no-iron-fitness

Cold Water Recovery

How quickly do you recover after workouts?  Is there anything that you can do to help the process? Aside from eating properly after your workout, the temperature of your bath or shower post-workout can have an effect on your recovery and your performance in your next workout.

Researchers from the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra confirmed the benefits of cold water recovery.

They measured the effects on sprint performance for five days of endurance cycling. Tests were done in water at 59 degrees (15 celsius) for 14 minutes, 100.4 degrees (38 celsius) for 14 minutes, alternating between cold water only, both hot and cold water, and rest only.

Cold water baths improved performance by 2.2 percent, time trials by 1 percent. Contrast baths (alternating hot and cold) improved performance by 1.4 percent and time trials by 1.7 percent.

On the other hand, in hot water baths, performance fell by 3.7 percent and by 3.4 percent with rest only.

In conclusion, the study showed that cold and alternating baths post-training had a small positive effect on performance, and hot baths decreased performance.

 

It's Ok to Dial It Down

Continuing physical fitness into your forties and beyond requires a little more monitoring than when you were in your twenties and mid-thirties.  Don't get me wrong; there are many athletes that remain competitive well into their forties, like Randy Couture and Bernard Hopkins, but the operative word here is athlete.

But even they will tell you that their training has changed; it could be from taking more time off between training sessions to cutting down on the sparring rounds.  Now, if these guys have to restructure their training as they get older, it makes sense that a weekend warrior has to do the same.

Unfortunately, all to often the decision to slow down is made for us by way of a ruptured achilles, a heart that feels like it's pounding out of our chests, or the dreaded back problem.

One of the best ways to ensure that you're working your heart in a safe zone, when working your cardiovascular system, is to purchase a heart monitor and learn how to use it.

Find out what your resting heart rate is. If you have a heart monitor, keep it by your bed and as soon as you wake up in the morning strap it on and take your heart rate for a minute.  Remember: always try to take your heart rate at the same time every day, do this for a several days and take the average, and there's your resting heart rate.

If you don't have a heart monitor, take your pulse for 30 seconds and then multiply by two. When counting your pulse make sure to start from 0,1,2,3...

Find out what your maximum heart rate is for your age, meaning that when you train you really don't want to exceed this number. Finding your maximum heart rate is very easy, it's just 220-your age.

So now you've figured out you resting heart rate(resting HR) and your maximum heart rate(HR max).

Let's say that you have a low fitness level (beginner) and you're 45 years old with a resting heart rate of 80 beats per minute. The intensity(target heart rate) of your training should be between 55-64% of your maximum heart rate.  This is something that a personal trainer will calculate for you, but here's the formula:

Target heart rate= HRmax-restingHR x%+restingHR  

220-45=175 HRmax-resting heart rate of 80=95 x.55+80resting heart rate =132beats per minute.

220-45=175-80=95x.55+80=132 bpm.

So a 45 year old man with resting heart rate of 80 beats per minute with a low fitness level should keep his heart rate while training at around 132 beats per minute for 15-30 minutes.

Now obviously the younger you are, the  higher your physical fitness is and the lower your resting heart rate is, so the higher your target heart rate will be.

Age, level of fitness and heart rate are excellent indicators of how hard to work and for how long.

  Before embarking on any sort of new physical fitness regiment,consult with your doctor and the get the advice of a certified trainer.

Body Weight Exercises

Body weight exercises include some of the the oldest and most effective exercises around, and many of them have been around for decades, if not centuries: Why?  Because they work.  Look at old-time boxers, from Jack Johnson to Sugar Ray Robinson to Rocky Marciano.  Different variations of push- ups, squats and crunches were pretty much the staple of their training.  Of course there was road work (jogging), technical work like bag work, and ring work drills, but body weight exercises were a huge part of their training, and if it was good enough for them, it's good enough for us.

Body weight training means exactly what it sounds like: using your own body to achieve a higher level of physical fitness, and using your own body weight as resistance instead of weights. You don't have to go to a gym to get into shape--and I'm not bashing gyms or health clubs--hell I own one, but if you understand the concepts of body weight training you can train anywhere: at home, work, when the kids are napping.

