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Endurance, Intervals, Fitness: Know Your Cardio

FitSugar — Fri, 23 May 2008 05:30:00 -0700

A well balanced fitness program should include cardio as well as strength training and flexibility training. Don't think that cardio means working out at the same pace all the time. Just as you mix up the various elements of fitness, you need to mix up your cardio routine.

Your cardio plan should be a mix of endurance, fitness and interval training. You shouldn't just hop on the elliptical or hit the streets and do the same routine every workout. Doing so just focuses on one element of cardio fitness and your body can acclimate easily to your workout, meaning you are not challenging yourself as much as you could and are probably not burning as many calories as you could be. Here's a brief description of each type of training.

Endurance: Maintaining a steady, and somewhat slower pace for a longer duration is an endurance workout. Aim to work out for at least 40 to 60 minutes maintaining a target heart rate of 60-70 percent of your max (check my calculator to learn your max heart rate). This type of workout is good for burning both fat and calories. Endurance workouts are great for "recovery" workout, the day after an intense workout. Try running on flat ground for at least 40 minutes at a nice steady pace. Add five minutes on to your run each week until you make it up to a full hour.

To see the other two, just read more.

Fitness: Short and intense workouts to increase cardiovascular fitness are fitness workouts. For these workouts you work at a consistent and intense pace for a short period of time. Keep your heart rate between 75 and 85 percent of your max for twenty minutes. A tempo run is a great example of this kind of workout. You will burn the maximum number of calories in a shorter period of time. Doing just this type of workout can lead to injury, since you are pushing your body, heart, joints and muscles beyond your comfort zone. Once you have warmed up, put the speed of the treadmill a couple of notches past your comfort zone and run for 20 minutes. Don't forget to cool down.
Interval: I love interval training since it is a blend of both endurance and fitness training. It challenges the cardiovascular system by alternating intensities. It also increases your metabolism and will burn calories and fat. Here is a challenging interval workout: Interval Sprints on Treadmill.

So which type of training is your favorite and which do you need to do more of? Tell me in the comment section below.

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Fit Tip: Strength Train at Least Twice a Week

FitSugar — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:30:00 -0700

You know you should be spending time strength training, but you already spend a lot of time at the gym doing cardio and don't think you can fit in toning sessions. Don't assume you have to spend hours lifting weights - it doesn't take much to start seeing results. Start with 20 to 30 minutes of strength training sessions twice a week. Lift dumbbells, do exercises that use your own body weight such as push-ups and tricep dips, experiment with a resistance band, try those weight machines. Remember to work all your muscle groups, not just your upper body. Once you fit that into your schedule, work on adding another day. You'll notice that you're body is stronger overall, your muscles have more definition, and you'll feel more powerful when running, biking, or doing other cardio.

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Fit Tip: Cross Train

FitSugar — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 08:45:00 -0800

If you are going gang busters at the gym, as many people do come January, and are just tackling the treadmill I am here to urge you to cross train. Variety is the spice of life and if you are mixing up your workouts the chances of getting bored and stopping significantly decreases. Boredom is one major fitness routine killer.

The best part of cross training is that if you are trying to lose weight, cross training can help you burn more calories. Since the human body has evolved to be an efficient machine, it quickly adapts to the stresses we put on it. If running is your go to cardio exercise, when your running improves and you become a more efficient runner you also burn less calories. To alter this unfortunate situation, to burn more calories you need to confuse the efficient machine by adding unfamiliar movements into your exercise pattern. Why not mix swimming in with your running? If you feel like you are an especially bad swimmer, think of all those calories you will be burning just trying to stay afloat.

There's another bonus to cross training to lean about it read more.

Another bonus of cross training is that mixing up your routine also decreases repetitive strain injuries from over use. Adding biking, swimming, etc. to a running program, your joints get a break and your muscles will be worked in different ways. Making you well rounded in your fitness.

