Just as I had hoped when I originally started this blog, writing my post about the Nordic Track yesterday spurred me into action -- I made it ten minutes last night without a hitch! I guess I need to try for fifteen beginning this weekend.
Also, why is my cat not afraid of this machine? I'm seriously afraid she's going to be decapitated by a wooden ski. I can't decide if she's really brave or just plain dumb.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Nordic Track
Hi to anyone who's out there.
Here's the deal: I hate the outdoors unless I'm sitting on a beach or frolicking in the ocean. I hate exercising outdoors even more. I always feel self-conscious walking around the neighborhood while I'm huffing, puffing, and sweating. I don't want to run into other people while I'm exercising. Also I can't wear shorts in public because my inner thighs always catch one leg of them and drive it up toward my crotch, forcing me to shake my leg to straighten it out.
I had been thinking about buying a used treadmill from someone and mentioned it to a co-worker. He asked me if I would be interested in a Nordic Track, and then he proceeded to give it to me for free! How awesome is that?
So I cart this thing home, though not up the stairs because that's the hubby's job. My husband unloaded it and set it up for me. The Nordic Track is very bare bones looking and is all manual -- no electricity powering this baby. For anyone who has ever thought about owning one and has never actually climbed onto it, it is truly one of the most death defying machines I've encountered. And there's no emergency stop like on a treadmill. The skis don't lock into place, so you have to mount it carefully. Once you're on you have to be extremely careful lest the skis fly out from under you. I read a ton about this thing on the Internet before I actually brought it home, thank goodness. The consensus among the active folk was that if you are just starting your Nordic Track career you should definitely get the leg movement down pat before incorporating the arm thingie. Then to confuse me further, the doctor who gave me the machine specified on numerous occasions that proper form includes opposite feet and arms being in the same position, meaning when your right foot is forward, your left arm should be, too. This is a movement that should come naturally as most people tend to walk this way, but let me tell you that it's not so easy when you start having to think about the motion. I can start out OK, but inevitably I lose my footing and have to consciously start again, making sure that my feet and hands are properly placed.
This thing is great exercise! It's working your arms and legs and giving you a cardio workout all at once! How do I know? Because I've made it up to ten minutes on it...twice. I've challenged my husband to do ten minutes a day with me for a week, after which we'd work our way up. I haven't exactly kept up my part of the bargain for the week, but then again neither has he, although he has been on the Nordic Track more times than I have at this point. Hopefully I can start dragging myself out of my afterwork funk and climb aboard again sometime soon.
So now I can exercise in the privacy of my own space, blasting my iTunes on the computer, shorts riding up toward my nether regions all I want without the need for a leg shake. Which is awesome, because when I'm done the couch is just a few feet away and ready for me to drop onto it for the remainder of my daily free time.
Wish me luck!
Here's the deal: I hate the outdoors unless I'm sitting on a beach or frolicking in the ocean. I hate exercising outdoors even more. I always feel self-conscious walking around the neighborhood while I'm huffing, puffing, and sweating. I don't want to run into other people while I'm exercising. Also I can't wear shorts in public because my inner thighs always catch one leg of them and drive it up toward my crotch, forcing me to shake my leg to straighten it out.
I had been thinking about buying a used treadmill from someone and mentioned it to a co-worker. He asked me if I would be interested in a Nordic Track, and then he proceeded to give it to me for free! How awesome is that?
So I cart this thing home, though not up the stairs because that's the hubby's job. My husband unloaded it and set it up for me. The Nordic Track is very bare bones looking and is all manual -- no electricity powering this baby. For anyone who has ever thought about owning one and has never actually climbed onto it, it is truly one of the most death defying machines I've encountered. And there's no emergency stop like on a treadmill. The skis don't lock into place, so you have to mount it carefully. Once you're on you have to be extremely careful lest the skis fly out from under you. I read a ton about this thing on the Internet before I actually brought it home, thank goodness. The consensus among the active folk was that if you are just starting your Nordic Track career you should definitely get the leg movement down pat before incorporating the arm thingie. Then to confuse me further, the doctor who gave me the machine specified on numerous occasions that proper form includes opposite feet and arms being in the same position, meaning when your right foot is forward, your left arm should be, too. This is a movement that should come naturally as most people tend to walk this way, but let me tell you that it's not so easy when you start having to think about the motion. I can start out OK, but inevitably I lose my footing and have to consciously start again, making sure that my feet and hands are properly placed.
This thing is great exercise! It's working your arms and legs and giving you a cardio workout all at once! How do I know? Because I've made it up to ten minutes on it...twice. I've challenged my husband to do ten minutes a day with me for a week, after which we'd work our way up. I haven't exactly kept up my part of the bargain for the week, but then again neither has he, although he has been on the Nordic Track more times than I have at this point. Hopefully I can start dragging myself out of my afterwork funk and climb aboard again sometime soon.
So now I can exercise in the privacy of my own space, blasting my iTunes on the computer, shorts riding up toward my nether regions all I want without the need for a leg shake. Which is awesome, because when I'm done the couch is just a few feet away and ready for me to drop onto it for the remainder of my daily free time.
Wish me luck!
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