother has a small independent store and I worked at an independent bookstore for a while. But there are some instances where the small indie just doesn't have it together.

The Beginning
I was hired with no audition, no references called, and while they did asked whether I was certified, they never actually asked to look at the certification. That's warning bells right there, but since they were paying me considerably more than the other gyms where I teach, I figured I'd just roll with it. I stopped by one morning to fill out some paperwork and take a tour of the gym and that was that, "show up on Tuesday to teach class." Excellent.

Where the Going Gets Murky
So, then I show up for the first class and there's nobody there to take class. Mind you, this is a small club which is mostly cardio and weight equipment, no frills. The small cycle room doubles as a yoga studio and triples as a stretching/personal training room. That's fine, whatever. I set up the bikes (all seven of them), crank up the music, get on the bike, and start pumping. A couple people came in to find out what was going on, I chatted with them about class, and hopefully started to spread the word.

The next week, one person came to class. Great, ok, I can work with this. It all builds slowly (they had just bought the bikes, so it was an entirely new program). Plus, the bikes have these very cool computers on them to tell you how fast and how fast you've gone. Which is great when you want them to match a particular cadence.

The following week, I show up and go to get my paycheck. And I'm paid $20 less than was (verbally) agreed. And my name isn't on the schedule. My class isn't even on the schedule. And, the only two evening cycling classes of the week are both on Tuesday night. ????

So I email the manager. Tell him there seems to have been a problem, I wasn't paid what I was told I would be. And here's what I was told - "since you only had one person in class, it's considered personal training, so you're being paid that rate." And as to the fact that I'm not on the schedule? "We're going to see how it goes."

Um, hell no.

Agreement was for a certain amount, not based upon attendence. It's not my fault he's not advertising the class (and even crazier, after a whole year of teaching....I'm still not on the schedule! Not online, not on the paper copies they give out. The only place I'm on the schedule is on the ones they post on the walls where I've handwritten my class in), and it's not my fault if the weather's nasty or people are busy or what have you. I can go along with not getting paid for nobody showing up (though the other gyms do pay me for that, since I showed up, I blocked out the time, and it was the member's decision not to come). If there's low attendence, you don't pay the instructor less, you just cancel the class permanently. Screwing with the instructor's pay just pisses them off and makes them not feel loyal to you. That issue was "resolved" by saying that if only one person showed up, I could cancel class.

I've asked him several times over the last year to change the website and schedule fliers, because if people know about class, then more people are likely to come (this seem emminently logical to me...a basic for marketing - people can't go to a class they don't know about). He usually ignores emails.

Regardless of all these marketing shenanigans, I did start to get a core group of people coming to class. Usually about 3-5 on any given Tuesday (max is 7). But again, because the two evening classes of the week are back to back, we end up splitting attendence between us.

When the Burnout Begins
Last week, the train was delayed, so I got to the gym at exactly the time class was supposed to start. Whatever. The management has never seemed to care, and the members are usually late, since it's hard to get there on time right from work. I poke my head in the spin room, but there's nobody there. I go change, set up all the bikes, and there's still nobody. I go out to the front and see one of the regulars from my class on a stationery bike. He was willing to take class, but since it was just him, that fell under the cancel-class rule. So I'm kind of psyched, now I can just lift some weights and go home. Then someone else approaches me to ask about class. At this point, it's a good 15-20 minutes after class is supposed to start. And I just wasn't prepared to start class at that point. So I told her I had to have at least two people, and unfortunately I was cancelling class that night. At any of my other gyms, where they actually have oversight (and treat their instructors well), there's no way I would do that.

This week, I had three people in class. One wanted a 45 minute class (it's technically a 60 minute class, but I give the option), the others were kind of on the fence, but would've done 60. And I was really tired. I didn't feel like dealing with it. We did 45 minutes.

