Swimming is hands down the best form of cardiovascular exercise and getting into the pool is the single best change that you can make to your exercise routine.

Unlike jogging or any form of machine-based cardio exercise, swimming places no impact force on the joints and connective tissue, and is an incredibly efficient, total-body exercise.  You don’t need to spend hours in the pool every week in order to reap the benefits from swimming, as 20-minutes once or twice per week will do the trick.

The reason more people don’t swim is that it’s difficult, it takes effort.  Unlike the Stairmaster, treadmill or any of the most popular forms of cardiovascular exercise, swimming is tough.  Machine-based forms of cardio are popular because they are easy.  As a matter of fact, any exercise that is unpopular – especially in a big, open gym setting – is usually more difficult, and as a result more effective, than the less popular options.

For example, in most “big box” gyms there are literally tons of leg machines (leg press, leg extension, leg curl, etc.) but usually only a few squat racks, and these racks are rarely used for squats.  At the big box gym I belong to there are hundreds of treadmills and Stairmasters, but only 2 Concept 2 rowing machines.

It seems like everyone jogs and “climbs stairs” – even the people who wait to park their cars in the parking spaces closest to the entrance – but nobody sprints or does running and agility drills.

Translation; walking (except from their car) and stepping are easy, sprinting and rowing is tough.

I’ve written about my love/hate relationship with swimming, and it continues until this very moment (as I write this I’m about to head out for my weekly swim).  To sum up, I hate swimming, but love having swum.   On a winter’s day it takes an effort to get my butt off of my nice, comfy easy chair, out into the cold and into the pool, where there’s nothing to lean against or hold onto.  You can’t watch TV, although I can listen to music thanks to my waterproof IPod case.  But I swim because I love what it does for me.

So next time you’re wondering about what you can do to improve your workout routine, look no further than the pool and start swimming.

We’ve had some nice fall weather over the past few weeks here in New Jersey and that means joggers are out in force.  It’s very similar to what happens when spring springs and the first batch of 70 degree sunny days show up after a long, ugly winter; joggers take to the roadways and sidewalks en masse.

The problem is that most people are what I call, “Ugly Joggers.” Now don’t jump to conclusions – especially you, Marianne – as I’m not talking about a person’s looks, but rather their running “form,” and by using “form,” I’m being very kind.

Over the past week or so I’ve seen at least 40 joggers, but only 2 or 3 could be considered to be running with proper form.  The form breaks run the gamut; short stride length, no hip extension, improper (or no) arm swing, leg drag, valgus and varus, limp.  Think of a flaw and you’ll see it when Ugly Joggers are in season.

Do yourself a favor and stop jogging.  Get exercise, but leave the jogging and running to the real runners – no offense.  If you want to go out and pound your skeletal system into powder at least seek out an expert that can teach you how to run.

I find it funny when people ask me what they can do to improve their cardiovascular fitness and I tell them to swim, and they tell me, “Oh I don’t want to swim, what else can I do?” I get the same kind of response from folks who want to know how to improve their distance running, like they can’t be bothered to do the right thing.  As if it’s an insult to be told that they need to learn how to do something as simple as running.

Actually, running properly is difficult for most people, even athletes.  I spend a lot of time teaching high school and college athletes how to run properly and correcting their form.  Show me 100 high school athletes and I’ll show you 95 kids who don’t know how to run. And for adults the percentages would be even worse.

So if you aren’t jogging the right way, don’t do it at all. Go for a brisk walk, do calisthenics, or take a swim, but lay off the jogging.  When you consider that each step of running places a force on your joints up to 3 times body weight, your body will thank you for exploring low-intensity/low-impact options.

I’ll probably annoy some people by saying this – so what else is new? – but I think there are few things that are more destructive than long-distance running.  If you can stand the truth, keep reading.

The running/jogging craze was a major fitness phenomenon of the 20^th Century, and running is still “da bomb” for tons of people as we sit here in 2009.  As the jogging generation has aged and they have become hobbled and hamstrung by overuse/over-training injuries that result from the years of pounding.