If you're thinking of joining a gym and have never trained before, these kinds of exercises are a great way to prepare for more advanced training.  Remember--just because you do it on a machine doesn't always mean it's better.

For more information on this subject you can visit www.no-iron-fitness.com

No Physical Fitness And No Hangover

Good food and good booze and of course, no physical fitness go hand and hand this time of year.  If you're like me--who likes to train and stay in shape--this time of year is filled with many temptations, from turkey to pie, not to mention the array of alcoholic beverages. 

I don't believe in over indulging--all things in moderation--but I'm a realist as well and some of my clients have asked for tips on damage control this time of year. I think that like any good fitness regiment, getting your body ready ahead of time for the hell you're about to put it through works much better than after the fact remedies. Here are a couple of things that can help make the day after a little more tolerable:

• Hydrate Yourself- Drink water before you embark on your adventure.  A bad hangover is an indication of how dehydrated you are.  And that headache you have is your brain screaming for some kind of liquid other than what you had the night before. Try to drink 2-3 glasses of water a half an hour before heading out, and if you can, once the party gets rolling try to continue drinking water during the course of the night.

• Eat- Don't party on an empty stomach, you'll pay for it later by puking up the lining. It's the holidays, I'm not here to talk about your deteriorating fitness level and tell what you should be eating.  But if you plan on drinking alcohol, eat something, which shouldn't be a problem: chances are you've got a face full of food right now.

• Drink Clear- Vodka, gin,white rums, pretty much most clear alcohol will make recovery easier.  Why?  Because of its low sugar content.  The sugar is what really screws you up the next morning. Dark rum and coke, unless you're a seasoned drinker, will have your head throbbing. Vodka tonic, vodka cranberry, and gin and tonic are examples of drinks where you can get hammered, make a complete ass of yourself, and remember everything the next morning with a clear head.

• When You Get Home- Drink a glass of water.  This is probably the most important step.  There were times in my youth when I've skipped all of the above but I had the presence of mind to drink water before I passed out and it literally saved me.

• Wake Up to Water-  When you get up, drink a glass of water.

• Don't Drink and Drive- It goes without saying but I gotta say it. Be responsible. The holidays are a time to indulge but it's only fun if nobody gets hurt.
  

These are a few things that I've learned over the years that have worked for me during the holidays and I hope they work for you, if they don't, just hang a do no not disturb sign outside the door and sleep it off.

 

Can Exercise Make You Smarter?

Can physical fitness make you smarter?  Research has shown that the proper kind exercise can stimulate your brain.  

What's the right kind of training?  A recent study published in The Journals of The American College of Sports Medicine took 21 students from the University of Illinois.  They then asked the students to memorize a string of letters and pick them out as the list flashed by them.

The 21 students were divided into 3 groups.  One group sat quietly, the other lifted weights and the last did the treadmill.  All three groups had 30 minutes.  After the 30 minutes the letter flash test was performed again; the study was conducted for several days and the groups were rotated.

The results:  The group on the treadmill scored noticeably higher than the weightlifters and the sitters. The treadmill group continued to score higher even 30 minutes after the workout so it would appear that longer cardio-based training had a real effect on cognitive thinking.

Why did cardio training have so much more impact than weightlifting in terms of the brain activity?

Henriette van Praag from the Laboratory of Neuroscience at the National Institute of Aging believes that "growth factors must be carried from the periphery of the body into the brain to start a molecular cascade there and ÿou need a fairly dramatic change in blood flow", she said.

So there you have it--our stupidity can't be blamed completely on genetics and lack of education, in part in be blamed on your physical fitness so get out and exercise and maybe then you won't have to live in a van down by the river.    

