Lunch Cardio

I run on my lunch breaks, I started with C25K a year ago and just finished my second half marathon, I typically run 3-4 miles at lunch 3 days a week

Training for my first triathlon right now, so I typically cycle, run, or swim on my lunch break. If you're interested in running you could look into a C25K plan which will start you out with run/walk intervals and progress to 30 minutes of running by the time you're done...they're typically 8-9 week programs.

Lunch bike rides are an all time favorite of mine...

There’s some folks here who swear by jumping rope, perfect for an outdoor court, and you can slip a rope in your purse or backpack.

You could do basketball intervals. You only need to create something that seems appealing and gives you a decent workout. Get creative.

As an example, you can try taking a shot, get the rebound, dribble down the court to the other side, shoot again, get the rebound, rest. Then repeat. If this is easy, then sprint more. Move faster. Or make the interval longer where you are taking multiple shots going up and down the court. You can also shoot free throws during your rest phase.

I'm sure you can come up with something that gets your heart rate up to a high point for a short burst (between 30 - 90 secs), then get some rest (30 secs - 2 mins). You can take it at your own pace. Just be sure you have somewhere to shower, because you will be sweating. And be careful to not get hurt. Don't slip on a leaf or you are doing down hard lol.

You can lookup videos on hiit workouts or interval workouts. Main thing is to get your heart rate up with high energy activity quickly, then rest/recover, repeat...

If you have a fitness tracker you can watch your resting heart rate go down over time. It generally means your heart doesn't have to work as hard because it's more fit. But, you will have to challenge yourself.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

This got me to thinking...what ever happened to racquetball? My dad used to play racquetball on his lunch break almost everyday, and tennis on the weekends back in the 80s. When I was a kid it seemed like racquetball gyms were everywhere...I haven't seen one in ages. It always seemed like it would be fun and was a perfect lunch workout.

Here on Long Island a lot of the gyms have racquetball courts. My husband belongs to LA fitness and they have a few courts. He plays racquetball in the winter and tennis in the summer. I play tennis but I don't like racquetball. That ball moves too fast! Even wearing goggles I've seen quite a few black eyes from getting hit with that ball.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

This got me to thinking...what ever happened to racquetball? My dad used to play racquetball on his lunch break almost everyday, and tennis on the weekends back in the 80s. When I was a kid it seemed like racquetball gyms were everywhere...I haven't seen one in ages. It always seemed like it would be fun and was a perfect lunch workout.

Still exists, or at least my Y had quite a robust league plus pickup players, pre-pandemic. I haven't been back there, but I'd guess they're back at it by now.

I used to canoe at lunch, since my job was just downstream of a canoe livery . . . for me, that including canoeing in a dress. I suspect that's not a general lunch cardio solution, though. 😉

springlering62 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

cwolfman13 wrote: »

This got me to thinking...what ever happened to racquetball? My dad used to play racquetball on his lunch break almost everyday, and tennis on the weekends back in the 80s. When I was a kid it seemed like racquetball gyms were everywhere...I haven't seen one in ages. It always seemed like it would be fun and was a perfect lunch workout.

Still exists, or at least my Y had quite a robust league plus pickup players, pre-pandemic. I haven't been back there, but I'd guess they're back at it by now.

I used to canoe at lunch, since my job was just downstream of a canoe livery . . . for me, that including canoeing in a dress. I suspect that's not a general lunch cardio solution, though. 😉

The mental picture is just mind blowing.

Demure older grey headed possum lady steps into a boat - in heels, mind you- puffs out her pecs, and gets down to business.

I bet there some guys who’ve stopped drinking after seeing this pink elephant.

No heels. Ever. Not since my 20s.

Add to your crazy mental picture: I would paddle the canoe backwards, i.e., sit in the bow seat, but drive the canoe "backwards", i.e., using the stern as the bow. Any new (not very canoe-savvy) livery staff would tell me I was doing it wrong. Nah. (Why? In a front-to-back symmetric tandem canoe, the bow seat is farther from the end of the canoe than the stern seat is. As long as the thwarts aren't in the way, sitting in the bow, facing toward the stern, and paddling toward the stern direction, is going to balance the canoe better from end to end, because you're sitting closer to the middle of the boat. That makes the boat easier to control solo.)

So: In a dress, wearing flats, middle-aged (at the time) obese woman, high noon, paddling a canoe backwards.

I've also done it after work wearing a dress, with friends along in boats, after a questionably large intake of margaritas, and have gotten out of the canoe on a sandbar in stocking feet to wade around. Highly irresponsible! 😉