Today's Tip: Boosting the Burn!

When I was in my early 20's I was a runner. I ran about 30 miles a week, but that was the extent of my exercise.  After I began to see a trainer I was introduced to strength training and learned how being stronger led to me being a better runner, and I was much, much healthier overall.  I also began eating more protein and whole grains, but I'll leave that conversation for another blog :).

So hopefully you are also incorporating strength training into your exercise routine. If not, go back to some of the workouts I have posted on my blog!  But if you are, here's a tip or two about boosting the burn in your workouts.

1) Slowly increase the weight you are lifting.  If you started out using 4lb weights for those shoulder presses, increase to 6lb after a couple of weeks.  Then go for 8lb and continue until you get to the goal weight you want to use.

2) Add one more set.  If you usually do two sets of your strength exercises, speed the up a bit and add a 3rd set.  As you get stronger and in better shape, you'll be able to reduce the rest time in-between your sets.

3) Increase the number of reps.  If you typically do 8 reps, go for 10 and then increase to 12 over the next few weeks.  Don't let the exercise get easy! If it's easy then you are cheating your muscles out of their potential growth. I like to keep my clients a little bit sore...keep those muscles guessing and growing!

To increase the calorie-burn during your strength workouts, you can always add some cardio in-between sets.  Do 1 minute of jump rope, rest 20 seconds and do another minute.  Or, do 10 burpees in-between sets, rest 20 seconds and do 20 more.  Also, doing upper and lower body exercises at the same time will elevate your heart rate.  For instance, do a squat holding dumbbells by your sides then as you stand, do a bicep curl. 

Workout of the Week: Boot Camp!

Boot Camp Workout

This boot camp workout leads you through 10 high intensity strength and cardio exercises designed to challenge your strength and endurance while burning lots of calories. The workout moves quickly, taking you from one exercise to the next with little or no rest. Take breaks when you need to, but your goal is to keep your heart rate up!  Many of these moves are advanced, so modify whenever necessary to stay safe and avoid injury.

Equipment Needed
Dumbbells, an exercise ball, a medicine ball and a mat. You can also do this workout without any equipment. How To:

• Warm up with 5-10 minutes of light cardio (walking, marching in place, etc.)
• Perform each exercise one after the other...do each for 45 seconds, then rest for 15 seconds and move to the next move, modifying as needed.
• Complete all ten exercises.  Repeat the series 2-3 more times, depending on your fitness level.
• Cool down with 5-10 minutes of light cardio and stretching
• Drink water throughout the workout

 Squat Thrusts

Stand with feet together. Squat down and place your hands on the floor next to your feet. In an explosive movement, jump feet backwards into a push-up position, jump feet back between hands and stand up. Perform 10 reps, march in place for a few seconds and repeat 10 more reps.



Slow Pushups
Begin in pushup position on a ball or floor. Perform 4 pushups, abs in and back straight. On the 5th pushup, lower halfway down and hold for 4 counts. Push back up and repeat the series - 4 regular pushups and 1 half hold. Repeat for 30-60 seconds.

Plyo Jacks






Begin with feet together and jump up, taking feet out to the side while circling arms overhead and land in a squat. Jump up and bring feet back together, circling arms back in. This is just like a slow jumping jack, but really use power when pushing up into the jumps. Repeat for 30-60 seconds.



Walking Lunge
Start at one end of the room, holding weights if desired, and step forward with right leg. Bend both knees to 90 degree angles, lowering body into a lunge (keep front knee behind the toe). Bring the left foot forward and step into a lunge. Continue lunging, alternating legs for 30-60 seconds.



Jumping Jack with Front Kick











Do one jumping jack. After you jump the feet back together, bring the right knee up and snap the foot out in a front kick (don't extend the leg all the way, but keep a small bend in the knee). Do another jumping jack and kick with the left foot. Continue for 1 minutes, alternating jumping jacks and kicks.

Wall Squat With Chest Squeeze








Hold a medicine ball (or just press the hands together if you have no equipment) and slide down the all until your thighs are parallel to the floor while squeezing the ball. Hold this position and keep pressure on the ball as your straighten the arms out in front of you and slowly pull them back in. Repeat the chest squeezes in and out for 30-60 seconds and stand up.

Ski Jumps


Stand with feet together. Bend the knees and jump to the right as far as you can--think of jumping laterally rather than vertically. Land with soft knees and immediately jump laterally to the left. Repeat for 30-60 seconds.



High Jogs
Stand with feet together and hold arms straight out in front of you at mid-torso level. Jog in place, bringing knees high enough that they hit your hands (don't lower hands!). Repeat for 30-60 seconds.





