HEALTH & FITNESS : Putting a Spin on Getting Into Shape

In pursuit of a fit and healthy lifestyle, North County residents have pursued all the usual routes--walking, cycling, running--and quite a few of the unusual routes, too. They climb rocks, chase trails marked with flour and ride their bicycles in circles.

For every variation in taste, schedule and physique, there seems to be a route to fitness out there. Some folks have charted their own way, others have connected with an established program. Whatever your own program or lack thereof, fitness starts--or ends--with a good night’s sleep. And whether you exercise occasionally or often you’ll feel a whole lot better if you do it without injury.

If you’re ready to get up and get going, still just thinking about it, or looking for new ways to put yourself through your paces, we offer these suggestions for getting the lead out:

Tailoring fitness programs to individual needs has, over the years, spawned numerous variations on some basic themes. Here are some current twists on jogging, bicycling, aerobic dance and yoga:

Have wheels, will jog

Unlike most well-meaning exercisers, Del Mar resident Alice Brown rarely skips her daily trip to a neighborhood health club. But then most people don’t wake up to a child whose first word every morning is “gym.”

Two-year-old Benjamin is not referring to the standard “jungle-gym.” He means Del Mar Workout’s “Sride-n-Stroll” class: He knows that an hour each day will be spent in his racing stroller, while his mother strides along with other parents who are trying to combine raising children and regular exercise.

Club directors started the class last April as an outlet for parents juggling to fit exercise into their day, said Jennifer Linzmeyer, director of the walking program, and herself the mother to two sons.

“We wanted to do something where parents could exercise, without having to worry about hiring a baby-sitter,” said the fitness instructor, strapping platinum-haired sons Cole, 3, and Dillon, 1, into a double racing stroller. “We thought, why not incorporate exercise with strollers?”

Parents pushing a stroller along on their daily walk or jog is not new, but Stride-n-Stroll classes are unusual in that they offer the activity as an organized group program, Linzmeyer said.

On a warm morning recently, the eight participants--all women--gathered in a circle to start class with a series of overhead and hamstring stretches. Bright-eyed toddlers eyed each other. One toddler played with his yellow plastic pickup truck; Cole and Dillon debated over a bag of Ritz crackers.

Sunscreen applied, strollers lined up, the walk began. A leisurely stroll along the ocean? Not quite.

Stride-n-Stroll is not for the occasional weekend walker. In fact, the routine would be challenging to most empty-handed walkers. Linzmeyer leads the groups on 7-mile treks at a swift 5 m.p.h. pace that includes the hills of Del Mar and along Solana Beach--few trails are deemed un-walkable.

“The group has gotten so strong, we’re thinking of about starting a class for beginners,” Linzmeyer said.

On this day, the mothers maneuvered strollers across a rocky ditch and on to a trail running parallel to the train tracks. Some walked alone, chatting with their children or just enjoying the quiet time. Others formed small groups.

“My son doesn’t like day care, so this is a great arrangement for me,” said Brown, swiftly pushing Benjamin.

“It was always my intent to exercise regularly, but it was hard to find the time alone,” added Del Mar resident Margo Hillman, guiding sons Joshua, 20 months, and Aryeh, 3, in a hot-pink double stroller. “And it’s hard to exercise at home with a child pulling at your leg.”

Classes are held Monday through Thursday, 9:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., at Del Mar Workout, and are open to non-members of the club. Fees are $5 for one walk, $25 for one month, and $99 for 5 months. For more information call 481-6226.

Drums and Dance

Court dates, depositions, motions and motions. If there’s one thing attorney Karen Hartley does not want, it’s a routine fitness class.

Hartley’s own answer to fitness nonconformity came in the shape of a weekly Encinitas class known by the funky name of “Expression Sessions.” No grapevine and touch-your-toe maneuvers here. This class offers two hours of “Djimbe” drum-banging and traditional African harvest dancing.

Former Encinitas resident Paulo Mattioli started “Expression Sessions” three years ago, with the hopes of drawing African drum enthusiasts. After hiring dancer Charmaine Hubbard, the group changed to a combination drumming-body movement class.

“Drumming and dancing is an ancient and natural source for inner strength, joy, health, and social interaction,” said a cheerful Hubbard, adjusting a colorful sarong over her leotard. “It’s not some strange class, people from all walks of life attend: doctors, engineers, artists, and students.”

Indeed, attire at a recent class varied: sarongs, corn-rowed hair and reggae-style pants, jeans and college sweat shirts, chic coordinated sweat suits.

Classes start with drumming instruction. Each student is supplied with a log-shaped Djimbe drum, an instrument the instructor claims is traditionally used in healing and ancestral worship. Instructors then divide the class into three groups, each who learn a different African beat. When combined, the beats produce a song.

