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mike340 · 11-12-2010, 01:24 AM

Running should make you lose some weight unless you're doing intervals and/or anaerobic training. If you want to be lean but maintain or gain muscle weight in your legs (as well as get conditioning) try biking. If your knees start bothering you then biking is excellent since it strengthens the quads. They act as the "shock absorber" for the knees, so the stronger they are the more your knees are protected.
I know the weather is about to be crap, but assuming you have a bike you like, get a "Turbo Trainer", which is effectively a stand for your bike with an axle touching the rear wheel which generates resistance. I haven't checked prices lately, but I'm pretty sure you can pick one of these up for well under $200. One of the great benefits is that your position on the bike is the same as when you're outside riding (unlike those horrible LifeCycles). It can be boring, so if you can get some tapes of bike racing and put them on while you're training you'll feel like you're in the race. Putting on some tunes really helps as well.
Someone commented that you may get sore after the first few run workouts. I found that if it feels like you have lactic acid build-up at the end of the run (which will feel like soreness in the muscles) spin a small gear at fairly high rpms. What you're trying to do is get a lot of blood flow to the area to clear out the lactic acid so it doesn't degrade the muscles by sitting there, while keeping new lactic acid generation at a minimum. It's also really important to re-hydrate as soon as possible after the exercise. You want to eliminate the toxins from your system before they have time to do damage. (Think green;-)(Make sure your pee is clear afterwards.)
All of this is probably overkill if you're only going to run 2 times a week, but some of it may come in handy as variety/protection against injuries.

In relation to another post, women seem more frequently to do exercise without actually working out (i.e. not sweating.) Few people seem to use their glutes when they're running, as well as other exercises that could "really use them". By not using them, you're not using the largest muscle in the body, and losing out on the chance to burn all those extra calories, as well as firm up what a lot of people feel is the best looking muscle in the body. I happen to love the Roman Chair, which really works the "drive train" (i.e. glutes and hamstrings.) Since I'm going for endurance I usually do multiple sets with lots of reps in each set. Do NOT try this exercise if you have a bad back. Of course, since I'm getting close to 55 I'm not doing as many as I used to...

If you get more intense about it there's an excellent book by Galloway for runners over 40, but his main emphasis is how to train so you can meet your goals without getting injured.

Hope this helps.

11-12-2010, 01:24 AM	#20
mike340 Special Teams Join Date: Jun 2006 Age: 68 Posts: 322	Re: Let's Talk About Running Running should make you lose some weight unless you're doing intervals and/or anaerobic training. If you want to be lean but maintain or gain muscle weight in your legs (as well as get conditioning) try biking. If your knees start bothering you then biking is excellent since it strengthens the quads. They act as the "shock absorber" for the knees, so the stronger they are the more your knees are protected. I know the weather is about to be crap, but assuming you have a bike you like, get a "Turbo Trainer", which is effectively a stand for your bike with an axle touching the rear wheel which generates resistance. I haven't checked prices lately, but I'm pretty sure you can pick one of these up for well under $200. One of the great benefits is that your position on the bike is the same as when you're outside riding (unlike those horrible LifeCycles). It can be boring, so if you can get some tapes of bike racing and put them on while you're training you'll feel like you're in the race. Putting on some tunes really helps as well. Someone commented that you may get sore after the first few run workouts. I found that if it feels like you have lactic acid build-up at the end of the run (which will feel like soreness in the muscles) spin a small gear at fairly high rpms. What you're trying to do is get a lot of blood flow to the area to clear out the lactic acid so it doesn't degrade the muscles by sitting there, while keeping new lactic acid generation at a minimum. It's also really important to re-hydrate as soon as possible after the exercise. You want to eliminate the toxins from your system before they have time to do damage. (Think green;-)(Make sure your pee is clear afterwards.) All of this is probably overkill if you're only going to run 2 times a week, but some of it may come in handy as variety/protection against injuries. In relation to another post, women seem more frequently to do exercise without actually working out (i.e. not sweating.) Few people seem to use their glutes when they're running, as well as other exercises that could "really use them". By not using them, you're not using the largest muscle in the body, and losing out on the chance to burn all those extra calories, as well as firm up what a lot of people feel is the best looking muscle in the body. I happen to love the Roman Chair, which really works the "drive train" (i.e. glutes and hamstrings.) Since I'm going for endurance I usually do multiple sets with lots of reps in each set. Do NOT try this exercise if you have a bad back. Of course, since I'm getting close to 55 I'm not doing as many as I used to... If you get more intense about it there's an excellent book by Galloway for runners over 40, but his main emphasis is how to train so you can meet your goals without getting injured. Hope this helps.