Almost all of us have one side that isn't as strong as the other. Usually this is our dominant (writing) side for the upper body and, interestingly enough, the opposite side for your lower body. This is because we tend to cross-brace with our opposite leg for our working arm.
At any rate, it's not usually much of an issue until you start working out in the gym. Then, the difference can be frustrating, particularly when you look in the mirror as you progress and see more developed muscles on one side. It can also be confusing as far as how to go about dealing with this in terms of weight lifting.
I have employed a method that, while not exactly rocket science, works. And it works safely.
There are two plans of attack, here, and they depend on if you are working both limbs unilaterally (individually) or bilaterally (together).
Let's take unilaterally, or individual, moves first. This is a pretty strait-forward approach: Do whatever the intended move is with the weaker side first, then match it on your stronger side. So, for instance, if you are able to do 15 reps of bicep curls with 10 pounds, you would move that same 10 pound weight to your weaker arm (in my case, this would be the left) and do exactly 15 reps- no more, no less. Even sets where you fall short of your desired number of reps, you keep it the same. For instance, if I were targeting 15 reps in my set but only got 13 reps out with my left arm, I would move that same weight over to my right arm and do the exact same number of reps I did with my left arm. To help me remember how many I did on the first arm, I would count from 13 down to 1. (Yes, my memory can be that bad!) Eventually you will get to where the left arm is about equal with the right. Sometimes, you can even get it stronger.
In the case of bilateral moves, there are two different approaches depending on whether you are lifting two different weights with both arms at the same time (like a dumbbell press), or a single weight with both limbs (like a leg press). In the former case (the dumbbell press), you would apply the same principle you did with the unilateral move and simply work both arms until the weaker arm gets as tired as you are targeting. In the latter case (the leg press), you would do what my former trainer Ruben Sandoval of Fit To Be in Your Kitchen advised: "Pay attention to the weak side and your strong side will take care of itself". So since my right side is weaker than my left on the leg press, I'm going to put ALL of my concentration into pushing with my right leg. The left leg instinctively presses on it's own. If it's a barbell bent row, I'm going to concentrate on pulling up with my weaker left side. The right side doesn't need me to think about it, since it's been my dominant side my whole life.
Simple little strategies that can make a BIG difference in making your body symmetrical. Tell me what you think!
Showing posts with label weight lifting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight lifting. Show all posts
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Ever Wonder the Daily Habits of the Most Muscular Guy in the Gym?
Last year I did a blog titled Ever Wondered How the Most Muscular Guy in the Gym Lifts? on SparkPeople.com. I did it there and not here because my following here appears to be mostly female, and a lot of guys follow me on Spark. I've always felt a follow-up blog about some of his daily habits would perhaps help someone else looking to make the most of their physique. While the weight lifting is obviously what has put all of that muscle on Ivory, what he does day-in and day-out contributes heavily to his health and appearance, as well. It really is a whole package if you want to get results as impressive as his:
*********NOTE***** I am not implying that anyone else should adopt ALL of these habits! Even Ivory didn't take them all on at once. Like anyone else who has made lasting lifestyle changes, he implement these bit by bit over the course of years.
So here, in no particular order, are some of the things I have observed and/or wrangled out of Ivory about what it is he does on a day-to-day basis:
Dietary:
- Never drinks soda. Unsweet tea? Yes. The occasional sugar-free Rock Star before a workout? Unfortunately, yes. (This makes me batty!) But carbonated beverages? In three years I've never seen him ingest one.
- Never drinks alcohol. No kidding.
- Drinks a LOT of water, although, surprisingly, he does not keep a bottle with him when he works out. He either goes to the drinking fountain, or swipes some of mine. (He's nice, though, and refills it for me if it is low.)
- Rarely ingests sugar. I mean, hardly ever. Around the holidays he may have a piece of sweet potato pie or banana pudding, but sugar for the most part is not in his diet.
- Keeps white flour to a bare minimum. Maybe once every week or two he'll have pancakes (with sugar-free syrup) right after a workout, but almost every other starch Ivory eats is either potatoes or whole grain.
- Not afraid of carbs, but eats plenty of protein. Protein is the center of most of his meals, but he always has some kind of a starch and usually either veggies or fruit along with it.
- Loves his veggies!
- Keeps fruit consumption fairly low- perhaps a piece of fruit a day.
- Eats an extremely wide variety of foods.
- Stops eating when he is full. He'll leave half a plate of food because "I'm full"
- And, because everyone wonders this: Doesn't go anywhere near steroids or other stuff purported to help you gain muscle. Tried Creatine once, but it dehydrated him so bad that he wound up in the ER. About the only thing supplemental he takes is the occasional scoop of protein powder and a multivitamin when he remembers it. Really. (I made him pinky swear on this one.)
Exercise:
- Cardio is short (usually 20-30 minutes) but very intense. I'm tellin' ya, the guy is positively raining sweat when he gets done with a cardio session.
- Changes set/rep scheme and the exercises he does frequently.
- Hits every muscle group once a week.
- Takes more time to train shoulders than any other body part.
- Takes 1 day a week as rest day from gym. He typically lifts weights Mon-Fri and does cardio Mon, Fri, and Sat. Sometimes Tuesday.
- Gives full rest between sets. This way, he's able to put maximum effort into all of his lifting.
- Asks for a spotter when he goes super-heavy. If there is no one around to spot, he doesn't go heavy that day and does more reps.
- Does abbreviated movements on big lifts- stays in the tension.
- Always keeps good form. If he can't keep proper form, he lowers the weight.
Life in General:
- Keeps a relaxed attitude- What some would call stressful, he just accepts as life and rolls with it.
- Is hardly ever in a hurry. For as fast as this guy moves during cardio, he kinda ambles around the rest of the time.
- Prioritizes taking time to do things he enjoys (coaching football, playing softball, going to his kids sporting events, fishing)
- Invests time in friendships.
- Keeps current on fitness information and is always willing to learn and try new things.
- Makes an effort to stand up strait- excellent posture.
- Lost weight when he needed to. Ivory told me that at 6'2" he weighed 330, if I remember correctly, for quite a while. It was affecting his health. The doctor gave him what-for, Ivory listened and started eating better and adding cardio to his exercise routine (he'd been lifting all along). He lost 50 pounds and the weight has stayed off. Gotta respect that.
Lastly, I feel compelled to point out that it has taken years of doing these same things, day in and day out, to get to where he is now. Genetically Ivory is indeed gifted, but the mounds of thick and well-defined muscle would not be there if he didn't work hard and stay consistent in his habits. So if you aren't getting the results you want in a few weeks or months, remember that it takes sticking to doing the right things over and over for many years on end to be able to carry this kind of a look well into your 40's (Ivory is 45), and beyond.
*********NOTE***** I am not implying that anyone else should adopt ALL of these habits! Even Ivory didn't take them all on at once. Like anyone else who has made lasting lifestyle changes, he implement these bit by bit over the course of years.
So here, in no particular order, are some of the things I have observed and/or wrangled out of Ivory about what it is he does on a day-to-day basis:
Dietary:
- Never drinks soda. Unsweet tea? Yes. The occasional sugar-free Rock Star before a workout? Unfortunately, yes. (This makes me batty!) But carbonated beverages? In three years I've never seen him ingest one.
- Never drinks alcohol. No kidding.
- Drinks a LOT of water, although, surprisingly, he does not keep a bottle with him when he works out. He either goes to the drinking fountain, or swipes some of mine. (He's nice, though, and refills it for me if it is low.)
- Rarely ingests sugar. I mean, hardly ever. Around the holidays he may have a piece of sweet potato pie or banana pudding, but sugar for the most part is not in his diet.
- Keeps white flour to a bare minimum. Maybe once every week or two he'll have pancakes (with sugar-free syrup) right after a workout, but almost every other starch Ivory eats is either potatoes or whole grain.
- Not afraid of carbs, but eats plenty of protein. Protein is the center of most of his meals, but he always has some kind of a starch and usually either veggies or fruit along with it.
- Loves his veggies!
- Keeps fruit consumption fairly low- perhaps a piece of fruit a day.
- Eats an extremely wide variety of foods.
- Stops eating when he is full. He'll leave half a plate of food because "I'm full"
- And, because everyone wonders this: Doesn't go anywhere near steroids or other stuff purported to help you gain muscle. Tried Creatine once, but it dehydrated him so bad that he wound up in the ER. About the only thing supplemental he takes is the occasional scoop of protein powder and a multivitamin when he remembers it. Really. (I made him pinky swear on this one.)
Exercise:
- Cardio is short (usually 20-30 minutes) but very intense. I'm tellin' ya, the guy is positively raining sweat when he gets done with a cardio session.
- Changes set/rep scheme and the exercises he does frequently.
- Hits every muscle group once a week.
- Takes more time to train shoulders than any other body part.
