Row, Row, Row Your...
I recently started rowing. Like at the gym, not on a lake. I don't know why I started up. I'd done a little in the past, but rowing never seemed to burn enough calories for me. Historically, I have worked out purely for the caloric deficit it creates. Burn a paltry amount of calories for the time spent? Yeah, no. I'm not going to do it.
Or rather, I never would do it. Then I hurt my elbow and went into rehab. And I was stocking freight at night. I started going to the gym to "warm up" for my shift and thought rowing might accomplish a couple things - (1) a full body warm-up and (2) get the elbow ready for action. It seemed to work great.
Then I quit the night freight thing and kept rowing. I know. It makes no sense. Other than I actually like rowing, crappy calorie burn aside. As crazy as it may sound, my body is changing. My arms, even though the elbow prevents a lot of lifting, are showing decent definition. And my legs... My upper hamstrings and gluts seem stronger which greatly facilitates my sprinting ability. Given that I've made no other substantial changes to my workout routine, I have to attribute it to the rowing.
I guess I'm growing up. Or maybe I've finally shed the last vestiges of the anorexia that plagued my twenties. I still count calories and do a lot of "leveraging" on daily and weekly basis, but I'm not nearly as maniacal as I used to be. While I do have an allowance of calories I try to stay under most days, I don't have to burn a given amount of calories every day. This means I can row and not think it's a major waste of my time and effort.
So, does this open up a whole new workout world for me? Like say, for example, yoga? One of my complaints (just one... there are truly many) about yoga was/is that it doesn't/didn't burn enough calories. "But Stacee, the benefits are far greater than the calorie burn!" Ok, according to a quick Google search just now - 30 minutes of yoga burns 120 calories. I could burn more WALKING SLOWLY, really slowly. The stroll I take every evening with my geriatric husky burns more. Hell, even rowing burns more and sleep isn't far behind.
But...but...what about all the fantastic benefits that yoga provides? Walking my dog burns more calories and it's not nearly as boring. And that brings me to my second major complaint about yoga - the boredom factor. I need to move. I need to listen to loud music. I need to get in, get done, and get out.
But... Hot women do yoga. Smart, savvy women do yoga. Absolutely, they do. I know this to be fact. I have a Hot Friend who owns a yoga studio. Ashley Judd does yoga. Surely, if invited by a beautiful, intelligent, and engaging woman, I'd do yoga. No. No, I wouldn't.
I apparently haven't grown up that much.
Now, if that same woman asked me to row or run, I'd jump at the chance. I'd probably also play field hockey, air hockey, or ice hockey with her. God help me. Anything but yoga.
Or golf.
Ew, golf.
Or rather, I never would do it. Then I hurt my elbow and went into rehab. And I was stocking freight at night. I started going to the gym to "warm up" for my shift and thought rowing might accomplish a couple things - (1) a full body warm-up and (2) get the elbow ready for action. It seemed to work great.
Then I quit the night freight thing and kept rowing. I know. It makes no sense. Other than I actually like rowing, crappy calorie burn aside. As crazy as it may sound, my body is changing. My arms, even though the elbow prevents a lot of lifting, are showing decent definition. And my legs... My upper hamstrings and gluts seem stronger which greatly facilitates my sprinting ability. Given that I've made no other substantial changes to my workout routine, I have to attribute it to the rowing.
I guess I'm growing up. Or maybe I've finally shed the last vestiges of the anorexia that plagued my twenties. I still count calories and do a lot of "leveraging" on daily and weekly basis, but I'm not nearly as maniacal as I used to be. While I do have an allowance of calories I try to stay under most days, I don't have to burn a given amount of calories every day. This means I can row and not think it's a major waste of my time and effort.
So, does this open up a whole new workout world for me? Like say, for example, yoga? One of my complaints (just one... there are truly many) about yoga was/is that it doesn't/didn't burn enough calories. "But Stacee, the benefits are far greater than the calorie burn!" Ok, according to a quick Google search just now - 30 minutes of yoga burns 120 calories. I could burn more WALKING SLOWLY, really slowly. The stroll I take every evening with my geriatric husky burns more. Hell, even rowing burns more and sleep isn't far behind.
But...but...what about all the fantastic benefits that yoga provides? Walking my dog burns more calories and it's not nearly as boring. And that brings me to my second major complaint about yoga - the boredom factor. I need to move. I need to listen to loud music. I need to get in, get done, and get out.
But... Hot women do yoga. Smart, savvy women do yoga. Absolutely, they do. I know this to be fact. I have a Hot Friend who owns a yoga studio. Ashley Judd does yoga. Surely, if invited by a beautiful, intelligent, and engaging woman, I'd do yoga. No. No, I wouldn't.
I apparently haven't grown up that much.
Now, if that same woman asked me to row or run, I'd jump at the chance. I'd probably also play field hockey, air hockey, or ice hockey with her. God help me. Anything but yoga.
Or golf.
Ew, golf.
(Disclaimer: Yes, I have a girlfriend. At the same time, I think that one cannot possibly have too many beautiful, smart, savvy women in one's life).
Comments
Post a Comment