Welcome to the November 2003 edition of The Heart Zones e-Newsletter
copyright: Heart Zones, your source of heart rate training information

1. Time to Fall back into Activity
2. Colds, Flu and Zone 1
3. Kids Don’t Exercise a Study Finds
4. Weight Training and Cycling: A Zoner Question
   
   also...
   
5. Train Like my Dog
6. Seminar Dates
7. WEB Specials EXTRAVAGANZA

Fall is here and Winter is around the corner. With dread some of you are putting away your summer activity equipment and wondering - now what? For starters, it is a good time to take a break. A break from the structure and stress of training is good both mentally and physically. Remember that a good rest can really help with nagging injuries especially! If you have been putting off any procedures with your doctors now is a good time to get those things checked off your list - besides if you play in winter snow - you'll want to be recovered soon! So how much time do you need? It is not untypical to take as much as a month off from your primary sport. You will not lose any fitness base by taking 10 days to 2 weeks of complete rest. Light activity can be introduced afterwards - but remember to mix it up with other activities - swimming, circuit training, mountain biking and yoga are great alternatives. Make sure too that as you take another two weeks to transition into your winter program. Rushing into a training regimen can bring you up flat at some point in the Spring. One way to stay in touch with your sport while resting is reading up on it. Use your rest time to read over past issues of sporting magazines and articles. Review the summers races and events and begin "penciling" in and thinking about next years calendar and oh yes, don't forget that the industry has introduced the 2004 of everything - which means dream time about getting new equipment! One last thing. Go over your training log. You have no doubt accomplished tons - perhaps winning, setting a new PR or simply getting fitter and more active than you have in the past. Congratulations - now REST!

Need a new log book? Visit us at www.heartzones.com Sincerely, Barbara Williford

Yes, we all know that we can guard ourselves with flu shots, frequent washing of hands and simply making sure we get adequate rest, water and nutrients to keep our immune system healthy - but….like it or not, the cold and flu season is upon us. We have all been on the merry go round of building a solid base then getting sick and either we cease activity completely (until January 1st of course), or we climb back on only to feel as if we continually starting over with training and relapses of sickness. Your best combat to all of this is knowing a little more about how to judge when it is okay to get a little sweaty.

First, know that it is always better to skip a workout when you are not feeling well, than it is to tough it out and risk getting worse. If your symptoms are above the neck - stuffy nose (clear discharge) or a scratchy throat (no fever), it is OK to complete a short workout at a low intensity. Spend time in Zone 1 and 2 (50 to 70% of your MHR). While this may feel "too easy" - stay with it, you will be tempted to go harder, but stay at the reduced intensity. One way to hold this focus is to use this time to work on technique and form. If you begin the workout and things aren't going well, turn around, head home and call it a day. If your symptoms are worse than the typical cold indicators such as chest congestion, fever, chills, muscle aches and malaise, you should not attempt your workout. This is when you feel icky BELOW the neck. These are signs of an infection or the flu virus, and exercising only makes you worse and delays recovery. Complete rest should be on your schedule until these symptoms have gone. Once you are feeling "normal," it is suggested that for every day of the illness, you complete two days of low-intensity (Zone 1 and 2) training. Train smart, listen to your body and practice EMOTIONAL FITNESS TRAINING - a great way to get through your down time!

Hard to imagine -but America's kids are even more deeply rooted couch potatoes than experts initially thought. Roughly three out of five kids ages 9 to 13 report they don't participate in sports or other coached physical activities outside school, according to a first-of-its-kind nationwide survey of children and their parents released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About one in four kids in that age group had gotten no exercise at all outside school in the previous week. Health experts said the inactivity was greater than they had expected and was worrisome. Lack of exercise is a likely contributor to the dramatic increases in obesity and Type II diabetes among American children. "This whole sedentary lifestyle is a big cultural problem in our country, and that's what we're up against," said CDC health scientist Marian Huhman, the lead author in the study, to be published in today's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The 9-to-13 age is key because that's the most physically active period of most people's lives, Huhman said. It's also the age when changes in exercise habits probably would do the most good. Once children hit puberty, "they become physically less active," said Ruth Saunders, a professor of health promotion at the University of South Carolina's School of Public Health in Columbia. "If you start with only a third of them reporting being active in some structured way at age 13, by the time they finish high school who is going to be active?" The study is intended as the baseline for future studies to determine whether a new CDC ad campaign, aimed at getting kids to be more active, is working. The CDC has spent $244 million on the effort in the past three years. The study found that while boys and girls participated in organized physical activities at the same rate, boys were more likely to be active in their free time. Parents said the main obstacles to their children's getting more exercise were high costs, transportation problems and parents' lack of time. So, what can you do? If time and cost is really an issue, contact your school and learn more about the activities the school program has. Call upon the physical education department and speak to them about their activities and how your child is or not participating. Like everything else - the only way to overcome some of these obstacles is to look at the big picture. A healthy ACTIVE lifestyle now can provide life long skills in health and well being management. Recently a teacher from Alaska contacted Heart Zones about the use of heart monitors with her class - she basically got the idea of using them from the health club. Check out two books written by Sally Edwards and Deve Swaim on heart rate training and students: www.heartzones.com

