Sorry about the long break in posts, I have been really busy
with a lot of stuff going on in my life, both fitness related and just being a
busy college student. This post is basically going to just be a recap of what
I’ve been up to, and some information and opinions on some other things. It may
also turn into something completely different as I write, who knows. We will
find out though, as I stick to my rule of only checking for spelling and
grammar not content when I look over at the end. (For those who may question
why I don’t really plan what I am going to write or why I don’t check what I’ve
written, it is simply because I want people to read this and hear me, so I type
how I talk, and you can’t take something back when you speak, so I maintain
that rule.) Anyway, let’s get into it.
As a Kinesiology major at the University of Maryland, we are
required to take physical activity classes. These can range from
cardio-kickboxing to basketball to bowling. Well this semester, I decided to
take two of them because it fit into my schedule and I wanted to. This semester
I am taking intermediate step aerobics and intermediate swimming. The
intermediate really just means that there is a range of total beginners to
people who are really advanced.
For those who don’t
know much about step aerobics, it is steady state cardio done by doing
different choreography based around a step. We will do different kicks, and
other “dances” in order to get our workout in. There is definitely some
coordination required because you need to hear the instruction and then figure
out the right move to make. It is a lot harder than I thought it would be. When
I registered, my thought was that it is basically glorified walking, and
sometimes I still feel like that, but when I start thinking that, our teacher
shows us why it is more than that and will push us harder or make us do harder
choreography. After we finish with the aerobics part, we will then do different
bodyweight or light weight exercises to do some strength training as well. It is
definitely something people should try for the sake of it, I mean it is quite
interesting. Plus, admittedly, being 1 of 6 guys in a class of 40 isn’t the
worst thing either.
For swimming, especially intermediate swimming, coming from
a swimming background makes this class pretty easy. For the first few weeks we
were doing mostly technique and stroke work, not real swimming workouts.
Instead of tailoring the workout for different abilities (we separate into
lanes of different abilities, I am in one of the top 2 lanes) the teacher would
just write up a plan and have us do it. Since my lane is all people who had
previously swam competitively, we would finish the workout in maybe 15 minutes
and be done. In a way I liked it because last year I would swim occasionally
but most use it as active recovery from other things, now I was getting that in
class. Recently we finished doing stroke work, so we now do actual workouts,
but even for a while it was still just one workout and we would still finish
way ahead of everyone else and be done with plenty of time to spare. Now,
finally the teacher has modified the workouts, and given options to make us do
more work in the same amount of time. We generally still finish before most of
the other class, but by the time we do finish, we actually feel like we did a
workout, obviously nothing compared to what we had all done in high school but
still something where we were pretty fatigued.
Due to taking step aerobics and swimming, both of which
being on Tuesdays and Thursdays, my plan has changed quite dramatically from
what I was hoping to do at the beginning of the semester. My goal originally
was to squat daily, well I’m at the point where I can come into the gym 3-4
days a week outside of that. I can’t come in Mondays simply because I am way
too busy, so I try and do Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturday and/or Sunday, but
even getting all of that is sometimes a stretch. I live 20 minutes walking from
the gym, so the inconvenience is sometimes an issue where I don’t have the time
to make the trek, then workout, then trek back. While that is just an excuse,
it is still a reason I’m not coming in as often as I’d like.
With me not coming in as often, I now officially do squat
whenever I come in, except I have only been front squatting because of an
article I read basically saying why front squats are better than back squats (http://breakingmuscle.com/strength-conditioning/when-in-doubt-do-front-squats-25-tips-for-better-front-squats).
I will go to a heavy triple and then add in some lighter sets for volume. I
plan on going back to back squats once I hit an actual plateau. I also do a lot
less conditioning work, both for time sake and because I rationalize that I get
it during step aerobics and swimming, so my focus becomes squatting, then
pressing (I will alternate strict press and bench press) to a heavy triple, and
then depending on time, I will work on pull ups. If I have time after that, I
will either do a quick metcon or I’ll do some core work or work on different
skills. Recently I have begun working on handstands and handstand pushups, I
still have a long way to go on them, but I am progressing.
I have unfortunately recently encountered some knee pain in
my left knee. For a while it was only during heavy squats, so I would just
lighten the load because I wanted to continue squatting to avoid losing too
much strength and to maintain neurological proficiency. Then when I would feel
fine, I would have step aerobics which is pretty high impact and my knee
sometimes will flair up and feel really tender and then it becomes even worse
so I have been in a constant struggle of wanting to maintain and not wanting to
be in pain, and then when I have taken rest, and feel totally fine, I’ll go
back to squatting and then when I try and push it even a little, the pain
starts to come back again. It seems that I am in a vicious circle of even
though I rest, I am still doing some high impact work with step aerobics and
therefore my knee never truly gets to rest. I am considering working on pistols
(single leg squats) in the event that it might be muscular imbalances and not
structural, and if it is structural, I’ll find out really soon after starting.
We shall see what will happen with my knee and with these
classes, hopefully everything ends up well and I really want my knee to feel
better. If not, I am considering buying knee sleeves for a little compression
but mostly just for the warmth and increase blood flow to help with preventing
pain.
Sorry for
the long post, but I wanted to give a good update.
Like always, if you have any questions or things you want me
to talk about, either comment or let me know personally.
