May 20, 2008 1:13 PM

Fitness editor Lisa Ryckman on gadgets to make road trips bearable

Lisa_Ryckman(P) Hey MW! Time to crack out the tarps and the sunscreen and hit the road!
Mark_Wolf(Q) How did we ever survive those road trips in the station wagon. Don't know about you but we never used seat belts and those backwards-facing rear seats were an invitation to disaster.
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Seat belts? Who knew from seat belts? I remember the piquant scent of gasoline that always filled the back of the car. That and being backwards kinda made it feel like an amusement park ride from hell.

Mark_Wolf(Q) Wonder if the rising cost of gasoline is going to make car road trips a vanishing pleasure?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Well, it might be cheaper to fly, but it's definitely not as much fun. Although I hafta say, traveling with the old man wasn't any stroll through the roses. I recall a cross-country trip...he had a sign made that said "NO COMPLAINING" in big red letters and stuck it across the visors in the front.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) And he wouldn't let us have any dessert all the way to Oregon. He was ahead of his time that way, worrying about childhood obesity.

Mark_Wolf(Q) A comment on the blog item about summer vacations: As a kid, the best invention was the sony walkman. Put that on and tune your siblings and your parents 70's easy listening music off. Then there's dad lighting up a cancer stick on the 1/2 mark to keep his central nervous system alert. Man did our car smell like an ashtray, totally sucked. Oh, absolutely no belts were used.
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Sony walkman....what a relief that would've been. We didn't even have an 8-track player!
Lisa_Ryckman(P) My father tended to drink his way across country. I recall one particular incident...we were in a motel on Lombard Street in San Francisco after a particularly grueling drive down the California coast. My father had just poured himself a tumbler of scotch and said, "Now I want 15 minutes of absolute quiet!" At that moment, my little brothers accidentally set off the fire alarm.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) At least, they said it was an accident.

Mark_Wolf(Q) One of the products in your story was Banana Boat Ulta Defense Sunscreen SPG 80. Do most people need that much protection?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Actually, the science of sunscreen has been evolving quickly. The answer seems to be yes -- SPF (sun protection factor) 15 just doesn't cut it. And if you're out there for a while, particularly between 12 and 2, the hottest time of the day, you really need more.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) In addition, most of our sun exposure happens as kids, and it comes back to haunt us as skin cancer decades later. So making sure your children (over the age of 6 months) are protected is key to healthy skin later.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) Coppertone and Neutrogena also make SPFs 70 to 80, in sprays, creams and lotions. And don't forget your lips and ears!!!!

Mark_Wolf(Q) What's the Fit Anywhere Bag?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Denise Tryner, a local personal trainer and one of my original Fitness Challenge trainers, came up with this nifty little bag full of portable fitness gadgets. She specializes in bootcamp-style workouts, and you've got everything in there you need to create your own. Plus you can join an online community to get even more benefits. Sweet!

Mark_Wolf(Q) As a gadget junkie I was drawn to the WiGear iMuff Wireless Headphones. Very sleek, but do you worry about your kids and their contemporaries who walk around with headphones on for much of the day. Are we raising a generation whose conversations when they hit 50 will be dominated by "What'd you say?"
Lisa_Ryckman(A) I think we're already there -- either my kids can't hear me or they're just ignoring me. The iMuffs are cute as the dickens, and they make wireless workouts totally doable.
Mark_Wolf(Q) I've used noise-cancelling headphones for more than a year and they do seem to make a difference. You can turn the music volume down but still hear it because the ambient sounds are diminished.
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Sounds like an excellent idea -- I've pretty much had a permanent ringing in my ears since 1979.

Lisa_Ryckman(P) I think the last thing many people want to do on vacation is exercise, but many hotels are coming up wtih spiffy ways to make it more attractive. Workout rooms, in-room exercise dvds, the latest equipment -- all that jazz.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) In addition, many resorts have organized exercise classes -- the instructors usually get to stay there for free in exchange for teaching. I did that a couple of times in Jamaica -- I taught aquacise classes mostly.

