Jillian Michael's Shred-It with Weights

I have no problem recommending other personal trainer's work.
Jillian does a great job with her radio show, biggest loser thing on tv and shooting straight. Sure she's sold out a little with pimpin some products but overall Jillian is legit. Unlike her counterpart on that tv show, what's his name, Bob?
Anyway, Here's a good read from Jillian that in girl terms explains why women should be doing weights to get sexy.

Band Assisted One Arm Push-Ups

Nice work!
You can do push-ups pretty well.
Need a new challenge? Howabout one arm push-ups?
No worries, we can ease into and get your form right by using a band for assistance until you can do these push-ups on your own.

Healthy at 100

If you are spun completely around and confused about exercise, diet, relationships, mental health and living a lifestyle where you feel truly alive - Then I recommend this book.

John Robbins writes this book like that tv show "connections"... kinda. He looks at different cultures and their longevity success clues vs other cultures and their poor state of health.
He also goes into comparing popular diet plans, the affect of relationships in our health and longevity odds.
He has action steps in implementing healthy lifestyles, eating foods (i.e. for color), mental acuity tips, relationship and community thoughts.

My words:
Eat locally for the most part.

Eat produce "in season" - for example this spring /summer eat asparagus for kidney cleansing from winter's diet effects on the body. We should be eating differently each season.

High protein/ fats don't work for everyone and neither does high carbohydrates. There are many variables that dictate how this works including blood type which is related to which digestive enzymes we have or lack, food allergies, gut health, liver health, kidney health, insulin sensitivity and so on... For those of us who eat acidic foods (including meats) we must counter-act with alkaline greens.
Keep in mind that anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory foods/ ingredients maintain youthfulness.
Minimizing stress is also key. Paraphrase: We are chasing around, not from predators rather chasing dollars and time.


The magic number for calories is around 1800-2500 calories for the average person, extremes in either direction result in weight gain.

I am very grateful that John incorporates eco-systems, social support (spouse, family, friends and community), exercise, mental sharpness and spiritual or least work on bettering yourself so you are living life.

Three Classic Weight Loss Stories

December 2009, I have an opportunity to expand my services outside the Sports Center again. This time it's an insurance company that has a fitness room in their building. Of the 90-some employees, six ladies sign up to train with me. My baseline and recurring test numbers revolve around simply a weekly weigh-in and 5-site circumference measurements. Could have gone more tech but a third party is doing the bodyfat percentages, besides women want to know two things with fitness results: weight loss & size or inches lost.

I tell clients in this demographic that one of three things will happen with embarking on a fitness/ weight loss program with me. The following are three distinctly different real world stories.

JD

Started and ended at the same weight over the course of 2 months. Even though JD didn't experience an overall weight loss over the Christmas Holiday season she lost a total of 2 inches. What happened? JD was consistent in her workouts, She did the strength training and the interval running on treadmill as well as elliptical and recumbent bike. However, she didn't clean up her diet. Bright side was she lost inches primarily in the waist, didn't gain weight over the holidays, improved her stamina, balance, coordination and gained strength. Age mid 30's

KB

Took off like a jackrabbit! She lost 5 pounds the first week. She did the same workout routine as JD (5 days a week, about 40 minutes each day). The difference. KB got serious about her eating habits. It became a lifestyle. Sure KB hit plateaus with weight loss and losing inches. But overall she steadily improved. After 3 months KB lost 20 pounds, lost a total of six inches on her body circumference measurements with the majority being in hips and thighs. I now have her on a 5K race training routine (keeping in mind she has exercise induced asthma) in addition to challenging her on strength training. KB proudly wears better fitting clothes- and she should be proud. Age just under 50.

JP

The most classic story and such a great story to tell; JP made sure that I went easy on her. She gave me the laundry list of limiting conditions. Specifically, HER RUNNING DAYS ARE BEHIND HER, so just walk on treadmill and negotiate speed & elevation. With JP the workouts were modified to activities that were appropriate for her fitness level. The first six weeks JP gained 2 inches overall and gained 5 pounds. Her strength and stamina improved and arthritic knee pain was alleviating.

Here's what happened:

Increased activities stimulated increased appetite, but she didn't have the eating habits corrected yet (and yes it is a lifestyle change which takes time).

