Archive for 'Exercise'
How to Get a Bigger Buttocks
Posted on 31. Oct, 2010 by admin.
Okay, maybe the title, “how to get a bigger buttocks,” may seem a little funny but a little Google keyword research made me think that this is a popular question a lot of people ask. Being a woman not originally blessed with Kim Kardashian-like buttocks, I can definitely relate to this question since, thanks to certain weight equipments and exercises, I now have a decent pair of buttocks I can be proud of. (They’re still not Kim-Kardashian-like but I’m not complaining…haha). So, I would love to give an answer for those of you out there who may have this question.
Before I go into detail about how to build a better butt, I want to tell you why most people seem to have a “flat” looking butt. If you are like me, I sit on my butt for most of the day. Whether you’re working in front of the computer, eating, watching television, etc. most of us spend a lot of time on the chair. This eventually leads to weakening of the glute muscles and also reduction in muscle size. Just like the old saying says, “use it or lose it.” This becomes a problem because our buttocks muscles are the biggest and strongest muscles in our body which serve several functions such as stabilizing our pelvis and aligning our spine. In short, having stronger glutes helps improve our posture and prevent back pain. In athletes, they train the glutes so they can jump higher or sprint faster. This is due to the fact that gluteus muscles are a part of the core muscles as I discussed in this article, Top 2 Reasons Having a Strong Core is Important.
So, the quick answer to getting bigger buttocks is to use it more often. You may have heard personal trainers or group fitness instructors say, “squeeze your glutes,” and they are right. During lower body exercises like squats, lunges, step ups, etc., doing this gives you that extra opportunity to get more contractions from your glute muscles. I always emphasize this in my bootcamps and as a result I have been called by my clients as the “butt patrol.”
How to Squeeze Your Glutes
Many people might think that squeezing your glutes is easy but what I find from training clients regularly is they do not seem to do it enough. What I mean by that is they just do not squeeze all the way. So, I correct this by using an analogy I learned from Pavel Tsatsouline when I first learned how to peform kettlebell swings. Pavel says, “when squeezing your glutes, imagine you’re squeezing a penny with your butt cheeks so that it does not fall out.” This usually helps my clients understand how hard they should squeeze 
We got the “how” out of the way, let’s now discuss “when” to squeeze. The timing of the squeeze is usually intuitive. During squats, deadlifts, lunges, and swings, you should squeeze at the top of the movement when you are completely standing up. For instance, during squats, you squeeze your glutes as soon as you return to standing position before you do another repetition. During swings, you do this when the kettlebell is at shoulder height. To give you an idea, here is a video of me doing kettlebell swings:
Squeezing your glutes at the top of lower body movements also prevents you from leaning back therefore protecting your lower back from any possible injuries.
When I Found My Glutes…
For me, the first time I ever found out I actually possess a decent pair of buttocks was after a few weeks of performing kettlebell swings consistently. Swings help you get a lot more repetitions and therefore more glute contractions in less time compared to squats or deadlifts. Because swings are also done in a fast paced manner, you are also getting strength training and cardiovascular training at the same time. So, my advice for those of you out there who wants to get a bigger buttocks, start incorporating leg exercises into your routine and end with kettlebell swings for your cardio routine instead of running or heading to the elliptical.
For a sample kettlebell and overall body workout which revs up your metabolism in as little as 20 minutes, check out the end of this post, What is a Kettlebell?.
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Top 2 Reasons Having a Strong Core is Important
Posted on 10. Oct, 2010 by admin.
The latest buzz word in fitness is core training. You probably hear these words thrown around by your personal trainer, yoga instructor or during news casts and weight loss infomercials as being an important part of our training for overall health and fitness. Before I became a fitness professionally, I didn’t really know what that meant. Okay, I thought it meant doing tons of ab exercises to get six pack abs. Wait, are you telling me I was wrong?
Well, maybe I was a little bit right about that way of thinking but really there is more to having core strength than just having six pack abs.
The Top 2 Reasons Having a Strong Core is Important
Reason #1: Transfer of Movement and Energy
The core muscles are at the center of our body. Hence the name. A lot of people tend to think that this only pertains to the the ab muscles but the core actually also includes all the muscle groups that stabilize the spine and the pelvis (hip area) like our gluteus muscles (butt muscles) and erector spinae muscles (one of the major spine muscles), to name a few. Because of the location of these muscles, we transfer energy through each muscle in the core every time we move. From simple movements like walking, running, sitting, getting up, getting down, jumping, to lifting objects such as in weight lifting, you can bet we are reliant on our core to generate energy and facilitate movement.
Having a weak core can be detrimental to our overall health and fitness but having a strong core can give you many benefits such as:
- Greater efficiency during movements
- Increased strength and power output during weight lifting exercises where we use our core such as squats, deadlift, chest presses, jumps, etc.