The World Works in Mysterious Ways
So I've just started meditating, and a local meditation center was recommended to me. And their beginning meditation group meets on Tuesday nights. My immediate reaction to this is "damn! I have to teach." Then I think about it, and I say "hmmm, I wonder if I should try to change the night I teach, or just cancel, because dude is a hassle to deal with" (all the people and employees and business partners at the gym are wonderful, it's just the one guy who's hard to deal with, for everyone not just me). Because going to that beginner's guided meditation would be helpful...it's hard to do on my own!

Then I get a call yesterday from the gym. They need to change the schedule. They want to put both spinning classes on Monday nights (uh, hello, why move both to the same night?). I teach two classes at another gym on Monday nights, definitely not going to be able to do that. So I talk to Manager Dude this morning. They have a yoga instructor who's really popular who has to change her schedule and can only teach Tuesdays, so they need to switch the spinning. All well and good. But I can't teach Mondays. I suggest he break up the spinning classes, since members have been asking to have them on separate nights. His response? "Yoga does better for us, I'm kind of regretting getting the spinning." Well, he should be regretting not actually advertising that there ARE spinning classes, but I didn't go there. I just told him that if he ever wanted to put a spinning class back on Tuesday or Wednesday, to let me know.

And Then Comes the Thanks
So yes, I'll miss the money, because it wasn't inconsequential. But man, I feel kinda free! I no longer have to deal with the Manager Dude, I have an extra day of the week when I could teach somewhere else, or get my own workout, or go to the guided meditation at the center. I find it funny that this all happened within a week of even finding out about the meditation center. But I think it's a good development, going from stress to calm or social (or both).

In search of my yoga high

So I'm on a quest, a yoga quest. So far, I've tried three kinds: Astanga, Vinyasa, and Kundalini.

Lately, I find that I need to get back to my center, find my calmness and focus back on my breathing and inner self. And man was that weird to say, because I've never thought of myself as all that new age-y. But there you have it. So I'm trying to find the right yoga for me, and I'm learning how to meditate (and damn is that meditating hard!). The past four years has been aerobics pounding and weight pumping fun, and now it's time to balance it out.

Thus far, these are the styles I've tried:

Astanga - In one word? Lost. The movements were very fast - through the first three reps of each sun salutation, the movements flowed so quickly from one to another that I didn't have time to take a proper breath. When we were given the reins to go at our own speed, I could slow it down. Since breathing's what I'm after, this one didn't cut it. Plus, I had the feeling it was just a bit too advanced - in between every sitting pose, we were supposed to do a vinyasa (plank, hover, downdog). I just sat there and tried to look serene. It was definitely a good work out, and used muscles I hadn't used in a while (ouch!), but not a good way to get back into yoga.

Vinyasa - This is interesting...I didn't realize until just now when I went to research it that vinyasa yoga is just a derivative form of astanga yoga. The main difference I could see was that vinyasa was a bit slower and easier for me to follow (though that could've been the instructor). I was able to breathe through the moves, though the forms were definitely athletic more than meditative. And that's what many superhuman yoga guru people are looking for. But not me. I may continue doing this style every now and then, just to increase my flexibility and get more comfortable with the flow. The instructor has a tendency to be very chatty, in that annoyingly chipper more like aerobics kind of way that is, in fact, rather like how I sound in step class.

Kundalini - I got to this class right after class started, and at first it sounded like there was music on. Then I realized they were chanting. I almost walked out right then, because while I'm all for people following their spiritual bliss, the whole mystical connection has never been that interesting to me. But I sat down, figured I'd give it a chance. And man did I feel strange humming along with them. Then we got into the yoga part, which was so totally different than astanga and hatha that I almost didn't recognize it. It was basically all small movements (front-back, side-side, rotating hips, lift leg off downdog) with fast breathing. I felt myself start to hyperventilate pretty quickly with trying to match their breathing until my fingers started to tingle. So rather than find myself splayed out embarrassingly on the floor with the teacher hovering over me, I decided I'd slow it down. So I did one movement for every one of their two or three, and instead of breathing out with the out movement and in with the in, I'd breathe a full breath and just move separately. I know, not the purpose of the breathing with the yoga, but I figured the modification was better than fainting. One of the things that I really did like about class is that they had a long section at the end of meditative yoga - basically sitting with arms up (or, in my case, hands on knees) and some chanting. By that point I wasn't as self-conscious.

