Archive for 'Exercise'
Doing Stick Ups and Ab Prone Cobra to Relieve Back Pain
Posted on 07. Feb, 2010 by admin.
Eversince I was in college (which seems like ages ago), I’ve had this pain on my mid-back. It usually flares up during mid-terms and finals when I would be studying a lot and pulling off all-nighters so I can get some last minute studying in before the exam. After awhile, this pain went away until about a few months ago. This time though, it was not letting up.
Before, a trip to the gym and doing some cable back rows will usually alleviate the pain. Since I go to the gym fairly consistently, I would do my usual remedy and hoping that it will do the trick. Imagine my surprise when it didn’t. Because of this, I decided to go to a chiropractor. After my visit, the pain would go away for a few days only to come back again. So, after my third visit, my chiropractor suggested that I perform some specific exercises in between visits to help with the pain. I assured him that I perform some on my own but he gave me a different one anyway.
Before I continue with the solution, I want to emphasize that my pain probably comes from having bad posture while sitting in front of the computer (or, in the past, studying) for long periods of time. After awhile of being in this position (since college), it got harder to correct it by trial and error because I really didn’t know what was causing it. Now that I think about this issue even further, I also believe that the pain worsens when I do a lot exercises with my shoulder such as kettlebell snatches and not perform any mobility exercises for them. But, I also want to emphasize the fact that some people feel pain on their lower back which can be caused by many factors such as weight concentrated in the mid-section and poor core strength, just to name a few. So, the exercises that I’m about to discuss would mostly deal with bad posture.
The one exercise that helped me a lot: Stick Ups
I’ve done stick ups before for warm-up as Craig Ballantyne will use it every now and then when he creates his Turbulence Training Workouts. However, I never really thought that it would help my back pain.
Here is a great video of Craig demonstrating the stick up. It’s the first exercise that he discusses in this video:
So, as soon as my back pain flares up, I head on over to an empty wall and start doing stick ups. I was completely surprised when the pain went away! Talk about, immediate results. Now, I just love to include this exercise in my warm-ups and workouts that I design for my clients because it is a simple yet very effective exercise.
Another exercise that I like to do is the Ab Prone Cobra. This exercise tends to help strengthen your Rhomboids (the muscles in between your shoulder blades) which get weak over time because of poor posture. Here is a good video on how to perform the Ab Prone Cobra:
As you can see from both exercises, they tend to put your upper body in the opposite position that you would be if you were hunched over. So, doing these exercises on a regular basis will improve your posture and decrease mid-back pain (if you have it). It’s crazy how a simple adjustment at the chiropractor (which feels good by the way) coupled with these exercises has helped me with my back pain. I’m glad that I didn’t have to resort to pain relievers which only relieve my pain temporarily.
I wrote this post for 3 reasons: 1) to tell people that pain relievers are not the only answer to reducing pain, 2) to promote the chiropractic profession because they do more than just “adjust” people, and 3) to help people be proactive about their posture. As I get older, I tend to value good posture a lot which I took for granted in my younger days and I hope that the people who read this blog/post may do the same.
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Shape Ups or Easy Tone: An Alternative to Working Out?
Posted on 19. Jan, 2010 by admin.
As I watched t.v. on a lazy Sunday afternoon, I saw a bunch of ridiculous weight loss commercials. But, the 2 ads that stood out the most for me were those for Skechers’ Shape Ups and Reebok’s Easy Tone. Both companies claim that wearing their shoes will help you burn calories and give you more toned legs and a rounder butt. The price? These shoes cost as much as $110! Aside from the ridiculous claims, they also come with a ridiculous price. These claims stir up some anger in me – just imagine me looking angry with smoke coming out of my ears.
If you haven’t heard of these shoes, here is an ad for Shape Ups that I found on Youtube:
If you go to Skechers’ web site, you will find that they have testimonials and “research” that back up their claims. It says that wearing Shape Ups is like walking on sand – takes more effort which therefore burns more calories compared to walking on pavement. I’m not saying that you won’t burn more calories with these shoes. But, the calories burned just won’t be enough to make you see the results that they’re suggesting you would get. You want a cheaper alternative? Just go to the beach and walk/run there. No, seriously, here is a better alternative…
A Strategy for a Rounder Butt: Kettlebell Swings
You probably know by now that I am a big fan of kettlebells. The reason for this is it’s cheaper than a lot of fitness equipments out there but it is also very effective in giving you a great total body workout at home (or anywhere you wish). They’re definitely cheaper than these shoes that will not deliver on their claim and longer lasting as most kettlebells are probably indestructible.
