Vivienne Poy, the first Canadian senator of Asian descent, suffers from arthritis in her feet, hands and elbows, yet her health is in bloom. When gym workouts didn’t work out for the 70-year-old, Hong Kong-born former fashion designer, she created a fitness centre outdoors north of her home in Toronto, where she gets fit through gardening.
My goal:
“To keep my body and my mind active and healthy; the two are linked. I’d like to be able to walk long distances such as walking up to the Buddhist caves on the Silk Road.”
My workout:
“I’ve been gardening for years, from spring to fall. In summer, we move to our cottage in Muskoka.
“I do stretching exercises in the morning before gardening and in the evening, half an hour each time. I sit on my heels and bend over like the Muslim prayers, and then I stand up and I bend sideways and bend down [forward]. The stretching routine was given to me by my physio 10 years ago because I had back pain.
“Around the house, I go up and down the stairs. I no longer go on the treadmill.
“In the evening, I do sit-ups when watching the news because I prefer to do two things at one time — that’s why I don’t like to go to the gym to do just one thing.
“I swim in the summer, long distances, slowly, in Lake Rosseau, and I swim for an hour a couple of times a week.”
My lifestyle:
“I don’t drink alcohol. I eat everything in moderation. I always have a lot of green vegetables and fruits — it’s a Chinese diet — that’s the way I was brought up.
“In my Senate work, I have to sit a lot, I read a lot, I write a lot. Aside from my Senate work, I’m asked to speak across Canada to universities and high schools, which means I sit to do my work because I read a lot of documents and research material to write my speeches; therefore, the stretching works for me when my back starts to get tired.
My motivation:
“Because I’m an achiever and I like to see results, I need a clear mind and a healthy body, so that I can work and achieve.”
My anthem:
“I love bird sounds. In winter, I have ExpressVu and we have a channel with nature sounds – they’re the only sounds I want.”
My challenge:
“I can’t lift heavy things any more when I’m gardening and digging up heavy plants because of my arthritis. I accept my limitations, so what I want to do now is contribute without hurting my body.”
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The critique
Jonathan Goodman, strength and conditioning coach and creator of Personal Trainer Development Center, offers his expert advice.
Switch to abdominal bracing
“Vivienne should do front and side planks while holding an abdominal brace [contracting both the abdominal, lower back and buttock muscles at the same time, breathing freely during the plank hold] for 20 to 30 seconds, two to four times while watching TV,” Mr. Goodman says.
Abdominal bracing – a safer stomach strengthener than sit-ups – means gardening or sitting for periods of time won’t bother Senator Poy because bracing strengthens stabilizer muscles, which protect the spine, he adds.
Add lunges to reduce back pain
“Lunges will help Vivienne with her gardening by teaching her to use her glutes, taking pressure off her back,” Mr. Goodman says, providing toning instructions.
“In a split stance [with left leg forward], hold on to a chair [with left hand]; kneel until back knee touches the ground with front knee over second toe; push through heel of front foot to come up; do two sets of 12 reps per side, three times a week.”