How to Keep Trim During the Winter Months

Gaining weight during the winter is a common problem. Lack of motivation to train plagues many of us that live in cold weather climates--this contributes to weight gain in the cold winter months. Here are a few things you can do to keep your weight down for the next several months:

• First thing in the morning, drink at least 16 ounces of chilled water. Why? Drinking chilled water starts your body working by forcing it to increase body temperature in order to warm the chilled water in your stomach--this also helps to increase your metabolism.
• Eat breakfast. Do this and you'll be more likely to make good choices later on in the day because you won't be making decisions while you're hungry. A morning meal will also boost your metabolism and keep your blood sugar at the proper levels. Think eggs, multi-grain toast, fruit, or a high-fiber cereal to fill you up.
• Increase your fiber intake. The great thing about fiber is that it adds volume to food without adding calories. Cut out the white bread and refined products and replace them with whole grain breads and cereal. Add plenty of fruit, vegetables, nuts, and beans.
• If you're a Leriken member now's the time to kick your training into high gear. The calories you would normally burn during outdoor summer activities will stick to you like stink on a monkey unless you consciously decide to do something about it--so train!

These are a few simple yet effective suggestions that can help to stave off the winter bulge, and the winter blues as well.

Benefits Of Physical Fitness

The benefits of physical fitness can be both mental and physical. Aside from making you look good, staying fit can have an effect on the way you think.  People who are fit tend to handle the stress of everyday life easier than people who do not have a regular exercise regime.

Being able to sleep at night is one of the great benefits of physical fitness.  Not being able to sleep can have a huge effect on your quality of life, from how you perform at work to developing health issues due to lack of sleep, and on the flip side you'll have more energy when you need it.

 Improving your cardiovascular system, the strength of your heart, increasing oxygen flow and blood flow are all major benefits of physical fitness.  If your heart is strong it can pump more blood, the more blood you have flowing the more oxygen can be transported to the areas that need it the most.

To feel the benefits of physical fitness you don't have to train for hours at a time. If done properly with the right amount of intensity 35-45 minutes three times a week can make all the difference in your life, it can truly be life changing.

Monitor Your Fitness

I purchased a heart monitor several weeks ago for my own personal training and I also encouraged my more advanced private clients to do the same.  I've trained for many years without using a monitor; the reason I decided to start using the device was to more finally tune my training.

Because I own my own training center it's important for me to always be evolving and learning about my craft, which is physical fitness.  One of my trainers recommended a book called "Ultimate MMA Conditioning" by Joel Jamieson.  Don't let the title fool you, it doesn't just apply the mixed martial artist(MMA), it really applies to anyone who is serious about their physical fitness.  

Jamieson acknowledges that many of the best concepts for developing athletic conditioning have come from the training in Eastern Europian countries during the cold war, and many of the concepts still apply today.  Although this book is intended for serious athletes it can also apply to intermediate and recreational athletes, as well as non-athletes who have a fair understanding of their training.  

The thing I really like about his approach is that he breaks the body down into systems: aerobic, anaerobic lactic, and anaerobic alactic system and then targets each system for repair; different methods should be used for the different systems.  Another interesting point makes perfect sense; if one of the systems is weak, then the entire system is weak.

With this kind of in-depth training a heart monitor really helps because it gives you an accurate look at what's happening inside your body.  One method called Cardiac Output  has been around forever and focuses on the aerobic system.  I'm sure everyone has seen Rocky, but no, this method doesn't require chasing chickens around, rather, it involves longer, slower training like jogging(road work), biking, swimming, hitting the heavy bag, or skipping rope. The important thing is to keep your heart rate  between 120-150bpm(beats per minute).  This method will increase the amount of blood pumped with each heart beat.  This is done by increasing the size of the left ventricle, which is sort of like a sack.  Think of a balloon filled with water; as it begins to stretch it can hold more water--same idea with filling the left ventricle with more blood.

If the heart beats too fast the blood is pumped out of the left ventricle too quickly to allow the sacks to increase in size, which is not a bad thing but now you're working the heart in a different way.  This why the heart monitor really helps because you can keep bpm exactly were it needs to be for the desired results.

The monitor also indicates when to resume your training.  Another method called Cardia Power Intervals again focuses on the aerobic system which requires you to perform a high intensity exercise such sprinting or hitting the heavy bag as fast as possible for 60-120 seconds, and then perform active rest. Active rest means light jogging, shadowboxing etc until your HR is between 120-130. Repeat 4-12 reps of power intervals and active rest. What this method does is instead of filling the left ventrical with blood, it increases the strength in our heart to pump more blood through the system.