- Improved body control, balance, and stability
The benefits of having a strong core can benefit us not just at the gym but more so in real life situations like unexpected falls or turns where balance is important. Using our core during jumping and running can also protect our back and joints by acting as shock absorbers from the impact generated from these types of activities upon hitting the ground.
Reason #2: Stabilize Spine and Pelvis
Our core muscles help keep our spine erect and our hips in the neutral position. Our abdominal muscles especially protect our lower back by stabilizing our spine during movement. Many back problems happen, when our spine gets out of aligment because of a movement done with weak core which can also result to even more problems down the road. This is due to the fact that the spine is our central nervous system’s main pathway of communication to other parts of our body including our brain. Messing up the spine is like closing the major roadway in a big city – a lot of things will not get done and pretty soon, big problems will occur.
What You Can Do Today
The most common and beneficial core training exercises you can start doing today are plank, side plank, and hanging leg raises just to name a few. Doing push ups is another great way to strengthen abdominal muscles even though it is more thought of as a total body exercise. In all the exercises above, a lot more muscle groups are involved instead of just the abdominals. This is a good sign of an appropriate core exercise which is also the reason I didn’t include crunches in the list.
When doing any static exercise like the plank and side plank, start by holding the position for 20 seconds up to 3 times each time with a rest in between and work your way up as you get better at it. As for push ups, you can start doing a modified version on your knees if you’re a beginner and progress to doing regular and advanced push ups as you get stronger.
Doing these exercises for your core will help you get stronger in a lot of weight lifting and body weight exercises and will help you prevent any injuries you may get from every day movement or playing sports.
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A Fool-Proof Guide to Building Muscle
Posted on 01. Aug, 2010 by admin.
Note: Today’s article is a guest post from JC at JCDFitness
Building muscle; it’s a fairly simple concept. Really, it is. However, due to the advent of the internet, mass media, opposing viewpoints, exercise elitists and just plain garbage, we’ve been left with a ton of options and endless confusion.
The good news is there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
Now before we get into the process, I must preface that building muscle, despite what many might tell you, is not an easy process. It requires lots of hard work, adequate nutrition, ample amounts of rest and dedication. However, it doesn’t have to take over your entire life. In fact, I wouldn’t like you to spend any more than 5 hours per week training.
The ultimate goal, when training for hypertrophy, is to get the most bang for your buck. Now how do we make such an effective approach so efficient?
Easy. We simply focus on what works and keep things simple.
Training for Muscle Gain
As I said earlier, it’s easy to get lost in the sea of craziness when it comes to knowing exactly what to do when muscle gain is your goal. First of all, let’s just establish the fact that there are many training programs which produce results. There are also a slew of training programs which are subpar and far less optimal for the average person looking to build their physique.
The goal here is to take a look at what’s worked for the masses and then develop something similar or do exactly what they’ve done.
Many popular training programs are full body, a push/pull scheme or an upper/lower split. What many will notice immediately with these types of training protocols is frequency. Without even going into what’s involved with each style of programming, we know that if one is training 3-4 times per week, each muscle group is being worked at least twice per week – sometimes more.
Higher frequency weight training, especially for the natural athlete, is crucial to optimal gains in muscle mass. The reason being is due to neural processes as well as adaptive processes. Neurally speaking, the more you do something, the better you become at it.
Want to learn how to dribble a basketball with your non-dominant hand? Practice. Interested in becoming good at juggling fireballs whilst riding a unicycle and peeling an orange with your eyelids? You must practice – a lot. The same applies to weight training. The more you perform certain movements, the better and more efficient you become at them. Now this is not to say one should be doing heavy bench presses or squats every single day but a few times per week and even 3-4 times for the beginner is usually a good thing.
As far as the adaptive component goes, each time you train a muscle, it gets broken down. Now, if you created an anabolic effect via your training methods, you have the chance to produce growth in said muscle groups, assuming your recovery and nutrient intake are both up to par.
Each time you train is an opportunity for growth – if you play your cards right.
The stimulus responsible for muscle growth is progressive overload. Simply, this means your goal should be to become stronger over a given period of time. A good way to measure progress is be recording your training in a journal and noting each time you are able to improve the weight you lifted or the reps you performed. Over a period of six months to a year, substantial progress can be had assuming the trainee is relatively new to strength training. Heck, even seasoned vets can make considerable progress assuming their training protocol is optimal for their experience level.
Guidelines For Program Design
A general rule is to train for strength gains and ensure caloric needs are met. While popular strength training programs (very heavy loading with weights in the 3-6 rep ranges) are popular and produce great results, most will find the most success when training each muscle group 2-3 times per week with anywhere from 6-12 reps per set.
