Jack Barrette's Page
- Jack Barrette Cambridge, MA
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Jack Barrette's Groups
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Sleep Problems
(24 members)
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Diabetes - Type 2
(26 members)
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Alzheimer's Disease
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Diet, Weight Loss & Nutrition
(51 members)
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Migraine
(88 members)
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- Second personal website
- http://www.wegohealth.com
- Blog 1 I recommend
- http://www.thehealthcareblog.com
- Blog 2 I recommend
- http://www.healthpopuli.com
- Nonprofit or other organization 1 I recommend
- www.hopefoundboston.org
© 2008 Created by Adrienne
Comment Wall (5 comments)
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I read your comments on Deborah's page and really felt compelled to write you.
The idea of a contract for friends is great. I have always wanted to write a letter to the families and friends of newly diagnosed Migraineurs and Dystonia patients. I think the idea of a contract is terrific, but, as any contract in life, it should be both read in full and understood. This is hard, especially when a diagnosis is genetic or very serious, or if the friend has been "out of commission" for a time before diagnosis.
May I write about this in my blog? With your permission, I would really love to explore this idea past the initial "letter for families of newly diagnosed" and include the concept of a contract.
I believe: Old friends, like precious worn and used heirlooms and aging dogs, should be nurtured and treasured for as long as you are blessed to have them in your life.
I also believe in Mental Hygiene and "mining for gold" as you so aptly phrased it. In with the good, out with the bad.
The key to happiness with chronic illness I think, is realizing and accepting where one ends and the other begins.
thanks so much for your comment.
In my case of retiree, it does convey a sense of having nothing to do but sitting in a chair and watching a sports game on television so I think I picked up your sentiment about this term.
Now, to the health issue, I think we need models in the exercise field to pattern ourselves after. Jack LaLanne is 92 and the last time I heard he had done a 1,000 pushups. Well, I am not that competitive that I would want to do that. First of all, there is the possibility of repetitive strain causing injury. Secondly, I evaluate the functionality of the exercise. I have a high value on bending forward and bending backwards, bending sideways and twisting. I often do one hour of just these exercises. They are not that strenuous and I think as we advance in age that these are critical exercises to maintain our bodily structure rather than mechanical pushups. The so-called girlie pushups is really a label that I feel strongly against. (How individualistic we English speakers are in our dislike of certain labels!) I prefer knee pushups as an alternative. Two reasons why I do knee pushups. My wrists are not super strong and why build shoulder strength in this way when I can do headstand pushups if I want to. But, in my daily life I don't see this as a functional exercise. How will strengthening this part of the body or that help me to walk better, create a better posture, etc. I am not into lifting 200 pound sandbags either so why bother with what is not useful? I am not interested in bragging about the number of reps I can do or how big my pecs are. I have other preferences to work on.
Finally, I do a lot of dumbbell work. I don't see that kettlebars are really so different that it would be functional for me to use them. Shipping costs are high and there are no small increments in weight as there are with dumbbells.
Finally, I vary my exercises so that I use only my muscles that are not sore or weakened from the previous day. I would find doing 3 sets of 10 reps of this exercise or that rather tedious. What if you want to brag that you can do 1000 pushups? You wake up one morning and feel as if you simply do not want to do another exercise session. Your muscles are sore, etc. Then you are on a guilt trip about lacking discipline, etc.
I prefer a more positive approach in which all is grist for the mill when one exercises. Whatever the fancy, there is the routine.
Finally, I taught myself yoga, pilates, band resistance, swiss ball, etc., and that held my interest throughout the years. I also juggle a bit, and do what I think is called bar exercises. Developed my own system on that one. So, I have practiced hundreds of different exercises, determined what my body needed due to certain muscle and bone weaknesses, etc., and that is why I said that each one must follow his own path such as Buddha and Krishnamurti suggested in their philosophies.
Good luck and hope some idea gives you a spark of creativity if that is what you after.
Your friend,
Sid
I don't know your routine now but what should be important is what goal do you have in mind. Bruce Lee pointed out that he had a goal in mind when he exercised a certain part of the body so you have to ask yourself if it is for your health, to reduce your abs, etc. THen you want to develop a routine for that.
One hour is okay for body maintenance in a general sense. My personal belief is if you have the time, better spend it in gaining a comprehensive understanding of the field which entails medicine, herbs, sports medicine, body building, etc. One person may have the answers for themself but not for someone else. You should be the one to decide all of this as no one has any idea of your bodily needs in this regard. Good luck on this.
Tai Chi is very good for this but it does not address the need for greater strength for better results. Combining free style tai chi is ideal because many people give up tai chi due to its perfectionistic attitude that need not be. It is proper stretching, movement and circulation that creates health.
Moreover, each person must find their own needs regarding their body. Working out in a group does not make much sense since some people are weaker than others. It is an individualistic matter. For me the neck, wrists, hips, knees and ankles are very important to pay attention to for one hour.
The first hour one should not worry about speed or weight but simply blood circulation. This idea is not new at all since the practice of tai chi in Chinese hospitals for hours is common when the patient is capable and motivated. IT is very useful as a physical therapeutic adjunct.
The next step is determining what areas of the body are rigid and prevent good posture. Yoga and Pilates address this issue but the yoga should be active and not passive poses. You do this hard or soft depending on your past conditioning.
Finally, dumbbells are excellent for aerobic effects such as in heavy hands. I do not intentionally do 3 hours but it required that much time to unwind. If you are still after 3 hours then you have not properly done the exercises. You should feel light and energized. All of this is up to the individual to explore.
Finally, diet is critical. You need to become knowledgeable about nutrition and study it everyday on internet. Also, sports medicine. You need to understand muscle strains, etc.
If you do not have the time to do this then you may succeed with a limited routine but Bruce Lee pointed the direction when he varied his workout considerably as time passed by. That is also very important and requires one to learn hundreds of exercises that one can spontaneously bring into the workout. These must be exercises that are comfortable and pleasing to perform.