Hei's YP Get Fit Blog: Week Four - Lessons for life
Throughout September reporter Wong Yat-hei will work out at Torq Cycle. In his last week, he reflects on all he has learned.
Hei working on the tricep Dip The one month challenge is over!
In the past month, I have given up basketball and the gym to ride on stationery bikes at Torq.
The first three weeks were fine, I was able to keep up with the class and ride around 20 kilometres in 50 minutes.
In the final week, I guess I ran out of gas. Every time I pedalled my legs felt so heavy, and I could barely ride 10 kilometres in 50 minutes. It was really depressing and I could feel my legs giving up on me. It's time to stop when I find it difficult to go down a flight of stairs!
As a person who hates cardio exercises because I find running on a threadmill in front of a TV screen too boring and jogging in a park too crowded, cycling in a studio has given me a whole new perspective on cardio workouts. I used to cycle on the road, but it is quite dangerous with so much traffic and the police will stop you if they see you cycling on the pavement. Cycling in the studio is safe and you never get bored because there is an instructor yelling at you to go faster and harder all the time.
The downside might be there is less decision making to do when riding a stationery bike. You don’t have to observe the road, to reduce speed to make a turn, or to avoid traffic.
Cycling requires a lot of power in the legs, especially in the quadriceps. I can’t remember how many times I have tried to avoid going down a flight of steps after a workout. But all the hard work is worth it because quadriceps are the most important muscle group to work on if you want to get stronger. I was told by a fitness instructor that stimulation of the quadriceps muscles helps stimulate the muscles of the entire body.
Since it is really hard to impress Hong Kong people who get bored easily with only one workout, Torq has also combined strength training with the cycling. I tried Total Resistance eXercise (TRX) and some core workout, both of which were new to me.
The amazing thing about TRX is that it doesn't just help you build strength, it also helps you with your balance. With the use of the TRX equipment, which is two ropes with handles, one can do a full body workout, working everything from your chest, biceps to the legs.
Same with the core workout: no equipment or weights are required. By angling your body differently, you can work the core with simple exercise on the floor.
It has been a fruitful month for me, I have acquired a lot of information on fitness, which will help me stay fit.