- Takes 1 day a week as rest day from gym. He typically lifts weights Mon-Fri and does cardio Mon, Fri, and Sat. Sometimes Tuesday.
- Gives full rest between sets. This way, he's able to put maximum effort into all of his lifting.
- Asks for a spotter when he goes super-heavy. If there is no one around to spot, he doesn't go heavy that day and does more reps.
- Does abbreviated movements on big lifts- stays in the tension.
- Always keeps good form. If he can't keep proper form, he lowers the weight.
Life in General:
- Keeps a relaxed attitude- What some would call stressful, he just accepts as life and rolls with it.
- Is hardly ever in a hurry. For as fast as this guy moves during cardio, he kinda ambles around the rest of the time.
- Prioritizes taking time to do things he enjoys (coaching football, playing softball, going to his kids sporting events, fishing)
- Invests time in friendships.
- Keeps current on fitness information and is always willing to learn and try new things.
- Makes an effort to stand up strait- excellent posture.
- Lost weight when he needed to. Ivory told me that at 6'2" he weighed 330, if I remember correctly, for quite a while. It was affecting his health. The doctor gave him what-for, Ivory listened and started eating better and adding cardio to his exercise routine (he'd been lifting all along). He lost 50 pounds and the weight has stayed off. Gotta respect that.
Lastly, I feel compelled to point out that it has taken years of doing these same things, day in and day out, to get to where he is now. Genetically Ivory is indeed gifted, but the mounds of thick and well-defined muscle would not be there if he didn't work hard and stay consistent in his habits. So if you aren't getting the results you want in a few weeks or months, remember that it takes sticking to doing the right things over and over for many years on end to be able to carry this kind of a look well into your 40's (Ivory is 45), and beyond.
Friday, December 28, 2012
Accept Your Body Type
"I want your abs!".
I get this comment a lot. While I know it's meant as a compliment, some of the people who say this are seriously trying to get abs just like mine. They will write me telling me they've eaten what I eat, exercised like I exercise, and done their level best to emulate me. And still they don't have my abs. They want to know what they are doing wrong.
And here is my answer: Nothing. They are doing nothing wrong.
See, other people doing what I do to get my abs is the equivalent of me doing what Figure Pro Erin Stern does to get her legs. Try as I might, I'll never have Erin's legs, because I am not Erin.
My lower half will always be my weak point, the place where I will always wish I could improve. There are broken veins and even at 10% body fat, when they are looking the best they can, there is always at least a little cellulite. To add insult to injury, at body fat that low there's also saggy skin right under my glutes.
So what's a bottom-heavy girl to do? I capitalize on my abs, arms, shoulders, and back (I have awesome back muscles!). I show these parts off. I hide my legs as much as I need to so that they don't take away from the beauty of my upper body.
This doesn't mean I don't work on my lower body, because I do. I work REALLY hard on it, because not only do I want to see improvement there, but also because those big muscles burn the most fat. And I need to keep my fat levels low for the sake of my health. So for me, it's about more way more than appearance- It's about being healthy and balanced.
But I have accepted that my legs and glutes will never be my strong suit. And you may need to accept that your abs will never be yours. Or whatever body part makes you crazy.
There are parts of your physique you can reshape: My shoulders are naturally very slight. I have worked to build muscle on them to help balance my wide hips. I've built up my back for the same reason. I've added muscle, and therefore definition, to my arms.
But some things (like wide waists, big calves, and bubble butts) can't be changed with diet and exercise. You might be very lean and still have a waist measurement almost the same as your hips, a bust line that is more than generous, or muscular calves that will never fit into a pair of skinny jeans. Like me, you might have to get down to an unsustainable and unhealthy body fat level to get true symmetry to your physique. The sooner you accept that the healthiest thing may for you may not be the most asthetically pleasing, the sooner you will be content with your body.
Change what you can, accept what you can't, aim for health over all, and celebrate the uniqueness of YOU!
I get this comment a lot. While I know it's meant as a compliment, some of the people who say this are seriously trying to get abs just like mine. They will write me telling me they've eaten what I eat, exercised like I exercise, and done their level best to emulate me. And still they don't have my abs. They want to know what they are doing wrong.
And here is my answer: Nothing. They are doing nothing wrong.
See, other people doing what I do to get my abs is the equivalent of me doing what Figure Pro Erin Stern does to get her legs. Try as I might, I'll never have Erin's legs, because I am not Erin.
My lower half will always be my weak point, the place where I will always wish I could improve. There are broken veins and even at 10% body fat, when they are looking the best they can, there is always at least a little cellulite. To add insult to injury, at body fat that low there's also saggy skin right under my glutes.
So what's a bottom-heavy girl to do? I capitalize on my abs, arms, shoulders, and back (I have awesome back muscles!). I show these parts off. I hide my legs as much as I need to so that they don't take away from the beauty of my upper body.
This doesn't mean I don't work on my lower body, because I do. I work REALLY hard on it, because not only do I want to see improvement there, but also because those big muscles burn the most fat. And I need to keep my fat levels low for the sake of my health. So for me, it's about more way more than appearance- It's about being healthy and balanced.
But I have accepted that my legs and glutes will never be my strong suit. And you may need to accept that your abs will never be yours. Or whatever body part makes you crazy.
There are parts of your physique you can reshape: My shoulders are naturally very slight. I have worked to build muscle on them to help balance my wide hips. I've built up my back for the same reason. I've added muscle, and therefore definition, to my arms.
But some things (like wide waists, big calves, and bubble butts) can't be changed with diet and exercise. You might be very lean and still have a waist measurement almost the same as your hips, a bust line that is more than generous, or muscular calves that will never fit into a pair of skinny jeans. Like me, you might have to get down to an unsustainable and unhealthy body fat level to get true symmetry to your physique. The sooner you accept that the healthiest thing may for you may not be the most asthetically pleasing, the sooner you will be content with your body.
Change what you can, accept what you can't, aim for health over all, and celebrate the uniqueness of YOU!
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Video Blog Link: The thinking behind my latest workout split.
Just a warning- This is a lot of info! And longer than I would have liked.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzJU7_YFTnk&feature=g-upl&context=G21953c4AUAAAAAAAAAA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzJU7_YFTnk&feature=g-upl&context=G21953c4AUAAAAAAAAAA
Monday, March 26, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Saturday, January 21, 2012
A Surprising Supplement Rescource
Could you use another source for your protein-rich dietary supplements? You might want to consider bariatric product suppliers. They have become my surprising source for protein-rich supplements to aid in my quest to be leaner and more muscular.
Bariatric patients (who have had either gastric by-pass or lap-band surgery) have stomachs that have been surgically altered to hold very little food. One of their primary concerns is getting enough protein. They have to pack as much of it as possible into a very small stomach space. Bariatric foods accomplish this. So it follows that these protein-rich foods can also be very handy for weight lifters and people looking to raise their dietary protein levels.
Now don't get me wrong: These supplements aren't cheap. But most of us who buy protein bars and powders have come to accept the expense.
There is a protein powder sold by our local bariatric doctor called Nectar. It's made by the Syntrax company. Per scoop Nectar is 100 calories, all of them from protein. No carbs. No fat. Just protein. And it comes in a dizzying array of flavors! (I love the peach.)
Bariatric places also tend to stock protein bars that are less garbage and more good for you, because they are interested in keeping their patients as healthy as possible. Generally these bars will have not only about equal amounts of carbs as protein, but also some fiber in them, which really helps with feeling full. For bariatric patients these are meal replacements. (Remember- their stomachs hold next to nothing!) For the rest of us, they are between-meal snacks. But they taste good (you aren't going to get an obese person who ate exactly what they liked getting that way to eat food that tastes like crap), and give a good balance of nutrients.
Don't be afraid to walk into your local bariatric doctor and ask if they sell powders and bars. They won't mind having you for a client! This is one avenue of revenue for them and they are happy to sell their products to the general public.
Another thing I like about purchasing from our local bariatric doctor's office is that they have samples of the protein flavors. So I can try out a single serving for $2, instead of spending $32 on an entire tub of powder I may not like the flavor of.
If you don't have a bariatric doctor nearby who sells supplements you can also order online. Here is a site that I use: http://www.dietdirect.com/wonderslim-crispy-protein-diet-bars.html. Not only do I like the bars in the link (I've mentioned these a couple of times in my blogs), but they also sell the Nectar Protein powder. And a lot of other stuff, too! They offer a surprising amount of vitamins and various tablet supplements, as well. Take a poke around to see! (Although I would NOT recommend their entree mixes- Not only are they highly processed, but I don't think they taste all that great.) If you order more than $49 you get free shipping, and check out the "discounts and coupons" tags on the left bar, under "Wonderslim", to see if you qualify for any discounts or special offers.
I know this isn't a practical resource for everyone, but thought it might be something some of my wonderful readers might like to know about.
