Shaping Up For Spring
By Wayne L. Westcott

Quincy - Unlike many parts of the country, the Boston area often experiences a rather abrupt change from winter to spring. It is therefore important to be well prepared for those first warm days when you can start working in your yard and enjoying outdoor activities. Spring preparation program should include three conditioning components, namely exercises for muscle strength, joint flexibility and cardiovascular endurance.

Muscle Strength. Although you can consider a variety of body weight exercises to increase muscle strength, such as pushups, pull-ups, bar-dips and sit-ups, these are typically too hard for most seniors to perform safely and effectively.

For most of us, our body weight is simply too heavy for our muscular ability. You can attain better results using external resistance that can be easily adjusted to your present level of strength. Examples of external resistance include Nautilus machines, barbells, dumbbells, medicine balls and elastic bands.

When using these types of training equipment, select a resistance that you can perform for about 10 controlled repetitions. Once you can complete 15 good repetitions, you may increase the resistance by approximately 5 percent.

Continue to train with this weight until you can again complete 15 repetitions, and then add approximately 5 percent more resistance.

If you have access to Nautilus machines, the following exercises will give you comprehensive muscle conditioning: leg press, hip abduction/adduction, lat pull-down, chest press, seated row, shoulder press, abdominal flexion, low back extension, bicep curl and triceps extension.

If you train at home, try these dumbbell exercises: half squat, bench press, bent row, shoulder press, bicep curl and lying triceps extension, coupled with bodyweight trunk curls and bodyweight trunk extensions.

Joint Flexibility. There are many ways to stretch your muscles and enhance your joint flexibility. The safest and most effective method of stretching, however, is known as static stretching.

As the name implies, you simply move slowly into a taut but comfortable position of muscle elongation and hold that posture for 15 to 30 seconds. As your muscles adjust to a longer length and relax, you may stretch a little farther and hold this position for another 15 to 30 seconds. Avoid any bouncing or ballistic movements when you perform static stretches. Always move slowly into and out of the final muscle stretched position. Favorite static stretches are the Figure 4 Stretch and the Letter T Stretch. Together these address most of your major muscle groups and joint actions.

Cardiovascular Endurance. In addition to muscular strength and joint flexibility, it is desirable to have a reasonable level of staying power and stamina. Cardiovascular endurance, also called aerobic capacity, enables you to perform most physical activities for longer periods of time, with lower levels of fatigue.

If you prefer to exercise outdoors, develop a good walking program. Begin with a 10-minute walk in your neighborhood and gradually progress by two-minute segments to a 30-minute walk. Try to alternate five minutes of faster-paced walking with five minutes of slower-paced walking. This interval training protocol will produce better results than a steady-state walk at a moderate pace, and is more enjoyable.

If you would rather exercise indoors, an exercise cycle can provide excellent cardiovascular conditioning at a reasonable cost. Adjust the seat so that your knee is slightly bent in the down-pedal position and pedal between 50 and 70 revolutions per minute.

Like walking, begin with a 10-minute cycle and progress gradually to 30 minutes in two-minute segments. Again, try interval training for better physiological and psychological results. Try cycling at a higher resistance for two to three minutes followed by cycling at a lower resistance for two to three minutes, alternating the higher effort and lower effort segments throughout the exercise session.

A combination of strength training, stretching and aerobic activity should put you in great shape for spring. Consider doing strength and stretching exercises on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and performing aerobic activity on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

About The Author
Wayne L. Westcott, Ph.D., teaches exercise science at Quincy College and consults for the South Shore YMCA. He has authored 24 books on physical fitness.