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Since this is my last post before the summer, I wanted to give you some last-minute advice:
1. Portion Size vs. Calories: I know counting calories is a fantastic way to lose weight or gain mass, particularly when you’re very strict about it. But the truth is, many people (because of school or work or extenuating factors) just don’t have the time to be so strict with their diets. While a thousand dietitians may scream at me for this, I don’t care; just keep it simple with your diets. Try to eat clean (avoiding fried foods, butter, sweets, etc.) and keep your portion size at a reasonable level (a cup of brown rice and a grilled chicken breast, with a side of veggies, for example). You don’t have to count calories to see gains.
2. Keep a Log: I know I say this all the time, but try to keep a journal to log your progress this summer. Whether it’s how far you ran (and how tired you felt) or what exercise / set / weight / # repetitions, actually seeing progress on the page can be a huge motivational factor.
3. Free-Weights are King: I know some folks may disagree with me about this, but I really believe that free-weights (dumbbells and barbells) should really be the core of any workout, whatever your fitness goals. Free-weights force you to balance the weight, don’t lock you into a set path, and oftentimes are just harder. If you don’t believe me, try benching on the smith machine (the thing with a barbell that moves on ball-bearings) versus the free-weight bench. Odds are, you’ll lift about 20 pounds more on the machine.
4. Take a week off: Training’s great, but you can oftentimes burn out. So don’t feel terrible about taking a week off every three months or so, or really (and this might be a little more relieving) incorporating a light week every 3 or 4 weeks if you’re training heavy (less than 8 repetitions per set).
5. Join a Gym: I know the money thing can be a problem, but joining a gym will do wonders for your fitness goals. You simply can’t get the same workout or atmosphere at home. So try to shop around for a relatively cheap local gym if you can, and go for it. Oftentimes, summer passes aren’t too expensive, even at the big gyms.
Well, that’s it. Thanks for reading this semester. August, same time, same place–I’ll be here. So, until then–have a great summer.
When you do the same lifts week in and week out, things can get boring (and your results can start lagging). Here are a few tough moves for the experienced trainee who’s looking to spice up his or her workouts:
1. Dumbbell Pushup / Row Combo: Perform regular push ups, with your hands on two parallel dumbbells. When you reach the top position of the push up, row one dumbbell to your chest, then back down; then, row the other one. Return back to the bottom of the push up position. Repeat for reps.
2. Zottman Curls: If I had to guess, this would probably be one of the least known exercises for biceps. Perform this exercise like a regular dumbbell curl, but at the top of the movement, rotate your wrists (so your palms are facing forward) and slowly lower the dumbbells. Remember to flex your biceps at the top of the movement.
3. V-Handle Pull-ups: Drape a V-Handle (it looks exactly like a V…it’s usually attached to the Cable-Row Machines but you can clip them off) over a pull-up bar and perform pull-ups alternatively to the left and right of the handle. Pause and squeeze your lats at the top of each movement.
4. Overhead Barbell Squat: Performed like a squat, but with the barbell held over your shoulders (like at the top movement of the Military Press).
5. Yielding Isometric Holds: I know the name sounds intimidating, but this kind of lifting can do wonders for your fitness goals. Instead of lifting the weight, try holding it at the top portion of the repetition for a certain amount of time (on a scale of 10-45 seconds; less for strength, longer for endurance). It works best with movements like lateral raises for shoulders and dumbbell or barbell curls for biceps. As the weight begins to fall, keep on resisting (hence, you’re “yielding” a little bit but still resisting).
For a killer combo, try supersetting Dumbbell Shoulder Presses with Yielding Isometric Lateral Raises.
5. Towel Curls: A form of assisted yielding isometric holds, do these with a partner. Load a barbell with a very light amount of weight (something you could curl about 20 times) and have your partner drape a towel over the center of the barbell. Curl the weight up to the top position of the repetition, then have your partner tug downwards (towards the floor) on the towel, while you resist. You should be fighting with him/her; so make sure your partner makes you struggle, but doesn’t overpower you (he should alter the strength of the pull as you weaken, etc.). When the barbell reaches the bottom portion of the rep, curl it up (without any resistance) and then repeat. Do 4-5 repetitions.
