Monday, March 29, 2010

Sample Ultimate Grind Workout

This full-body workout is intended to build strength and power. It is important to understand that this workout should not be attempted until your body is ready for it. We did this workout after a complete fitness assessment, a phase of stability training, and a phase of PHA (peripheral heart action) training.

Admittedly, our program progressed more quickly than a typical program. We felt comfortable progressing at this rate because we were all healthy adults, and we each consulted our doctors before starting the program.

1) Foam roll and static stretch "Your 4" overactive muscle groups (5-10 minutes)
Each participants overactive muscle groups were determined during a movement assessment we did the first day of the program.

2) Full-body cardio warm-up (10 Minutes)
Our warm-up is usually a variety of exercises that get the heart pumping and require use of all major muscle groups.

3) Circuit 1 (3 sets - 30 seconds per set)
- Jack Knives
- Bicycles
- Plank with "funk"
- Bridge

4) Circuit 1 (3 sets - 30 seconds per set)
- Squats
- Shoulder Press
-Squat Press
- Jumping Jacks

5) Circuit 1 (3 sets - 30 seconds per set)
-Good-mornings
- Up and outs
- Reverse chops
- Ice skaters

6) Circuit 1 (3 sets - 30 seconds per set)
- Push-ups
- Rows
- Squat-row
- Hot coals

7) Total body static stretching (5-10 minutes)

Even if you are in great shape, some of these exercises may be difficult for you. If they are, ask a personal trainer for modifications to those particular exercises. Always remember that safety is your #1 priority.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

5 Reasons People can't Lose Weight and Keep it off

If you're like most of us who have struggled with your weight loss you probably feel fatter than you were when you first started! There's a reason for that....it's because you are! No offense, but if you're like many Americans, your metabolism is in lousy shape! Here are some of the reasons why:

1) Yo-yo dieting --- When you lose a lot of weight quickly you're typically losing a lot of lean muscle rather than body fat. Muscle burns calories even when you're not exercising, while fat is nothing more than "dead weight." This slows your metabolism, causing you to store more of the food you eat as body fat. Not only that, if you ever start eating a normal amount of food again.....forget about it! You just bought yourself a ticket to "fat storage city!"

2) Crash dieting --- You know those diets that tell you to "drink a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, and eat a reasonable dinner?" It is not at all uncommon for people to lose a lot of weight initially, when they go on these diets. But did you know that 95% of these people gain the weight back after a year and 97% gain the weight back after two years!!* Talk about yo-yo dieting!

3) Sedentary lifestyle --- If you're not using energy your body knows it! Your body says, "Give me a break! You're not going use the food you just ate for energy!" Instead of sending those calories (energy) to your muscles where they can be used, it will store them as fat! This doesn't mean you have to spend 3 hours a day at the gym...just go for a walk after dinner!

4) Eating garbage --- Many of the foods we eat are loaded with chemicals, saturated fats, sugars, and high glycemic carbohydrates (foods that cause our blood sugars to rise quickly). None of these are good for us! Believe it or not, by substituting a few of the foods we eat with healthier foods, we can really start chipping away at that unwanted body fat!

5) Chronic stress --- When you get stressed out your body goes into "fight or flight" mode, causing it to release a bunch of glucose (sugar) into the blood stream for an immediate burst of energy. Since you're probably not trying to run away from a lion, or kill a gorilla with your bare hands, your body is not going to use that glucose for energy. Guess what it's going to do?...That's right...store it as fat! So next time you start to feel stressed out take a few deep breaths or go for a walk.

With all these calorie restriction diets, sugary foods, and sit down jobs, many of us have become "metabolically challenged" over the years. Don't worry! If you can put an end to these trends, you'll be on your way to getting your metabolism working again so you can finally lose weight and keep it off!

*Tsai AG, Wadden TA. Systematic review: An evaluation of major commercial weight loss programs in the United States. Ann Intern Med 2005;142:55-56

Monday, March 22, 2010

Ultimate Grind for different fitness levels

The Ultimate Grind is for all types of people. It’s true; your doctor needs to consider you “healthy enough to participate in an exercise program,” but as long as you’ve got your doctors OK, you’ve got Coach Sweat’s OK. But even so, what if you find yourself exercising with some fitness superstars or even worse….an Ultimate Grind veteran?!?

Don‘t worry! Just about every exercise we do can be modified. That means we can adjust the exercise to make it easier for the beginner, and we also have ways to make it more challenging for the superstar. So whatever your fitness level, the Ultimate Grind can be tailor made to fit your specific needs and goals!

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Everything you need to know about Stretching

Stretching is usually the most underrated portion of any exercise routine. Most people tend to think that if you're not building strength or burning calories, then you're wasting your time. This couldn't be further from the truth!

Stretching is probably the single most important part of your exercise routine. You should start and finish every workout with some flexibility exercises. That being said, not all flexibility exercises are the same. So which ones are right for you?