Want tighter glutes and sexier legs? Do swings instead and eat less.
Here is a video that I created that demonstrates what good kettlebell (KB) swings should look like:
After putting my class through their very first workout of just swings, they report being sore for days at a time. This is not unusual as most people since a lot of us forget how or don’t know how to really squeeze or activate our glute muscles. Of course, this soreness goes to a more normal cycle of about a day or 2 once you’re used to doing swings.
From my experience, I saw that my glutes got much tighter and looked a lot better in my skinny jeans ever since I did KB swings as an alternative to my high intensity intervals. But, I didn’t see this right away. It took a good 3-5 months before I even saw a difference. I used to think that a person is born with a nice butt but I think that most people can achieve a nice, rounder looking behind if they just consistently worked on targeting them on a regular basis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that target training is effective either. This kind of result can only be achieved with overall fat reduction. Reduce the fat on top of your butt muscle and exercise that muscle for that “toned” look. This is the only way results happen.
By now, I am immune to infomercials for ab equipments but I see these commercials for Shape Ups and Easy Tone as another generation for exploiting the public’s need for immediate gratification. I wish having a beach body was way easier. Believe me, I would be the first person to tell you about it but it just isn’t. I know that eating less and moving more doesn’t sound very sexy compared to just walking your way to a leaner body but doing these two things will definitely save you time, money, and heartache in the long run.
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What We can Learn from Jessica Biel
Posted on 13. Oct, 2009 by admin.
While I was browsing the internet the other day, I came across a quote from Jessica Biel. But, before I get to the quote let me just say that I know a lot of women who would do anything to look just like Jessical Biel and I am definitely one of them. Unfortunately, there are also a lot more women who would rather look like Jessica Alba. Don’t get me wrong, Jessica Alba is hot, relative to other people’s standards, but I really would appreciate seeing more muscles on her and other women celebrities in Hollywood.
Getting back to Jessica Biel…My very first exposure to Jessica was from her stint as Mary Camden on “Seventh Heaven.” Then, I saw her a little later on in movies like “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” and “Summer Catch.” But, my favorite bad ass role for her is on “Blade Trinity.” I felt that this “vampire slayer” role really fit her personality and physique. To me, she is the vision of a perfect fitness role model and so I got excited when I read this quote from her:
“There is so much pressure to look a certain way in this town (Hollywood – obviously). But it`s nice to have a little meat on you, and I hope I inspire women to appreciate their muscular calves.”
Jessica was really right on point on this quote. I’ve embraced my nice, muscular calves a long time ago. Even more so, I’ve come to appreciate the sexiness of muscles on my arms, abs, thighs, etc. I only wish that other women out there would follow suit and think the same way.
While many authors or bloggers have written about muscles on women (or lack thereof), I feel that it is also my job as a fitness blogger to join in on the conversation regarding this topic because there are a lot of benefits that can be obtained from gaining muscle. Here are a few:
- Reduced risk to Osteoporosis and injuries due to increased bone mass – bigger muscles mean thicker bones. Your bones need to increase their size relative to the size of your muscles in order for them to support your frame.
- Muscles burn more calories – this benefit has been drilled into our heads over and over again yet it is worth mentioning again. While your muscles may burn only about a third more calories when compared to fat, this increased calorie expenditure accumulates over time. Gaining more muscle will help us increase our metabolism and reverse the slower metabolism that we get as a result of aging.
- Muscles take up less space – let’s face it, muscle is just less dense compared to fat. For instance, back in high school, I used to wear size 7 clothes when I was at 120 lbs. But, when I lost weight after college and dropped down to 119 pounds, I was (and still am) wearing size 5 clothes! This means that I have more lean mass today compared to my high school weight even though I am at about the same weight. To give you a better idea of this, below is a picture of 1 pound of fat vs. 1 pound of muscle.
- Muscles are sexy! – enough said.
Ok, so now you know the many benefits of muscle and strength training. Should you be working out like Jessica Biel then? I wish I can give you a sample of Jessica Biels’s workout but knowing what I know about physical training, it probably won’t be any different than what I would give you as a personal trainer.