Towel Curls can be a fantastic finishing move for biceps.
6. Medicine Ball Stair-Runs: Instead of holding the medicine ball at your chest, try running the stairs with the medicine ball held over your head to work your core and shoulders, in addition to your legs. Be very careful with these (it’s easy to trip as you get tired).
7. Prone Curls: Perform dumbbell curls on an incline bench, but with your chest resting on the bench itself and curling the weights on the other side. You might have to adjust your feet to get comfortable; The bench should hit you at about mid-chest. Since you’ll be less able to cheat and the move significantly reduces shoulder involvement, expect to use less weight than you normally would on curls.
With these, experiment with where you curl the weights (across the plane of the bench, or straight up and down).
It’s April, which means almost every fitness magazine will be running a beach body special. If you read more then one, you’ll notice that the tips are oftentimes quite similar. So here it is: short, quick, outlined advice on getting a beach body.
Weight Loss
Assuming you classify summer as June, that means you have roughly 2 months to work towards your goal. A reasonable fat loss goal might be 16-20 pounds, or about 2 pounds per week. Here’s how you would do it:
1. Revamp your diet: When you’re working with such limited time, you have to start crunching numbers. That means keeping track of your caloric intake and eating the right foods at the right times. If you don’t have access to a personal trainer (who can calculate your body fat percentage and recommended caloric intake), try searching for “calculate your daily caloric requirements” on Google. Pick a site that allows you to fill in certain fields (like height, etc.).
2. Eat Clean, Lift Consistently: Almost all of these magazines will tell you to eat at regular intervals (every 2-3 hours). What you eat is just as important as when you eat; stick to whole grains and lean sources of protein like fish, turkey, and chicken. Try to avoid carbs late at night.
3. Lift Heavy, then Circuit, then Up Goes the Cardio: I know many of you hate to hear this, but lifting heavy (6-8 repetitions) can really do wonders for your fat-loss goals. I’m going to keep on repeating this, because it’s true. Assuming you have some training experience, consider lifting heavy for the first 3 weeks, resting 1 minute between sets. Then, in the next four weeks, alternate one-week of Circuit training (of 4-5 exercises, 2.5 minutes of rest between circuits) with 1 week of heavy lifting (6-8 reps, 1 minute between sets). Then, in the next three weeks, decrease the rest periods on your circuits to 2 minutes and the rest period on your heavy lifting to 30 seconds. In the final 4 weeks, drop the rest periods even further (if possible) to 1.5 minutes between circuits (but maintain the 30 seconds between heavy lifting).
In terms of cardiovascular exercise, perform 3 sessions of 35-40 minutes at a medium intensity for the first two weeks. Then–using a different machine–perform 4 sessions of 35-40 minutes at a medium intensity for the next two weeks. Then, alternate 2 sessions of HIIT training (20 minutes each) with 2 regular sessions of 35-40 minutes (for an overview of HIIT cardio workouts, Google it or check out one of my previous posts) for the next four weeks. For the final four weeks, do 3 sessions of HIIT training (25-30 minutes each) and 3 regular sessions of 35-40 minutes, for a total of 6 cardiovascular workouts per week.
This cardio workout is quite tough, so be honest with yourself in regards to your individual fitness level. You can alter it if you feel it’s too advanced (consider simply replacing the HIIT training with regular, 35-40 minute cardio workouts).
And don’t forget, your cardio should be done first thing in the morning on off-days and directly after your workouts on training days.
4. Designing the Circuit: A lot of these fitness magazines design circuits in a specific way, by choosing exercises that can be done easily from one-to-the-next. That means predominantly free-weight movements, with an emphasis on dumbbells and usually incorporating at least one bodyweight move, like the push up or pull up.
