hiking

Six Reasons to Slow Down Your Workout

We tend to think bigger is better. We have to work harder and faster or we aren’t getting a good enough workout. Sometimes we even use this as an excuse not to exercise. But research is showing we can chill out. You don’t have to go hard or go home. You can just move. Here are some research points in favor of a gentler workout:

Run Slow (10-min mile)

Running ten-minute miles and under 15-miles a week is more beneficial to your heart health than running faster for longer, which actually diminishes the gain for your heart. So slow down and enjoy the run. And stop calling yourself a jogger at a 10-minute mile. It’s not 1970. You’re out there running with everyone else. You’re a runner.

Pilates Good For Your Mind

A small study showed that 10-weeks of Pilates increases memory, cognitive function and neural network activity. You won’t be surprised if you’ve done Pilates. It’s basically the exercise for multi-taskers. There’s a lot going on at the same time.

Aerobic Exercises Creates New Neurons

That’s right. Exercise is one of the few things, if not the only thing, in life that creates and builds new neurons in the brain. This should be reason enough […]

Six Reasons to Slow Down Your WorkoutMaggie Downie2017-10-25T15:49:49-04:00

Welcome to Jordan

“You are welcome to Jordan” was the phrase we heard from almost everyone we met on our recent whirlwind trip to the Middle East. “Please, go home and tell your friends and family they are welcome to Jordan too.” Jordan, like Turkey, is a predominately safe country with some very difficult neighbors. It doesn’t have any state issued travel warnings. Mexico does. (Just to provide a little perspective.)

The curbs were the most colorful part of Amman.

I was nervous about traveling to Jordan until I got there. Even though the flights were long, it was worth the trip. We had three days in country which gave us time to see Amman, the Dead Sea, Petra and spend the night in the Wadi Rum.

Amman had some good local food and dabbled in interesting graffiti, but in my short stay there I didn’t see much else worth discovering. It’s a very beige city—the Earth and buildings are the same color.

Floating in the Dead Sea

The Dead Sea disappointed in its beauty […]

Welcome to JordanMaggie Downie2017-10-25T14:24:29-04:00

Hiking the Subway in Zion (Not if there is a flash flood)

Rain has never stopped us before. If we are traveling and want to hike, we go, even if we occasionally get strange looks from the locals.

The Subway got it’s name because parts look like an actual subway.

So when we got to Zion Visitor Center to pick up our permit to hike the Subway, we were conflicted when we saw there was a 60% chance of rain the day of our hike. We had taken rappel classes and invested in the equipment (helmets, harnesses, rope, carabineers and more rope and carabineers) we would need along the way.

It turns out 60% chance of rain doesn’t mean there is a 60% chance of rain like I always thought. It means that 60% of the area in question will get rain. And on the Subway in Zion that means a probable chance of a flash flood. When the ranger informed us that she wouldn’t even consider hiking anything with over a 30% chance of rain, and we called Matt’s dad (an atmospheric physicist who can serve as a meteorologist) we begrudgingly decided not […]

Hiking the Subway in Zion (Not if there is a flash flood)Maggie Downie2017-10-25T14:26:04-04:00

True-Explosive Plyometrics

Nowadays we’ll call anything that involves jumping plyometrics. It’s become the term for jumping exercises, but simply jumping isn’t exactly what plyometrics were meant to be. Plyometrics were specific types of exercises that involved a fall, which created a shock, which lead to a quick recoil (eccentric contraction of the muscles), and an almost immediate rebound (concentric contraction of the muscles) or jump. The quicker the jump the better. It is the quick turn around from eccentric contraction to concentric contraction that makes something a True or Explosive Plyometric.

Your average jumping drills everyone is doing now can provide a good workout. Most people don’t really need to practice True Plyometrics, but if you are an athlete or are working with an athlete, an avid runner, hiker or basketball player or someone who is very fit and looking to improve their speed and strength it is important to know the difference. True Plyometric drills is what will achieve enhanced speed and strength for an individual more than just jumping exercises.

Plyometrics can be […]

True-Explosive PlyometricsMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:28-04:00

The Grand Canyon

The name is fitting. If nothing else the Grand Canyon is certainly grand. The size is enormous. There are rocks of every color. Red, oranges and yellows I expected, but the blues and greens in the landscape surprised me. When the moon sets in the morning, but before the sun comes up the stars are super bright and look like silver pinholes in the sky. But what impressed me the most was the silence. Once a mile down in the canyon, if you stop walking and just listen, you’ll find there is nothing to listen to. No helicopter tours; no raging Colorado River (unless you are within ear shot of the river because that is loud), no animal noises, no buzzing electrical wires, no people, no cars, no wind in the trees. I think it is the quietest place I have ever been. I would have thought that might be eerie, but I loved it. It was calming. For someone who can’t meditate and quiet the mind, it seemed great. It drew me in to appreciate the stillness […]

The Grand CanyonMaggie Downie2017-09-12T19:31:41-04:00