Keep in mind that just because there are celebrity personal trainers out there, it doesn’t mean that they have a special formula as well. If anything, the celebrities might have an advantage for having the money to pay for their training and nutrition programs. But, with the recent popularity of bootcamps and online programs, it has become easier than ever to find a good workout program that suits your personality and your budget.
So, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and start pumping iron now!
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How to Immediately Get Stronger
Posted on 15. Sep, 2009 by admin.
I didn’t intend to make the title sound too “infomercially” so that you’ll read the rest of the blog post. The truth is, I really have found a way to instantly make my lifts stronger at the gym and this is all thanks to (you can probably guess it by now) – the Russian Kettlebell Certification (RKC) and Pavel Tsatsouline’s teachings.
What I’m about to tell you are very important concepts that has helped me lift heavier and get a more efficient workout. These concepts can benefit anyone who strength trains especially those who have a difficult time lifting progressively heavier weights during a workout. Let’s go through these concepts now shall we?
Irradiation
The concept of irradiation was taught to us by, Doug Nepodal, Senior RKC and my team leader, when he was teaching us about “the Press.” The press that most people know about is the military press. Doug demonstrated irradiation by doing a one-hand military press with a kettlebell and squeezing something like a towel, a hand gripper, (pretty much anything you can squeeeze) etc. with your free hand. Pavel also discussed this in his DVD program, “Power to the People,” (PTTP) while doing a one arm curl and making a fist with his free hand. Irradiation is simply the act of actively contracting the other muscles in your body besides the one that you are using in order to immediately increase your strength during lifting.
Pavel basically explained irradiation as your muscles triggering signals from the brain to send more “juice” or power to the main contracting muscle. Think of it as your other muscles cheering your biceps, in the case of the one arm curl, to lift the weight.
Taking this concept further…
A major breakthrough that I’ve learned during the RKC weekend is the skill of contracting every major muscle in your body while lifting weights. For instance, if I were performing barbell curls, I would be contracting my leg muscles (glutes, quadriceps, calves) and my upper body muscles (trapezius, pectorals, abs) in order to harness more power for those curls. I used to think that the curl is an isolation exercise but doing it this way not only makes your lifts stronger, it also helps you burn a lot more calories than your regular curls because it becomes a total body exercise. Both of these factors combined make the curl a more efficient exercise.
I practiced using all the tension in my muscles during the first day of RKC when we were learning the kettebell swings. If I wanted to powerfully propel the kettlebell with my hips, I had to really connect myself to the ground with my bare feet, pull my knee caps up, and tense all my major muscles. The result is one powerful KB swing.
The Art of Breathing
During exercise, I used to take my breathing for granted because I’m usually more focused on lifting the weight and exercise form. But, this is a huge mistake because just the act of inhaling and exhaling air at the right moments during your lifts makes a big difference on your strength. I realized the importance of this while practicing my clean and press. The kettlebell clean basically starts from what I call a semi-swing but the KB lands on the back of your forearm (near your wrist) and rests in between the “triangle” of your bent arm (see picture). You can then perform a military press from this position.
Photo by Mike Mahler
During the clean and press, the breathing starts from when you pick up the KB from the ground. As you reach the KB, inhale deeply and don’t let go of any air, hike pass the KB behind (like a one-hand swing) and go straight to a clean while still holding your breath. As you begin your military press, exhale the air in small increments as if your letting air out of a tire from a very small hole. The important point to remember in this is to really hold your breath until you’re ready for the press. Doing it this way helps you keep tension in your whole body which in turn will give you more power for your press. When applied to a more familiar exercise such as the squat, you would inhale while your legs are bent, hold your breath as you straighten your legs, and exhale at the top.
Irradiation and breathing really has made a big difference in my lifts. I know that it can be difficult to describe concepts like these in words so, if you have any questions regarding these concepts, please feel free to leave your comment below. Pavel actually discussed a lot more concepts in PTTP so if you are interested in knowing more about those techniques, I highly recommend watching the DVD and reading the book. But, if you were able to understand these concepts from this post and start practicing them at the gym, I would love to hear about your experience. More power to your lifts!
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How to Achieve the Conditioning of an Athlete
Posted on 10. Sep, 2009 by admin.
This post was inspired by a book that I’m currently reading (and doing) entitled, “Viking Warrior Conditioning,” by Kenneth Jay, Master RKC. I stumbled upon this book during the Russian Kettlebell Certification (RKC) when we did one of the workouts from the book during day 2.