Tricep Dips
Sit on a chair or bench with hands next to the hips. Lift up and take the hips forward, just in front of the bench. Bend the elbows and lower down until elbows are about 90 degrees. Squeeze the triceps to push back up and repeat 30-60 seconds.



Push-Ups/Side Planks
In pushup position (on knees or toes), perform one pushup. As you come up, shift weight to left arm, twist to the side while bringing the right arm up towards the ceiling in a side plank. Lower the arm back to the floor for another pushup and then twist to the other side. Repeat for 30-60 seconds.

Today's Tip: Cook on the Bright Side!

Everything you see these days has a little more color than usual...from neon workout clothes and brightly colored tennis shoes to bright & shiny purses to the welcome change of orange, lime-green and other brighly-colored polos for men.  So while you are adding those pops of color to your outfits, try bringing some into your cooking! 

Carotenoids - antioxidants found in red, orange, yellow & dark green produce - give you an edge in helping stave off the chances of breast cancer.  So perk up your plate with these ideas!

Pump up Breakfast:
Add canned pumpkin to your whole grain waffle or pancake batter, or mix some into your whole grain oats.  When baking, substitute pumpkin for the oil in your muffin mix.

Take a Side Trip:
Add grated carrots to your brown rice or couscous side dish.  Sprinkle them over the just-cooked grains and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes before stirring.

Raise the Taco Bar:
Instead of iceberg lettuce (which really has little or no nutritional value), use shredded kale or grated raw butternut squash or beets in your tacos.  Saute it a bit before putting on your taco if you aren't a fan of the stronger flavors.

Source: Fitness Magazine, April 2013

Today's Tip: Stand Up!

There are a lot of little things you can do to burn extra calories - or as I like to call it, "bonus time".  You may have heard tips such as choose a parking spot that is a good walk from the door of the store you are going to; take the stairs; or when taking a restroom break, walk to the one that is farthest from your desk or where you are working.  But how about just getting up out of your chair?

Simply standing can burn 1 1/2 times more calories than sitting. If you think about how that adds up over the course of a week, a month, a year - it's a big deal!  There's really no excuse not to do it...it also helps you practice good posture!  But don't panic - you don't have to stand all day long!  Just work on standing more and sitting less :). 

And don't just take my word for it - this is a tip that Jillian Michaels includes in her book "Slim for Life". So whether you are waiting at the doctor's office, making a phone call at work or paying bills, stand up! 

Workout of the Week: Leaner Legs/Cardio Burst/Arm Definers

This week's workout will work every part of your body!  Give this a try...do each exercise for 45 seconds and then rest for 15 seconds in-between each one.  Rest for a full minutes in-between each set.

Set 1 - Leaner Legs

Alternating Step Back Weighted Lunges - (8lb. weights)

Drop Squat Jumps - (no weight – start with feet together and then drop into a low sumo squat – toes turned slightly out)

Around the World Lunge - (lunge forward, side, back – do one leg for half the time then switch to the other leg)

Deadlift - (keep legs straight; start with weights on floor in front of you – bend down and pick up weights, bringing them up and keeping arms straight; do either option shown below)

Pulse Lunges - (step forward into a lunge with one leg, hold that position & pulse for 20 secs; switch sides)

Side Lunge with Rotation – (hold a weight or a medicine ball in front of you, arms bent – lunge to side and hold while you twist to side and back to start; alternate legs)

ONE MINUTE BREAK

Set 2 - Cardio Burst

Jump Rope - (not shown - if you don't have a jump rope, just simulate jumping rope)

Burpees

Jump Wood Chops - (hold weight above head, feet together; jump legs out wide, bringing weight in-between legs)

Screamer Lunges - (start in back lunge and then bring back leg up and jump up as shown)

2 Feet Lateral Hops in Place

Jumping Jacks with front kicks - (do jumping jack and then kick as shown, alternating legs in the kick)

ONE MINUTE BREAK

Set 3 - Arm Definers

Tricep Pushups - (on knees)

Bicep curl with one leg up - (switch legs halfway through)

Single Leg Shoulder T’s - (raise arms front and hold for 2 seconds then return to start; repeat)

Trap Push-Ups - (stagger hands as shown with one hand angled a bit to the side - keep elbow in when you do the push-up; switch hands halfway through)

Burpee to Shoulder Press - (hold a weight in each hand and after you stand from the burpee, do a standing shoulder press - no jump)

Alternating High/Low planks every 5 seconds - (start in high plank and hold for 5 seconds; go to low plank and hold for 5 seconds and repeat)

 

Today's Tip: Easy on the Cheesy!

Did you know...one slice of cheddar cheese has more sodium than a bag of potato chips?  Another stat to consider...30 popular cheeses contain more sodium per gram than salt water does!