Bariatric patients (who have had either gastric by-pass or lap-band surgery) have stomachs that have been surgically altered to hold very little food. One of their primary concerns is getting enough protein. They have to pack as much of it as possible into a very small stomach space. Bariatric foods accomplish this. So it follows that these protein-rich foods can also be very handy for weight lifters and people looking to raise their dietary protein levels.
Now don't get me wrong: These supplements aren't cheap. But most of us who buy protein bars and powders have come to accept the expense.
There is a protein powder sold by our local bariatric doctor called Nectar. It's made by the Syntrax company. Per scoop Nectar is 100 calories, all of them from protein. No carbs. No fat. Just protein. And it comes in a dizzying array of flavors! (I love the peach.)
Bariatric places also tend to stock protein bars that are less garbage and more good for you, because they are interested in keeping their patients as healthy as possible. Generally these bars will have not only about equal amounts of carbs as protein, but also some fiber in them, which really helps with feeling full. For bariatric patients these are meal replacements. (Remember- their stomachs hold next to nothing!) For the rest of us, they are between-meal snacks. But they taste good (you aren't going to get an obese person who ate exactly what they liked getting that way to eat food that tastes like crap), and give a good balance of nutrients.
Don't be afraid to walk into your local bariatric doctor and ask if they sell powders and bars. They won't mind having you for a client! This is one avenue of revenue for them and they are happy to sell their products to the general public.
Another thing I like about purchasing from our local bariatric doctor's office is that they have samples of the protein flavors. So I can try out a single serving for $2, instead of spending $32 on an entire tub of powder I may not like the flavor of.
If you don't have a bariatric doctor nearby who sells supplements you can also order online. Here is a site that I use: http://www.dietdirect.com/wonderslim-crispy-protein-diet-bars.html. Not only do I like the bars in the link (I've mentioned these a couple of times in my blogs), but they also sell the Nectar Protein powder. And a lot of other stuff, too! They offer a surprising amount of vitamins and various tablet supplements, as well. Take a poke around to see! (Although I would NOT recommend their entree mixes- Not only are they highly processed, but I don't think they taste all that great.) If you order more than $49 you get free shipping, and check out the "discounts and coupons" tags on the left bar, under "Wonderslim", to see if you qualify for any discounts or special offers.
I know this isn't a practical resource for everyone, but thought it might be something some of my wonderful readers might like to know about.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Video Blog: Organizational Tools I Have Used in my Quest for Fitness
Here is a link to my very first video blog. It's pretty self-explanatory!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKSEWgllqDs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKSEWgllqDs
Sunday, July 10, 2011
My Daily Supplements
I think anyone who has considered taking supplements to help boost their potential with weight loss, in the weight room, or both will agree that there are so many choices out there it's confusing and overwhelming. This one area I will admit I am not extremely knowledgeable about. But I have managed to learn a little and pick out what I believe to be the best and most effective supplements for my needs. What you need may different, but this might help someone to get an idea of how to go about selecting supplements.
I take three different "stacks" (combos of supplements), timed morning, afternoon, and before bed:
1. With breakfast (for maximum absorption) I take-
- A multi-vitamin. I don't take any one brand- I just try to find a well-rounded one. Truth be told, right now I am taking children's gummy vitamins. So shoot me. My diet is good enough that I don't feel I have to get picky about this one.
- A calcium/magnesium/D supplement. The one I take has about 30% daily recommended amount of calcium and 50% recommended daily amount of D per pill (not per dose- a dose is 2, and I only take one at a time). I take the calcium because more often than not I don't get two servings of dairy in daily. The magnesium is for max absorption of the calcium. And the D is because I have a past history of depression that I have noted is a lot better when I am in the sun frequently. I thought this might be related to vitamin D, and sure enough, when I started taking D my depression was a lot easier to manage. If I didn't get magnesium or D with the calcium pills, I would take them as a separate supplement along with it.
- An Omega fatty acids pill. The one I take has all 3 Omegas in it (3, 6, and 9). There is enough scientific evidence behind this one that I believe it is worth the expense. Plus, I swear my eyesight is better when I am taking it. On days I eat fish I skip this supplement.
In the afternoon (with lunch, if I remember) I take:
- Another Omega Fatty Acid pill
- An Iron pill, because I have a low iron level. I keep the iron pill far away from calcium intake, either in diet or supplement, because calcium inhibits Iron absorption.
Before bed I take:
- Another calcium/magnesium/D pill. This is a great time to take it because cal/mag has been proven to help with sleep.
- A glucosamine pill, because I have arthritis in a knee and it's supposed to help with joints.
In addition to these, on days I work out I take an L-Glutamine pill with my breakfast stack. I guess it's best to get L-glutamine in powder form immediately following working out, but since I have a bunch of them in pill form and I know pills take a while to break down and get into the system, I take them with breakfast, reasoning it will reach my muscles by the time I am done lifting. My reasoning is NOT based on science, though; just simply on what I think, so I could be dead wrong with this one. But I don't want to waste the pills, so until they are gone this is what I will be doing. After that I don't think I will take Glutamine at all anymore.
And right after I am done working out I have 5g of BCAA (branched chain amino acid) powder in protein powder that I put in my gym bag and add water to after lifting so I can drink it while I am walking out of the gym. Since starting this I swear I am not as sore after my workouts. I think they are also supposed to help aid in weight loss, but I'm not quite sure how. I use the Modern brand and the recommended dosage is 10g, but since I am a 150-lb woman I just take 5g (single scoop). This helps to stretch the container. A word of warning about flavoring with BCAA powder- make sure it has some! I got the plain the first time and my goodness, it was bitter! I had to add a packet of stevia to my protein powder/BCAA concoction to make it palatable enough to swallow. The flavor seems to help mask quite a lot of the bitterness.
Okay- so there you have my stacks and my reasons for them. I used to take more, but this is what I've brought it down to and I believe benefits me the most.
I take three different "stacks" (combos of supplements), timed morning, afternoon, and before bed:
1. With breakfast (for maximum absorption) I take-
- A multi-vitamin. I don't take any one brand- I just try to find a well-rounded one. Truth be told, right now I am taking children's gummy vitamins. So shoot me. My diet is good enough that I don't feel I have to get picky about this one.
- A calcium/magnesium/D supplement. The one I take has about 30% daily recommended amount of calcium and 50% recommended daily amount of D per pill (not per dose- a dose is 2, and I only take one at a time). I take the calcium because more often than not I don't get two servings of dairy in daily. The magnesium is for max absorption of the calcium. And the D is because I have a past history of depression that I have noted is a lot better when I am in the sun frequently. I thought this might be related to vitamin D, and sure enough, when I started taking D my depression was a lot easier to manage. If I didn't get magnesium or D with the calcium pills, I would take them as a separate supplement along with it.
- An Omega fatty acids pill. The one I take has all 3 Omegas in it (3, 6, and 9). There is enough scientific evidence behind this one that I believe it is worth the expense. Plus, I swear my eyesight is better when I am taking it. On days I eat fish I skip this supplement.
In the afternoon (with lunch, if I remember) I take:
- Another Omega Fatty Acid pill
- An Iron pill, because I have a low iron level. I keep the iron pill far away from calcium intake, either in diet or supplement, because calcium inhibits Iron absorption.
Before bed I take:
- Another calcium/magnesium/D pill. This is a great time to take it because cal/mag has been proven to help with sleep.
- A glucosamine pill, because I have arthritis in a knee and it's supposed to help with joints.
In addition to these, on days I work out I take an L-Glutamine pill with my breakfast stack. I guess it's best to get L-glutamine in powder form immediately following working out, but since I have a bunch of them in pill form and I know pills take a while to break down and get into the system, I take them with breakfast, reasoning it will reach my muscles by the time I am done lifting. My reasoning is NOT based on science, though; just simply on what I think, so I could be dead wrong with this one. But I don't want to waste the pills, so until they are gone this is what I will be doing. After that I don't think I will take Glutamine at all anymore.
And right after I am done working out I have 5g of BCAA (branched chain amino acid) powder in protein powder that I put in my gym bag and add water to after lifting so I can drink it while I am walking out of the gym. Since starting this I swear I am not as sore after my workouts. I think they are also supposed to help aid in weight loss, but I'm not quite sure how. I use the Modern brand and the recommended dosage is 10g, but since I am a 150-lb woman I just take 5g (single scoop). This helps to stretch the container. A word of warning about flavoring with BCAA powder- make sure it has some! I got the plain the first time and my goodness, it was bitter! I had to add a packet of stevia to my protein powder/BCAA concoction to make it palatable enough to swallow. The flavor seems to help mask quite a lot of the bitterness.
