Personal Training
Get in, Be Efficient, Get Out!
I want you to ask yourself how long you spend working out in the gym on average per day. I really can’t believe some of the responses I get when I ask people this question or read it in magazines. 2+ hours working out?! I don’t mean 1 hour working out and 1 hour prepping for work in the locker room-I mean that people tell me they spend 2+ hours acutally working out. There are a few things wrong with this, some more detrimental than others.
First of all for women, spending too much time at the gym or exercising to the point of exhaustion increases the chances of infertility 3 times over. It is often that we see professional female athletes having a bit more trouble getting pregnant.
Second of all, get out! Enjoy the world. Exercise- I will be the first person to tell you that it is of utmost importance to your health and wellbeing, but so is life! Seeing people, engaging, eating, enjoying company. Spending an excessive amount of time working out will take away from spending time with loved ones and if it gets to the point where you are missing events, social gatherings etc…well this is a whole other problem. Fit exercise INTO your day, do not MAKE IT YOUR ENTIRE DAY.
Second of all, get out! Enjoy the world. Exercise- I will be the first person to tell you that it is of utmost importance to your health and wellbeing, but so is life! Seeing people, engaging, eating, enjoying company. Spending an excessive amount of time working out will take away from spending time with loved ones and if it gets to the point where you are missing events, social gatherings etc…well this is a whole other problem. Fit exercise INTO your day, do not MAKE IT YOUR ENTIRE DAY.
Third of all, spending over an hour at the gym, working all out at a high intensity can signal the body to produce excess cortisone which can in turn tell the body to store fat. Cortisol can also increase muscle catabolism meaning your body begins to eat away at your hard earned muscle
- Plan it out: With a well planned workout schedule, you really should not need to spend more than 1 hour max in the gym. (45 minutes being preferable) It is all about quality over quantity. Personally, I prefer to work at a high intensity for a shorter amount of time to really make my body a fat burning machine, and also to keep moving on with my day. I really can’t stand to dillydally around the gym. I get in, get out and get it done!
- Get enough sleep. Cortisol levels are lowest (and growth hormone levels are highest) in the deepest phase of sleep. Make sure you are getting between 7-8 hours of sleep each night! Try to get into a nightly routine to make it that much easier to get some shut eye. I love reading before bed, it makes me a bit sleepy and always ensures a perfect nights sleep!
- Eat carbs when it counts: When it comes to nutrition, it’s important to recognize the inverse relationship between glycogen and cortisol. As glycogen levels go DOWN, cortisol goes UP. When your body runs out of glycogen – which it uses for energy – the increase in cortisol triggers a breakdown of protein (stored as muscle) to be converted to fuel. This is not ideal for those looking to build muscle, HOWEVER it can be avoided by eating upon waking in the morning as well as taking in carbs post workout. Make sure you are eating a combination of protein and carbs within 45 minutes of your workout.
- Perfect post workout meals:
- Sweet potato protein shake
- Soymazing Muffins (featured in Oxygen Magazine)
- Protein French Toast
- 1 cup Greek yogurt with 1/3 C raw oats, 1 small apple
- Protein shake: 1 scoop (whey, pea, egg white) protein, 1/3 C raw oats, 1 small piece of fruit
- Turkey sandwich with avocado and small apple
- Beef Tangine Butternut squash stew
- Peanut butter and Jelly on Whole wheat bread
- Homemade protein bar made with oats, peanut butter, raisins
- Banana, peanut butter sandwich
- 3 eggwhites, 1 egg, whole wheat english muffin OR whole wheat wrap with piece of fruit
BOTTOM LINE: Keep your workouts efficient, effective and PLAN IT OUT! Know what you are doing before you head to the gym. Stay focused and get it done!
So are you looking for a killer circuit that you can complete in 30 minutes or less and leave feeling like you worked every muscle in your body? Metabolic Style is the way to go!
So are you looking for a killer circuit that you can complete in 30 minutes or less and leave feeling like you worked every muscle in your body? Metabolic Style is the way to go!
- Metabolic style training conditions the muscles to better use what’s being delivered to them by improving the efficiency of the different metabolic pathways. Metabolic conditioning focuses more on the AFTERBURN of the activity rather than how many calories one burns during the actual activity itself. By training metabolic style, your body can transform into a fat burning maching, causing you to constantly be burning, even when sitting down
- Traditional cardio exercise such as jogging, sure it can be a great form of exercise BUT it does not create that EPOC effect that higher intensity work does (EPOC=Exercise post oyxgen consumption) EPOC refers to the elevated oxygen consumption POST exercise. Training Metabolic style, your body will be burning fat all through the 10, 15 or 20 minutes of work and well past the activity because of the high intensity you will be working at
- How to get started? One way to get started is to set up a TIMED circuit. Metabolic training here is based on how many reps you can do in an alloted time period. You work as hard as you can and take breaks when you need for the time given
Lower Body Metabolic Workout
***Make sure you go through a 5-10 minute warm up prior to beginning this workout!
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Exercise
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Weight
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Time
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Left DB reverse lunge
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10-20 lbs each hand
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30 sec
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Right DB reverse lunge
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10-20lbs each hand
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30 sec
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Squat Jumps
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10lbs each hand
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30 sec
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Squat Jumps
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Bodyweight
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30 sec
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Decline Leg press
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90-140lbs
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30 sec
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*Repeat 4-6 times for a total of 12-15 minutes! Take breaks when you need to, but keep the time running!
Upper Body Metabolic Workout (shoulder focus)
***Make sure you go through a 5-10 minute warm up prior to beginning this workout!
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Exercise
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Weight
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Time
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DB Shoulder Press
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8-15lbs each hand
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30 sec
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DB Bent over row
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10-20lbs each hand
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30 sec
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Push up with front reach
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Body weight
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30 sec
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DB upright row
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8-15lbs each hand
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30 sec
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DB front raise
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5-10lbs each hand
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30 sec
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*Repeat 4-6 times for a total of 12-15 minutes! Take breaks when you need to, but keep the time running!
These workouts are meant to be short in nature but BRUTAL if you give it your all. They will incorporate cardio and weight training at the same time, as you will be most likely have to take multiple breaks through. Don’t try to be a rockstar here, these workouts are tough but I wouldn’t post it if I didn’t think you could do it! As I like to say…
What EPIC thing have you done this past weekend?
