Today I'm going to talk about the benefits of interval programs and ways to create your own that fit into your schedule. I'm sure you've heard people talk about how amazing P90X, Insanity, and Crossfit is and how it changed their lives. The best news is it is amazing and the programs aren't super expensive but can leave a dent in the wallet. The reason these programs and other ones like it are amazing for you and show awesome progress, is because it changes the way you work out. These programs deliver exceptional results. The secret is pretty simple and I'm going to explain why.
The first reason is it doesn't take a lot of time to do so more people "with proper motivation" stick with it. Thus showing the results of all your hard work. The second reason is it creates whats known as muscle confusion. Muscle confusion just means your body doesn't hit a "plateau" as quickly because of how often the routine changes. Thirdly these programs are high intensity making your heart hit prime fat burning levels quicker and keeps your bodies metabolism going through out the day so you burn more calories through out the day. Those are the 3 big key points as to why interval programs are so successful.
So the good news for those who don't have the extra money to pay for these programs is that you can easily make your own, given they aren't going to be exactly the same but that can be a plus for some people. The basis of interval programs is taking multiple exercises that get accelerate your heart rate and making them last 20-40 minutes in a cycle. With these programs you generally need very little equipment such as dumbbells, jump rope, elastic bands, medicine ball, kettle ball, platform, and a stability ball. Here is a list of examples of different exercises you can use: russian twists, burpees, star jumps, high knees, butt kicks, power skips, stair steps, dips, knee tucks, jump rope, jumping, inch worm, heismans, mountain climbers, flutter kicks, push ups, planks, dumbbell curls, jumping jacks, crunches speed skaters, shrugs, shoulder press, bicycle sit ups, chest flys, supermans, wall sits, squats, jogging in place, up downs, cleans, lunges, calf raises, punches kicks, side crunches, side lunges, incline push ups, decline push ups, leg lifts, over head flys, balancing and many others.
Now the trick is to combine those exercises into a workout plan that you do high intensity exercises for a little while and then resting exercises for a while to last those 20-40 minutes.
Creating your own program is really that easy and you customize to your fitness level but you still want to push yourself. I use an app from Androids Play Store called HIT Interval Timer to time my exercise routines. You simply put in the exercises to do, how long to do it for, and how many reps you want to complete. It's a very handy app to have and is super simple to use. So this is it for this post but the next post will be on Friday and it will have 3 samples of interval programs I made with these exercises.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
Treadmill Vs. Elliptical
When you go to a gym to workout, you have many choices on machines you can use. Long debates have gone on about which machines give you the most bang for your workout. Today I want to talk about treadmills and elliptical machines. Just to start; the fact that you're going to the gym and working out makes you farther ahead than anyone sitting on the couch, so ultimately you can't go wrong. As we know both of these are cardio machines, and that is the biggest thing to work on while working on being fit. Each have their own pros and cons so when standing around trying to decide which one to use, just remember why you're there and what your goals are.
Treadmills from your bodies stand point is more like running and walking than an elliptical is. Treadmills are great for anyone training to run a marathon or get your mile run to a certain point. These machines make your body work and move like you're actually running which is good to achieve those goals. They are more versatile because you can adjust your speed and even incline to make it seem like you're running up hills. This in turn can help build up muscle strength and endurance. On the other side of that coin though, is a higher risk of injury compared to an elliptical because of the impact it puts on your joints. The other part of this is if the treadmill is not long enough it can alter your normal stride and then is not as effective for training for a marathon or distance running. So when you hop on treadmill make sure it feels natural and not short changing your steps.
With the elliptical machine you're not putting as much stress on your joints as you are on the treadmill. With that in mind, if you are bigger or have ankle or knee problems an elliptical would be a good and safe choice. The other good part about this is since its less stressful, your body will be able to endure it for a longer time than if you're on the treadmill. So for those of you wanting to lose fat this is a good thing to keep in mind. To lose 1 pound of fat you have to burn 3500 more calories than you consume. The other aspect of losing fat is getting your heart rate between 60-70% of your maximum heart rate for 45 minutes to start burning fat during excercise. Now if you're on a treadmill for that long your body is going to hurt and be pron to getting an injury. I spend about an hour on the elliptical when I'm at the gym and still feel good afterwards. This helps too because then you are not going to have the excuse "I'm to sore" to work out the next day.
