Y Fusion: A new twist on fitness.......

Y Fusion: I finally figured out where the name came from. As the very last move of a demanding routine (more about that later) our instructor Michelle went into a move called a straddle with a forward layout. Sitting down with her legs as wide as they would go, Michelle and one other young lady in the class were able to literally lean over enough to lay the core of their bodies (stomach and head) on the floor! It hurts me just to think about that move. Obviously fusion would be the only way to put my legs and spine back together if I tried it.

I keep finding new ways to punish - oops I mean test - my body with the different classes the Y has and this one introduced plyometrics. Plyometrics are fast repetitive body movements that are supposed to be explosive in nature. For example, you may remember the hated burpies and jumping jacks from P.E. class in high school. Now unfortunately I got so tuckered out that my movements were about as explosive as a wet firecracker. This was clearly a class where my age was not an advantage.

Not only was our instructor Michelle limber, she was creative as well. She divided our seven member class into guys and gals and then we drew cards and had to do what each card said. Now this wasn't a board game where you needed to look like a kangaroo but more to the case,  you had to jump like one. There were all kinds of plyometric exercises, each seemingly more demanding than the one before it, or was that just me getting tired? Literally I was so happy when the card said "Do 12 push-ups," because, one I knew how to do those and two, it was a simple motion. The best card however was "Water break," and that 30 second break went far too quickly. We ended our session with some planks (similar to holding a push-up for several days) and the aforementioned stretch that I couldn't even dream of doing.

The physical demands of this class are obviously very high but the rewards are high as well. Without building a lot of muscle mass, plyometrics can make an athlete stronger, faster and more agile. I need all three for my favorite sport of cross-country skiing but any sport would benefit. This is great activity for any athlete who plays sports with quick movements, i.e. tennis, raquetball, basketball, football or baseball. While it is not as much fun as a music driven class like Zumba, it was indeed fun and the instructor was creative, enthusiastic, and did I mention, limber?

All those classes: What I have learned thus far....

Wow, there are a lot of activities going on at the YMCA! Even after visiting many different activities each week I am nowhere near close to sampling all that the Y has to offer. I am looking forward to seeing how the senior program, the Silver Sneakers works, fingerpainting with the little kids and playing Wallyball with the girls league. I will need to get a special dispensation for that one! Still, I have done a pretty good sampling of activities and have learned a lot in the past month and a half.

First; the YMCA is truly a gathering place for all ages. This became more apparent to me as I began to sample afternoon classes and did some of the activities with young adults getting off work. By the way, I learned that being in-shape for an "old dog," is more than a little different  than for an athlete years younger. From the nursery to carefully designed activities for seniors in the Silver Sneakers program, there is is something for everyone. The YMCA serves everyone from excellent triathletes to those who are working on regaining some mobility after an injury or illness.

Second; although you can't turn back the clock it is absolutely amazing what many senior athletes are doing at the YMCA and there are some wonderful success stories of people who not only have regained a level of fitness they thought they had lost forever, they have been able to expand upon this. 

Third: variety is not only the spice of life, it can improve your level of fitness. I sometimes wince when someone tells me how their new treadmill or whatever is going to return them to a level of fitness. Sometimes people have the self-discipline to stay with only one activity but most people crave variety. This is why you so often see exercise equipment on yard sales.

Fourth: not only do a variety of activities, such as is provided at the YMCA, keep a person interested, it helps one develop in a surprising way physically. You see our bodies tend to adjust to any single exercise which is why we plateau so often. By mixing activities and challenging our bodies with new and novel activities, we can become even stronger and more flexible.

Fifth: fitness magazines and websites are not the same as professional instruction. I could tell what was wrong with my friend's golf swing, but typically couldn't hit the ball straight to save my life. It is very hard to coach yourself. The instructors at the YMCA have been phenomenal. Whether it has been in the weight room, the pool, yoga or Zumba or any number of the other activities I have participated in, the instructors have provided me with tips on technique and a healthy lifestyle that are truly paying dividends.

