Weight Training 101

 Most people come to me because they know strength training is important, but need to learn how to do it.  It can be a very overwhelming thing for people to try to learn, especially on their own.  I'm a huge advocate for strength training, and always let my clients know how important it is for our bodies.  After the age of thirty, you lose about half a pound of muscle a year if you don't strength train.  Some reasons you should be strength training include - it builds muscle and reduces body fat, increases strength, increases bone density, increases metabolic rate (burn more calories throughout the day), prevents injuries, helps prevent diseases, and makes everyday tasks easier (carrying groceries, picking things up, walking up the stairs etc.)

The Basics:

You don't have to be a bodybuilder to strength train.  Everyone benefits from it and should incorporate it into their exercise routine.  It's recommended that strength training be done 2-3 times per week to at least reap the minimum benefits.  While there are many different approaches and plans, I'm only going to give examples of two basic ways to structure your workouts.  These two ways will incorporate working every major muscle group throughout the week, which is important so that your body is in balance.  You want to be working every major muscle group so that you don't develop muscle imbalances which could lead to injuries or poor posture.  

Two Basic Options:

3 Total Body workouts throughout the week

-Incorporate 1-2 exercises for each major muscle group

-Quads, hamstrings, chest, back, biceps, triceps and shoulders

-Compound exercises are a great way to work more than one muscle group at a time (for example: a squat with an overhead press)

Split Routines (Split your workout days into different muscle groups)

-Example: Day 1: Back/Biceps, Day 2: Legs/Abs, Day 3: Chest/Shoulders/Triceps

-Incorporate 2-3 exercises for each major muscle in the split

Repetitions and Sets:

When trying to build muscle you should aim for 8-12 reps.  Anything over 12 will be working for muscle endurance.  However, I always recommend lighter weight and more reps (15) for beginners so that they can learn proper form and movement first.  You should be tired by the 12th rep and that's when you know you are using the right amount of weight.  

You should aim for 3-4 sets.  You can rest 30 to 60 seconds between sets, perform 2 exercises back to back without rest, perform 3 in a row without rest etc.  You can choose any of the options listed; just keep in mind your fitness level. 

Rest:

Allow your muscles to recover.  When you strength train, you are breaking down your muscle fibers and they need time to rebuild.  Don't train the same muscle groups on consecutive days.  

Change It Up:

Our bodies are GREAT at adapting, so you should be progressing every 4-6 weeks, which means you'll need to change things up a bit.  Simple things you can do to change it up include - increase your weight (especially if it's getting easy at your current amount), switch up your rest periods between sets (you could also perform "active" rests between sets doing exercises such as jumping jacks or mt. climbers), your positioning (incline bench instead of flat or change the order of your workouts during the week.  

Gym or At Home: 

The great part about strength training is you don't need a gym.  I try to utilize a bunch of different fitness equipment as much as possible. Medicine balls, kettlebells, BOSU balls, stability balls, dumbbells, cables, your own bodyweight etc.  the possibilities are endless!  If the gym isn't your thing, you can still get an effective workout in at home. 

Extra Tips: 

Write down your fitness goals.  Write down your short-term goals as well as your long-term goal.  It's important to know what you are working toward and it will help keep you motivated.

Write down your workouts ahead of time.  Planning ahead is key!  If you have your workouts on your calendar for the week and already have them written down, you'll be less likely to skip out.

Track your progress.  Keep track of the amount of weight you're using for your exercises so you know if you are progressing.  As mentioned above, every 4-6 weeks you should be able to increase your weight.  Also, tracking your progress will help keep you on track and once you start to see results it will keep you motivated to keep going!

Lastly, don't get discouraged.  Your mind will want to give up way before your body does.  Keep pushing yourself and keep reminding yourself why you started.  You may have a few slip ups along the way and that's okay!  Just get right back on track and keep going.  One of my favorite sayings - Small steps lead to BIG changes!

Overnight Oats

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats

Or as I like to say, heaven in a jar!

Ingredients:

Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk
1/2 Cup of Oats (I use 1 Cup, but I try to eat a big breakfast)
1 Banana
1 Tablespoon of Natural Peanut Butter (only ingredient is peanuts)
1 Tablespoon of Ground Flax
1 Scoop of Chocolate Whey Protein

You can use any type of glass or jar container, I just love the mason jars.

Scoop in your oats, ground flax and chocolate whey protein and cover the jar and shake around to get everything more mixed.  Add your almond milk (I don't measure my milk,  I just pour a little at a time until all of the oatmeal is moist and keep adding to my liking.  If you like your oatmeal more watery you'll want more almond milk).  Add your tablespoon of peanut butter and stir well.  Once everything is stirred, cut your banana into small slices or chunks and add to your oatmeal.  Stir again and once everything is set, leave in the fridge overnight.  In the morning it will be ready to eat!