People new to strength training or re-introduced after a long hiatus will store more water in the muscles as it requires water uptake to allow the muscles to recover.

Together the increased appetite without diet modification and water intake for recovery makes for weight gain.

Next, JP turned the corner. She cleaned up her diet more than she thought she needed to… until we had some talks about the crap that is packaged and sold to us as "food" or rather belly fillers. As JP's weight began to drop and lost some inches, her confidence increased. Being in a group setting with colleagues who were also experiencing life changing results for the better, and a few ladies starting to run intervals or do the 5K training program I set up for them; JP had a "What-If" moment and tried running on the treadmill. She did just fine and the arthritic knee felt good. No flare ups. When I called JP out and reminded her what she said from the beginning about how I would not get her to ever do (RUNNING); She proceeded to reflect and we had this talk.

You know when you get to a certain point where you're at your heaviest and limiting health conditions arise, it's easy to hide inside yourself and accept that the days of fitness and being healthy are over.

It's only until you start thinking about how you take care of yourself directly affects everyone who is important to you. Being overweight comes with the burden of lack of self-esteem.

The paradox is it takes self-esteem to better yourself. This is why it is so difficult to start a fit & healthy lifestyle, in addition to the programming (habits) people have been submitting themselves to for so long.

Thankfully momentum works in both directions (like a pendulum). If you can muster up enough courage and self-preservation to commit to taking back your life, there will be immediate and encouraging results. And as the body adapts to the challenges of exercise along with eating to nourish, you will stop fighting your body and start to become in-tuned with yourself.

As JP said, "I have just experienced a new kind of freedom, realizing I can run again."

Wow! Fitness related to a feeling of freedom.

She followed up, "I was trapped inside my own body for so long." "Now it makes me wonder what else I can do." The whole emotional side of making the transition to a healthy lifestyle is that we need to address our self worth. Are you emotionally prepared to spend time and energy on improving yourself? You should be. After all you are worth it. And to put it bluntly, you are worthless to everyone else if you become so sickly out of shape that you become the one who needs cared for on a variety of levels. Contribute to others by contributing to bettering yourself.

In 3 months, JP lost 14 pounds and 6 inches. Age Lower 50's.

* Just prior to posting this, I happened to visit with JD. She is working out on her own now. The eating habits are still an issue. But she is now off of her cholesterol lowering medication. Next goal is get her blood pressure under control and go off those meds. She replied she's not sure if that will ever happen because it's genetic (whole family has high blood pressure).

My response, "JD don't play that card!" High blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes... all of these are reversible. Just need to follow the white rabbit to a new world of thinking.

Fitness During Pregnancy

This topic is so big and so very important that I recruited an expert to guest write. Erin is a nutritionist as well as a nurse and proud mother of a charming 1 yr old.

Erin Blackwell Igo

Fitness in pregnancy can be challenging thing. You are not only responsible for your own well-being, but now you are entrusted with the sole responsibility of growing another human being. For some people, pregnancy can be a very difficult time. We spend our entire adult lives trying to be "fit" and maintain an ideal weight. Then one day, we wake up pregnant and are told we must gain weight, let our abdomens grow so we can't see our toes, and buy new HUGE clothes. This can be a struggle in two different ways:

1. We are so excited for it to be socially acceptable to gain weight that we take "eating for two" literally and gain too much.
   

or

1. We know that we are supposed to gain weight, but have such a hard time giving up our normal jean, that we decide to restrict our diets which can cause substantial harm to the baby.
   

   
   

   The International Organization of Health has set the following pregnancy weight gain guidelines:
   Underweight women- 28 to 40 lbs
   Normal weight women- 25-35 lbs
   Overweight women 15-25 lb
   Obese women 11-20 lbs (although, this is under scrutiny as many studies are showing that obese women can have healthy babies without gaining any weight).
   

