|
The
Gift in Disguise
by
Pam Brooks
My
third grade teacher was one of the meaner humans on the planet.
Everyone in our class was scared to draw her attention. What could
this introduction possibly have to do with fitness? Well, the
meanest teacher on the planet was quite physically unfit. She
had the kind of arms where the skin was loose and flabby. We watched
in horrified fascination as her underarms swung back and forth
when she used the black board eraser. I have carried this vision
in my memory and have come to realize the gift in disguise the
meanest teacher on the planet gave me. When I feel too lazy to
work out, I often get a visual of the black board erasing and
the swinging underarms and I go straight to my workout!
There
is one simple way to avoid the black board-underarm scenario.
Slow motion push-ups. When I started doing these push-ups, I could
only do one. Even though I had trained with weights for years,
I could just barely do one full push-up. So that’s what I
did. Then I added more as I got stronger. These push-ups tone
the biceps and triceps as well as a good portion of the chest
and back muscles. In terms of results, you get a lot of progress
without a large amount of repetition.
And
the results are surprisingly fast.
There’s
just one catch. If you have excess body fat layering the muscles
of your arms, the results are hidden by the body fat. No matter
how firm the arm muscles are, they will not be able to hold the
line against the black board "swing" if there is substantial
body fat layering. Modification of food choices and portion control
play a key part in how fast your body shows improvement.
So,
good luck. Hit the floor and give me...at least one!
|
Slow-motion
Push-ups:
- Stand
with feet together, shoulders pressed down.
- Walk
your hands slowly down the front of your legs until your
palms are pressing into the floor. (Bend your knees slightly
if you can’t reach the floor.)
- Walk
your hands out on the floor until your palms are directly
beneath your shoulders.
- Lower
your hips until they are in line with the rest of your
body. (Imagine you are suspended by a heavy spring attached
to your belt loops and up to the ceiling)
- While
performing a push-up, keep your navel tucked inward toward
your spine. Maintain a straight line from your body to
your head.
- On
your last push-up, fold up in your center, bringing your
chest toward your legs. Walk your hands back toward your
feet. Keep your legs as straight as possible as you go.
- Increase
repetitions as you improve
|
–
Pam Brooks
|
