Boot Camp Moms stay warm by constantly moving.

(I wrote the following story for The News & Observer and Charlotte Observer; it appeared in both papers on January 31, 2012. It appears here, with links.)

Used to be that neighborhood moms got together for lunch or a game of bridge. Today, they’re increasingly likely to gather for burpies, squats and to work up a good sweat.
The boot camp workout, born a decade ago and initially targeted to hard-core fitness buffs, is moving out of the gym and into local neighborhoods, where it’s finding a growing following among busy moms struggling to juggle work and family, let alone find time for a workout.
The workouts incorporate a variety of intense strength and aerobic exercises jammed into a half hour or hour. Boot camps continue to be one of the nation’s most popular group exercise programs, according to the non-profit American Council on Exercise, ranking with Zumba, TRX suspension training and interval training as 2012’s hottest options.
That boot camps are now coming to your neighbor can only enhance their attraction.
“One of the most commonly cited barriers to working out is that the gym is too far, it’s not convenient,” says Jessica Matthews, an exercise physiologist with ACE. “The workouts are fun, they’re convenient and they have the added social element of catching up with friends, of seeing your neighbors, of being part of something active.”
Fun?
Thirteen women from North Raleigh’s Harrington Grove neighborhood who gathered in 25 degree temperatures for their regular Saturday morning Boot Camp Moms workout a couple weeks back might take issue with that notion.
“My hipbone hurts!” complained one during a bout of figure-eight crunches.
“That’s because you have tiny butts,” shouted instructor Kyle Gill Furlow, attempting to spin the pain.
“Yeah, right.”
“We lie to them all the time,” joked fellow instructor Jennifer Pinder. “We find it motivates them.”
Friends Furlow and Pinder came up with the idea for Boot Camp Moms when both emerged from pregnancy five years ago, Furlow carrying an extra 45 pounds, Pender an excess 80.
“Kyle joined Jenny Craig and I joined Weight Watchers,” says Pinder, “but we knew we needed to exercise, too.”
They got in shape and in the process realized that other moms were in similar condition. Both got certified as group fitness instructors through the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America and hung out their shingle — via fliers placed around the neighborhood and word-of-mouth. The response surprised them.
“We had 22 women at our first session,” says Pinder.
The path for Missy Isom, founder and owner of Moms Evolution in Cornelius, was similar.
Prior to having her first child in 2008, she was a financial adviser by day, a body builder by night.
“But I always wanted to take my love of fitness and turn it into a job,” says Isom.
She, too, got certified through AFAA and initially struck out with Baby Boot Camp, a San Francisco-based franchise operation. But she found the focus was “less on the moms, more on the baby and the social aspect. My true passion,” she says, “was on taking these moms and helping them get fit.”
Which isn’t to say that baby doesn’t play a key role in her workouts. For some of her exercises the baby is integral to the exercise.
“We use the baby as weight,” says Isom. For curls, for overhead presses, for lunges ... .
Matthews, the ACE exercise physiologist, says that’s smart for two reasons.
“That movement, that up and down: out of the crib, into the car, how many times do you do that in everyday life?” she says. “Those are very functional movements.”
Further, she says, “In working with people who specialize in new moms, from a psychological standpoint that face-to-face eye contact is important for bonding.”
Isom’s group, which started in 2008 and averages 30 moms at any one time, uses space in a neighborhood fitness studio. Furlow and Pinder, who currently have 40 signed up in their year-and-a-half-old program, meet on the outdoor tennis court of the Harrington Grove neighborhood community club.
On that 25-degree morning, the 13 Boot Camp Moms who braved the cold for an hour-long workout that began and ended with aerobics (jumping-jack-infused sprints, running a circuit course) with strength training wedged in between. For strength training, the women rotated among eight stations, doing TRX, Bosu Ball pushups, snatches, equalizers, rowing, squats with a medicine ball, resistance bands, more squats.
“Your mind is going to give up before your body does,” yelled Furlow, the self-appointed drill sergeant of the duo (Pinder is the cheerleader). “Don’t let it.”
Melissa Diana didn’t let her mind give up, despite being “scared” at the group’s very first session.
“I tried everything,” she says of what Furlow and Pinder threw at her on day one. “I couldn’t do many reps.”
But Diana, who is 33, kept coming back. Within a year, she had lost 80 pounds. More importantly, she’s kept it off and she’s embraced an active lifestyle.
“I went from exercising zero days a week to exercising six days a week,” she says. “I like the group atmosphere. I like that we’re all in the trenches, doing it together.”
Julie Nelson, at 52 one of the group’s advanced moms, echoes the sentiments of several fellow boot campers. “I like that I have much more energy. I like the way I feel.”
That, says Furlow, is what ultimately counts: how you feel, rather than how many dress sizes you drop.
“Strong,” says Furlow, “is the new skinny.”

