Conditioning

[cwd]

I can't find mine, the kids played with it and can't find it. Should buy another.

[Allentown]

Thread works now? Fine, work firewall, your ways are mysterious to me.

So, "What elements are ideal for a conditioning method" and "what conditioning method comes closest to this ideal."

And, going by what @ShuggyBear said, I might include kettle bell swings my next conditioning day. I could probably benefit from the low back & grip work at a light weight as part of a circuit or something, especially since I am not deadlifting right now.

[DoctorWho]

Recommendations for ab wheel. Are cheap ones good enough?

[cwd]

@DoctorWho, I bought a cheap ab wheel from amazon, it was fine.

It consists of a short metal pipe, two lawnmower wheels, and two bicycle grips. Hard to screw up.

[topfen]

Recommendations for ab wheel. Are cheap ones good enough?

I have a cheap no-name(10-15€) one and a lifeline power wheel(50€) and both have been used for years at my old boxing gym without any issues. One thing we discovered was that bigger guys oftentimes had minor shoulder problems with the no-name ab wheel because the handles forced them to use a very narrow grip.

[iamsmu]

I have the valeo. It used to be $12. I don't like the finger grips. Most people's hands are too big to make them useful. They just poke out.


https://www.amazon.com/Valeo-Exercise-F ... AEV27KS9ZJ



I'm going to look for one with smoother handles. The everlast looks better:

https://www.amazon.com/Everlast-Standar ... t+ab+wheel



This cheap one looks like the valeo but a little wider.

https://www.amazon.com/Wacces-Power-Whe ... 48DXK9TW1F

[Wilhelm]

Walmart has that last one for $10.90 w/ free shipping.

[BostonRugger]

Did two sets of 5 reps of the ab wheel on Monday. Yesterday my abs were still way too sore to perform any productive ab work. /whine

[SJB]

Did two sets of 5 reps of the ab wheel on Monday. Yesterday my abs were still way too sore to perform any productive ab work. /whine

I have have found that once you get used to it once a week is sufficient to keep the DOMs at bay, miss a week and I can feel it.

[iamsmu]

There's one with excellent reviews that's only $10 with prime shipping.

https://www.amazon.com/Fitnessery-Ab-Wh ... Q9QPM5XPMZ



I might try it just to see.

[Allentown]

Some people have picked up Airdynes, so we should get some talk going on schemes for using them!

I've been doing deadmill work in place of prowler since the streets are snowed in. Similar to doing walks with a medium weight.
Jump rope is kind of trash for conditioning, but it might be a decent way to hit two birds. I'm going ice climbing for a weekend in early Feb, so I need some foot/calf endurance for standing on toe points for a while.

[iamsmu]

Some people have picked up Airdynes, so we should get some talk going on schemes for using them!

They handles are really good at holding sweaters and t-shirts.

[omaniphil]

Some people have picked up Airdynes, so we should get some talk going on schemes for using them!

I've been doing deadmill work in place of prowler since the streets are snowed in. Similar to doing walks with a medium weight.
Jump rope is kind of trash for conditioning, but it might be a decent way to hit two birds. I'm going ice climbing for a weekend in early Feb, so I need some foot/calf endurance for standing on toe points for a while.

I bought an airdyne early last year, and used it for 2 weeks before realizing that the seat was uncomfortable. Sometime in the Fall, I bought a proper bicycle seat for it, which made it better, but still never used it. I figured I got enough cardio from riding my bike to work, 15 miles round trip a few times a week, that I didn't need any thing extra. Well, I stopped biking in September, and haven't done a lick of cardio since then, have promptly gained weight and now get out of breath running up the stairs, so my New Years resolution was to get back on the airdyne.

Last night I did 4 cycles of 10s on, 120s easy pedaling. Completely humbling. Will do this twice a week, and every week, add in a cycle until I'm at 10 cycles. I might then try to reduce the rest periods slowly to 90s or increase the work periods to 15s. What do people find works best?

Also, does anybody know if the pedals on the airdyne have standard size threading? Mine are pretty narrow, and my shoes kept slipping off. I might buy a pair of pedals like this to get better grip:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000Y ... UTF8&psc=1

[omaniphil]

Also, does anybody know if the pedals on the airdyne have standard size threading? Mine are pretty narrow, and my shoes kept slipping off. I might buy a pair of pedals like this to get better grip:

Additionally, what are people's thoughts on putting toe clips or straps on the pedals to help keep the feet sticking to the pedal? Helpful? Dangerous in case you need to quickly extricate your feet?

[Allentown]

N=1, but from the times I've used an Airdyne, no way would I want to try and free my feet from anything at the end of a push, I just want to get my feet off the pedals as fast as possible so I can start sucking wind and trying not to pass out.

[cwd]

Weight vest walking?

I've been doing a short/heavy sandbag carry, but it causes too much soreness, mostly in biceps, anterior delts, and upper back.
My strength program is already very close to my max recoverable volume, I need conditioning that doesn't beat me up so much.

I found a cheap vest on Amazon that lets you strap on a pair of plates (up to 25 lbs front & back).
It's bulky and probably unstable compared to a vest that uses custom weights in many tiny pockets, but those cost $200 and I don't need to run or jump in it. Also, this gizmo leaves the plates clearly visible, which might help me look less like a suicide-bomber to my neighbors.

I already walk 1-2 miles each morning with my dogs. My thought was I could add weight to these walks a couple times per week for some lower-impact and time-efficient cardio.

The two cute dogs might help with the is-he-a-suicide-bomber image issue too.

[Allentown]

Backpack (with padded hip straps), and find a route with as many hills as possible. I wouldn't buy a weight vest specifically for weighted walks, personally, since the little I've done hasn't led me to believe in them as a good conditioning modality. I'd probably get an appropriately weighted KB and do suitcase carries while dog walking over a weighted vest/backpack, personally.

[cwd]

@Allentown, I walk two dogs at once, need both hands free.

[iamsmu]

@Allentown, I walk two dogs at once, need both hands free.

Can you chain a kettle bell to your legs?

[Allentown]

@Allentown, I walk two dogs at once, need both hands free.

Attach one dog to other dog. One hand suddenly free.