Dr. Frank Poole isn't an authority on health or exercise...actually, the dude doesn't even exist! Yet many of us know of him through the Stanley Kubrick/Arthur C. Clarke classic 1968 science fiction movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. Shown about halfway through the story, his mission...along with that of co-astronaut David Bowman, several others in suspended animation, and a wayward computer named HAL...is to travel to Jupiter on the spaceship Discovery One to solve a deep mystery found on the Moon and seek out alien contact. Its design mimics gravity through centripetal force, and Poole is introduced jogging on its circular inner perimeter while shadow boxing. Well, I'm not planning to go out in space anytime soon, but I do a bit of running. What I'm adding to my exercise routine in emulation of Dr. Poole is working out my upper body by mimicking various weight lifting routines and swimming strokes in the air. No extra weights are involved here...and I think the good doctor wouldn't mind if I avoided his boxing moves, for which I have no training. I think more people would probably do this as well if their routines took place in the privacy of their own homes...it might look a little weird in public moving your arms around all willy-nilly while running! Working out my upper body and limbs is something I need to add to my running and walking...although to be perfectly honest I already do plenty of rigorous lifting and carrying at my current job. Still, this new addition to my workout seems to be helping...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
While I don't run, I do use 2 walking sticks when I hike and find that I can definitely notice the difference in my arms as opposed to when I walk the beach. When it's too hot (like now) I walk around my very small apartment and try to move my arms while I do that (although not above my head as my shoulders aren't in that good of shape). I think any movement is helpful in maintaining flexibility and keeping muscles toned.
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm jogging around the house for a couple of minutes with my arms stretched over my head, our dog Daisy gets real concerned and follows me until I'm finished. Actually, I'm training to something called a "dead hang" that as kids I think most of us easily did on monkey bars at the playground...ultimately, it's a way (among others) to strengthen grip, something I've learned is important as I age.
DeleteI have definitely lost my grip strength and will see if my shoulders can tolerate the dead hang when I go to the gym today.
Delete