5. Timing’s Everything: Since you’re training to lose weight, you shouldn’t be spending hours in the gym. In fact, your workouts (not including your cardio) should rarely exceed 40 minutes.
6. Pre-Make your Meals: almost every fitness magazine will tell you to do this. Making your meals ahead of time and storing them in tupperwares, or freezing unused chicken or meats, can make eating healthy much easier. Try cooking in bulk once or twice a week.
7. Spices, Spices: A little seasoning can turn a bland piece of chicken or a can of tuna into a tasty treat. You don’t have to suffer through your meals to lose weight.
8. Keep it Simple: I know some of the magazines out there advertise crazy exercises, like a one-legged squat on a stability ball while holding a dumbbell in your opposing arm. But the truth is, you don’t need to do these so-called “functional” exercises to lose weight. Keep it simple with basic free weight moves.
9. Supplements? In general, one of the most advertised fat-loss supplements is caffeine. While I won’t recommend using caffeine supplements, you might want to drink a cup of coffee (and a protein shake) before your morning runs (or jogs, or stairmaster, or however you do your morning cardio). Just remember–not eating breakfast before your morning cardio will force your body to dip into its fat stores for energy. So stick to coffee and a protein shake before, and have breakfast afterwards.
Also, don’t forget to supplement with whey protein before and after your workouts, and as the occasional snack during the day.
10. Use the Mirror First, then the Scale: While you should weigh yourself before you begin your fat-loss journey, try relying on the mirror alone for the first few weeks. Looking at the scale can get discouraging, and oftentimes a mirror can be a more reliable guide. So try not to step onto that scale until Week 4 or Week 5.
I know a lot of people work out to lose weight. But the fact is, a lot of people quit. Whether you’re not seeing results, or your seeing results but you seem to have plateaued recently, workouts can be a frustrating endeavor. Hopefully these few questions and accompanying answers will help you right the ship. At the least, I hope the answers will convince you not to abandon your workout; instead, search for the problem and fix it. The results will come.
1. “I lift weights four times a week, and I jog for about an hour three days a week. I saw results initially, lost a few pounds, but I can’t seem to lose any more.”
Odds are, you’ve totally adapted to your workout plan. The entire philosophy behind exercising (and a lot of people don’t know this) is to stimulate your body with new things, whether it’s progressive resistance or different lifts, or even changing up the machine you do your cardio on. So whenever you find yourself doing the same routine week in and week out, you’re likely to plateau–sooner or later. My advice for someone suffering from this dilemma would probably be this: try to change the machine you do your cardio on from week to week, and spice up your workouts by making them harder as your body adapts. Consider incorporating circuit training into your workouts, or simply decreasing the rest periods between sets of heavy lifting (6-8 reps). And that applies to both men and women–training with low reps but short rest periods (30-60 seconds) can do wonders for your fat loss goals.
2. “I can’t run because of ——-, but I want to lose weight.”
Believe it or not, but many people have lost massive amounts of weight without running. I know jogging has become synonymous with cardiovascular exercise in our culture, but that’s really sad in a way. Because so many other great forms of cardio exist. If you prefer the treadmill, consider walking at a brisk pace on an incline for an extended period of time (30-45 minutes). As you begin to adapt, consider increase the degree of the incline and/or the time you walk for (or even the speed, if you can).
In addition, consider swimming, which is an incredibly taxing form of cardio that’s relatively easy on your joints, especially if you feel uncomfortable running on a treadmill or can’t fathom the idea of cycling. Or even consider joining your local gym’s Spin Class, which–thanks to the community atmosphere and bumping music–can make your cardio session seem to (dare I say it?) fly by.
3. “I’ve done everything–a fitness routine with accompanying cardio that gets progressively more difficult–but I still haven’t seen the results I wanted to see.”
