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FROM THE DESK OF Tom Thoman
3 INSANELYTOUGH FITNESS CHALLENGES P ush Y ourself to the L imit
Meet Bailey and Zoey, Foothills Mascots
In general, improving your fitness is a solitary pursuit. You may have a group of gym regulars you see frequently, but it’s rare for you to all be doing the same exercises at the same time. While this personal journey has its own rewards, sometimes you want to test yourself against others. Many people enter a 5K or other race to see how far they’ve come, but the most exercise-obsessed among us may want to seek a greater challenge. If you fall under that umbrella, consider these over-the-top events that aren’t for the faint of heart.
Well-known to most of our clientele, Bailey and Zoey are almost always present at Foothills.
Though quiet and very well-behaved, they always welcome a pat on the head or a very small treat.
Tough Mudder
Bailey is 9 years old now and has been coming to the clinic since he was just 10 weeks old. He is very kind and sensitive and is “the thinker.” Somewhat shy, Bailey can be seen curled up in one of the rooms or in a corner. He is quick with a tail wag when called. Zoey is 6 years old and has also been a fixture at Foothills since she was a small pup. She is super sweet, cute, and is “the hugger.” She can often be seen on one of the tables at work and will invite you over to give her a good ol’ belly rub. When Bailey and Zoey get a day off from“work” and stay home, we always hear, “Hey, where are the dogs?!”
The Tough Mudder is so difficult that it isn’t even considered a race; it’s simply a test of endurance over a grueling 10-mile course filled with various obstacles. Per the organization’s website, “Tough Mudder isn’t about how fast you can cross the finish line. It’s about pushing yourself — and your team— to discover what you’re really made of.”While there are 5K and half versions of the challenge, the Tough Mudder Full is the main attraction. While obstacles vary from event to event, you can expect to see a few signature challenges on every course. These include “Arctic Enema,” a dive into a dumpster filled with ice water; “Electroshock Therapy,” a trudge through a pit of mud with live electrical wires hanging overhead; and “Everest,” a climb up a quarter pipe slicked with mud and grease. If that doesn’t sound daunting enough, Tough Mudder also hosts a series of competitions culminating in the World’s Toughest Mudder, a 24-hour challenge that could best be described as insane. Participants are tasked with completing a course as many times as they can in 24 hours, with the winners completing in excess of 100 laps. World’s toughest, indeed.
-Tom Thoman
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Molokai 2 Oahu Paddleboard World Championships
The course itself spans the Ka’iwi Channel, which translates to “the channel of bones.” As the name suggests, it’s no lap pool. With gale-force winds and massive ocean swells, it’s known for being treacherous and intense. In adverse conditions, it’s borderline unnavigable. Needless to say, M2O is not for novices. A 100-mile endurance run sounds tough enough as is. Add more than 60,000 feet of elevation change, and you have a recipe for one of the toughest races in the world. That’s exactly what the Hardrock 100 offers competitors each summer. Racers have 48 hours to complete the course, with various resting points along the way. Beginning and ending in Silverton, Colorado, the closed course passes through mountains, rivers, and everything in between. As if that wasn’t enough, there are also frequent elk and mountain lion sightings. Oh, and thunderstorms are Hardrock 100-Mile Endurance Run
so common that participants have been struck by lightning on numerous occasions! Conditions can change at a moment’s notice, so runners are given updates and warnings about when to simply get off the course and wait for a storm to pass. Perhaps no race combines the majestic beauty of nature with the challenge of endurance running quite like the Hardrock 100. Luckily, there are 14 aid stations throughout the course where runners can stop, warm up, rest, and replenish. Without them, we’d venture to say that the Hardrock 100 would be more aptly named the Hardrock Impossible. These are just three of the many ways fitness junkies can take their passion to its absolute apex. Of course, you shouldn’t enter these events or others like them without plenty of preparation. That being said, for many people, challenges like these are what make the hours spent in the gym pay off in spades.
For many people, paddleboarding is a relaxing way to spend a summer afternoon. The brave souls who sign up for the Molokai 2 Oahu Paddleboard World Championships (M2O) aren’t looking for leisure, though; they are testing themselves in choppy waters over a course 32 miles long. In fact, the M2O is so dangerous that every participant has a boat nearby in case they fall in rough waters or get too tired to continue. While the race started in 1996, it has its roots in the ancient cultures of the Hawaiian Islands. Polynesian people, the first migrants to Hawaii, often paddled their way from island to island in search of a place to settle. It’s with this spirit in mind that M2O was created. It didn’t take long to become extremely popular. Each year, entrants sign up to compete either individually or in groups in both stand-up and prone divisions.
Become a ‘DogWhisperer’ Train as a Pack for Better Results
Affection
Your whole family adores your dog — but not the barking. This issue can lead to feelings of frustration, and the more frustrated you get, the more your dog barks. It’s their only way of communicating, and they’re telling you, “My needs are not being met.” As Cesar Millan, the original “dog whisperer,” explains, “A barking dog needs exercise, discipline, and affection, in that order.”
to your child’s chore list and help get out some of the kid’s pent-up energy, too. It may also be beneficial to practice obedience exercises and games that challenge your dog.
Of course, your dog needs love and attention to thrive — a lack of it could contribute to barking behavior. Reinforce silence by giving your dog a treat and an encouraging pat when she demonstrates good behavior, like not barking. “Our pups want to work for our attention,” Cesar Millan reminds us. “Allowing her to do that and to see your happiness is, to your dog, the biggest reward of all.” To make your training program successful, consistency is key. Enlist the help of the whole family to stick to the principles. Together, you can foster a calm, peaceful home where you and your dog happily coexist.
