Woo! I'm out of shape...who knew 5 extra squats would make such a difference between today and yesterday. 25 done!

GrannyMayOz wrote: »

Thanks @DonP and @Keliandra I held onto a door frame and could squat so that my rear end was about 2" from the floor. Pretty sure the problem is short calf muscles for me. So I will do that daily (or more, knowing me) and see if I can get them stretched enough to look like a third world lady.

Have been using a rowing machine the past 2 days and can feel my quads from that, and my glutes a tiny bit. 2 x 10 mins at a medium pace yesterday and 1 x 10 min so far today but will do the second stint in a while. But just did my 100 squats. Was going to stop at 75 but lost count somewhere in the middle of the song so had to keep going to the end to know how many I'd achieved, har har!!! Didn't hurt until I sat on the computer chair a few seconds later ooooowwwwwwwwww!

So I can do 100, but I have a lot to improve on my technique. Going to work on that in secret and give my husband a shock He has laughed at my squats for the last time

A good calf stretch I learned while suffering from over a decade of plantar fasciitis was to stand at a curb (dunno if a different word there in Oz...but the "lip" that transitions from sidewalk to street/walking path to roads, etc.) where there is a street light or car nearby stabilize. Facing the sidewalk part, position the balls of your feet solidly on the edge. Drop your heels as close to the ground as you can. Hold for a ten-count stretch. Then, arch up, like you're standing in super high heels (with your heels actually in the air), pressure on the ball of your feet, as high as you can go, ten-count stretch. Do these in sets of three before and after any walking, upon rising, and before bed - as well as any time you feel tension building in them. You can do these exercises anywhere you can get a 6" or so height to drop your heels lower.

Usually it is the tendons connecting the calves to the heel and the calves to the hamstrings that are shortened and overstressed, not the muscles themselves - and this particular stretch when the rest of the body is held in a straight, neutral position works all of that. It may cause discomfort at first, but the stretching will "hurt so good" afterward.

If you don't have easy access to curbs, the lunge type stretch with one foot behind and one directly under you, like a combo of a lunge/squat with the tension held on the back leg, followed by the toe-ups can also help...

I am doing a freebie 30 day squat challenge from Google Play and Runtastic's squat workout. Runtastic has fewer, i just count those towards my number that i do for the challenge. Sadly, gotta use the handicapped restroom so i'll have a handrail so i can pee. *sigh* I'm on day 3 of the 30 day challenge and hope i can stick with it. I never have before. I love checking stuff off though and the app has check boxes...lol.

I think I'll join, it's the 15 th now so what number are you girls on?

I did 16 on Wed, aiming for 24 tonight!

Woohoo! Day 5 for me!

I've been doing a fair bit of rowing on our new machine, and then climbed 8 floors of stairs yesterday. My quads were getting like jelly by the 4th floor, but I saw it through. Just wish there were some stairs available to me on a regular basis, but the nearest ones are an hour's walk away. Or 7-10 mins drive and then paid parking.

I think I found a muscle! Lol. Been doing the plié squat & am sure my inner thighs might have muscles. Still not feeling anything in my butt, tho. 30 is my max at one time, then I have to break them up into a couple of sets.

That's awesome @samko 40 is fantastic and well on your way! I love to use the song because it keeps you at a regular pace instead of slowing down, and takes your mind off it a bit too LOL

Ha ha @Kate that's great news! I find it hard to make my butt feel anything too. 'They' say that lunges are best for butts, but I don't feel stable doing lunges, and hubby says my butt has always been tight. Even I (my own worst critic) can see that it's tighter than many women half my age, or even a lot smaller than me. So that's great inspiration to keep on with the exercises.

You toes should be pointed outward.

Just goes to show my attention to detail
Yeah, I think I was doing toes forward the first week and I didn't seem to get the depth of squat that I do when they are turned out a bit. Thanks for the guidance! (and I'm right there with you with the cracking knees)

YMMV, but I've always been taught feet straight forward or with a very slight angle. The bigger angle in your image I've associated with sumo squats which use a somewhat exaggerated stance width and have different mechanics as a result (http://www.livestrong.com/article/437557-sumo-squat-vs-regular-squat/ being the first example I found). But for shoulder width/slightly wider than shoulder width stance squats I've always been encouraged to keep my feet straight or nearly straight when I've worked with trainers.