Finally, and probably most important, the YMCA is awesome fun. Both the instructors and the participants are some of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet and there is not the sense of competition that may make people uncomfortable. Both the instructors and the participants seem truly invested in helping each person  at the Y develop or maintain their skills to their full potential and better yet, have fun doing it.

Next: Getting a kick out of Kickboxing.....

The Fitness Trainer: It's whatever you want it to be....

"Do you get any breaks when you are working with the trainer"" asked a friend. "Only when they come in and put the paddles on my chest!" I quipped back.

Well, working with Karen one of the three fitness trainers at the YMCA wasn't quite that hard, but in one of the sessions my t-shirt was so soaked with sweat that I couldn't find a dry spot to dry my eyes with. This however was what I was paying her for. My singular goal is to cross-country ski faster and the only way to achieve that goal is to work hard and train smart. It is the latter area where Karen's expertise really came into play. I had given her a ski video that explained the Olympic style skating technique that we use in races. After watching this she designed a program that developed the specific muscles that needed to be strong with a lot of emphasis on core development and balance. It was doing lunges all the way around the outside of the gym that had me sweating so hard. I spend a lot of time in the weight room because my favorite sports (cross-country skiing and kayaking) require a lot of muscle. Going a different way than the bench press and the weight machines, Karen used light barbells with high repetitions to isolate muscles that I didn't know I had. Because skiing also requires great flexibility, one session was spent on stretching and yoga moves. Karen provided me with swimming tips and dietary advice as well, leading me to wonder if there was anything this lady didn't know!

Karen is one of three trainers at the YMCA and Ginny and Brianna are excellent as well. Just as Karen was helpful in reaching some specific fitness goals, the three trainers can help you reach your individual goals whether that be general fitness, weight loss, recovery from an injury or whatever. And, unless you specifically ask them to, they probably won't yell at you like the trainers on The Biggest Loser TV show.

Next: What I have learned so far......

50 Plus Swim Time: Seniors, it's your time.....

Are you worried about how you look in a swim suit?  Do you feel like you have gained too much weight to exercise? Do you just want to relax in the water and not really have to do anything? Did you once like swimming but are afraid you have forgotten how? Would you like to spend some time in the pool with other people your age and not really have to do anything except visit? If you answered yes to any of these and you haven't been joining in any YMCA activities, the 50 Plus Swim Time may be perfect for you.

I hope I didn't offend anyone with these questions because a number of the participants in the 50 Plus Swim Time do exercise, but it is on their own terms. Some walk in the shallow end from one end to the other and back and the floatation provided by the water makes this easier, and often less painful for them if that is an issue. Others enjoy floating and some swim back and forth using whatever swimming stroke they feel comfortable with. When I occasionally join this time to swim laps, I always feel a little guilty because that is not the pace this time is designed for. Everyone seems to enjoy the opportunity to visit and spending time in the pool, whatever the activity is, just makes one feel better.

In reference to activity, this is probably the most relaxing activity at the Y unless of course you fall asleep in your car outside. While it is not an organized fun activity like many of the classes, the participants certainly seem to enjoy it and some you see there almost every day. It is a great opportunity just for seniors and as I noted in the first paragraph, there is no reason not to participate.

Next: The Fitness Trainer

Step Aerobics: The step in between.....

Sometimes what a class is on paper actually appears a little different in reality. Step aerobics is designed to be a counter activity to Power Hour, using less weights and more emphasis on the use of the legs - with a platform to step up to - and stressing cardiovascular development. All of this is true to a degree, but I found the class to be similar to Power Hour but definitely easier. This is not a bad thing by the way. Except for the trip to the emergency room, the oxygen mask and the transfusion that I needed after, I did just fine in Power Hour. It makes all the sense in the world to have a class that approaches many of the same goals but with an intensity level that isn't quite as extreme. This makes Step Aerobics a good choice for a senior athlete, someone who hasn't done athletic activity for a while or someone who is working towards attending Power Hour as a goal. It is ideally the step in between and may be just perfect for many YMCA participants.

