The Playground Workout
Gyms, unless you're there with a friend, get really boring pretty quickly in my opinion.
When I was living in Prague I was walking outside a lot, probably a couple hours every day, and frequently going on some all-day hiking thing on the weekends. So I've been feeling weird and cooped up if I don't get to go out on the nice days.
Those two factors combined, naturally I decided to go play at the park yesterday. I decided to share, in case anyone would like to shake up their workout, or wants to be outside more but isn't sure what to do other than jog trails.
So I went to Black Creek Park to play on the playground...but there were kids there, so I decided to go for a run around the pond in the futile hope they'd be gone when I got back. About halfway around the pond there's a subtle trailhead, #25. http://www.monroecounty.gov/Image/BlackCreekPark.pdf I was feeling self-conscious about my jog-pant-walk cycle (cardio is my undoing), so I decided to be pathetic in the privacy of the woods instead. A little ways down the trail you come to a swamp/stream that you need to walk across a log to get over. I decided to go for it, all the while berating myself for not wearing my utility boots this one time. And joy! On the other side is a Log Playground.
Do you remember on the old-school playgrounds how you could play Alligator/Shark Pit? And you had to run over the planks/tires/cross the bars or whatever but not touch the ground because the alligators would get you? This part of the woods as a ton of fallen trees, most of which connect into a walkable path, which is perfect for the rugged outdoorsy version of Alligator Pit. It's so fun! There's a lot of variety in width, bounciness, wood quality, angles, obstacles like trees rightnextto or branches lying over the logs, etc. Rotten wood or slippery moss add extra challenges as well. It works your balance, legs, and core. It's that kind of many-muscle, functional workout that I love. Cause who knows when you'll need to walk on a narrow path across a chasm to escape a Balrog or something. It also keeps your mind in the game because trust me, no matter how well you've been balancing, if you let your mind wander you will fall.
If just walking the logs is too easy, try keeping your arms down, walking backwards, walking sideways, crouching, jumping from log to log, stepping up onto a high log from a low log, looking up instead of at the log, etc. Do all the stuff they made you do on the balance beam in gym class. When you encounter an obstacle, try to go around/over/under it without using your hands or letting any part of your body touch it. I found a log at butt-height and stood next to it with the log at my side, put one leg on it and stood up, which is practice for getting up on a slackline and is Very good exercise. If you have a particular body part that needs work, focus on using that to balance. Like, maybe you automatically do most of your balance correction with your feet/lower legs, so try consciously using your core to make adjustments instead.
Please be careful! Even if a log has been stable the last 4 times you've walked it, you may have weakened it enough that the 5th time sends you crashing. There are a lot of sharp impalish sticks coming up out of the ground, and this time of year the leaves can hide other sticks or holes, so falling could be dangerous.
If you want to get an upper body workout in on the logs, feel free to haul them around. I was tempted to rearrange them a little since there were a few gaps where I had to walk between logs, but I didn't have gloves with me and didn't feel like ripping my hands to shreds. I wouldn't recommend climbing/swinging on the standing trees - as some ominous creaking reminded me, that many fallen trees mean that they're not the most stable variety.
So, that was a superfun Robinlike afternoon, a decent ab/leg workout plus some cardio when I was jumping between uneven logs, and when I crossed the stream again on the way out I was much more confident on that log. :)
But I still needed my upper body, and doing pushups on picnic benches is kinda boring, and the playground was still full. Sadness. So I found a different empty playground on the way home.
"But Rachel, didn't you feel self-conscious climbing around alone on a playground right next to a main road and with 3 teenage boys watching you from some bleachers?"
Yes. Yes I did. But I try not to let that stop me from doing what I want. So what if they think I'm weird? Maybe I gave them a good laugh and something to talk about. Maybe, if they're very cool, they'll want to be my friend. Who knows? No skin off my nose either way.
So anyways, this particular playground was not very well suited to working out. Those swing-across bars defeated me when I was a little kid, and they still defeat me now. :D But I found some bars to do some Australian pullups on, so I did manage to get a full-body workout in. APUs are my new favorite thing, because anyone should be able to do just a couple, and as long as you have 2 bars to hold you can place your feet so that you can do them in just about any position, even if the bars are near vertical. Oh, you can also go on the swings and once you're high enough, put your legs out straight and lean back. If you do it right that'll work your arms, abs, and quads. If you're able, I recommend finding an older playground that still has a lot of levels to climb and a jungle gym, and you can work a fair number of muscles on it.