First, here is a little background:
While training for the RKC for several months, I haven’t really touched the treadmill, dumbbells, and barbells. During the week before the RKC, I decided to back off from my kettlebell training but I still wanted to do something to maintain my conditioning. So, the obvious choice for me was to do some HIITs on the treadmill.
I was prepared to only do my intervals for 30 seconds at 7.5 miles per hour (mph) because I’ve always had a hard time running very fast after not having done HIITs for awhile. In other words, I lose some of the conditioning that I gained from continously performing intervals after I stop doing them – which is to be expected. So, I went off to the gym, started my warm ups on the treadmill in preparation for the sprints to come. To my surprise, I was able to perform 6 intervals of 60 seconds at 8.5 mph! The other more surprising thing is, I wasn’t even exhausted at the end of the six intervals. I consider this occurence to be out of the ordinary since the fastest I’ve ever gone on a treadmill is 9.2 mph after performing HIITs continously for four weeks.
During ordinary circumstances, I would look like a fish out of water after 30 seconds of sprints and if I were on a continued diet of barbells, dumbbells, and sprints on the treadmill, I don’t think that I would’ve achieved this type of conditioning. At first, I didn’t really know what have caused this phenomena until Pavel talked about the “Kettlebell What the Hell Effect” during the second day of the RKC.
In preparation for the RKC, I had to be able to perform 100 repetitions of the snatch with a 12 kg kettlebell (KB). Of course, I didn’t start out performing 100 reps right off the bat. I had to start with snatching an 8 kg KB and move on to the 12 kg while working on increasing my repetitions. While I was practicing my snatches, something else was happening to my conditioning – I was developing the conditioning of an athelete.
Taking Your Conditioning to the Next Level
What? Me? An athlete?
I was never the sporty kind of person my whole life so I never considered myself to be an athlete – ever. But, what kettlebell has done was bring out the inner athlete in me by helping me in terms of conditioning. According to Kenneth, there are 3 basic factors that determine conditioning and these are: oxygen uptake, metabolite production ability, and metabolite tolerance ability. Oxygen uptake simply pertains to how efficient your body is at transporting and using oxygen. Metabolite production refers to how well your body’s lactic acid system can convert carbohydrates into Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) while metabolite tolerance has to do with how long your body is able to endure high levels of lactic acid which is the by-product of this system. In short, the more conditioned you are, the faster you are able to convert carbohydrates for energy and the longer you will be able to perform your workouts without much fatigue.
Inside the Viking Warrior Conditioning book, Kenneth has outlined the cadence* maximum VO2* (cMVO2) test which is basically the number of snatches that triggers the maximum amount of oxygen uptake on a whole body level. Then, he outlines 5 protocols that you can use to start with and progress towards.
The 15:15 MVO2 Protocol
Currently, I am doing the 15:15 MVO2 Protocol wherein I am doing 7 snatch repetitions (one set) with one hand for 15 seconds, rest 15 seconds, switch hands then, perform 7 more snatches with the other hand. I will repeat this cycle until I have completed 20 sets which is my starting point until I am able to do 80 sets. I plan to add 2 sets each time until I do the protocol until I reach the final number.
It is still to early to tell you about my results but I have no doubt in mind that doing this protocol as I planned will help take my conditioning to new heights due to my previous experience of simply practicing for the snatch test.
If you are interested in reading more about Kenneth’s protocols and his theories behind them, you can purchase the Viking Conditioning book at Dragondoor.com
Definitions:
*Cadence – number of snatches
* VO2 – amount of oxygen uptake on a whole-body level
Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. Thanks for stopping by!
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Smoke’s KB 556 Challenge Results
Posted on 12. Jul, 2009 by admin.
When I woke up this morning, I instantly knew that this is not going to be one of my usual lazy Sundays. After all, I have agreed to do Smoke’s KB 556 Challenge. At first glance, this challenge did not look bad at all. In fact, I thought I was going to smoke it (no pun intended). But, after I did my first round, I started writing this on my workout journal: “what did I get myself into?” I guess I agreed to this challenge because I wanted a little push today. This is also a great way to keep up your motivation when you don’t feel like working out.
So, here is how my challenge went down:
KB555v2.0 (fasted i.e. before eating breakfast)
*100 One hand KB Swings with 12 kg Kettlebell
*50 Prisoner Squats
*25 Stability Ball Rollouts
*50 Bodyweight squats
*35 Pushups (it’s not a typo, 35 pushups was my max this time)
….faints and falls on the living room floor
Total time: 8 minutes, 47 seconds
I was so “smoked” that I was not able to do a second round of this.
