How to stay Forever Fit and Firm - Part 4, Strength Training

In my opinion strength training is the best thing you can do to improve your health and fitness level as you age. Strength training is so important because around age 40 you start to experience muscle loss. “If you don’t do anything to replace the lean muscle you lose, you’ll increase the percentage of fat in your body, “says Dr. Edward Laskowski, a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Left unabated you can lose up to 10 lbs of muscle each decade starting at age 40.

The reason that loosing muscle is so detrimental to your fitness is because muscle is the component of your body that burns the majority of the calories you consume each day. Therefore, when you lose muscle your body requires less calories to function and consequently those extra calories you consume are stored as fat around your waist ,hips, and other places.

Your body constantly burn calories, even when we’re doing nothing. This resting metabolic rate is much higher in people with more muscle. Every pound of muscle uses about 6 calories a day just to sustain itself, while each pound of fat burns only 2 calories daily. That small difference can add up over time. In addition, after a bout of resistance training, muscles are activated all over your body, increasing your average daily metabolic rate.

Fortunately strength training can mitigate and even reverse the loss of muscle at any age. Thus, increasing the amount of calories you need to function. That’s why you hear some people say that after they have been strength training for awhile their appetites increase. This is a sign that they are starting to build muscle.

Increasing your metabolism isn’t the only benefit of strength training. It also, helps you:

•  Develop strong bones. By stressing your bones, strength training increases bone density and reduces the risk of osteoporosis.

• Control your weight. As you gain muscle, your body burns more calories more efficiently which can result in weight loss. The more toned your muscles, the easier it is to control your weight.

• Reduce your risk of injury. Building muscle protects your joints from injury. It also helps maintain flexibility and balance which is crucial to remaining independent as you age.

• Boost your stamina. Building muscle helps to increase your energy level.

• Improve your sense of well-being. Strength training can boost your self-confidence, improve your body image, and reduce the risk of depression.

• Sleep better. People who strength train on a regular basis are less likely to have insomnia.

• Manage chronic conditions. Strength training can reduce the signs and symptoms of many chronic conditions, including arthritis, back pain, depression, diabetes, obesity, and osteoporosis.

20 Minute Workout Express

Think you can't get a workout in this week because you are pushed for time?  Checkout my 20 minute workout routines on Health Fitness Nation.

You Must Lift Weights For Firm And Sexy Muscles

Image via WikipediaI get asked my age a lot, and when I tell people that I'm 52, the next question is always, how do you stay so fit and toned?  My answer is, by weight lifting 4 times each week.  By weight lifting, I mean lifting at a resistance and intensity that I can barely complete my last repetition on each exercise.  Exercising at that intensity is really the key to getting firm and staying that way, especially as you get older.

I see far too many people wear themselves out by doing hours of cardio each week, and very little weight lifting.  And, when they do lift weights, they exercise with a resistance that's too small to produce results.  You've seen them, they are doing their weight lifting routine while carrying on a conversation with their friends (and they wonder why they see very little results).

When you lift weights, you must have enough resistance to overload your muscles to the point of exhaustion, that place where you find it difficult to do one more repetition.  When you exercise like that, your muscles are worn to the point where they must be repaired  by your body and consequently, they are made stronger.  Then your body starts to firm-up and look sexy, no matter what age.

In the Beginning, Hire A Personal Trainer

Image via WikipediaI recently read an article that offered inexpensive alternatives to hiring a personal trainer.  The article mentioned places where you can get "how to" fitness information online.  While, you can find a lot good fitness information and excellent exercise routines on the web, you will also find some information that's not worth following.  Therefore, you need to have enough knowledge about health and fitness to distinguish the good information from the bad.  So, if you are new to exercise and thinking of beginning a fitness program, I suggest you hire a good nationally certified personal trainer.  A personal trainer can assess your physical characteristics and lifestyle and custom design a program just for you.

I also think you should at least have a trainer custom design a program for you even if are going to workout on your own.  They can teach you the proper form and technique to use for each exercise, so when you are working out you can be confident you are doing the routine properly.  I can't count the number of times I've seen people following some exercise routine they've downloaded and doing most of the exercises incorrectly and  consequently injure themselves.

In addition, a personal trainer can also educate you about health and fitness, so when you do search for new exercise routines on the web you can distinguish the good ones from the not so good.  This alone is a good reason to invest in hiring a personal trainer.

My Three Staple Exercises

Image by United States Marine Corps Official Page via FlickrRecently,  a client asked me if I could only do three exercises, what would they be?  After some consideration, I said I would do pullups, pushup, and barbell squats.  I told the client that he could target all the major muscle groups with these three exercises.