Strength training, in this sense, simply means getting stronger over time, despite what rep ranges you’re using.
Regardless of whether you’re training 3 times a week using a full body routine or an upper/lower split over 4 days, here are your guidelines:
- Pick one primary movement per muscle group and perform a total of 25-30 reps per movement (not including warm-ups). When you do the math, this leaves you with a few options: 3×8-10, and 4×6-8.
- Stick with compound movements in the form of barbells, dumbbells and machines. Isolation movements have their place but shouldn’t ever be a primary movement. Leg presses, squats, chins, bench presses and rows are good movements.
- Pick a weight you can do in a given rep range and try to maintain that weight for all sets and reps. If you are unable to, just drop the weight by 5-10% for the subsequent sets.
- 1-3 minute rest periods depending on your personal work capacity and conditioning.
- Don’t go to failure every single session. Only go to failure one workout every 3-4 weeks or so and of course, only do it when a spotter is present.
- Try to increase weight or reps whenever possible and make note of increases in a journal to track progress.
- Don’t train heavy every single session. Always take a break from heavy training once every 6-8 weeks. An easy way to do this is to reduce the loads by about 20-25% for a few workouts or take a couple days off completely.
One common myth I’d like to dispel before I go any further is how some feel about how a female should train. There is no reason women should not be doing the same movements and routines as men. Our bodies are built the exact same way, despite differences in hormones and sex organs. Our anatomy is practically identical and the same rules that apply to men also apply to women. So ladies, enjoy pushing yourself and continually getting stronger!
Sufficient Energy Intake Is The Only Way To Grow
Despite what you may hear or read about one being able to magically gain slabs of muscle and torch their body fat simultaneously, someone’s got to bear the bad news. In most cases, the reports are extremely over exaggerated and the only time a person achieves both goals at the same time is usually when they first start out. After a few months of training, losing fat whilst gaining muscle becomes almost impossible.
So, forget everything you’ve heard about being able to accomplish both goals at the same time and make sure your efforts are focused and consistent. If you want to build muscle, you’ve got to train sensibly and eat enough to fuel those gains.
For starters, if you’re a complete beginner and have never been in the weight room, you’ve likely lots of room for growth. As one advances, the gains become slower and some dietary changes will be in order to ensure progress is continually made.
Calculating Your Intake
The general rule thrown out most of the time is to eat a surplus of calories every single day whilst training anywhere from 3-6 times per week. Now this is usually pretty practical advice assuming the trainee has some common sense and objectivity. However, I’ve seen many guys go on a “bulk” that results in rapid weight gain, most of which is fatty tissue that has to be dieted off at some point – no fun.
So, it’s important to make note of your intake and ensure you’re consuming enough to grow. Enough is not synonymous with eating everything in sight.
Since your goal is muscle gain, first you should set your protein intake.
Let’s say you’re a 150lb, skinny male who wishes to put on 20lbs. First you will agree to eat at least your body weight in protein. After you’ve set your protein, you should then determine your caloric intake. A good rule of thumb is to consume 400-600 calories over your maintenance intake daily.
In theory, this should net about a 1 pound increase in body weight per week. If you’re a bit conservative in your approach, afraid of getting too fat or are well past the beginner phases, it’s perfectly fine to consume your surplus on training days only while eating less (around maintenance) on your rest days. Just don’t go too low on your off days so that you inhibit the recovery process.
Quick Calorie Guidelines:
Calories – Maintenance + 400-600 calories
Protein – 1xBW in grams
Fat – 20-30% of your total calories
Carbohydrate – fill in the rest to meet calorie goals
For women and intermediate to advanced trainees, consuming a surplus of calories everyday will likely result in unnecessary fat gain; therefore it’s advisable to consume your extra calories on training days only. Also, since women can expect to gain about half the muscle mass of a man over her lifetime, naturally without drugs, I always advice them to cut these numbers in half. So your goal for surplus calories should be around 200-300 over maintenance on training days. This can equate to simply adding a shake and some extra carbs around your workouts.
Pre/Post Workout Nutrition
As the esteemed Alan Aragon once told me, landing your macros day in and day out is far more important than meal timing will ever be. I am of the same mindset and in general, I tell clients to focus on enjoying their food, hitting numbers but never having a set meal plan.
For most, it’s beneficial to sandwich your workouts with a nice dose of protein and carbs. An example would be a few bananas, a spoonful of peanut butter and some lean protein 2-3 hours before training and then follow it up with a similar meal post workout (lately, I’ve been hung up on drinking chocolate milk and devouring a bowl of white rice smothered in honey for my post workout meal). As long as you take care of your pre/post workout intake, I could care less when you eat your other meals – just make sure to eat them.