I have been active in Heart Zones Cycling as a student and soon as an instructor! I am wondering about what type of weight training I can suggest for cyclists who will soon be coming indoors to ride? (Seattle, Washington)

An excellent question - as indicated above, remember to inquire about a participants training regimen when they transition indoors to insure that they are taking some rest and recovery time. When hitting the weight room to work on gaining extra strength for their next season, they should make the lower body exercises be as specific to cycling as possible. Focus on the largest muscle groups first, when you are least fatigued and have the most concentration. The cycling "prime mover" muscle groups are the hip extensors, gluteus groups and quadriceps. Exercises for these muscles include leg press, step-ups and squats. Exercises should be executed with a similar range of motion to a pedal stroke. At the "bottom" of each exercise the angle of your knee should be no less than what it is at the top of a pedal stroke, in most cases 90 degrees. Avoid the temptation to go "deeper" with squats or leg press, and use the right height "step" for step-ups. For the leg press, keep your feet crank width apart and toes pointing forward, just like on the bike. Do exercises single-legged when possible and concentrate on the concentric (pushing or pulling) phase of each exercise. Include hamstring work as part of the program. Hamstrings can have a positive impact on climbing and helps balance your leg muscles. Also try hip flexor exercises such as leg raises or leg-pulls, as these can benefit sprinting and climbing. And finally - stretching is so important and so often overlooked. Encourage work such as Active Isolation Stretching, yoga and massage.

My dog, Niko, and I are spending a much needed rest from coaching in Sacramento. The other day we went out for a 20-minute walk/run. He is 14 years old, and while we were out for our jaunt, I thought how human athletes should be more like my dog.

1. Niko never complains. He is up for any type of workout without asking, "Will it be hard? Will it be hilly, do I really have time for this, or will the water be too cold?"
2. Niko has a high level of physical pain tolerance. Sometimes, when running in Alaska he would get snow balls in his paws, but he would continue to keep up with a wagging tail while I consumed my head with chit chat talk about how ridiculous, hard and painful it was to run outside in the snow.
3. With Niko being 14 now, he certainly isn't as fast as he once was and his hips aren't great either. Niko may not be "pain free" while running, but he sure starts out with enthusiasm and smiles and really still enjoys running and swimming.
4. Niko receives regular massage and he naps throughout the day and I'm certain he visualizes his next workout. (Because of jerking feet and small yips.)
5. Niko has great agility. He has never sprained an ankle and he has four of them.
6. Niko is focused. He doesn't talk with a friend until after he brings back the ball or Frisbee. He cross-trains regularly with swim/run bricks. He has great entry and exit skills for transitions.

We are beginning to put 2004's schedule together for more Heart Zones Training Seminars and Certifications. Give us a call and inquire how you can host us at your site. And for those of you who have called throughout the year wondering if we would EVER come to your area, this is your chance to put in your request. Contact us at staff@heartzones.com

November 22, 2003 in Houston, TX
January 24, 2004 in Sacramento, CA

The Timex Marathon Heart Rate Monitor, sleek woman design (smaller face - but still big readable numbers) is regularly $85.00 - this month $69.00! The Timex Digital Data Recorder regularly $75.00 - this month $69.00! Timex Speed and Distance GPS System regularly $300.00 now $235.00!!!! And finally, a Heart Zones Workout Bag (conferences attendee's all received one with their registration) regularly $25.00 now only $15.00. Visit the Heart Zones online store at www.heartzones.com

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copyright: Heart Zones
staff@heartzone.com
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Phone: (916) 481-7283
Fax: (916) 481-2213
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The Heart Zones e-Newsletter is a Heart Zones publication
Publisher: Sally Edwards
Editor in Chief: Jessica Menendez

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