Let's look at these three exercises and see if they would be a complete whole body workout.

Pullups target the major muscles of the upper back, the biceps,  and the forearms.  The core muscles are also worked as long as pullups are done in a smooth and controlled manor.

Pushups target the major muscles of the chest, the shoulders, and the triceps.  The core muscles are also strongly used when pushups are done with strict form.

Barbell Squats target the quads, hamstrings, and the glutes.  Squats are also one of the best exercises there is for developing core strength when done properly.

There you have it.  These are the three exercises I would do if I was limited to doing only three.  What three exercises would you do?

Try Giant Sets When You Are Stressed For Time

Image via WikipediaEver have one of those days or weeks when it seems like you just don't have an extra minute to spare?  You've been doing so well with your fitness program and you want to workout, but you don't have an hour to spend at the gym.  So, what do you do, skip your workout and feel guilty, or skip some other thing you had planned  and feel bad about that also?

Giant sets is the answer to your problem.  Giant sets is a training method in which you do three or more exercises, one after the other, with no rest in between.  The idea is to do a series of exercises in a row, take a brief rest period and then repeat the sequence for your desired number of sets.  This is a good way to get an excellent workout done in a short amount of time (usually under 30 minutes).

I like to design my giant sets to hit the following major muscle groups; back, chest, and legs.  I typically do 10 to 15 repetitions of each exercise for 3 complete sets with no more than 60 seconds rest between sets.  Here's what one of my giant sets looks like:

• Back, lat pulldowns or seated low rows
• Chest, flat dumbbell presses or pushups
• Legs, barbell squats or walking lunges

3 sets of the above workout only takes about 20 minutes to complete, but I assure you it is effective.  If the workout seems too easy, increase your resistance, and if it's too hard, decrease your resistance.  Try it out and let me know what you think.

Is More Intensity Always Better?

Image via WikipediaAs a personal trainer in my 50s I realize the value of a good fitness program in helping me to stay healthy, strong, and active.  However, I'm bothered by some of the fitness routines I see trainers having people do who are over the age of 40.

It seems the more intense the program the better people think they are.  I see trainers having people who are over 40 jumping on and off plyometric boxes, (risking injury to their knees, ankles, and lower back) until they are drowning in their own sweat. I see people who are de-conditioned being pushed by trainers to do giant sets of push-ups, squats, lunges, and you name it until they literally can't move another muscle fiber.

It leads me to question whether doing more intensity is always better (especially for the 40 plus crowd)?  In my 17 years of experience as a personal trainer and a person over the age of 40, I have to say no.  You can have anyone do jump squats until they are standing in a pool of their own sweat, but is that necessary what they need?

When working with clients over the age of 40, you have to take the following things into consideration when designing a fitness program for them.

• How long it's been since they've done any exercise regularly?
• What kind of regular exercise are they use to doing?
• Do they have any condition that requires a doctor's approval before beginning a physical fitness program?
• Any prior injuries that would prohibit certain exercises?
• The condition of their ankle, knee, and shoulder joints.
• Their core strength.
• Do they have any muscular skelotor imbalances?
• Are their fitness goals realistic?
• Are they former athletes?  Sometimes they think they can still do what they did 20 years ago.

I know as a trainer you want your clients to see results quickly.  However, sometimes the best workout you can do with your client is one where they don't even break a sweat. 

Keeping Your Muscle Is The Key To Fitness Over 40

Image by Rtist MrB via FlickrAs a personal trainer, I am in and out of health clubs all day. I love to observe the things people do in their efforts to "get in shape". The major thing I notice, is the over-whelming amount of cardio I see women doing while neglecting to do much strength training.

While cardio is an important part of any fitness program, it should not be the primary focus, especially if you are female and over 40 years of age. In your 20s you could knock off those extra pounds by just running on the treadmill a few extra times each week.  However, as you approach your 40s and beyond that plan isn't effective anymore and here's why.

As you enter your late 30s you start to lose muscle, and muscle is that part of your body that burns the majority of the calories that you consume each day.  A pound of muscle burns about 6 calories a day even while your are resting, and a pound of fat only burns around one calorie per day.

 If you don't do anything to combat the above scenario, you can lose as much as 10 lbs of muscle each decade beginning in your 40s.  That decreases your metabolism by about 60 calories a day every 10 years of your life.  So, that's about 21,900 calories a year that's being converted to fat, which is approximately 6 lbs of fat you gain each year.