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More info

• Boot Camp Moms meets Mondays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. at the Harrington Grove Clubhouse in North Raleigh. Cost is $8 per class, 10 classes for $50 through Feb. 1. More info at Bootcampmoms@gmail.com or here.
• Moms Evolution meets Mondays at 9:30 a.m. and Fridays at 10:30 a.m. at KadiFit in Cornelius. Cost is $8 per class, $50 a month, or $40 a month for a six-month commitment. More info at MomsEvolution.com.
• Another option for mom/baby workouts is Stroller Strides, a franchise that operates nationwide with several offerings throughout North Carolina. For more information go here.
• If you don’t live near one of the above options, the American Council on Exercise offers two free parent-oriented workouts you can do at home. Postural Workout for Parents “is designed to help people who have postural imbalances resulting from carrying unbalanced loads (e.g., children, a heavy shoulder or computer bag) for extended periods on a regular basis.” Total-body Conditioning Workout for Parents “is designed to improve muscular endurance and strength through exercises that focus on the correct execution of the five primary movement patterns (bend-and-lift, single-leg, pushing, pulling, and rotational movements) in all three planes of motion.”

The following story, which I wrote for the Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer of Raleigh, originally appeared in those papers on January 10. It appears here in expanded form, with links.

When Sidney Eagles Jr. went in for his annual physical a dozen years back, his physician reminded him that he was overweight, that his blood pressure was high, and that his cholesterol was up there as well. The reminders had become a perennial checkup ritual for Eagles, who at the time was 60 and Chief Judge of the N.C. Court of Appeals.

The annual ritual changed, though, when Eagles mentioned that he’d been short of breath recently. His doctor became alarmed, which in turn alarmed Eagles. A few days later he went to the hospital for some routine cardio tests and wound up having an operation to remove an aortic blockage. Eagles had never been big on exercise up to that point, but the event got his attention.

“I don’t have the willpower to [exercise] unless I’ve got some skin in the game,” says Eagles. With his skin literally in the game now, Eagles became devout, hitting the Rex Wellness Center three to four times a week. He still doesn’t like to exercise, but he can’t ignore the difference exercise has made in his life.

Eagles

“I am — and this really sounds like braggadocio, but facts are facts — I think my balance is better and I know I’m stronger,” says Eagles, who is now 72 and in part-time practice with the Raleigh law firm Smith Moore Leatherwood. “I feel good almost all the time.”

In a state where 30 percent of all adults are considered obese and thus are at significantly higher risk of suffering a variety of maladies — from diabetes to a variety of cardiovascular-related problems — Eagles’ example is a model for the vast number of North Carolinians who have neither the inclination to exercise nor, in their minds at least, the time. Like Eagles, they don’t want to exercise, but they know they need to.

No time?

Think you don’t have the time to exercise? Can you find a half hour every day? That’s all you need to make a difference in your health, according to the National Institutes of Health. “Most adults need at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity at least five days per week. Examples include walking briskly, mowing the lawn, dancing, swimming for recreation or bicycling.”

Those 30 minutes can come in bits and pieces scattered throughout your day.

“Start small,” suggests Kelly Roberts, wellness specialist with Carolinas Medical Center’s LiveWELL Carolinas program in Charlotte. “Take the stairs vs. the elevator — that’s five calories right there. “Get up from your desk as many times during the day as your job allows. Keep [walking] shoes under your desk: Even 10 minutes walking at lunch is better than nothing.”

Caveat: If you do the same thing at the same intensity level during those 30 minutes, you’ll only notice the health benefits for so long. “You either need to increase the intensity during those 30 minutes or extend the length of your workout,” says Logan Johnson, an instructor with the Rex Wellness Center in Raleigh.

“Otherwise,” he adds, “your body adapts and those same challenges are not enough.”

Four areas of focus

It’s also not enough to focus just on one area. Frequently, when people think of exercising to improve their health, they think of aerobic exercises, such as walking, bicycling or doing the treadmill. In fact, there are four areas you should concentrate on to improve your health:

• Strength training. Wellness experts suggest you consult one of their own before embarking on a strength training program. “You want to make sure you’re targeting the proper muscle groups, and that your form is good so you avoid injury,” says Johnson. A personal trainer can prescribe an appropriate workout program based on your time, needs and resources. (The cost of a personal training session varies. At Rex, non-wellness center members pay $45 for a half hour session, $65 for an hour session. The per session cost goes down if purchase multiple sessions.) Resistance training, using simple rubber bands available for $20 or less, is a popular home strength training option. Or, you can fashion an effective strength training program using your body weight for resistance. “The value of doing things with your own body weight” — wall sits, planks, curling a can of tomatoes — “can’t be underestimated,” says Roberts. “There are things you can do using three- and five-pound weights in the privacy of your own home while watching TV.” Exercises: For a rundown of resistance band exercises, visit About.com here.
• Flexibility. Stretching to improve your flexibility may be the easiest exercise to incorporate into your daily routine. For instance, the Mayo Clinic suggests seven quick stretches — shoulder stretch, upper arm stretch, chest stretch, chin tuck, head turn, side neck stretch, lower back stretch and standing thigh stretch — you can do at your desk. (See an instructional slide show here.)
• Balance. Of new clients, Rex’s Johnson says, “Where I find the greatest improvement is in their balance.” Strength training exercises can help improve balance, as can basic yoga poses. Exercises: To learn basic yoga poses, check out ABC-of-Yoga.com here.
• Aerobics. Walking may be the best elixir out there for improving your health. To make your walk really count, says Johnson, get your heart rate up to 75 to 80 percent of your age-predicted heart-rate maximum. To figure that out: Start with the number 220 and subtract your age. Multiply the resulting number by .75 (for 75 percent) or .80 (for 80 percent). For example, a 50-year-old person wishing to increase his or her heart rate to 75 percent would multiply 170 (220 minus 50) times .75 to come up with a target heart rate of 127.5 beats per minute. Take your pulse (your wrist or neck are the most common spots for an effective reading) for 15 seconds, then multiply by 4. To make sure that you walk regularly, Roberts is a big advocate of pedometers. “People who wear pedometers consistently are 27 percent more active during the day,” she says. Pay less attention to the actual mileage tally (pedometers are based on your average stride, which can vary considerably) and more on the number of steps you take. Shoot for 10,000 a day, Roberts says.