Run 2 miles non-stop on the treadmill –> total time: 22:08
I’ve got to be honest that I’ve been so focused on my Kettlebell training for the RKC that I haven’t been doing much body weight exercises unless I have to teach it to my boot campers.
The same thing goes for running. Since KB swings and snatches can be considered “cardio,” I decided that I didn’t want to potentially overtrain so I had to forgo running altogether. But, I realized that it won’t be too bad if I did intervals twice a week for conditioning. I was just glad that I foam rolled my calves and TFL before I ran because I probably would’ve experienced some cramping while running if I didn’t.
Lessons Learned
Having realized that I’ve neglected to perform some of the most basic exercises, my plan is to put them back into my routine even if I have to do them on my off days. Basically, I would perform push ups whenever I have some down time or want to take a break from anything that I’m doing.
Another thing that I started doing yesterday is putting up my Iron Gym at the top of the bathroom door. In this way, every time I pass by it, I would perform a chin up or two. I want to continue doing this until I can bust out several chin ups in succession.
My Reward
Since I did this challenge in the fasted state, I was so looking forward to my breakfast (or brunch at this point)
- One Eggland’s Best Omega-3 Egg
- One Protein Pancake
- 3 slices Hormel Natural Choice Ham
Overall, it was a great start to a day. Now, I’m off to the dog beach in Berkeley to spoil my dog for a few hours.
I hope everyone is having a great weekend!
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Why Do You Need to Be Flexible?
Posted on 10. Jun, 2009 by admin.
Ever seen those weird looking white, round foam equipment lying around in your gym? Maybe, you’ve even seen people use it from time to time. They’re called foam rollers and it is an excellent tool for performing flexibility exercises.
I’ve always known that stretching is an important part of any fitness program. But, I didn’t know how beneficial it really is to my overall well-being until I studied flexibility training in more detail and experienced how much better I feel after doing it regularly. Now, I’m not talking about the regular stretching exercises that people usually do before and after a workout. Those are helpful too but there’s nothing like a good stretch that a foam roller provides.
Ok, I’m going to be a bit more technical for a minute and I hope I don’t confuse you in the process. Flexibility exercises that are done with foam rollers are called Self-Myofascial Release (SMR). The process is basically done by applying gentle pressure on “tight” muscles.
So, how do muscles become tight? When you perform exercises regularly, carry out repetitive movements (i.e. sitting at your desk), or simply have bad posture, your muscles tend to be overworked. Your muscles will eventually tear or form adhesions and ultimately repair itself. The problem happens when they repair and they don’t go back to their normal state. The muscles stick to each other which causes them to be stiff. Imagine a scar forming after being wounded – the skin is not as supple as it once was and it’s now replaced with hardened scar tissues. When this happens to your muscles, your movements, in exercise and everyday tasks, will not be as efficient as they once were.
Self-Myofascial Release is Like Deep Tissue Massage
Ever heard your masseuse say that your muscles are tight in some areas? Self-myofascial release basically deep tissue massage and does the same thing a massage would do to your muscles but it’s a cheaper alternative (although, I highly recommend getting a massage regularly especially for those hard to reach areas like the shoulder muscles). When done regularly, the pressure from the foam roller against your tight muscles will force them into their natural, straight alignment.
Why do I not want tight muscles?
Tight muscles can cause many problems like:
- Increased pain from muscle soreness
- Muscle spasms during exercises – this used to happen to my calves a lot especially while I’m running
- Movement compensation – you won’t be able to practice full range of motion during exercises because your tight muscles are preventing you from doing so.
- Further muscle imbalance – when some of your muscles are tight while performing any type of movement, the other muscles that participate in that movement will compensate for that muscle causing further harm to your posture and exercise form. In technical terms, this is called the Cumulative Injury Cycle
How does Self-myofascial Release work?
When you apply pressure to a tight muscle or “knot,” you decrease the activity of the muscle spindles and stimulate the Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO – no, not Pontiac GTO…lol). Muscle spindles lie parallel to your muscle and they are sensitive to the change in muscle length and how fast (or slow) that muscle is lengthening while GTOs are sensitive to muscle tension and how fast (or slow) the tension is being applied. When muscle spindle activity is decreased and the GTOs are activated, your muscles relax. It is only at this time when you can “straighten” your muscle.