Okay- so there you have my stacks and my reasons for them. I used to take more, but this is what I've brought it down to and I believe benefits me the most.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
The Importance of Water
One of the keys to losing and now maintaining my weight has been drinking copious amounts of water (rarely less than 1 and sometimes up to 2 gallons a day). I promised someone a while back who was surprised I considered it so important that I would post a blog on the subject. I'm finally making good on that promise.
Here are a few of the many benefits of drinking plenty of water (not zero-calorie beverages: WATER!)
- Let's start with the most motivating one: Water helps waste move through the body in a mighty way. This means that a bunch of crud won't be hanging around inside you and you're more likely to weigh less on the scale in the mornings (after you've peed), because the content of your intestines will weigh less. Full intestines can cause several pounds of scale weight gain if you are.... er..... stopped up. So drinking water helps to give you a truer scale weight.
-Water helps to break down the nutrients in your food better, thus increasing your metabolism. Not only that, if you are getting the nutrients you need the chances of cravings is reduced.
- Water helps regulate blood sugar, which helps insulin levels to stay steady, also reducing your likelihood to overindulge in sweet stuff.
- Water helps to give your stomach a full feel so that you are less likely to overeat.
- Plenty of water in your system helps your body to keep you cool during workouts, therefore allowing you to work out harder and get more bang for your exercise buck.
- Water is the primary ingredient in the synovial fluid around the joints, which allows them to move freely and gives them cushioning during your workouts.
There are a TON of other ways that water benefits the body, but these are ones that specifically relate to weight loss and fitness.
Can you drink too much water? Yes- There is such a thing as water toxicity. But to get that you have to drink stupid amounts of water. The kidneys can process quite a lot of water an hour (over a quart) easily. You'd pretty much have to TRY to drink too much water to get water toxicity. Stay away from water-chugging contests and you'll probably be fine. :-)
And lastly, do I pee a lot? YES! But you don't pee out all that you drink- water goes out of you in other ways, like sweat and respiration, too. And I will say that my bladder size has increased since increasing my water intake. So while I still visit the bathroom more often than most other adults I know, I'm not seeing the inside of the ladies room as often as I did this time last year.
Here are a few of the many benefits of drinking plenty of water (not zero-calorie beverages: WATER!)
- Let's start with the most motivating one: Water helps waste move through the body in a mighty way. This means that a bunch of crud won't be hanging around inside you and you're more likely to weigh less on the scale in the mornings (after you've peed), because the content of your intestines will weigh less. Full intestines can cause several pounds of scale weight gain if you are.... er..... stopped up. So drinking water helps to give you a truer scale weight.
-Water helps to break down the nutrients in your food better, thus increasing your metabolism. Not only that, if you are getting the nutrients you need the chances of cravings is reduced.
- Water helps regulate blood sugar, which helps insulin levels to stay steady, also reducing your likelihood to overindulge in sweet stuff.
- Water helps to give your stomach a full feel so that you are less likely to overeat.
- Plenty of water in your system helps your body to keep you cool during workouts, therefore allowing you to work out harder and get more bang for your exercise buck.
- Water is the primary ingredient in the synovial fluid around the joints, which allows them to move freely and gives them cushioning during your workouts.
There are a TON of other ways that water benefits the body, but these are ones that specifically relate to weight loss and fitness.
Can you drink too much water? Yes- There is such a thing as water toxicity. But to get that you have to drink stupid amounts of water. The kidneys can process quite a lot of water an hour (over a quart) easily. You'd pretty much have to TRY to drink too much water to get water toxicity. Stay away from water-chugging contests and you'll probably be fine. :-)
And lastly, do I pee a lot? YES! But you don't pee out all that you drink- water goes out of you in other ways, like sweat and respiration, too. And I will say that my bladder size has increased since increasing my water intake. So while I still visit the bathroom more often than most other adults I know, I'm not seeing the inside of the ladies room as often as I did this time last year.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Lunging Without Damaging Your Knees
My belief is that, after Squats, lunges are the best exercise out there for the lower body- Especially the butt! If yours is flat, lunges will help round it out. If it's too round, lunges will help it look more compact. The folks I've seen who do lunges religiously have nice firm backsides and hamstrings, and flared hips with reduced saddlebags.
But a lot of people are afraid to lunge and never realize the benefits of this compound move. And with good reason- Lunging wrong can cause some serious damage to knees. I avoided them for a long time, then started to do some experimenting and discovered a few very simple things that finally made lunging possible for me again:
1. Do walking lunges ONLY! Forget stationery lunges or back lunges- both types seem to aggravate the knee of my forward foot when going into the backwards part of either motion. (This would be pushing back into start in the case of front lunges, and lowering down in the case of back lunges). The tendency when going backwards is to stabilize with the toes, and my experience is that when I am stabilizing with the toes my knee will instinctively go in front of my toes to balance my body, which stresses it. Walking lunges enable me to leave my toes out of the equation entirely, if I really concentrate on pressing through my heels.
Also, in my opinion, walking lunges simply do a better job of shaping the lower body, since they use all the muscles together through the entire range of motion.
2. Push through the heel of the front foot! Just as with squats, I make a mindful effort to think "heels, heels, heels" when I am lunging. When I push through the toes of the front foot, there goes my knee too far forward again and I feel that old familiar twinge for the next few(or more) days.
3. Take a big, "This-feels-way-too-long" step forward. The farther out you step, the safer the position is for your front knee because it's as far away as possible from being over the toes.
4. When following through with your back foot (bringing it forward), pause slightly, touching your toes to the ground next to the stationary foot. This allows you to regain your balance and center yourself. THEN bring what was the back foot to the forward position. This will help keep you from landing on your toes to balance you when that rear foot moves to the front position.
One added note- I hate those short lunges people do to better hit quads. They just look to me to be a knee disaster waiting to happen. If you want to do a multiple-joint exercise that focuses mostly on quads, do front squats or close-stance leg presses.
And that's it! In a nutshell, do walking lunges with big, wide steps, pause before you bring the back foot forward, and stay in your heel on the front foot. You'll feel these the next day, and your backside will thank you!
But a lot of people are afraid to lunge and never realize the benefits of this compound move. And with good reason- Lunging wrong can cause some serious damage to knees. I avoided them for a long time, then started to do some experimenting and discovered a few very simple things that finally made lunging possible for me again:
1. Do walking lunges ONLY! Forget stationery lunges or back lunges- both types seem to aggravate the knee of my forward foot when going into the backwards part of either motion. (This would be pushing back into start in the case of front lunges, and lowering down in the case of back lunges). The tendency when going backwards is to stabilize with the toes, and my experience is that when I am stabilizing with the toes my knee will instinctively go in front of my toes to balance my body, which stresses it. Walking lunges enable me to leave my toes out of the equation entirely, if I really concentrate on pressing through my heels.
Also, in my opinion, walking lunges simply do a better job of shaping the lower body, since they use all the muscles together through the entire range of motion.
2. Push through the heel of the front foot! Just as with squats, I make a mindful effort to think "heels, heels, heels" when I am lunging. When I push through the toes of the front foot, there goes my knee too far forward again and I feel that old familiar twinge for the next few(or more) days.
3. Take a big, "This-feels-way-too-long" step forward. The farther out you step, the safer the position is for your front knee because it's as far away as possible from being over the toes.
4. When following through with your back foot (bringing it forward), pause slightly, touching your toes to the ground next to the stationary foot. This allows you to regain your balance and center yourself. THEN bring what was the back foot to the forward position. This will help keep you from landing on your toes to balance you when that rear foot moves to the front position.
One added note- I hate those short lunges people do to better hit quads. They just look to me to be a knee disaster waiting to happen. If you want to do a multiple-joint exercise that focuses mostly on quads, do front squats or close-stance leg presses.
And that's it! In a nutshell, do walking lunges with big, wide steps, pause before you bring the back foot forward, and stay in your heel on the front foot. You'll feel these the next day, and your backside will thank you!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Top 12 Things I Wish I Could Say to People in the Gym
1. Ask me for help! I'm not going to bite, and I'd be honored!
2. You aren't lifting enough! If you are still leg pressing the same weight you were pressing six months ago (or one year or five years ago), you aren't challenging your muscles and aren't going to see growth. Women especially are guilty of this. They seem to think "Eight pounds is what I curl", instead of "How much more can I curl?"
3. You're lifting too much! If you are losing your form (arching your back, using momentum to get the weight up, or otherwise employing bad technique), for Pete's sake, lower the weight and do it correctly! Not only will you dramatically reduce your risk of hurting yourself and gain better muscle, but you also won't look like an idiot to everyone else in the gym.
4. You aren't going low enough on squats! Check my blog "Squatting Re-learned" here: http://itallmakesadifference.blogspot.com/2009/12/squatting-re-learned.html to see what I'm talking about.
5. Your back isn't strait enough! Hunching when you do ANY exercise is bad form. You're back should feel so strait that it feels like you're butt is protruding. I see a hunched back most often on Dumbbell Bent Rows and Tricep Kick Backs. Look in the mirror and check your form! You should be able to put a 3/4 full cup of coffee on your back and not have it spill.
