Calf exercise that works

Stand in front of a chair and put one foot up on that chair

put your other leg as far behind you as you can, without losing balance

raise up on your toes and back down to a flat foot in a controlled manager

do 4 sets of 15 and switch feet!!!!

Breathing and the importance during a workout

I'm sure you all have heard us trainers say,'Are you breathing?!'. Why might you ask, is the importance?

1) If you don't breathe, you could pass out while working out! SAFETY FIRST!
2) When you're body is enduring a heavy load, you are actually causing your blood pressure to rise...so breathing properly will reduce your blood pressure.
3) When breathing properly while working out, lifting weights in particular, you are stablizing your spinal cord. This again, is a safety item!!!

Now, if you don't have a trainer telling you when and how to breathe....

*Always practice your reps with your breathing tempo.
*Breathe OUT on the hard part of the excersice.
-i.e. Bicep curls: the up part is the hard part...so breathe out here.
It's that easy!

Cleansers and detox

If you are interested in trying a cleanser and detox kit...things you should know.

*If it's your first time trying a cleanser....get a "first time" kit!!!!!
*One of the "negative" affects is that your digestive system is cleared of EVERYTHING. Including the good bacteria...so make sure you eat plenty of yogurt!!!

Have fun!!

Busy people...10 minute workout

Here you go busy people!!!

3 sets of everything listed below:

jump for 1 minute
pushups: as many as possible
situps/crunches: as many as possible
booty squats to a kick: as low as you can, 20 reps each leg

Done!

The best time to do these: 10am and 3pm.

Shoulders, shoulders, shoulders!!!!

Here's what everyone is waiting for....a good ol' fashion shoulder workout.

#1) Of course warm up your entire body with light cardio for at LEAST 5 minutes. Preferably 8-12 minutes!!!! The reason for this is to ensure that there is circulation going to your muscles, joints, tendons, brain, core...I think you get the picture.

#2) Warm up with 2 core excersices. The reason for THIS...if your core is engaged properly you will be able to lift more weight, more effecitively, and safer!

#3) Here begins the fun of our good ol' fashion shoulder workout

For the anterior delts: grab 2 sets of dumbells with 1 set being a weight that is "comfortable" and the second set of weight being challenging, but not impossible.
*Front shoulder press. 4 sets X drop sets.
Front shoulder press is where your arms are parallel to each other, creating a 90degree angle and push the weights straight up
Drop sets is where you do as many as you can at the heavier weight until muscle failure and than you drop to the lighter weight immediately and do exactly the same exercise..until failure
*Front raises. 4 sets X 12reps. Good posture...even if that means going to partial reps!
Start with the weight in front of you resting on your legs and raise them up in FRONT of you, straight armed the whole way, to shoulder height...the more controlled the better the results!

The mighty medial delts: Grab 1 set of dumbells that are of challenging weight
*The Aronld press to burn out dumbell press 4 sets X muscle failure
Aronld press is a classic....imagine this. Sit or stand if front of a mirror. Grab your dumbells and put them in right in front of your eyes, palms facing your face, and arms creating a 90degree angle. Laterally move your arms, rotate your palms, and press the dumbells up at the same time. Ending position should be arms straight up over your head, palms facing the mirror.
Do the Aronld for 10 reps and than continue the rest of the set with normal dumbell shoulder presses to muscle failure!!!!!!

The sexy rear delts: Get ready for a super set on this muscle! You can use free weights, cables, or bands.
*Reverse flies, bent over 4 sets X 15
*Rear delt row, bent over 4 sets X 15

If you need clarification on these...please email me at either vipowerfitness@gmail.com or certpersonaltrainer@yahoo.com

Have fun with that!!!

The safe zones in the resturant world

Where to go:
Applebee's
Red Lobster
Subway
Quizno's

Words to look for:
Grilled
Cajun
Low Fat
Mesquite
Skewers

Words to watch out for:
Melts and/or cheeses
Fried
Sauteed
Sauces...especially white sauces!

Ideal meals when you are out:
Applebee's:
Grilled tilapia with mango salsa
Teriyaki and shrimp skewers
Mesquite chicken salad

Red Lobster:
Grilled Salmon, Lemon pepper
Grilled Chicken Tenders
Snow crabs

Subway: Any sub...just watch your cheese and mayo
Quiznos: Same as subway...just watch that cheese!

Misc Notes:
Believe it or not, most of the "salads" at resturants will have MORE calories and fat than a normal meal!

Cheers!

The TRUE positives of working out!

There are numerous benefits to working out and practicing a healthy lifestyle....but, I will name just a few:

*More energy! Although the first 21 days are always the most difficult, after that...your natural energy will soar!!
*Better sleeping at night! Due to hormones released DURING your workout and also that night to RECOVER from your workout
*Lower body fat and body weight
*Better self-esteem
*Improvement on physcial awarness, strength, and endurance
*Decreased chance of diseases

If you want to hear more detail, email me at certpersonaltrainer@yahoo.com

Stress and stress

There are 2 different types of stress that your body will undergo: Distress and Eustress.