There's a really nice yoga studio right across the street from work that I want to try, but it's about $20 per class, which is a lot steeper than the free astanga (since I work there) or cheap kundalini (work there, but don't have a membership). I'm going to check out Kripalu at some point soon, maybe a three day stint or something of the kind. I understand they have lots of different styles there, so I can go yoga shopping!

I have this wacky idea rattling around in my head. There are some people who meditate sitting. Some people meditate while walking. I wonder if there would be a way to combine spinning and meditation? And it seems that I'm not the first to have this idea. Now, I'm not talking spinning in the same way I'd normally teach a class, which involves standing up, sitting down, speeding up, slowing down, raising and lowering resistance. But just the act of spinning is a rather meditative act, it seems to me, at a steady cadence, steady resistance, it would be easy to just "slip into the zone" as cycling instructors would put it. I think that it would be hard to do meditative cycling on the road (or bike path) because you'd have to pay attention to not wrapping yourself around a tree, or a person (though the link above says that it's not that different than walking meditation, just keep your eyes open). First step, though, get comfortable with meditation, then add cycle...Don't start thinking about it class or timing cues will be missed as I start thinking about how meditative it is (oops, too late, turn your gear! Stand up! Pedal faster!). Too bad the weather's getting so much cooler...I could start cycling outside now!

Running up the stairs - where'd my wind go?!

I just love the Subway system here in Boston. For the most part, I mean that seriously and not facetiously. But when I have to teach class and it's on the fritz, that's a whole other matter entirely. Let me tell you my tale (check back for yummy food stuff tomorrow, Wednesday's my resident exercise post day).

I would normally try to duck out of work on Tuesdays around 4:45 because I have to walk across the park, catch the subway (T), take it to the end, then walk for 10-15 minutes to get to the gym where I teach Spinning (cycling) at 6:15. If I leave at 5 and everything goes peachy, I usually get to the gym around 6 (or just before) and then change and set up the bikes (the spinning studio doubles as a yoga studio, so all the bikes are out in the hall when I get there. Thankfully there are only about 7 to set up).

But as you've probably gathered, everything didn't quite go as planned.

I walked across the park (check), got on the T (check), made it to the 2nd stop from the end of the line (which is where I'd get off to teach at the other gym where I work, too bad this didn't happen on monday). The train sits at the stop with the doors open. I waited for about five minutes (it seemed like longer), chatting with a couple women on the train. I knew that as soon as I got off the train, it was going to pull away from the station. They came over the loudspeaker (or in this case, softspeaker) to tell us what sounded like police action at the next stop (they were apparently searching for something, but I can't find out what through a google search). Finally, I get off the train, because at this point it's 5:50 and the bus takes at least 15-20 minutes (it actually didn't leave).

Here comes the fun exercise part - the train station where I got off has this immensely huge escalator/stairway to get outside (kind of like the ones in DC if you've ever been there). Normally I'd just stand on the escalator and happily read my book. But this time I ran to the top. And damn was I out of breath! I called the gym when I got outside to tell them I'd be late and ask them to set up the bikes for me, and they could barely understand me (I tell myself there was wind blowing across the mic too, but I think that it's probably really because I was out of breath). And I ask myself - how is it that I teach anywhere from 1-4 step classes a week and I can't run up one big (huge) set of stairs? I know step goes up and down rather than up up up up up up up, but still. Shouldn't doing step aerobics train me for climbing stairs? Geez.

I didn't see the bus, so I started walking towards the gym, figuring I'd catch the bus when it came. And it came when I was just about halfway there. I got on and traffic was at a standstill. So I got off because I figured I could walk faster than that. And I ended up getting to the stop at the gym at exactly the same time as the bus did. So I could've taken the bus, but at least by walking I felt like I was getting somewhere.

Turns out two of the people in my class were stuck on the train too, so they got there the same time I did. It all worked out in the end (and I was nice and warmed up for class to boot).

But I ask you, where'd my wind go?