Katie, the young instructor, is amazingly fit and while the routines used in Step Aerobics aren't as complex as Zumba, one still has to pay attention. Many of the steps are taken up and down off the platform which of course adds to the cardiovascular demands. The class also mixed in some stretching and use of light weights. This was similar to Power Hour, but again at a lower intensity level. In Power Hour my heart rate was at the upper end for almost half the session while in Step Aerobics it stayed in the working zone (65-85% of maximum) the entire session. If one wants to raise the physical demands in this class however, this can be easily done by increasing the height of the platform or by using heavier weights.

There is nothing wrong with having a "step in between."  One of the class members noted that she liked this class more than Zumba because the steps were simpler and repeated more often, so in a way this class is a step towards Zumba as well.. If you are ready to step up your workouts, this class would be a good choice. 

Next: Afternoon senior swim time..

Zumba Toning: Zumbaclaus appears!

I jumped into a regular Zumba class first when actually Zumba Toning might have been a better choice. Zumba Toning for the first half of class uses very light weight sticks for extra cardiovascular and muscle work and it goes at a somewhat easier pace than the regular Zumba sessions. All the better to learn those moves for a novice and even a horrible dancer like me did a lot better the second day. The instructors Karol and Janee were terrific and they attend regular instruction in Zumba as well so that they can pass on new music and new moves to the participants. Sometimes one instructor will face one way and one the other which makes it easier to figure out the pattern and sometimes one will do the moves at a slighter slower pace, amazingly still in rhythm.

After a half-hour the class picks up the pace doing more the regular Zumba songs and moves. Here is where the fun really began because one of the members left briefly and then returned dressed as who else but Zumbaclaus. He wasn't as rolly-polly as the original, but Zumbaclaus certainly moved a whole lot faster. Maybe this is the training Santa needs to prepare for that long night of December 25th. The instructors brought out red Santa caps for us all and we ended doing Zumba moves to the song "Santa Baby." Talk about fun! It simply doesn't get any better than this.

The goal of the YMCA: Faith, fun and fitness

The Y, as we commonly know it, was chartered in 1944 as the Young Mens Christian Association (YMCA). The original and continued mission of the organization is to put 'Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all.' Most of us don't exactly have this in mind as we are working up a sweat, but there are several activities where this really comes into play. There is a group here that has an ongoing Bible study and the Active Adult group recently had a wonderful Christian speaker for their Christmas luncheon.  Christian doesn't mean intolerant by any stretch of the imagination as the Y welcomes men, women and children regardless of sex, race or religious beliefs. In fact, my favorite Y conversation of all time was when a Mormon, Catholic and Lutheran (me) were discussing what heaven was like in our faith. My final comment was, "I just hope that we can all laugh about this conversation in 50 years!"

As we look forward to Christmas I certainly would count the YMCA and the friends I have developed here among my blessings. When I worked with Karen, the fitness trainer, she talked frequently about keeping a balance among the different muscles groups. The more important balance however may be the one that the original and continuing goal that the Y strives for; that balance in our lives between faith, fun and fitness. 

Next: Zumba Toning:

The "Zumba Cat"...........

What can YMCA activities do for you, especially if you are a senior athlete? The answer is far more than you might ever imagine, especially using the example of my friend the "Zumba Cat." Dick, who is in his 70s told me that he noticed that he was having to use the handrail climbing stairs and he just didn't have the stability that he used to when he was younger.  When that happens to a lot of people they just sit down and vegetate in front of the TV, but Dick did just the opposite.

Seeing how much fun the participants in Zumba seemed to be having, Dick decided to try that, at first modifying the moves so that he could handle them and then integrating more of the movement. At first he was the only guy in the classes, but soon other men joined as well. Dick got better and better each week, so much so in fact that the women there nicknamed him "the Zumba Cat."

