Plyometrics, Anyone? Training You Can Do Anywhere!

You’ve got to love plyometrics. The exercises are simple, you just use your bodyweight in most cases, and you can perform them anywhere. They’re explosive movements and can be very high-intensity. Please don’t attempt plyometrics if you are injured, healing from an injury or are overtrained. Plyometrics can be very effective to your training routine so long as the exercises are done correctly, with safety and injury prevention as your primary concerns. 

So, how do they work?  Well, plyometric drills/exercises excite the elastic component of the muscles so that the muscles are trained to react powerfully and explosively. By performing upper and body plyometrics several times per week, upper and lower body power has been shown to dramatically improve power and performance.  Usually, you see them incorporated into agility type of training, like in football. However, they are making their way into mainstream training. If you try them, you will see why.

My favorites are the jump squat, box jump/step down, plank walk (up and down on bosu ball, block, or stairs), and the jump lunge. They totally kick my butt. The goal is to perform them for 30-60 seconds.  For a couple illustrations on execution, take a look at these videos on You Tube:

YouTube Video #1

YouTube Video #2

YouTube Video #3 (if you can stand the music selection, you will see a decent workout example!)

     Remember, it is important to alternate upper and lower body plyometric exercises with weight lifting so that both the upper and lower body do not get overworked on a given day.   Good luck and GET STRONG!

  In continuing my “favorite things”…this week’s sharing might come as a surprise—because it is the men’s magazine, “Men’s Health”! I actually subscribe to both Women’s Health and Men’s Health. Seriously- I do.  You’d think there would be a lot of overlap in content, but there isn’t.  I find Men’s Health informative, entertaining (the sex and gadget articles—you gotta love how men think!), and yes, then there are the pictures…But, seriously, I read it for the ARTICLES. (How funny does that sound?!) And what I really dig about the magazine (and website) are the workouts.  While I go to a gym (Lifetime Fitness) and have a mini gym at my house, I really like boot camp type of training—using your body as resistance– AND at-home workouts. I do them myself and like to include my kids when I train. Plus, many friends I work with don’t want to join a gym and I like being able to show them exercises they can easily do with their whole family, at home, with little or no equipment. Let me share a fun one I stumbled upon. I read about it on Men’s Fitness and then looked it up on YouTube. I recommend watching the video from the creators for form and instruction. You can modify it a lot of ways. Then, if you want to be entertained, you can watch a bunch of guys who filmed themselves attempting to do this workout in its entirety! Now, if you don’t have a chin up bar in a doorway or in the garage, just be creative in your modifications. You can use a resistance band wrapped around a pole to get your back.  And, if you want to start with a simpler workout until you get stronger, try this:20 Prisoner Squats, 20 Pushups, 10 Jumps, 10 Inverted Rows (alternate using a band or a towel and a partner!)20 Forward Lunges (10 reps per side)15 Close-grip Pushups, 5 Chin-ups or Inverted Rows (underhanded grip with band/partner or find a solid bar/bench you can use to pull yourself up)  

Are you ready for summer… and SWIM season?!! It’s just about here….with Memorial Day typically being the “official” kick-off for the summer season. The topic du jour at the gym and around the office is getting swimsuit ready! Losing weight is simple math, really. You’ve got to burn/take in 500 calories less a day in order to lose one pound a week. I think it’s easiest to do it by adding an extra 100-200 calories of activity coupled with a reduction of 250-300 calories a day. You can get there with a focus on food and fitness–two of my favorite things! (This btw, reminds me that in future blogs I am going to share a few of my favorite things! I hope you do, too.)

If the 500 calorie a day deficit seems too aggressive, losing half a pound a week is much easier–and definitely doable–especially for the ladies since our daily calorie needs are less than the guys. A 250 calorie a day decrease and/or exercise burn is easier to reach consistently.

