Advertisement - Click to support our sponsors.

Bodytalk

By Stephenie Karony

Wednesday, November 15, 2000

---

Home-ing in on
personal workouts

Question: I would like to work out at home. Do you have any tips or suggestions regarding getting started?

Answer: Working out at home is convenient and can save you time, but it presents its own special challenges. When you train at a gym it's easier to focus on the task at hand, because you don't have the distractions that often occur at home. There is no phone to answer, no favorite TV program competing for your attention, no children wanting you to play. Because your home is a more relaxed environment, it will probably be more difficult for you to concentrate on your workout program. Here are a few suggestions to make it easier.

Choose a time when there are as few distractions as possible. Hopefully this time coincides with a time when your energy level is high. If you really feel like a vigorous workout, it's easier to follow through and do it.

Be flexible, but try to train at the same time each day. Our bodies long for routine; they respond best to a regular schedule. If possible, have a designated area for your workout, a place where you can leave your equipment out. It's a lot more convenient not to have to haul everything out each time, and then have to put it all away again. A bench, bar, plates, hand weights, gloves, etc., is a lot to move around.

Make sure your workout area is bright and airy with good air circulation. A mirror is helpful. Mirrors provide instant feedback on body form and alignment. Music is great, and unlike a gym you get to play what you like. Music motivates people. All gyms play upbeat music to inspire their patrons to move. The same philosophy works at home.

It should be your primary goal to progressively expose your body to exercises which safely and effectively place increased demands on the muscles and joints.

It is essential that you start with exercises that require the least amount of motor control, stability and joint integrity, and move to exercises which gradually challenge intramuscular coordination, so that the prime movers (working muscles) and the opposing and stabilizing muscles all work together to the maximum benefit of your body as a whole.

You may need to buy a book specializing in home workout programs, or seek out a personal trainer program on the Internet. If you can afford it, hire a personal trainer to help get you started.

Q: Should women train with weights differently than men?

A: In a word, no. Even though women possess about two-thirds the strength of men, they can still take advantage of the same training methods.

Women can incorporate identical exercises, intensities and workloads -- relative to body weight, muscle mass and strength levels -- as men, and reap the same physiological and psychological benefits. Men's and women's training protocols are subject to the same exercise guidelines, injury prevention techniques, biomechanical cautions and recommendations, and performance mechanics.

Even very strong women will never be capable of lifting as much weight as strong men.

There are many more benefits to lifting weights than just getting strong.

Weight training also increases lean muscle mass, which raises one's metabolic rate.

It strengthens the connective tissue in the joints, improving joint strength and stability.

It improves one's posture.

It builds bone mass, which helps prevent osteoporosis.

Health Events

---

Stephenie Karony is a certified health
and fitness instructor, a personal trainer and the author of
"Body Shaping with Free Weights." Send questions to her at
P.O. Box 262, Wailuku Hi. Her column appears on Wednesdays.