   
   This weight should not all be gained in the first week. We shouldn't pull out the ice cream claiming we need to gain 35 lbs. In fact, in the first trimester weight gain should only be about 2-5 lbs and caloric intake does not need to be increased. If you are hungry- you are lucky! Eat! But continue to make wise choices. Because calcium and protein needs are greater during pregnancy (protein needs increase to 60 g/day), choose to have a glass of skim milk or opt for a protein snack. After the first 16 weeks, weight gain should average one pound per week and you can increase your calorie intake 300 calories per day. Once again- this shouldn't be seen as opportunity to eat a candy bar everyday because there are 300 extra calories to consume. Add two healthy snacks a day- yogurt, cottage cheese, a handful of nuts, or even a tablespoon of peanut butter.
   
   Some people follow another train of thought. Instead of "I get to gain 30 pounds??? Bring on the bacon!" they think "I have to be fat and gain how much??" This is normal. In my first trimester I gained 5 lbs, couldn't fit in to any of my clothes, and felt like a fat slob. I knew that the fetus weight was about an ounce at this point and had a really hard time justifying how large I was getting so quickly. But, this is how the weight gain plays out by the end:
   

   
   8 lb of baby
   3 lb of amniotic fluid and placenta
   2 lb of uterus
   4 lb of extra blood
   3 lb of extra breast tissue
   5-10 lb of "maternal stores"
   

   
   So even though that fetus is 1 oz and you have gained 5 lbs, that is 5 lbs of extra fluid and tissue that is being laid down to appropriately create and develop another organism. The hardest part to swallow is the 5- 10 lbs of "maternal stores." It is a pleasant way of saying "fat." This is necessary, though (unless you are already overweight or obese.) The belief used to be that this fetus was a parasite- it took everything first and mom got the leftovers. This is true in terms of vitamins and minerals, but not calories. Studies have shown that if mom doesn't have a high enough body fat percentage, the baby will break down mom's muscle tissue to use as energy while mom's body uses the calories consumed to increase her body fat. This is not good for your baby's developing brain. While you aren't looking forward to laying down 5-10 lbs of fat, it is good for your baby. Also, if you cautious not to lay down more than that- you will be able to easily get rid of it by breastfeeding and chasing your baby around within the first year.
   
   The last thing is exercise. It is important to exercise during pregnancy, but I cannot stress enough that every person is different. Some women can run marathons while pregnant (although, I don't recommend it), while some can't find the energy to walk down the block. I am an avid runner and before I was pregnant I ran about 20 miles per week. By the 4th month, I had stopped all together. I was TIRED, and the extra weight made me feel like I was running through mud. So, I switched it up. I walked a lot, I did prenatal yoga, and most importantly- I did what felt right. If your body is screaming, "Stop! This is too much!" then it probably is. As you gain weight, the activities you do burn more calories. Therefore, you can take it down a notch and still have an equally as effective exercise routine. Also remember, the point of exercise during pregnancy is not to lose weight- it is to be healthy.
   

Monty Moran's Notes

Thanks Erin. In addition, I would recommend the protein intake increased to at least 60 g and up to 120 g per day depending on your lean body weight. More lean body mass requires more protein. Go with whole milk, there is a reason why it started out that way… more proteins and healthy fats that all work together to nourish the body. Obviously omit if milk allergies are an issue and those with diabetic conditions definitely need to stay away from skim milk because it's basically white colored sugar water. Healthy fats are vital for baby's development and NO – healthy fat in meals does not beget fat moms.

After bouncing some theories off of Aaron Jones (a chiropractor here in the Fargo-Moorhead area) we agreed I should address a few more things. With exercise, I wouldn't recommend starting a running routine during 2^nd trimester and on. However if you are a runner, keep these things in mind as you progress through your pregnancy term:

You will gain weight which obviously adds a form of resistance training to your running.
Your center of balance will change which will change your running mechanics.
Like Erin said, you may not have the energy to run like you did and may need to either cut the mileage back or cut the frequency down to recover between runs.
There are other options or complimentary activities such as yoga, Pilates, strength training, biking and so on.
With strength training, the same issues apply. Weights may not be as heavy but higher reps can suffice. Certain exercises will not be comfortable to perform for obvious reasons.
Luckily, maintaining a fitness routine is somewhat easy as it is a way of your life, your body changes gradually and fit people are more in tune with their bodies and know what works or as Erin said, "I did what felt right."