Distress is the type of stress that is not good: breakup, money issues, etc.

Eustress is the type of stress that is "good": working out, lifting weights, etc.

For every amount of stress that your body undergoes, good or bad....you MUST recover! Eating well, sleeping right, and relaxing!!!!!

The importance of breakfast

There is a few simple reasons:

Break fasting....right there in the name!!!! After sleeping for hours and hours, your body needs some fuel to function in the morning.

With a well-balanced breakfast, you will be able to think better during your morning activities!!!

With eating breakfast you are less likely to indulge in a high calorie lunch, which would SLOW down your metabolism!!

There is a little enzyme created in our bodies when we yo-yo eat. Your blood sugar drops dramatically if you eat only once or twice a day...causing your body to produce fat storing enzymes...and a lot of them!!!!!! So, because you are eating so little calories throughout the day you are actually causing your body to create more body fat!!!!

Simple fix: eat 5 times a day, starting with breakfast....eating breakfast 30 minutes after waking. Even if it's something small to start with!!!

Muscle imbalances

For every one joint in the body, the muscles need to be EQUALLY as strong around it. Look at your shoulders, if they are "rounded" forward...that is an imbalance! Your chest muscles are stronger than your back muscles. So, what's the problem with that, you may ask? There's a decrease in blood and O2 flow to those muscles in the back, making it VERY easy to tear. What is the most common injury in baseball? Rotator cuff tear! Simple fix....work your back muscles: Lats, Rear Delts, Traps, Rhumboids. Easy!

What burns more calories?

Due to something called "Ground gravity effect" jump roping burns MORE calories than running! 10 minutes of fast jump roping is = 30 minutes of running!!!!

Great supps, check it out

If you are looking for a good "vitamin", check out this:

http://www.juiceplus.com/+tc06447

More muscle vs more fat

One more thought for Sunday....

1lb of muscle will burn 45-50 calories per day just to stay alive, let alone be active

1lb of fat will only burn 3-4 calories per day

So, now matter which way you look at it more muscle is better!!!

What does metabolism really mean?

Metabolism is actually the process your body goes through (and how quickly) to breakdown the food you eat and turn the food into energy for your body. The more muscle you have the quicker that process happens.

Let me explain some of the words you hear:

Endocrine system: The main "mama" for your metabolism by stimulating glands and releasing hormones.

Thyroid gland: The key "metabolism" gland that produces certain hormones that play a key role in determining how fast or slow your body breaks down food.

Pancreas gland: The gland that releases insulin by sensing "food or glucose" in your body.

Hyperthyroidism: overactive thyroid
Hypothyroidism: underactive thyroid

Doesn't that make more sense!!!

Insulin hormone: Hormone released by the pancreas gland that signals cells to do their job.

Now doesn't that make more sense!!!

core exercises

Core muscles are everything around your spinal cord. (aka central nervous system) Stomach, obliques, lower back. Here's a simple way to work your core every morning before you get ready for your day:

Lower back first: The cobra, stage 1.

Lay on your stomach, face down, arms at your side creating a slight "v shape". Leaving your feet on the ground, lift your chest up off of the ground and squeeze your shoulder blades as tight as you can. Do 3 sets of 15 reps to start with.

Obliques (aka love handles): side plank

Lay on your side, with your elbow right under your shoulder. Legs straight on top of each other. Lift your hips off of the ground as high as you can (trying to keep your body stiff and straight) and lightly bring your hips back down on the ground. Repeat for 3 sets of 15 reps.

Abs: Simple crunch

Lay on your back with legs close to your glutes, but comfortable. Keep your eyes focused on one spot above you (this is to keep you from giving yourself whiplash and cranking your neck!) lift your shoulder blades up as high as you can, hold for 2 counts and bring it back down. Repeat this for 3 sets of 15 reps.

Processed foods for thought

I will revisit one of my 'hot spots'....processed food. First and foremost, if anyone product has more than 2 ingredients in it...why are you eating it?! Because it tastes good, right?! Well...think about this:

*The nutrition label is legally allowed to be up to 300% inaccurate. So, honestly counting calories is a great first step, but it really comes down to the ingredients.

*Most processed food has (minimally) 5 ingredients. Most common are the words that end in 'ose', which are chemically processed sugars.

*Some processed foods have up to 35 ingredients!!!!

Let's take one of my old time favs: Rice a Roni.

This product has 21 ingredients. One of the many is a chemical called yellow 5. Yellow 5 has been PROVEN to cause: chronic migraines, clinical depression, fatigue, and OCD in children. Unfortunately, that is only 1 of 21 ingredients.

Lesson learned: The more organic/natural foods, the better!!

Up and running!

What I want?

Ask all the fitness questions you want!!!!!! Today is the rest of your life!!!