6. Let go! When you set the treadmill to an incline and then hold onto the handles and lean backwards while walking, you are no longer at an incline! Let go and do an incline that you can manage withOUT hanging on!
7. Stop it with the cardio, already! As I've said in the past, lifting weights does more for fat loss and body shaping than cardio ever could. Cut your elliptical time in half and come lift weights! We really aren't scary people at the lifting end of the gym.... really! (Please refer to #1)
8. Unrack your weights! Okay, all of you lugheads... Not everyone can take that 45 or 100-pound plate down from a bar that's 5-feet off the ground. And it's just a hassle to have to put someone else's weights away. Practice good gym etiquette and put ALL your weights away after you are done using them. Even if you started with weights that were already racked.
9. Read a book! Or a magazine...... Pick up some literature on correct lifting technique and setting up a program. You'll be safer and see results quicker this way.
10. Try something new! Ever seen the big guys that are in their 50's and played football in College and are STILL lifting the exact same way because "I've always done it like this!"?. Notice that they don't look like college football players anymore? This is because they are missing one very key component: Football! Look, when you're out there doing the stuff that a sport, particularly football, requires, you don't have to be as comprehensive in the gym because the sport itself is most of your workout. But when you take the sport out of the equation, you need to change your gym routine to reflect that! (And they wonder why their bodies never change.)...... This rule also applies to anyone who is not getting results in the gym- You can't do the same routine forever expecting to get the same results, because muscles adapt so quickly. Keep 'em guessing and try new moves frequently!
11. Ask me to spot you! I may be a female, but my partner is the most muscular fella in the gym. If I can spot him, I'm pretty sure that between me and you we can get that heavy weight off of you before it falls on your head and knocks you cold or crushes your sternum. I'd rather spot you than perform CPR.
12. SHUT UP! Just stop talking and exercise, already! :-D
2. You aren't lifting enough! If you are still leg pressing the same weight you were pressing six months ago (or one year or five years ago), you aren't challenging your muscles and aren't going to see growth. Women especially are guilty of this. They seem to think "Eight pounds is what I curl", instead of "How much more can I curl?"
3. You're lifting too much! If you are losing your form (arching your back, using momentum to get the weight up, or otherwise employing bad technique), for Pete's sake, lower the weight and do it correctly! Not only will you dramatically reduce your risk of hurting yourself and gain better muscle, but you also won't look like an idiot to everyone else in the gym.
4. You aren't going low enough on squats! Check my blog "Squatting Re-learned" here: http://itallmakesadifference.blogspot.com/2009/12/squatting-re-learned.html to see what I'm talking about.
5. Your back isn't strait enough! Hunching when you do ANY exercise is bad form. You're back should feel so strait that it feels like you're butt is protruding. I see a hunched back most often on Dumbbell Bent Rows and Tricep Kick Backs. Look in the mirror and check your form! You should be able to put a 3/4 full cup of coffee on your back and not have it spill.
6. Let go! When you set the treadmill to an incline and then hold onto the handles and lean backwards while walking, you are no longer at an incline! Let go and do an incline that you can manage withOUT hanging on!
7. Stop it with the cardio, already! As I've said in the past, lifting weights does more for fat loss and body shaping than cardio ever could. Cut your elliptical time in half and come lift weights! We really aren't scary people at the lifting end of the gym.... really! (Please refer to #1)
8. Unrack your weights! Okay, all of you lugheads... Not everyone can take that 45 or 100-pound plate down from a bar that's 5-feet off the ground. And it's just a hassle to have to put someone else's weights away. Practice good gym etiquette and put ALL your weights away after you are done using them. Even if you started with weights that were already racked.
9. Read a book! Or a magazine...... Pick up some literature on correct lifting technique and setting up a program. You'll be safer and see results quicker this way.
10. Try something new! Ever seen the big guys that are in their 50's and played football in College and are STILL lifting the exact same way because "I've always done it like this!"?. Notice that they don't look like college football players anymore? This is because they are missing one very key component: Football! Look, when you're out there doing the stuff that a sport, particularly football, requires, you don't have to be as comprehensive in the gym because the sport itself is most of your workout. But when you take the sport out of the equation, you need to change your gym routine to reflect that! (And they wonder why their bodies never change.)...... This rule also applies to anyone who is not getting results in the gym- You can't do the same routine forever expecting to get the same results, because muscles adapt so quickly. Keep 'em guessing and try new moves frequently!
11. Ask me to spot you! I may be a female, but my partner is the most muscular fella in the gym. If I can spot him, I'm pretty sure that between me and you we can get that heavy weight off of you before it falls on your head and knocks you cold or crushes your sternum. I'd rather spot you than perform CPR.
12. SHUT UP! Just stop talking and exercise, already! :-D
Monday, January 24, 2011
A Product Recommendation: PACE Weights
For Christmas I recieved something I feel is a valuable tool in my strength and muscle gaining arsenal: PACE Weights ( paceweights.com )
These were first mentioned to me by Ross, a trainer I worked with a year ago. He told me about little 1/2 pound magnetic weights that attach to other types of metal weights (to include plates on cable machines) and make it possible to go up in poundage. I Googled them, bookmarked the site, then asked for them for Christmas this year.
I'm sure you have experienced times when you can't go up to the next 5 or 10 pound weight, but the current weight is just a little too light for the number of reps you had in mind. It's frustrating! BUT, if you can go up 1/2 pound at a time, you can inch closer to that next weight mark. Ross said "Can you imagine how fast you can gain strength if you can go up just a pound at a time?" He was right- since starting to work out with my PACE Weights my strength has increased MUCH faster than it did without them.
IMHO they're kinda expensive- the full set is $89 and with shipping it comes out to $103. This is for 18 PACE Weights (9lbs). You can also get a smaller set of 9 PACE Weights (4 1/2 pounds), for $57. But unless you strictly work out with one Dumbbell at a time, I'd recommend the larger set. I've had occasion to use more than 9 of them at once already. And get the ones that include the case! It makes them portable and more accessible with a place to store them. I take mine to the gym and use them 5 days a week.
My friend Tammie saw mine, got PACE Weight envy, and purchased a set for herself. I got a text this morning telling me how much she likes them. This is one really great product!
And no, I'm not on commission! :-D I just believe in recommending a great product when I find it.
These were first mentioned to me by Ross, a trainer I worked with a year ago. He told me about little 1/2 pound magnetic weights that attach to other types of metal weights (to include plates on cable machines) and make it possible to go up in poundage. I Googled them, bookmarked the site, then asked for them for Christmas this year.
I'm sure you have experienced times when you can't go up to the next 5 or 10 pound weight, but the current weight is just a little too light for the number of reps you had in mind. It's frustrating! BUT, if you can go up 1/2 pound at a time, you can inch closer to that next weight mark. Ross said "Can you imagine how fast you can gain strength if you can go up just a pound at a time?" He was right- since starting to work out with my PACE Weights my strength has increased MUCH faster than it did without them.
IMHO they're kinda expensive- the full set is $89 and with shipping it comes out to $103. This is for 18 PACE Weights (9lbs). You can also get a smaller set of 9 PACE Weights (4 1/2 pounds), for $57. But unless you strictly work out with one Dumbbell at a time, I'd recommend the larger set. I've had occasion to use more than 9 of them at once already. And get the ones that include the case! It makes them portable and more accessible with a place to store them. I take mine to the gym and use them 5 days a week.
My friend Tammie saw mine, got PACE Weight envy, and purchased a set for herself. I got a text this morning telling me how much she likes them. This is one really great product!
And no, I'm not on commission! :-D I just believe in recommending a great product when I find it.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Abs Are NOT Made in the Kitchen!
I've heard the phrase "Abs are made in the kitchen" quoted lately by a lot of people I greatly respect. I've given it a lot of thought and have finally decided that, while I think I understand the intention behind this statement, I don't agree with it. At least, not entirely.
You can eat right all you want to and reduce the fat on your body, but the muscle that makes abs is not made in the kitchen. Mine were made mostly flat on my back on the floor doing ab exercises. And since my kitchen has a hard tile floor, I can say with utmost certainty that my abs were NEVER made in the kitchen. Uncovered in the kitchen? Yes! Made there? NO!
I guess I don't like the phrase "Abs were made in the kitchen", because it gives the false impression that if folks just eat well enough, they'll have abs of steel. Tight, muscular abs come from the hard work of exercise. Getting them hard, however, requires dedication to reducing fat through diet. Becuase let's face it: Fat isn't hard, it's soft. So if you have hard ab muscles but they are covered up by soft fat, you're still gonna have soft abs.
