Workout Wednesday: Circuit Training

Over and over again I have told you about the importance of cardiovascular workouts in the pursuit of losing weight. You know that it is the best way to burn the maximum amount of Calories. You also know that strength training is important for a few reasons. Strength training increases your strength (duh!). This is important for those of you who want to see improvements in your performance in any sport like biking, rock climbing, swimming, really anything. Muscle growth is also important to increase your metabolism. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn on a daily basis. Circuit training brings cardio and strength training together.

So what is circuit training? Basically, it is a bunch of different exercises that you do back to back. Doing them one right after another allows your heart rate to get up for a longer period of time than traditional strength training would. HIGHER HEART RATE = MORE CALORIES BURNED. You can customize the workouts to strengthen the different areas of your body.

Here is a tip, instead of focusing on small muscles like biceps, triceps, or calves by isolating them in an exercise like bicep curls, work on a larger muscle group and work on the smaller muscles simultaneously. For example, instead of just doing a shoulder press (small muscles), do a shoulder press while lunging (large muscles). This will help you get more bang for your buck. Small muscles burn few calories, while larger muscles burn more.

Here is an example of a circuit training workout (do a cardio warm-up first to prevent injury):

• Jump roping (2 minutes) You don't need an actual jump rope to get the benefits of this plyometric workout
• Bicep curls while doing squats (2o repetitions)
• Crunches (3o repetitions minutes)
• standing rows (20 repetitions)
• Calf raises while doing shoulder presses (20 repetitions)
• And then repeat until you've been exercising for 20 minutes. Remember do not rest during the 20 minutes, this keeps your heart rate up and allows you to burn the maximum amount of Calories in the least amount of time WHILE strengthening your muscles.

Yesterday I bought Jillian Michaels workout DVD "30 Day Shred" which is based on this interval concept. I'll let you all know if I'm 'shredded' in 30 days!

5K for beginners

5Ks are popular races for advanced runners as well as beginners. Advanced runners seek to improve their time and pace while a beginner runner might set out just to complete their first race. A 5K is 3.12 miles and takes approximately 30 minutes to jog. It is a doable goal for most anyone, but just like any goals, steps should be taken to accomplish it. Below is an example training schedule for a beginner runner wanted to complete a 5K. It is an 8 week program and starts with running a distance of 1.5 miles. First off, if you are a beginner runner, do not feel like you have to sprint these distances until your heart explodes. Take it slowly at a comfortable pace. As your confidence improves you can gently increase your pace. The BIGGEST MISTAKE that people make when starting to train for an event like a 5K is to PUSH THEMSELVES TOO HARD. Ease into the sport to prevent injury. If you cannot run 1.5 miles, go as far as you can and then walk the rest of the distance. Work your way up to the 1.5 mile run and then you can start the schedule that is below.

EZ=simple, less strenuous activity (i.e., walking, gardening)
CT=Cross Training (i.e., biking, swimming, elliptical)

Good luck and happy running!

Workout Wednesday: Benefits of Strength Training

Strength training includes weight lifting and calisthenics (like crunches, pull ups, push ups). These exercises do not burn a lot of fat, but they are important to build strength and increase muscle mass.

Many people who are aiming to lose weight may not think that they want to increase muscle mass, but I assure you that this increase in mass with help anyone lose fat. Muscles need energy to function. They can get this energy from two different places: the Calories you consume or fat storage. When you reduce the amount of Calories you consume your muscles will have no place to go but to the fat for their energy. The more muscle you have, the more fat you will burn even if you are just sleeping. That's right, a muscular person will burn more Calories just breathing than a person with less muscle all other factors remaining equal. This increase in energy use is called a faster metabolism. You can increase your metabolism by increasing you muscle mass. Bottom line, the more muscle you have, the faster you will burn fat.

Food Friday: Calorie Budget

The most important part of weight loss is diet. I'm not talking about the atkins diet or south beach diet. When I say diet I'm talking about the type of food you consume on a regular basis. What you eat and how much you eat is FAR MORE important than exercise when it comes to weight loss. You could run 10 miles everyday, but if you don't watch what you eat, you will never lose weight.

Let me illustrate with an example. Yesterday I bought one of those twix snack packs. It had 8 snack sized twix each with 80 Calories. I ate all of them (for the sake of research, of course) in less than ten minutes. That was a grand total of 640 Calories. To burn off those extra Calories I would have to run about 6.5 miles which would take me over an hour. It took me less than 10 minutes to put on and would take more than an hour to take off.