Wrapping Up, Finally
I know I can get wordy. However, when you put the pieces together, building muscle can actually become a fairly simple equation when you break it down.
All you have to do is commit to a solid program, take the time necessary to build strength on your primary movements and eat enough to fuel your recovery. While it’s not easy, it is a simple process. All it merely takes is some commitment on your part.
JC is the author of JCDFitness; where he writes about muscle hypertrophy, fat loss, and his relaxed approach to all things fitness. He is also the co-founder for Fitmarker.com which is a site that allows you to bookmark, share, discover and discuss the best fitness articles, workouts, photos and videos that the web has to offer all in one convenient place. Be sure to check out his free eBook, A No-BS Approach to Looking Great Naked and follow him on Twitter.
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Jake Gyllenhaal’s Workout Transformation Into Prince of Persia
Posted on 23. May, 2010 by admin.
The “Prince of Persia” movie, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, comes to theaters this week. When I saw the trailer for the movie, I can’t help but notice that his physique has changed greatly. So, I set out to research what he did look like the Warrior Prince h e’s portraying.
A Little Background on Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake has really come a long way in his acting career. With parents both in the film industry, his father is a director while his mother is a produce/screenwriter, it’s no surprise that Jake has been acting in films since he was 11. But, my first exposure to his acting was in Donnie Darko which came out in 2001. The movie was about a disturbed teenager who had visions of a gigantic bunny rabbit encouraging him to commit crimes. Even though this movie was a little on the weird side, it gained a cult-like following when it was released on DVD. Of course, I wouldn’t do Jake any justice if I didn’t mention “Brokeback Mountain” where Jake plays a gay farmhand who gets romantically involved with Heath Ledger’s character. Surprisingly, I saw this movie with my two, male college roommates who were into film arts of all sorts. Yes, they totally date women. But, I digress.
One of my favorite Jake films is “Jarhead” which came out in 2005. This film really made me take notice of him because he filled out his Marine uniform nicely not to mention his acting skills…haha. Judging from his physique back then which you can see from some pictures taken in between takes in Jarhead, he must have gained 15-20 lbs of muscle in preparation for Prince of Persia.
On a more serious note, Jake really did go all out in terms of physically preparing for his role as the Prince of Persia. This movie was based on a Ubisoft videogame of the same title and features a warrior prince who, together with his princess, fight against dark forces who are after a dagger which is capable of turning back time. This movie was made by Disney which means we can expect some amazing effects. When Jake talked about his role in “Prince of Persia” with Entertainment Tonight he said, “I over-prepared myself [physically] because I never knew how much they were going to ask me to do, so I just made sure I’d be hopefully able to do anything.”
I’m sure that it’s not coincidence that Ubisoft is releasing a sequel to “The Sands of Time” which is the first Prince of Persia game. The sequel is entitled “The Forgotten Sands.” Here is a short preview of the new game:
The trailer for this video game really take me back to when I used to watch my brothers play their role playing games(RPG) like Tomb Raider and Resident Evil. It amazes me how true to life these trailers look thse days.
The Role of Prince of Persia
In 2009, Jake started training with Simon Waterson to turn himself into the “warrior” that he needs to look like for this movie. Waterson, who is a trainer to the stars and also a former Royal Marine, is responsible for training the lead actors for the previous five James Bond movies, including Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan. When asked about Gyllenhaal’s training, Waterson responded, “There’s an increasing fusion between the worlds of fitness and film. Most actors are athletes nowadays. Their fitness is a big factor in whether they get cast or not,” he says. “Jake has to look like a warrior capable of sword-fighting, not like he’s been hitting the gym. He is working out twice, sometimes three times a day, six days a week, for three to four months on top of stunt rehearsals before filming begins.”
Here is the Trailer for the movie if you haven’t seen it already:
Jake went through Parkour style training to prepare for his stunt moves. If you haven’t seen or heard of Parkour before, it is basically people jumping or running from building to building or from different physical outdoor structures. Since he needed a lot of relative strength to lift his body and perform his stunts, this type of training was ideal. Here is a good video of people performing Parkour to give you a better understanding of the sport:
When Gyllenhaal was asked about his stunt training at Wondercon, an annual comic book, science fiction, motion picture conference in San Francisco, he replied, “Well, I’m going to stress this – I tried everything, but I didn’t always succeed at everything. So what I didn’t succeed at, someone else had to pull it off. But it was difficult, but also really fun. I mean when you get parkour down, or the essential idea of parkour, it really is an extraordinary sport because there’s an ease to it and it ends up not feeling that hard.” He worked out two to three times a day along with Parkour for 4 months to achieve his warrior-like physique. If you can see from his picture from Prince of Persia, Gyllenhaal does not look as ripped as Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man 2 but this is most likely planned. He had to have the effortless look and not forced to look a certain way with a gym workout. Of course, proper nutrition also plays a role in creating his rugged look.