For the fitness angle, get moving! No way around that one. For at least three workouts that include 20 minutes of resistance (minimum), 20 minutes of cardio and 5-10 minutes of stretching. (For why, look at past blogs on the importance of muscle and its calorie burning effect.) If you need some ideas for exercises, two sites I really like are Fitness Magazine where you can tailor your workout to your time, location, and equipment (if any). You do need to join the site, but it’s free and from there you can design a workout just for you, change it as often as you like, and see how to do the exercises. Another good site with exercise ideas is Runner’s World which also contains videos of the movement execution with verbal descriptions. Gotta love technology! On the food front, keep your focus on UNprocessed foods (oatmeal, eggs, lean meats, veggies and fruits and nuts—oh my!). When dieting, fiber and protein and good fats keep you feeling full longer. (DO watch your fat intake when trying to lose weight, however, since fat is calorie dense!) A great way to ensure your calories are not out of line is to keep a log. (And trust me, it keeps you honest!) If you are unsure about calorie counts, go to www.nutritiondata.com . Also, you can log your fitness and workouts on multiple free sites. My faves are www.runnersworld.com and www.fitday.com . To see ideas on the right foods for flat abs, check out Fitness Magazine Food For Flat Abs. Good luck on that bikini bod—I know you can do it!

Supposedly, if no one were fat, we’d save…. the earth? That might be a stretch, but it is a great idea, don’t you think? The guys over at Men’s Health have shared that we’d save “$5 billion in fueling our lighter cars and planes, spend $10 billion less on clothes, and be so productive at work that the nation would see a $257 billion boost!” Apparently, some guy actually put a pencil to this and found that an America without obesity would save $487 billion dollars each year—enough to give every one of us $4,270 in gas money. Certainly the kind of thing that makes you go, “Hmmmmm!”

The moral to this story? Start exercising and get everyone you know to join you. I normally ask, “What have you got to GAIN?” However according to this article, it’s a bunch o’ money, plus health benefits galore….so get GOING! And be FIT!

Invest in your workouts; it will do you and America some good. Gotta love it!

I got the “tri-bug” year before last. I fell in love the competition aspect of it—and the thrill of beating a previous time. I like the intention and goal setting of planning my training each week. I like the forced balance it provides by alternating cardio between swimming and cycling and running. Had it not been for triathlons, I would have never climbed on a bike or started doing laps again in a pool. I’ve really started enjoying both of those additions to my training. And, I rarely have knee issues running any more. So, tri training is fun. It makes me intentional. And I can compete with myself –or race against others. I was just starting to ramp up my spring time cardio routine for a summer of triathlons.  Then…life happend.  I learned that I needed to have surgery. It’s been a possibility for a couple of years. This time, however, I wasn’t bummed or upset about the news. No roller coaster of emotion. The Q to my doc was, “How long before I can train again?”  I had to smile. I’ve come a long way… “ain’t nothing gonna break my stride!” So what did I do? After looking at the optimal time to juggle work and line up summer driving for my kids’ activities, I searched the net for a local triathlon! I wanted to get at least ONE in this season. Found one that was two weeks away. It was last Sunday. The Saturday before was a gorgeous day. And Sunday? I woke up at 4:30 to cold, rainy weather. Oh well—I wanted to race. Never raced in the cold, so what the heck? A new experience.  My 10 year old daughter went with me to watch. The swim leg went well. The bike ride was…well, cold, windy and wet! I slowed down my transition a bit to add some arm warmers and a sleeveless jacket. I felt the cold, rain pelting me like little needles and yet– I had to smile. I thought, “I’m here. I’m STILL here. I get to FEEL this rain. I get to push it.” I had a blast. When I came in to transition from the bike to the run, there was my little girl standing on the corner in the rain, holding an umbrella, shouting, “Go MAMMA, go!” Just what I needed. Those words of encouragement fueled my run. I finished 2^ndin my division. Cool. Maybe I will get another race in late summer/early fall. And maybe not, but that’s OK. There’s always next year. As I was running today, Natasha Bedingfield came on my ipod. You know the song, Unwritten? “Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you, only you can let it in….live your life with arms wide open, today is where your book begins—the rest is still unwritten.” I felt the rain on Sunday. It was glorious. And today, I watched the trees dance while I ran along the creek and inhaled nature’s honeysuckle perfume…with arms wide open. It was awesome.

What’s that, you say? Sarcopenia, is age-related muscle loss. And for you youngsters who think it’s an “old age” thing, think again. It can start in your 30s. If you don’t take action now, you could begin to lose as much as 1 to 2 percent of your muscle mass a year by the time you hit 50. And the big picture? Less muscle, less movement = less activity. If that’s not enough, less muscle means you burn fewer calories and store more of them as fat. Now THAT’S a pretty picture, eh? No body wants to get there. And great news, you can add muscle at any age and reap benefits (but be sure to check with you doctor before starting an exercise plan AND don’t forget the importance of a well-rounded plan that incorporates resistance (for muscles and bone strength), cardio for your heart and blood pressure, and flexibility.)