Reasons You Aren't Seeing Results

Working at a gym for a few hours a week, I'm typically asked a good amount of questions by members who are working out.  After being asked a certain question and having a short conversation with a member, it deserved a post.  The conversation in a nutshell- "How do I get rid of this?" (pointing to their stomach). "Should I be doing more of the cardio machines for it?"  My answer was simple and honest.  I simply said that it takes a combination of things.  There is no "one" exercise that will spot reduce the part of your body that you don't like.  It takes strength training, cardio and eating healthy nutritious foods in order to see results.  They all work together.  When I mentioned the eating healthy part they proceeded to tell me that healthy food is more expensive and it was a lot easier to buy the frozen dinner then the expensive steak.  Eating healthy doesn't have to be expensive, and right there was one thing they were doing to sabotage their results.  Below i've put together a list.

Ways you might be sabotaging your results:

1.  Overeating and drinking your calories.  It's important to get in your daily amount of calories but often time's people may not realize when they are eating too much.  Starting your day off with a big breakfast is good and will give you energy through your morning, while also getting your metabolism going.  But if you aren't eating a decent size breakfast or one at all, that could cause you to overindulge during your lunch.  Also throw some snacks in between meals and your calories can add up pretty quickly.  I heard an analogy once that I loved.  Think of the order of your meals in terms of "king, queen and prince".  Breakfast being the biggest and dinner being the smallest.  If you are a snacker, this term can really come in handy because by the time you eat dinner, you could have already consumed a good amount of calories during your day.  Eating at a restaurant?  Your meal could add up to be your total daily amount just in one meal.  Most restaurant meals are loaded with extra fat and calories, so be aware.  Most places will list their menus online, so check out the menu before choosing.
Also keep in mind your drink choices.  Sodas, juices, sports drinks and alcoholic beverages all add up quickly if you're consuming more than 1 in a day.   Specialty drinks such as Starbucks run anywhere from 250-500 calories depending on size and type (not to mention the amount of sugar in them).  Try to get your calories from food instead of beverages.  Next time you have a drink look at the calories and serving size.  Chances are there are more than 1 serving in your bottle which means more calories then you see listed.

2.  Not eating enough.  Doing just the opposite of number one could be hurting your chances of seeing results as well.  You need to eat in order to see results.  When you don't eat enough calories, your body will go into starvation mode taking energy from muscle and storing more fat.  Your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the amount of calories you need just to survive.  Most people are shocked when they see how many calories they need JUST if they were sedentary.  To find your BMR use the following calculation:
Women: 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)
Men: 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

Once you have your calculation, you can use this website to add in your activity level to get a more accurate amount of calories needed.

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harris-benedict-equation/

3.  Eating too much "crap" and not enough healthy nutritious foods.  This doesn't need much of an explanation.  If you're choosing to eat highly processed foods at almost every meal, then don't expect the best results.  You can spend countless hours at the gym, but the results will not come quickly or as well if you are not eating properly.  Exercise won't make up for bad eating, plain and simple. 

4.  You're not pushing yourself and working out to your full potential.  If you're not working hard and challenging your body, don't expect to see major changes.  Our bodies are great at adapting, so doing light cardio or light strength training won't cause major changes when your body is used to walking and bending and lifting things up on a daily basis.  It's going to take you pushing yourself and REALLY working yourself to see results.  The amount of weight you lift should be difficult enough that by rep 12, you're fatigued.  For cardio exercise, you want to aim to reach your target heart rate (beginners can aim for the low end while moderate to advanced can work toward reaching the high end of your target HR).  Do the work, push yourself, and see the results.

5.  Not seeking help.   Let's face it.  There is soooo much information out there and thousands of different exercises.  It can definitely be overwhelming trying to learn what exercises to do and how to do them properly.  That's why us personal trainers exist!  To help you learn what exercises to do and how to do them with proper form.  We're also there to help you get out of a rut.  You may know how to do a few exercises, but you need to always be finding ways to change up your routine to continue to see progress and results.  So, don't be afraid to seek out help from a trainer.  It's our job! 

6. Not logging your workouts, progress and goals.  It's important to be tracking your workouts and progress. Logging your workouts will help you see when you need to increase your weight or change up your routine.  It's also a motivational tool.  If you see your results and progress your making, it'll keep you going and pushing harder.  I always schedule my workouts for the entire week so that I have it down on paper and don't have to even think about it the day of.  It also helps me to see what I've been doing for the past weeks so I know whether or not to change things up.  You also need to write down your goals. Goals are an important factor in your success.  You have to know what you are looking to accomplish so that you stay on track.  

