Hello everyone! :)  It's time for another Friday Fitness Challenge!  This challenge is going to have you going up and down a lot, so this should really get the sweat rolling.  Have a great Friday and an even better workout!  Feel free to share with your friends and family. :)

- 30 jumping jacks
- 1 min. wall sit
- 10 burpees
- 1 min. plank
- 15 pushups
- 30 sec. side plank (left)
- 15 chair dips
- 30 sec. side plank (right)
- alternating backward lunges (10 each leg)
- 10 bird dogs (each side)
Rest. Repeat 2-3 more times.

- Mike

Keeping Your Workout Plan Simple

How often to you find yourself combing the internet for a new workout plan and come up empty handed?  I have a feeling there’s a lot of you with your hands up right now.  There are many plans out there and finding the right one for you can be a challenge.  If you are having trouble finding that perfect plan, just try to remind yourself to keep it simple, but challenging at the same time. 

What do I mean by this?  For instance, there are a lot of strength building plans out there that have you record your one rep max at the beginning of the program, and then use a formula to calculate the appropriate rep for each exercise.  This can become confusing and a daunting task in itself, especially when it comes time to progress throughout the rest of your plan.  Then the question comes up of how much weight should I add each time?  Again, adding to the confusion.  Why not eliminate that confusion and simply add one more rep each week?  For example, maybe you started at 180 lbs. on bench press, for 4 reps, during week 1 but by the time you get to week 5 you are doing 180 lbs. for 8 reps.  It’s a simple progression without the confusion.

Another simple strategy to implement into your workout is to include one heavy workout and one light workout per body part and split this up over two weeks.  For example, on Monday of week 1 do a heavy chest and triceps workout and then on Monday of week 2 do a light chest and triceps workout.  Use this same format for other body part workouts (back, biceps and forearms, shoulders & traps, and legs) and you will hit all the major body parts twice over two weeks and not burn yourself out with too many hard/heavy workouts in one week.  Since building size and increasing strength go hand in hand, this strategy of alternating heavy and light days will pay off.  But don’t forget those rest days.  Rest days allow you to train hard while getting adequate recovery periods…because the gym is where you break your muscle down and the recovery time is where you rebuild.  So an example to try following is to go heavy on Monday, light on Tuesday and then have a rest day on Wednesday.  Then repeat this format the rest of the week.

Don’t forget about the eccentric portion of your movements (or the negative).  This movement of the rep is just as important for building size and strength as the concentric movement.  So utilize the light workouts of your routine to really focus on this eccentric movement by getting a 2-3 second count on the negative.  On your heavy days focus on using a faster rep speed to engage those fast-twitch muscle fibers, which will contribute to gaining strength and power. 

Hopefully some of these examples will help you get out of a rut if you’re struggling to put that workout plan together.  Just try to keep things simple, otherwise you may become discouraged and forego any workout plan period…and that is something you definitely don’t want. 

Weight Loss: Time frame and Realistic Expectations

Hello everyone! Many people have set some new year’s resolutions and one of the common resolutions topping that list is to lose weight. Unfortunately some of those people give up on that resolution to lose weight because they don’t see results fast enough. It takes time to see visible changes in your body…you didn’t go from fit to fat in a period of a few days or even a few weeks, right?

According to the American Council on Exercise, your resting metabolic rate and level of physical activity are the two biggest contributors to how many calories you need per day. When trying to lose weight, you can either burn up those extra pounds through calorie reduction or increased physical activity. Many of you probably already know that, but something you may not have thought of is there’s a third component: perseverance. When you don’t see immediate results you have to be willing to stick to your plan. Weight loss is a slow, steady process that involves making permanent changes to the way you live your life.

The three factors that determine how many calories you expend during exercise are the frequency at which you work out, how long you exercise and the intensity of the physical activity. A person who weighs 145 lbs. burns roughly 350 calories during a 50 minute, moderately intense aerobic class. On the other hand, a person who weighs 180 lbs. burns around 440. If both of them were to attend this class five days a week, they would burn 1,750 and 2,200 calories, respectively. After two weeks, the 145 lb. individual would lose around 1 lb., while the 180 lb. person could lose 1.25 lbs. from exercise alone. High-intensity exercise burns more calories per minute. For example, that same 145-lbs. individual burns roughly 350 calories running for 40 minutes at a pace of 5 mph, but only burns 88 calories if walking at a normal pace for that same 40 minutes.

The length of time it takes for you to see noticeable results from your exercise plan depends on your willingness to commit to it and stick with it for the long haul…your perseverance. Most medical professionals say the recommended standard for weight loss is 1 to 2 lbs. each week. Shave off 250 calories per day from your diet every day and burn another 250 calories per day through exercise and you will have a 1 lb. weight loss for that week. You might not be ready to rush out and buy those smaller size jeans you’ve had your eye on after a week or two, but if you work hard toward your goal, you can reach it!

