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Training the Mind of the Horse and Rider

Training the Mind of the Horse and Rider
Click on Logo (Original artwork by Lanie Frick for Messick Quarter Horses. Not permitted to be copied)

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Back to the Weight Machines


After my first Yoga class yesterday, and waking up with a slightly stiff neck this morning, I thought I better get back to exercising on a regular schedule. I felt pretty good after consistently exercising every day back in January. But then life got busy, and exercising took a back seat.


I can’t get up early to exercise, since I want to stay in bed, to the very last minute that I can, in the morning. I can’t exercise after supper, as I’m ready for a shower and glass of wine. I can’t exercise in the middle of the day, as I better be outside with the horses. When do I exercise? I better find that time, and find it fast, because this body isn’t getting any younger, or any less pudgy in places.


Yesterday, I used the weight machines and walked on an elliptical machine for 12 minutes. 10 minutes forward and 2 minutes backward. You’re not suppose to go backwards, but backward pedaling mimics the movement that you feel when you ride. I love it that my legs are strong and I only had a slight tightening in my calves after using the machines, and none this morning. I don’t love that I have almost zero, zip, nada upper body strength. Oh, I’ll take that back. I have some strength, and I can move the weights, but on the very lowest weights.


Back in January, it didn’t take very long to move the weights from near zero to 3 or 4 levels higher. I could tell the difference, not only in my biceps, but in the movement that I had through my shoulders. I used to struggle with “opening my chest up” when riding Centered Riding. The weights that I did in January reinforced that movement and loosened up my shoulders. By the end of 2 weeks, I could feel my legs toning up and my shoulders ached less.


Now, I’m not quite back to square one, but almost. I think muscle memory is helping. My shoulders don’t hurt. I think my neck hurts, only because of the Yoga stretches yesterday, and possibly doing too much stretching along with just starting weights again. Yesterday I could only walk 12 minutes, today I walked 15 minutes, and I felt like I could do more.


Hand in hand with exercising is eating well. But I love red meat. I’ll compromise with a salad when I eat a steak. No potato. No bread. I’ll eat more fish like we had tonight. Broiled on the grill, lightly seasoned with minimal salt and pepper. I need to learn how to season meat, but I need to season with herbs that don’t bother my stomach. Oh, and I also had a salad tonight. With Italian dressing. I dipped a piece of fish in the Italian dressing and it didn’t taste too bad, but the dressing is tangy, so I would season the fish with it, but with a very small amount.


You are suppose to wait for 2 hours to do Yoga after eating a snack and 4 hours after eating a meal. Hubby said that what I am used to eating, I ate a snack instead of a meal for supper. I think I’m going to be hungry later.


I’ll put in my Yoga dvd now and I’ll try to follow along. Then I plan on soothing my body and soak in a tub filled with very hot water.


1 comment:

Rising Rainbow said...

It's my understanding that excercising first thing in the morning before you eat creates a good calorie burn for the whole day.

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