Diet is key to losing weight. All weight loss is based on this one equation:

Calories consumed - Calories used = Change in Calories

If your change in Calories is negative you have what is called a Calorie Deficit. You're body will make up for this by using fat as an energy source. In other words, you will lose weight. If your change in Calories is positive you have a Calorie Excess. Those Calories will be stored (as fat) for future use. About 3500 Calories equal 1 pound.

The amount of Calories you need each day depends on many factors. You can use calulators like this or this to determine your Caloric Budget. I like the term budget because it helps me realize that I can eat a little treat, but that takes up some of my budget for the day so I need to eat less for dinner or I need to exercise more to burn off those extra Calories

Workout Wednesday: Awesome Abs

Who doesn't want rock solid, flat, six-pack, sexy abs? Tell me. Seriously. I can't think of anyone who would say, "no thank you, I prefer my flabby fat belly." Unfortunately there are a lot of people who don't understand how to get well-defined abdominal muscles. Many people waste hours of their life doing hundreds of crunches with zero results. Many people also spend hundreds of dollars on fancy contraptions that supposedly flatten and firm your their abs, but those products never deliver. Don't let yourself become one of these people.

First step to great abs is doing some great cardio. Run, bike, or swim. I don't care. Just get doing at least 20 minutes of intense cardio three times a week. Why? Well, because everyone has some pretty good abs, but the problem is that they can't be seen through a thick layer of fat. The best way to burn fat is cardiovascular exercise. There is no such thing as localized fat reduction. Doing crunches WILL NOT burn stomach fat, doing squats WILL NOT burn butt fat, and doing tricep presses WILL NOT burn arm fat. Those are muscle building exercises, not fat burning exercises. I cannot emphasize enough that the best way to burn fat is cardiovascular exercise. When you do cardio you burn fat from all areas of your body (including that stubborn tummy fat).

In addition to cardio, one must have a lower calorie diet in order to burn away those inches of fat. If you consume too many calories, your body will just store them as extra fat. If you consume less calories than you use, your body will turn to it's fat reserve for more energy. So make sure you are eating a lower calorie diet in addition to cardio for effective fat loss.

So now you realize that doing hundreds of crunches a day wasn't helping you get those nice abs. Don't get me wrong, crunches will strengthen your abs, but no one will be able to see those strong abs underneath layers of fat. Crunches do not burn sufficient fat to make a difference. In fact crunches (as well as all strength training workouts) are an anaerobic exercise. That means it burns SUGAR. Aerobic exercises, on the other hand, burn FAT. Aerobic exercises are the same as the cardiovascular exercises listed above: running, biking, swimming, kickboxing, dancing, anything that will get your heart rate up for at least 20 minutes.

OK, so lets say (for arguments sake) that you have a very low body fat percentage. Your abs are visible, flat, and toned. But now you want them to be bigger and stronger. Cue in the crunches! In order to do an effective crunch DO NOT try to do them as fast as you can. That is cheating the exercise. It is also important to note that you DO NOT need any equipment to give your abs a great workout. In fact, most products on the market DO NOT work.

How to do a correct crunch: First, lay down with your knees bent and push your lower back into the ground. You should be flexing those abs the entire time of the workout. Now, crunch slowly up, then hold for 1 count (exhale as you do this part). Then slowly go down as you inhale. Feel the burn? If you don't, remember to focus on flexing those ab muscles. For added resistance you can hold weight on your chest or do your crunches on a decline bench.

There are, of course, many variations of crunches. These are great for adding variety and isolating certain parts of your abs. Check our the Body-for-Life website for more ab workouts:
http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/flash/m16.html
http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/flash/m17.html
http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/flash/w17.html
http://bodyforlife.com/exercise/animations.asp

At Home Workouts

So what's the excuse this time? No gym membership? No time? No problem!

There are plenty of workouts that can be done at home. My favorite equipment is just a set of adjustable dumbbells that I bought at Sports Authority similar to these ones. With them I can work out all my major muscle groups (you might want ones with more weight if you are a very muscular person). For cardiovascular workouts I run outside, but you could walk or bike as well.

You can also use calisthenics. These are workouts that use your own body as resistance to strengthen your muscles and increase flexibility. Some examples of these are crunches, push ups, pull ups, lunges, and calf raises.

Bob Harper, trainer on the Biggest Loser, gives a few more examples of calisthenics that you can add to the list:



Can I just say that I LOVE The Biggest Loser.

Fat vs. Thin

Some people seem to gain weight so easily while others remain thin without effort. Who are those people anyway?