Fit's Tip: Cross training, and working out in inefficient ways, can work against you if you are attempting to run a fast marathon. In that case, you simply need to run. However, why not save your leg joints and trade one run a week for a pool run. Running in water means you are working your muscles against the resistance of the water by not pounding your joints on the pavement.

And you? How do you cross train? Share your cross training plan in the comments section below.

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What Size Dumbbells to Use When

FitSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:15 -0800

Dumbbells are an active girl's best friend because they're fairly inexpensive, compact, easy to use, and allow you to tone every part of your body. Using them can be a little confusing since they come in so many sizes, and many people may not realize that one size doesn't fit all exercises. For example, since biceps tend to be stronger than their neighbor muscles, the triceps, you'd want to use a heavier weight when doing bicep curls.

If strength training with dumbbells leaves you in the dark about what size weights to use for which exercise, here's a little cheat sheet. Since lifting too much can lead to a pulled muscle, here are the dumbbell weights you should start off with. Once your body becomes stronger, you can choose to gradually increase the amount.

To see the chart read on

Fit Tip: Train in the Rain

FitSugar — Tue, 06 May 2008 14:30:00 -0700

Race-day weather is always a big question mark. If you're training for a marathon, triathlon, bike race, or century ride, it pays to practice in all kinds of weather. As important as it is to work on your technique, your speed, and your stamina for these endurance races, you've go to be prepared for the worst conditions on the big day and train in all types of weather. Train in the rain, on bright sunny days, humid days, unseasonably cold temps, windy days, and heaven forbid – hail. Since you can't predict what the weather will be like on the day of the race, you need to practice biking, running, or swimming in all types of weather, you'll feel much more equipped and comfortable with whatever weather blows your way.

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Get Suspended While You Travel Like Mary J. Blige

FitSugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:00:00 -0700

When you're on the road you can't always get to a gym, but that doesn't mean you should throw in the towel when it comes to exercising. Do what Mary J. Blige does while traveling, and bring along a TRX suspension Home Training Kit ($170). It's a two-pound strap and handle weight-training system you can easily pack in your suitcase. Just attach it to a door or other sturdy base and you'll strengthen and tone your muscles by lifting and lowering your own body weight. Beverly Hills trainer Gregg Miele uses it to train both Mary and the fabulously fit Jennifer Lopez is also a fan.

They're not the only lovers of this piece of equipment. When she's not in the pool, Olympic swimmer Christine Magnuson uses TRX to strength train, since she doesn't always have access to a weight room. To see a video of how she uses the TRX, read more.

Looks fun, doesn't it?

Powerhouse Hit the Deck Workout System

FitSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:00:17 -0800

Powerhouse Hit the Deck ($20) is a new workout system that you can do "anywhere, anytime, with no fitness equipment needed." It's made up of 35 color-coded cards and an interval timer. Each card has a strength/cardio exercise on it, and its color denotes the exercise's level of difficulty. The levels are broken down in a cute way - no sweat (easy), I'm glistening (medium), and sweating buckets (hard) - and there are five warmup/cooldown cards too.

Using the Powerhouse deck is pretty simple:

Set the interval timer to how long you want to do an individual exercise - I set mine to 30-second intervals.
Always start each workout by drawing the yellow cards; these are the warmup exercises.
Read over the first card, hit the timer, and do as many repetitions of the exercise on the card as possible until the timer beeps.
Stop the timer, draw the next card and repeat.
After getting through the warmup exercises, draw from the rest of the deck and continue the process for as long as you like.

To see what I thought of the system, read more.

I liked the Powerhouse deck and thought it was a great cross-training workout. There are all sorts of variations you can do to change it up: go totally random and draw cards regardless of difficulty, keep your workout limited to one difficulty level, or build on difficulty as the workout progresses. You can also decide how much time you want to spend on your workout by pulling a certain number of cards before you begin. I liked shuffling the cards I pulled before starting so that my workout would always be a complete surprise.

The pace of the workout is a lot like the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred DVD, but the drawback is you don't have Jillian's motivation or anyone there to explain proper form. Given that it's just you and a deck of cards, you really have to rely on yourself for motivation. Also, you have to make sure you're following the cards as closely as possible so you don't injure yourself.

