What happens when you are forced to park

@Overstreet said:
Mine too. There seems to be an old fat guy in the mirror.

Of course when I first saw the topic, “What happens when you are forced to park.” I naturally thought of high school and those old excuses to park. Can’t say I was ever forced to park,…

I still want to know who that stranger is in the mirror!
On the topic of parking. I was a big fan of watching submarine races! Found it much more fun than NASCAR!

@castoff said:
You can always binge watch amazon prime and netflix if you want your scales to start lying to you. I find the mirror has been lying to me these last many years.

The only scale I ever see is in the Dr. office. When my pants get too tight , I cut back.

I had to park due to cancer. I was almost bedridden for four months. Fortunately my husband could drive me around so I could do photo shoots. This led to a new and expensive hobby.

My neighbor ,and good friend, just spent the afternoon hanging out. Ran some real errands then looked around a local gun store and Cabela’s, ate an expensive HB ,and stopped at Costco for flowers for our wives.
A man needs to know his limitations and I met mine today. Frank went in and got the flowers.
Good to be out with a friend.

“local gun store.”

We can talk. I joined a local rifle/pistol club with lots of ranges and when the mood hits me I’ll go punch some expensive holes in a piece of paper. If I use a .22 rifle I can shoot a lot and keep the cost way down. Shooting from the bench is easy on the back.

Best thing to do is have a full length mirror on the wall in the bathroom. You can’t escape reality then.

@PaddleDog52 said:
Best thing to do is have a full length mirror on the wall in the bathroom. You can’t escape reality then.

That’s a frightening thought.

@Rex said:
“local gun store.”

We can talk. I joined a local rifle/pistol club with lots of ranges and when the mood hits me I’ll go punch some expensive holes in a piece of paper. If I use a .22 rifle I can shoot a lot and keep the cost way down. Shooting from the bench is easy on the back.

The gun store had a .308 AR10 made for competition accuracy. A beautiful weapon. It was so heavy I’m not allowed to pick it up yet. And it only cost $1200!!!. My neighbor was ogling a Ruger Mark IV. Over $500.
We decided to shoot what we have.

@string said:

@TomL said:
I also suggest that you create an exercise routine for yourself with input from your doctor and physical therapist. I joined the local YMCA after sciatic nerve pain started crippling me. The Y has every type of machine to help you avoid working injured parts, and they also have a swimming pool. For me the greatest benefit is developing the habit of regular exercise. Over time you get stronger. It’s good for your body and mind. At the Y you get exposed to people that just want to be healthier - like you!

@RikJohnson said:
Anyone who parks for 6 months becomes an internet junkie.
Nothing to do but troll the internet, pretending to know more than they do, watch a LOT of porn and mainly say to themselves, “I really need to get out… next week I will” but next week never comes.
And after 6 months, you wonder why your bathroom scales is lying t oyou and who shrunk the cockpit in your kayak!

Then I’m glad my kayak is a SOT.

Yer kin always upgrade ta a canoo…

You should, of course, clear this with your physical therapist, if you have one, but I’ve found that changing my workout routine to mainly isometric exercises has had great benefits. I’m nearly 68 but still work out at the gym or home every day to maintain fitness and flexibility. Mindful of my joints, I’ve switched to no-impact, no-added-weight workouts, mostly done on a mat, I can also do a lot of them when just driving a car or sitting at home reading or watching TV.

The workouts consist mostly of tensing my muscles against “imaginary” resistance. For example, sitting up straight and reaching forward repeatedly with both arms and then pulling them back as if I was drawing on an ergometer or rowing oar – the trick is to tense the muscles as if you were pulling a really heavy weight. I also stick out my elbows level with my shoulders and draw them back as far as I can, tensioning my trapezius as much as I can as if I was trying to bring my shoulder blades together – easy to do many reps while sitting on the couch. You can also do “invisible sit-ups” by isolating and crunching your abs and obliques while seated or lying down. I work out my legs by raising my toes, again with muscles tensed as much as I can, as if I was lifting a heavy weight laying across my feet. Also reach as far as I can over my head and pull down with maximum muscle tension as if I was doing a pull-up on a bar.

I find that after a while these muscle tension and release cycles become like a self-massage and feel really good, which prompts me to do them more often. I’ve stopped being bothered with the mild ache that I used to experience in my sacroiliac when standing (like with doing dishes or working in my shop).

I initially developed these internal exercises to use when I was on long solo drives and airline flights to increase blood circulation and prevent cramping. Essentially I replicated the muscle movements that I experience when using the static resistance machines at the gym with substantial weights on them. Some of the movements were things we were taught for warm-up during the years that I studied ballet and modern dance. My sense is that strengthening the muscles around my joints helps protect them from injury, as well, reinforcing them from the inside. It’s pretty hard to hurt yourself when you are working against imaginary resistance.

I decided this year to see how doing JUST these exercises affects my general fitness and flexibility and so far I like what is happening. Besides getting rid of the lower back pain, my midriff has toned up noticeably, my posture has improved and I’m able to bend, squat and lift without the “old lady” hesitation and grunting that used to accompany those actions.

Just my 2 cents and maybe some of it useful. Best wishes for a good recovery, anyway!