7.  Not working on flexibility and taking rest days.  These two sort of go hand in hand for me, as they are both important for decreasing injury.  Most people are already on a time crunch, so they skip their warm up and cool down.  Don't.  Always warm up the body by doing at least a 5 minute dynamic warm up (moving the body) and save your static stretching (holding a stretch for 15-30 seconds) for after your workout.  Stretching for flexibility will help you move better, reduce your risk of injury,help improve your posture and help prevent major muscle soreness.
Not taking a day to rest will also increase your risk of injury.  It's important to give your body and muscles a break to recover.  Rest days are also important to prevent overuse injuries and overtraining.  Listen to your body and know when to step back or take a day off. 

8.  Not training every major muscle group.  It's really important to make sure you are training every major muscle group and not neglecting any.  Your body should be balanced.  Every major muscle has an opposing muscle, and they work together in terms of movement.  One should not be dominant over the other.  Having muscle dominance can cause injury and poor posture. 

That completes my main list of things I feel that people may be doing that slow down their progress or results.  Of course a few honorable mentions could also be things like chronic stress, not getting enough sleep and making excuses (whole other topic).  

If you find that you're not making progress or seeing results, really think about the things listed above.  How many are you doing?  Be honest with yourself.  Sometimes it does go more in depth then just this list (thyroid issues, hormone issues etc...) in which case seeking out a nutritionist or expert would be beneficial.  But if there are no underlying issues, then start eliminating the things that are sabotaging your progress.

Eating Healthy & Exercising on Vacation

Here is a blurb I posted to my Facebook page after my vacation this summer. I thought it deserved a repost as i'm anxiously awaiting my trip to Cali at the end of November! And yes, exercise is built into my vacation plans (5k, running the Golden Gate Bridge, hiking, and taking a Barre class with my sister).  I'll be sure to be blogging about those!

Staying Healthy on Vacation  

A question asked by many people, is how to eat healthy and get exercise in on vacation.  While you may not always have the choice to eat whole fresh foods, there are some things you can do on vacation to keep you on track.  It is harder to maintain your goals while away, and let's face it, you're on vacation and should be enjoying yourself!  But It's all about balance.  

Yes exercising and eating healthy are two very important things to me, and are a huge part of my life.  However, I have balance in my life and I allow myself to indulge or enjoy things once in awhile that may not be so good for me.  I enjoy adult beverages on the weekends and go out to the bars with friends.  Yes, ice cream and frozen yogurt are my all time favorite desert that I enjoy way more in summer.  But for me, it's all about balancing the bad with the good.  Do I eat ice cream everyday of the week? No.  Probably not even once a week, but I sure don't feel guilty when I have it!  Do I drink every night?  Nope...but I enjoy some good beer on the weekends!  So when it comes to going on vacation, I don't stress about the fact that I will be off my usual routine of exercise and healthy eating.

When it comes to vacation it's all about making "better" choices, even if they aren't the best.  While we were on vacation this past summer, all we had was a mini fridge and a microwave in our hotel room.  No stove to cook on.  Even with the fridge and microwave, we were only ever in the room to shower and sleep.  We were on the go which caused us to eat out at every meal (except most breakfasts).  Knowing this was going to happen, I made sure to 1. Pack healthier snacks for the drive and to have in the room (cashews, almonds, protein shakes, bananas etc...) 2.  I packed traditional rolled oats to have with fruit for breakfast and 3.  I packed my TRX suspension trainer, and my very supportive boyfriend made sure to book a hotel that had a fitness center.  When eating at restaurants I would order sandwiches or salads (dressing on the side) over fried food, or order a side of fruit or veggies with my meal.  One evening I ordered salmon with a side baby spinach salad for dinner (so delicious!)

I made my own breakfasts since our hotel only offered things like waffles, bagels or "eggs".  However, being down South meant great tasting food.... but not so good for you food.  But I allowed myself to have a meal or two that wasn't a better choice (hello Bar BQ bean burrito).  I wanted to have a taste of "southern cooking", I just made sure not to have a taste for every meal.  

As far as exercise, we walked everywhere!  Our hotel in Nashville was only a 15-20 minute walk from downtown so we were constantly walking from morning to night.  Not to mention we hiked a lot on our vacation (Smoky Mountains and on our drive home).  I also went for runs, did a TRX workout, ran on the treadmill in the fitness center and even did a quick strength training workout with the weights that were available.  Were my workouts long?  No... but I still got quick and effective workouts in.  

So, find your balance.  Help keep yourself on track by packing healthy snacks, making your own breakfasts, choosing better options while eating out,  walking instead of driving if possible, planning physical activities into your vacation (hiking, biking, running etc...), booking a hotel with a fitness center, packing travel friendly exercise equipment (suspension trainer or resistance bands), or simply doing bodyweight cardio and strength exercises a few days during the week. If it's important to you, you'll find a way.