Though I wouldn't use the deck in place of my gym or even a workout DVD, this is a great set to have for traveling or if you need a quick way to relieve some stress.

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My Spring Equinox Fitness Challenge: Strength Training Details

FitSugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 04:30:00 -0700

In a recent session with my trainer Hannah at Equinox Fitness I learned two important tips - details, really - on how to make a couple of exercises more effective. And, as you know, the devil is in the details.

When working your booty doing side squats with a theraband or resistance tubing, you need to step out with your heel. Stepping with the heel, as opposed to the toe, will make your glutes engage more. Take 10 steps to the right, stepping with the heel, then return to your starting place by taking 10 steps leading with your left heel. After three sets of this exercise, I could feel my glute meds (the muscles on the side of the pelvis) burn.

To see how to make any rowing exercise more intense, read more.

Rowing exercises are great for working your upper back and these moves counteract everyday slouching. When doing rows, most folks think of squeezing their shoulder blades together. Instead of thinking solely of the movement coming from your back, initiate the movement from opening your collar bone, aka your clavicle. This detail helps open the chest a bit more, allowing the upper back muscles to engage more deeply.

Fit Tip: Include Cardio, Strength Training, and Stretching in Every Workout

FitSugar — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 13:00:00 -0800

When it comes to exercise, there's a huge push to do cardio. It burns calories, reduces stress, helps you lose or maintain your weight, helps relieve muscle soreness, and is good for your lungs and your heart. While that's true, cardio isn't the only thing your body needs. It's also important to strength train to tone your muscles, increase your metabolism, and increase your muscle mass. Of course you also need to stretch as well to increase flexibility, which will prevent injury.

So a good rule of thumb is to include all three - cardio, strength training, and stretching - in every workout. You can start with 30 minutes of jogging, followed by 20 minutes of dumbbells exercises, and finish with 20 minutes of yoga. Not only will your entire body feel worked, but doing all three every time you exercise will make sure you don't neglect one type of training.

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Celebs Like to Shake It

FitSugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:50:58 -0700

At first, the Power Plate seems like another gimmicky weight-loss product, but its website features endorsements from fit celebs like Madonna, Courteney Cox, and Hilary Swank. On top of that, it's used by over 60 college and pro sports teams, and the Police brought one with them on their reunion tour. That's some serious ~~celeb~~ street cred.

The secret behind the Power Plate is its vibrating plates. The manufacturer claims that if you stand on it for 10 minutes a day, three times a week, you'll lose weight, tone your body, and improve bone density. To really maximize the benefits of the machine, it's encouraged that you do the same exercises you would do on the floor - sit-ups, for example - on the Power Plate.

Cougar Town actress Cox says the Power Plate was essential in shaping her up for her new role: "The Power Plate machine has dramatically changed my workout. I know that every muscle in my body is being ignited in ways that you can't do with traditional training."

To see a video of Cox's trainer Michelle Lovett demonstrating the Power Plate, read more.

They call the technology behind the machine Acceleration Training: the vibrations transmit energy waves to the body that are able to contract muscles 25 to 50 times per second. This is suppose to help stimulate blood flow, work the muscles harder than ever before, and increase strength and flexibility.

Vibration training is not a new thing in the fitness world (remember the black rubber belts that used to go around the waist to shake off fat?), but it's been picking up steam especially as it garners more backing from the medical community and health professionals.

Studies done on the effects of vibration training show that if used properly, it's more beneficial at building lean muscle mass, improving weight loss, and increasing strength and speed than exercise regimens without vibration training. Researchers warn that the machines should not be used for more than 30 minutes a day due to health concerns about engaging the body in high-amplitude vibrations like back pain or blurred vision.

I remain a little skeptical, mostly because I can't get the Shake Weights infomercial out of my head, but my curiosity is piqued. My gym doesn't have a Power Plate yet, does yours? I'd love to hear what you think of this new workout.