The NYTimes link below was sent by a smart former client. I’ll see how it works for me, and if you do too, please let me know after several weeks how it works for you.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/29/a-way-to-get-fit-and-also-have-fun/?mwrsm=Email
Please share your experience/response to this Post. I'd sure like to know, and it could be useful to someone else. You can click the Post's title to view the entire post, and Comment below, if you like. The "Name Field" will accept any name, so you can be Anonymous [Anon] if you prefer. You must enter your Email to post a comment, but your Email address will not appear publicly. Thanks, Dr Bob
I tried it out, first on land race walking, and running the last 10 seconds of each of the 5 reps in 1 of the 2 sets suggested, plus 2 reps. I was impressed at how slowly I ran compared to the last time I ran a decade or more ago. I’ve avoided high impact exercise as my knee grew more uncomfortable before the replacement, and high impact is verboten with a knee replacement. I’m hoping 10 seconds times however many up-to-10-reps per every other day workouts will not unduly stress my new knee – I guess I better ask the doc.
I returned from my once a week 1 & 1/2 mile race walk course with quite sore inner hip/leg joints, so I’ve not repeated that trial yet. I’m hadn’t remembered what my friend Lauren told me: at older age new physical experiences should be introduced Very slowly and progressively.
I expected I’d be OK using the new 30/20/10 second sequence in my 3 times a week 45 minute water aerobic exercise, using an Aqua-jogger b for laps in the pool, since I’d been at it so many years. But no, the first time I did it I pulled a quad muscle to the point of having to stop that exercise period. And that’s how I was reminded of Lauren’s wise caution.
I iced it for a day, to my surprise and pleasure, I was able to continue water exercise every other day, and to race walk once at my usual rate. Today, a week after my water un-pleasance, I did many 5 second, fast-as-I-could water sprints carefully monitoring that quad, and using somewhat different leg muscles in that leg. That worked out fine, and I’m gonna’ be Very careful about Slowly progressing to the 10 second sprint segment.
We’ll see how it goes. My mistakes in exercise, including Yoga stretching, have usually been pushing beyond safe limits, so what I’m relearning again is consistent with my past experience. I do like the possibility of shorter, more intense workouts, and time will tell if that works for me. Dr bob