So you can kind of see what he means by conditioning the whole system and how one system is linked to another. For more on Joel Jamieson visit www8weeksout.com

 

Limitations Of Physical Exercise

Becoming physically fit and losing weight should be viewed as a two-pronged approach.  Working out at the local gym or health club with your personal trainer alone won't help you trim your waste line, in fact, you might even gain weight.  Diet plays a huge role in losing weight, and more importantly, in keeping it off.   

Of course exercise helps to burn calories, improve your cardiovascular system and cognitive ability, and helps to prevent some diseases.  In terms of weight lose, I always tell my clients--before we even begin our first private session--that they're going to have to work just as hard on their eating habits as they will their physical training.

One thing we know about the body is the more active you are the more you'll want to eat, so if your eating habits were less than stellar before you started exercising and you don't adjust your diet, chances are you'll be eating more of the same food that got you in this predicament in the first place.

Often after we've trained, and I've noticed this in my own training center, a lot of people crave sweet calories.  Some gyms have an assortment of muffins and most gyms have sports drinks like Gatorade. 

Consider this: Gatorade, in a 20 oz format has 130 calories; if you guzzle the whole bottle it's possible that you've negated all the gains you just made during your workout.  

According to an article in Time magazine, if a 30 year old woman weighing 154 lbs eats a blueberry muffin that has 360 calories she would have to either roller blade fast for 21 minutes,jog at 5 m.p.h for 33 minutes, cycle at an easy pace for 77 minutes, lift weights for 115 minutes, or do gardening work for 66 minutes to burn those calories.

Self control is going to be key.  Often times, and I've been guilty of this myself, after you've had a great training session you feel justified in eating that burger rather than opting for something healthy. These are the times when you'll have to decide how serious you are going to be about losing weight.  I have clients that once they reach their goal that's it, I won't see them again until they feel they have to lose the weight again. I also have clients for whom it becomes a lifestyle, and they train several times a week and have been with us for many years, both in our group classes and private training as well.   

Important note; when it comes to the kinds of foods that are best for helping you lose weight, maintain health, and help you to recover after workout, there's some amazing literature concerning these topics that's easily accessible. I'll touch on some of these topics in future entries.

    

Lactic Acid, My Friend

If you've spent any amount of time training, or reading literature on training, I'm sure you've heard about the evils of lactic acid, that it's responsible for muscle fatigue and soreness. Over the years lactic acid has been framed for many crimes it did not commit. We'll now try to clear lactic acid of all pending charges. 

Researchers from Denmark have uncovered evidence that shows that lactic acid may not only be helpful, but a crucial source of energy that may even help reduce fatigue. 

As you exercise your body produces something called pyruvic acid, which undergoes a process called the Krebs cycle in order to produce energy. The unused pyruvic acid that remains is converted into lactic acid. The more intense your training is the more pyruvic acid is produced, the more that is produced the more pyruvic acid goes unused, and the more that builds up, the more it increases the amount of lactic acid produced as well.

The general consensus was that this build up of lactic acid was a waste product that was responsible for muscle fatigue and soreness and could only be cleared through rest and recovery. This conclusion was reached when chemists in the 19^th century discovered that acid was produced when juice was fermented without sufficient oxygen. The same scientists also discovered some years later that when muscles were worked to failure they produced lactic acid as well. They then deduced that the acid must be responsible for making the muscles weak and tired.

Later research concerning lactic acid and its effects on muscle performance revealed a process called the ''lactic shuttle''; the research showed that lactic acid is able to move uninhibited through muscle cells, thus providing energy and producing glycogen.

During the lactate shuttle, lactate leaving muscle cells can provide energy a couple of different ways. The lactate can either be picked up by muscle cells that are close by, or can be transported through the bloodstream to other muscle cells or tissue. Cells that need lactate can convert the lactate back to pyruvic acid and will then enter the Krebs cycle to produce energy or be be converted into glucose or glycogen.

We can now use what we know about lactic acid to improve our training and fitness--we can enhance our bodies response to, and use of, lactic acid by training at an intensity that floods the body with lactate.

Choosing proper exercise routines that take lactate into consideration, or choosing a trainer that understands the importance of lactic acid, will increase your fitness level and help you to lose weight.