So there you have it! A fun, mentally engaging way to get outside and exercise your whole body, without paying for a gym membership. If you come up with any unusual ways to use the playground as exercise equipment, let me know. ;)
When I was living in Prague I was walking outside a lot, probably a couple hours every day, and frequently going on some all-day hiking thing on the weekends. So I've been feeling weird and cooped up if I don't get to go out on the nice days.
Those two factors combined, naturally I decided to go play at the park yesterday. I decided to share, in case anyone would like to shake up their workout, or wants to be outside more but isn't sure what to do other than jog trails.
So I went to Black Creek Park to play on the playground...but there were kids there, so I decided to go for a run around the pond in the futile hope they'd be gone when I got back. About halfway around the pond there's a subtle trailhead, #25. http://www.monroecounty.gov/Image/BlackCreekPark.pdf I was feeling self-conscious about my jog-pant-walk cycle (cardio is my undoing), so I decided to be pathetic in the privacy of the woods instead. A little ways down the trail you come to a swamp/stream that you need to walk across a log to get over. I decided to go for it, all the while berating myself for not wearing my utility boots this one time. And joy! On the other side is a Log Playground.
Do you remember on the old-school playgrounds how you could play Alligator/Shark Pit? And you had to run over the planks/tires/cross the bars or whatever but not touch the ground because the alligators would get you? This part of the woods as a ton of fallen trees, most of which connect into a walkable path, which is perfect for the rugged outdoorsy version of Alligator Pit. It's so fun! There's a lot of variety in width, bounciness, wood quality, angles, obstacles like trees rightnextto or branches lying over the logs, etc. Rotten wood or slippery moss add extra challenges as well. It works your balance, legs, and core. It's that kind of many-muscle, functional workout that I love. Cause who knows when you'll need to walk on a narrow path across a chasm to escape a Balrog or something. It also keeps your mind in the game because trust me, no matter how well you've been balancing, if you let your mind wander you will fall.
If just walking the logs is too easy, try keeping your arms down, walking backwards, walking sideways, crouching, jumping from log to log, stepping up onto a high log from a low log, looking up instead of at the log, etc. Do all the stuff they made you do on the balance beam in gym class. When you encounter an obstacle, try to go around/over/under it without using your hands or letting any part of your body touch it. I found a log at butt-height and stood next to it with the log at my side, put one leg on it and stood up, which is practice for getting up on a slackline and is Very good exercise. If you have a particular body part that needs work, focus on using that to balance. Like, maybe you automatically do most of your balance correction with your feet/lower legs, so try consciously using your core to make adjustments instead.
Please be careful! Even if a log has been stable the last 4 times you've walked it, you may have weakened it enough that the 5th time sends you crashing. There are a lot of sharp impalish sticks coming up out of the ground, and this time of year the leaves can hide other sticks or holes, so falling could be dangerous.
If you want to get an upper body workout in on the logs, feel free to haul them around. I was tempted to rearrange them a little since there were a few gaps where I had to walk between logs, but I didn't have gloves with me and didn't feel like ripping my hands to shreds. I wouldn't recommend climbing/swinging on the standing trees - as some ominous creaking reminded me, that many fallen trees mean that they're not the most stable variety.
So, that was a superfun Robinlike afternoon, a decent ab/leg workout plus some cardio when I was jumping between uneven logs, and when I crossed the stream again on the way out I was much more confident on that log. :)
But I still needed my upper body, and doing pushups on picnic benches is kinda boring, and the playground was still full. Sadness. So I found a different empty playground on the way home.
"But Rachel, didn't you feel self-conscious climbing around alone on a playground right next to a main road and with 3 teenage boys watching you from some bleachers?"
Yes. Yes I did. But I try not to let that stop me from doing what I want. So what if they think I'm weird? Maybe I gave them a good laugh and something to talk about. Maybe, if they're very cool, they'll want to be my friend. Who knows? No skin off my nose either way.
So anyways, this particular playground was not very well suited to working out. Those swing-across bars defeated me when I was a little kid, and they still defeat me now. :D But I found some bars to do some Australian pullups on, so I did manage to get a full-body workout in. APUs are my new favorite thing, because anyone should be able to do just a couple, and as long as you have 2 bars to hold you can place your feet so that you can do them in just about any position, even if the bars are near vertical. Oh, you can also go on the swings and once you're high enough, put your legs out straight and lean back. If you do it right that'll work your arms, abs, and quads. If you're able, I recommend finding an older playground that still has a lot of levels to climb and a jungle gym, and you can work a fair number of muscles on it.
So there you have it! A fun, mentally engaging way to get outside and exercise your whole body, without paying for a gym membership. If you come up with any unusual ways to use the playground as exercise equipment, let me know. ;)