Let's start by talking about the 3 primary types of flexibility exercises; static stretches, active stretches, and dynamic stretches.

A static stretch is when you hold a stretch for 30 seconds. An example of this would be crossing your legs and touching your toes to stretch your hamstring. Static Stretching is what most people think of as "stretching." Many trainers like to "foam roll" the same muscle groups to eliminate "knots" in the muscles and further improve the muscle's flexibility.

An active stretch uses an opposing muscle group to stretch a certain muscle group. An example would be to lie on the floor, hold your thigh at a 90 degree angle to the floor, and use your quad to extend your leg and stretch your hamstring. Active stretches should be held for 2-5 seconds and should be done about 10 times.

Dynamic stretches require multiple muscle groups to work together through an entire range of motion. A walking lunge with a twist is an example of a dynamic stretch. You should do about 10 of these at a controlled speed.

Generally speaking, you should finish every workout with 5-10 minutes of static stretching, regardless of your fitness level. It is important to lengthen your muscles after a workout, since they will naturally tighten if you don't. This could lead to muscle imbalances and future injuries. Not only that, it will make the recovery process a lot less painful!

If you are new to exercising, you could also begin each workout with static stretches. This will help you reduce the risk of injury as you're starting out, and it will also help you reduce many of your muscle imbalances. After a few weeks of training, you might be ready to warm-up with some active stretches. You'll be ready for these stretches once you've developed a good amount of muscular flexibility and coordination. Once you start doing high-intensity full-body workouts, you'll want to warm up with dynamic stretches.

So there's more to stretching than most people think! Now that you know, make sure you make stretching a part of every workout!

Monday, March 15, 2010

Starting a Strength Training Program

Strength training is beneficial for everybody! It doesn't matter whether you want to be a competitive athlete, be healthy enough to play with your grandchildren, or just lose weight.

That's right...I said lose weight! Many people who want to lose weight are afraid of building muscle. They think that strength training will make them look big and bulky. This couldn't be further from the truth! By strength training you build muscle, which increases your metabolism. That means that your body will be burning more calories even when you're resting. By strength training you are actually transforming your body into a lean, mean, fat-burning machine!

So if you really want to "lose weight" don't focus on losing weight, focus on losing body fat and building muscle. Muscle is active; it never stops burning calories for you! Fat, on the other hand, is inactive. It just sits on your body and does nothing for you, so get rid of it. And the best way to get rid of that fat is to surround it with fat-burning, metabolism-boosting muscle!

Strength training is also important for anyone who wants to be an athlete or anyone who wants to reduce the risk of injury in their everyday lives. So, now that I've convinced you of the importance of strength training, where should you start?

1) Figure out what your goals are and what your current fitness level is. Any personal trainer can help you with this.

2) Start by balancing out your body. People usually want to jump right in to lifting heavy weights...BAD IDEA! You should spend you first few weeks doing "stabilization" exercises to strengthen your core and develop your balance, so you don't hurt yourself.

3) Work on "muscular endurance." For the second month of any program, I usually recommend that clients do a combination of "strength exercises" followed by "stability exercises" to help them build up their endurance.

4) After about 8 weeks you can really start focusing on building strength and even explosive power if you're a competitive athlete. This is when you can really start having some fun with some real high-intensity workouts!

Now that you know the basics of strength training, get started!

Thursday, March 11, 2010

The Toughest it ever Gets – Day 1 of the Ultimate Grind

It’s 6 AM Monday morning and the sun has just risen and you’re standing on Cambridge Common with 12 other people, one of which calls himself “Coach Sweat.” You’ve seen the highlight video and you’ve heard the stories, and you’ve even tried to do one of “Coach Sweats” workouts at home, but you still don’t have any idea of what to expect.

Let me reassure you, you’ve already done the hardest part! The hardest part of any exercise program is getting into a routine and making it part of your schedule. The hardest part of creating a routine is starting that routine. So…if you follow my logic, by showing up on Day 1, you’ve already done the hardest part of the Ultimate Grind!

Monday, March 8, 2010

3 Proven Ways to Lose Weight

The clients I choose to work with are not impressed with "quick fix" weight loss programs....for good reason....they've tried them, and they've realized what 97% of participants realize....that meal replacement, calorie restriction diets don't work in the long run!

So where can you go to find proven, effective weight loss strategies that will help you not only lose weight, but keep it off for good?

I suggest the National Weight Control Registry. The National Weight Control Registry is a database of people who have lost over 30 pounds and have managed to keep that weight of for over 5 years. Now that's what I call success!

So what are these people doing that allows them to reach and maintain their weight loss goals?

Here are 3 things that just about all of them have done:

1) They eat 5-6 small meals a day.
2) They keep a food journal.
3) They exercise regularly.

Let's talk about each one of these proven, effective weight loss strategies and why they work so well.