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3 Best Cardio Exercise Equipments
Posted on 17. May, 2010 by admin.
Whenever I walk into my local gym, I notice a bunch of different cardio exercise equipment to the left side of the entrance. Not surprisingly, they are almost always taken and there’s usually a line of people waiting to use it. So, I wondered if these people actually know how to effectively use these cardio machines to their advantage. Unlike other fitness experts, I don’t consider certain cardio equipments to be bad. How much benefit you get out of them will just depend on whether you know how to use them effectively or not. Additionally, one cardio equipment can help you burn more calories in less time compared to others.
Cardio exercise equipments are not made equal. So, I’m going to categorize them into their level of effectiveness. Here they are:
#1 The Treadmill
The treadmill is at the top of my list of cardio exercise equipments. But, not everyone knows how to use them to their advantage. We all know running would burn more calories compared to walking so if you already run on the treadmill, you’re half way there. The common mistake that a lot of people make when they’re on this machine is to either run at a steady, medium speed or hold on to the side handles while walking on an incline. Most people I see commit both mistakes. There’s probably other mistakes out there but these two are very common.
To use the treadmill more effectively, you’d have to give yourself a little bit more challenge by running at different intensities. For instance, you can warm-up at 3 mph for 3 minutes. After warm-up, you can run at a faster pace at 5 mph for 20 seconds then increase your speed to 7 mph for another 40 seconds. You can then repeat this sequence, besides the warm-up part, 4 more times then end with a cool-down.
[I have fond memories of playing and bathing in the rain as a child. This photo of children running reminds me of them.Photo by Neloqua. Above photo by Omsel. ]
This protocol is called high intensity interval training or HIIT and the intensity you will get from doing them will help you burn more calories during and after your workout. Beginners can usually follow these intructions without a problem. After you’ve been doing this for about 2-3 weeks, you can progress your workout by changing your speed, increasing the time that you run at a high intensity, perform more intervals, or decrease your recovery time, etc.
So, the next time, you’re at the gym, use this protocol on the treadmill if you plan to run and want to run more effectively.
#2 The Stairmaster
The stairmaster is a great equipment and it can give you a workout as effective as running on the treadmill. When you’re tired of running, this is a great alternative because climbing stairs is also very easy on your joints. This is also a great equipment for people who have need to watch their knee health due to a previous injury.
To use the stairmaster, think in terms of doing high intensity intervals again. Make sure to warm-up for a few minutes and climb at a faster speed for your intervals. You can start with 4-6 intervals at 20-30 seconds and go up from there. Remember to always cool down by slowing down your speed or move on to the Elliptical as detailed below.
#3 The Elliptical
The elliptical is probably the most popular cardio machine in the gym especially amongst the ladies. A lot of people tend to like it because they don’t have to lift their foot off the ground and they can still watch the television while they’re using it. I put it as the #3 machine because it has its place in a fat loss program. But, it definitely shouldn’t be your #1 choice if you want to lose stubborn fat.
To use the Elliptical more appropriately, I suggest using it after you’re done with your intervals on the treadmill or the stairmaster. Head to the Elliptical for another 20 minutes after your interval session. This helps you burn the fat that was released by performing intervals into your blood system so you don’t end up storing it again. Doing it in this sequence is an efficient way to burn more fat in less time. This strategy is particularly helpful when you’re really close to your ideal weight and want to lose a few extra pounds.
In summary, you can use the treadmill or the stairmaster for your high intensity intervals then use the elliptical only after you’ve done your intervals. Keep in mind that using the elliptical in this way is completely optional. The rule is to only use the elliptical as a complementary device to add to your cardio routine. If you use these cardio exercise equipment as directed in this article, you will see that even your most stubborn fats will melt away.
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How to Get Your Pre-pregnancy Body
Posted on 13. May, 2010 by admin.
Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot about soon-to-be mothers and they ask me how they can get back to their pre-pregnancy body. The common question I get asked is how soon can they start exercising after giving birth. While I do not have any personal experience about this topic yet, I went ahead and researched the subject. During my research, I came across a program called, “Post-natal Body Fix,” by Kaisa Tuominen. I first heard of Kaisa after joining a online forum for personal trainers. She has been a trainer since 1998 and has degrees in Exercise Science and Public Health from Oregon State University. Her gym is currently based in Spain. Her specialty and passion is in working with expectant mothers and helping them recover after childbirth.
Note: This article is mostly for women but if you are a guy, this will most likely help you when you are about to have a baby with your significant other.