Payoff

Don’t expect results immediately, says Roberts. “We feel you should be feeling significant differences in within a couple weeks,” she says. “If you’re taking the stairs, for instance, within a couple weeks you shouldn’t be as winded.”

Give it another couple of weeks before really putting your new lifestyle to the test.

“After a month or so, go do something you haven’t been able to do in a while,” says Johnson. “I had one woman who began lifting a stack of plates over her head. She’d never been able to do that before.”

Again, he stresses that if you want to see continued progress you’ll need to increase either the intensity of your workout or work out longer.

Buddy up, muscle up

You’ve had a long day at work, you’re tired and — sniff! — is that a cold coming on? Maybe I’ll skip tonight’s workout, just this once.

And you likely will, unless a workout buddy is expecting you to show up.

“A support system is important,” says Logan Washburn, fitness director at UNC’s Meadowmont Wellness Center in Chapel Hill. “Someone to keep you accountable, whether it’s a trainer or someone who comes and works out with you.”

Studies have shown that people are more likely to remain true to an exercise program if there’s a little peer pressure, be it a workout buddy, a a group you train with, or simply a friend who likes to hear about your progress, and thus, someone you don’t want to let down.

“You're not in this alone,” advises the Mayo Clinic in its “7 Tips for Staying Motivated.” “Work out with your partner or other loved ones. ... Organize a group of neighbors to take fitness classes at a local health club.”

“If you’ve got a group environment for support,” agrees Washburn, “you tend to be more successful.”

Ultimate motivation

Non-exerciser Sidney Eagles Jr., who’s been exercising religiously for 12 years now, says the ultimate motivator for anyone in poor to marginal health is pretty simple:

“If you had been in my position and didn’t perceive it as a wake-up call, you’d either be foolish, slow or temperamentally doomed to be in trouble — soon.”

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"Gosh, according to my journal it's been three weeks since I've done a decent fartlek workout. Better hop to it."

I was thinking I’d just had a bad day on the wall. Then I opened my climbing journal to record my workout and discovered that my last workout, a week earlier, had been “a bad day.” Likewise, the workout before that, during the week between Christmas and New Year’s, had been “somewhat aimless.” Aimless and anti-productive, I discovered upon further review: Had it really been nearly two months since I’d done a 5.9 climb? My journal said it had.

Thanks to my journal, I was able to fully appreciate just how much of a wimp I’d become.

In today’s The News & Observer and Charlotte Observer I have a story on how to get started exercising (an expanded version of that piece will run here tomorrow, with links). I cover a lot of ground — from the importance of mixing up your workouts to working out with a buddy — but one thing I neglected to mention was the importance of keeping a workout journal.

“A journal will give you a great base/foundation for the goals you want to strive for on your fitness quest,” according to Elite Conditioning of Vista, Calif. “Writing down what exercises you’re going to do for the day or week will give you a solid game plan to follow. You can always adjust your workout journal when you see fit, but just having something written down will help you greatly.”
Adds Nick SantaBarbara of The Training Standard, “One of the most important, if not the most important, reason for a journal is the knowledge of whether or not you are over training or under training.”

A workout journal goes one better than a log. Typically, a log is a concise statistical account of your workout: how far you ran, how much weight you lifted, how many reps you did. For instance, on Sunday I ran at Umstead State Park; my log entry for the workout might read: “Umstead B&B, 7.1m, 1:00:53, 8:28.” Translated: I ran at Umstead State Park on the bike & bridle trail, I ran 7.1 miles in 1 hour and 53 seconds for a per-mile pace of 8:28. My journal entry would likely include the same information, but it would also include observations about the run, such as, “Took nearly a half mile to fall into pace,” “Got a sidestitch 30 minutes in but straightened posture and worked through it,” and “8:28!? What a cow!” That additional information reminds me that I’m not a fast starter, that I’m prone to pesky sidestitches but know how to work through them, and that I’m lousy with analogies because a motivated cow can move pretty darn fast.

Statistics in themselves are helpful. They help mark progress (or not) and they remind me of what I still need to do, especially if I’m training for a specific event. For instance, if I’m seven weeks in to a 12-week training program for a half marathon, the above entry might remind me that I need to up my next long distance day by at least a mile, preferably two. And if I’m aiming to run the aforementioned half marathon in an hour and forty-five minutes or less, the pace might tell me I need to up my track workouts to bring that pace closer to 8 minutes. All good information.

But it’s the observations that, for me, make the difference. Reviewing my climbing journal, I see not just that the difficulty of the routes I’ve been climbing has plateaued (basic log information), I pick up on a recent negative vibe. In the fall, I was bubbly over doing the seemingly impossible and upping my game week after week. Lately, the tone of my journal is that of a a listless slacker who gets spooked easily, worries more about falling and has, increasingly, been climbing alone. My journal leads me to two conclusions:

Make more of an effort to climb with my Meetup group. The comradery encourages a friendly, supportive competition that makes me push myself. Also, if I fall my belay partner will catch me a lot faster than the autobelay, which has an alarming delay before it seems to realize, “Oh, dude is falling. Better catch him.” The autobelay is also reluctant to praise a good effort.

