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Tips for Exercising . |
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| Before you start.... |
Before beginning an exercise program or changing your physical activity patterns, always consult with your doctor or physician. |
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Cardiovascular exercise . |
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| What is cardiovascular exercise? |
Any exercise that gets your heart rate up (makes you breathe heavy) that doesn't involve lifting weights. Examples are pushing yourself in your wheelchair and working on the arm cycle (ergometer), or doing aerobics. |
| How often should I do cardiovascular exercise? |
Shoot for at least 3 days/week, but ideally most days of the week. |
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How hard or intense should my workout be? |
Your workout should be light to moderate intensity. This means that you will be breathing hard and sweating, but will still be able to say a complete sentence with out stopping to catch your breath. If you can talk but not sing during your workout, it's probably the right intensity. |
| How long should my cardiovascular workout be? |
Aim for 20 to 60 minutes in length. |
| Which cardiovascular exercise is best? |
No one cardiovascular exercise is better than another. The idea is to get your heart pumping and your body sweating! Try something that is rhythmical in nature (like the arm cycle) that you can work on for 20-60 minutes without stopping. Also, choose an activity that is fun to do. You may also want to mix it up so that you are not doing the same activity day after day. |
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Strength training . |
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What is strength training? |
Strength training builds your muscles. Examples of strength training include lifting weights and working with a bar/rubberband exercise set. |
| How much weight should I lift? |
Select a weight that allows you to complete the desired number of repetitions. For example, if you start out with a 20-pound weight, and you can't do more than 10 repetitions, then try using a 15-pound weight instead. |
| How many sets should I do? |
A set is made up of a certain number of times a weight is lifted. For example, if you lift an arm weight 30 times in your workout, you’ll want to break that number up into 2 SETS. Each set will include lifting the arm weight 15 times. In the beginning, start out with 1 set and progress to 3 sets slowly. While there is no specific time line for increasing the number of sets you are doing, the key is listening to your body. If you are sore the day after doing one set, stick to one set until you feel good the next day. Once you feel good, move up to two sets. Continue with two sets until you are no longer sore the day after the workout. Then move to three sets. |
| How many repetitions should I do? |
A repetition is the number of times you lift a weight in each set. For example, you might lift an arm weight 15 times per set. That means that you did 15 REPETITIONS. If you wish to work on muscular endurance, then do 15-20 repetitions. Muscular endurance helps your posture, and aids in your activities of daily living. If you wish to work on muscular strength, then do 10-15 repetitions. Improving your muscular strength will help you to lift heavier loads and help you to transfer more easily. |
| How long should my strength training be? | Shoot for 15-30 minutes of strength training |
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Flexibility . |
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| What is flexibility training? |
Flexibility training helps you to improve your range of motion. For example, regularly stretching your back muscles will allow you to bend down further than if you did not stretch them. |
| When should I stretch? | You should stretch before and
after every aerobic and strength workout.
Here is an example of a workout routine that includes stretching:
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| What is the best way to stretch? |
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Other tips . |
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| .Tip #1 |
Select a balanced workout include cardiovascular exercise, strength training, and flexibility training. Here's an example of a balanced week of workouts: Monday: strength training
for 30 minutes
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| .Tip #2 |
Your body needs to rest! Cardiovascular exercise can be done up to six days a week, but make sure to rest one day a week. |
| .Tip #3 |
Be sure and rest a day between strength training routines for the same muscle groups. For example never do bench press on both Monday and Tuesday because your arm muscles need to rest in between workouts. |
| .Tip #4 (see below for reference pictures) |
People who use wheel chairs should be sure and train their posterior deltoids (see picture below for location of this muscle group) and their upper back to prevent muscle imbalances from constantly pushing their chair. An example for this is the vertical row. (see pictures below for examples) |
| location of posterior deltoid |  |
| First example of vertical row: starting position |  |
| First example of vertical row: ending position |  |
| Second example of vertical row: starting position |  |
| Second example of vertical row: ending position |  |