Monday 081208

Workout

Clean and Jerk:
Work up to 80% x1, 70% x1, 83% x1, 73% x1, 85% x1, 75% x1, 88% x1, 75% x1 notice the wave?

Compose to:
TITANFIT: Sunday 080907

Row Your Way to Health
Air date: November 23, 2008

OK, so here’s a question for all you fitness enthusiasts out there: "Which athletes have the biggest hearts, the densest bones, the biggest muscles?"

And, the answer? "It’s rowers."

The voice you’re hearing belongs to Benjamin Levin. He’s a cardiologist at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas. And he’s interested in exercise that does the most to strengthen the heart. So what’s so special about rowing?

"Rowing is a very unique exercise. It’s kind of like a combination of weight training and endurance training. And the blood pressure goes up really high with each stroke, so it’s a good, solid workout for the heart."

Rowing is such good exercise, in fact, that rowers tend to have the biggest muscles, the densest bones and the biggest hearts. It’s also low impact, which makes rowing a good choice if you have creaky knees or you’re recovering from an injury.

"There’s no pounding; people don’t get injured rowing. So it’s a great exercise for a lot of reasons."

And if you’re looking to lose weight, rowing for thirty minutes burns calories faster than riding a stationary bike for the same amount of time.

So is there any downside to rowing? You do need a rowing machine or access to a large body of water. But most gyms have rowing machines. And you can get a decent home machine for under $200 dollars.

So if you want to get in great shape, or strengthen your heart, or both, rowing just may be the way to go.

I’m Jeremy Shere

This Sound Medicine Checkup is underwritten by IUPUI, where impact is made on our students, our community, our health, and our economy. More information at http://www.iupui.edu/.

Additional Resources:
Read more about the benefits of interval training for building strength and cardio-vascular rehabilitation.