I've said before and will say again that you can build all the lean, strong, beautiful muscle you want to, but if it's covered up by fat no one is gonna see it. It doesn't mean the muscle you are building isn't doing you any good, because it certainly is! It's benefiting your health in a myriad of ways I won't take the time to go into here. But the fact is that you won't be able to actually visibly SEE the muscular fruits of your labor if you are over-fat.
It's always a two-part equation to building ANY muscle, not just abs: Fat reduction and weight bearing exercises. You can't leave one out and expect to see big results.
Abs are built in the gym and unveiled in the kitchen.
You can eat right all you want to and reduce the fat on your body, but the muscle that makes abs is not made in the kitchen. Mine were made mostly flat on my back on the floor doing ab exercises. And since my kitchen has a hard tile floor, I can say with utmost certainty that my abs were NEVER made in the kitchen. Uncovered in the kitchen? Yes! Made there? NO!
I guess I don't like the phrase "Abs were made in the kitchen", because it gives the false impression that if folks just eat well enough, they'll have abs of steel. Tight, muscular abs come from the hard work of exercise. Getting them hard, however, requires dedication to reducing fat through diet. Becuase let's face it: Fat isn't hard, it's soft. So if you have hard ab muscles but they are covered up by soft fat, you're still gonna have soft abs.
I've said before and will say again that you can build all the lean, strong, beautiful muscle you want to, but if it's covered up by fat no one is gonna see it. It doesn't mean the muscle you are building isn't doing you any good, because it certainly is! It's benefiting your health in a myriad of ways I won't take the time to go into here. But the fact is that you won't be able to actually visibly SEE the muscular fruits of your labor if you are over-fat.
It's always a two-part equation to building ANY muscle, not just abs: Fat reduction and weight bearing exercises. You can't leave one out and expect to see big results.
Abs are built in the gym and unveiled in the kitchen.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
In Defense of the Workout Split
I have had several people inquire about using whole-body exercises as opposed to working separate body parts. Many times it seems the whole-body camp gets almost charismatic about how their way is better. Me? I don't see it that way. I like separating body parts instead of working all, or most, of them at once.
There is nothing wrong with whole-body exercises. If this is what trips your trigger and keeps you going to the gym, by all means: Do whole body exercises! We all gotta do what works for us. But me? I'm splitting them up. Here's why:
- First and foremost, for me personally I get better muscle definition and size this way.
- It allows me to spend more time on lagging parts and lets the parts the are more developed (namely, my back) hang tight until the other body parts catch up.
- When I work body parts separately I can "custom form" my body more to my own taste. For instance: I've mentioned in prior blogs that I naturally have very slight shoulders. By working shoulders separate I've been able to add width to them, therefore helping to balance my wide hips and turn my bowling-pin body into a true hourglass.
- When I do enough whole-body exercises to make me feel like all of my body got hit as hard as I'd like, it takes a REALLY long time. Splitting things up helps me either do less exercises at a time and get out of the gym faster, or hone in and do a LOT of exercises on one part to thoroughly exhaust it.
- I bore easily. There are only so many whole-body-type moves out there. With splitting things up I'm not stuck doing the same moves over and over, so it helps to keep things interesting for me.
Here is my current split (a split is what they call it when you "split" body parts up into different days), and why:
- Monday- Quadriceps, Hamstrings, and Delts (These are all body parts that I need to build up more, so I work them twice a week. For this reason, I put them on Mondays and Fridays, to maximize healing time between workout sessions.)
- Tuesday, early AM- Abs (On Tuesdays I have a Weight Watchers meeting and do yoga, so I try to keep it minimal to allow time for the rest of my life to happen. I would do no body parts this day, but I like to try and work abs twice, if I can [as far as I am concerned, one cannot have ripped enough abs], and this puts them far away from my other ab day on Friday, again for max muscle repair)
- Wednesday- Chest, Triceps, and Calves (None of these body parts need to play "catch up", so they all get worked just once a week. I put calves here to keep them away from my quad days on Monday and Friday, when they usually get hit as a secondary muscle. This gives them suffecient repair time before they are singled out)
- Thursday- Back and Biceps (Again, I don't need to build either of these, so once a week is sufficient.)
- Friday- Quads, Hams, Delts, and Abs (All body parts that need to be hit a second time to build. If I'm short on time, I'll do less sets of these and leave abs out.)
- Weekends- Off
I also do cardio, but this blog is about weight lifting splits, not cardio.
I no longer worry about only doing some body parts once a week and here's why: Most figure and body building competitors only work each muscle group once a week. My workout partner is the most muscular person I know, and sometimes he goes MORE than a week between working body parts. The thing is, when he works any body part, he really goes at it: Multiple exercises (I've never seen him do any less than 5 for any given muscle group), and max effort.
If you are just starting out and want to try splits, I'd advise hitting all body parts twice a week. I did this for years, until my imbalances became apparent. The good news is that the body can be shaped according to how you'd like it to look with splits, so there is no need for these imbalances to be permanent things.
Here is that split. When I used it, I usually did just two exercises per body part (abs I did 6- two for each obliques, upper, and lower). It was quite effective:
-Monday- Legs and abs (Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, obliques, upper abs, lower abs)
-Tuesday- Upper body (Pecs, Back, Delts, Biceps, Triceps)
-Friday- Repeat legs and abs
-The next Monday- Repeat Wednesday from week prior
You continue alternating upper with legs and abs, which means that one week you are doing legs and abs on Wednesday, and the next on Monday and Friday (or whichever days of the week you choose to work out). This still hits all body parts twice within a seven-day period.
If you want to lift four days a week and hit everything twice in a calender week, you could still do the above split, but do legs/abs days 1 and 3 and upper days 2 and 4 (or vice verse).
The following split would be good if you want to lift weights 5 days a calendar week while hitting all body parts twice in a 7 day period. With this split you won't be spending hours in the gym each session:
-Day 1- Quads, Biceps
-Day 2- Hamstrings, Calves, Chest
-Day 3- Back, Delts
-Day 4- Abs, Triceps
With this split, you would just start back with day one the next scheduled lifting day after you have completed day 4. Also with this split, personally I would NOT do cardio on day two, because that's a longer lifting day with three body parts.
The above split would also work if you want to lift 4 days a week and hit each body part once. If that were the case, I'd do more exercises per body part (at least 3) to really give it something to recover from before it gets worked again.
I just came up with this last split off of the top of my head. There are no "Hard and fast" rules to setting up a split. There are some general rules, but it's good to even change those up sometimes, just to keep your body guessing. (I'll blog about that next.)
I know this is a lot of information and I hope I haven't overwhelmed, over-informed, or over-bored you. If you have any questions, please feel free to message me and I'll try my best to answer them. I love helping!
There is nothing wrong with whole-body exercises. If this is what trips your trigger and keeps you going to the gym, by all means: Do whole body exercises! We all gotta do what works for us. But me? I'm splitting them up. Here's why:
- First and foremost, for me personally I get better muscle definition and size this way.
- It allows me to spend more time on lagging parts and lets the parts the are more developed (namely, my back) hang tight until the other body parts catch up.
- When I work body parts separately I can "custom form" my body more to my own taste. For instance: I've mentioned in prior blogs that I naturally have very slight shoulders. By working shoulders separate I've been able to add width to them, therefore helping to balance my wide hips and turn my bowling-pin body into a true hourglass.
- When I do enough whole-body exercises to make me feel like all of my body got hit as hard as I'd like, it takes a REALLY long time. Splitting things up helps me either do less exercises at a time and get out of the gym faster, or hone in and do a LOT of exercises on one part to thoroughly exhaust it.
- I bore easily. There are only so many whole-body-type moves out there. With splitting things up I'm not stuck doing the same moves over and over, so it helps to keep things interesting for me.
Here is my current split (a split is what they call it when you "split" body parts up into different days), and why:
- Monday- Quadriceps, Hamstrings, and Delts (These are all body parts that I need to build up more, so I work them twice a week. For this reason, I put them on Mondays and Fridays, to maximize healing time between workout sessions.)
- Tuesday, early AM- Abs (On Tuesdays I have a Weight Watchers meeting and do yoga, so I try to keep it minimal to allow time for the rest of my life to happen. I would do no body parts this day, but I like to try and work abs twice, if I can [as far as I am concerned, one cannot have ripped enough abs], and this puts them far away from my other ab day on Friday, again for max muscle repair)
- Wednesday- Chest, Triceps, and Calves (None of these body parts need to play "catch up", so they all get worked just once a week. I put calves here to keep them away from my quad days on Monday and Friday, when they usually get hit as a secondary muscle. This gives them suffecient repair time before they are singled out)
- Thursday- Back and Biceps (Again, I don't need to build either of these, so once a week is sufficient.)
- Friday- Quads, Hams, Delts, and Abs (All body parts that need to be hit a second time to build. If I'm short on time, I'll do less sets of these and leave abs out.)
- Weekends- Off
I also do cardio, but this blog is about weight lifting splits, not cardio.