For Dick, Zumba was a springboard that returned to him vitality and balance that he had feared lost. His balance improved so much that he was able to buy a new bicycle and return to a sport that he had dearly loved. He began swimming laps, doing yoga and the last time I saw him, Dick was working with Karen, the fitness trainer. That little extra weight he had around his waist is disappearing as fast as snow in April.

There are success stories like the Zumba Cat all over the YMCA. If you have a success story as well, just ask the staff for the "Old Dog" and we can share it with others.

Next: Faith, fun and fitness

Zumba: Oh yea, it's that much fun.....

I had been putting off going to Zumba for a couple of reasons. Zumba looks like so much fun that I was afraid that once I started I wouldn't want to do other things. My main concern however is that I can't dance. How bad am I? My wife and I went for six weeks of ballroom dance class so that I could look cool dancing with my daughter at her wedding. The big moment came - with my favorite Beach Boy song, "Don't Worry Baby," - and I forgot everything; yes everything! Blessedly, that song is only about two minutes long.

However, never being one to let failure stop me I had to give this Latin dance craze a try and see if an "Old Dog" could learn new tricks. In a word, Zumba rocks. There's a reason why this is the most popular single activity at the YMCA for all ages. The music is infectious and you just have to move to it, even if like me you don't always move in the right direction. One of my friends the "Zumba Cat," (more about that later) had told me to try and get the feet motion right and then work the arm motions in later so that is what I did. I am fairly fit with all my training, but this class can do it to you. We were doing the Tina Turner version of "Proud Mary," you know the one that starts slow and then really gets going, and big dummy here hadn't brought water I felt just a tad dizzy and went downstairs to get a drink. I made the same mistake in Power Hour, so you would think I would learn by now.  Zumba is a true workout and my heart rate was in the upper range, sometimes over 90% for more than half the time.

Zumba is all the devotees say it is. It is an awesome workout, great fun and actually good for all ages. Now some of the participants did modifications of the moves that weren't as strenuous or as rapid, but everyone loved it. Try it sometime. Not only may you see the "Zumba Cat," there may be "Zumba Dog," visiting again as well.

Next: The Zumba Cat....

The Nursery: If you need a break today.........

Usually I try and participate in every program of the YMCA that I visit, but the Nursery attendant drew the line on me sitting on her lap. Probably a good idea on her part since I weigh over 190 pounds. I wasn't too hot on the idea of changing a baby's diapers either, although I probably should get back in practice since my wife and I are going to be grandparents soon.

Since our children are 28 and 31 I don't have much need of the Nursery now, but parents of very young children who want to get a workout in - and maybe regain their sanity - the Nursery can be a Godsend. It is available in the morning and evening to Y members and the cost is included in family membership. There are of course regulations and things that you need to know;  i.e. the children can't go barefoot, and these are noted in a newsletter available at the desk or in the Nursery. The key regulation is of course that you must stay in the building, so if you want to go shopping you will probably need to ask Grandma or Grandpa to watch the little guy or little gal.

The little guy that I saw during my visit seemed 'happy as a clam' and I am sure his mother was as well as she got a needed break and welcome exercise. The Nursery is not one of the YMCA's best known programs, but for those parents with very young children, it makes all the other programs possible. You can't beat that.

Next: Active Adults: Faith, fun and fitness

Power hour: You had better power-up for this!

Power Hour is a late afternoon class taught by a local minister, John.  So, to be politically correct, John took our class to "heck and back," with an intense anaerobic and aerobic workout. This class combines the use of weights with cardiovascular exercise and will definitely get you fit or make you sore, and probably both.

