Mini-Study Part 2: "The Skate"

To complete the study that was conducted a few weeks earlier on some of the benefits of sun salutation, efforts were turned toward skating. Once again Dr. Sparks and Jamie Scofield of the Cleveland State University Human Performance lab hooked me up to the COSMED calimitry device to measure the caloric and other physiological changes while skating.  To mirror the skating portion of the Mobile Yoga Workout, I began with a 5 minute on skate warm-up.  The warm-up consisted of some basic balance and technique drills, swizzles, moving squats, and long rhythmic strides while following the natural breath. For the next 10 minutes I cranked up my effort and power with each stroke (more knee bend), to a rhythmic 3 count per stride and continued to pay attention to the breath noticing how it changed with increased effort.  The last 5 minutes was used as a cool down period where I slowed down my stride and through in a few on skate balance postures. During the 5 minute warm-up my heart rate went from 103 bpm at the end of the first minute to 134 bpm. During the cardio phase my heart rate ranged from 142-176 bpm which was very  close to my recommended maximum heart rate of 177.  The last 5 minutes of the workout my heart rate got back down to 132 before taking off my skates and finishing with a few off skate stretches. The calories burned for the entire 20 minute workout was approximately 160 kcals. For the 10 minute cardio portion of the workout the average calories burned per minute was 9.4 kcal which is equivalent to what one might burn during a moderate run of the same duration.  The relatively short duration of time spent performing the yoga and skating portion of this mini study shows that a lot can be accomplished in a short amount of time in regard to improving flexibility, balance, cardiovascular health.  With consistency, a 10 minute Sun Salutation practice followed by a short 20 minute skate could be a perfect way to begin to improve your overall health. The purpose of our efforts of using the COSMED device during a Sun Salutation and skating session was to elicit some baseline heart rate and calorie information in regard to both yoga and skating and all results were subject to error seeing that I was the only subject! So why not add to the data collected and try a ""mini"" study of your own for a few weeks?  I look forward to reading your results!