Where I’m not.Coming back to FF is like visiting an old mining town. “How quaint, this is where she used to churn her posts by hand!” Don’t try and understand that, it’s my way of saying I haven’t written anything much lately, the fitness business gets in the way of the writing-about-fitness business. I haven’t worked out today either, and since it’s late, I probably won’t. I did do something almost as health-oriented though: I just ate a pie. Yes, a whole one. Except the outer crust. I don’t like that part.
Pretending for a minute that I actually write, let’s talk NY Times articles again. Did you catch this one on intervals? Rats get thrown in water, some swim for six hours a day, some are weighted (meaning extra intensity to the workouts) and thrown in for 20 second bursts with 10 seconds of rest for a total of four-and-a-half minutes of exercise. Both groups show the same molecular changes in increased muscle endurance. Moral: Short bursts (intervals!) of oh-god-I-wanna-die exercise may be as effective as long, sustained stretches of steady cardio. I keep saying it, intervals, intervals, intervals. But I only say it because the studies say it, and then I eat more pie, I’m doing sustained pie as opposed to intervals.
When I mentioned this to Lan-Ling, she asked if our next workout was going to involve being thrown in the pool and scooped out with a net. Very astute. I’m still trying to find a big enough bucket to fit a class of people comfortably. Oh, and here’s her and Peter on vacation, doing their workout. Note the tropical drink-plank hold. This is very dangerous without a spotter, and I offered to come along and ensure proper form, but noooo…
This brings me to today’s random topic: Working out on vacation. Since everyone else in the world is going away for a spell to some lovely, far-away locale, we’ve been yapping alot about whether or not you exercise on vacation and what you do there. Here’s my thought: Work out if you want to. Don’t if you don’t. It’s fucking vacation, it’s supposed to feel good.
The end.
If you are one of those people like me who is generally too uptight to forgo too many workouts (I start freaking three days in) then I vote for running or hiking in your tropical location, swimming in the clear blue water, or curling a Mai Tai. Fuck, I want a vacation. But yeah, might as well do something outside, no hotel gym treadmill unless necessary.
A couple easy workouts: There’s the damn deck of cards one. You assign an exercise like squats, push ups, burpees, etc, to each suit. Then you flip over the first card and do number of reps on the card of the exercise for that suit. So the ten of hearts, if hearts are squats, would be ten push ups. Face cards are 11, 12, and 13, aces can be 14, jokers can be sprints or something. Go through the whole deck. Then I guess you strip or bet your grandfather’s gold watch or something.
I’m also obsessed with pyramids right now, so the easy workout is to pick sets of two exercises and do two reps of each, then four, then six, then eight, ten, back to eight, six, four, two. Try and finish for time or some shit. Am I making any sense? I don’t have to do any of this, I’m not on vacation, I’m sitting on my porch feeling uncomfortably full of pie. It was a tasty berry one though. For once I don’t want more, I think I’m a one-pie kinda girl. Wussy, I know.
Speaking of extremes and pie, Boxing Dad mentioned there hasn’t been a challenge for a long time, maybe we should do one, lord knows I could train for a pie-eating contest but I’d rather have some other motivation. Any suggestions? I’m not wearing a leotard again, FYI. But, sigh, I’m sure I could humiliate myself in another way, unless one of you wants to be humiliated. So any challenge suggestions? Browse the archives for ideas from back when I wrote and all.
Lay it on me, a la mode people.
ooo. pie intervals. Would that be like pie eating contests at the fair? I could so do pie intervals.
Or pie pyramids.
Excuse me just visited pie pyramid -sugar death heaven.
And what is with that whole deck of cards thing? That would be one fuck-ass long workout. I’d be quitting before I got half-way through then beating myself up and going out to eat pie.
Here I admit, pie is my favorite dessert.
As for a new challenge? All the challenges I’ve seen were upper body ones. How about something lower body?
That’s it. Ain’t got no more. Or any pie.
deb
July 21st, 2009
you didn’t eat the outter crust????? Did you save it for me??
she
July 21st, 2009
you crack me up!
Surfergrrl
July 21st, 2009
A whole berry pie = a buttload of antioxidants. You healthnut!
LOVE those photos!
I usually do a little hiking on vacations cause spouse and I like to hike, but don’t typically get official real workouts in. I work out at least 5 times a week when not on vacation, usually 6 or 7, so I forgive myself the vacation days.
Belinda
July 21st, 2009
So how did your last challenge work out?
I need a challenge myself these days . . .
Belinda
July 21st, 2009
I was also hoping for a pie related challenge. Also I might be a pervert, but now that I’ve typed that out I kind of feel naughty. Pie pie pie.
Pie.
val
July 21st, 2009
Just found your blog. Working my way through your archives. You crack me up!
I like the card workout, I’ll have to try that sometime. I also LOVE the tropical drink pushups. Think I’ll have to try that one at home, I might do pushups more often, heh.
Seriously, some vacations I do, some I don’t. In Vegas - hell no. I didn’t get enough sleep to THINK about strapping on the running shoes. On our last cruise I worked out every day - one of the highlights of my vacation was running 5 miles on the roof deck overlooking the ocean.
Quix
July 21st, 2009
Challenge idea: Pick one exercise you like/want to work on and one you don’t and try to improve both within XX number of days.
For me that would be something along the lines of # consecutive double- unders and distance rowing time, or maybe max pull-ups and push-ups.
My vote is to not revisit the sugar challenge because that only creates sadness rather than fitness.
KR
July 21st, 2009
Yay, you’re back! I definitely work out on vacay, since I tend to regard it as go time for any and all decadent foods. Plus, vacations usually involve visiting family, and leaving the house to go running is necessary for sanity.
Challenges, hmmm…Hard to imagine better than that leotard - rawr! Must think on this.
Hoolia
July 21st, 2009
Hmmm,pie. I’d hit that.
Oh wait — that was a bit more suggestive than I normally intend.
Bring on the challenges! I need a jumpstart right now.
Boxing Dad
July 22nd, 2009
Oooh…I can’t wait to see what challenge you come up with this time ^_^
I’m horrible about working out on vacation…even “vacations” that involve my parents house, although I’ve been getting better at that. I’m taking a few of your ideas with me next time I go ^_^
Meg
July 23rd, 2009
Speaking of working out on vacation, did I ever tell you about how I took a kettlebell with me to Mexico once?
Customs thought it was a cannonball.
val
July 23rd, 2009
I usually workout on vacation. Once, a trainer I know texted me this crazy-ass workout (which I did) and I couldn’t move the rest of the week. I didn’t text her this past vacation
Challenge? How about whoever loses the highest percent of body fat? Oh, wait, wrong gym.
Shari
July 23rd, 2009
I sometimes workout on vacations - if I’m in the middle of a x-number-of-weeks program, I generally like to stay with it. When I’ve done this I actually enjoyed it! It didn’t seem like a burden, it just added another dimension to the vacation. But in general, I don’t feel *obligated* to exercise. Vacation is for doing whatever you feel like at the moment. I do like to walk and see a new area, so that automatically guarantees a certain amount of activity.
Marla
July 24th, 2009
can I have your crust?
girlscientist
July 24th, 2009
the truck is coming down to SD right now loaded with our workout gear! Paddleboard, surf board, kayak, bikes, and a kettlebell or two. Can’t wait
It’s a different kind of workout 
surfmom
July 26th, 2009