Being an 'old dog' and blessedly retired, I go to the Y in the morning and I hadn't seen a lot of young professionals at the YMCA because of their work schedules. This well attended class which meets at 4:30 in the afternoon is where they meet, and it was obvious from the camaraderie that most members knew each other. Not knowing what to expect I made two key mistakes right off; I didn't bring water with me and I chose too heavy of weights for some of the activities. This class can make you sore in a hurry with the many repetitions you do lifting and this is often done at the same time as you are stepping. One of the guys in the class noted that it takes a while for your body to adjust to this intensity. He joked that when he went to pick up groceries after the first class, he was hanging on the cart to stand up. Actually, I was thinking more in line of a stretcher after we finished.

What do you do in this class? The answer would be a lot of everything. Aerobic exercise are those exercises that raise your heart rate. I use a heart monitor and during the Power Hour my heart rate was below my working zone 19 minutes, in my working zone for 36 and above for almost 15. Here is where I really wish I had brought water because you are pushing pretty darn hard and you need to drink for endurance, or in my case a transfusion would have been appreciated. Anaerobic exercises are those that push the muscles using resistance. Now, I lift weights to train for cross-country skiing and am relatively strong, but let me tell you, even light weights get awfully heavy with many repetitions. This is especially true when they are tied to stepping as well. Pure muscle stuff such as push-ups I could handle fairly well, but holding planks at the end of class; ouch! I usually do these at the beginning of my workouts, not at the end and I have to admit that I played "snake" with my belly on the ground. At the end of this workout, I was "powered out."

Except for the night in the hospital to recover, I came out of the class fairly well. I am kidding of course because I really did enjoy the physical challenge, the opportunity to interact with younger athletes, and the obvious benefit that is gained from testing your body in ways that you aren't used to. A lot of people don't know that your body adjusts to certain activities, i.e. weight lifting or swimming, and you lose some of the benefit over time. By mixing up activities, you are constantly testing your body in different ways and this class certainly did that. The class is ideal for athletes who want to get stronger and increase their endurance and flexibility. It is also obviously ideal for young professionals pressed for time who want to stay in shape with the minimum amount of time and in a time frame that fits their schedule. It probably isn't ideal for you if you are a senior in the Silver Sneakers program who is beginning to exercise, or like me, you will need an ambulance handy.

Next: Visiting one of the kids programs

Core exercise: Solid, not rotten, to the core......

I wasn't sure what to expect from this class although I certainly understood its goal. Almost any athletic endeavor requires a strong core and your core is essentially everything below your neck and above your legs. If you can still keep a hula hoop going for days at a time you probably don't need this class, but for the rest of us core training is pretty important. The class was well attended and there were a variety of ages in the class with many members coming up right after a Zumba session.

The young instructor Janee started us out with some basic Zumba dance moves to warm up with and I have to admit that although I hadn't listened to Michael Jackson's Thriller CD for ages, those songs still get you going. From there, we did some basic Yoga moves with both of these activities focused on strengthening those abdominal muscles. Then we stepped it up a notch as we did a variety of crunches and abdominal exercises to music. If you haven't done these, a crunch is like a sit-up that doesn't make it all the way. It sounds easier, but isn't and doing a bunch of these in a row definitely was a workout. I didn't use a mat, but if I had it to do over again I certainly would. This old dog doesn't adapt to a hard floor as well as he used to. There was a cool down period and then the 45 minute workout was over.

I had a good time and it seemed like everyone else did as well and I was impressed that so many of them did this following an hour or more of Zumba. You don't need to have a top level of fitness to join the class, but it probably shouldn't be your beginning activity if you haven't exercised in a while. A solid core is of course vital to many sports especially more active sports such as basketball, racquetball and tennis or some less active ones such as golf or bowling. I am definitely adding more core exercises to my fitness routine and may well visit this class again because I can really see how it would help me with my favorite winter sports, cross-country skiing and ice skating. After all, I want to be solid in my core, not rotten.

Lap swimming: It's boring but.........

