Cross Training Invigorates the Body and the Mind

Even though I surf everyday, there are muscle groups I am not affecting.

Yesterday I went stand up paddle boarding (SUP) for the first time. I shared my hour with my surfer neighbor who also wanted to give it a try. We went our local harbor in Oceanside and had a great time paddling in the channel on calm water.

Even though it caused us no problem, I could tell that if I did it for an hour on my own, I would feel it in my upper torso. Today I feel it in my quads. Surfing requires strong legs and it tells me I am not giving enough attention to my quad development.

So I began the morning inspired to do more exercises. I started with 60 squats and at the end I could feel my burn. It shows I need to do it more. I did some squat thrusts that include a push up and simulate a pop up on a surf board. I did my plank for two minutes. Then I added side planks which I have never done.

I could feel the balance stress. Then I lifted one leg and could feel the difficulty. It tells me I should do more of these. I did some core work on the large flex ball that I am used to and then did some regular crunches and bicycle leg lifts that I don’t do as often.

Each new exercise tells me I am reaching under used muscles. The stair running I often include in my morning routine of yoga and push ups doesn’t seem to build the quad strain the same as squats.

I placed a small object on the ground and jumped over it from side to side. I jumped on my small 21/2 foot wall from a standing squat landing with both feet on the wall shoulder width apart like I would land on my surf board after a pop up.

Once again, I felt the strain from my muscles not being used to the stress. Means I should add them until 20 to 30 repetitions are easy. Doing new activities is mentally and physically stimulating.  Now I have new exercises to liven up and reinvigorate my routine.

If we do the same things all the time, we are likely to start letting them slip all together. The exercising is like our daily living. We need to liven it up by putting in new things and taking some routines away. My daughter says she turned off Face Book for three days to break her addiction.

I told her she should try eliminating TV for a week and see how much time it opened up for reading or even going out for a run or swim. They say variety is the spice of life and we need to keep spicing up our diet, exercise, and daily routines.

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Some Good Paddle Board Instruction  http://youtu.be/5-7rDavdJGs