Health, Good Practises, and Exercise

[determined09]

Welcome to life as a swimmer. I use UltraSwim shampoo after my laps. Most stores carry it- it's in a small blue bottle, inexpensive ($8?). Supposedly it helps draw out the chlorine and prevent hair damage. I will warn you it smells funky. Between UltraSwim and my girlfriend's ridiculous Living Proof $25 shampoo and $25 conditioner I've been able to keep my hair decent. (I never thought shampoo made that big of a difference until using her shampoo). My GF has also thrown this "hair mask" stuff in a couple times which has quickly rejuvenated my hair.

Back in my days of competitive swimming like 4hrs a day my hair was just completely burnt. I suppose the one benefit was not having to use an styling product, it would just *stick* wherever I brushed it.

A cap will really only take you so far. Water still tends to get in there as it is. They're also prone to making your head super hot, so taking it off and wetting your head is often much needed relief. A lot of pools require caps and it will make you more hydrodynamic - so just like a Speedo, it's nothing unusual in the world of swimming. You're in the water- no ones watching you or cares.

-----
Speaking of which, I've been pretty busy lately. My 5 days a week swimming has turned into 2-3. I'm doing about 2 miles per session, albeit pretty lazily. It would be nice if I recommitted myself again. I need to switch pools too. I think something closer to home would benefit me, and perhaps somewhere with swim clientele other than the geriatric water aerobics crew to keep me motivated.
[doublepost=1466425610][/doublepost]View attachment 636994
They make a conditioner too, I've never tried that though. I only use this after swimming, not routinely. It looks like it's $5-6 at Walgreens, CVS, Walmart, etc

Are you referring to this specific product line from the Living proof? i just know that is sulfate free hair product line.

 

[A.Goldberg]

Are you referring to this specific product line from the Living proof? i just know that is sulfate free hair product line.

Shampoo and Conditioner are from the Living Proof PhD line. The mask is from the Restore line you posted above.

 

[Huntn]

Swim Cap
After using a swim cap for several session, I've decided it's a hair life saver. I hate how it looks, and it feels hot when doing the side stroke (head 3/4 out of water) but the benefit is worth the effort. I've been applying a cheap conditioner to my hair before a swim session, popping on the cap, and my hair appears to have benefitted greatly. While swimming the bottom of my hair is still exposed to the water when the back of my cap works its way up, which requires periodic adjustment. Afterwards, I am using Ultra Swim (chlorine removal) Shampoo which I found at the local CVS.

 

[ardchoille50]

I ran for a full hour today! Feeling good too

 

[Apple_Robert]

I ran for a full hour today! Feeling good too

View attachment 639566

Congrats. That is a big milestone. Relish it.

 

[ardchoille50]

Congrats. That is a big milestone. Relish it.

Thank you! I learned some breathing techniques that definitely helped.

 

[0388631]

I've been doing plain popcorn with sea salt for a few weeks now. Popped in 1-2 tbsp of organic coconut oil. Store it in an airtight container and it lasts a few days, but you can reheat it in the oven. Filling, healthy and let's just say that as we men get more older we need more fiber in our diet. You get the idea. Currently using Bob's Red Mill because it tastes great. Tried a few heirloom varieties too from Reihle's and it's very good as well.

 

[ardchoille50]

Improvement

 

[Apple_Robert]

Improvement

View attachment 639894

That is very good progress.

Be careful not to get into the mindset of wanting to get a new 'personal best' each run. You could find yourself with an injury.

If you want to get faster, work on slowly building up your long, slow run distance. If you keep your pace slow, (1 - 2 minutes slower than your normal training day pace) keeping your heart rate down while getting more time on your feet, you will find your aerobic capacity increasing, not to mention the subtle changes to your muscles, tendons, joints and bones, that are needed for running farther and faster. And before you know it, you will be covering 5.5 miles + in the same amount of time.

If you don't already have one, a heart rate monitor is a very good running tool (in my opinion).

 

[ardchoille50]

That is very good progress.

Be careful not to get into the mindset of wanting to get a new 'personal best' each run. You could find yourself with an injury.

If you want to get faster, work on slowly building up your long, slow run distance. If you keep your pace slow, (1 - 2 minutes slower than your normal training day pace) keeping your heart rate down while getting more time on your feet, you will find your aerobic capacity increasing, not to mention the subtle changes to your muscles, tendons, joints and bones, that are needed for running farther and faster. And before you know it, you will be covering 5.5 miles + in the same amount of time.

If you don't already have one, a heart rate monitor is a very good running tool (in my opinion).

Hopefully getting an Apple Watch soon, that should help with my workouts.

Yes! Very good advice all around. Thank you, sir

 

[BernyMac]

Hah, no more running for me since retiring from the military. Those runs and jumping off perfectly good airframes takes its toll. Been trying to keep DM2 at bay for the past 5 years and so far I have been able to steer clear of any medications just by riding my bike and eating properly.

 

[xthine]

This weekend I bagged my first 14er 4 months ago I could not even make it halfway up Camelback, perhaps because of fear of falling more than endurance. Plan moving forward: trail run or at least jog my routine hikes. Hit the rowing machine even harder a few times a week. Any suggestions for conditioning to hike 14ers are welcome

 

[Apple_Robert]

This weekend I bagged my first 14er 4 months ago I could not even make it halfway up Camelback, perhaps because of fear of falling more than endurance. Plan moving forward: trail run or at least jog my routine hikes. Hit the rowing machine even harder a few times a week. Any suggestions for conditioning to hike 14ers are welcome

Congrats.

