Welcome to the Changing Room! I am SO late arriving here this week, whizzing around here, there and everywhere, and then thinking that, when I post today, it gives us nearly a week until the end of October! It is so hard to believe that this month is nearly over and that the hour goes back here in the UK, on Sunday!
Okay, ramble warning!
There are currently a lot of posts on our different forums... our running and our walking ones...a lot going on and folk moving forward to different goals in different disciplines. One thing certainly for me, that they all have in common, is the need for some form of cross training or other exercise that will support them, and the very real need for strength and of course stamina.
Having just had a ramble about this on C25K, I stated my intention of bringing this subject up here.
First off, what is stamina and why we need it.
There are differing definitions of it, in different contexts.. e.g.
“...the bodily or mental capacity to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity...”
but stamina can also be, “...that, which what allows you to perform your daily activities at a higher level. “
I feel that, for me, stamina, is the thing which gives us the get up and go, to get up and do!
Stamina seems to be a bit of a mix of strength and energy...to do those things you want to do for a longer time and using your energy in the most efficient and economical way !
For me over the last weeks, working on my core strength and stamina has kept me going. Kept me walking, kept me functioning in my daily life, kept me mentally strong in handling the worries and the fall out after Mr OF had his HA and.... has taken me back to the starting line ( again) for my chosen exercise, which is of course, running.
So...what kinds of things can we be doing to improve that crucial little element in our exercise body?
Well, again... there is a lot of advice to choose from, but gathering the information together, I found that much of it is very similar.
Okay.. here are some things I gleaned from my research, ( that sounds so organised )!
* Regular, consistent exercise plays a huge part in increasing stamina. What? But I feel tired now! Yes, that may be true but, if we get into a routine... it starts to reverse that feeling!
* Short bursts of high impact exercise have proved to be really effective.
* Eat well. Hydrate Well. The fuel has to go in to get the performance out!
* Chill out. Yoga, meditation or just general relaxation. So important as we all know.
* Listen to music. Music lovers experience, apparently, a lower heart rate and appear to use less effort and be able to work out longer!
And... some great news for all of you coffee and tea lovers …
* Caffeine has been shown to increase performance! ( Really)?
So. There we go. The big thing that came over to me, on the search for Stamina?
Consistency...consistency, consistency; in all that we do, to try to improve it!
Right...chat time! Stamina !
Have you got plenty... would you like some more.... would you like to find some! Do you think of stamina as one thing and energy as another... or a mix of both?
What do you find boosts your stamina levels ? For me . A day spent with small runner in training boosts mine...but I feel that might be through necessity, just to keep up with her!!!!
We are looking forward to some of you dropping in, and checking out your ideas!
Oldfloss x
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Oldfloss
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Hello Oldfloss,I haven't joined in any of the conversations on HU for a long time, but after realising recently that my stamina seems to have improved lately, I thought I'd pop in! I started C25K for the third time last November (after injuries, life getting in the way etc) and graduated end of December. All was going ok but I plateaued after a few months and my 5k times were actually getting slower. I put that down to the fact that I only had time for 2 runs a week. Also I was doing no cross-training or strength and conditioning.
So I made an effort to find time to increase to 3 runs a week, and also started doing some strength training from the NTC app and YouTube. At first it was a killer and my legs felt like jelly afterwards! But it has gradually got easier. And I've started doing some yoga again too, following Adriene on YouTube and also some of the NTC yoga workouts.
Anyway it must be helping because my long runs seem to be getting easier (I have started looking at half marathons for next year!), and I am getting faster in my 5k times again - yay! I doubt I will ever get a PB at Parkrun again, but last time I was only 30 seconds off my old PB from 4 years ago...the seed of hope has been sown!!
This is great, and so good for us all to read... seeing, as with other folk and their replies, just how strength and stamina workouts can pay off and really impact our running and other exercises!
You have obviously found the routines and the support which suit you... and YWA is a lady who a fair few of us using her workouts... I know I do... morning wake ups especially!
Wow!!! HM next year... fabulous... I remember my first ! Eeeek... such fun! The team over on the forum there are incredible too,, so friendly and supportive! You will have a ball... !