Without much thought, I went ahead and bought Kaisa’s latest program to help with my research. From reading the books, I was in awe at how knowledgeable she was about this topic. Since she works with moms at her gym daily, I’m really not surprised that she is. In her book, she goes into detail about the what is going on in new moms’ minds and all the emotions that they are feeling. She then discusses ways to live a balanced, enjoyeable life during a time when moms can be very busy, overwhelmed, and stressed.
The part that I like the most about Kaisa’s book was when she discussed the cost of doing nothing after pregnancy. These costs come from the weakening of the core/abdomen area and the pelvic floor. The weakening of these muscles happen when the ab muscles have to naturally separate to make space for the growing baby inside and when your pelvic floor muscles have to pull away from each other to make the baby pass through during childbirth. Two of these costs that really stood out for me. The first one was neck and back pain that wouldn’t go away. My sister and a close friend have been complaining about back pain since they gave birth and now I know how pregnancy can alter your spine alignment to cause this pain. The second cost is having a weak pelvic floor that causes sexual difficulties and incontinence. The thought of using diapers when I get older gives me the motivation I need to do this program so that I do not have to wear them.
Post-natal Body Fix has 3 phases with each phase lasting 6 weeks. The phases 1-3 are called Post-natal Core Fix, Fitness Fix, and Fat Loss Fix, respectively. The biggest misinformation that I learned from Kaisa is women do not have to wait for 40 days before they start to exercise after pregnancy. In fact, the sooner women start, the faster they will recover. Having said that, you can start phase 1 on day 1 which is designed to strengthen your pelvic floor and core muscles. When you move on to phase 2, you will be working on gaining strength and training your body to work as a whole. You will also be working on improving your cardiovascular health during this phase. The last and final phase will probably look like something you would do before you got pregnant. This phase is designed to help you lose the baby weight and improve your overall fitness.
Of course, no fitness program is complete unless you talk about nutrition. Kaisa’s approach is a lot similar to Dax Moy’s Elimination Diet. If you have not read my post on it, you can read it here: Elimination Diet Day 1. I totally support and highly recommend this diet or way of life since I have seen great results with it and so have my clients.
During a Google search for Kaisa, I also came across a free e-bok she gave away sometime ago. This e-book called, “Pregger Fit,” will teach you how to do exercises during pregnancy that will help giving birth easier. You can download your copy of Pregger Fit here: Pregger Fit Download.
If you’d like to get a copy of Kaisa’s book, simply click on this link: Post-natal Body Fix. When you sign up for her newsletter, you can get a copy of her free report, the 7 Secrets of Getting Your Pre-baby Body Back. Lastly, I will get a small commission if you buy Kaisa’s report through the links in this post. But, I bought her product with my own money and no rewards from Kaisa. I promise that I would never recommend any product to you if I have not bought it for myself and/or if it will not help you in staying healthy and fit.
I hope you enjoyed this post and let me know what your thoughts are especially if you’re an expecting mom.
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How to Choose a Pull Up Bar
Posted on 03. May, 2010 by admin.
After writing a post about a home gym for under $100, I thought about editing the post and adding the pull up bar to the list. But, I wanted to create a separate post for it because I own two different kinds of pull up bars and I want to give you a better idea on which model will fit your needs. Also, thanks to Dave for giving me the idea to write about it.
There are two pull up bars that I’m going to compare in this post. For the first kind, you can either mount it on your door frame and for the second one, you can take on/off the door way whenever you like. The other kind of bars that are out there are the free standing ones which are usually more expensive and takes up more space.
The Perfect Pullup
The first one we’re going to talk about is the Perfect Pull Up which is the one you can attach to your door. This wall mounted pull up bar is great because you can do a lot more things with it. For instance, you can change the position of the bar so that it’s upside down. You can perform body rows at different angles from this position. This brand also comes with a pair of Ab Straps that you can hang on the bar and rest your elbow on while doing hanging knee raises and other ab exercises. It also comes with rotating handles for different hand positions.
Because the bar is moveable, you can also do chest presses, tricep extensions, etc. It’s definitely a versatile pull up bar that you can use for many other different exercises. If you go to this Amazon page for the Perfect Pullup, you will see a video of a guy who’s using this bar for the exercises I mentioned above. The price of this bar has gone down significantly since I first bought it. You can get it for as low as $22 which is a very good deal.
