Cruising and Fitness

[Ed Schenck]

Recently we discussed “Health and Aging” as it relates to our love of sailing. There were a few responses raising the question of how to exercise while cruising. Not terribly difficult if you like to walk and spend a fair amount of time ashore. Or maybe you carry bicycles. But what about long passages? And how about upper body workouts? I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of exercising while recharging the batteries: http://www.windstreampower.com/Human_Power_Generator.php .

Now there are a number of products using a full-size bike. But I am thinking about something where I can sit in the cockpit. It would have to be small enough for a locker and be able to be secured to the cockpit sole. The example in the link looks like it can be cranked or pedaled. It is very light on output however.

At the YMCA, if you can believe the electronics, I am generating over 250 watts(picture). An hour at 240 would be a nifty twenty amps back into the battery bank. Admittedly 240 for an hour is hard work for a septuagenarian. But I can do 120 quite easily.

So maybe one or more of you has designed and built such a product. Or know of one. Are there better ways to exercise aboard? It really is important to stay fit while cruising. Makes everything easier.

 

[xsiddr]

Ed, we take our kayak with us on longer cruises and try to go "full out" five minutes at a time, two minutes slow, generally out for an hour or two. Other times we just kayak and leisurely drink adult beverages. We also will jump in the water with our flippers and using a float, swim for an hour.

Regards,
Bob s/v Kaylic

 

[weinie]

Do 12oz curls count?
Do i get adequate vitamin C from the lime slice in my Corona?
How about Vitamin D from lying in the sun?
I am also trying to reduce my sodium intake by procrastinating going in the water to scrape my hull.

 

[med2463]

Bill & I are having that discussion. How can we stay fit while cruising? Since he is on a low salt diet, I am going thru the pantries on the boat & house and getting rid of canned goods with high salt (donating to food pantry). We plan on getting off the boat more and walking, so will be looking for anchorages where we can dinghy to places to do that. This video is also interesting. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlB-NawzL9c

 

[Chuckbear]

Walking is not the only option for exercise but still a good one. Get the dinghy out and row and leave the outboard off. Since we are on the water, swimming is an excellent exercise, as is snorkeling and diving. We carry hand weights on board and bungee style exercisers for long periods on board. Push ups, set ups and a variety of exercises will do the trick with no equipment needed. We had a neighbor at anchor that did his pallotti work out on the foredeck every morning. The possibilities are endless. Chuck

 

[Ed Schenck]

Bill, excellent! I forget how much I like to kayak because I do not own one. Several members of my bike club are kayaking as a nice change of pace. Gotta' get me one.

Mary, the video is great! Of course Bill will remind me how much more room there is on the foredeck of a "sloop". And you bring up the very important subject of diet. It has always been a part of my fitness. I never use salt on anything for example. I ate my last red meat(buffalo steak) in 1976. Heavy into vegetables with fish and fowl for protein. My problem is that I eat like I was still riding the bike two hundred miles a week. With my current time-constraints it is more like sixty. Still in my 36" pants though.

Snuck in there Chuck. Rowing is a good idea too. My dinghy rows in circles but I usually do go that way. Too lazy to get the motor off the pushpit.

 

[Sumner]

We carry hand weights on board and bungee style exercisers for long periods on board.

Ditto, we do ....

... the same. The only problem is that they don't work the heart very hard.

Making a pedal generator kind of has me intrigued though,

Sum

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[Ed Schenck]

Something like this could probably be adapted to generator power: http://www.amazon.com/Stamina-15-0120-InStride-Cycle-XL/dp/B000PEM63K/ref=pd_bxgy_sg_img_b . If you scroll down the page there are some other ideas that would work on your sailboat.

If I had pedal power I think it would need to be belt-driven to be quiet. But with chain drive you could have multiple gears which I think would be best.

 

[Ross]

many studies have been done on human strength. The consensus is one tenth HP sustained by a healthy fit man is the average maximum. Rowing and paddling are obvious options. Any beach is a good destination for a dink and walking There are many parks that include waterfront. Insect repellant is must. I have been driven out of some parks by bitting flies.

 

[Deadhead]

Yoga Anyone?

This past holiday season I had gained about 8 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's day so I decided to diet for the first time in my life. I have lost 17 pounds since Jan. 4. I stand 6'1" and am now at 189#. (As unreal as it seems my doctor wants to see me at 185#!) I have been on my elliptical every day for 45 minutes to an hour. This burns between 600 & 800 calories and 100 & 150 carbs.

Even before the diet I had been thinking about fitness on extended cruises in the unlikely event that I suddenly become financially independent and have the opportunity to actually sail away for a while. So I let my girl friend drag me to her yoga class figuring that maybe that could be a way to stay fit while underway.

I guess I will need to give it another couple of go-rounds because right now it appears that I will need to buy a boat big enough to carry the elliptical.

DH

 

[Ross]

Re: Yoga Anyone?

Have you considered a chain drive from bike pedals to propeller shaft?

 

[njsail]

I like the way Ross thinks! +1

Have you considered a chain drive from bike pedals to propeller shaft?

 

[Deadhead]

Fitness is the Mother of Invention?

I like the Ross thinks! +1

Me too, although I will either have to setup athwartship for direct drive or install some kind of gear box if I want to see where I am going.

 

[All U Get]

Re: Fitness is the Mother of Invention?

Ha Ha Ha Ross my wife says I'm at least 1/2 a horse, the back half. Our switch this year is gluten-free organic foods and we're working out what we like in that program. We also retrieved the exercise CD's our kids were throwing out. A few hand weights, exercise bands, and yoga techniques can max your heart-rate in a limited space. Dropped 10 lbs already, go figure.
All U Get

 

[Ross]

Replacing your diesel with a wood fired steam engine would have you stopping every two days to chop drift wood.

 

[All U Get]

Replacing your diesel with a wood fired steam engine would have you stopping every two days to chop drift wood.

Brings to mind a favorite old movie.
All U Get

Man-O-Man, I just looked my avitar. That's too similar.

 

[thinwater]

Kayak and bicycles.
http://sail-delmarva.blogspot.com/2011/07/kayak.html. Great for an afternoon "stroll" around the anchorage. Push a little and it's a work-out, relax and it's bliss.
http://sail-delmarva.blogspot.com/2010/07/how-to-carry-bicycles-without-origami.html. Without a bike, I hang around the marina. With one, I'm off exploring.
http://sail-delmarva.blogspot.com/2011/07/secret-of-faster-cylcing.html. These tunes work with either.


Sailing, swimming, and walking do the rest.

I always seem to get more and better balanced exercise when I'm cruising. Much to do.