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Old 20-08-2020, 08:13   #1
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Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Thanks everyone for the really helpful and thoughtful responses to my first question about living aboard. I'm still reading them there....

As I said, I'm 65. I cycle, with a nice road bike, an hour or two every morning, pushing it with a with a heart rate monitor. I feel it is critical to my health and physical and mental well being.

But how can I get aerobic if I'm at anchor, or sailing on long cruises? How do you do it?

Thank you...

Jim
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Old 20-08-2020, 08:32   #2
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

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But how can I get aerobic if I'm at anchor, or sailing on long cruises? How do you do it?
At anchor you can take your bike in and ride (you might want to get a folding bike). You can also swim, run or speed walk. During passages or inclimate weather..........calisthenics. They also make small pedal machines for use in a seat like a recumbent bike.
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Old 20-08-2020, 08:56   #3
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Quote:
Originally Posted by river251 View Post
Thanks everyone for the really helpful and thoughtful responses to my first question about living aboard. I'm still reading them there....

As I said, I'm 65. I cycle, with a nice road bike, an hour or two every morning, pushing it with a with a heart rate monitor. I feel it is critical to my health and physical and mental well being.

But how can I get aerobic if I'm at anchor, or sailing on long cruises? How do you do it?

Thank you...

Jim
I agree that this is a challenge. Since the boat is always in motion when at sea, your body is constantly trying to compensate, so muscle tone is not the issue, aerobics is however; sailing on long passages is not very active. We race our boat, which requires energy in bursts, but it is not usually aerobic either. Fortunately, from fitness point of view, we don't spend a high percentage of our time on long passages or racing.

More time is spent at anchor (or in a marina).

There are lots of possibilities in a marina environment. Walking, find a hill with steps or a steep path, jog if your knees can take it. Some people bring a bike on the boat. We've used a gym at many ports of call. Here we even joined one which we love and, until Covid, worked out with religious regularity and found it essential for body and mind. Otherwise, pickle ball or beach volleyball games can sometimes be found. The hard part, as we move from place to place, is to get the routine re-established at each new stop.

At anchor swimming is an alternative, if the water is clean and not too cold. Laps around the boat are easy, if boring. We don't do enough of this. A kayak which can be paddled energetically could be a good alternative, if you can carry it other than on the lifelines.

Now, with Covid restrictions in place our Gym is closed and we have not gotten into a alternative. We need to.

We're open to ideas, maybe some other CF members will make good suggestions.
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Old 20-08-2020, 09:07   #4
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Never been in as good a shape as cruising. I snorkeled about 4-5 times a week. Try going down 20 feet and back up for an hour and a half... you'll be in superb shape.
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Old 20-08-2020, 09:20   #5
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Most cruisers and liveaboards are in horrible shape. Some sailors too. Obesity and alcohol issues on par with the land population and (imho) on the upper side of the averages.



But there is also a fitness freak group here and these people can do amazing things to remain in good form. I used to belong, until I fell sick last year.


So the short answer is you will be what you want to be. Basically extending your earlier lifestyle choice of food / exercise ratio. Expect some form of acceleration too - if you are into fitness NOW you will likely improve your fitness while cruising. If you are into the Sofa&Netflix kind of lifestyle, expect to start growing exponentially once you step onboard.


anchored: swim to the shore, run up that hill, run down, swim to the boat, repeat 2x a day,
in port: bike, run, swim, use open air gyms, lift weights, trek, chase the rabbit,



Walk where others go in a car. Paddle where others motor.



Read good books. Learn something new (e.g. jazz dance, yoga, sonnet writing, smartcontract technology, etc.). Keeping the mind bright and active is as much part of it as press-ups are.



Cheers,
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Old 20-08-2020, 09:25   #6
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Thank you, wingsail. In a marina it shouldn't be a problem to cycle.

It's at anchor and sailing that is the issue. The kayak idea really appeals to me, but what about the sailboat? I guess if you circle the boat, it won't get away?

Cheechako, I have done swimming in the ocean but it's hard to get aerobic for an hour fighting the waves to breath. But snorkeling sounds intriguing, never done it....



Quote:
Originally Posted by wingssail View Post
I agree that this is a challenge. Since the boat is always in motion when at sea, your body is constantly trying to compensate, so muscle tone is not the issue, aerobics is however; sailing on long passages is not very active. We race our boat, which requires energy in bursts, but it is not usually aerobic either. Fortunately, from fitness point of view, we don't spend a high percentage of our time on long passages or racing.

More time is spent at anchor (or in a marina).

There are lots of possibilities in a marina environment. Walking, find a hill with steps or a steep path, jog if your knees can take it. Some people bring a bike on the boat. We've used a gym at many ports of call. Here we even joined one which we love and, until Covid, worked out with religious regularity and found it essential for body and mind. Otherwise, pickle ball or beach volleyball games can sometimes be found. The hard part, as we move from place to place, is to get the routine re-established at each new stop.

At anchor swimming is an alternative, if the water is clean and not too cold. Laps around the boat are easy, if boring. We don't do enough of this. A kayak which can be paddled energetically could be a good alternative, if you can carry it other than on the lifelines.

Now, with Covid restrictions in place our Gym is closed and we have not gotten into a alternative. We need to.

We're open to ideas, maybe some other CF members will make good suggestions.
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Old 20-08-2020, 09:42   #7
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Doh. Sure.


Kayak, SUP, surf, kite, body board, scuba, apnea, paragliding, sky-running, tennis, squash and bailing too!


b.
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Old 20-08-2020, 14:17   #8
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Maintaining fitness while living on a boat is a concern of mine.

I have been using a Fitbit for years to count steps, and the newest device I have, measures heart rate.

Many years ago, we spent two weeks on a boat and I was able to get as many steps in per day, as I did when at home. At least I was until I let the battery die in the Fitbit and I lost count of some days. We spent quite a bit of time onshore walking around to buy food, sight see, get boat stuff, drop off/pick up laundry, etc. That added up to quite a bit of exercise.

Recently, we were out sailing and doing MOB drills on a sailboat. I did not get as many steps I would normally, but my heart rate was certainly elevated since we were constantly tacking and I was grinding away.

Years ago, when I started doing steps, I started to watch TV while walking in place. Sounds dumb but it works and keeps me entertained. Kinda as a joke, I started running in place to get more steps. Joke was on me since running in place was hard to do, I could not do if for long, and my heart rate went up quite a bit. So, I started running in place as well as walking. I can get my heart rate up, it was up in the 160s, a day or so ago, and get more steps done in less time. Now, I can run in place for a good 30 minutes or more. Usually I watch a YouTube video and will run until the video ends.

One of the Delo's crew was doing steps on the boat for exercise and was running in place as well.

The last gym I went too, had a rowing machine. That was the best exercise/torture device in the gym and only a few people would use it. It uses so many of your muscle groups, and if I pushed myself hard, and I always pushed myself hard, I would have my heart rate up to its maximum in no time....

There is no such thing as a perfect dingy but I really want a dingy that I can row. It will be great excise and fun to use. If I want to get exercise, just hop in the dingy and in a few minutes, my heart rate will be at its maximum.

Then there is walking, hiking, biking if you have one, swimming, cleaning the boat bottom, etc.

Later,
Dan
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Old 20-08-2020, 15:02   #9
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

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...The last gym I went too, had a rowing machine. That was the best exercise/torture device in the gym and only a few people would use it. It uses so many of your muscle groups, and if I pushed myself hard, and I always pushed myself hard, I would have my heart rate up to its maximum in no time...
I too prefer rowing machine as part of an overall gym workout. I've been rowing off and on (on Concept II machines) since 2004. When I rejoined the gym three years I started trying to get back to my previous numbers, 3000 mt on level 6 in under 12:00 minutes. Now, at age 72, just before Covid shut us down I was able to do that 3000 mt in 11:45. Felt great.

Now I feel I've gone back to a pudgy lump
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Old 20-08-2020, 16:04   #10
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

I bought a sit-on-top kayak and use it in lieu of the dinghy whenever practical. It’s a small, light and, above all, cheap way to add some exercise to my life. I refer to it as “the shopping trolly”.
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Old 20-08-2020, 17:40   #11
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

A SUP seems to get everything going!
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Old 20-08-2020, 18:06   #12
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Know nothing about your boat and open areas, but could you not get a turbo trainer or even rollers and still use your road bike when you away from the marina and on the hook? They may be a bit heavy but don't take up a ton of space.
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Old 20-08-2020, 19:06   #13
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

there is no doubt this is a problem, esp as you get older

it's ok on passage...living with boat movement is pretty good exercise, plus no drinking (for us) or socializing

but in port is a different story. we don't carry bikes, but have kayaks and try to use these or go for a good walk every day. on the other hand this barely keeps up with the increased alcohol and food intake !

a very useful static exercise program suitable for boats and confined spaces is the 5BX system. try it...you won't be disappointed

5BX - How To Begin

cheers,
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Old 20-08-2020, 20:25   #14
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

Rennsail, that's exactly what I am wondering, if I understand you correctly. A turbo trainer or rollers are small. My bike with wheels off should stow above my bed maybe. Some of the plans I'm looking at look like the have a removable table in the center of the cabin with bench seats on the sides. if I took out the table, could I set up in that space with bike and rollers? The boat's motion, as others mentioned, would always be there. I might try to find a way to stabilize the bike, but in bigger swells, it seems that might be of limited use. Still, I also ride a mountain bike, and it's always moving sideways on the trails, so maybe I can balance the bike upright through the boat's motion. The would need more space, but it seems doable.

Oaring around the boat seems an alternative, but even with a Dyer Dhow or Opti, or inflatable with oars, circling the boat in big swells seems iffy. Of course I've only seen big swells on TV (youtube).


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Know nothing about your boat and open areas, but could you not get a turbo trainer or even rollers and still use your road bike when you away from the marina and on the hook? They may be a bit heavy but don't take up a ton of space.
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Old 20-08-2020, 20:37   #15
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Re: Second liveaboard question: aerobic exercise?

GILow, nice idea. You don't happen to remember the name of the kayak?
30 years ago I went with a friend to visit her friends in San Diego. He built ocean kayaks that you sat on. Something with Surf in the name....

Chris, thanks much. That really looks like a great program. I might not wait til I have a boat til I try that. I'd like to find a good set of stretches to go with it and the yoga, which I've done but not regularly. I really am feeling the need for stretching! It's harder and harder to touch the ground.

Thanks.


Quote:
Originally Posted by chrisr View Post
there is no doubt this is a problem, esp as you get older

it's ok on passage...living with boat movement is pretty good exercise, plus no drinking (for us) or socializing

but in port is a different story. we don't carry bikes, but have kayaks and try to use these or go for a good walk every day. on the other hand this barely keeps up with the increased alcohol and food intake !

a very useful static exercise program suitable for boats and confined spaces is the 5BX system. try it...you won't be disappointed

5BX - How To Begin

cheers,
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