Furthermore, running has created a whole bunch of people who are physically “one-dimensional.”

Check out the crew at any local track.  How many older, healthy joggers do you know?  When you do find an older jogger they usually look older than they are and run with an altered, ungainly gait brought.  These folks are the lucky ones, as they at least are still able to run.

I have extensive experience working with runners who have done nothing but run.  As a result I have coined a phrase to describe the hard-core runner, “functionally unfit” or an “FU.” People who do nothing but lift weights also fall into this category, but I’ll talk about them at a later date.

A “functionally unfit” jogger is someone who has regularly participated in road races, consistently logs heavy-duty weekly mileage, has little if any flexibility and little strength to boot.

An “FU” can’t do a calisthenics circuit, sprints, shuttle runs or agility drills.  When I get my hands on a jogger who claims to be in great shape because they run 3 miles, but can’t complete ten body weight squats, ten push-ups and/or a pull-up, I tell them “FU.”

To a runner who suffers from stress fractures, tendonitis, feet problems, back ailments, joint issues and/or shin splints, I say “FU.”

To serve as a contrast to “the runner,” I submit “the swimmer.”  The hardcore swimmer of the same age will look healthier, have less in the way of nagging ailments, and will be able to do what they do longer and better.

The swimmers that I have encountered are hearty, have great muscle tone, posture and endurance.  They are lean, not gaunt.  They are capable and not frail.  They are quicker to improve with resistance training, since the swimmer doesn’t have the litany of nagging ailments to deal with and work around.

With the “blame everyone else” mentality that has given us the suits against fast-food providers, will it be long before the anti-running movement picks up steam and lawsuits are filed against sneaker makers?  Will those who have had joints replaced because they ran countless miles sue Nike and Brooks and New Balance?  Will shoemakers be blamed for promoting an activity that undoubtedly led to countless, painful injuries?  How many people have been motivated to run, and run a lot, by the Nike advertising campaigns?  You may laugh and think that I am exaggerating, but stranger things have happened.

Don’t agree with me?  FU!

To paraphrase a well-known saying, “I hate swimming, but love having swam.” I hate the best possible form of exercise, and at the same time, love it.

Despite being a personal trainer, I’ve never been a fan of any distance-based exercises, swimming, cycling, jogging, etc.  I think my reluctance to engage in exercise that takes a long time to complete has something to do with a latent Attention Deficit Disorder that rears its ugly head when I’m faced with the prospect of doing any one thing for more than 20 minutes.

I kind of surprised myself when I started to swim regularly about 10 years ago.  Despite hating the typical cardio stuff, I did it all for more time than I care to remember.  Jogged, biked, hiked, yuk.  My natural weight is about 205-pounds and jogging subjected my connective tissues and joints to a pounding that I didn’t want to endure.  For any of you who aren’t familiar with my philosophy, I think distance running is the worst form of exercise.  It’s inefficient, ineffective and injurious.  But that’s a different story for a different time.

To get my weekly dose of conditioning work I swim at least one time per week and in the summer add at least one more day since I spend a lot of time at an outdoor pool.  The maximum amount of time I spend in the pool on a regular basis is about 25 minutes give or take a lap, and when I swim more than once per week I go for about 10-12 laps on these additional days. I’m not into killing myself, proving anything to myself – or anyone else – or pretending to swim the English Channel.  Also, I do the breaststroke to ease the strain on my cranky shoulders.

The miracle that is the waterproof iPod case makes my swimming routine infinitely more palatable and I highly recommend that anyone who swims pick up this case made by H20Audio.

On top of the swimming, I get plenty of exercise.  In addition to 2 or 3, 40-minute weight lifting workouts, I do a sprinting/agility workout at least once per week and incorporate calisthenics into my routine as well; all of this activity suits me well.  The most important aspect of this schedule is to make sure that I get enough rest and recovery time in between workouts.  I get a lot more outdoor exercise in the summer, so I cut back on the amount of time I spend in the gym.  I’ll stay indoors in the winter when the weather is lousy.

