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2006-04-25 15:35:24
CRIENGLISH.com
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The guys down at the local construction site aren't exactly models of the ideal physique, but the latest fitness trend sweeping gyms across the US and the UK calls for its members to grab a sandbag and start hauling.
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At Crunch, a popular chain of gyms in America, their "Sacked" session invites members to "heave-ho their way to fitness" by hauling around bags of builders' sand. Other training programs incorporate the sandbag-carry, an exercise in which a 40 pound bag of sand is carried in any way but over the shoulder for a specified distance.
The sandbag workout, an unlikely alternative to weight training, has now made its way to Britain with the launch of Outdoor Extreme. It's a tough exercise program held in London parks in which participants lift sandbags or navigate wheelbarrows full of sand through obstacles.
According to one of the program's fitness instructors, Tommy Matthews, sand is expected to become the fitness aid of the summer. He says sandbags are an excellent training aid because they are heavy, hard to handle and never stay still for long while you're carrying one. And they're great for testing concentration. It is for precisely this reason that they have been used for decades in military fitness training. He adds that besides sandbags, one can also haul beer kegs.
They also offer other benefits beyond what you get in a traditional weight-training session at the gym. According to Louise Sutton, a lecturer in exercise science at Leeds Metropolitan University, the holding and lifting of sandbags or medicine balls, instead of working out on stationary equipment at the gym, brings the body's smaller and harder to reach muscles into play. This helps to improve balance and stability.
Using them can also strengthen and work the body across different planes and in different directions.
Many of the programs proponents claim that because sandbag training is so demanding, an entire workout need last no longer than 20 minutes. Researchers at McMaster University in Ontario reports in the Journal of Applied Physiology that just six minutes of intense exercise a week can be equal to an hour of daily moderate activity. This regiment is the equivalent of several weeks of traditional endurance training.
But before you sprint down to the construction site, experts advise to start off easy. So don't expect to lift a 40 pound bag straight away.
China Drive is one of CRI's radio programs aired from Monday to Friday. Chinastic picks the most interesting life reports from China Drive. Stay tuned.
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