After “plank” was one of the seven events in a virtual Heptathlon in which I completed back in May, I realized how tough but beneficial that exercise can be for my core.
I’d seen ads for the Stealth Trainer on various social media platforms & after a fair amount of diligence, I decided to dive in & buy the mid-tier model.
Once it arrived, I couldn’t wait to unpack it & give it a whirl.
While I had done a 7-minute plank in the Heptathlon in May, I only made it 4+ minutes (on elbows & toes) on my first attempt in the hang glider game. The pivot added a new level of challenge that I underestimated.
Needless to say, I decided that I wanted to do better & see where this journey might take me.
By the 4th day, I beat my 7-minute plank time from the Heptathlon on my Stealth Trainer. (Left pic)
I decided I’d try to add the Stealth Trainer to my daily workout routine 1x/day & see if I could incrementally beat the previous day. If I felt too much of a strain in my abs or lower back, I gave myself some grace & paid attention to my body.
19 days after I got my Stealth Trainer, I joined a friend on the lake & tore my right bicep distal tendon. 58 yr.-old tendons, a 25 yr.-old mindset, & the force of a ski boat didn’t yield the fun I had hoped for. The pain and bruising in that forearm and bicep were too much to try doing anything for a couple of days. After much research on this injury, I needed to let the bicep heal but decided to adapt my workouts to things I could do to not aggravate the injury.
I could still run & plank so I got back on the Stealth Trainer and used compression sleeves with a rubberized grip to minimize slipping on the Stealth Trainer. Those plus the toe grip of my Reebok Nanos really helped minimize slipping and an unintended further injury to my bicep.
On day 31, I set a new PR on the Stealth Trainer at 33:19 (on elbows & toes).
Not seeing a ton of visual difference in my abs yet but certainly feeling the positive effects of a stronger core and loving it.
I’m now wondering if this 58 yr.-old dude could hit an hour before the end of the year. Who knows?
Regardless of the outcome, this journey is already a fun one.
-Gary Frey