I need to take a class. And it just so happens my neighborhood gym, the Triangle Rock Club, offers a class called “Fight Gravity” that’s “Recommended for the 5.8-5.9 climber who is stuck at a plateau ... .”

My journal hasn’t magically solved my problem, but it’s helped show me what I need to do to make going to the gym fun again. Thanks, journal.

Google around and you can find workout-specific journals with space to let you record stats and an area for workout reflections. They tend to be a little pricey. You can also buy a blank journal and create your own format, or you can do an online journal (yes, there are apps for that). It’s a matter of what works best for you.

Workout. Then write.

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Looking rather relaxed for someone who has just over four months to achieve eight of 10 goals.

While most of you are staring down Day 3 of your 2012 New Year’s resolutions, I find myself with less than five months to go on my annual birthday resolutions. Make that “first” annual birthday resolutions: When I turned 55 last May 11 I got to Googling and discovered that 55 is a somewhat pivital year for a male. Among other things, our muscles and organs begin to atrophy; we shrink, on average, 0.4 inches a year; we dehydrate more easily; our joints stiffen ... . Suffice it to say that on May 11 of last year I didn’t feel I could wait seven months to set some goals, so I set 10 immediately.  All with a theme of 55.

Here’s a status report:

1. Run 11 5Ks (11 x 5 = 55). So far, I’ve run three, all last summer. The good news is that 5Ks are a dime a dozen — or more accurately, at least one a weekend, so the opportunities are there. Plus, I’ve ramped up my running of late (prompted by a more immediate and daunting goal, the Uwharrie Mountain Run on Feb. 4) and feel ready to get back into a 5K rythym. I should fess up, though, that on New Year’s Day I blew off a prime 5K opportunity: the Run in the New Year Run, which was, literally, three blocks from my house. But it started at midnight and my wife laid odds, based on my New Year's Eve track record, that I wouldn’t make it past 10 (I didn’t). Still, I’m optimistic
2. Climb “The Mummy” at Linville Gorge, a 5.5-rated rock climb. This remains unchecked as well, though again, hope springs eternal. I’ve hooked up with the Triangle Rock Club’s Climbing Meetup, been climbing with them at the TRC and know that when it gets warmer, the group’s leadership (comprised of climbing instructors for the Boy Scouts) will be leadings us outdoors. Asterisk: The leadership being leaders and deciding things like where to go, I may have to substitute another climb of equal or greater difficulty.
3. Do a 55-mile backpacking trip. Bit of a conundrum here. Two weeks ago, Chris David and I did a 50-mile backpack trip on the North Carolina Bartram Trail and the Appalachian Trail. Chris, who’s been backpacking since the 1960s, said it was the hardest trip he’s done. Hence, the conundrum: Does the level of difficulty compensate for coming up five miles short? I’m inclined to say yes, especially if I can’t pull off a planned 60-mile backpack trip on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail along Falls Lake.
4. Do a 55-mile canoe trip. Again, unchecked but confidence reigns. I’m in the midst of writing a book on adventure sports in the Carolinas, with paddling as a primary focus. The trip may take place in a kayak rather than a canoe, but the fun factor alone should assure that this happens.
5. Do 55 continuous push-ups. As I wrote last May: “I’ve been especially slack over the years on strength training; with my muscles atrophying staying strong becomes even more important.” Turns out, I've discovered, the “atrophying muscles” claim isn’t speculation. I’ve been doing pushups regularly, three to five times a week, in sets of three or four. On the last set, I do as many as I can pump out. In October, I got up to 38 on that last set and plateaued. I’ve recommitted on this one and hope to cross it from the list by the end of February.
6. 55: Total of my waist size (30) and BMI (25). Now, three days after the Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Year’s bacchanal, is not the time to be taking measure of one's waist and BMI. Again, check back the end of February.
7. Resting heart rate of 55. Just measured it: 48. (Confession: It was already 54 when I set the goal.)
8. 55-mile mountain bike race. That book I mentioned that I’m writing? Mountain biking is another focus area. I’m looking to accomplish this goal at the Pisgah Mountain Bike Adventure Race in May. The race takes place in the Davidson River area near Brevard and ranges from 45 to 70 miles depending upon your orientation skills. That should assure I get in at least 55 miles.
9. 55 miles on my mountain bike on my birthday. This didn’t happen, I noted at the time, because I had to pick up the kids from school. So when I do it between now and this coming May 11, I’ll add an asterisk. Oh, and at least half of the total — 28 miles — needs to be on singletrack.
10. Umstead 100 endurance run. First timers such as myself are restricted to just ("just"?) 50 miles in the Umstead 100 endurance run, which is March 31. Alas, I missed the registration deadline and the race is full. In search of an alternative. Suggestions welcome.

Let's see, according to the 55 for 55 Goals Tote Board that makes me two for 10 with just over four months to go. Wish me luck with my goals, and best of luck with yours in 2012!

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Chris David atop Wayah Bald.