As far as taking vitamins & minerals consult somebody who knows what they're talking about, mega vitamins are not the answer. Quality, absorbable, well balanced, non-toxic vitamin/mineral supplements should be sought after – with that said, by all means don't go shopping in the Wal-Mart aisles for anything health related.

If you are not in a fitness routine and want to start (even during pregnancy) consult your OB/GYN and a competent fitness professional to put you on the right track and monitor your progress.

Ball to Box Jumps

Want vertical?
The ball to box jump is a classic way to incorporate vertical jump training into your workout. The idea is to stimulate the muscles to fire quickly from a rest position and explode up sending your body soaring through the air. Granted this is only one aspect of jump training and doesn't elicit the plyometric or stretch-contract effect on the tendons for optimal use of kinetic energy (more videos displaying that in the future).


Lacey is one of my clients who likes to push herself in the aspect of being good at everything and her workout regime backs it up. In six months she has lost 17 pounds, gained strength by 200% pretty much across the board. Started by doing three days of strength training and three days of advanced dance classes. Now Lacey has evolved into a fitness diva and runs 2-3 miles two days a week, sprints on the treadmills another two days a week, advanced dance classes two days a week, strength trains three days a week and recently added boxing training one day a week, in addition she tries get up early and do some form of cardio (treadmill or elliptical) two days a week, and does my boot camp every other weekend. Add 'em up and that 10-13 workouts per week.

My experience is 2-3 workouts a week doesn't cut it in getting results but it's a starting point. The progression to numerous workouts per week is a lifestyle change. And the results can become addictively rewarding. And yes she does have an 8-5 job and just started her own marketing business and scrapbooks and knits. We all have time. It's what we do with it and prioritize things that matters.

Thank you Lacey for being a good sport and allowing me to show the "didn't quite make 35" video."

Cormax Youth Training

Is strength training healthy for a child?
The answer is YES! Strength training exercises that are supervised, safe and age appropriate offer many bonuses to young athletes. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association recommend strength training for kids. Today’s children are increasingly overweight and out of shape. Strength training can put them on a lifetime path to better health and fitness.

Why do some coaches and teachers still think strength training is unsafe and say, don’t lift weights because lifting weights may damage your epiphysis growth plates, which is the area of your bones that are still growing and developing?
This false idea about strength training is even found in many teaching, coaching and fitness books. However, recent research has shown that weight training with light to moderate weights, using proper technique, has been shown to help bone development.

What is the difference between strength training and weight lifting?
Strength training for kids, not to be confused with weight lifting, body building or power-lifting, is a carefully designed program of exercises to increase muscle speed, strength and endurance. Strength training for kids isn’t about lifting heavier weight or building bigger muscles.
Instead the focus is on lighter weights and controlled movements with a special emphasis on proper technique and safety. Ed Laskowski, M.D., a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, says, “Heavy lifting can put too much strain on young muscles, tendons and growth plates, if proper technique is sacrificed in favor of lifting larger amounts of weight.”

What are some of the benefits for young athletes?
Supervised strength training that uses weight machines with safety cylinders as in Cormax provide these benefits.

• Increases a young athlete’s muscle strength and endurance
• Protects the athlete’s muscles and joints from injury
• Helps improve performance in a particular sport
• Better heart and lung function
• A healthy body composition
• Stronger bones
• Lower blood cholesterol levels
• Fitness habits that last a lifetime

Some studies suggest that improved self-esteem and a decreased chance of depression are results of a well designed strength training program. Your child may get a shot of self-confidence and a feel-good boost of self-esteem after improving his or her performance.

When should my child start strength training?
A good rule of thumb is if your child is old enough to participate in sports such as hockey, soccer, or baseball, he or she is old enough to start strength training.

What are some of the general principles of strength training for kids?
The general principles of youth strength training are:

• Proper Instruction. Your child should be taught how to perform strength training exercises using proper form.
  
• Supervision. Adult supervision is important to reinforce safety and good technique. Think light and moderate weights with controlled repetitions. Kids can safely lift adult-sized weights as long as the weight that is lifted can be lifted with a smooth and accelerate motion.
  
• Rest between workouts. Three sessions a week is plenty with a rest period of at least one day between sessions.
  