I found two lists that contrast the lifestyles of the severely obese to the effortlessly thin. The key word here is lifestyle. An obese person can go on a diet or have surgery and lose a lot of weight, but if they do not change their lifestyle, all the weight will, without a doubt, come back. Compare your lifestyle to these lists and determine what you are doing right, what you are doing wrong, and what you are going to change.


Lifestyle of the Obese

First, I found a list compiled by the registered dietitian and physician of the television show "The Biggest Loser". The contestants on this show are perfect models of what-not-to-do. Here are 11 characteristics these unhealthy individuals have in common who compete on the show as found on http://rebeccascritchfield.wordpress.com/2007/10/15/science-behind-the-biggest-loser-diet/

"1. no idea of the number of calories they need or what they actually consume
2. most skip breakfast and snacks and let a long time go between meals
3. most consume very little fruits and vegetables
4. most are not getting enough protein, and what they do get is high in saturated fat
5. most get very little whole grains
6. most have too much “white stuff” (sugar, refined flour)
7. little planning of meals, mostly on-the-go eating and dining out
8. most are meeting their daily caloric needs through beverages alone (e.g. caloric sodas, juices and fruit punch)
9. many consume very little water
10. nearly all reported limited to no exercise
11. nearly all prioritize everything and everyone else in their life ahead of their own health"

Lifestyle of the Thin
In contrast, I found "the ten secrets of the effortlessly thin" on MSN at this website: http://health.msn.com/weight-loss/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=100218116&imageindex=1

"1. They don't diet
2. They keep track of their weight
3. They exercise regularly
4. They don't solve problems with food
5.They stop eating when they're full
6.They don't surround themselves with temptation
7. They allow themselves treats
8. They eat breakfast
9. They move, stand and fidget more
10. They don't skip meals"

Why is breakfast so important?
Some of these factors may seem counter intuitive. For example, people who struggle with weight skip breakfast while those who are thin always eat breakfast. At first glance, it may seem that the thin are then consuming more calories. Not so! Those who skip breakfast are hurting themselves in two ways:

1) Eating breakfast "jumpstarts" your metabolism so your body will start burning calories early on during the day. As a result you have more energy. Bonus! Those who do not eat breakfast put their body into starvation mode which puts priority on storing energy...that's the nice way of saying "getting fat."

2) Those who don't eat breakfast are famished by lunchtime which creates a tendency to overeat. In the long run, they will consume more calories to overcompensate.

I like to snack
These two facts also explain why it is healthy to snack (depending, of course, on the snack). How often one eats and when they eat are important factors to health, but not nearly as important as what one eats. When you snack think something like apple, yogurt, string cheese, or a few wheat thins.

Which lifestyle are you choosing?
Again, they key word here is LIFESTYLE!!! Diets, pills, and even surgeries rarely work because they don't address the underlying problem. Overweight people can and do become healthy, but it is usually through education and hard work which ultimately leads to a change in lifestyle!

Overweight people eat out often. The thin usually make their meals and rarely even have unhealthy snacks around. They don't eat twinkies because they don't buy them. Many overweight people drink a soda a day (sometimes more), but thin people will carry around a water bottle for when they get thirsty. Overweight people are not active, but thin people usually have hobbies that keep them active.

I reiterate my challenge: compare your lifestyle to these lists and determine what you are doing right, what you are doing wrong, and what you are going to change.

The First Step

So what is the first step to a healthier life? Waking up at 6:00 AM for your morning workout? Going to the grocery store and stocking up on healthier food items? Nope. The first step to a healthier life is deciding you want a healthier life. Seems pretty obvious, but then you have to ask yourself a question: If you have truly decided that you want a healthier life, why don't you have one?

Before you even start those exercise classes you need to start having the right attitude. You need to DECIDE that being healthier is more important than that extra serving of dinner your wife is going to offer you. DECIDE now that having a healthier life is more important that eating that community candy in your office. Have you decided that starting that exercise routine is more important than watching your favorite TV show?

If you haven't made the decision to live a healthier life then that healthy food you bought at the grocery store is going to end up in the garbage and waking up at 6:00 AM to workout will turn into a marathon of hitting snooze on your alarm.

Decide today! You want to be healthy? Be healthy now. Don't wait until after the weekend or for the new year to begin. Make healthier decisions today. Walk instead of taking the elevator. Get a water instead of a soda. Make time for a healthy breakfast. These are simple things...very simple, but they help transform your dream of living healthier into a reality.