How to Perform Self-Myofascial Release
Basically, you can apply tension on any muscle by rolling on top of a foam roller and using your body weight to create pressure on that muscle for 20 to 30 seconds. How I wish I can demonstrate these to you myself through pictures or a video but I don’t have a photographer at the moment. But, here is an article from perform better which shows some examples of how they should be done – “Self-Myofascial Release Techniques”.
Foam rollers can be purchased from places like PerformBetter.com or Amazon.com
Currently, I’m doing 3 muscle groups a day, 3 times a week on days when I don’t workout. Most people would probably be better off doing more muscle groups at a time when they first start doing SMR but starting with just a few muscles makes it more manageable. I have to tell you that it can also be very painful especially if you have a lot of tight muscles. This may discourage some people from doing it on a regular basis but knowing the benefits that it can have on your posture and overall movement may just give you enough motivation to want to do it. I promise that you will feel better in the long run.
Lastly, most people forget that dynamic and efficient movement starts with proper posture. When your posture is not correct to begin with, your muscles will suffer in the long run which may lead to pain and injury.
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How to Workout at Home
Posted on 27. May, 2009 by admin.
Lately, I haven’t felt the need to go to the gym because I’ve been training with my beloved Kettlebells which I let gather dust for quite sometime. I also decided that I’m going to get my Russian Kettlebell (KB) Certification in August so the heat is on in terms of preparing for this gruelling and demanding task. I also haven’t been wanting to go to the gym lately, not because I don’t feel like it, but because:
- It’s been so nice outside here in Cali lately that I’ve been doing some of my workouts outdoors. My favorite workouts have been doing HIIT at a nearby park and KB swings.
- My dog has been left by herself all day that I couldn’t bare to leave her alone for another hour and a half (I go to the gym after work).
So, when I chose a Turbulence Training (TT) workout, I chose one that incorporated equipment that I already have and have bodyweight (BW) exercises (which are not as easy as most people think). Another main consideration for me was my Kettlebell training. I needed a workout that had KB exercises in place in order to avoid overtraining.
My criteria lead me to March Madness. I know what you’re thinking…it’s not March…haha. Craig released this workout this year in honor of athletes and it mimic how they train in the real world. I absolutely love this workout for the many reasons I mentioned above and also because I didn’t expect it to be so tough. Once again, my expectations from a TT workout were exceeded – I have yet to find a TT workout that didn’t challenge me.
Without further ado, here is how my workout went. I am now on my second week on this routine and this is workout B.
Warm-up Circuit
• 2 times through the circuit using a 1-0-1 tempo for each exercise.
• Prisoner Squat – 10 reps
• Jumping Jacks – 40 reps
• Pushup – 12 reps
• Split Squat – 10 reps per side
• Stick-up – 10 reps
Workout B – KB-BW 10×20 Circuit
I went through this circuit 2 times through.
#1 Kettlebell (KB) Squat – 26.5 lb KB x 20 reps
#2 Extended Pushup – 20 reps
#3 KB Swing – 35 lb KB x 20 reps
#4 Walking Lunge – 20 reps per side
#5 KB High Pull – 26.5 lb KB x 10 reps per side
#6 Mountain Climber – 10 reps per side
#7 KB 1-Arm Swing – 26.5 lb KB x 20 reps per side
#8 Close-grip Pushup – 20 reps
#9 KB 1-Arm Row – 26.5 lb KB x10 reps per side
#10 Stability Ball Leg Curl – 20 reps
I’m sweating buckets after this workout but I feel great! Next week, I plan to go through this circuit 3 times through – wish me luck!
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Get Inspired with these Turbulence Training Transformations!
Posted on 13. Apr, 2009 by admin.
The Turbulence Training transformation results are here! The transformations seem to just get better and better every time. Craig must have had a hard time choosing his finalists because I saw a lot of other contestants who posted their pictures in the official contest thread at TTMembers.com. It really is amazing what people can achieve when they put their mind into it.
Craig had two divisions this time – one for the men and one for the women. But, you only get to vote once so please vote wisely 
Are you excited?
Here are the results:
To see and vote for the female finalists, click here.
To see and vote for the male finalists, click here.
In the end, everyone who participated in the contest, including me, are all winners because we all have made healthy changes to our lifestyle – not to mention that we wear smaller clothes and look good in a bikini…lol.
