Hello
Halfstackers. As promised, today’s blog
will provide some helpful hints on how to achieve that summer body we all long
for as the warmer weather and vacation season approaches. In case you missed last week’s blog, which
talked about how to eat better, you can catch up here.
Be mindful that I’m
not providing you with the end all – be all – sure fire method for achieving a
supreme level of fitness; but a guideline of tips and tools that you should
begin to implement in your already existing fitness routine. I am no expert in the field of fitness, but I
do my best to seek out the best information I can for you guys!
That being said,
what is the number one thing that highly discourages us on a regular basis in
terms of how we feel about ourselves?
Our weight! That pesky number is
what – more often than not – drives us to want to lose weight. Take me for example. I don’t consider myself overweight by any
stretch of the imagination. I work out
pretty regularly and while there is definite room for improvement , I don’t
hate myself when I look in the mirror.
But the second I step on that scale,
I’m suddenly flooded with feelings of sadness & guilt over the way I
eat, how often I work out, and what can I change in my overall routine to make
that number go down.
My first piece of
advice is to throw away the scale! Out
of sight – Out of mind! Media and
society has taught us that to be beautiful or attractive you have to fit within
this mold of having a certain body type, wearing your hair a certain way,
wearing a specific trend of clothing – “What I wouldn’t give to look like a
Victoria Secret model.” Let’s be
real. Look around you. When you are out shopping, at a restaurant,
or having a cocktail with friends, do the people you see in your everyday
routines ever look like VS models? Maybe
one in about fifty, but not very often.
Feeling beautiful, attractive and sexy isn’t necessarily found in
wearing a size zero and quite frankly, unless you are 15 years old, it’s likely
not very healthy. So – back to this
scale thing. The reason I say throw away
the scale is because that number is rarely indicative of your true level of
health. There are many different factors
that go in to determining what each person needs to work on individually to
achieve the kind of body they want… The
number that your scale spits out at you everyday, should be the least of your
worries. In the simplest of terms, if
you compare two people of the same height but one weighs 120 pounds and the
second weighs 140 pounds, doesn’t mean that the person weighing in at 120 pounds
is healthier, sexier or more attractive.
So here is where
things get weird. I don’t know about
you, but when I think of the best approach to achieve a lean, sexy body the
first thing that comes to mind is “I’ll just start running.” Because again, as the media has portrayed for
years and years, cardio is the best way to lose weight. And in the minds of A LOT of people,
including myself – CARDIO = RUNNING. For
years and years I’ve been spending my
time at the gym running on a treadmill for 50-60 minutes and then calling it a
day. I still don’t have a six pack. I still hate wearing tank tops because I’m
unhappy with my arms. I still wish my
butt was a bit more firm. The number on
the scale may say I’m skinny but when I stand in front of the mirror after my
daily shower, I still see all these problem areas that just aren’t
changing. The word cardio does not mean
“run yourself into the ground.” It means
– to exert cardiovascular excitement to the heart. In Laymans terms – make your heart beat
faster with a purpose. That being said,
the best way to achieve that hot body you’ve always wanted is to put together a
muscle building program that multitasks the muscular and cardiovascular systems
making for an effective workout. Huh?
What does the mean?! Think circuit
training or crossfit where you are incorporating weight training with full body
movements for a full body workout.
And I hate to be
the bearer of bad news, because I was just as devastated when I found out that
I’m going about it all wrong. Not to
mention the wear and tear on the joints that comes from running alone. Don’t get me wrong, running isn’t all
bad. But it’s the way you incorporate it
into your fitness regimen that will reap the best results. Here’s an easy way to look at it. When you look at an image of a long distance
runner as compared to a sprinter, who in your opinion looks healthier? The point is that running isn’t bad but it’s
most effective when incorporated as interval training. Because – and here’s a fact for you to mull
over – within the first 5-10 minutes of a long distance run (depending on your
fitness level), you are burning the optimal amount of fat. Short bouts of sprints maintain a high energy
that is optimal in fat burning, all while having the same qualities of intense
weight lifting, aiding in the building and strengthening of our muscles. Another perfect example is when you are at
the gym, where are the people that have the kind of body you want? Those who spend their time running on a
treadmill for an hour or those who are
weight training? More often than not,
it’s those people who are over by the weights.
Long story short,
there are many ways in which to achieve the kind of body you want – some more
effective than others. But my point in
all of this is to bring awareness to one of the biggest misconceptions in the
fitness industry and that is that running will solve all your fitness
blunders! Taking into account what we
talked about last week, nutrition is also a key factor. But if you are eating the right kinds of
foods and working out in a way that will burn the most fat in the shortest
amount of time, all while building muscle; you’ll have that sexy beach body in
no time.
I leave you with
one final thought – You burn an additional 50 calories per hour of doing
nothing for every 1 pound of muscle gained!
So pick up those weights and get moving!
Thank you to Dre Williams over at Moc Crossfit for providing a ton of valuable information on this
topic, including the very effective images!
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