Discipline
To put a stop to the behavior, you’ll first need to change any of your behavior that’s reinforcing it. Any attention your dog gets when he’s barking — even yelling, “Rover, stop!”— teaches him to keep going, because you’re rewarding him with attention. Wait until your dog has stopped barking to give him any sort of attention, including looking at them. “To be successful with this method, you must wait as long as it takes for him to stop barking,” advises the Humane Society.
Exercise
Part of the barking issue may be due to pent-up energy. According to the humane society, “A tired dog is a good dog and one who is less likely to bark from boredom or frustration.” If you already take your pup on a morning walk, try adding in an evening walk. You could add it
2 • FoothillsPTMaine.com
WANT TO IMPROVE BRAIN HEALTH? GRAB A SWORD!
Did you know fencing is making a comeback? No longer just for heartsick gentlemen of the Regency era, fencing is increasingly being taught in public schools, displayed in the pages of popular indie comics, and practiced among seniors. Plenty of baby boomers are picking up swords, or “sabers”— and it’s not because they’re preparing to fight dragons. Exercise is important no matter your age, but some activities are more beneficial than others. Research published in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise (PSE) suggests activities defined as “open-skill sports,” like fencing, can do more to improve brain health than “closed-skill sports.” The Benefits of Open-Skill Sports The difference between an open-skill sport and a closed-skill sport lies in the dynamic nature of the activity. Going for a jog is great for your heart health, but your body is doing the same thing during the entire workout. This makes it a closed-skill sport. The same goes for swimming; you might have different strokes to choose from when you jump in the pool, but your brain is focused on repeating the action while doing your laps. Open-skill sports require players to respond to unpredictable circumstances in unpredictable ways. Fencing is a great open-skill sport because, while you have to learn the right way to hold the saber and move your body, you also have to think on your feet and react quickly to your opponent’s attacks. Open or Closed?
Researchers from the Foro Italico University of Rome believe that it’s the required adaptability that makes open-skill sports so good for your brain. You challenge your body with complex motor movements and your mind with fast decisions. In the study from PSE, the researchers reported that “the open-skill athletes used less brainpower to do the same thing than the closed-skill exercisers did.”
What’s the Best Open-Skill Sport?
If fencing isn’t your thing, there are plenty of other great open-skill sports, including tennis, badminton, basketball, and racquetball. What are you waiting for? Swing by your local rec center and find out what open-skill sport will be your new favorite pastime!
Take a Break!
GREEN BEAN AND SESAME SALAD
Ingredients
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3 cups green beans, ends trimmed
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1 small red onion, finely chopped
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1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
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Small bunch of fresh mint
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1 tablespoon olive oil
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Small bunch of flat-leaf parsley
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2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
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Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Bring a large saucepan of water to boil; cook green beans for 4–5 minutes; drain well. 2. In a blender, mix finely chopped mint and parsley with olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Blend until combined. 3. Add dressing, onion, and sesame seeds to beans. Toss together. Cool dish, then refrigerate until ready to serve.
PAR BIRDIE DRIVER GREEN
STROKE HOLE IN ONE PGA CADDIE
SWING PUTTER GOLF CART DRIVING RANGE
Recipe courtesy of Delicious magazine
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE From the Desk of Tom PAGE 1 America’s Most Grueling Fitness Events PAGE 1 How to Get Your Dog to Stop Barking PAGE 2 Fence Your Way to Better Brain Health PAGE 3 Take a Break PAGE 3 Green Bean and Sesame Salad PAGE 3 The Benefits of Metabolic Fitness Training PAGE 4
METABOLIC FITNESS TRAINING
A Big Workout With a Small Time Commitment
Not everyone can spend hours at the gym each week. If you struggle to fit workouts into your busy schedule, metabolic resistance training (MRT) might be the perfect solution. This high-intensity circuit technique keeps your heart rate elevated while you bust out more reps in a shorter period of time. You may find that you need to reduce the weight a bit in order to perform so many reps with no rest, but that’s fine; the goal of MRT is to move constantly, not set PRs. You’ll burn calories, increase strength, and improve your cardiovascular fitness in one fell swoop — all without having to step on a treadmill!
massive amounts of muscle, because it burns so many calories and uses a high-rep/low- weight protocol.
The Science Behind MRT
High-rep/high-volume workouts stimulate muscle protein synthesis (the process by which muscle is built) more effectively than splits that work single body parts. But perhaps the best part of metabolic resistance training occurs after you leave the gym. Because it takes longer for your body to return to its resting metabolic state after such an intense workout, you continue to burn extra calories in the hours and days after MRT, an effect commonly referred to as the “afterburn.”
of time; you don’t want your heart rate to go down while you walk between stations or mess around loading the bar. Do compound movements like dumbbell chest presses, burpees, and goblet squats to work multiple muscle groups at once. Metabolic resistance training is a hard workout and not for the faint of heart. But by pushing yourself outside your comfort zone, you’ll see greater results and have more time to spend on the other things you enjoy.
The Benefits of Metabolic Resistance Training
How to Set Up an MRT Circuit
MRT offers the biggest bang for your fitness buck by squeezing as much work as possible into each workout. While this technique is the perfect way to build strength, lean out, and increase cardiovascular health all at once, it may not be ideal for anyone trying to add
The key to metabolic resistance training is to keep your rest periods short, so choose exercises you can perform in one spot (or close together), and set up your equipment ahead
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