How Steep Was My Valley: Waipi’o, HI
Great aerobic exercise. Spectacular views. Free sun and Vitamin D. 5 hours. 6.5 miles. 4,000' up and down. 2,500+ calories gone. Cost of admission: nothing. Trail food: $3.
Presidential Fitness: Fuggeddaboutit
Let's observe Presidents Day by considering Presidential fitness: the health benefits of a good night's sleep. Like achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. And thinking clearly: being able to distinguish between facts and “noise". Let's look at the research.
Love Handles
Want to lose them for Valentine's Day? Great! That'll be next Valentine's Day. Because Better Cheaper Slower is The Slow Fix. Because there are no quick fixes that actually work. If you plan to be around next year at this time, click and think about this. Because if you started last Valentine's Day, you might have lost the handles by now.
Killer couches. Murderous desk chairs.
Can't blame them. Sure, they might be really comfortable. Inviting. But it's not their fault. It's you. The sitter. Sitting for hours at a time reduces your metabolic rate and makes you a more likely candidate for obesity and diabetes. Here's an easy solution to the problem.
4 Muddy Boots on a 4-Wheel Drive Trail
8 miles in 5 or 6 hours in the rainforest. 3,000' of elevation gain. 3,000 calories burned. Want more? Take the waterfall detour. Right up the middle of the shallow but rocky stream. Check my big 3D Google Map for the turnoff. If you're already here,the extra cost for all this nature and exercise = zero.
Great Balls of Exercise: Front Raises
Strengthen your shoulder, arm and chest muscles by squeezing this really big exercise ball between your hands. And raising it above your head. Use your core, back and leg muscles, to balance while you're top-heavy. Strengthen many muscles at once. Very time-efficient.
Waimea Canyon: Grand, tropical, steep
Sometimes it's hard to believe your eyes. You get a few of those times on this six-mile hike in the Waimea Canyon on the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i. It's an exhilarating three- or four-hour walk through dense tropical foliage to wide-open views of the place called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.
Great Balls of Exercise: Figure 8s
Stretch and strengthen your core, back and leg muscles while you stand and twist. Strengthen your shoulder and chest muscles by squeezing this really big exercise ball between your hands. You use many, many muscles. Very time-efficient. Burns calories faster. Fun, too.
Happy New Year on The Great Wall
This Year of the Horse is your lucky year. Your second chance to make a healthy New Year Resolution to Be Better Outdoors. I can't think of a Better Way to celebrate the Chinese New Year than a Great Hike on the Great Wall. Even if it's just a great daydream while you take the sidewalk.
Great Balls of Exercise: Leg Extensions
Another bouncy exercise. But not too bouncy. The Ball is unstable. It rolls. Unless you exert force to keep it in place. Which means you engage many large and small muscles. Very time-efficient. Comfy and fun. And it burns more calories.