A HUGE well done to you, and thank you for popping on to the Changing room and sharing ! x
Thank you Oldfloss 😊 Yes I had a peek on here to see who peeps recommended, I didn't know about Nike Training Club before - have been doing YWA for a long time tho, on and off,she is great 😍
Many thanks, great post Floss. Yes I find stamina is so important. Before I started running, toning with free weights and pilates, I found mowing the lawn a huge deal and it was exhausting, as we have a heavy lawn mower and it is difficult to push. Now with better core, arm and leg strength, I find it much easier and I hardly ache the next day. It is definitely worth doing extra exercise between the running days, but starting very slowly and gradually especially in the early days of C25K.
Fantastic and thank you for sharing... those mundane tasks can seem like hard work, but as you say. with everything toned and strengthened, it all seems a whole lot easier. This works too, for so many things.
After Mr OF's heart attack when I could not run, I did loads of leg exercises and when I got out again... the legs just carried me...
You are so right too, on what you say... when we begin, best to take it gradually, build up slowly...Thank you for calling in and for this great reply...really helpful!
Your are welcome and thank you. You have been through such a stressful time and it is great that you did those leg exercises, it does make a great deal of difference, for sure! X
So agree on the importance of stamina! My resolution at the moment is to do more resistance training. I've found running three times a week is something I do fit into my life and I do a weekly Pilates class but other things like yoga and weights just fall by the way side. So I've started to put weights sessions in my diary, the way I do with my runs. I'm already feeling stronger!
This is all sounding like the kind of mind set we all need to get into... ? Taking stock and tweaking those weak areas... Huge well done to you for adding the weight sessions in... you are going to feel so much better for it...
Hello, good afternoon my friend!! It’s been a while!!
I hope you and MrOF are well. Sending you both lots of love and hugs 🖤🥰🖤🤗
I’m currently still not running but I’m doing daily Tibetan Rites and stretching, and walking when I can. I’m also still doing squats while brushing teeth and while kettle is boiling.
I had check up with nurse this morning at health centre, blood pressure and weight check. I walked there and back and thoroughly enjoyed it, even if I was a hot sweaty mess!! Did my 10,000 steps before noon so I’m pleased about that.
My blood pressure is perfect but I do have some extra weight to shift so nurse has given me a gym referral form to fill out and sign up for an 8 week free gym program. She said not to worry to much about the weight gain as I’ve had quite a bit going on recently. But she was mighty impressed when I told her I completed C25K and was doing yoga and strength work too. I showed her some of my amazing sunrise photos, felt like a wee kid showing off a new skill haha 😆 she was impressed and really liked my photo skills!
I also bumped into a dear friend who I haven’t seen since the start of covid and first lockdown so that was a great mood lifter! I got a great big hug from her and we chatted for 40mins 🤗
I also, finally, made a hairdresser appointment to get my unruly mop sorted on Monday morning and after that I’ll be meeting up with my friend for a spot of lunch….really looking forward to that! Oh, and B is taking me ice skating on Sunday morning…yay!! I know I’ll fall but can’t wait!
I’m feeling in a really good mood today and it’s very welcome as I’ve been feeling crappy all week, and today was the first time I’ve left the flat this week 🙈
I’m aiming to go more daily walks and do a bit more daily activities so that I can shift some weight. My diet is fine so just the exercise that I need to work on….I have no excuse really as I have an elliptical machine at home as well as a vertical climbing machine, kettlebells and weights…so I need to get myself motivated!!
Step by step, slowly but surely, I’ll get to where I want to be 🙏🖤🥰🖤🤗
Hello you... good to have you here and with thongs on a positive note? Glad you are keeping up with your routines and keeping everything ticking over!
The weight will sort I feel sure... you want to lose some , I need to gain some...!!! We will get there!! It goes one way or another with all of life's issues doesn't it! I bet the nurse was impressed.. your photos have been awesome!
Hair cut... excellent... feel better for it when it happens... I had mine done last week.. felt amazing, and lighter !
Walking is great and you really have no excuse with that wonderful equipment... just take it steady!
We are doing okay thanks.. some little down bits, but far more up bits! Love and hugs right back to you... take care my friend and do keep popping in please xxx
Thank you so much 🙏 you can have some of my extra weight haha! I think I’ll feel heaps better after I’ve had my hair done…like you say, it works wonders 🤗 xxx
🍏 Love these chats in the changing room Floss. Interesting comments about Stamina! I love the coffee and music ones! Such fun to do our work outs whatever form they take to music or to just dance to music spontaneously… Some caffeine sets the day for me & gets me going and is a great reward after a run or workout too! However there is nothing like a good run to boost my stamina for the day. The happy hormones give me new levels of energy I just don’t have on non run days!