I recommend trail running on a regular basis. It is an excellent workout, especially for your core. It will help with balance, as well as strengthening muscles not actively used (or used in a different manner) versus road running or standard hiking. It would also be a good idea to do hill repeats once a week, along with body squats and deadlifts.

 

[0388631]

My fitness has taken a seat since I had kids. Hopefully they can join us in a year or two. Considering purchasing a machine to put in my home office. A stationary bike is on my mind. There's generic road and trail video available to buy that I can play in the television in there and pretend I'm riding the roads.

 

[ardchoille50]

I created this graphic to motivate myself during workouts, but it applies to almost everything in life:

 

[0388631]

I've always fancied being immortal.

 

[ardchoille50]

Today's motivation..

 

[A.Goldberg]

Today's motivation..

View attachment 640743

Funny you post that, I was looking out my window yesterday to see a 900 year old lady with a walker being helped along with some sort of care taker. I was thinking the exact same thing.

I've once again fallen behind with my swimming. I've had some health issues once again to deal with which has been a bit of a distraction. I'm down to 2-3 days a week and being very lazy.

 

[Tech198]

if u call 'putting one foot in front of the other' as exercise, i do it walking to the kitchen and back..

i do go out every weekend walking so i guess that counts.

I created this graphic to motivate myself during workouts, but it applies to almost everything in life:

View attachment 640614

FYI. listen to the wise one

 

[bent christian]

For those whose knees are shot from running, but want to continue doing so, I recommend an elliptical "cross-trainer".

They are expensive ($1500 +), so maybe not for home use. If your gym has one of these, you have struck gold. These machines operate more horizontally than the typical elliptical and mimic the feel of running very well without any of the impact. The machine I use at the gym (above) has resistance for arms and legs, as well as a stride length adjustment. I have been running daily for about 15 years, and had major knee issues five years in. It took me years and years to find a solution. Now, when the knees start going out, I switch over to the cross-trainer for a day or two, and then I am back to the trail or the track again. The pain is gone, good as new.

 

[mgguy]

Welcome to life as a swimmer. I use UltraSwim shampoo after my laps. Most stores carry it- it's in a small blue bottle, inexpensive ($8?). Supposedly it helps draw out the chlorine and prevent hair damage. I will warn you it smells funky. Between UltraSwim and my girlfriend's ridiculous Living Proof $25 shampoo and $25 conditioner I've been able to keep my hair decent. (I never thought shampoo made that big of a difference until using her shampoo). My GF has also thrown this "hair mask" stuff in a couple times which has quickly rejuvenated my hair.

Back in my days of competitive swimming like 4hrs a day my hair was just completely burnt. I suppose the one benefit was not having to use an styling product, it would just *stick* wherever I brushed it.

A cap will really only take you so far. Water still tends to get in there as it is. They're also prone to making your head super hot, so taking it off and wetting your head is often much needed relief. A lot of pools require caps and it will make you more hydrodynamic - so just like a Speedo, it's nothing unusual in the world of swimming. You're in the water- no ones watching you or cares.

-----
Speaking of which, I've been pretty busy lately. My 5 days a week swimming has turned into 2-3. I'm doing about 2 miles per session, albeit pretty lazily. It would be nice if I recommitted myself again. I need to switch pools too. I think something closer to home would benefit me, and perhaps somewhere with swim clientele other than the geriatric water aerobics crew to keep me motivated.
[doublepost=1466425610][/doublepost]View attachment 636994
They make a conditioner too, I've never tried that though. I only use this after swimming, not routinely. It looks like it's $5-6 at Walgreens, CVS, Walmart, etc

Here is a link to a U.S. Masters Swimming website forum discussing the use of inexpensive vitamin C crystals in water spray to remove/neutralize chlorine smell from hair and skin following a swim. It works!

http://forums.usms.org/showthread.php?22758-Very-Inexpensive-Chlorine-Remover

 

[Huntn]

Just got back (inside) from mowing the lawn. 98°F, 45% humidity (not bad), mixed up a smoothie in the blender.

*1 frozen banana (peeled)
*1 frozen black plum (pitted duh)
*handful of frozen strawberries
*spash of lemon juice
*powdered artificial sweetener (to taste)
*filtered water (enough to make it blend)

MM, mmmm, makes an outstanding smoothie, to cool me off. Next time I'll take a picture.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Ran 11 easy miles this morning. Most of the run was done in zone 2. Have been really focusing on zone 2 with the majority of my runs lately. Looking forward to my 17 mile long run on Saturday morning. Should finish the week with 61 miles.

 

[JamesMike]

I enjoy running in the heat.

 

[Renzatic]

Ran 11 easy miles this morning.

That's impressive. I've started biking seriously over the last couple of weeks, and I can only push 6 before I'm wore out.

This is especially true while riding about in town. Unlike the school or the convention center, I can only get about 4 miles in before wearing down. Somehow, that trip manages to be uphill both ways, especially towards the end, when I'm making the final push towards the house.