Changing Routine aids Body, Soul
Add Balance to Strengthen Work
By Maria Howard
Photos by Bruce Parker

Don't pick just one form of exercise to help you get fit this fall. Pick two, three, maybe even four.

Everyone knows that it's best to cross-train. But making yourself commit to it is another matter.

CAT NICHOLSON (right) and Andrea McGloin (center) do cross-training drills at Velocity Sports Performance. Varying exercise routine is important for overall fitness.

Cross-training is essentially rotating exercises so that your body is constantly challenged. Optimally, you want to include a variety of ways to get in cardiovascular, strength, agility, balance and flexibility work.

How can you get all that in when it's hard enough to find time for a quick run?

Remember that working in alternative exercises doesn't mean you have to spend more time overall on fitness.

For instance, if you typically run 40 minutes a day, consider running 20 minutes and biking 20 minutes a couple of times a week. If you have access to a pool, throw in a 20-minute swim here and there in place of the bike or the run. Or, if the weather's nasty, jump rope to get your heart rate up.

Even if you love the cardiovascular (heart-pumping) type of exercise, don't forget to work on building lean muscle mass through strength work. If you work out at home, put some push-ups and arm curls in your routine. If you belong to a gym, make yourself a regular in the weight room.

One area that's often overlooked by committed exercisers is balance/flexibility.

NICHOlSON works on an abs drill. cross-training provides challenges for your body and helps to keep exercising interesting.

Marathon runners might scoff at the idea of attending a yoga class, but that might be just what they need to relieve tight muscles.

Kimberly Brockwell, group exercise director at two Gold's Gym locations in Richmond, said, "Yoga is such a good benefit for [runners] because it helps them stretch and it helps with alignment."

Pilates, too, has been hailed recently by athletes as a way to gain core strength and increase flexibility.

I recently attended an adult fitness class at Velocity Sports Performance in Richmond that incorporated the major facets of fitness — cardiovascular, strength, agility, balance and flexibility work — into a one-hour session. Other programs in the area, such as interval training classes and the military-style workouts that are popular here, also provide a variety of exercises in one setting. Essentially, every session is a cross-training workout.

At Velocity Sports Performance, director Shane Sykes led a small group of women that morning in drills that could be used for everything from football training to improving yoga postures.

"You want to promote all of these movements," Sykes said.

In between the traditional sprints, push-ups and jumping jacks, he asked his participants to do a lot of lateral movements to increase agility. He also threw in some moves that required balance as well as muscle contraction.

Fitness trainers like Brockwell and Sykes said people often complain that they plateau in their workouts, not feeling as if they can get beyond a certain point of fitness because they're doing the same types of exercises over and over.

Adding in some new moves (with a doctor's permission, if you have any health concerns) is a good way to get beyond that.

Shawn Stewart, executive director at Velocity, said six to eight weeks of the same workout routine can lead to lessened results.

"You need to shock your body," he said.