Hello and welcome... pull a cushion out and sit by the warm fire... you need to ! Brrrr!
Yes.. coffee and music will appeal to many in the stamina stakes, I feel ! You are, if you enjoy the spontaneous dancing going to love it when i do my Festive season S and F dance routine posts!!! I shall expect photographs!
The happy hormones... they are amazing and so powerful too... they can carry us through so much!
So here are my thoughts about my relationship with stamina.
I've got it when I row! (yey!)
I've got it when I run (or joggle) (double yey!)
But I don't have it for walking (boo-boo) and I've long since realised that although any exercise improves my cardio, each exercise type is more likely to give me stamina in that particular exercise. So my experience is that stamina in one exercise does not translate to substantial improvements of stamina of another exercise.
So my workout regime tries to balance that difficult thing of including my major exercise types of running, rowing AND walking, as my experience is that only walking improves walking.
Add to that post-workout stretches, and here and there targeted dumbbells, bodyweight, or resistance band training, which I adapt with focus on a particular weakness of the period, not much time is left for my beloved yoga or Pilates.
So I'm looking forward to retirement which should give me at least 8 hours per day more to play around with.
But it's really difficult to find the time.
And I do get depressed about my lack of walking stamina at times. But there is nothing else other than keeping at it. I’m just hoping I will someday really feel the benefit during my walking, as I’ve seen it with running and rowing, but my walking stamina still leaves a lot to be desired.
I know this is a strange weakness to have, but ho hey. We all have our weaknesses. Walking seems to be mine. Upwards and onwards.
Sorry for this late reply ! Here there and blinking everywhere ,right now and just about to head off to Wales for two days in an hour or so, too.
How odd, the stamina lack for walking.. ? But as you say, we all have our little foibles...do you enjoy walking? Do you want to walk more ? Or is it that, other than of necessity it is not something you choose to do?
In my last post, re-enjoying what we choose to do may have a real impact on performance..
At one time in my life, I would choose to hike, rock climb or boulder, but walking was not my favourite thing, but I did have the stamina for it....now, I love it
Your exercise is keeping you physically strong so that is all good thing.
Yes, when you retire you will wonder how you ever had time to work and you still won't have enough hours in the day... that is what I find anyway! It is blooming brilliant !
CBDBAdministratorGraduate Gold in reply to Oldfloss
Thank you. But yes, I do want to feel more comfortable when hiking longer distances.
I’ve never been a “good walker”, in my younger days I always preferred my bike or other sports, even kayaking in climbing in my younger days.
But kayaking and climbing is now out of the question, so I really would like to be able to confidently hike for much longer than I do, even though I definitely prefer running and rowing.
I’m determined to get there, but it just takes so much effort with my condition.
I feel so confident with my running and rowing now, knowing that even set backs are just a matter of time.
I want this for my hiking/walking as well. I have some more things to try out for both my health, my back and some training plans, so watch this space. 🙂
Hi Floss, after nursing my injured calf and knee, and been given the go-ahead to follow an exercise sheet and practice yoga(carefully) I found my stamina and excitment a little too much!
It seems a little is better than a lot!😆 I have a new twinge behind my knee, possibly from the runners hamstring stretch in a yoga session.
I have cut back, it seems every other day may be in order for YWA and not on the days when I have my physio moves...
Its such a fine line this rehab lark!
I am too enthusiastic I think. ☺
Having a reset while things settle, back to it Sunday. 🤞
(Need just 10 more k for our 50k Strava walking badge this month)
Hello and sorry for the late reply... as you know I am haring around right now!
Well ! You have the exercises... but need to take it gently! I cannot believe a new twinge... those pesky varmints, niggle and twinge! They sneak in everywhere.
Gentle yoga and tweak any exercise which you feel is going to be a stretch too far? I think because you have dons o much yoga, maybe you don't feel the strain like I would, say?
I know because of a neck weakness I cannot do downward dog at all...or flat back exercise... and I tweak to find an alternative... Adriene is so good at giving us those.
Just be kind to yourself...you are walking and building up, maybe some other strength work, upper body too would be really useful too? Arms and core....?
You have to be fit for a certain small person ..up and down and lifting and stretching in all those games
I need do check whether you got some exercise in on Sunday.
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