A good thing

(A note to start off. Browsing through my document files in my laptop, I chanced upon this post which was originally published in my Friendster blog in 2007. I thought it a very good material to repost here.)

For the past several weeks, I have seen familiar faces - friends, co-workers and, yes, even friends - burning off calories and sweating it out at the daily "hataw"/taebo fitness routine at the walk fronting the Kidapawan City Plaza.

Some years back, there were only a few of us athletic types and some walkers who populated the city plaza in the early morning hours doing our usual routines. Now, there are a host of other people there with ages and sizes as varied perhaps as their reasons are for doing what they do. Some are there to reduce weight. Others want to maintain their fitness. Still others are trying to slow down the ageing process. But all of them are one in doing a good thing - physical exercise.

With the growing interest in physical exercise and fitness around me, I thought it good to write about it here. A few tips maybe, and sharing some practical knowledge gained from years of running and cycling (I started running in 1980 and biked steadily for a couple of years before going back to running again last year). Oh, yes. I also did a bit of weight training at the gym for some time.

First off, for those who would like to get into a fitness/exercise routine - go slow, go easy, take your time.

The most common mistake for newbies is starting off to fast too soon. This often causes injury and leads to giving up prematurely even before one gains the benefits of an exercise routine.

A straight 20-minute effort three times a week, with ample rest days in between exercise days, is good enough. Don't worry about being slow if you choose to run or walk. You will get faster, and go longer distances, as your body starts to adapt to the workload. Even If you choose to do weights in the gym, the same rule applies. Start off with lighter weights and less repeats and work towards heavier weights and more repetitions. The thing to remember always is patience pays and pays off well.

Remember also to warm-up before any exercise or physical routine. For me, it's walking from the house to the starting point of my run. I also do a slower first kilometer at times and pick up the pace as the kilometers add up.

Pre-exercise stretching? Well, there seem to be differing opinions on this. Some do it, some don't. Me? I don't. Some experts say stretching cold muscles may cause injury rather than prevent it. They recommend post-exercise stretching instead.

For friends who are already into the fitness groove, nice work! Keep it up! For those who are still thinking of joining in, there's still a lot of room for you no matter what your size.