• Track progress. Your child should fill out a chart or card to record and monitor progress. Add weight gradually. Only when your child can lift a weight smoothly and with acceleration should you add weight. Five to six repetitions per exercise is recommended.
  
• Keep it fun. Have your child train with a friend, or a family member. Vary the exercises. Mix it up. Kids are more likely to stick to strength training if they have fun doing the exercises.
  
• Encouragement from a parent. Encourage physical activity in your child-it is a key step to becoming a healthy adult. Be a good example for your child. If your child shows an interest in strength training, do whatever you can to encourage him or her to engage in this healthy activity.

Becoming stronger and better coordinated is critical to athletic success. Strength contributes to running faster, jumping higher, and being more explosive, but remember, players still must focus on other skill components of their sport. Strength and fitness are just the foundation that these other attributes build from!

Body Part Isolation in Strength Training: Are You Kidding Me?

I just re-located to a much larger gym with a greater variety of fitness enthusiasts. My loyal followers began to notice the “big guys” and proceeded to ask me a variety of questions along with a few comments on their observations.

Here are two common questions: “Those guys are twice the size of us, but they struggle with weights that I can do. What is that?” And the other would be, “How come you don’t have me do that machine” or “How come you don’t have me do that exercise?” I’ll address the latter questions as they pertain to why we don’t do isolation exercises.

Unless you are into bodybuilding or undergoing physical rehabilitation, performing isolation exercises should have no role in your training regimen.

The first thing I try to teach my clients is that the body does not work well in muscle isolation. Instead, it works better in movements along a kinetic chain; meaning, completing complex movements using a greater number of muscle groups. (e.g., pull-ups, dead lifts and bench press). In fact, there really is no such thing as true muscle isolation. There is almost always a nearby muscle group that will assist in some way with whatever movement you are doing. Moreover, many muscles groups actually cover two joints not just one.

When you attempt to ‘isolate’ muscles, you are actually creating a body that is non-functional and more prone to injury. Essentially, you are creating a body that is a sum of body parts, instead of a powerful, functional body that works together. The term synergy comes to mind.

It’s a cruel trick; isolate body parts to achieve the aesthetic qualities seen in magazines, yet sacrifice quality of life by suffering with joint problems, tendonitis, and possibly bulking up. Conversely, if you would rather have a lean, muscular, injury-free, functional body that works in synergy to perform complex movements (in athletics or even everyday tasks), then by all means stay away from muscle isolation exercises. Believe me, focusing on how well your body functions will give you the body that looks even better than it would have if you focused on muscle isolation.

Personal story:
In college, I used to do a lot of biceps curls (for the girls). I also suffered with intermittent tendonitis that would run from my biceps tendon in the front of the shoulder to my elbows, all along my forearms and even my wrists. The only remedy was to stop doing curls. When I started working in Cormax only gyms, I stopped doing isolation exercises all together. I started to train using more complex movements and noticed that my biceps were getting a better workout simply by doing cleans (well, version is more like a high pull), rows and pull-ups. And the tendonitis issues were non-existent, while my overall strength catapulted.

Another benefit to moving away from the ‘muscle isolation’ mindset to a more ‘complex movement’ mindset is that you will find it much easier to lose body fat. The reason is that by focusing more on multi-joint complex movements as opposed to single-joint muscle isolation, you not only burn a lot more calories during each workout, but you also increase your metabolic rate, and stimulate production of more fat burning and muscle building hormones.

Let’s do one more example. The leg extension machine is a single joint exercise that works mainly the quadriceps, and is commonly used by Physical Therapists to wake up the quads and stimulate them to fire (contract). Because of physics and bio mechanics involved, they never allow the resistance to go above 60 pounds. The shearing force on the knee joint becomes more harmful than helpful when heavier weights are used. So once the quads can contract smoothly, the PT moves onto closed-chain (foot on the ground) exercises. For this reason, we just walk past the leg extension machine hoping we’ll never need to use it.

Exercises like squats, jumps, lunges, and dead lifts are all multi-joint complex movements that work numerous muscles in the body (in addition to the quads). Training the body as a functional unit, creates more coordination, stability and greater strength in the long run (when done properly), and also burns far more calories, in less time, compared to the isolation exercises.