Assuming your relatively patient and not overly-idealistic (losing weight is a gradual process, with the healthy range at about 2 pounds per week), I would probably ask you about your diet. What does it look like? Are you eating junk food? Are you starving yourself? Both are bad. You need to control your caloric intake and pay close attention to the foods you eat. Think whole grains, veggies, and lean-protein sources like turkey, fish, and chicken. Consult the FDA’s website for specific nutritional information of a wide variety of foods (including name-brands that you can buy at your local supermarket).
4. “I really want to exercise, but I can’t seem to make to the gym regularly. I’m just not motivated enough.”
Motivation and consistence is a huge factor when it comes to seeing results. Consider setting numerical goals for yourself, and taking a “before” picture that you prop up next to your mirror or on your desk. Also, consider enlisting a training partner. I’ll be honest–we all have our days when we don’t want to go to the gym. But having a training partner, someone who’s meeting you at gym X, can really motivate you to show up and get your workout done. Not only that, but it’ll also bring a sense of healthy-competitiveness to your workouts, which will help you to get motivated…and stay motivated.
5. “I used to workout, lost a lot of weight, but then I stopped and just can’t seem to get into it anymore.”
Coming back after a long time off can be discouraging, especially with that sense that you’re working towards a goal you already attained–and lost. But you can’t dwell in the past. The fact of the matter is, you’ve done it before, you can do it again–but do you want to? If anything, it should keep you motivated. Think about exercising against your ghost, consistently pushing the envelope and trying to even surpass your previous fitness level. So don’t give up!
I know I say this a lot, but these are just suggestions. I wish I could give individualized advice via blogging, but I can’t. So I hope you’ll take some of this and apply it to your workouts where you see fit, but don’t feel like you must incorporate anything I say.
This is a great exercise, when performed correctly. Here’s a few tips to keep in mind:
1. You should lower the barbell to your collarbone, not to the middle portion of your chest. Think about the mechanics here; if you lower the bar to the middle portion of your chest, your actually lowering it down and forward, putting your shoulders at an awkward angle and not isolating your chest. Try lowering towards your collarbone; you should feel a deeper stretch at the bottom and a more forceful contraction at the top. And you’ll probably be able to use more weight.
2. Way too many folks grip the bar at the same position as flat barbell bench–don’t do it! With incline bench, you should grip the bar a few inches wider than you would with flat barbell bench. Oftentimes, if you try to use the same grip, you’ll notice that your elbows no longer form 90-degree angles with your forearms at the bottom position (the sign of an ideal grip), but instead form acute angles (the sign of a grip that’s too narrow). So widen your grip; you should feel the added emphasis in your upper chest immediately.
3. Adjust your angles; no one ever said the incline bench had to be at a specific angle all the time. While you won’t be able to adjust the angle of the bench for a free-weight incline barbell bench, you will if you use the smith machine or dumbbells. So consider incorporating the latter two into your workouts, and adjust the high of the bench from time to time–generally, you should be more concerned with lowering it to different increments rather than raising it, since the higher the bench is situated, the more you’ll work your shoulders (think of the military press as an incline bench that’s completely vertical–see what I mean?).
4. Incline bench is often a weakness for many lifters, and for this reason, many people include it later in their workouts. But this thinking is totally wrong; you should always try to prioritize you weaknesses. In this case, that means performing incline bench first in your workout. Or you can compromise; if you train chest twice a week, for example, begin one workout with an incline movement and the next with a flat movement. Or if you train chest once a week, alternate each week; for week 1, start with a flat bench movement, for week 2, start with an incline movement. Either way, remember to prioritize incline bench (barbell or dumbbell) in at least every other chest workout.
5. Pay attention to your feet. They should be flat on the ground during your lift, giving your body a stable base. At the same time, make sure you don’t push through your legs so much that you lift your lower back off of the pad, which constitutes poor lifting form and will, most likely, lead to an injury.
Sitting or standing can make a huge difference with your lifts. For shoulder presses, you’ll be more likely to lift much more weight when sitting instead of standing, since you can oftentimes push into the back of the seat (albeit subconsciously).