I know, this is a very sad scenario, but there is hope.  Your savior is called strength training.  By incorporating strength training in your fitness program you can slow, and in some cases, even reverse muscle loss.  And, it's never too late to start, studies have shown the positive results of strength training in people well into their 90s.

Get Fit And Lean In 15 Days

Image via WikipediaI've been searching the web recently for credible information on exercise and fitness.  I'm amazed at the huge number of programs promising dramatic results in as little as 15 days.  I'm a certified personal trainer, fitness author, and competitive natural bodybuilder and I know better than to subscribe to one of these programs, but the general public does not.

While achieving dramatic results from your fitness program in a short period of time is possible, the probability of sustaining your results for a long time is very unlikely.  It takes me 16 weeks of intense exercise and very strict dieting to get ready to compete in a bodybuilding competition, and I cannot sustain that peak physical condition for very long.  So, buying into those quick fix programs is a waist of your money, because you can't keep up the effort it takes to sustain the results for the long-term.

Staying healthy and fit is a lifetime effort which is most easily accomplished through balance and moderation in your diet combined with regular exercise.  The quick fix approach is just a short-term answer to a long-term problem.

As promised I'm starting a contest to giveaway a copy of my book Forever Fit and Firm.  All of the exercises that I have posted about over the last few weeks have come from my book.  There's only two requirements to enter the contest. 1. Become a follower of my blog and send me a comment stating your favorite exercise from one of my previous posts.  2. Become a Facebook Fan of mine and send me a comment telling me your favorite food.

The contest starts March 1st and ends March 31st.  Good luck!

Not Your Typical 52 Year Old's Exercise Program

Let start this post by stating that I'm 52 years old and I've been lifting weights for most of my adult life.  I'm as strong (actually stronger), and I feel as good as I did 30 years ago.  I'm 6 foot 2 inches tall, and I weigh in at 218 lbs at 10 percent body fat.  I'm not telling you this to brag on myself, but hopefully to change your concept of aging.

I'm an ACE certified personal trainer and I specialize in fitness over the age of 40.  I hear and see far too many people over 40 years of age blame their aches, pains, and poor physical condition on "getting old", when most of their physical calamities are the result of years of inactivity and bad lifestyle choices.

I believe that getting old has less to do with years and more to do with your attitude and the daily choices you make.  Imagine your body being healthy, strong, and fit as you grow older and this will lead you to make the healthy choices to manifest the the healthy, strong, and fit life you want no matter what age.

What's more compelling than an example to show you that you can be healthy, strong, and fit in your 40s, 50s, and beyond.  Here is my workout routine I did yesterday. It was a heavy lifting day for my shoulders and back, so I did the following:

• Lateral shoulder raises, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with 60 lb dumbbells.
• Overhead shoulder presses, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with 80 lb dumbbells.
• Shoulder shrugs, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with 315 lbs.
• Bent over dumbbell rows, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with a 150 lb dumbbell.
• Weighted pullups, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with 35 lbs attached to my waist.
• Lat pulls, 3 sets of 5 repetitions with 270 lbs.

This is not your typical 52 year old's workout, but it could be.

If You Are Over 50, You Can Be Stronger In 10 Years Than You Are Now

Image via WikipediaLately I've noticed a lot of fitness videos and programs aimed at those of us over the age of 50.  It seems that these programs have good intentions, however the exercises and fitness routines they recommend are more geared toward people in retirement communities.  Just because you are over 50, you don't have to decrease your exercise intensity to the point of working out with resistance bands and light weight dumbbells.

If you are in poor physical condition, using resistance bands, and light weights is a place to start in your quest to improve your health and fitness level, but it isn't a place for you to stay for very long.  The ripe young age of 50 is where you really need to concentrate on building and maintaining your muscle mass and the best way to do this is with strength training.

Building muscle is important because you naturally start to lose your muscle mass at a rate of about 1 lb per year beginning in your 40s.   Muscle is that component of your body that makes your joints strong, keeps your metabolism high (which makes losing weight easier), and helps you remain youthful and strong.

Regular strength training can slow and even reverse muscle loss.  Studies have shown that people in their 80s and 90s can build muscle and get stronger by weight lifting.  I'm a firm believer in regular weight lifting.

I'm in my fifties and I've been weight lifting for over 30 years.  I'm stronger and more fit than I was in my 20s.  If you are over 50, starting a regular strength training program is one of the most important things you can do for your fitness.  If you start now, by the time you are in your 60s you can say, "I'm stronger now than I was 10 years ago."  Wouldn't that be awesome?