I no longer worry about only doing some body parts once a week and here's why: Most figure and body building competitors only work each muscle group once a week. My workout partner is the most muscular person I know, and sometimes he goes MORE than a week between working body parts. The thing is, when he works any body part, he really goes at it: Multiple exercises (I've never seen him do any less than 5 for any given muscle group), and max effort.
If you are just starting out and want to try splits, I'd advise hitting all body parts twice a week. I did this for years, until my imbalances became apparent. The good news is that the body can be shaped according to how you'd like it to look with splits, so there is no need for these imbalances to be permanent things.
Here is that split. When I used it, I usually did just two exercises per body part (abs I did 6- two for each obliques, upper, and lower). It was quite effective:
-Monday- Legs and abs (Quads, Hamstrings, Calves, obliques, upper abs, lower abs)
-Tuesday- Upper body (Pecs, Back, Delts, Biceps, Triceps)
-Friday- Repeat legs and abs
-The next Monday- Repeat Wednesday from week prior
You continue alternating upper with legs and abs, which means that one week you are doing legs and abs on Wednesday, and the next on Monday and Friday (or whichever days of the week you choose to work out). This still hits all body parts twice within a seven-day period.
If you want to lift four days a week and hit everything twice in a calender week, you could still do the above split, but do legs/abs days 1 and 3 and upper days 2 and 4 (or vice verse).
The following split would be good if you want to lift weights 5 days a calendar week while hitting all body parts twice in a 7 day period. With this split you won't be spending hours in the gym each session:
-Day 1- Quads, Biceps
-Day 2- Hamstrings, Calves, Chest
-Day 3- Back, Delts
-Day 4- Abs, Triceps
With this split, you would just start back with day one the next scheduled lifting day after you have completed day 4. Also with this split, personally I would NOT do cardio on day two, because that's a longer lifting day with three body parts.
The above split would also work if you want to lift 4 days a week and hit each body part once. If that were the case, I'd do more exercises per body part (at least 3) to really give it something to recover from before it gets worked again.
I just came up with this last split off of the top of my head. There are no "Hard and fast" rules to setting up a split. There are some general rules, but it's good to even change those up sometimes, just to keep your body guessing. (I'll blog about that next.)
I know this is a lot of information and I hope I haven't overwhelmed, over-informed, or over-bored you. If you have any questions, please feel free to message me and I'll try my best to answer them. I love helping!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Here I am..... AGAIN!
Okay, I have a big confession: As of this morning I am at 160.4 pounds. This is about 3 pounds over where I was allowing myself to be for the purpose of muscle gain, 8 pounds over the top of where I would like to "normally" be, and 12 pounds over where I would truly like to hold my weight on a permanant basis.
There is a bit of a history to this: I started German Volume Training (you can read about it here: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/luis13.htm ) almost 6 weeks ago in an effort to gain some muscle in my legs, chest, and delts. I was only going to do this for 6 weeks, so this is the last week. At any rate, bodies tend to gain muscle better when they are carrying a little extra weight, so I made the choice to allow myself to hover around 157. My plan was, and still is, to get through the training, then take a week off and start working on losing the weight in fairly short order. I had it worked out so that I could still weigh at Weight Watchers once a month, but had time to get down to my goal weight before I had to do my October weigh-in. Or so I thought. The thing is, I gained 3 pounds more than I had intended, and I'm having a real issue with getting it off. 3 pounds may not sound like a lot, but when you add it to the original planned gain, I'm getting off into some dangerous (for me) territory, here.
I know another part of the reason I am at this weight is because of PMS bloat (Sorry to any guys reading this), but the truth is that this isn't a good enough excuse, because my "normal" weight should be low enough to give wiggle room for this.
The fact is that the REAL reason I am up higher is that because I have let myself have a little too much of this here and that there, and it's adding up. And I've been eating more carbs lately, which really holds water and makes me look a lot "fluffier".
And I love baking! I've started doing that again. Of course, I always want to eat what I bake.....
It also hasn't helped that I have been struggling with finding a goal right now. I made the decision not to do figure competition, which I blogged about last. So I lost that goal.
Then I thought I'd found a photographer to do fitness photos on my 44th birthday, but he started showing signs of not being very reliable, and was going to charge me a pretty penny. (As a friend of mine said "That's a lot of cheese for 2 hours of time in front of the camera!") I felt uneasy about using him for my photos.
So I've been a bit adrift, not feeling anything looming over me as far as a goal.
Regardless of the excuse (and these are all excuses), the fact is I am simply too heavy right now. It not only shows on the scale, but also in the mirror.
So I'm back to the old grindstone of being in weight-loss mode.
I guess for now, weekly weigh-ins with Weight Watchers will have to be motivation enough. And next week I WILL BE weighing in, regardless of whether I have to pay dues for being over my goal or not. With WW the highest I can be is 157 (dressed, or course). So unless I lose about 5 1/2 pounds in the next 5 days, I'll be shelling out $12 in dues next Tuesday.
Yay.
Additionally, as much as I would like to work with a nutritionist again, budget won't allow it, so I'm on my own. It's a LOT harder to self-diagnose than it is to help others, I am finding. But I'm giving it a shot......
Here's my game plan:
- Keep up my lifting and cardio. Honestly, it'd be hard to do much better in this department than I already am. Lack of exercise is NOT why I am where I am. Diet is.
- I'm going to clean up my food choices. Refined carbs are going to all but leave my diet.
- I'm back to a minimum of a gallon of water a day. Water. Not unsweetened tea w/ Splenda. Water.
- I will continue to log my food by writing it down in my WW Journal.
- I will go back to weekly weigh-ins with Weight Watchers, and will continue to do this every week for eternity, as well as continue to stay for the meetings.
- Daily weigh-ins at home until I am down to where I want to be, and I will daily change my weight on the tracker here on Spark to reflect that number.
So here I am, a little back slidden, but not defeated.
Onward and up......er....... DOWNward!!!!!!!!
There is a bit of a history to this: I started German Volume Training (you can read about it here: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/luis13.htm ) almost 6 weeks ago in an effort to gain some muscle in my legs, chest, and delts. I was only going to do this for 6 weeks, so this is the last week. At any rate, bodies tend to gain muscle better when they are carrying a little extra weight, so I made the choice to allow myself to hover around 157. My plan was, and still is, to get through the training, then take a week off and start working on losing the weight in fairly short order. I had it worked out so that I could still weigh at Weight Watchers once a month, but had time to get down to my goal weight before I had to do my October weigh-in. Or so I thought. The thing is, I gained 3 pounds more than I had intended, and I'm having a real issue with getting it off. 3 pounds may not sound like a lot, but when you add it to the original planned gain, I'm getting off into some dangerous (for me) territory, here.
I know another part of the reason I am at this weight is because of PMS bloat (Sorry to any guys reading this), but the truth is that this isn't a good enough excuse, because my "normal" weight should be low enough to give wiggle room for this.
The fact is that the REAL reason I am up higher is that because I have let myself have a little too much of this here and that there, and it's adding up. And I've been eating more carbs lately, which really holds water and makes me look a lot "fluffier".
And I love baking! I've started doing that again. Of course, I always want to eat what I bake.....
It also hasn't helped that I have been struggling with finding a goal right now. I made the decision not to do figure competition, which I blogged about last. So I lost that goal.
Then I thought I'd found a photographer to do fitness photos on my 44th birthday, but he started showing signs of not being very reliable, and was going to charge me a pretty penny. (As a friend of mine said "That's a lot of cheese for 2 hours of time in front of the camera!") I felt uneasy about using him for my photos.
So I've been a bit adrift, not feeling anything looming over me as far as a goal.
Regardless of the excuse (and these are all excuses), the fact is I am simply too heavy right now. It not only shows on the scale, but also in the mirror.
So I'm back to the old grindstone of being in weight-loss mode.
I guess for now, weekly weigh-ins with Weight Watchers will have to be motivation enough. And next week I WILL BE weighing in, regardless of whether I have to pay dues for being over my goal or not. With WW the highest I can be is 157 (dressed, or course). So unless I lose about 5 1/2 pounds in the next 5 days, I'll be shelling out $12 in dues next Tuesday.
Yay.
Additionally, as much as I would like to work with a nutritionist again, budget won't allow it, so I'm on my own. It's a LOT harder to self-diagnose than it is to help others, I am finding. But I'm giving it a shot......
Here's my game plan:
- Keep up my lifting and cardio. Honestly, it'd be hard to do much better in this department than I already am. Lack of exercise is NOT why I am where I am. Diet is.
- I'm going to clean up my food choices. Refined carbs are going to all but leave my diet.
- I'm back to a minimum of a gallon of water a day. Water. Not unsweetened tea w/ Splenda. Water.
- I will continue to log my food by writing it down in my WW Journal.