So next time you do lateral raises, or curls, or any move you tend to do seated, consider performing the same move standing. And vice versa. A simple adjustment like this can truly shock your body, leaving you much sorer then you’d normally be the next day.
For instance, consider doing barbell front raises while seated, or lateral raises while seated, which force you to use just your shoulder muscles by eliminating body english.
The number of days a week you train depends largely on two things: your training goals and fitness level. I’ll run through a quick list of recommendations.
Beginner, First Time Training: Train three times a week, using a total body split (train your entire body over one or two workouts, using 2-3 sets per exercise)
Intermediate, 6 months Training; Goal ~ Strength/Muscle Mass: Train four times a week; using 3 to 4 sets per exercise and training each muscle group once per week
Intermediate, 6 months Training; Goal ~ Fat Loss: Train four times a week, using either a low-volume circuit (meaning, around 4 exercises of 2-3 sets each) OR 3-4 sets of 6-8 reps per exercise (not a circuit), split over four days with 1.5 minute rest periods between sets (like, Chest/Triceps on Monday, Legs on Tuesday, Back/Biceps on Thursday, and Shoulders on Friday).
Advanced, >1 year Training; Goal ~ Muscle Mass: Train 4-5 times per week, using 8-12 repetitions per set; consider training your larger muscle groups twice per week; also, consider incorporating supersets into your training. For example, an advanced 5-day training split for muscle mass might look like this: Legs/Shoulders on Monday, Chest/Back on Tuesday, Biceps/Triceps on Wednesday, Legs/Shoulders on Thursday, Chest/Back on Friday
Since your exercising each muscle group twice per week, you shouldn’t perform as many sets per workout. 10-12 sets per workout for chest/back, and 10-15 for Legs/Shoulders, will yield 20-30 sets per week (double it, since it’s over two workouts).
Advanced trainees should seriously consider training large muscle groups twice per week; your body oftentimes needs the added stimulation in order to grow (in other words, after a year of training, you need to pull out the stops and use various advanced training techniques to keep your body growing).
Advanced, >1 year Training; Goal ~ Fat Loss; Train 4-6 times per week, alternating between one week of high-volume circuits (5-6 exercises of 10-15 reps per circuit, 2 minute rests between) and low-volume strength training (3-4 sets per exercise of 6-8 reps per set) where you’ll rest 30 seconds to 1 minute between sets. A recent study found that resting 30 seconds between sets of 6-8 reps burned approximately 50% more calories then longer rest periods; but you don’t need a study to convince you (just try it). Also, make sure you perform your cardio directly after your workouts, and first thing in the morning on rest days.
Advanced, >1 year Training; Goal ~ Strength; I’m afraid I can’t give a specific set of numbers for this. Strength-training programs vary widely, some utilizing 4 day splits, some 3-day total-body splits, and some even 5 day splits. The one thing you want to be mindful of when training for strength is this: since each lift requires so much more total energy, you’re likely to be much sorer than you would be with other forms of training. So make sure you incorporate ample rest periods in-between your sets AND in-between your workouts. So it may not be wise, for example, to try to train chest twice a week with heavy sets. Some strength programs, however, incorporate heavy days and light days, with the latter focusing on speed and the former focusing on sheer poundage. Like I said, there’s lots of wiggle room, so find something that works for you and stick with it (but not for too long! haha…sigh).
Well. I hope this helps. Just remember–all of these are just suggestions, and individual training programs will of course vary from person to person.
Here’s quick list of Do’s when attending the gym:
DO:
1. Return the Weights when you Leave: No one likes hunting for a misplaced dumbbell, especially in-between sets.
2. Ask for a Spot: Don’t be shy! That’s what your fellow gym-members are for. At the worst, you’ll get a no.
3. Check the Diagram, Adjust the Seat: Especially with machines, seats and pads often have to be placed in a specific region for the exercise to be performed correctly. Each machine should have a diagram showing where each pad should rest on your body, like mid-chest, etc. Unless the gym’s filled with identically-sized people, the seat/pad probably need to be adjusted.
