Workout and Diet Advice for Women over 45

In a recent Tweet I said June would be the month to focus on stretching tips.  Well we are still in June, so this is just in time.   Summer is the time we think about getting to the beach or the BBQ or the County Fair – so we want to work out and get going.  The activity that generally suffers is the stretching.  I raise my hand – I am guilty of this oversight.  And am I the only one who has said ‘well I will stretch tonight when I get home’ and that is the last time the thought entered my head?  You don’t have to be a Boomer to forget to stretch; I think a lot of people forget.

I like the quote from jacket:

”The Slow philosophy is about giving each task the time and focus that it deserves so that you do it better and enjoy it more.”

It got me thinking about the power of slow in relation to training/working out.   And as in previous blog entries, I aim my comments (sage advice?) at  my primary audience – the female boomer weight trainer/bodybuilder.  We really need to train smarter and I believe we can see better results if we give each set, and each repetition “the time and focus it deserves”.  I offer this perspective:  get more from your workout (efficiency, effectiveness and enjoyment) through the power of slow.  I think your joints may thank you as well.

Today I am sore. I am excited. I used muscles I had been avoiding; and at least I am admitting that here.

When it comes to body-building, I love sharing, and I love learning – and this week it was learning.

Seems we are a fit lot in general  –  and many of us making great strides to get there. (Us being the Baby Boomers.  My goal:  “Buffed-Boomer Queen”).  How about a few quotes from posts/articles I recently came across:

“68 yr old female bodybuilder – definitely not a senior” – from a woman asking for advice to reach her goal of “being ripped by 70”.  I love it!
“ A group of nursing home residents ranging in age from 87 to 96 recently improved their muscle strength by almost 180 percent after just eight weeks of weightlifting”  –  from an article on the Blue Cross Blue Shield ‘Healthy Me’ website.
There is a recent story about a 73 year old power lifter  –  OK a male, but I thought I would acknowledge him.  http://tinyurl.com/dmj56s

What a concept – if you have lots of brown fat you are a calorie burning machine!

Wait a minute – let’s look at all the facts.

• Scientists have known about brown Adipose tissue (“brown fat”) for many years.  Didn’t think adults had it, until they recently found it in specific areas of the body.  Using PET-CT scans, the presence of brown fat in adults has been proven to exist. http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/10/brown.fat.obesity

• Brown fat is activated in cold temperatures to burn calories for warmth.  So bundling up in the cold is unlikely to activate this tissue.

Sipping my electrolyte infused water between exercises, I glanced around the gym.  Couldn’t help but notice the woman on the adductor machine – staring into space as she rapidly worked her inner thighs – or at least intended to.  However, her mind was definitely elsewhere, likely anywhere but in the gym.  Then there was the guy doing lat pulldowns as he surveyed the scene.  His mind was in the gym  – well at least on the other patrons in the gym – but definitely not on his exercise.

I had to check the date on my LA Times newspaper  –  figured I must have come across an old one I had somehow stashed.    Yes it was definitely 2009, and in the photo the first lady had dark hair and dark skin.  So was I really reading that “many women still believe that if they hoist more than 10-pound dumbbells…… they’ll look as massive as the Incredible Hulk”?  (Who are these women?  If you are out there please contact me.)