When it comes to the calorie burning effect of these to machines its close. Side by side on these machines for 1 hour you will burn close to the same amount of calories but for those starting out being on a treadmill running or jogging for 1 hour can be to much. So you could alternate to get the best of both worlds and be up for more the next day. At some point though you will want to include that treadmill in your gym visits because it will help strengthen your leg muscles for the way you make them work and that's something the elliptical can't give you. Now putting the machines aside from this, the best thing you can really do for your body is get outside and walk or run because that puts your body in the best natural element and give you the best results.
Treadmills from your bodies stand point is more like running and walking than an elliptical is. Treadmills are great for anyone training to run a marathon or get your mile run to a certain point. These machines make your body work and move like you're actually running which is good to achieve those goals. They are more versatile because you can adjust your speed and even incline to make it seem like you're running up hills. This in turn can help build up muscle strength and endurance. On the other side of that coin though, is a higher risk of injury compared to an elliptical because of the impact it puts on your joints. The other part of this is if the treadmill is not long enough it can alter your normal stride and then is not as effective for training for a marathon or distance running. So when you hop on treadmill make sure it feels natural and not short changing your steps.
With the elliptical machine you're not putting as much stress on your joints as you are on the treadmill. With that in mind, if you are bigger or have ankle or knee problems an elliptical would be a good and safe choice. The other good part about this is since its less stressful, your body will be able to endure it for a longer time than if you're on the treadmill. So for those of you wanting to lose fat this is a good thing to keep in mind. To lose 1 pound of fat you have to burn 3500 more calories than you consume. The other aspect of losing fat is getting your heart rate between 60-70% of your maximum heart rate for 45 minutes to start burning fat during excercise. Now if you're on a treadmill for that long your body is going to hurt and be pron to getting an injury. I spend about an hour on the elliptical when I'm at the gym and still feel good afterwards. This helps too because then you are not going to have the excuse "I'm to sore" to work out the next day.
When it comes to the calorie burning effect of these to machines its close. Side by side on these machines for 1 hour you will burn close to the same amount of calories but for those starting out being on a treadmill running or jogging for 1 hour can be to much. So you could alternate to get the best of both worlds and be up for more the next day. At some point though you will want to include that treadmill in your gym visits because it will help strengthen your leg muscles for the way you make them work and that's something the elliptical can't give you. Now putting the machines aside from this, the best thing you can really do for your body is get outside and walk or run because that puts your body in the best natural element and give you the best results.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Challenges
To reach a goal you have to challenge yourself and push yourself to reach that goal. When it comes to fitness everyone has a distinct goal they want to reach and different ways of doing it. I think that instead of people using 1 challenge to reach their goals that through out your journey you should put many different challenges in your routine. Putting milestones and little goals leading up to your ultimate goal can make the journey more fun and easier to achieve. If you think about it putting 1 major challenge in your routine can lead to disappointment and lead to you giving up. Some people will persevere from their first or second failure but for those without the high strong confidence this trick can help you get there. My wife started a cardio challenge and I decided to include this in my workout routine. Here is a link to the challenge: Cardio Challenge. There are different ways to create challenges but you want to make sure the pertain to what your ultimate goal is. Don't stray from your goal and I think including small challenge will help give you the boost of confidence you need to continue fighting for your goal.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Routines
For anyone who works out or is trying to get in better shape the basic starting point is developing a routine. There are many different ways to develop a routine that works best for you and always ways to improve. To start a routine you decide what you want to work on and what your goals are. There are some common things that people leave out when developing a routine.