Here is a Youtube video showing more ideas on how to use the Perfect Pullup. It’s an infomercial but you get the idea:
If you haven’t done chin ups or pull ups before, here is a great video by Craig Ballantyne of Turbulence Training and CB Athletics demonstrating how you can practice your way to your first one:
Iron Gym
The Iron Gym is probably the simplest pull up bar out there. It is removeable so this is great for people who are renting because you don’t have to put holes on your door frame. It comes with a small metal hook that you place on top of the door frame. This hook helps keep the Iron Gym in place while you’re performing pull ups or chin ups. Make sure the you install this hook. Otherwise, you might fall. The one thing I like about this brand is the cushion on the handles. This cushion helps a lot especially if you have callouses. I also like the fact that I didn’t have to install it and the assembly is easy. It can also double as a push up stand when you put it face down on the floor. Using it this way is helpful especially if your wrists hurt while doing regular push ups.
The disadvantages to this bar is that it’s not very versatile. You can only do chin ups, pull ups, push ups on it, nothing else. If you have other gym equipment, this is not a big deal. Unlike the Perfect Pull Up, the Iron Gym is not as versatile. They did come out with an extreme version that allows for different hand positions on the bar but you still can’t do other exercises with it besides the three I just mentioned. You can get this bar from Amazon for $27 to $30.
Please leave any thoughts, ideas, comments below. Thanks for reading!
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A Home Workout Equipment for under $100
Posted on 27. Apr, 2010 by admin.
Nowadays, people are looking for convenient solutions to their problems. A home workout equipment is a great way to remedy the problem of not having enough time to go to the gym and/or not having the money to pay for a gym membership. Having your fitness equipment at home is also helpful because you can workout whenever you want on your workout days and don’t have to worry about getting child care if you have kids. Not to mention that you’ll save yourself the trouble of fighting to get your hands on gym equipments if you go to the gym during peak hours.
Lately, I’ve been working out at home and I enjoy all the benefits that I just mentioned above. If you’ve never worked out at home before, you might think that you’d have to spend a lot of money on expensive home fitness exercise equipment like the Bowflex. To be honest, I’ve never tried one of those and I probably never will. Most home gyms cost somewhere between $300 and up and I don’t even have the space to have one at my place. So, I’ve found a great alternative to my dilemma. Today, I get a very effective, full-body workout with kettlebells.
[You can even workout outdoors or do a beach workout with just body weight exercises if you don't have any exercise equipments at home. Photo by Gettyimages.com]
Women usually start with an 18 lb or 8 kg kettlebell while men will do well with an 35 lb or 16 kg kettlebell. An 8 kg kettlebell costs about $63 plus shipping while an 16 kg one costs about $79.95 plus shipping at Dragondoor.com. Either way, both options are still under $100. You might think that you can’t really do much with one kettlebell. I used to think so too until I got a full workout from just one kettlebell while I was training for my instructor certification. Granted that my husband has a 35 lb one but I didn’t use it until I was a little bit more advanced which took me about 8 months of focused training.
Here are some exercises that you can do with one kettlebell:
- Swings
- Turkish Get-ups
- Snatches
- Cleans
- Presses/Military Presses
- Lunges
- Squats/Goblet Squats
- Rows
- Halos
- Around the world/Slingshot
- Figure 8
- 1-leg Squats
- Clean and Jerks
- Windmills
- Bent presses and many more
I mainly use kettlebells for our weights in the bootcamp along with some jump ropes, resistance bands, and body weight exercises. This just goes to say that you can have an effective, full body, home gym workout with minimal equipment without the cost of expensive ready-made home gyms out there. If you think about it, you never have to buy another kettlebell for awhile because these things are so durable that they would probably last for your whole lifetime. Just don’t leave them outside otherwise they’ll get rusty. And, just like with anything in life, in order to really use these equipments to their full potential, you’re going to have to do some learning on your own to perform the exercises well or get a good workout program that is designed to be done with minimal equipment.
One of the programs I highly recommend if you want to do full kettlebell workouts is Kettlebell Burn by Master RKC, Geoff Neupert. I mentioned to Geoff that we named our programs the same and he said that “great minds must think alike.” So, if you know about my kettlebell e-book, just be sure that you don’t confuse mine for Geoff’s new program. His program lasts 16 weeks and it comes with a training log and a nutrition guide. After buying Kettlebell Burn and reading through it, I immediately decided that I’m going to follow it for the next 16 weeks. Geoff has designed it so that I make progress in every workout. It is a solid program.
Last note, kettlebell exercises can be technical so make sure that you take some classes with a certified instructor. The cost of paying for classes versus paying for a gym membership will be a lot cheaper in the long run because you don’t need to be paying for instruction or classes forever. Compared to a gym membership that you have to pay month after month, getting a home gym is the way to go in terms of cost and time as long as you know what you’re doing.
If you’re doing a kettlebell workout, please do let me know how it’s going in the comments section. Everything else on your mind or questions, please leave a comment as well.
Note: I will receive a small commission if you buy kettlebells or the Kettlebell Burn program through the links above. However, I trust these products and have bought them for my own use. I don’t recommend anything that I haven’t bought or tried beforehand.