Mark_Wolf(Q) I like it when hotels have a fitness room but it seems like so many of them get their equipment off e-Bay.
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Yes -- many of them don't consult with anyone who knows anything. But I've seen some definite upgrading in recent years, because the equipment is getting so much better. And as you know, MW, you can never beat a set of dumbbells.

Mark_Wolf(Q) Did you test-drive Speedminton? What's it like?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) I didn't get a chance -- it just sounded so cool, and it seemed like good exercise. Plus it was invented by Germans, and they tend to make high-quality stuff. I loved that you can play it at night with glow-in-the dark equipment.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) As kids, we never seemed to have any outdoor sports stuff except for a basketball (mandatory in Indiana, as you know too well, MW).
Mark_Wolf(P) One thing you never see in the Hoosier state - a backboard on a sloping driveway. No wonder nobody out here can shoot a decent jump shot.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) I take that back -- we also had a can, and we used that for Kick the Can games at night, after it had cooled off to 90 degrees and 90 percent humidity.
Mark_Wolf(P) Yeah, at about midnight.

Mark_Wolf(Q) As the weather warms up I see a lot of people outside on the track. Great for us anal-retentives who must know exactly how long we've run. What do you recommend in terms of sprints/intervals to break up all the left turns of track-running?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Interval training is the fitness mantra these days, and for good reason: superior gains in endurance, speed and fat-burning. A simple formula: warm up at a walk or slow jog for a few minutes, then alternate between 30 seconds of sprint with at least one minute of recovery. If you're just starting out with intervals, you can adjust the sprint and recovery times to make it work for you. Do 5 to 8 sets of that. As you build endurance, challenge yourself with longer sprints and shorter recoveries.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) I can't think of anything more boring than running on a track, though. But that's just me.

Mark_Wolf(Q) Liked that little instant family cabana in your story. An answer to the mortgage crisis?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Pop-up homes! I think you're onto something there, MW.
Lisa_Ryckman(P) Seriously, though, beaches don't have trees, and you gotta make your own shade. If you've got kids, it's absolutely imperative. These things are so great for that.

Mark_Wolf(Q) The reception area of a lot of fitness clubs are like the checkout counter at a supermarket. Lots of impulse items. Powders, protein shakes, energy bars, etc. I looked at the label of one of the energy bars and it read like a slightly-healthier Snickers. Does any of this stuff help you healthily gain/lose weight/inches?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Hey, you eat enuff of anything, you'll gain weight. And you restrict your food, you'll lose. But doing it in a healthy way is the key. And you're right, MW -- many energy bars are just glorified candy bars. In fact, quite a number have MORE fat/calories than a Snickers. And we're talking 250 to 300 calories each. So they're good as a snack once in a while -- same goes for the canned shakes. If you want a healthy energy drink, make your own: a scoop or two of quality whey powder, light skim or soy milk and frozen fruit of your choice. Voila!

Mark_Wolf(Q) Lot of people - well, me - tend to get in exercise ruts. Hit the gym, go right to your favorite cardio machine, do the same sets of weights, then leave. How important is it to vary your routine?
Lisa_Ryckman(A) Are you bored? If so, you definitely need to change stuff up. Plus your muscles get used to the same ol' thang. If you want to make gains in strength/size/endurance you might think about mixing it up a bit: do lighter weights one day, heavier at the next workout. Try working all large muscle groups then smaller ones the next, or split it up by upper/lower body. Try descending or ascending sets: either go lighter each set (start with 30 lbs for chest, for example, then drop to 20 for the next set and 10 for the last).
Lisa_Ryckman(P) Try compound sets: alternate between opposing muscle groups (i.e. do a set of biceps, then a set of triceps, and continue to alternate. Or chest and back, or glutes and quads)

Mark_Wolf(Q) Thanks Lisa. My kids are too old to ferry across the country but maybe we'll strap them into the car and head off in search of a Stuckey's, just for old time's sake.
Lisa_Ryckman(A) My pleasure, Mark. And when it comes to great American tourist attractions, I highly recommend the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota.