Thursday, Dec. 20 2012 4:24PM

Workout cold or not

By Russ Pulley

rpulley@lsjournal.com

I’m weak as a kitten.

Already not being in peak of condition, working out this week is not near as much fun, as I am fighting a cold. It’s hard to catch your breath when you’re congested.

But I persevere. The RevUP program offered by Lee’s Summit Parks and Recreation runs several more weeks and I’m committed to getting the most of it. Fixing too much indolence takes time. Personal trainers provided by RevUp at Legacy Park Community Center are helping us learn good exercise techniques. This week my self and others went through a series of drills to build endurance and strength. We jogged for two minutes next started a set of pushups or squats or similar activity, then went back to jogging two minutes or jumping rope, then back to more pushups. And so on for an hour.

Soon I was completely bonking (hitting the wall, pooped, exhausted, whatever). The trainer explains that without getting enough oxygen muscles tire quicker. She lets me walk instead of jog. That was much appreciated.

Then the trainer gave us homework. She outlined the routine on paper for us to use during our Christmas and New Year break in RevUP sessions.

Thanks.

Well, I fully intend to make use of it. Wednesday night in our classroom session, Ty Needels, who runs RevUP for the parks department, also had us doing a little math.

He gave us a work sheet to help us learn how much energy we use to keep our bodies running and brains daydreaming. The formula uses persons’ height, weight and age to calculate how many calories they burn at rest.

The lesson here is that without exercise I can expect to continue gaining weight even if I stick to my newly much stricter diet.

That reinforces the importance of daily exercise, at minimum 30 minutes (some authorities say more) which gets the heart rate up.

The good news, Needels says, is that to be healthy that can be cumulative. So 10 to 15 minutes of brisk walking several times a day can suffice. Small choices can make a difference too. Choosing to take stairs instead of an escalator or elevator, or cutting a board with a hand saw instead of power saw can contribute to daily exercise needed to keep you toned and fit.

Personally, I still might opt for the power saw, as I find it easier to make a straight cut with a circular saw.

That aside, we also talked about the importance of time management to make room for regular exercise. My peers in RevUP include business owners, a physician, and city officials, all who have demanding schedules. Most of them who are participating as couples so they have a partner for encouragement. We shared ideas and habits. Some find it best to have a regular schedule, going to bed before the nightly news and rising early to exercise. Others said their lives force them to be flexible but disciplined, grabbing the odd hour sometime during the day to work out. I tend to fall into that camp. Over the past weeks I’ve pulled off meeting my goal of exercising five days a week.

But I tend to wake early. So I thought to myself I ought to try the early-morning routine this week.

Waking at 5:20 a.m., didn’t need the alarm, and jumping out of bed I heard the wind. Peeking through the blind I saw snow. I climbed back under the comforter.

Flexible suits me.

Russ Pulley is participating in the Rev Up program and will be sharing his progress throughout the program.