Hubbard starts the dance portion during the second hour of class. Turning off the flashy neon wall light at the head of the gym, she transforms the room to an African harvest celebration. Hands scoop imaginary piles from the floor for the “rice-picking” dance. Swaying hips and come-hither hand motions signify the “flirtation dance.” An older couple in the corner seem to be pulling at an imaginary rope for what Hubbard labels “a dance to bring in good spirits.”

“It’s a kick, and it’s more challenging than traditional exercise,” said Hartley, who discovered the classes three months ago. “Besides, I always wanted to learn how to play a drum.”

Others also come for the challenge. “The African rhythms are a lot different from our (American) music; there is not just a one, two, three, four-best,” said David Lindemuth, a masseuse and two-year veteran of the class.

With incense burning and deep drum beats vibrating the room, the classes could be accused of bringing out the mellow side of participants.

“Once you get into the drumming and dancing, your problems just seem to flow away,” said a conservatively dressed, bearded man, who declined to be named. “I’m a scientist, and so I do all left brain activities during the week. This class is my time to do use the right, or creative, side of my brain.”

Expression Sessions are held each Saturday, 7 p.m.--9 p.m., at Golds “K-Robics” in Encinitas. Fees are $8 for just drumming, or just dancing, and $12 for the complete class. Discounts for class series are available. For more information call 436-9490.

Bicycling nowhere fast

The object of “Turbo Spin” is to get a high intensity, 30-mile cycling workout without ever leaving the cozy confines of the mirrored aerobics room at Del Mar Workout.

Exercisers bring their own bikes (sorry, no beach cruisers) to the gym. Bikers are then placed in a contraption known to bike enthusiasts as a “trainer,” a stationary stand that allows the back wheel to move while keeping the front wheel still. Four oblong platforms are stacked on either side of the bikes, to allow bikers to rest one leg while strengthening the other.

Participants are led through an hour-long program: a “pre-cardio” section of quick intervals at increasingly higher gears, 30 minutes of long intervals, and technique work. Instructions are given over background music from Madonna, Elton John, Paula Abdul and the like.

“A lot of people like to cycle, but can’t find the daylight during the winter, or don’t want to go (cycle) alone,” said instructor Dan Rock, a professional triathlete, who started the class three years ago. “And it’s always easier to get motivated when you’re in a room full of people.”

What about the faithful ol’ stationary bike, already set up for you when you get to the gym? Why squeeze a 10-speed bike into your gym bag?

“Stationary bikes are not set up for how we naturally ride,” explained Rock, whose 1977 record for the mile at Point Loma College still stands. “This class allows (people) to ride their own bikes, in the same way they do outside.”

The program is set up to accommodate any level rider, Rock explained, situating his racing bike and microphone at the head of the class. Participants can be as serious or as relaxed as they choose.

A tan young man in the corner, for example, meant business during a recent class. Decked in racing shorts and shoes, he kept his head tucked down while moving his shaved legs at a Tour de France speed. A scientific contraption strapped around his chest measured his heart rate.

“He’s a world class triathlete,” Rock explained.

On the other hand, John Casella struggled with pedal straps on what was his first try at Turbo Spin class.

“I usually do the Stairmaster, but this class looked interesting,” said the investment counselor, who is also attending acupuncture school. “I don’t cycle much because I’m scared to ride near cars.”

“We stay motivated as a group,” Rock said. “If you are doing this at home, it’s a lot easier to just stop when you’re tired.”

Turbo Spin classes are held Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7 p.m.-8 p.m., at Del Mar Workout. Non-members can attend the class for a $5 charge. For more information call 481-6226.

A gentler yoga

Naomi Offner’s yoga students range from those trying to maintain their ideal weight to those who are 100 pounds overweight. Each week 20 or so women come to the La Costa Center for the Arts for an hour-and-a-half of “Gentle Yoga for Weight Management.”

Offner, a certified yoga instructor, started the class four years ago after a yoga program helped her combat her own weight problem.

“Gentle yoga can help the overweight woman feel more balanced; it can help her start to focus on her body rather than always think about food,” said Offner.

As the class name might imply, Offner does not teach contortionist moves. Instead she guides the women through a series of gentle stretches and breathing exercises.

Classes seem to be psychological and physical boosters. Palms rubbed briskly together provide a “soothing heating pad” for the face. And Offner shows the class how to stretch the neck for an energy booster that “beats any candy bar.”

For Escondido resident Betty Castro, practicing yoga means getting to know a body she had “disowned.”

“I always tried exercise and diet programs. But since I never cared about my body, I always failed,” said Castro, who describes herself as an “abundant woman.”

“Yoga has made me totally conscious of my body; I want to put good things in it. Most heavy people are resistant to come to group classes like this, but I can come here and not be embarrassed,” Castro said.

Another student, Nancy Steinbeck of Encinitas, added, “There are quite a few yoga classes, but it’s hard to find one where the people are not judgmental.”

Gentle Yoga for Weight Management is held Tuesdays and Thursdays at 9:15, and Thursday evenings at 7 p.m. For more information call 943-9374.