The point of this whole thing is to point out that I hate swimming, but love what it does for me both physically and mentally.  Granted it’s a bit easier to get into the pool in the summer, but in the winter when it’s cold, damp and generally miserable outside, the thought of slogging my way to another gym just to get into a pool is almost a deal breaker.  But I do it.  I do it because I feel great afterward – actually I feel better after about 10 laps – because swimming improves my overall health and conditioning level.  I feel better about myself because I’ve gone out of my way to do something that is good for me.  Since I do some of my best thinking when I’m swimming – like running this piece around in my head – I wind up getting a lot more work done because I swim.

So since we’re in the midst of summer I thought I’d give a shout out to get people to try swimming. For most folks this is the best opportunity that they will have to try swimming, and just maybe will kick off a swimming regimen that will last throughout the year.

Give swimming a try; you’ll be rewarded for your efforts.

There are more options for cardiovascular training than just walking and jogging – calisthenics, swimming, sprinting – and here’s a quick list of pros and cons for swimming, sprinting, agility and speed work.

For this installment of my review of some different forms of cardiovascular exercise I’ll start with another favorite of mine, swimming.  Swimming is right behind cals on the “most recommended” list.  Just like cals, swimming offers total body benefits without the negatives of impact that come from jogging, and can have a massively positive effect on lung capacity as well. You don’t need a lot of equipment either, and if you belong to an indoor pool inclement weather isn’t a problem.

Furthermore, swimming is ideal for athletes engaged in power sports who want/need to improve their cardiovascular conditioning, athletes who should not under any condition do distance running or machine based cardio.  Being that there are no biomechanical similarities between swimming and sprinting – and other forms of running required in sport – swimming can improve cardiovascular conditioning without messing with the mechanics of sprinting.  Jogging is counter-productive to the sprinting mechanism and swimming is not. 

So tennis players, baseball players, football players, lacrosse players, basketball players and any athletes who participate in these kinds of sports should include swimming in their conditioning programs.

There are some negatives associated with swimming.  As a realist, I understand that some people hate to swim, can’t swim and/or have no interest in swimming.  To these folks all I’ll say, “It’s your loss.”  I’m not here to brow beat people into seeing things my way.  The other “cons” for swimming are that it can be costly for some folks to join a pool especially during the winter months, the need for instruction for those who can’t swim and the fact that swimming is a difficult activity.

Some folks might find swimming boring, and they wouldn’t be wrong.  However, with the advent of the waterproof iPod case and headphones, you can now swim with musical accompaniment.   I use my iPod to get me through my laps, and it’s the single best change that I have made to my routine in the past 10 years.  The pros far outweigh the cons for those who are willing to make the commitment to get into the pool and swim.

Last but not least, I’m going to extol the virtues sprinting, agility and speed work.  And for the sake of brevity, for the rest of this piece all three of these activities will be referred to as “sprinting,” or “sprinting drills.”  Sprinting can have a massively positive effect on overall conditioning, both aerobically and anaerobically.  This activity can be done in a minimum of space, both inside and outside, and with a bare minimum of equipment.

Sprinting drills are mentally stimulating and require concentration as well as an intense physical effort.  This activity can challenge the most athletic and fit members of the population and be adapted to meet the needs of those folks who are just starting out and/or who aren’t all that athletic.  These drills develop balance, agility, coordination and stability in addition to improving a person’s level of conditioning.  Despite the demanding nature of these drills, they are relatively easy to learn and anyone willing to put in a little bit of effort can discover how to do these drills properly.

By no means is this piece meant to be the last word on cardio, but rather a stepping off point for people who might be interested in looking for something different.  There are more interesting, rewarding, challenging and beneficial activities for folks who don’t want to get stuck in a rut of walking or jogging.

There are more options for cardiovascular training than just walking and jogging – calisthenics, swimming, sprinting – and here’s a quick rundown of pros and cons for the various choices.

Walking and jogging are the most popular forms of cardio.  Despite the fact that they aren’t the most dynamic activities, the vast majority of exercisers have fallen into the cardio rut these present.  Walking is the easiest of all of the forms of cardio activities and provides the most health benefits with the least amount of effort.  Face it walking is easy that’s why so many people do it.  And it’s good for you, too.

