Everyday movements = Exercise? What's your non-workout workout? page 2

[Northern Light]

Leida -- I snowshoe in the winter, which can last 6 or 7 months here. I will be doing more of it this year and try not to be too chicken about it when the temperature drops and the wind picks up. Even before deciding to make the change in eating habits, DH and I had talked about going X-country skiing this winter. So yeah, keeping out there during the winter is critical!

Dado -- Biking is biking, whatever the motivation!

Time for a dog romp - the little black devil dog is getting restless!

[tfarny]

tfarny -- My point, of course, is that we are very far indeed from Grok's lifestyle, but that there are surely ways that we can reclaim a bit of that heritage that do not involve working out, in the strict sense of the term. "Silly" or not, climbing stairs (or bounding up them, in Chris' case, or running them these days, in mine) is something that elite track athletes do in northern climates when snow and ice impede good outdoor workouts. Granted, they go up and down the highest buildings that they can find, but that is part of the chronic cardio world. I tend to do a flight of stairs two or three times every hour from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. I think that counts if I can make it a conscious muscular effort (not slogging slowly one foot after another).

As I said, I love to feel my muscles work. I am seeking ways to make everything I do part of a more Grok-approach to moving, not just the fifteen minutes, two or three times a week that I could devote to Mark's plan. I will likely get into that soon enough (I have trained at various things enough in my life to know that it would pay off), but there are about 90 to 100 other hours every week that can be more primal as well. I want to make as many of them count as possible.

OK - I live in an old row house in New York. The main rooms are two flights up from street level, my rooms are above that. So to get some water, go to the bathroom, etc., I go up and down a flight of stairs. Many times per day. I also have to walk to the subway station, etc. I ride my bike or walk to the grocery store. I do all of that stuff, a lot, and I know it's good for me. It's part of what Mark calls "moving slowly" exercise, not any kind of replacement for less frequent hard workouts.

[Northern Light]

Seems we agree.

You have convinced me that doing the intense stuff is needed. Although I would rather get it from moving rocks around in the garden and turning the compost, these are not required activities two or three times a week year-round.

And we seem to agree about doing all the little things that add up.

Inspired by Mark's comments today, I have been watching the MovNat videos on YouTube. It has gotten me rather nostalgic for the shape I was in at 10 or 16 or even 25, when I still did that kind of thing without thinking about it. That's the kind of workout that does not seem remotely like high-school PE as I knew it!

[tfarny]

Most of what sucked about high school PE was the mindless drudgery.
My gym time is anything but boring now - I try to build on previous success, or break personal records, every single time I go in. Very motivating. Pulling an abdominal a couple of weeks ago did slow me down but I'm ready to get back to it. Nothing boring about lifting a heavier thing than you've ever lifted before!

[injex]

I ride the bike to work and back home (6km one way).

What I will do in Winter, I have no clue so far about that.

[dado]

I ride the bike to work and back home (6km one way).

What I will do in Winter, I have no clue so far about that.

you get bad ass bike and slosh it

[Tessa]

I shoot car racing on weekends so I'm on my feet from early morning to late evening, standing, walking, climbing to find different views, dodging flying rocks and dirt, balancing on fallen tree trunks, etc. Also, during winter that usually means I'm up to my knees or even deeper in snow all day.

Fun

[Northern Light]

Tessa -- Very cool! Sounds like an odd sort of para-motor MovNat (that is, you move naturally while around a whole bunch of motors)!

[Northern Light]

Injex -- I work from home now (which is why I can walk the dogs at the drop of a hat), but when I worked somewhere within biking distance I almost always biked. When I lived in Wisconsin, winters were a real dilemma. What I should have done was take the bus and get off a couple of stops early. Or, when I finally got a car, I should have parked in the remote lot -- it would have been cheaper, in addition to a nice little hike every morning and evening.

[Legbiter]

After work I either play-wrestle with my sons, etc or I walk to the local geothermal pool to swim as the mood strikes me. Basically, it's a major component of my playtime. Afterwards I soak a bit in the hot pots.