Thursday, August 27, 2009

Are you too busy to workout? C'mon.....

I’m Too Busy to Workout—What Can I Do?

Well, first thing what are your goals? If its fat loss then you need to find time, it takes some effort. Before anything you have to make sure you’re eating correctly. You need to watch your diet when you’re unable to be as active. As you get older, your metabolism slows down, and this means you’ll put (fat) weight on more quickly and easily if you’re not focused. Try these tips…

My number one tip is keeping a Food Journal –sorry but it works, especially in the beginning of a fitness plan.

Hey, I asked about working out………

Yes but FOOD FIRST.

Your workouts must count. If you’re limited for time, choose weights not running or aerobics. Meaning resistance training 2 or 3 times a week must be full body workouts and Interval training. It’s crucial to make the most of the 2 or 3 sessions you do have, try to push yourself as hard as you can without jeopardizing good form.

If you normally snack on unhealthy foods, it might be a good idea to make changes. Replace your snacks with low glycemic vegetables like fresh celery, radishes, cabbage, cucumbers, zucchini, broccoli, or cauliflower. The fiber in the raw vegetables will fill you up and you’ll be cutting calories.

Find ways to stay active and to keep that body moving!

• Park your car further away than you normally do at work and then walk into the building.
• Take the stairs whenever there’s an option.
• Walk someplace where you’d normally drive.
• When you’re shopping in a mall walk around the entire mall first.
• Take your dog for a small walk in the evening.
• Find a once-a-week class that you enjoy.

I know in this day and age, we’re all busy. And for some of us exercise takes a back seat. But taking care of yourself, MUST BE A PRIORITY!

Some of the benefits of exercise:

Gain More Energy
Improves your Mood
Combat Chronic Diseases
Improves your Cardiovascular Health
Reduces the Risk of Cancer
Improves your Self-Esteem
Stronger Muscles
Better Looking Skin
Increased Brain Power
Less Sick Days

If that doesn't give you enough reasons to find time for exercise I don’t know what will.

Now here’s Heidi, she literally doesn’t have enough time to fit in exercise, full-time job, with a husband and two young children. Sound familiar? Perfect excuse to pull out the no-time card. Not Heidi, she normally works out at 6am. Yes 6am!!! Not ideal, but she’s found that balance.

This week was Take your Trainer to work week. Great work Heidi!

Keep Training!

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Bootcamp moved Indoors......

Here in Westford T-Storms are happening. So today's scheduled outdoor bootcamp was moved inside.

started with Movement prep.

Circuit 1 - 30s work 15s rest x2 circuits
1 mb squat curl & press
2 step ups
3 band rows
4 step ups
5 sb leg curls
6 step ups
7 pushups
8 treadmill incline 15 speed 4.2

Circuit 2 -30s work 15s rest x2 circuits
1 mb reach lunge w/push
2 lateral step
3 renegade rows
4 lateral step
5 ab wheel
6 lateral step
7 squat jump
8 treadmill incline 15 speed 4.3

LeeAnne is fortunate enough to have a low resting heart rate (50), so today she maxed out around 145.

here's Circuit 2

keep training!

Sunday, August 16, 2009

TIME -Give me a break!!!

Time Magazine really pissed me off. I’m not sure if they’re trying to ruffle feathers or are just being irresponsible. In a recent Time magazine article it claims that exercise does not help with weight loss, because it makes you hungry…..NO SH*T. Does it really? You mean if you exert energy for close to an hour, it might make you crave food later. Thanks for clearing that up Time magazine. Now I can get back to my bag of chips and watch TV… (I think More to Love is on).

Yes in some cases exercise will make you hungrier. For me, the last thing I'm thinking about after an intense workout is food. If you are hungry, what's your food choice? Exercise doesn’t lead you to Dunkin Donuts after your workout. Remember, food is 80-90% of the equation when looking to lose weight. What am I always saying? “You can’t out train a poor diet!!!”.

Here’s the bottom line- EVEN IF YOU’RE WORKING OUT HARD. If you want to stay the same, or in some cases bulk up or gain weight then make sure you eat an abundance of starchy carbs and sugar. But if your goal is to lean out, lose bodyfat then replace those carbs with high fiber fruits and vegetables. For weight loss the staple of your food plan is lean protein, fruits, veggies and good fats. With proper portion control and correct choices comes less calories and more GOOD food!