Despite what the hardcore might have you believe, there really aren’t any dramatic incremental benefits that come from engaging in all the high-end activities, and walking delivers all the health benefits with a fraction of the impact of running.  The downside of walking is that – IMHO – it’s boring, can be time consuming and is weather-dependant if you don’t have a treadmill.

Jogging provides similar benefits as does walking, but with the price of a lot of impact.  Every step running results in an impact of 2.5-3.0 times your bodyweight.  Over a 20-30 minute run, that’s a lot of pounding.  Just like walking, from a physical standpoint, jogging is easy.  I’m not talking about track and field style distance running, but your regular, run-of-the-mill recreational jogging.  If it weren’t easy, it wouldn’t be so popular.

But just like walking, a lot of people find jogging to be dull and others find it mentally difficult to deal with 20+ minutes of monotony.  And it’s not the most efficient use of your time once you get past the 20-minute point. The expense of jogging depends on how much you feel like spending on shoes and associated running gear, especially if you’re planning on going out into the elements.

A lot of people walk and run on treadmills; this activity doesn’t compare positively to pounding the actual pavement. Without going into a biomechanical dissertation, running and walking on a tread places a completely different set of demands on the body which can lead to injury problems.  But if you don’t want to go out in the rain and snow – and don’t have a treadmill  – I’m going to tell you about some other cardio options.

Calisthenics get my vote for the most versatile – if-you-have-to-do-one-form-of-cardio – form of cardio.  Five exercises – jumping jacks, squat thrusts, leg drives, push-ups and sit-ups – can provide you with all of the cardio stimulus that you need regardless of level of conditioning.  Calisthenics provide all of the benefits of walking and jogging, but with the added benefits of strengthening the upper and lower body.  Cals can be done anywhere, anytime without the need for any equipment, not even shoes.  They are relatively easy to learn, can be adjusted for every level of fitness, are athletic and are low/no-impact.

As far as any negatives associated with calisthenics, I can’t think of any and I’m good at coming up with negatives.  I’ll repeat it for emphasis, but I think cals are the single best exercises of any kind that you can do.

That’s it for the first half of the list.  Check back next week for the second half of the list featuring swimming, sprinting, speed work and agility drills.

As a personal trainer, I get asked this more than almost any other question, “Should I exercise when I’m sick?”

People, regardless of where they live, get sick and fall prey to the ravages of “the cold and flu season.” However, working as a personal trainer in the northeast of the U.S, it seems that from the middle of November until late April everyone I know and work with gets sick.  One of the most prevalent questions I get asked – along with “Can I eat (insert food here)?” – is “Should I exercise when I’m sick?”

And my answer is, “It depends.”  How’s that for professional personal trainer acumen?

But seriously.  Just like with most issues, there’s really no hard and fast, etched in stone rules when it comes to working out when you’re sick.  But there are guidelines that you can follow that can make sure that you make the right decision most of the time.

The bottom line is that whether you work with a personal trainer or train on your own, you have to know your limits, know what you can and can’t, should and shouldn’t do. As a longtime asthma and allergy sufferer who as a result was always susceptible to a variety of respiratory aliments, and has since “grown out” of these conditions, I am particularly sensitive to this issue and can offer some valuable insight.  At least that’s what I think.

And as shocking as it may seem to some of you – especially anyone out there who actually knows me – I don’t always tell people what they should do.  I would rather just relate my experiences and let you all make your own decisions. 

When my allergies were bad, I most always elected to workout.  The vast, vast, vast majority of the time (a great thing about being your own editor is that you can do stupid things like using “vast” three times in a row) I exercised when my allergies were bad, and as a result felt better for doing it.  Swimming, calisthenics, lifting weights, agility and footwork drills and sprinting all made me feel better.

Now I’m lucky enough to be able to do all of these things inside, a luxury not everyone has.  However, the important issue is that exercise made me feel better.  So if the pollen count is ridiculous and you don’t want to go out, stay inside and do your workout, do something.  My allergies were worse in the fall than in the spring, but I suffered during both seasons and found that exercise did more to make me feel better than did medicine.

My asthma was a different story.  Until I was in my mid-20s asthma had a grip on me that I had to respect.  There was nothing to gain, and there is nothing to gain, but exercising in the throes of an asthma attack or when any wheezing is present.  Asthmatics know what I’m talking about.

But what about the common cold and flu?  Here’s my rule of thumb; if it’s in your head go ahead, if it’s in your chest take a rest.  How’s that for pithy?

Again, from my personal experience a head cold doesn’t keep me from working out, but any kind of cough or feeling that I have a chest cold has me taking a day off.  Or three days.  A lot of times a low-to-moderate intensity workout can really loosen up a head cold, where as this same workout done with a chest cold can really set you back and make you feel worse.

No matter how good your personal trainer is, only you know if you really feel good enough to work out.  Actually, from the professional side, I wind up sending people home if they seem sick.  It’s just a workout, people.  And besides, I don’t want to get sick.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if you aren’t feeling 100% don’t try to exercise at 100%.  Be a mensch and gear it down, a mensch I say.  Go at 60-75% of your usual pace. If you don’t know what a mensch is, you should.

So remember, a little common sense and self-awareness goes a long way.  And when in doubt, take the day off.  After all, it’s just a workout.

A new study has found that exercise relieves some menopausal symptoms.  Walking and some basic strength training can do the trick.

Researchers at Temple University in Philadelphia have found that physically active post-menopausal women handle stress, anxiety and depression better than their non/less-active peers.  The researchers did not find a link between increased physical activity and a decrease in the incidents or severity of hot flashes.

These findings are just another feather in the cap for exercise.  For as long as exercise – strength training, walking – has been studied as a treatment for, or method of coping with, a variety of diseases, ailments and conditions, there has been overwhelming evidence that exercise is good.  How’s that for keeping it simple?

Thanks to the Internet, it has never been easier for people to learn how to exercise.  You can hire a personal trainer, learn how to perform strength training exercises, see demonstrations of yoga positions and get advice on how to devise your own exercise programs thanks to web sites like this.  And there are great professional organizations like the National Strength and Conditioning Association that provide basic info in easy to understand terms, as well as help you find a personal trainer in your area.

Strength training, walking, calisthenics, swimming and yoga are all methods of exercise that will bring about positive changes in a person’s life.  From a common sense standpoint, it stands to reason that a person who is physically fit can better handle the stresses and strains of everyday life, extraordinary illnesses and all points in between.  For the better part of the last 6 decades, science has provided ample reinforcement for this common sense viewpoint.

There is the misconception that people need to turn themselves into exercise machines in order to get the real benefits offered by exercise.  Nothing can be further from the truth, as research has shown that people who engage in regular baseline physical activities like walking, gardening and flexibility training reap all the benefits that exercise has to offer.

In other words, you don’t have to be a nut like me and go out and hit things with a sledgehammer for 30-minutes in order to enjoy the benefits that exercise offers.

As a matter of fact, this Temple University study involved 380 women who walked 15-45 minutes at a time, as much as 5 times per week. That is certainly not too much to ask of someone, nor is it much of a sacrifice if this level of involvement can bring about real, healthy changes.

So whether or not menopause is a concern, people should take heed of this advice.  Go out for a walk, you’ll feel better.

As it gets colder and darker earlier at this time of year, people start to look for indoor exercise options.  People should use the occasion of the change of seasons to start swimming and get into the single best exercise that there is.  Swimming is a great form of cardiovascular exercise and is a perfect complement to a strength-training regimen.

When the weather is great, it’s warm and the sun is out until 8PM or later there are plenty of options for people who like to get their exercise outdoors.  However, when the autumnal equinox approaches, many people have a hard time finding the time and place to work out outdoors.

Swimming is a challenging form of cardiovascular exercise that virtually eliminates impact on the body and requires that every muscle of the body work to produce movement.  There really is no better form of exercise than swimming.  Not only will swimming improve your cardiovascular fitness, but fits in perfectly in the context of an overall exercise program.