 

Two Exercises For Strong Sexy Abs

Seated Ball Twist - Start

Seated Ball Twist - Finish

Here are two exercises that compliment each other to give you a strong sexy mid-section.  The seated ball twist develops the upper portion of your abdominal muscle, and also your obliques.  The vertical knee raise develops the lower portion of you abdominal muscle and also strengthens your lower back.  When you combine these two movements in one workout you really develop and strengthen your whole core.


The seated ball twist is a very good exercise for abdominal development and strength. Sit on the floor with a slight bend in your legs. Hold a therapeutic ball in front of you with your arms fully extended. Lean back slightly, pick your chest up high and pull your naval in. Now turn your shoulders to one side and touch the ball to the floor and then turn to the other side and do the same. A complete revolution counts as one repetition. Be sure you arms stay extended throughout this exercise. Breathing pattern is to exhale as you touch the ball to the floor and inhale as you bring the ball across your body.

Vertical Knee Raise - Start

Vertical Knee Raise - Finish

Vertical knee raises strengthens and develops your abdominal and lower back muscles. Position yourself on the machine to where your weight is resting on your elbows and your lower back is firmly press against the back rest. This is your start position. Exhale and slowly brings your legs towards your chest while slightly bending your knees. Lift your legs to a little higher than parallel to the floor and slowly return to your start position.

Do as many repetitions of the seated ball twist as you can and then immediately do as many of vertical knee raises as possible.  Repeat this cycle 3 times for a serious burn in your mid-section.

Do Your Cardiovascular Exercise In Your Target Heart Zone

Image via WikipediaPeople often ask me what's the best equipment to use for cardiovascular exercise. My standard reply is any equipment that raises their heart rate and keeps it in their target heart rate zone. The next question I get is, what is my target heart rate zone? To which I reply, if they are going to spend 30 to 45 minutes on a piece of cardiovascular equipment they should know at what intensity level they should be exercising to get the most out of their workout.

In this post I will take the mystery out of explaining your target heart rate, so you can get the best results from your cardiovascular workouts. A brief explanation of how your body responds to exercise will help you understand how to do your cardio in a manner that is most efficient in helping you to burn body fat and firm-up.

Your body has two basic ways of generating energy for your muscles in response to exercise. One is by a method in which your body uses oxygen to burn calories to provide fuel to your exercising muscles. In this method your body is most efficient in burning stored body fat because fat must have oxygen present to be converted into energy to fuel your muscles. Activities which cause your body to use this method to generate energy are called aerobic. Examples are brisk walking and slow running. When you are doing activities such as these you are exercising in the aerobic zone.

The other method which your body provides fuel to your muscles is without the use of oxygen. In this method your body primarily uses carbohydrates that are stored in the muscle to generate energy. Activities that require a quick burst of energy such as heavy weight lifting and sprinting requires your body to use this method. Activities that causes your body to use this energy production system are called anaerobic exercises.

Knowing which energy system you are using when you exercise is important if you want to maximize fat burning. In my fitness program I do strength training in the anaerobic zone to build and maintain muscle and I do cardio in the aerobic zone to burn fat.

When planning your cardio exercise program design it around the following three concepts:

Frequency – I recommend you do at least 3 sessions of cardio each week but no more than 5. This is ample exercise to realize the health benefits, and burn body fat while giving your body maximum recovery time to build and maintain your hard earned muscle mass. I personally do 3 to 4 cardio sessions per week as a part of my fitness program.

Intensity – I suggest you do your cardio exercise in the range of 60 to 80 percent of your estimated maximum heart rate. This is called your aerobic zone and is where your body is most efficient at burning fat as fuel. Anything above 80 percent of your estimated maximum heart rate is going tap into your anaerobic energy production system which means you stop using stored body fat to feed your muscles.

Use the following method to calculate your estimated maximum heart rate and your aerobic exercise zone. Take the number 220 and subtract your age. This is your estimated maximum heart rate. Now take 60 percent of this number to get the lower end of the range of your aerobic zone and 80 percent of this number to get the upper end.

For example, I am 51 years old so my estimated maximum heart rate is 220 – 51 = 169 beats per minute (bpm). Therefore, the lower end of the range of my aerobic zone is 169 bpm x 60% = 101 bpm and the upper end of my aerobic zone is 169 bpm x 80% = 135 bpm. So when I do my cardio exercise I do it at a heart rate in the range of 101 to 135 bpm.