Remember the role of the hormone insulin and how carbs relate to the overall picture. This is one of our biggest concerns with weight loss. This storage hormone is responsible for releasing large amounts when consuming refined starches and sugars. No matter how hard you exercise everyday, if you are releasing insulin throughout the day with a high carb diet, you will be fighting an uphill battle in pursuing weight loss. On the other hand, lean proteins, healthy fats, and high-fiber fruits and veggies do not significantly impact your insulin levels thus allowing you to burn fat and build muscle in conjunction with the right exercise plan.

Don’t blame exercise for your poor results. Being hungrier from exercise is not the culprit- choosing the wrong type of food after exercise is!

The second major issue I have with this article is what type of exercise are we talking about? Most of these studies are using slow steady state aerobics. Thus the problem, steady state cardio, stuff like distance running and leisurely biking are not good methods for fat loss. So this article is way off base and should not be using aerobics as its example of exercise, it only reinforces why this type of exercise has a minimal effect on weight loss. Why didn’t they use Interval Training and Resistance Training as markers for exercise? Not sure. Here’s the real study, it’s a fact, high-intensity interval training burns 9x more fat than ordinary exercise (aerobic training) and actually builds lean muscle and elevates metabolism for up to 24-48 post-workout.

Slow Cardio has its place. If you’re a beginner, de-conditioned or injured use this type of cardio. If you’re serious about weight loss and want to get in great shape then Resistance Training and Intervals are the way to go.

So come on, people don’t need another excuse for not exercising. Reading these types of articles makes me cringe and I wonder why people are so confused about weight loss……………

So if you’re reading Time Magazine on the treadmill, DON’T. Put the reading material down and pick up the pace.

Keep Training!

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Train the Trainer Day!

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday......
It's train the trainer day at MarkOne Fitness.

Yes you can train almost anywhere -Outside you can create some great workouts.
Today LeeAnne has a chance to put together her favorites and put me through hell............
And she said she really enjoyed herself (why is she smiling at the end?).

45s work 15s rest -3 times
1) box jumps
2) farmers walk uphill
3) Squat & Row
4) Suicide runs
5) plank push ups
6) Ropes
7) High Step-ups
8) Burpee with Lateral Hop
9) KB Swings with exchange
10) Hill Runs

Thanks LeeAnne for a great time!!

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Bootcamp Demo

Bootcamp for fat loss doesn’t have to kill you or beat you up so you don’t want to come back. As a trainer I find the biggest obstacle is satisfying everyone. As you know, not everyone is at the same fitness level or have similar injury histories or likes and dislikes. I take that back, (everyone hates BURPEES!)

My point is, some folks will claim it’s too difficult and hardcore folks may think it’s a piece of cake. That’s where exercise progressions come into play. Many exercises have several levels. If you’re participating in a Bootcamp your trainer should give you these options and you should take advantage of this……

Another issue I find is people generally push themselves harder in a group setting. Yes competitive folks hate to feel inferior and will push themselves to the edge and others will stop at the first sign of sweat on their foreheads. This can be good or bad. It’s great when clients push themselves out of their comfort zones and try to keep up and increase their intensity. That’s the idea for making positive changes to your body. On the other side of this, some beginners or folks not used to this pace try to keep up with Suzie Six-pack and eventually get injured. The key here –“Listen to your body first and your Instructor second”, BE SMART!

Bootcamps should include warm-ups and a cool-down. The circuit part of "boot camp" is designed to disrupt your metabolism and elevate your EPOC (Elevated Post-Oxygen Consumption -which is the most important aspect to losing weight and fat). Circuits may range from 20 seconds of work to 1 minute, with rests from 10 seconds to 1 minute between stations.

Not only will you lose weight and get in great shape. You should start to move more efficiently, feel better, strengthen your core so your back stops hurting and be able to do everyday activities with ease.

Again Bootcamps can be part of a good fitness plan. A good eating plan and a smart strength training plan MUST be part of the entire program. THAT’S HOW YOU CHANGE YOUR BODY!

Here’s an example of a Bootcamp style workout. Thanks Mary for a great workout demo.

You’re a tough cookie!

Start with warm-up.
Movement prep –BW Squats, Lunge, Leg-kicks

CIRCUIT – 2X 45S WORK 15S REST.

1) MB Reach Lunge with chop.
2) Smash NON-BOUNCE Ball
3) Valslide knee tucks
4) BW Step and reverse Lunge
5) DB Bent-over Row
6) DB Squat & Press
7) Plank cone-touch
8) KB Swing
9) Lateral Shuffle with band & cone touch