I signed up last November for sessions with a personal trainer at the Hampshire Regional YMCA for two reasons. One was to satisfy my curiosity about what the experience would involve, how it might complement my usual forms of exercise, and what people actually mean when they speak of strengthening their core. The other was to improve my balance and posture. I explained as much to Oliver Hodous, the trainer the Y assigned to work with me, and we hit the exercise room.
It hit back — just hard enough to let me know I belonged there. Since November, Oliver has coached me through a variety of exercises, some involving weights, rings, benches, boxes, and bars, some just the weight of my own body, plus pretty much all of my body’s neurological systems.
One exercise is a modified version of the chin-ups I could barely do in high school. Never mind hanging from a horizontal bar, feet off the ground, and trying to pull myself up; in these exercises I rest my feet on the floor, grasp two wooden rings and pull myself up using my wrists, arms and shoulders as much as I can, my legs as little as possible. In another, I stand with most of my weight on one foot, hardly any on the other, and bend forward, flexing my knee down and then up, sometimes while holding a dumbbell or kettle-bell weight, sometimes with no weight except that of my own body. If you’ve spent time in a fitness room, you probably know at least as much about these exercises as I do.
Those chin-ups are a confidence booster. Almost anyone can do them, because the effort required depends partly on where you put your feet. On the other hand, that knee-bend with the weight is a terrific challenge. It’s hard enough for me to stand with nearly all my weight on one foot, never mind dip to where one knee touches the floor, holding 40 pounds in one hand, remembering to lower the weight without lowering my shoulder, and trying to bend at the waist rather that let my spine curve forward.
Given my goals, the idea seems to be not so much to see how fast I can move, how high I can jump, or how much I can lift, but to improve my whole range of motion and — this is the biggest part of the whole experience for me — to improve my awareness of where every part of my body is. Is my trailing knee directly in line with my foot? Am I keeping my back straight as I bend at the hips to lower the weight? Am I holding those rings with palms up or down? When I pull myself up, do my thumbs touch my armpits?
Such exercises require concentration in a way that, for me at least, running mostly hasn’t. (Running? Who has to think about which foot to swing forward next?) And as Oliver pointed out to me, I’ve become “wired in” to particular movements in running, bicycling and cross-country skiing, and some of those movements have deteriorated over time. Mindless practice can reinforce bad habits.
Other people work with personal trainer for other reasons — improving aerobic capacity or building plyometric strength, i.e., explosive power and speed. Whatever one’s motivation, a key is not to focus purely on one thing. Linda Castronovo, who teaches strength and balance classes at the Hadley Senior Center and yoga in the program Everyday Wellbeing, quotes biochemist Katy Bowman: “‘Kale is good for you, but if all you eat is kale, your nutrition and your body will be out of balance.’ I think of this often when it comes to running or any activity done exclusively.”
Jess Lapachinski, a strength training coach and assistant athletic director at Amherst College, adds, “It’s a good idea to check form, mobility and flexibility through various exercises. That can help provide direction when we’re strength training on our own.”
Doing these exercises, and having another person observe and direct my movements, makes me more self-conscious in a positive way that I hope translates into everything I do. I’m not expecting to regain some of my old speed as a runner, but I’m hoping to run with my head and shoulders more upright. Also, to be able to walk better, climb stairs more confidently, and get up off the floor more easily when playing with my grandchildren. And all this other stuff makes running more fun.
Boston Marathon
Two messages to readers who are entered in this year’s Boston Marathon on April 20: (1) If you think you might like to talk to the press (i.e., me) afterward, email me your best contact information, and I hope we’ll be in touch that afternoon. (2) When the starting command is given but you’re still packed into the crowd, don’t waste energy by jogging in place. Relax, then just walk until there’s really room enough to run, and remember not to get sucked into running too fast on the downhill just after the start. Have a good time; I’ll be wishing I were with you out there.
John Stifler has taught writing in economics at UMass and has written extensively for running magazines and newspapers. He can be reached at jstifler@umass.edu.