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Weight Workout
Home
Keeping a program simple ordinarily
rules out expensive equipment. But some equipment will make it
possible to add the spice of variety to the program. For example,
barbells may help to make flexibility an easily achievable goal.
One or two exercise mats provide the base for many lying-down
exercises. Mats can be purchased from sporting goods stores, ordered
from mail-order houses, or made at home out of 1.5-inch foam rubber.
If made at home, the mats can be covered with a fabric that goes
with the room. The materials may be terry cloth, vinyl-coated
fabric, canvas, or some other type that is soft, easily washed
or wiped off, and durable.
If the mat has a line running down its center lengthenwise, it
will make body alignment a simple task. The line can be made out
of a similar fabric of a different color from the mat covering
proper.
The mat or mats should be sized to fit the individual’s body.
The perfect mat is somewhat longer than the user is tall, and
wide enough to provide protection against bumps and bruises. That
means it should be wider than a line drawn from heel to heel when
the person lies flat and stretches both legs as far apart as possible.
Another way to measure the idea; mat width is to lie flat and
extend elbows as far as possible straight out from the shoulders.
The points reached by the elbows indicate a good width. The good
mat has plenty of “give.” It also springs back into position when
pressure is removed.
Choosing and arranging permanent equipment may take a little thought.
With care and planning, the room’s appearance need not really
suffer. Equipment may come in chrome, steel, or natural wood.
If, on the other hand, Spartan simplicity is preferable, formal
equipment may be dispensed with totally. Many exercises can be
performed without any equipment at all. For example, various sets
of exercises have been designed for practice in the shower, sitting
down at the work desk, or standing up in an ordinary room.
Many household items can be converted to exercise props. Weights
can me made out of plastic detergent or bleach containers. The
containers need only be filled with sand or water. If desired,
the weights can be attached to the ends of a bar made of a broom
or mop handle. Numerous heavy objects such as ski boots, telephone
books, or bricks wrapped in towels can also be incorporated into
exercise routines.
A little creativity can turn other everyday items into perfectly
adequate fitness equipment. A length of clothesline makes an admirable
jump rope. Two solid chairs of the same size can be placed back
to back a couple of feet apart to form parallel bars. A heavy
towel, held with arms spread an appropriate distance, can be used
to provide both variable resistance and a massaging effect. Different
exercises to increase endurance, equilibrium, speed, suppleness,
strength, and coordination have been devised utilizing lengths
of cloth.
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