- Mike

Friday Fitness Challenge

Good morning everyone! Everybody doing their best to stay warm? Well if you're having any issues with that I've got the perfect solution. The Friday Fitness Challenge! Today's workout will be a little intense and probably because I've recently increased the intensity to my routine. So you may hate me now, but you will be thanking me later. So let's put an end to this cold week, well, not getting better anytime soon, and kick off the weekend with a great workout! Have a great Friday everyone and feel free to share this with your friends and family.

- Squat Jumps - 1 min. (Get some air on these!)
- 15 pushups
- Squat Jumps- 1 min.
- 15 Chair dips
- Skaters - 1 min.
- Plank - 1 min.
- Bird dog - switch after 10
- Spiderman plank - 10 each side

- Mike

Weight Loss - Lifestyle Change vs Instant Gratification

For those who have weight to lose, it’s normal to want to find a less painful or easy way to lose weight.  Everywhere  you look there are TV commercials, weight loss pills, fad diets and with the combination of these and the increase of our society’s high priority on personal fitness, it’s only a matter of time before we purchase these goods or services. 

The word diet implies a short term binge of eating right can correct our weight problems.  People feel that if they do this diet for a month or so, they will lose the weight and then carry on with their life.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.  When looking to lose weight and keep it off, not only do you need to change the foods you consume, but you need to change your mentality.

There’s no diet or exercise machine that is going to instantly transform you without you putting in the effort.  This is the notion of instant gratification.  Just because you own the latest and fanciest piece of equipment you just ordered off some infomercial and decide to use it for 5 minutes a day, 3 days a week, doesn’t mean you’re going to see dramatic changes to your body.  This doesn’t mean that this piece of equipment is not effective either, it simply means that regardless of which machine, or which diet you undertake, you are going to need to put in some effort.  Something we need to come to grips with before we even begin is that discipline and hard work are essential to any weight loss program.

When the time comes to choose the diet you wish, choose the one that you can maintain for an extended period of time.  Don’t be unrealistic, like skipping certain foods or living on soup, because your decision to lose weight is not simply for the fact of getting through a few weeks of terrible foods, but it’s a choice of changing your habits pertaining to food consumption.  Diets that pay attention to providing the body with the nutrients it needs while reducing the ones that lead to weight gain, make the most sense.   When it comes to losing weight permanently, it’s best you choose a lifestyle of healthy eating and regular exercise than a trendy diet you can never hope to maintain.

Finding The Time To Exercise

“I don’t have time to exercise.”  Heard that one before?  You more than likely have because it’s the most common excuse given for not exercising.  Many people are in denial about their health and have built in excuses as to why they’re not exercising, but what it boils down to is better time management and fear. People fear they’ll get hurt, embarrassed, and most of all, fear of failure.  What they should be afraid of is what will happen if they don’t exercise.  How will their sedentary lifestyle affect them next year? 5 or 10 years from now? 

As busy as we might be, we seem to have little trouble finding time for TV or social networking.  Will you have time for multiple doctors appointments?  Will you have time and money to take medications every day to treat high cholesterol, high blood pressure or diabetes?  Puts things into perspective, doesn’t it?  If you want to exercise, you’ll make the time. 
 
Having a family and the obligations that come along with it are another reason people give for not exercising. But, a helpful strategy to make time for exercise is to have a written plan.  Figure out the best time for exercise in your schedule and actually enter it into your computer or cell phone calendar as a reoccurring event.  By doing this there’s less of a chance of you scheduling something during that time.

As I mentioned earlier, there’s little trouble finding the time to watch TV, so why not make the most of it?  Do some planks, crunches, squats, yoga poses, lunges or pushups while you’re watching.  Keep some fitness equipment, such as resistance bands, kettlebells or a jump rope, near your TV.  Use the commercial breaks to throw in brief cardio intervals. Run in place, up and down the stairs or do some burpees.

Parents, find yourself always picking up after your kids?  Next time while picking up those toys, towels and trash off the floor, instead of bending at the waist, do squats instead to increase glute and leg strength.  How about dinner time?  While standing at the stove or counter, do some calf raises.  Take the kids to the park?  Do you just sit on the bench and watch them play?  Get out there and join them.  I did a post a while back (The Playground Workout) which I showed some exercises you can do at pretty much any playground you go to.  Schedule family hikes, after dinner walks or bikes rides.  Just keep in mind that exercise is something you’re doing for your family.  When your kids see that exercise is important to Mom and Dad, it will be important to them also.

Tomorrow is the beginning of a brand new year.  Many of you may make some resolutions.  How about adding exercise to that list?  With a little planning on your part and maybe some of the ideas I’ve provided you, “no time” won’t be as easy as an excuse as it used to be.  Let’s make 2015 a great year!

 

-Mike

Friday Fitness Challenge - Full Body Circuit

It's Friday Fitness Challenge day! This circuit is going to get you sweating and the heart pumping! What a great way to head into the weekend, right?!  Please share with any friends and family. Have a great Friday everyone! :)

- 50 jumping jacks
- 20 bicycle crunches
- 15 burpees
- 15 V-ups
- 30 sec. plank
- 15 chair dips
- 20 lunges (10 each leg)
- 15 push ups
- 30 sec. side plank (each side)
- 20 squat jumps (get some air on these!!)
Rest. Repeat 2-3 more times

- Mike