1) Eating small, frequent meals keeps your metabolism working at its best. If you go a long time without eating food your body goes into a kind of "starvation mode." You start to burn calories more slowly because your body is trying to conserve energy. It doesn't know that you have a refrigerator full of food! It actually thinks that you may have to go days before you get your next meal!

On the other side of the coin....eating a big meal also compromises your metabolism. Have you ever experienced the "food coma" before? When you eat a huge meal....especially a meal loaded with high-glycemic carbohydrates....your blood sugar spikes, you feel tired, and your body says to itself, "Give me a break! You're not going to use all of these calories for energy! I'm going to store them as fat!"

2) Keeping a food journal does something very important...it holds you accountable to yourself. So many times clients have said to me, "I would have eaten a brownie instead of that apple, but I knew I would have to write it down!" It's funny how it works, but it's true! Keeping a food journal is one of the most effective weight loss strategies out there!

3) Its no secret that exercising is an important part of any weight loss program. This has been proven time and time again. If anyone tells you differently, they are either lying to you or trying to sell you something. But why is exercise so important? There are 2 reasons:

First, the more obvious reason; exercise burns calories. Second, exercise builds muscle mass, which burns calories even when you're not exercising!

In my opinion, building muscle is one of the most misunderstood, yet most effective weight loss strategies out there. If you're only focused on the scale, you are forgetting about one of the most important weight loss factors....your muscles, which ironically, weight twice as much as body fat.

So pump some iron, keep a journal, and eat a lot of small, healthy meals. These are proven, effective weight loss strategies that have helped so many people, and they'll help you too!

Friday, March 5, 2010

Make Every Exercises a Core Exercise

Imagine if you there was an exercise routine that allowed you to develop that lean-mean core while exercising your entire body at the same time. Well...there is! In my last article, I gave you 2 exercises that worked the 5 major core muscle groups that we talked about;

1) upper abs
2) lower abs
3) "side" abs
4) twisting muscles
5) stabilizing muscles

If you can find a way to work these muscles with every exercise, you really can "make every exercise a core exercise." That's right, bicycle crunches and funky planks are great, but your core training doesn't have to stop there! Here are some examples of how you can work your core while training other muscle groups:

1) 1-arm dumbbell press on a stability ball - Lie with your shoulders on the stability ball, like you're on a bench. Use your core muscles to keep your shoulders, hips and knees in a straight line. When you're doing your 1-arm bench press your core muscles will also have to work to keep your body from twisting off the ball. It's an outstanding core exercise that also works your chest and triceps.

2) 1-arm cable row - Standing in front of the cable machine, you'll start with your arm extended in front of you and pull the cable handle to your chest. You'll probably notice that it's easy to do this if you twist your trunk, but don't! Keep your body completely straight. This is a great core exercise that also works your biceps and back.

3) Triceps push-down - Just do the classic triceps push-down using an overhead cable machine, except bend your trunk at 45 degrees and keep your abs engaged throughout the entire set.

Any exercise you can do with a cable, you can also do with an exercise band at home. So, no excuses! Also, a 1-arm band press is a great substitute for exercise #1 if you don't have a stability ball. Just stand with your back to the cable machine, grab the handle with 1 hand, and press your fist forward in a "punching" motion. Just make sure you're keeping your core straight by not twisting.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

2 Exercises for a Lean-Mean Core

Let's face it; everybody wants a lean-mean core! Nobody wants to be walking around with a belly, especially in the summertime! Some people want that lean-mean core so badly that they'll do hundreds of sit-ups everyday to achieve it. The problem is......it's not all about sit-ups!

"Sit-ups," or more common now-a-days, "crunches" only work 1 muscle group. You're core is made up of many muscle groups, and unless you work all of them, you'll never have that lean-mean core you're looking for!
Rather than bombard you with all of the fancy, scientific names for all these muscle groups, I'm going to break them up into 5 easy to understand groups;

1) upper abs
2) lower abs
3) "side" abs
4) twisting muscles
5) stabilizing muscles

If you can exercise all of these muscles 3 days a week, you're eating healthy, and you're keeping up with your cardio and strength training, you'll be ready for the beach in no-time!

There are literally hundreds of variations of exercises that will work your core. The "bicycle crunch" and the "funky plank" are 2 of my favorites!

The Bicycle Crunch - Lying on your back with both hands behind your head, bring your right elbow and left knee up at the same time, "crunching" your abdominals together. Then repeat by bringing your left elbow and right knee together. Do these slowly, keep your abdominals engaged throughout the entire set and be careful not to put any pressure on your neck.

The Funky Plank - The plank position is very similar to a push-up position, except you are just supporting yourself with your forearms and toes. Keep your arms parallel to your body, and most importantly, keep your head, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles all in a straight line. If you can hold a strong plank position for more than 30 seconds, you're ready for the "funky plank." Extend your left arm out to the side so you're only supporting yourself with your right forearm and your toes. Your body will feel like it wants to fall over. Don't let it, hold the plank position! Then extend your right arm, supporting yourself with your left forearm.