Getting to the pool twice per week for 20-30 minutes a pop combined with a day of calisthenics and two days of strength training is pretty much the perfect training program.  This kind of schedule can be handled by even the busiest of folks, as this regimen can be done in 3 or 4 days per week, leaving people plenty of time to pursue other activities.

Because of the demands that swimming puts on the body, it is an effective and time-efficient way for people to exercise, and certainly a superior cardiovascular option to the treadmill, stair climber or other cardio machine-based activities.

So don’t let the cold and dark of the fall and winter get you down.  Consider swimming and take your fitness to the next level.

Despite current research that points to the positive role that strength training can play in the preparation of endurance athletes, there is still a misconception among triathletes – and runners and cyclists – that traditional strength training does not address the needs of these athletes.  The belief that strength training somehow doesn’t work for triathletes is due to body buildings’ undue influence on what passes for athletic preparation.  Any good personal trainer or strength coach can show you how to improve performance and design an appropriate strength training regimen.

Body building became a popular cultural phenomenon over 30 years ago thanks to the dynamic persona of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the movie “Pumping Iron.”  Arnold was – and still is – such a powerful figure that his reign as champion is the reason that body building became synonymous with everything related to fitness, including strength training and athletic preparation.  By the way, to get an idea for the kind of impact the governor of California still has on the fitness world, Google “Arnold” and see what you get.  Anyway…

As time has passed and people have studied the role of different forms of weight lifting and strength training as it pertains to athletes, it is clear that body building programs are inferior when it comes to preparation for athletic endeavors, and that personal trainers need to expand their knowledge base.  Endurance athletes intuitively knew that the body building-based version of strength training, that featured emphasis on form over function, quantity over quality and increased muscle growth at all costs, wasn’t for them.

A lot has changed since the days when body building was considered a legitimate form of training for athletes.  Today the best strength coaches and personal trainers don’t view body building as a method of strength training.

Today – actually for the past 20+ years – the best strength coaches and personal trainers have incorporated a functional style of strength training for all athletes.  This functional training can be adapted to all athletes, including triathletes and other endurance athletes.

Functional training differs depending on the activity that a person is training for, as you have to look at the specific demands of the activity when designing an effective program.   While the demands placed on endurance athletes can vary depending on a bunch of variables, it’s safe to say that all triathletes need to train certain movements and not get hung up on the idea of training specific muscles.

Triathletes – all athletes – need to have a strong core. And by core I mean the muscles that attach to the pelvis and are located between the sternum and the knees.  The common misconception is that the core is limited to the muscles of the abdomen and lower back, but as you can see, this above definition of the core includes many more muscles and muscle groups.  Performing crunches on a balance ball is not core training and cannot be considered a serious exercise for athletes.

A strong core is vital to being able to swim properly, as the core and the ability to rotate properly are responsible for producing movement in the water.  Remember that swimming is not a ground-based activity and therefore requires the muscles of the body to work differently than they do while walking, biking and running.  And speaking of biking and running, these events require significant rotational strength and range of motion, and are single-leg activities.

In addition to having a strong core and being able to handle the physical demand of producing movement through powerful rotational movements, swimming, running and biking are activities that require balance and stability as well.  Performing exercises on machines – sitting or standing – simply will not cut it.

Strength training for triathletes needs to incorporate dynamic movements that allow the body to create powerful movements while stabilizing the body in a 360-degree manner. Exercises used in a triathletes’ strength training program must train the nervous system to communicate with the rest of the body and improve balance and stability.  You can probably figure out that balance drills and one-legged exercises are a big part of a triathletes strength training program.

Strength training programs for athletes need to be specific, in that the training needs to mimic the activity that you’re training for.  Remember that you are training movements and not muscles.  The exercises used in this kind of strength training program should be pulled from the pages of Muscle and Fitness, and shouldn’t be done sitting down or in a machine.  Any machine.

Functional training will help triathletes and all endurance athletes – hell all people, athletic or not – get the most out of their program while improving their performance.