Yesterday I asked Rita if she wanted to go do a cardio workout with me. Of course she did! We live at the end of a street that splits off into three separate deadends, each with a STEEP hill. Luckily we live at the top of the one deadend, so we don't have to always start our walk with a long uphill slog. But yesterday, I decided we'd hit the hills in each deadend, one right after the other. It was a good little 35 minute cardio workout and we were both panting by the end of it.
But Rita didn't really care about that - she just wanted to get out and GO! She doesn't give a hoot about cardio vs. strength training, and could care less about the latest fitness fad.
Don't get me wrong. She does cardio:
"I love aerobics, especially water aerobics! Gotta get the heart rate up!" |
And strength training:
"More resistance, Momma! I need more resistance!" |
Of course, she also makes time for stretching:
"You can make time for stretching by stretching & noshing at the same time." |
And she knows that you need to recover after a hard workout:
"This is an important part of my recovery. Every athlete knows that!" |
Abby even had a great core workout that she liked to do. (You think situps work your core - try digging on three legs!)
But Rita's not worried about getting in three hour-long cardio sessions a week, plus 2 - 3 strength sessions, or about keeping her heart rate at eighty percent of her max. She doesn't need a gym membership or any fancy equipment. She doesn't need a pedometer, a chronometer or an MP3 player. She just wants to move more, get out more, have more fun.
So, get out with your pup. Toss a toy around the yard. Chase each other around the dining room table. Move more, do more, enjoy more! It's good for you and the dog!
Happy FitDog Friday!
We have at least 2 hours on the park each day and after that all we want to do is sleep and dream of squirrels. Have a fabulous Friday.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes Molly
Wow - 2 hours at the park is pawesome! Rita is jealous. She usually only gets an hour.
DeleteWoof! Woof! I would LOVE to go work out with you. But I you can't blame Rita for liking the beach. Oh I do like the way she stretch with a Tasty bone. Oh I sure missing digging (ooops don't tell that to my mom). Happy FitDog Friday. Lots of Golden Woofs, Sugar
ReplyDeleteDigging is good exercise - but we only encourage it at the beach of course!
DeleteYep, that's all they want, and really all they need.
ReplyDeleteYep. If only I could LOVE it like she does!
Deletethats what was going on at our house last night too...long walks!
ReplyDeletestella rose
Long walks are great. Whenever I start to feel a little bored with the walking routine, I try to remember how much Rita loves it and go with that!
DeleteGreat workout - hills are high intensity! Good advice too - you don't need any of that fancy stuff for yourself, or for your dogs (even though our App is a grea tool to help gauge feeding requirements & exercise). LOL at Abby digging with her nose. Our dog Tino - who had a bad back leg used to dig with his nose! Thanks for joining our Hop and reminding everyone that movement (any kind) is the key to health.
ReplyDeleteWell, yes - the SlimDoggy app would be great for measuring exercise! Wish we had a smart phone, but I just have a dumb phone. I'd love to know how far we go on our walks. Pretty sure we're getting in a marathon a week at least.
DeleteGreat post! Wilson and I chase Jimmy around the pool table in the basement when the weather doesn't cooperate. I'm sure it looks quite silly but we all have fun!
ReplyDeleteI would love to see that! :)
DeleteI like her style! It's great when dogs and people have a natural propensity to activity and healthy movement. Mine is more toward being a lump, which is not good!
ReplyDeleteI've never had a dog that wanted to just be a lump. Sometimes, I must admit, I kinda wish I did... at least for a day here or there!
DeleteIt's so great to see Rita running like the wind with no thought to having one less leg...Who cares? She's happy and healthy and fit and it shows :)
ReplyDeleteOh, Rita has all her legs... It was our last dog Abby that was missing one - but she also ran like the wind and didn't care. She was AMAZING. (Miss that girl...)
DeleteGreat lessons from our dogs- just get out and move! Hills always wear our whole pack out too.
ReplyDeleteHills are hard to avoid in our neighborhood! We usually try to go the easiest route with the smallest hill, but we can't avoid them completely.
DeleteWhile I do enjoy some exercising I would SO like to enjoy it all the way dogs do.
ReplyDeleteOh gosh - me too! Wouldn't it be great if we were chomping at the bit to exercise the way our dogs are??
DeleteSo much we could accomplish if we only thought like a dog!
ReplyDeleteYes! I try to remind myself frequently to be more dog-like!
DeleteI used to track and plan my workouts all of the time. Now that I am older I just focus on moving more and sitting less. It makes "working out" more fun. I still need to step it up a little bit myself but Chester and Gretel are at a perfect weight.
ReplyDeleteMe too - I used to keep track in a notebook, and take my heartrate and all that stuff. (Of course... I was also way more fit then...) But now I just try to "move more" - which was my NY's resolution. Or part of it - move more, listen more, enjoy more.
DeleteWhat a lovely & uplifting article on exercising your dog. It's so true that dogs are not caught up in all that guff like us humans. Living in the moment & doing just what feels good has its obvious benefits. I think that's what makes exercising with them so much fun........
ReplyDeleteThey do make the best exercise partners, don't they?!
DeleteGreat post and love those photos :-)
ReplyDeleteShe does this one stretch that's so funny. Wish I could catch a snap of it. When she's up on the couch or the bed, she'll get half way down and do this big down-dog stretch while her back feet are still up on the sofa. So funny.
DeleteLove all the pix and the video of your dear little Abby too! Rita was up for any FitDog challenge! Loved the strength training too! ha!
ReplyDeleteI need to get a video of the other "strength training" she does - when we are at the beach, if we find a ball, she'll hang on to it while I pull her up and then we run along, with only her back feet on the ground. Pretty cute.
DeleteLooks like a great workout!
ReplyDeleteWe can learn so much from our pets!
Rita's always up for a workout - only it's not "work" to her - it's a "funout" I guess. :)
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