1. Goal
2. Check points
3. Progression
4. Follow through
Those 3 are the most basic things you want to consider when starting and developing your workout routine. The first one being a goal. Some people will decide to start without actually determining a set goal. You want to set a goal that is very specific and one that is measurable. The second is to set check points for your routine. These will vary depending on your ultimate goal. Weight lose goals are easy just by having a weigh in every 2 weeks and setting a goal for each weigh in. For strength training you determine what you want to be doing on certain lifts every month or so. For these I recommend using bench press, incline bench press, squats, dead lift, and power cleans. For those just trying to be healthier I would recommend cardio goals and endurance tests. These can range from lap swimming to cycling and even the APFT ( Army Physical Fitness Test) since these tests a range of areas.
The third thing people will sometimes forget about with there routine is setting up progression. This can be from increasing the speed on the treadmill every week to adding more weight to your lifts. With deciding on progression in a workout plan you want to be as specific as possible when first starting to develop your plan. Ultimately you want to consider all 3 aspects because they will play a vital role in your development and progress as you strive to reach your goals. Now the biggest thing about making a routine is actually following through. This is just like New Years resolutions. It doesn't mean anything if you don't stick to it and then you'll be right back at square 1.
What I did for my first 2 routines I made did not work because I didn't put all of these things together. I did one or two but I am in the process of redeveloping my routine. Its not done but will go over what I've got so far. I have health magazines from the past 2 years in a box in our spare room. I took those magazines and cut out all the different exercises I want/ can do from them. Then I used a 3 hole punch and organised them in a binder. Planing on using a 2 week to month rotation with the binder and marked each day. Then on one day during each week put a sheet of my check point goals and left an area to test each on and put the progress in it. So with this binder I have a plan and a great way to track my progress all in one. Best of luck on your journey and hope that you reach your goals.
1. Goal
2. Check points
3. Progression
4. Follow through
Those 3 are the most basic things you want to consider when starting and developing your workout routine. The first one being a goal. Some people will decide to start without actually determining a set goal. You want to set a goal that is very specific and one that is measurable. The second is to set check points for your routine. These will vary depending on your ultimate goal. Weight lose goals are easy just by having a weigh in every 2 weeks and setting a goal for each weigh in. For strength training you determine what you want to be doing on certain lifts every month or so. For these I recommend using bench press, incline bench press, squats, dead lift, and power cleans. For those just trying to be healthier I would recommend cardio goals and endurance tests. These can range from lap swimming to cycling and even the APFT ( Army Physical Fitness Test) since these tests a range of areas.
The third thing people will sometimes forget about with there routine is setting up progression. This can be from increasing the speed on the treadmill every week to adding more weight to your lifts. With deciding on progression in a workout plan you want to be as specific as possible when first starting to develop your plan. Ultimately you want to consider all 3 aspects because they will play a vital role in your development and progress as you strive to reach your goals. Now the biggest thing about making a routine is actually following through. This is just like New Years resolutions. It doesn't mean anything if you don't stick to it and then you'll be right back at square 1.
What I did for my first 2 routines I made did not work because I didn't put all of these things together. I did one or two but I am in the process of redeveloping my routine. Its not done but will go over what I've got so far. I have health magazines from the past 2 years in a box in our spare room. I took those magazines and cut out all the different exercises I want/ can do from them. Then I used a 3 hole punch and organised them in a binder. Planing on using a 2 week to month rotation with the binder and marked each day. Then on one day during each week put a sheet of my check point goals and left an area to test each on and put the progress in it. So with this binder I have a plan and a great way to track my progress all in one. Best of luck on your journey and hope that you reach your goals.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Support systems
Fruit. I love fruit. Actually, that's not true. But my wife does and she has gotten me into eating fruit more and more. It really does have some wonderful health benefits. Do you know what else my wife has gotten me to do? Work out with her, as well as try to eat less meat. My wife is being my support system, which is very important in losing weight. Today I am going to explain just how much a good support system can help you on your weight loss journey.
Having someone who knows what you want can help you stay on track. There are a lot of people out there in the world who unintentionally can bring you down in your journey : The friend who wants to go out drinking, the girlfriend who bakes brownies, the food in the break room at work and then the friends who make plans to work out with you but don't. In the beginning of my journey, my wife, she loves to bake, and was one of those unintentional people bringing me down.
