The nine-inning recliner workout: if you can't take the man out of the chair, take the workout to the man - Home Training

Men's Fitness, Oct, 2002 by Roy M. Wallack

For 30 years now, I've tried to get my father to exercise. I've shown him health articles, bought him a bike, invited him to hike. I've tried love and tough love, ridiculed his flab, begged him to work out for his kids'--then his grandkids'--sake. But nothing worked. Hour after hour, year after year, through "I am not a crook," glasnost, Magic Johnson's talk show, Tyson chomping Holyfield's ear, and "I did not have sex with that woman," he sat--his ass seemingly surgically attached to his La-Z-Boy recliner.

* Sadly, my dad is the norm, for La-Z-Boy is the most functional brand name of all time. Insidiously comfortable, with its built-in foot-rest, near-horizontal positioning capability, and tantalizing swivel base and cyclo-massage options, the recliner--in the interest of escalating seductive comfort--unintentionally may have been impeding national fitness since it was invented in 1928 by Monroe, Mich.-based La-Z-Boy Inc. Today, the recliner and its cushy imitators are now found in about half of all U.S. households, according to industry estimates.

* In combination with more recent innovations--the remote control, 24-hour cable sports, supersized tortilla chips and the two-liter Pepsi--the recliner has become the unwitting linchpin of an axis of fitness evil. No matter what your gymgoing intentions are on any particular day, once you sit in a La-Z-Boy or one of its brothers, you simply cannot leave.

Despite governmental urgings to get our butts moving, America's romance with recliners is increasing: 3.9 percent of U.S. households bought a recliner in 2000, according to the trade paper Furniture Today. Right on time, MEN'S FITNESS has come up with the perfect solution to the nation's recliner addiction:

Do your workout FROM THE CHAIR.

Don't laugh. "In fact, since it can recline almost straight back and is capable of locking in a dozen positions, you could think of a recliner as a luxurious weight bench," says Jim Garfield, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based personal trainer and a veteran of the famed adventure race the Eco-Challenge. "With a little creativity, you can actually get a pretty tough workout without even leaving the recliner."

As proof, Garfield put together a strength workout he says was inspired by one of his clients, sportscaster Vin Scully, the voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers for the past 43 years. Perfect for the baseball postseason, Garfield's "Nine-Inning Recliner Workout" turns bad into good--incorporating your chair, a pair of adjustable dumbbells and a Saturday afternoon with the Yankees and Red Sox into a guilt-flee fitness frenzy. Garfield's creation gives you nine individual "innings" that hit large muscle groups and most major body parts, and includes lots of stretching--all done with the help of your beloved recliner. At three sets per inning, the workout is commercial-break-compatible and will keep you engaged for an entire game.

For those non-baseball fans out there who want to complete the session sooner than the three hours it takes to finish a ballgame, the workout can be done in 45 minutes or less.

1ST INNING: CRUNCH (abs) Leading off, it's a good idea to warm up the critical midsection, the center of your strength and balance. To target these core muscles, Garfield recommends crunches.

Position the recliner in its upright position. Lie flat on your back with your hands by your ears and bend your knees 90 degrees. Place your feet and lower legs onto the seat (a). With a slow, controlled movement, raise your shoulder blades only three or four inches off the floor (b), hold for a moment, then lower and repeat. Do four sets of 20 reps.

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2ND INNING: SQUAT (thighs) "A squat is a superb early warm-up exercise because it recruits nearly all of your lower-body muscles--quads, glutes and hamstrings," says Garfield. "Moreover, it won't interrupt your view of the game."

Set the recliner in its upright position and stand in front of it with a dumbbell in each hand. Keeping your back vertical and knees in line with your toes (a)--but not beyond them, which causes excessive pressure--slowly squat down as if you were about to sit. Stop descending when the bend in your knees hits 90 degrees, or when your butt hits the chair (b), whichever comes first. Pause, return to the starting position and repeat. On the way back up, squeeze your glutes. Do three sets of 12 to 15 reps.

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3RD INNING: DUMBBELL (back) If you don't want to miss any action, do the next two exercises during a commercial break. These facedown upper-body moves work your back and rear deltoids.

Set the recliner in its upright position. With a dumbbell in your right hand and your left hand on the seat, lean forward until your back is parallel to the floor and your right arm hangs straight down (a). Pull the dumbbell up to your abdomen (b), slowly lower and repeat. Finish the set, then switch arms. Do three sets of 12 to 15.

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4TH INNING: REVERSE FLYE (rear deltoids) With the recliner in its upright position, grasp a dumbbell in each hand and sit on the edge of the chair with your knees bent 90 degrees, feet together and hands at your sides. Bend forward at the waist until your upper body is almost parallel to the floor (a). With your arms hanging toward the floor and your palms facing each other, slowly extend your arms out to your sides until they reach shoulder height (b). Pause at the top, slowly return to the starting position and repeat. Be sure to maintain a slight bend in your arms throughout the movement. Do three sets of 10.