Have you been loads of cardio work and have somehow plateau’d with your weight loss? It’s a frequent result…
The truth is that cardio does burn body fat, but the body gets used to the work and then, well.. it just doesn’t need to burn so many calories to get the work done. So it will slow down. As your heart gets fitter and stronger, the calorie burn lessens.
Here’s the one thing can change things up! Push Weights!!! If you want to lose body fat, it is essential to build muscle mass… Why? Because muscles burn fat on a 24 hour basis. Body fat is the number one fuel muscles need to stay healthy and strong, to work for you, to keep the metabolism heating on high, melting down that unwanted body fat!
After you got over the stop and go factor and found your inner B.I.T.C.H (bitch in total control of herself) it’s easy to start and see awesome results with your workouts. I started working out for good in April and it was only once a week because my schedule wasn’t allowing me to work out more than that. With school and living far from Maryse it wasn’t always the easiest thing to do but I stuck to it because excuses could not cut it anymore. I was tired of looking the way I was and it was going to change! But I wasn’t seeing the changes I wanted to see… You workout, your almost dying from lactic acid the next day and nothing changes. So I started wondering why it wasn’t working. That’s when Maryse explained to me that without good nutrition there is no good workout. You can work out all you want but if you don’t watch what you eat you will not see the changes you want. Of course you will lose weight but not as much as you could if you were eating right. And then I see all of you thinking “here we go again another diet”. WRONG!!
It’s all about the mind/body connection. If I’m looking to deplete my fat percentages, I’ll have to train both in a strength environment and a cardio environment. Why? It’s simple, really. Muscles burn fat—the end! In order for the muscle to live and repair, it needs a constant energy source, and that’s fat. In order to be fit enough to lift those weights, you have to be cardio fit. Don’t be fooled by thinking you’re heart isn’t working when you push weights! If you’re pushing the right amount of weights, the heart will pump hard!
Here’s where the timing comes in. Cardio work should be done early in the morning, before your breakfast. The mind doesn’t have to work too hard to keep walking, running or rollerblading… the body is on automatic pilot, it already knows how to perform these activities, you’ve been doing it all your life. Here’s the catch: since there is very little fuel in the tank, the body will go straight for the fat as an energy source to get you there. However, beware if you’re planning a long cardio workout, you’ll need to fuel that endurance training!
Circuit training is by far the best workout to lose weight. It’s been proven time and time again, bootcamps have sprouted all over the country, athletes are doing it, and so can you.
What Is Circuit Training?
Circuit training is a combination of strength moves and cardio moves, in stations, done one after the other with very little rest in between. Some argue that there is no real targeted body work. I would tend to agree with this, but then again, if the goal is weight loss, there is no need to target specific body parts. We have no control over where our body fat will store nor do we have control over where we will lose it first! Targeting specific body parts with weight load is done for sculpting or for strength building. Circuit training is targets the body as a whole, with emphasis on keeping the heart rate pumping hard, burning more calories than a general workout. We use weights to build some muscle tone (and muscles burn fat) and at that, they are not typically pure moves, combining the whole body in the strength move.. and we use the cardio component to keep the metabolism burning high during your workout.
Workout Schedules can be confusing. Do this, do that.. when? how? how often?
It all comes down to your particular goal!
Weight loss
In a weight loss environment, it’s important to do something every day! burning calories is the one thing you have to keep doing, on top of a strong nutritional foundation. Here’s an example of how this should look like
Monday: weight training – all body
Tuesday: cardio – 45 minutes
Wednesday: weight training – all body
Thursday: cardio – 45 minutes
Friday: weigth training – all body
Saturday: cardio – 45 minutes
Sunday: play time!
The key to weight loss training is training the body as a whole. Isolation moves will definitely get you stronger, but not necessarity in a look that you aiming for. Remember that before you get those striations (lines), you have to deplete the body. And that means movement and nutrition!
Sculpting
This is when we are training to get those “lines”… nutrtiion here is key as well.. here’s how I do it
Monday: Weight training – push muscles, legs and core
Tuesday – yoga followed by cardio
Wednesday – weight training – pull muscles, legs and core
Thursday – yoga followed by cardio
Friday – weight training – all body combos
Saturday – yoga followed by cardio
Sunday – play time!
Weight training in this environment becomes more in isolation, heavier weight load and high rep count.
If you don’t know your routine before you start your workout, chances are you will spend too much thinking and not enough time doing. Always have a workout plan BEFORE you start, then place your equipment around you so there is easy access… Always speak with a trainer if you are not sure what or how to get things done. Maximize your time by knowing what you’re doing.
How do you train to reach your goals? share your plan with me, i love learning how others do it!
A few years ago, i headed a satellite gym inside of a sports facility. The tone of this satellite gym is high energy, all body, bootcamp sort of format. Lots of fun! Every week, as new members came in, my classes became crowded yet i was not allowed to “limit” the amount of participants in the class. The result was that I sometimes “missed” seeing that one client really struggle. And yes, some did get injured, it was that type of class. (more…)
Functional Training is the buzz word we’ve been hearing more and more in gyms for the last few years. It’s become the trend, yet, everyone applies it to his/her own definition.
True functional training was defined in a time where we used what was available and at hand to build strength. For example, the farm hand would get strong lifting bails of hay, it was what was found in his surroundings. This same young man may have used rocks are weight resistance.. Functional Training in that environment means exactly that. Get stronger by using what your surroundings can offer.
In gyms, the definition will change somewhat. We use “toys” to simulate the demands. We design workout equipment to challenge the body to replicate life demands. For example, we use balance boards, we use agility ladders, we use dumbbells and kettle bells… And yes, I do call them toys!
I train to failure… sounds disheartening doesn’t it? but no, actually it isn’t! What i mean by that is that when i train, i train to the upmost of my capacity and my endurance. It’s about not leaving anything on the gym floor. When i walk out, i’m depleted (or rather crawl out?).
Some people in the industry call it hyperfitness, or insanity training or training like a freak… for me, i just call it: LOVE
it’s about reaching and surpassing my preconceived limits. It’s about asking myself if there is just one more inside to give out. I don’t ever want to define myself by my limits, quite the opposite, i want to define myself by what I can do!
I’ve received numerous client requests this week, asking me to write workout designs without equipment. Many of these clients are wanting to get back on track but don’t want to sign up at the gym or don’t have equipment in their homes.
The truth is that we have everything we need to get ourselves going.
Have you been loads of cardio work and have somehow plateau’d with your weight loss? It’s a frequent result…
