Archive: Around Town

"When are we doing abs?" Whether training athletes or personal training clients, this question always pops up. Not that it is necessarily a bad question but well balanced strength training has a more holistic approach to strengthening the core. The influence of bodybuilding magazines and muscle isolation weightlifting has put inaccurate ideas into peoples' heads about necessary core training. It is time to re-think 'ab' training.

Regular fitness has fallen into an 'abs at the end of the workout' routine, which usually means some type of crunch or sit-up. People seem to love crunches because they "feel the burn" easily, it is what they mistakenly think will flatten their "stomach," and they can potentially see upper ab definition no matter how overweight.

Last weekend the Class of 1959 converged on Lansing for their 50th reunion.  Of 29 who graduated that year, 20 made it to at least one of the reunion events.  The reunion began with a dinner at the North Lansing Fire Station last Friday.  Alumni attended a catered dinner at Kathy Kelly Nedrow's home on Saturday.  On Sunday it was brunch at the Ramada Inn and an afternoon farewell at Darrell Bacorn's home.

One lesson that regular exercisers can take from athlete strength and conditioning is the process of getting excited.  I know you get excited at the mere thought of working out.  In this case, though, it is the process of exciting your central nervous system.      Consider your normal productivity (at home or work) for a moment; are you more productive when you are half-asleep or when you are awake?  Just like drinking your coffee in the morning, you have to give your body a dose of "exercise caffeine" before your workout.  Consider adding some rapid response exercises, low force-high speed movements to set your body up for a better workout session.

Quick rapid response exercises should occur after your general warmup. Examples would be short 10-15 second bouts of jump rope, fast jumping jacks, 'quick hands-quick feet' running in place, foot drills through an agility ladder, or hopping drills on a dot mat. An analogy used by strength coach Mark Verstegen (Athlete's Performance) is to think of your body like a pogo stick; any rapid response movement should make you 'pogo' like, moving in a high neuromuscular frequency.

Hey there, my name is Cadbury. I am a male domestic shorthair mix. I am one year old and I'm a great cat. I have been at the SPCA since 6/16/09. I'm a great cat who needs a caring home so come and visit me at the SPCA soon to see if I'm the right cat for you.

Visit the SPCA Web Page

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1600 chicken halves were the main attraction at the 48th annual Lansing Lions Club Chicken Barbecue.  While rain and thunder storms had threatened the event toward the beginning of the week, by Saturday the forecast had changed to 'Partly Sunny.'  Down on the ground the barbecue was entirely sunny as visitors joined the long line for chicken dinners, visited the flea market, the Lansing Historical Association, and Habitat For Humanity.

The annual Lansing Lions Club chicken barbecue will be at Myers Park Saturday, rain or shine.  But Lions Club members are hoping for Shine.  "We hope all this rain will disappear by Saturday," says Lion Joe Metz.  "The weatherman says about 30 percent chance of showers!"

This year the Lansing Community Council is contributing a band to the event.  The Ithaca New Orleans Dixieland Band plays a variety of Dixieland music including music made famous by Louis Armstrong, Pete Fountain, King Oliver and more.

Hey there my name is Flip Flop. I am a three-year-old female black cat. I'm a beautiful girl who is looking for a great home with people who will love me and take good care of me. So please come and visit me at the SPCA to see if I'm the right cat for you.

Visit the SPCA Web Page

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A verse in the bible tells us, "There are 12 hours of daylight everyday. As long as it is light, people can walk safely" (John 11:9-10, NLT). Many authors try to use the bible for health guidance even though there are some contradicting principles. One example is using the "Daniel diet" as justification for going vegan but then reading that all animals are clean (for eating) in the New Testament. Hidden In the above verse, however, just may be the guidance for simpler stress-reduced healthier living. The key to it all may be in forcing yourself to live a 12 hour day.

Being a cheerleader at Lansing High School was good training for Winona 'Noni' Krom.  Today she is the Lansing Lions Club's biggest cheerleader.  But last Saturday she was the one being cheered at the Lions Club District 20-E2 Testimonial and Awards Dinner at Lansing's Lakewatch Inn.

Krom is finishing her one year term as District Governor of Lions Club District 20-E2, and hosted the annual awards dinner.  "Your Presidential Leadership Recognition, Uplinger Award, and your recent Melvin Jones Fellowship are very, very well deserved," said Dr. Ed Cordes.  "It's a tribute to the dedication that you have to our organization and the leadership you have shown to our district."

Exactly 30 years ago, on July 4, 1979, it snowed in Lansing.  I know that seems hard to believe, but it's true.  Just a few weeks earlier, my wife, Donna, and I attended a wedding in Newfield.  The air was hot and humid with temperatures in the 90s, but that was not the situation on July 4th.

The day was cool and overcast without any breaks of sun.  We went to a friend's house for a barbecue, and a swim in his pool.  However, the temperatures were so cool, in the upper 40s and low 50s, that no one felt like swimming.  Later that night, the fireworks show in Schoellkopf Field at Cornell occurred.  For reasons I no longer recall, we didn't go, but we climbed up to the roof of our house on Atwater Road to watch the aerial display in the distance.  In those days, the tree tops along Asbury and N. Triphammer roads were low enough to give us a pretty good view.

Eric Schollmeyer of Lansing earned a place on the Spring 2009 Deans List at Misericordia University of Dallas, PA this semester.

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Confetti and balloons awaited the arrival of the 4 millionth visitor to the Tompkins County Public Library Monday afternoon, but Library staff soon realized they would also have to fete visitor 4 million and one.

Nine-year-old twins Julian and Seth Ribeiro entered the Library together just before noon to a jubilant welcome by Library staff and Director Janet Steiner.