But after talking to her, she has been great. She is there for me, making sure I don't give in to the craving for a piece of pizza or running through the drive thru. That is what a support system is. Someone to bring you back on track when you step off of it and someone to make sure that you can stay on track
Having someone who knows what you want can help you stay on track. There are a lot of people out there in the world who unintentionally can bring you down in your journey : The friend who wants to go out drinking, the girlfriend who bakes brownies, the food in the break room at work and then the friends who make plans to work out with you but don't. In the beginning of my journey, my wife, she loves to bake, and was one of those unintentional people bringing me down.
But after talking to her, she has been great. She is there for me, making sure I don't give in to the craving for a piece of pizza or running through the drive thru. That is what a support system is. Someone to bring you back on track when you step off of it and someone to make sure that you can stay on track
Sunday, January 13, 2013
My Regards on New Years Resolutions
Hello everyone,
Sorry I haven't been posting like I promised I would. I've been in a slump with being sick and being lazy with my own exercise routine. But I'm back to being healthy and back to living a healthy lifestyle but still learning and improving, and this means more frequent posts. (part of my New Years resolution).
I have made some pretty good progress with losing weight. As some of you may know I started at 328 pounds and weighed in yesterday at 300.7! Slow progress but slowly is a healthier way than losing a ton of weight really quickly just to gain it back in 2-3 months after stopping. For those of you that made New Years resolutions to lose weight or live a healthier life I want to wish you luck and hope you stick to those resolutions. It can be a lot of work depending on exactly what your goal is but as long as you stick with it you will get there.As for me I've been modifying my plans and routines as I go and will give you feedback and advice based on what I discover and hope it can help you with your goals.
This week I'm implementing 3 new parts to my routine. So a quick recap for what I do right now for exercises: I work out at the YMCA doing stationary biking, walking on the treadmill, and weight training exercises. This week I am adding something that I found on pinterest.Its simple and easy to do. You take Popsicle sticks and write exercises that take 10 minutes or less on them. Mine included: xx push ups, xx sit ups, xx flutter kicks, xx weight exercises, xx jumping jacks, some much time jogging in place, and flexibility exercises. You put them all in a cup and when you have 10 minutes to spare pull one out and complete the exercise and put it in the done cup. I have 33 to do and plan on completing it each week. Its easy to do and simple to fit in a busy schedule.
Another part that I am adding to my routine is 30 minute work out dvds. I picked up 30 minute slim down fat burner and 30 minute slim down body sculpt from the dollar tree. My plan is to do each one once a week to throw in some variation into my routine. Along with these my wife got me a personal coach game for our Wii that customizes plans to fit into your schedule and bases your plan on your current fitness level after the initial test and what you want to accomplish.
The last part that I'm introducing is a calorie and fitness journal. So far I have only been using Noom a fitness app on my android but I feel it is better to put it in black and white because it will seem more realistic than a screen on my phone. So that's a long post and will save more for my next post. Good luck to everyone on your resolutions and hope if you have advice you'll leave links and comments for myself and others to read so we all can achieve healthier lifestyles.
Jeff
Sorry I haven't been posting like I promised I would. I've been in a slump with being sick and being lazy with my own exercise routine. But I'm back to being healthy and back to living a healthy lifestyle but still learning and improving, and this means more frequent posts. (part of my New Years resolution).
I have made some pretty good progress with losing weight. As some of you may know I started at 328 pounds and weighed in yesterday at 300.7! Slow progress but slowly is a healthier way than losing a ton of weight really quickly just to gain it back in 2-3 months after stopping. For those of you that made New Years resolutions to lose weight or live a healthier life I want to wish you luck and hope you stick to those resolutions. It can be a lot of work depending on exactly what your goal is but as long as you stick with it you will get there.As for me I've been modifying my plans and routines as I go and will give you feedback and advice based on what I discover and hope it can help you with your goals.
This week I'm implementing 3 new parts to my routine. So a quick recap for what I do right now for exercises: I work out at the YMCA doing stationary biking, walking on the treadmill, and weight training exercises. This week I am adding something that I found on pinterest.Its simple and easy to do. You take Popsicle sticks and write exercises that take 10 minutes or less on them. Mine included: xx push ups, xx sit ups, xx flutter kicks, xx weight exercises, xx jumping jacks, some much time jogging in place, and flexibility exercises. You put them all in a cup and when you have 10 minutes to spare pull one out and complete the exercise and put it in the done cup. I have 33 to do and plan on completing it each week. Its easy to do and simple to fit in a busy schedule.