The easiest the way to see if you are staying in your aerobic zone is with a heart rate monitor. If you do not have access to a heart rate monitor you can use the following method to check your heart rate and stay in your aerobic zone. Take the lower and upper range numbers you calculated above and divide them by 4. This is your 15 second heart rate count. Then periodically during your workout stop and check your pulse for 15 seconds to see if your heart rate falls between the 2 numbers you just calculated.

I’ll use my example again. The lower and upper ends of the range of my aerobic zone is 101 and 135 bpm respectively. Therefore, my 15 second heart rate count is 101bpm / 4 = 25 for the lower end of the range and 135 / 4 = 34 for the upper end. Thus, when I’m doing my cardio and I stop to check my pulse for 15 seconds and the number I get is between 25 and 34 I’m in my aerobic exercise zone. This is the intensity range that my body is most efficient in burning fat for fuel to provide my muscles the energy to exercise.

Duration – It is my observation that you get the most benefit from your cardio program when combined with strength training if you do between 30 and 45 minutes 3 to 5 days each week. Do the 30 minute sessions after strength training and the 45 minute sessions on the days you do not weight lift.

Design your cardio exercise program around the three principles above and you’ll see a real difference in the way you look and feel.

Two Great Exercises To Develop Strong Sexy Shoulders

Arnold Press- Middle

Arnold Press - Start

Whether you are male or female you always look sexier with strong sculpted shoulders.  Here are two basic exercises that will strengthen and develop your shoulders.

Arnold Presses

Arnold Presses made famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger strengthens and develops your shoulders.  This is one of my favorite exercises.  Use a bench that has a back support to do this exercise.  Sit upright, hold a dumbbell in each hand close together at nose height with your palms facing in.  This is your start position.  Rotate your palms forward while bringing the dumbbells back to your ears and press the dumbbells overhead until your arms are fully extended.  Now, bring the dumbbells back down to ear level and return to your start position.  Exhale as you rotate the dumbbells forward and press up and inhale as you bring them back to the start position.

Arnold Press - Finish

Lateral Dumbbell Raises

Following Arnold Presses, I do lateral dumbbell raises to sculpt my shoulders.  Start by holding a dumbbell in each hand in front of you.  Position your feet shoulder width, slightly bend your knees, and hold your chest high.  This is your starting position.  Bend your elbows slightly and raise your hands out to your sides about shoulder height with your palms facing down then return to your starting position.  Be careful to that your forearm and your elbow at the same level at the finish of this movement.  Your breathing pattern is to exhale as you raise your arms up and inhale as you return to start.

Lateral Raise - Finish

Lateral Raise - Start

I recommend beginners do 2 sets of 10 repetitions of each exercise and those more advanced do 3 sets of 10 repetitions of each.  Remember to use a resistance with which the last 3 repetitions are difficult to complete.  Add these two movements to your fitness routine for strong and sexy looking shoulders.

Two Great Exercises To Strengthen and Tone Your Legs And Butt

Spring is just around the corner, so now is the time to get ready to look your best.  If you want your legs and backside ready for the upcoming spring and summer wear, the leg press and step ups are two exercises you need in your fitness regime. 

Leg Press - Start

Leg Press - Finish

The Leg Press

The leg press is one of the best exercises for overall strength and development of your legs. First sit in the seat and position your feet about shoulder width and chest height on the platform. Adjust the seat height by pulling the handle and sliding forward until your thighs are parallel to the platform. This is your start position (be careful that your lower back is pressed firmly against the back you the seat). With your feet flat slowly press upward until your legs are fully extended but short of lockout. Slowly return to a position to where the weight almost touches the weight stack. The breathing pattern for this exercise is to exhale as you press up and inhale as you return to the start. Again, you will have to experiment to find a weight with which the last three repetitions are difficult to perform

Step ups, Start

Step ups

Step ups are great for developing and shaping your butt. With this exercise you will do ten repetitions on one leg followed by ten repetitions with the other. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and position yourself in front of a bench. Place one foot flat on top of the bench positioning you body to make a right angle at your knee. Start with your chest held high and shoulders square step up through your heel and lightly tap the bench with your other foot before returning to your starting position. Breathing pattern for this exercise is to exhale as you step up and inhale as you step back down.

Step ups, Finish

 For best results, I recommend that you do 3 sets of 15 repetitions on the leg press, followed by 3 sets of 10 repetitions each leg on the step ups.  Use a resistance that the last 3 repetitions are hard to complete.  Do these two exercises once every forth day and you'll be happy with the way your legs look this spring.