By the way, Brian Schulz of Cape Falcon Kayak, is coming out with plans for an ultra light skin-on-frame solo canoe that he says makes up more easily and quickly than SOF kayaks. Might be a good down-time project.

http://www.capefalconkayaks.com/newsletter

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@willowleaf said:
You should, of course, clear this with your physical therapist, if you have one, but I’ve found that changing my workout routine to mainly isometric exercises has had great benefits. I’m nearly 68 but still work out at the gym or home every day to maintain fitness and flexibility. Mindful of my joints, I’ve switched to no-impact, no-added-weight workouts, mostly done on a mat, I can also do a lot of them when just driving a car or sitting at home reading or watching TV.

The workouts consist mostly of tensing my muscles against “imaginary” resistance. For example, sitting up straight and reaching forward repeatedly with both arms and then pulling them back as if I was drawing on an ergometer or rowing oar – the trick is to tense the muscles as if you were pulling a really heavy weight. I also stick out my elbows level with my shoulders and draw them back as far as I can, tensioning my trapezius as much as I can as if I was trying to bring my shoulder blades together – easy to do many reps while sitting on the couch. You can also do “invisible sit-ups” by isolating and crunching your abs and obliques while seated or lying down. I work out my legs by raising my toes, again with muscles tensed as much as I can, as if I was lifting a heavy weight laying across my feet. Also reach as far as I can over my head and pull down with maximum muscle tension as if I was doing a pull-up on a bar.

I find that after a while these muscle tension and release cycles become like a self-massage and feel really good, which prompts me to do them more often. I’ve stopped being bothered with the mild ache that I used to experience in my sacroiliac when standing (like with doing dishes or working in my shop).

I initially developed these internal exercises to use when I was on long solo drives and airline flights to increase blood circulation and prevent cramping. Essentially I replicated the muscle movements that I experience when using the static resistance machines at the gym with substantial weights on them. Some of the movements were things we were taught for warm-up during the years that I studied ballet and modern dance. My sense is that strengthening the muscles around my joints helps protect them from injury, as well, reinforcing them from the inside. It’s pretty hard to hurt yourself when you are working against imaginary resistance.

I decided this year to see how doing JUST these exercises affects my general fitness and flexibility and so far I like what is happening. Besides getting rid of the lower back pain, my midriff has toned up noticeably, my posture has improved and I’m able to bend, squat and lift without the “old lady” hesitation and grunting that used to accompany those actions.

Just my 2 cents and maybe some of it useful. Best wishes for a good recovery, anyway!

By the way, Brian Schulz of Cape Falcon Kayak, is coming out with plans for an ultra light skin-on-frame solo canoe that he says makes up more easily and quickly than SOF kayaks. Might be a good down-time project.

http://www.capefalconkayaks.com/newsletter

.

Thanks KM. You have lead a far more physically diverse life than I have.
PS: Next time you’re headed south, why not add a day to paddle our area, northwest SC ? Local guide(s) are free.

Oops! I should have said WL.

Hey string, it sounds like a new exercise routine may not be in the cards for you for a few more weeks.

I think our generic recommendation is to look for any new hobby that might help you turn your downtime into a benefit. Maybe photography, or sketching, or meditation, or birdwatching, or woodcarving or or or. If you decide to learn a musical instrument I suggest that you first get your wife’s approval.

@TomL said:
Hey string, it sounds like a new exercise routine may not be in the cards for you for a few more weeks.

I think our generic recommendation is to look for any new hobby that might help you turn your downtime into a benefit. Maybe photography, or sketching, or meditation, or birdwatching, or woodcarving or or or. If you decide to learn a musical instrument I suggest that you first get your wife’s approval.

I thought about young women bout I’m reasonably sure my wife wouldn’t like that.
I was and sometimes am a woodcarver. I’ve got a blanked out GP waiting for me.

If you want to carve your first canoe paddle I would be willing to evaluate it for you. Just FYI my favorite wood is carbon fiber.

My wife says I can do anything I want as long as I remember my wedding vows. I do not actually remember exactly what I agreed to but like you I somehow got lucky with no apparent limit on canoes.

Tom, I have a beautiful cherry canoe paddle I carved from plans I got from a p.nutter, tktoo. Also a WRC Aleut style. Both are on the wall of our den.
I forget the style of the canoe paddle but it has a long blade that is made for in water recovery. I almost flipped my Malecite the first , and last, time I used it. Sure is purty.

So let’s see your canoe paddle! Here’s a shot of my 3 long bladed cherry paddles. 2 were made by Jodie-Marc LaLond of Turtle Paddles. I was concerned about weight so he made one from cherry sapwood (see second pic)…you can see the light color and the grip has a unique feel from the wood. The third was carved by a friend of Dave Curtis and with a small blade and flexible shaft it’s super gentle on the paddler.

I hope to play around more with long bladed paddles this year. I do so much river paddling that I migrated to shorter (and much lighter) paddles with stubby blades so I can switch sides and drive upstream even in shallow water.


Mine isn’t that pretty. Yet. A design adds some class.

@string said:
Mine isn’t that pretty. Yet. A design adds some class.

Castoff is good with designs. Maybe I can get some assistance.