Another part that I am adding to my routine is 30 minute work out dvds. I picked up 30 minute slim down fat burner and 30 minute slim down body sculpt from the dollar tree. My plan is to do each one once a week to throw in some variation into my routine. Along with these my wife got me a personal coach game for our Wii that customizes plans to fit into your schedule and bases your plan on your current fitness level after the initial test and what you want to accomplish.
The last part that I'm introducing is a calorie and fitness journal. So far I have only been using Noom a fitness app on my android but I feel it is better to put it in black and white because it will seem more realistic than a screen on my phone. So that's a long post and will save more for my next post. Good luck to everyone on your resolutions and hope if you have advice you'll leave links and comments for myself and others to read so we all can achieve healthier lifestyles.
Jeff
Friday, November 30, 2012
Toxins
Hello everyone,
Toxins: What are they, how do I avoid them, how bad are they, and how do I get rid of them are some basic questions everyone would have by the name. Now to start off not all "Toxins" kill you but they do have some bad side effects and long term effects on your body. Toxins may kill you later in life but the primary concern with body toxins is that they cause harm to your body and are not needed to function. There a lot of different varieties of toxins found in the food we eat, the water we drink, and even in the air. The ones we can control are the ones in our foods and water.
So toxins in your food can range from pesticides to preservatives and many others. I figure pesticides are pretty simple as to why there bad for you so I won't go into detail. So how do I make my fruits and veggies healthier? Well on top of the normal wash your fruits and veggies before cooking your can "detoxify" them when your purchase them from the store. This process is simple and easy to do and as a bonus helps your fruits to stay fresher longer. You simply take one part vinegar and ten parts water in a bowl and let the fruits or veggies sit for 10 minutes. This cleans all extra unneeded stuff from the food and doesn't make them taste weird of vinegar. Then you wash them off with cold water thoroughly to clean off any extra dirt or other things that may be on them. The next step then is to properly store your food so it doesn't go bad quickly or absorb chemicals in the air surrounding it. See a simple and easy process without taking a lot of time out of your day.
Another easy thing to do to prevent any extra intake of these unneeded toxins is trying to buy fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats. By buying fresh foods you eliminate your body from ingesting preservatives and excess sugars. You may also want to try buying organic foods since there usually grown without pesticides. There a many different things that you can do to flush your body of toxins that have a range of benefits. By flushing out these toxins you can have healthier skin, a healthy colon, and help keep your blood healthy delivering nutrients your body needs quickly and efficiently. The easiest way to help flush out toxins is simply drinking water. Now I know many people are use to having flavored drinks and like the way they taste but when drinking your water don't add flavored packets of stuff into your bottle of water. This will defeat the purpose of what your trying to accomplish. What I do is add some fruit to my water bottle. The night before I'll cut up strawberries, oranges, or even and apple and freeze them. Then before work I take the fruit from the freezer and put them in my water bottle adding a splash of flavor.
So now onto saunas. Saunas will help your body sweat and get rid of toxins without taking a lot of time out of your day. Now you don't want to stay in a sauna for to long as not to push your body. Simply staying in a sauna 20-40 minutes is good. As we know there are wet saunas and dry saunas and many people wonder what the difference between the 2 are. I've read articles from mayo clinic, harvard.edu, mens health, and many other places and will summarize my interpretation. There really is no difference between the 2 types. The difference come down to wet saunas being a steam room at a lower temperature and dry saunas being at a higher temperature. In the dry sauna it's hotter but evaporates the sweat from your skin and wet saunas still make you sweat but it doesn't evaporate as quickly. But other than that I haven't found an article saying any more on the differences but will update if I discover more.