Now I am a firm believer in the concept of "everything in moderation" so if you love cheddar, parmesan or pepper jack, then go for it every once in awhile.  But on a regular basis, try subbing Romano for Parmesan, Swiss for Cheddar, or read through the best and worst cheese comparisons below and decide for yourself!

All stats for for 1oz (typically one slice) of cheese.

Swiss

106 calories; 54 mg sodium; 8g protein

Asadero
100 calories; 185mg sodium; 6.7g of protein
 

Mozzerella
Whole Milk: 84 calories; 176mg sodium; 6g protein
Part-Skim: 74 calories; 171mg sodium; 7g protein

Cheddar
113 calories; 174mg sodium; 7g protein

Provolone

98 calories; 245mg sodium; 7g protein

American

105 calories; 337mg sodium; 6g protein

Romano
108 calories; 336mg sodium; 9g protein

Parmesan
116 calories; 416mg sodium; 11g protein

Bottom line?  Read the label of the product to better educate what you are eating.  Also, check the website http://nutritiondata.self.com/ - it's awesome for checking labels of various foods.  You can even change the serving size to recalculate based on what you need.

Another cheesy tip?  Use 1/2 slice instead of a whole one on your sandwich :).

Workout of the Week: Treadmill Intervals

Getting on the treadmill over and over can get monotonous!  So this week my suggestion is to change it up and do either walking or jogging intervals on the treadmill.  These workouts may also be done outside rather than on the treadmill, but are sometimes easier to control your speed and incline on the machine. This workout may also be done on an elliptical, bike or stairclimber.  Once you read through it you'll understand the concept and be able to adapt it to a different machine. Not only does this change up your routine a bit, the workout is shorter...workout smarter not longer!

Basically you are doing one minute at each pace, then partway through the workout you'll do 2 minutes per pace. Your heart rate will go up and down, and hopefully the start pace at an 11 minute mile will work. If you find the pace to be too fast, just make the modifications you need. The last few minutes will be challenging as you are increasing the speed by quite a bit more. But you can do anything for a minute! J

Treadmill Jogging Workout

2-minutes warm up – walk/very slow jog

Stretch

 

Workout: 

*Minutes 1-2: Walk

Minutes 2-3: 11 min. mile

Minutes 3-4: 10.5 min. mile

Minutes 4-5: 10 min. mile

Minutes 5-6: 9.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 6-7: 11 min. mile

Minutes 7-8: 10.5 min. mile

Minutes 8-9: 10 min. mile

Minutes 9-10: 9.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 10-12: 11 min. mile

Minutes 12-14: 10.5 min. mile

Minutes 14-16: 10 min. mile

Minutes 16-18: 9.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 18-19: 11 min. mile

Minutes 19-20: 10.5 min. mile

Minutes 20-21: 9.5 min. mile

Minutes 21-22: 9 min. mile

 

Minutes 22-23: 10.5 min. mile

Minutes 23-25: 9.5 min. mile

Minutes 25-30: Cooldown/Stretch          

*NOTE!!  These speeds are the minutes per mile – make sure you are looking at the right thing on your treadmill when you set the speeds.  I don’t know what the speed setting is for an 11-minute mile, so you’ll need to determine that on the machine.

Treadmill Walking Workout

Do a few jumping jacks, jog in place, simulate jumping rope, touch the floor then jump up to touch the sky, do a few squats to get the body warm.

Stretch

Get on Treadmill:

* Minutes 0-1:  15 min. mile

Minutes 1-2:  14.5 min. mile

Minutes 2-3:  14 min. mile

Minutes 3-4:  13.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 4-5:  15 min. mile

Minutes 5-6:  14.5 min. mile

Minutes 6-7:  14 min. mile

Minutes 7-8:  13.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 8-9:  14 min. mile

Minutes 9-10:  13.5 min. mile

Minutes 10-11:  13 min. mile

Minutes 11-12:  12.5 min. mile

 

Minutes 12-13:  15.0 min. mile & 2% incline

Minutes 13-14:  14.5 min. mile & 2% incline

Minutes 14-15:  14.0 min. mile & 2% incline

Minutes 15-16:  13.5 min. mile & 2% incline

 

Minutes 16-17:  15.0 min. mile & 3% incline

Minutes 17-18:  14.5 min. mile & 3% incline

Minutes 18-19:  14.0 min. mile & 3% incline

Minutes 19-20:  13.5 min. mile & 3% incline

Minutes 20-21:  14.0 min. mile

Minutes 21-23: Power walk as fast as you can with no incline (try for under 12 minute per mile pace)
Minutes 23-25: Power walk as fast as you can with 3% incline (try for 13 minute per mile pace)

Minutes 27-30: Cooldown & Stretch

*Note!!  These speeds are the minutes per mile – make sure you are looking at the right thing on your treadmill when you set the speeds.