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How to Run Properly
Posted on 04. Apr, 2010 by admin.
A lot of people tend to think that they know how to run. After all, it’s simple right? If you can walk, you can run. I used to think this way until I read about the Tarahumara (pronounced Tara-oo-mara, see their picture above). They are an Indian tribe in North Mexico who are known for their traditional running competitions that lasts for 2 days. A lot of books have been written about them because of their ability to run long distances with little rest and one such book was written by Christopher McDougall and is entitled, “Born to Run”
I love watching sprinters especially Usain Bolt
I used to get shin splints after running. I tried other types of shoes and different running surfaces but I still kept getting them. I also felt that I was pounding the ground too much like I’m too heavy to run. Back then, I was practicing the “old school” way of running where I’m supposed to roll my foot on the ground starting from the ball of my foot all the way to the heel. It turns out that this way of running was causing my shin splints. I know this because the very first time I applied the Tarahumaran “running mechanics,” I felt light as air and did not get shin splints the next day. Most of all, I was able to perform more high intensity intervals at higher speeds. I felt so good that I just wanted to keep running.
So, what makes this new way of running different? Here are a few things that I’ve learned:
- My arms should always be at 90 degrees and never pass my head when they swing back and forth.
- Keep my shoulders and hips right on top of my feet. In other words, I shouldn’t be leaning forward or backward but standing straight.
- Do not wear running shoes. I stopped wearing running shoes a long time ago for any workouts that I do. I started doing this for my kettlebell work but decided that I needed to stop running in them too. The results are tremendous because the higher heels in running shoes can offset your balance so that you’re leaning forward instead of standing straight.
- When I get ready for my sprint and during the actual sprints, my heels never touch the ground. In other words, I’m on the ball of my feet the whole time. You’ll know you’re doing this right when you’re calves get a little sore the next day.
Some of these tips also came from a friend of mine who used to run track in college. She gave me all sorts of different “stages” when we sprint but I couldn’t remember them all if my life depended on it…haha. You can also read up on Christopher McDougall’s summary of his experience which he talked about in an article for Men’s Health called, “The Men Who Live Forever”. I got some of the tips from him too. When I run this way, I feel like I can run for a long time and I felt a thrill rush through my veins! Best of all, no more shin splints and more calories burned.
If you have any questions about running, please post them in the comments section and I’ll answer them to the best of my ability.
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How to Measure Body Fat
Posted on 14. Feb, 2010 by admin.
As I got ready to enter the Turbulence Training transformation and took my starting measurements, I realized that I haven’t written a post about how to measure body fat. A lot of people tend to base their progress on the bathroom scale, the tape measure. or the body mass index but body fat is probably the most detailed measurement of progress that we can take. When we measure our body fat percentage, we can tell how much of our weight is from body fat and from lean mass or muscle. This becomes important as we take our second set of measurements at about 2-4 weeks apart, we can then tell if we are gaining muscle, losing fat, maintaining muscle, etc.
Note: the picture above the post does not have anything to do with it but I thought it was so cool and calming.
While hydrostatic body fat testing is the “gold” standard in measuring body fat, Dr. John Berardi at Precision Nutrition came up with something that’s pretty close. Most body fat measurement manuals only use 4 sites but Dr. Berardi’s system tests 7 sites for more accuracy.
The 7 testing sites are as follows:
- Abdominal Skinfold
- Triceps
- Chest
- Midaxillary
- Subscapular
- Suprailliac
- Thigh
Before you panic and tell yourself that you don’t know half of these sites, let alone pronounce it, I actually have a document with pictures and instructions for you. You can download the Body Fat and Girth Measurement Guide by Precision Nutrition here. This guide includes step by step procedure for measuring body fat and girth (circumference) measurements. In order to use this guide successfully, you would need:
The Accu-Measure Fitness 3000 Personal Body Fat Tester
You can use other brands but I have found Accufitness products to be easier to use. The other ones I’ve used before were bulky and awkward to use. You would also need another person to measure your body fat sites. The girth measurements are easier to do with the Myotape but there’s no way you can measure your body fat on your own (if you find a way to do that, let me know…lol).
Inside the guide you will find that the formulas are way too difficult to calculate and very confusing. So, I created an Excel file for both men and women so that all you need to do is enter your information. After that is done, the worksheet calculates everything automatically for you. You can track up to 12 weeks worth of measurements (spaced 4 weeks apart) in this worksheet.
Download the Men’s Results Tracker here.
Download the Women’s Results Tracker here.
Before you enter your information in the Excel file, make sure that you save a blank version first so that you can use it again for the next set of 12 weeks, and so on. These are the tools that I use when I want to get myself measured and when I measure my clients. I hope you find these tools as useful as I have.