One other way to get rid of toxins that I will cover is with the aid of dietary flushes. These little drugs help your body dispose of toxins quickly and clean your colon to help aide in proper digestive health. Now these are the claims of the companies that make them and will say that I have used some in previous years. From my experience with these they do help. The have helped me feel more energetic and make me more conscious of other things I put in my body. With the feeling more energetic I can not successfully say if this was from these "magic pills" or if it was only a "placebo" effect. What I can tell you is they did help me lose weight in the past but you have to stick with a proper diet and exercise routine or you threw $20-$60 away. As with any drug you need to be cautious and do research on these before using any of them.
So this wraps up this blog and I will be updating my blogs more frequently as I am pushing harder to reach my goal.
Jeffrey
Toxins: What are they, how do I avoid them, how bad are they, and how do I get rid of them are some basic questions everyone would have by the name. Now to start off not all "Toxins" kill you but they do have some bad side effects and long term effects on your body. Toxins may kill you later in life but the primary concern with body toxins is that they cause harm to your body and are not needed to function. There a lot of different varieties of toxins found in the food we eat, the water we drink, and even in the air. The ones we can control are the ones in our foods and water.
So toxins in your food can range from pesticides to preservatives and many others. I figure pesticides are pretty simple as to why there bad for you so I won't go into detail. So how do I make my fruits and veggies healthier? Well on top of the normal wash your fruits and veggies before cooking your can "detoxify" them when your purchase them from the store. This process is simple and easy to do and as a bonus helps your fruits to stay fresher longer. You simply take one part vinegar and ten parts water in a bowl and let the fruits or veggies sit for 10 minutes. This cleans all extra unneeded stuff from the food and doesn't make them taste weird of vinegar. Then you wash them off with cold water thoroughly to clean off any extra dirt or other things that may be on them. The next step then is to properly store your food so it doesn't go bad quickly or absorb chemicals in the air surrounding it. See a simple and easy process without taking a lot of time out of your day.
Another easy thing to do to prevent any extra intake of these unneeded toxins is trying to buy fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats. By buying fresh foods you eliminate your body from ingesting preservatives and excess sugars. You may also want to try buying organic foods since there usually grown without pesticides. There a many different things that you can do to flush your body of toxins that have a range of benefits. By flushing out these toxins you can have healthier skin, a healthy colon, and help keep your blood healthy delivering nutrients your body needs quickly and efficiently. The easiest way to help flush out toxins is simply drinking water. Now I know many people are use to having flavored drinks and like the way they taste but when drinking your water don't add flavored packets of stuff into your bottle of water. This will defeat the purpose of what your trying to accomplish. What I do is add some fruit to my water bottle. The night before I'll cut up strawberries, oranges, or even and apple and freeze them. Then before work I take the fruit from the freezer and put them in my water bottle adding a splash of flavor.
So now onto saunas. Saunas will help your body sweat and get rid of toxins without taking a lot of time out of your day. Now you don't want to stay in a sauna for to long as not to push your body. Simply staying in a sauna 20-40 minutes is good. As we know there are wet saunas and dry saunas and many people wonder what the difference between the 2 are. I've read articles from mayo clinic, harvard.edu, mens health, and many other places and will summarize my interpretation. There really is no difference between the 2 types. The difference come down to wet saunas being a steam room at a lower temperature and dry saunas being at a higher temperature. In the dry sauna it's hotter but evaporates the sweat from your skin and wet saunas still make you sweat but it doesn't evaporate as quickly. But other than that I haven't found an article saying any more on the differences but will update if I discover more.
One other way to get rid of toxins that I will cover is with the aid of dietary flushes. These little drugs help your body dispose of toxins quickly and clean your colon to help aide in proper digestive health. Now these are the claims of the companies that make them and will say that I have used some in previous years. From my experience with these they do help. The have helped me feel more energetic and make me more conscious of other things I put in my body. With the feeling more energetic I can not successfully say if this was from these "magic pills" or if it was only a "placebo" effect. What I can tell you is they did help me lose weight in the past but you have to stick with a proper diet and exercise routine or you threw $20-$60 away. As with any drug you need to be cautious and do research on these before using any of them.
So this wraps up this blog and I will be updating my blogs more frequently as I am pushing harder to reach my goal.
Jeffrey
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