The next Turbulence Training transformation contest begins in only a few weeks. If you have been looking or been needing inspiration/motivation lately, this may be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for! I’ve always said that the grand prize is only icing on the cake. The real price is getting the body you’ve always wanted and achieving better health (and fewer doctor visits).
I hope you get inspired with these results today no matter where you are in your fitness journey.
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Common Health and Fitness Jargon
Posted on 09. Apr, 2009 by admin.
Have you ever read somebody else’s workout journal or a health and fitness article and wonder what some of the words meant or what those obscure abbreaviations stand for? I was in the same boat when I was just first starting out. I encountered this a lot when I was first introduced to online workout journals in forums like ttmembers.com or ClutchFitness.com. I wanted to see what people were doing and it’s also a great motivator to see other people who were working as hard, if not harder, as I did.
After reading through many workout journals and workout routines for awhile, seeing the abbreviations and definitions are almost second nature to me but for people who are just starting out, reading through them can be mystifying.
So, I compiled the most common health and fitness abbreaviations and definitions in this post so you can either print it out or bookmark it for future reference. Here they are:
- BB or Barbell - weights with long handles
- BW or Bodyweight – the use of one’s own bodyweight during exercise(s)
- DB or Dumbbell – weights with short handles
- KB or Kettlebell also see this post by clicking here.
- Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) – this is the amount of calories your body burns at rest. In other words, you will burn calories at this rate even if you don’t exercise.
- Calorie – in terms or weight loss, this is the unit of energy that food can potentially produce. If a person does not spend enough energy on physical activities, this energy is then eventually stored as fat.
- Calorie Deficit - this is the situation when people spend more calories than they consume (eat). In other words, calories in is less than calories out. You would want to have a calorie deficit to achieve fat loss. (cal in < cal out = fat loss) also see this post by clicking here.
- Calorie Surplus - this is the opposite of calorie deficit. In this case, calories in is more than calories out which may result in either fat gain or muscle gain depending on the quality of your nutrition. (Calories in > calories out = fat gain or muscle gain)
- Cardiovascular Activity (traditional or steady state cardio) – when people talk about cardio, they typically refer to aerobic exercises which are exercises that help improve the consumption of oxygen in the body such as running, cycling etc. at a moderate level for longer periods of time. During cardio activities, our body gets oxygen from the blood for its fuel source. This is also the reason why it’s called “aero” bics.
- Core - in general, this is an area of your body wherein there is very little skeletal support which is mainly the abdominals and the lower back. The muscles in this area are the target of core training.
- EZ Bar- just like the Barbell but with bent handles for a different grip which tends to be easier on the wrists. This is suitable for people who have wrist problems/injuries.
- Heart Rate - this is the number of heart beats per minute (bpm). An average person would have 70 bpm. This may vary among people depending on their age, genetics, and health.
- High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT or intervals) – this is the most current type of “cardio” which is the opposite of traditional cardio because they are done by alternating jogs and sprints. Intervals are anaerobic which means that the body does not draw its energy from oxygen but still burns carbohydrates or sugar. See this post for an example of intervals.
- Macronutrients – these are the nutrients that our body needs in large amounts as the name implies (macro = big). They are comprised of protein, carbohydrates, and fat.
- Micronutrients – these are the nutrients that our body needs in small amounts as the name implies (micro = small). These are generally made up of vitamins and minerals.
- Repetitions or Reps - the number of times you repeat an exercise or lift a weight. (i.e. 10 pull ups performed consecutively = 10 reps)
- RM or Repetition Max - the maximum number of times you can perform an exercise or lift a certain weight. (i.e. 10 RM of Bench Press at 45 lbs would be the max number of presses I can perform at that weight)
- Sets - the number of times you perform a set of one exercise (i.e. 10 pushups = 1 set then, another 10 pushups performed 30 seconds after the first set is considered a 2nd set)
Normally, I would write out my workouts in this way –> # of sets x # of reps x weight lifted and it would look like this: 5 x 10 x 125 for 5 sets of 10 repetitions with a 125 lb weight. - Superset – this is a set of two exercises. Most of the time, the exercises are non-competing which means that you are targeting non-opposing muscles. An example of this would be an upper body exercises such as barbell curls paired with a lower body exercise such as the squats.
A Dumbbell
Photo by Zsuzsanna Kilián
This list is not meant to be comprehensive in any way but it will be a good starting point for beginners. I will try to update this list when I think/find more mystifying fitness words in the future.