A key aspect of being in good physical condition is to be able to take on physical tasks whenever it's needed. Yesterday was one of the worst snow days this winter so far here in Northern Idaho as it came down hard on and off from 9pm Wednesday night to about 7 yesterday hitting at a peak of 8 inches ground level to nearly 14 inches in the mountains.
This was the most I've had to shovel snow as I went out 6 times starting at 2:30 in the morning until about 6 O'clock in the evening moving snow for 30 minutes to an hour at a time. Some of it was powdery but quite a bit got heavy and building little mountains of snow around the front yard and around a space my wife parks her car. Very few people have shovels in this neighborhood and have snow plows. The only time you see someone else around here that uses a shovel is if the plow breaks down or there's bits of snow left to kick off. So, I ended up being one of the few who was burning energy like crazy.
Between rounds of shoveling, to keep my energy up, I did various exercises throughout the day. From doing 360's with a Sandbell to Push-ups, Step-Ups and Isometrics, these little Micro Workouts kept me alert and ready for when I was going out again. If anyone understands that yes Shoveling Snow isn't a special thing and many people do it but statistics have shown that if you're not in good shape and you just go out and do a very demanding physical task, it can get dangerous for some people. Cold weather alone is tough to deal with at times because even though you have good clothing on to stay warm, you're still burning off calories just to stay warm overall, add in something like Shoveling Snow, you're working harder than you normally would. It has led to Heart Failure in some people and has had people drop dead from overexertion.
Around my 5th round of Shoveling, I ended up helping a neighbor's son get his car into the driveway because it got stuck within feet of the driveway. Me, and the neighbor's 2 sons were digging around the car because the snow had scrunched up under and around. The car couldn't move for about several minutes so I was hauling ass just to get snow out around it. Ended up pushing the car a couple times to add some umph as it was in gear. We got it into the driveway but it came at an exhausting price. I'm glad I was able to help but that drained me for a while.
This is where Micro Workouts can be a godsend because when you need to be ready for something like this, it's important to realize that even the little things can have a huge impact on how you handle certain tasks at any given time. Picking up and carrying weight for 5-10 minutes may not seem like much but it gets your blood going, it strengthens your muscles for the the work you might put in later among other things. Isometrics are definitely the "game genie" of fitness because when you strengthen the joints and tendons, your whole body will have a stronger outlook on the physical movements you need to do at times.
(For those reading who don't understand what Game Genie means.....The Game Genie was a device for various video game consoles back in the day such as Sega, Nintendo & Super Nintendo where you can get cheats and secrets to various games that had "glitches" in them where you can acquire certain things such as infinite lives, invincibility, unlimited weapons, level selection and be able to run faster and jump higher.)
Whether you shovel snow, do landscaping, brick building, breaking concrete or something like dry walling, it's important to be in good shape because these things can be very taxing and yes you can be in good shape from doing them by themselves because over time it becomes second nature and your body has adapted to the stress but, some micro training can give you that extra boost of energy and keep you alert and on your toes.
Micro Workouts give you the opportunity to train with the little window of time you can use to keep yourself in shape for whatever the day's tasks you may need to do and stay on top of your physical well being. Those few minutes can be life saving and help you be in better health than just either doing one big workout or nothing at all.
Stay strong and stay healthy as long as you can throughout this life and do amazingly awesome things when you are needed and to be strong and fit for yourself and the people in your life.
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