What can you do? The key to stopping muscle loss is to strengthen your back, shoulders, arms, and thighs. “When you increase lean muscle mass, you burn more calories, even when you’re vegging!” Gotta love that. There are lots of places to find strength workouts, if you don’t work with a trainer. I’ve been lifting for 25 years, but I am constantly changing up my workouts and trying new things. Some good places to start are: Womens Health Magazine or, Fitness Magazine And if you are trying to lose weight, be sure to keep lifting! Our US government (http://www.healthierus.gov/exercise.html ) and American Heart Association recommend 30-60 minutes of activity most days of the week. For an idea of how to get started, look here., Studies show that if you don’t keep it up the pounds can sneak back up on you!

So, keep moving and keep choosing….HEALTH

Too often, we focus on one or the other of the fitness trio, but the reality is that each plays a significant role in our long term health and well being.  Sadly, flexibilty fitness is often the one we leave behind. However, simple logic will tell you that if you are not flexible, your range of motion is limited. If your range of motion is limited, your activity is limited. When activity is limited–esp. as we age, the body can start to decline. And with the already decline in muscle mass each year beginning around age 30, it is vital to commit to a well rounded program. Take heart! You can prevent muscle deterioration by resistance workouts–weights, bands, plyometrics, etc. Work out with a weight or resistance that is hard enough that you struggle to do 12 reps–in other words, really a weight that you can manage in good form for 8-10 repititions is key. Then after your work out, STRETCH! Seriously, at least 15-30 minutes 3 or more times a week. Folks often let this one go. I mean, lets face it, you don’t SEE results from stretching like you see from cardio and resistance workouts. It’s not as “cool” to do…altho yoga and pilates have finally emerged as wonderful options.  Have a personal trainer walk you through some stretches. It’ll do your body good.

And as a reminder for your MUSCLE–you WANT to work it and work it good to prevent age related decline. You can BUILD muscle. And remember that folks often get confused with just how much protein to take in to support your body’s needs. Remember it’s usually discussed in kilograms.  A kilogram is = 1000 grams, or 2.2 pounds.  So, when looking at charts, you want to divide your weight by 2.2 pounds to determine the kgs and then multiply that figure times .8 .  Then, depending on your activity, etc. you may need a bit more or less.  Check out this article at Runner’s World (which by the way is an EXCELLENT site full of training, nutrition and motivation):   Click here for Runners World Article

Be Strong and Happy Monday!

Know your family history. How did your mother’s two aunts die? And Uncle Julio? Knowing this helps you prepare an informed health preventive plan for longer term life and fulfillment. Check out the U.S. Surgeon General’s Family Health Portrait site at: (familyhistory.hhs.gov ) . It has easy instructions.

Know your waist to hip ratio. Why? Because it is the best test to predict heart attacks. Measure the smallest point of your waist and the largest part of your hips. Then divide the first number by the second. A ratio of .8 or lower is good.

Know your body compensation. A normal BMI (body mass index) for women is between 19-25. To test for body fat, your gym can use calipers or a bioelectric impedance analysis. Your family doctor can do this also. Here is a BMI calculator from the American Heart Association.

Your resting heart rate. How do you do that? Measure it first thing in the morning. Count it for 60 seconds, or just count for 10 seconds and multiply by 6. A healthy pulse is between 60-80, or even lower for athletes. That means your heart doesn’t have to work as hard to move oxygen throughout your body. http://www.americanheart.org

Know your cholesterol levels. When is the last time you had this checked? It’s a simple, quick and very informative test. You should do this at least every 5 years beginning at age 20. Shoot for saturated fat being less than 10% of your total caloric intake and strive to eliminate ALL trans (partially hydrogenated or fake) fats. Read labels. Products can say “0” trans fats and yet still contain trans fats in it (they lower the servings so they can say that). www.americanheart.org/transfats

For a good starting point for healthy living, check out the recommendations for the health related numbers, exercise and diet tips from the American Heart Association. Get moving today. Your body will thank you. AND, so will your children.

For more information and facts about heart disease, visit Dr. Oz’s recommendations found at: http://www.oprah.com/health