ONE 10-Minute Exercise: The Farmer’s Carry
The Farmer’s Carry is the simplest possible exercise that safely and more or less completely fills this need. It is safe because it is not high-impact and does not involve sudden movements that can lead to fractures or dislocations, especially in older people.
Basic Farmer’s Carry.
Select a weight that you can carry in each hand. As a first guess (if you’re sedentary and out of shape), try 6 kilos in each hand. Now walk at around 3 km per hour in a safe place; in 10 minutes you should cover ⅙ of 3 km, which is 500 meters. Avoid straight lines and try to mix left and right turns, circles, curves, slightly uphill and slightly downhill, longer and shorter strides. Do this for 10 minutes. Every minute or so, put the weights down slowly (don’t just plop; a slow down-motion builds more strength than steady carrying). If it’s too easy, walk faster or increase the weights. But finish in 10 minutes. It’s not an endurance kind of exercise, but a “stress bones-muscles-tendons-joints” kind of exercise. Aim for a walking speed and weight level that require you to exert some extra effort to speak while doing it.
Important Don’ts. Never lift a weight by bending over and then re-straightening your back. Kneel down (squat) until you can grasp the weights, then rise using ankle, knee, thigh, and hip power. Keep your body erect while walking; don’t slouch or bend over forward. When you put the weights down periodically, don’t bend over, but lower into a squat, and go down slowly.
Variations. Use unequal weights. Go up a slightly steep slope, or at an oblique to a slope. Swing the weights. Walk sideways or heel-to-toe (be careful, or you could lose your balance). All of these apply uneven stresses to different parts of your body, and that’s the point.