We were on day three of a four-day, 50-mile backpack trip on a particularly rugged region of the  rugged Nantahala National Forest in western North Carolina. Specifically, we were about a third of the way up a climb that would see us gain close to a thousand vertical feet in less than a mile. It was not the first such climb we had encountered. In fact, much of this trip had been something of a roller coaster, with long, slow, steep climbs followed by long, slow, steep descents (I said something of a roller coaster). My quads and calves ached on the former, my knees on the latter. Yet here we were, me at 55, Chris David at 67, plugging along at a good clip, averaging about 2.5 miles per hour.
Chris’s proclamation wasn’t old guy braggadocio or uninformed speculation. He’s been backpacking since the early 1960s, thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1983, and has been leading hikes for the Sierra Club for more than a decade. He’s hiked with beginners, he’s hiked with people who are on the trail as much as he is. He knows backpackers.
“I’d say about 1 percent,” he said, throwing a statistic into the mix. “No, make that one tenth of 1 percent.”
I won’t deny I found some satisfaction in Chris’s assessment, but I was mainly just glad that I could do this. That I could hike all day with 35 pounds on my back, that I could experience the winter-clear 360-degree view from atop 5,342-foot Wayah Bald, that I could stand beneath London Bald and stare down a treed bobcat not 10 feet away, that I could survive the wild gorge trying to contain Ledbetter Creek and stand atop Cheoah Bald, enshrouded in a cold rain trying to turn to snow wondering what the view might be like. That I, an absent-minded guy who is just as likely to find his car keys in the fridge as in the key bowl, would be able to remember nearly every step of this trip two weeks hence.
That reminded me of the one other thing I’m good at remembering, the thing that made it possible for me to be here in the first place:
The importance of setting the right goals.
Set a goal and the rest will follow. Advice that may seem obvious on this, the first day of the new year when so many of us are intent on erasing our bad habits and charting a new course. Goals are the carrots we employ to help us achieve an end to a means. Unfortunately, many of us won’t make it to February with our goal for the year intact.
Why?
We may set goals, but often we don’t set the right goals, the goals that we’re truly motivated to achieve.
Take Chris. Chris is a long-time runner, with 68 marathons under his belt since his first, the Marine Corps, in 1986. But it’s not the races that continue motivating him to run 50 miles a week. It’s the opportunity to do trips such as this, or his recent 63-mile backpack trip through the Smokies, or the 155-mile solo trip he did in the Nantahalas a couple years back. Or that make him think about another thru-hike on the AT. Backpacking in the wild is his true motivation.
My mountain biking buddy Peter Hollis is likewise driven by what for him is the right goal. Most people either lie about their age or demure when the topic is broached. Peter is likely to bring up his age, apropos of nothing, in the first sentence or two of an encounter.
At the start of the Huck-A-Buck cross-country mountain bike race at Lake Crabtree this summer, Peter lamented the fact that they didn’t announce our ages at the start (at 59, he was the oldest contestant — and proud of it). When I ran into him at Umstead a few days ago, the second thing he said (after updating me on trail conditions), was, “Well, as of January 1 my race age for this year is 60.” Peter claims he races to stay in shape, not to win. But he’s quick to add that he wants to be the fastest 60-year-old on the trail, and if he can whip some 40- and 30-year-olds in the process (which he does), so much the better. Being able to ride a gray streak is his true motivation, his real goal. If he wins the race, and he often does, so much the better.
Setting the right goal may require a little introspection.
Take the No. 1 health-related goal that so many people will set today: to lose weight. Is it really the weight that’s important? Is it strictly a numbers game, to see the scale record 10 fewer pounds by the end of January, 10 fewer still by Leap Day?
Or is weight loss a secondary benefit of your true goal? Is your true goal to fit into a size 4 dress  by prom? To abandon your 1920s-fashionable tank suit http://fashion-era.com/swimwear.htm for a bikini come summer? To shave three minutes off your 5K time? Focus on your true goal and secondary benefits, such as weight loss, will follow.
Knowing your true goal will also make it easier to come up with an effective strategy for reaching said goal.
During my junior year in college (my second junior year), I had managed to balloon up over 200 pounds going into winter break. For Christmas, Santa brought me a lime green polyester Addidas running suit. The running boom of the ‘70s was just kicking in and I decided then and there that I would be able to run 5 miles by the end of the semester. Starting that afternoon and continuing for the next four months I put one foot in front of the other faster and more often than I had the day before.
Darned if the semester didn’t come to an end and I was running 5 miles. And darned if I hadn’t lost 45 pounds in the process. Walking across the quad one day in April, a former suitemate whom I hadn’t seen in a while stopped me, eyes agog, and asked, “What the hell happened to you?”
I hesitated, both to let my friend twist over what he could only be thinking — that I was deathly ill, because in our acquaintance I had never once demonstrated anything resembling discipline or restraint — but also to ponder the question: What the hell had happened to me?
I thought back to my rotund self sitting next to the Christmas tree contemplating the lime green polyester Addidas running suit which had inspired my true goal.
“I became a runner.”

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• To help jumpstart your thinking about how to set the right goal, check out this OutsideOnline piece in which staffers test-drive seven potential resolutions, from giving up caffeine to a body cleanse.