4. Wear Headphones: A recent study conducted showed that the average lifter actually trains better when listening to music. Take advantage of these results and crank up the tunes.
5. Wash your Hands Post-Lift: Not to sound like your parent, but the gym is a nasty place. Sweat and thousands of hands touching the same machines and dumbbells. Don’t even think about eating afterwards without washing your hands (seriously). It’s a germ nightmare.
6. Talk Less, Lift More: Your rest-periods should ideally be timed, and chatting in-between sets will oftentimes cause you to lose your focus, rest upwards of 4-5 minutes in-between sets without even realizing it, and lead to an overall less-effective workout.
7. Find a Routine: Whether it’s listening to the same group of songs just in the gym and no where else, or it’s eating the same meal directly before you workout, or exercising at a specific time of day, or all of the above, finding a routine will help you attain a higher-level of focus and intensity.
8. Have a Goal, Have a Plan: Set numerical goals for yourself, attack it with a specific plan, gauge your progress intermittently, and adjust accordingly. Repeat.
9. Train According to Your Fitness Level: Everyone’s different, period. We all know what it’s like to be discouraged by watching someone else, and trying to mimic their training methods and/or weights. You’ll make the most progress by being honest with yourself and lifting accordingly; when you train smart, the results will come.
10. Enjoy It: At the risk of sounding corny, you really should enjoy your training. Results are more likely to come when you’re enjoying what you’re doing, rather than hating it. So don’t think of it like a chore; think of it as a chance to blow off steam, to relax, and to stay healthy.
A lot of trainees manipulate sets, reps, exercises, and even rest-times to get results. But too many of them overlook another aspect of training–repetition speed. By slowing down your repetition speed, you can recruit more muscle fibers (total) near the final repetitions of your sets then you could via fast-repetitions, since your fast-twitch muscle fibers will come in to rescue your slow-twitch muscle fibers, which you target with slow-repetitions (about 7-10 seconds for both the lift and descent).
But fast repetition speeds boast lots of benefits too, particularly when it comes to strength and power. Slow-repetition speeds, on the other hand, may be utilized for either mass or endurance. In general, if you’re training for strength & power, you’ll want to explode the weight up as fast as possible–that’s why you hear so many football coaches yelling, “drive the weight! drive the weight!”.
So how does this correlate to your training goals? Well, if you’re training for a marathon let’s say, or you want to improve your running, you might want to consider incorporating some slow-repetition training into your workouts.
Another great way to incorporate slow repetition training may be to throw in a few sets at the end of your workout, for example. If you’re training chest on a given day, consider doing 3 sets of 6-8 reps of 10-second dips as your last exercise of your workout or circuit. You can use weight, if necessary.
Or, you could employ slow-repetition training as a kind of drop-set on the last set of a given exercise, preferably on a machine. Drop the weight 30-40%, and perform as many 7-10 second lifts and negatives as you can.
Either way, it’s another training variable that you should be mindful of; so pay attention to your repetition speed.
If you’re training to see serious results (whatever those results may be), you need your sleep. It’s the interval that you’ve been training for, the time when your body repairs and rebuilds. A good night’s sleep allows you to be fully energized during your next workout, which allows you to train with the utmost intensity, positively affecting the kind of results you’ll get…do you see my point?
So if you’re not training, you might want to think about how much sleep you get. But if you’re training for results, you must think about how much sleep you get. Shoot for at least 8 hours a night, and try to get to bed at or before midnight. I’ll be honest, I go to sleep between 12 to 12:30 every night. But then again, I wake up after 9. So adjust your schedule accordingly; but keep in mind, sleep after midnight is much less effective then sleep before midnight (in layman’s terms).
And if you don’t believe me about it affecting your workouts, try going to sleep late and performing the same circuit workout. Your weights, tiredness, and overall mind-to-body connection will decrease dramatically.
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