Pure and simple, I joined the YMCA for the availability of the pool. I had been a member of two different gyms prior to this and although I liked both, I felt that swimming was the key thing that I needed to train for my favorite sport, cross-country skiing. While I have been a swimmer since my teen years, I actually only knew two strokes. I picked up a side stroke  from reading my father's Blue Jacket manual from his WWII Navy years and I had a truly wimpy breast stroke. When I attempted freestyle swimming, I was only good for about a half dozen strokes before I would sink like a rock. 

The YMCA in Kewanee, where I worked several years, ago came to my rescue. Since I was staying over on Wednesday evenings and since they listed a swimming class that evening I signed up. It turned out that I was the only student and the teacher was a college girl younger than my daughter. We worked for several months and I learned both the freestyle and a "non-wimpy" breast stroke. At first I could only go half a length in their 25 meter pool and I worked up to almost a lap before we finished. An old dog of 60 did indeed learn a new trick.

Now several years later I am still learning and I swim 1/3 of a mile almost every day. I can go further and have swam close to a mile in one outing, but I have to admit that I get bored with longer distances. The advantages of lap swimming are huge however and have indeed helped me ski faster, especially in one surprising way. With swimming there is almost no risk of injury so you can do it everyday. It is a total body exercise that helps your coordination and it is something you can tinker with, i.e. by changing your stroke or leg kick or position in the water. The surprising way it helped me in cross-country skiing was in breathing. I had been gasping for air sometimes when I skied and sometimes under I intensity I would forget to breathe. When you do lap swimming with a freestyle stroke you have to learn to breathe in and breathe out (underwater by the way) smoothly. When I carried this over to my cross-country ski stroke, all of a sudden I was less tired and, as a result, faster.

The pool at our YMCA is admittedly small and all four lanes are often full, sometimes with two in each lane. There have been additional hours added however and this has allowed a lot more swimmers the opportunity to lap swim. There are some wonderful swimmers at the YMCA here who often give me tips that have helped me improve and it is an activity that is life-long as several lap swimmers are well older than me. Swimming is a learning curve and there is always room for improvement, but since I learned at age 60, it obviously isn't impossible. It is clearly an activity that benefits from practice and that practice leads to increased endurance as well. The intensity level of the activity is moderate to high. Unless you are using a resting stroke, it takes a lot of effort to get from one end of the pool to the other. And fun? Well lap swimming is a tad boring, but when I am skate-skiing up a hill this winter and not gasping for breath, all those hours in the pool will be well worth it. Let's call it delayed gratification.

Next: Core exercise class: or how to get a 6-pack other than at Herman's.

The YMCA senior athletes: Yes you are athletes!

My back was literally against the wall! Dick and Rose, two members of the YMCA who are about 10 years older than me were showing me some yoga and stretching moves which they seemed to be doing a lot easier than me. Nothing cracked, ripped or broke fortunately as I did a stretch that I wasn't used to and I developed some new found respect for members who haven't let age limit their flexibility.

Being a "gym rat," who is at the Y most mornings, I have noticed that if people think that the YMCA is just for young people they are mistaken. I see members past the age of 70, and some past the age of 80, doing all kinds of activities. Now of course, many are the Silver Sneakers program which is a carefully designed program for older athletes (more on that term in a later blog) but I also see older members in the pool, in the weight room, at yoga classes and even in some high intensity activities like Zumba. I asked the staff to pull up the statistics on this and there are 84 members of the YMCA who are over the age of 70 and even more surprising, 36 members over the age of 80.

Are these members all athletes? My response would be absolutely. When you compare the fitness of our older YMCA members to that of their contemporaries, they are way at the upper end. Most of them of course are not doing competitive sports, but all are interested in not only maintaining their fitness for a healthy lifestyle, but in many cases improving this as well. We can't turn back the clock. but seniors can prevent an "old fashioned" perception of what seniors can do from limiting their activities.

Next blog: Lap swimming: Yea it's boring but........