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Quick catch-up: McDougall was an avid runner. Like many avid runners who entered the sport in the 1970s, he was an avid heel-striker. And like many avid heel-strikers as he entered middle age, he began enduring a host of injuries common to runners. Doctors told him to find something else to do, but McDougall wasn’t ready for long walks in the park. Besides, he wondered, running was once integral to our survival: running to catch a meal, running to avoid becoming a meal. Thousands of years had groomed us to run; only the last few hundred had tried to break us of the habit. And what about pockets of people around the world such as the Tarahumara in Mexico’s Copper Canyon who could run for days on end? Why could they run forever?

In searching for answers McDougall discovered that we were indeed born to run: We’d just forgotten how to do it. Rather than running on our forefeet, which have the bone structure to absorb the constant pounding of running, we’d been lulled by pricey running shoes with thick, wedge-shaped heels into striking our heels first. There’s little natural absorption in the heel; thus, over time that constant pounding takes a toll.

There’s been considerable debate on the matter, but probably the most telling endorsement of the “Born to Run” minimalist approach? The shoe companies that got us hooked on those cushy running shoes in the ‘70s all now offer minimalist shoes that cater too, and encourage, a forefoot strike.

Now weighing in on the issue: the American Council on Exercise. ACE enlisted the help of the University of Wisconsin La Crosse’s Exercise and Health Program to study the effectiveness and safety of minimalist running. Researchers John Porcari, Ph.D., and Caitlin McCarthy, M.S., recruited 16 injury-free female recreational joggers ages 19 to 25 and tested them running under three conditions: wearing the Vibram FiveFingers Bikilas, a barefoot-style running shoe; wearing “neutral” running shoes (New Balance 625); and while barefoot. The runners were then tested in the lab for “3-D motion analysis and measurement of ground-reaction forces.”

The results show that test subjects who ran properly in the FiveFingers — meaning they adopted a forefoot strike — did indeed endure less stress. Those who persisted with their heel-striking ways, however, were more prone to injury.

If you’ve been following the “Born to Run” debate, check out the full study here. Worry not: It’s relatively short and devoid of medicalese.

* * *

In other fitness news ...

Do you have a fitness “problem”? Ever wonder if you work out too much? Of course you don’t — but maybe you should. According to The Nemours Foundation, you may be a “compulsive exerciser” if you:

• Refuse to skip a workout even when tired, injured or sick.
• Exercise out of obligation, rather than enjoyment.
• Double the length of a workout after missing one.
• Obsess over weight and burning calories, along with weight loss.
• Increase exercise to make up for eating more.
• Prioritize exercise above seeing friends and family, and participating in social activities.
• Allow intensity and frequency of exercise to affect self-esteem.
• Are unable to find satisfaction in physical accomplishments.

Stroke! Stroke! Finally, if you’re a guy and you’ve been trying to get pregnant (you know what I mean), try taking your boys for a walk. A study of 215 guys at Japan’s Yamaguchi U. found that those who exercised moderately exhibited the best sperm motility. (Translation for those who have never been handed a specimen cup: their sperm were better swimmers.) Interestingly, couch potatoes and the fitness obsessed both had weaker swimmers. Learn more here.

Battle of the bulge. Wanna lose that spare tire? Jogging beats weight lifting for losing belly fat, according to a recent study at Duke’s Medical Center. Duke studied 196 sedentary, overweight adults ages 18-70 over an eight-month period. Half ran the equivalent of 12 miles per week at 80 percent maximum heart rate, half did three sets of eight to 12 weight reps three times per week. Result: the aerobic exercisers burned 67 percent more calories than the resistance trainers.

“Resistance training is great for improving strength and increasing lean body mass," according to lead author and Duke exercise physiologist Cris Slentz. "But if you are overweight, which two-thirds of the population is, and you want to lose belly fat, aerobic exercise is the better choice because it burns more calories.” More here.

I wrote the following story for the Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer in Raleigh; it appeared in both newspapers on Sept. 20, 2011. It appears here in expanded form, with links. Check out yesterday’s post for a first-hand account of the CXWORX class

If you don’t like the lineup of group exercise classes at your health club, wait a month or two. Odds are you’ll see some new options.

The reason: group exercise classes are “experiencing phenomenal growth,” according to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association, and fitness clubs trying to weather a flabby economy are doing what they can to keep their sweaty members happy. In the case of the increasingly popular group exercise classes, that means mixing up the classes to keep members from growing bored. (For more on group exercise class trends and other industry trends for 2011 identified by the IHRSA, go here.)

“We gauge interest by tracking attendance,” says Andrea Greene, fitness director of the YWCA of Charlotte.  “If it looks like a class is not succeeding, we’ll modify it or drop it.”

Hence, come October the Charlotte YWCA will add 11 new classes to its group exercise lineup, including kickboxing, a body sculpting class and a triathlon instruction class.

"Being a small facility we have the ability to create new classes, to be flexible and change," Greene says of their significant lineup change.

According to the IHRSA, which represents more than 10,000 clubs worldwide, interest in cardio kickboxing classes alone spiked by more 20 percent from 2008-2009, high-impact aerobics classes grew by 8.1 percent and low-impact aerobics classes were up 6.3 percent.

“We’re always looking at new options,” says Liz Church, who manages the Lifestyle Family Fitness clubs in Apex and Cary.