- I will go back to weekly weigh-ins with Weight Watchers, and will continue to do this every week for eternity, as well as continue to stay for the meetings.
- Daily weigh-ins at home until I am down to where I want to be, and I will daily change my weight on the tracker here on Spark to reflect that number.
So here I am, a little back slidden, but not defeated.
Onward and up......er....... DOWNward!!!!!!!!
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Calf 21's (or 30's)
I've had a couple of different people who look at my workouts on Spark as me what "Calf 21's" are. I also call these "Calf 30's". I think calves are the most boring body part to work, so maybe this will give someone else a new spin on a way to work their calves.
You know how you can do a calf lift and put a variation on the move by turning your heels in or out? This has always stressed my knees. My first trainer, Ross, taught me to do this move to still work all areas of the calf but eliminate the potential knee pain. Here is how it's executed:
Start in the machine with a slightly light load selected. There are so many reps in this that you will burn out very quickly and be screaming in pain if you start out too heavy. First, put your feet about three inches apart and lift and lower your heels for 7 reps, leaning on the inside edges of the balls of your feet. Then separate them to about 12 inches apart and lift for 7 more reps with the weight evenly distributed across the ball of your foot. Then, maintaining the 12-inch spread between your feet, lean on the outside edges of the balls of your feet and lift for another 7 reps.
Next, jump off the machine and hop around the gym saying "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!", like I do, until the pain in your calves goes away.
Repeat until you've had enough torture for one day. I usually do three sets.
I change the order I do the inside/flat/outside pressure on my feet, too. Muscles adapt very quickly and I like to keep 'em guessing.
For 30's, you do the same exercise, but 10 times for each position. This is usually done with lighter weight yet.
You can do this on any type calf press (standing, seated, on a leg press machine, or on a step holding a dumbbell).
Let me know what you think!
You know how you can do a calf lift and put a variation on the move by turning your heels in or out? This has always stressed my knees. My first trainer, Ross, taught me to do this move to still work all areas of the calf but eliminate the potential knee pain. Here is how it's executed:
Start in the machine with a slightly light load selected. There are so many reps in this that you will burn out very quickly and be screaming in pain if you start out too heavy. First, put your feet about three inches apart and lift and lower your heels for 7 reps, leaning on the inside edges of the balls of your feet. Then separate them to about 12 inches apart and lift for 7 more reps with the weight evenly distributed across the ball of your foot. Then, maintaining the 12-inch spread between your feet, lean on the outside edges of the balls of your feet and lift for another 7 reps.
Next, jump off the machine and hop around the gym saying "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!", like I do, until the pain in your calves goes away.
Repeat until you've had enough torture for one day. I usually do three sets.
I change the order I do the inside/flat/outside pressure on my feet, too. Muscles adapt very quickly and I like to keep 'em guessing.
For 30's, you do the same exercise, but 10 times for each position. This is usually done with lighter weight yet.
You can do this on any type calf press (standing, seated, on a leg press machine, or on a step holding a dumbbell).
Let me know what you think!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Getting started with exercise at home, part IV
So now, it's time to come up with an at-home exercise plan.
I want to make it clear that this is my recommendation, but not a be-all end all to how one should start an exercise program. It's what worked for me, and has helped people I've advised. I know it works, but it's not the only way to go about it.
First, get out that book I said was the #1 piece of exercise equipment and choose one exercise for each major muscle group. For starting purposes, lets not get picky about which exercises to perform- any for that body part will do.
You are going to work your body parts in this order:
Quads
Hamstrings
Calves
Chest
Upper back (the lats)
Shoulders
Triceps
Biceps
Upper abs
Lower abs
Obliques
Lower back
Read thoroughly in the book how each exercise is to be executed, and keep the book next to you as you exercise. Refer to it frequently as you exercise, reviewing each exercise again before you do it (and as you do it if necessary). I cannot stress this strongly enough: Proper form is most important! Do the exercise exactly as demonstrated and pictured!
This first time through, do each exercise with no weights.
Yes, you heard me right- I want you to do the exercises this time through unweighted. This will help to ensure that you execute proper form and don't hurt yourself the first time out. If it makes you feel any better, the first time I try an exercise alone I always do it with no weight. I want to know how "proper form" feels before I add weight to it. This way I can tell the difference between "This is different because I have more weight added" and "This is different because something just ain't movin' right" without causing myself injury.
Do each exercise for one set of 15. (Refer to my blog about sets and reps, if you aren't sure what I am talking about.)
Really work on SQUEEZING the muscles you are supposed to be working both in the concentric (contracting) and eccentric (elongating) part of the move. (In other words, throughout the entire motion). Don't ever just drop the weight back to the starting position. Stay in control of the weight ALL THE TIME!
Keep a steady pace of about 2-3 seconds to get whatever body part you are moving up and 2-3 seconds to get it back to where you started. You can slow this down as you progress, but for now 2-3 seconds each direction is adequate.
When you are done, stretch all the body parts you worked (this should be covered in the book you bought, as well), holding each stretch for about 10 seconds.
And there you have it! That's how you get started.
The next time, if you feel ready, add light weights- start with the lightest ones you have if you still feel a bit shaky, but keep in mind that you want to progress fairly quickly to weights that feel challenging by the time you get to the end of the 15 rep set.
When you have completed all body parts, put that exercise DVD in and give it a whirl. It's a good idea to do at least 30 minutes of cardio, but more sure never hurts.
You can also move cardio to another time of day- it's perfectly acceptable to split your workout into smaller sessions. Currently I do my cardio at 5:30 AM and then get my weight lifting in closer to 10:30AM. Just fits into my schedule better.
When you feel you need more, do two sets of 15 reps of each exercise.
When you feel like you need more yet, switch to different exercises for the same body parts, always starting out at least a few reps with no weight, to get the feel for it.
When you feel like you need more than that, are starting to run out of time because the workouts are getting too long, or just want something different, Email me and we'll come up with a split (working different muscles on different days) that works for you.
No more excuses! Start moving!
I want to make it clear that this is my recommendation, but not a be-all end all to how one should start an exercise program. It's what worked for me, and has helped people I've advised. I know it works, but it's not the only way to go about it.
First, get out that book I said was the #1 piece of exercise equipment and choose one exercise for each major muscle group. For starting purposes, lets not get picky about which exercises to perform- any for that body part will do.
You are going to work your body parts in this order:
Quads
Hamstrings
Calves
Chest
Upper back (the lats)
Shoulders
Triceps
Biceps
Upper abs
Lower abs
Obliques
Lower back
Read thoroughly in the book how each exercise is to be executed, and keep the book next to you as you exercise. Refer to it frequently as you exercise, reviewing each exercise again before you do it (and as you do it if necessary). I cannot stress this strongly enough: Proper form is most important! Do the exercise exactly as demonstrated and pictured!
This first time through, do each exercise with no weights.
Yes, you heard me right- I want you to do the exercises this time through unweighted. This will help to ensure that you execute proper form and don't hurt yourself the first time out. If it makes you feel any better, the first time I try an exercise alone I always do it with no weight. I want to know how "proper form" feels before I add weight to it. This way I can tell the difference between "This is different because I have more weight added" and "This is different because something just ain't movin' right" without causing myself injury.
Do each exercise for one set of 15. (Refer to my blog about sets and reps, if you aren't sure what I am talking about.)
Really work on SQUEEZING the muscles you are supposed to be working both in the concentric (contracting) and eccentric (elongating) part of the move. (In other words, throughout the entire motion). Don't ever just drop the weight back to the starting position. Stay in control of the weight ALL THE TIME!
Keep a steady pace of about 2-3 seconds to get whatever body part you are moving up and 2-3 seconds to get it back to where you started. You can slow this down as you progress, but for now 2-3 seconds each direction is adequate.
When you are done, stretch all the body parts you worked (this should be covered in the book you bought, as well), holding each stretch for about 10 seconds.
And there you have it! That's how you get started.
The next time, if you feel ready, add light weights- start with the lightest ones you have if you still feel a bit shaky, but keep in mind that you want to progress fairly quickly to weights that feel challenging by the time you get to the end of the 15 rep set.
When you have completed all body parts, put that exercise DVD in and give it a whirl. It's a good idea to do at least 30 minutes of cardio, but more sure never hurts.
You can also move cardio to another time of day- it's perfectly acceptable to split your workout into smaller sessions. Currently I do my cardio at 5:30 AM and then get my weight lifting in closer to 10:30AM. Just fits into my schedule better.
When you feel you need more, do two sets of 15 reps of each exercise.
When you feel like you need more yet, switch to different exercises for the same body parts, always starting out at least a few reps with no weight, to get the feel for it.
When you feel like you need more than that, are starting to run out of time because the workouts are getting too long, or just want something different, Email me and we'll come up with a split (working different muscles on different days) that works for you.
No more excuses! Start moving!
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