The Fitness Test: You don't have to be fit to take it.........

I do a fitness test with Kay every spring to monitor my overall fitness. It is very inexpensive, especially for YMCA members, and measures four different aspects of your fitness.

 "Now to measure your body fat, we are going to use a calipers," said Kay, "We would use immersion in water which is the most accurate, but we don't want to raise the level of the river!" Grabbing some fat around my waist Kay soon realized that the calipers wouldn't work so she went down and brought up a C-Clamp from maintenance that did the trick.

Actually, Kay was very nice and didn't need to use a C-clamp to measure my fat, although there is definitely room for improvement. That is what the fitness test is all about however, seeing where you are at in different physical aspects and measuring this accurately. This then allows you to plan what areas you need to work on in your individual fitness plan. In addition to the measurement of body fat, which is taken from your waist, back, legs and hip there is a measure of flexibility. This was a weakness for me a year earlier so I have added some stretching and other exercises to my routine and improved a lot. The step test seemed pretty easy and anyone of almost any age could take this. By stepping up on a step and back down and then measuring the change in your heart rate, a measure of aerobic fitness is determined. For men my age, we go downstairs to the weight room and I bench pressed 80 pounds as many times as I could. This is of course adjusted for women and older dogs than me. They do the same thing at the NFL camp for prospective players, only with 225 pounds, so I had to put my pro football aspirations on hold until I get a little stronger.

CRAAAAACK! Kay dove under the desk sure that it was an earthquake, but it was only my back when the task required as many crunches as I could do in a minute. This was the hardest task of the four actually, but since it only lasted a minute, not unmanageable. A crunch is like a mini sit-up and while tiring, is a great measure of abdominal fitness, Often called the core, abdominal fitness is an  important component in many activities at the YMCA. Following a measure of my blood pressure and pulse rate and we were done. The upshot, "Well Old Dog, you are in great shape for a  90 year old."

Any quotes by Kay in this article are purely made-up of course and this yearly test is an important component of my fitness plan. It is not so important that one reaches the excellent level in every category as it is knowing exactly where you are and attempting to keep a balance of these different aspects of fitness. The fitness test is not easy, but it is important to note that it is adjusted to everyone's physical capabilities. There is no reason every member of the YMCA couldn't take it and everyone should.

Next: Now is it the Sliver Slippers or Silver Sneakers?

The weight room; yes it is for everyone.

One of the most underused activities at the YMCA is actually one which should be used by everyone, and that is the weight room. Now some of the usual reasons for not doing so are as follows:  it will make you bulk up and get bigger, there are a lot of musclebound guys strutting around, you might get hurt or you don't know what to do with those machines or weights. Strength however is the foundation of almost every sport or activity, even those activities that are basic to our life such as getting out of a chair. If you want to get stronger, the weight room is the place to do so.

I will come back to the weight room in further blogs, but first lets address some of the misconceptions. If an "old dog" like me can feel comfortable there, you can too. During the late afternoon and evening you will see young guys there, but the reality is that most of the true weightlifters train elsewhere so the weight room at the Y is usually pretty free. This is especially during the day hours and even the young guys are cool with "old dogs" being around. Second, you won't bulk up if you follow some basic rules. I train for cross country skiing so I don't want a lot of extra bulk, yet want to be strong so I lift weights that I can do 15-20 repetitions with. If I want size I would lift heavier weights less times. The weight lifters mantra is "go big to get big." By using lighter weights and the machines, you train the entire body, can improve your range of motion, get stronger and contrary to popular opinion lose weight. You see by working your entire body and improving your strength you also raise your metabolism and then you are burning calories 24/7.

Who is the weight room for? The answer is everyone. It is not the most fun activity but not unenjoyable either. The difficulty depends upon how much weight you decide to lift and how many times. It can be as hard or as easy as you want it to be and the machines are a lot easier to figure out than you think.

Next activity: The fitness test