This practice of swapping out classes follows emerging science that doing the same exercise over and over offers diminishing rewards — and can be harmful. “Mixing up your routine will avoid overworking one particular muscle group or joint,” according to the Mayo Clinic. The Mayo Clinic, the American Council on Exercise, the National Institutes of Health and the American College of Sports Medicine, among others, tout the benefits of cross-training.

Sometimes, a new class may simply be new to a particular club. Cardio kickboxing, for example, has been around for more than a decade.

Sometimes, new classes are exercise mash-ups: different combinations of exercise staples. Bally Total Fitness with two Charlotte clubs, has introduced KWANDO, “an intense cardiovascular and strength conditioning class that incorporates movements derived from boxing, tae kwon do, and karate.” O2 Fitness in Raleigh has “Chisel,” which taps kickboxing and plyometric exercises, while new 20/20/20 classes employ three 20-minute segments of aerobic and strength training exercises that change from class to class.

Greene with the Charlotte YWCA says her clubs decides on new classes by monitoring trends in fitness magazines, keeping tabs on what the various instructor certification agencies are offering, listening to instructors and to members.

“If we hear about a great boot camp, we’ll try to bring it here,” says Greene. One new class that the Charlotte YWCA is investigating: Nia, which describes itself as “sensory-based movement” that appears to borrow from various dance forms and the martial arts.

Some new classes (Zumba) catch on and develop a cult-like following. Others (yoga with your dog) do not.

Sometimes, new classes appear to break new ground — or at least advance an emerging fitness concept.

In March, Les Mills International, which develops fitness programs and certifies instructors, unveiled CX30 (also marketed as CXWORX). The intense 30-minute class is based on research by Jinger Gottschall, an assistant professor of kinesiology at Pennsylvania State University (who is also a Les Mills-certified instructor). Gottschall put 10 men and 10 women through a series of exercises that worked their “sling” muscles, those muscles connecting the upper and lower body. Her objective: To see whether these extended exercises (the plank, for instance) were more effective than those that simply concentrated on the body’s core (crunches). In a paper presented in June to the American College of Sports Medicine, she concluded they were.

“We wanted to see if we could achieve activation across the core when we added the shoulders and hips into a movement ... ” Gottschall said in a statement through Les Mills. “In fact, the integrated activity was much higher than expected.”

Gold’s Gym and O2 Fitness quickly picked up the CX30 class, and earlier this month it was added to the Triangle Lifestyle Family Fitness group exercise lineup.

If suffering is any indication, the new class is a success.

In her second time teaching the class at the Cary Lifestyle Family Fitness, instructor Nancy Nickel looked out at the 15 women and two men trying to mimic her movements and said through her headset, “You did not like that one. I can see it on your faces. It’s pure hatred.”

Afterward, 40-year-old Heather Austin from Moncure, a veteran of group exercise classes, gave CXWORX a thumbs up — for its effectiveness and its brevity.

“I like that it’s quick,” said Austin. “I do 30 minutes of this, I do another 30 minutes of cardio and I’m done with it.”

It was the kind of candid honesty I thought I would appreciate in a group exercise instructor, but as it turns out, not really.

“You did not like that one,” Nancy Nickel said into her mic. “I can see it on your faces: pure hatred.”
Pure hatred might be a little strong, but there was little denying that none of the 21 of us in her fledgling CXWORX class would be going all Oliver Twist and requesting more, please.

CXWORX is a new creation from Les Mills International, the exercise mill that pumps out fitness routines used in more than 100 health clubs nationwide. Nickel started teaching the first version — or “launch,” in Les Mills vernacular — of CXWORX at O2 Fitness in April. This was her second CXWORX session at the Lifestyle Family Fitness in Cary, which picked up the class this month.

CXWORX focuses on the midsection, but as Nickel points out, “It’s not like your regular abs class with crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch.” Instead, based on research by Jinger Gottschall, an assistant professor of kinesiology at Penn State, the 30-minute routine focuses on the “slings,” the muscles that “connect the upper and lower body to make functional movement possible.” That translates into exercises that spread the workout joy: for both the abs and the glutes, for instance. Or the abs and the lats.

The latter — the abs and the lats — means you can expect to do planks in CXWORX. Until CXWORX I didn’t realize planks came in the plural. I was familiar with the traditional plank: horizontal in a near pushup position, with your upper body supported on your forearms rather than your hands. According to Nickel and CXWORX, though, a plank can be done resting on just one forearm or by keeping just one foot in contact with the floor. Often these variations happen simultaneously with the free hand and foot point in odd directions or making circular motions.

I believe this is where our faces belied “pure hatred.”

CXWORX is divided into six roughly 4-minute segments. The first two segments are done vertical, with moves that stress movement and balance simultaneously. The second two segments are done on the floor, mostly planking. The last two vertical again, using resistance bands. It’s a full 30 minutes .

My classmates said they appreciated the brevity (most group exercise classes run an hour) of CXWORX. According to Liz Church, who manages Lifestyle Family Fitness’s Apex and Cary gyms, the class is intended to be paired with other classes. After an RPM (cycling) class, for instance, or with Pilates or yoga. Or in tandem with a session on the eliptical trainer or treadmill.

One thing you might not want to pair it with is another CXWORX class.

Nickel looked concerned before class when I mentioned I had taken a CXWORX class the previous evening, not 15 hours earlier.

“You might want to back off a little on some of this,” she suggested.

My abs, my lats and my glutes took her advice.

They don't require a monthly payment plan and their own room in your house. In fact, you can get ‘em for about $20, and when you're not using them, they tuck away in a drawer or under your bed.

Resistance bands — elastic tubes with a plastic handle on each end — are the plain Jane secret of a billion-dollar fitness industry that thrives on pricey equipment to quick-fix your physical shortcomings.

And while these specialized exercise machines often target specific muscle groups — witness the plethora of ab machines on the market - resistance bands offer a full-body attack.

"You can target all the major muscle groups with them," says Lisa Phipps, who oversees group exercise programs at Charlotte's Dowd YMCA. "You can also work on the smaller stabilizer groups" that help with maintaining balance. That makes the bands particularly popular with older exercisers.

"It amazes me how quickly these people can improve their balance," says Lauren Llewellyn, who incorporates bands into a Seniorcise class she teaches at Raleigh's Lake Lynn and Greystone Community Centers. "Within two weeks, they can tell a difference."

Resistance bands are relatively new in fitness circles. Their popularity has been boosted by increasing evidence that strength training, according to the Mayo Clinic, can play a key role in strengthening bones, controlling weight, managing chronic conditions, boosting stamina and reducing risk of injury.

That may explain why resistance bands have played a role even longer in physical therapy, earning the endorsement of the American Physical Therapy Association in 1995.

Resistance bands have become popular for strength and conditioning for a variety of reasons:

• They're inexpensive. You can buy them at Target or Wal-Mart for less than $20, close to half that online.
• They're versatile. They target all major muscle groups.
• They're mobile. They take up little space so you can take them on the road, and all but the smallest hotel rooms will accommodate a resistance-band workout.
• They work for any ability level. The bands come color-coded, reflecting their thickness. Start with a thinner, more elastic, easier-to-pull band and advance through thicker levels.

Phipps says resistance bands have become incorporated into a number of the YMCA's strength and conditioning courses. "We use them in athletic conditioning classes, circuit training ..."

Which isn't to say you can't get a full strength workout out of resistance bands alone.

"You could take them through a full 30-minute workout," Phipps says.

Many bands come with CDs demonstrating proper use and various exercises. Phipps, however, recommends taking a class to learn proper technique— not only to get an optimal workout but also to avoid unintentional backlash.

"Kids in particular sometimes have a problem with letting go of one end and getting snapped in the face."

* * *

Resistance bands made of tubing with a handle on each end tend to be the most popular form of resistance device.

"The (flat) latex bands tend to wear out more quickly," says the YMCA's Lisa Phipps.

While tubes tend to hold up better, she says a more recent innovation - braided cords - are proving even more durable.

* * *

Here are five examples of popular exercises for which resistance bands can replace traditional  exercise equipment. Click on exercise name for a how-to video.

Seated rowing
Device replaced: rowing machine
Primary muscles worked: lats, biceps, lower back, quads, calves.
Sit on floor with legs extended, band over feet, holding handles with arms extended. Keeping back straight, pull arms in, keeping elbows close to rib cage. Repeat as you would on a rowing machine.

Bicep curl
Device replaced: dumbbells
Primary muscles worked: biceps
Stand with middle of band under feet, feet placed hip-width apart, holding handles at your sides. Bend elbows and pull handles toward chest. Repeat.

Chest press
Device replaced: bench press
Primary muscles worked: pectorals, deltoids, triceps
Stand with feet hip-width apart, band wrapped around back, holding handles at your chest. Extend arms, return to starting position, repeat.

Lat pulldown
Device replaced: exercise machine
Primary muscles worked: lats, pectorals
Standing with feet shoulder-width apart, hold band above head with hands shoulder-width apart. Spread arms to full extension while pulling band down to chest level. Repeat.

Squat press
Device replaced: barbell or exercise machine
Primary muscles worked: thighs, hips and buttocks, hamstrings.
With feet slightly wider than hip-width apart and standing on middle of resistance band, stand straight while holding handles close to your shoulders. Bend knees to squatting position, keeping chest up and with weight on back heels, then return to standing position. Repeat.

For more exercises visit the ACE fitness Web site.

Source: Power Systems Inc., American Council on Exercise

A pair of recent studies have found that athletes who throw down some beetroot juice before an event tend to do better from an endurance standpoint. In November, a study appearing the Journal of Applied Physiology found that runners who beetroot juiced increased their endurance by 15 percent during high intensity running. And a study just published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise finds that competitive cyclists are likewise affected. (Beetroot juice has also been found to lower blood pressure and cleanse the kidneys and gall bladder.)

Researchers at the University of Exeter took nine “club-level competitive male cyclists” and had them do time trials over 4K (2.5 mile) and 16.1K (10 mile) routes. They did both time trails twice: Before one time trial they drank half a liter of beetroot juice, before the second they drank a half liter from which the nitrates had been extracted.

When the cyclists drank straight beetroot juice, they had a higher power output measured in watts, and completed the 4K course 11 seconds faster and the 16.1K course 45 seconds faster. (The cyclists’ VO2 levels were monitored to make sure maximum output was consistent throughout the test.) The findings suggest the cyclists’ muscles and cardiovascular systems were more efficient under the influence of beetroot juice.

Could a new Gatorade flavor be far behind?

Photo: That’s beetroot juice, not Beetlejuice.