LA fitness news

Burn the fat and tone the muscle!

November 25, 2009

"Never eat more than you can lift," Miss Piggy – muppet and pig. This is good advice for those who are new to the whole diet, exercise and muscle tone thing. Here are a few other gems of information on body image issues like bingo wings, bouncy castles, Buddha bellies, cankles and love handles.

First up you need to understand that these are not muscle groups, they are areas of unwanted fat. You could weight train until hell freezes over and you won’t get rid of any of them. What you will do is tone the muscle that lies beneath the fat. This is good, but unless you do some cardiovascular (CV) exercise – like bike, rower, treadmill, stepper, swimming and classes – as well, nothing much is going to change.

So, start with a CV programme and sensible eating, then graduate to a combined CV and strength training programme and you’ll nail that bouncy castle. Only one thing to add: It’s impossible to target exactly where the fat will come from, so be patient and settle for general changes to your shape at first.

If you would like us to customise your programme even further, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

The best way to get in shape

• Cardiovascular exercise is the best way to burn fat.

• Weight training is the best way to tone the muscle underneath.

• Combine the two and you have a powerful body shaping machine. Go to it!

STRENGTH TRAINING: A BALANCED APPROACH

The common perception of strength training is that it is designed to turn its devotees into a cross between the Incredible Hulk and the Jolly Green Giant. Of course one sees Hulk look-alikes in Tesco’s, down the pub and on the train every day, so they must be right.

However there are some people – not many, but some – who have a rather more balanced approach to strength training. Believe it or not, many of these sad individuals actually want better muscle tone for health reasons. Go figure!

In addition to increased muscle strength and tone, regular weight training will strengthen tendons and ligaments and thus protect your joints and decrease the likelihood of injury from other activities. Stronger and more resilient muscles also improve your balance, which means more comfortable daily living and fewer accidents.

Tip for the Hulkies: always wear shirts that are at least two sizes too small and try to perfect walking like you’ve just sat on a carrot.

For more information on the health benefits of strength training, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

Weight training for health

Regular weight training is important for keeping the body strong and healthy.

• Weight training will protect your joints and decrease the risk of injury.

• And stronger more resilient muscles will make you a much better balanced individual.

STRENGTH TRAINING CONSUMES MORE CALORIES

We no longer say that she’s failed to gain weight; she’s now a ‘metabolic underachiever’. Neither does he have a beer gut; he has

developed a ‘liquid grain storage facility’. Whatever. If you want to do something about your storage facilities, strength training is a pretty good option.

The common perception is that when you’ve finished a session on the weights you’re done with serious calorie burning for the day, right? Wrong.

Strong well toned muscles burn more calories both during your workout and as you rest afterwards; that’s a double whammy.

Actually resistance training can have a longer lasting impact on metabolic rate than aerobic (CV) work. Studies have found that regular weight training boosts BMR (basal metabolic rate) by about 15%, which means that for every extra pound of muscle you put on, your body uses around 50 extra calories a day. BTW: He’s no longer a bad dancer; he’s ‘overly Caucasian’.

If you would like us to advise you on how to burn calories with a weight training programme, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

Boosting your metabolism with weights

• Strength training boosts Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) by around 15%.

• This means that well toned muscles burn calories at work and at rest.

• Which means that your days of metabolic underachieving could be a thing of the past.

TRAINING FOR FUNCTION: MAKING EVERYDAY TASKS EASIER

"My second favourite household chore is ironing. My first being hitting my head on the top bunk bed until I faint." Erma Bombeck. We tend to talk a lot about the peripheral upsides of strength training without perhaps focussing on the single most important benefit i.e. the ability to perform daily tasks - like ironing and repeatedly banging our head against the top bunk - more efficiently.

Functional strength training simply means training our bodies to perform everyday movements better. Functional movements can be classified into four common groups: balance, power, lifting and reaching. Balance and power are attributes that we tend to take for granted until we lose them – try walking up the stairs without balance and power. Lifting is something we often do badly and so is reaching; when we are young we tend to get away with it but as we age, we don’t.

Learning how to do all of these things properly and then developing the physical strength, flexibility and agility to execute them well is a priceless gift that you give yourself when you work out regularly.

For more information on functional strength training, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

Strength training for better living

Weight training improves balance and power and enhances our ability to lift and reach.

• That means that we execute daily activities much more efficiently.

• And that means that life gets a whole lot less fraught.

MUSCLE - USE IT OR LOSE IT

"Well, I got screwed again. Paid £100 on eBay for four front-row tickets to the Placebo Domingo concert." Jerry Embry. Unfortunately there is no placebo effect when it comes to muscle tone; use it or lose it is the name of the game, particularly as you get older.

Until the age of 25, life’s a breeze (in fitness terms at least) and strength and endurance improve naturally. You’re ten feet tall and bullet-proof. Sadly it tends to be down hill from there. The ageing process itself will contribute to a decline in general fitness, and lifestyles tend to become more sedentary as we age - which doesn’t help.

Muscle strength and power also tend to decrease with age; this is largely due to the muscle wastage that results from a lack of use. The bottom line here is that regular strength training will enhance the quality of your life as you get older and it pays to lay the foundations of good health as young as you can.

For more information on the benefits of strength training as you age, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

Laying the foundations

• Man was made to move; if you don’t use your muscle you will lose it.

• People tend to slow down as they age, but you don’t have to be one of them.

• Make good strength training habits when you are young and reap the benefits as you get older.

TESTOSTERONE, IT’S A BOY THING

"If anatomy is destiny, then testosterone is doom." Al Goldstein. Testosterone is the hormone that is largely blamed for male aggression - which is why Goldstein takes a dim view of the stuff - but it is also one of the key drivers of muscle growth.

Levels of testosterone vary from person to person but, as a rule, women cannot produce anywhere near as much testosterone as men and therefore it is much harder for females to gain muscle mass when they weight train. Just as well really, because most women don’t want to gain muscle anyway. It all goes back to hunting and gathering versus nest building.

So in one of those handy quirks of nature we have a win-win situation. Men who work out with weights get to build bigger biceps, while women get to shape and tone what they’ve already got. Can’t say fairer than that can you.

If you are concerned start a weight training programme, please talk to our fitness instructors for further advice.

The low-down on testosterone

• Testosterone is the hormone that helps build muscle.

• Women don’t have half as much of the stuff as men, which is why they struggle to develop big muscles.

• But they don’t struggle to develop toned muscles. Men build, women tone - perfect.

LOOKING GOOD, FEELING GREAT

"The real secret to total gorgeousness is to believe in yourself," Kirsten Dunst. Like anything worth doing, resistance training can feel like hard work at times but the boost that weight training gives your self esteem and confidence is well worth the effort.

One of the common benefits of regular strength training is improved posture - confident people tend to stand up straight. Another benefit is leaner, toned muscles – confident people often feel good about their appearance too. Because it is a visible process, strength training also gives you a feeling of control, which again fosters self belief.

Studies show that there are direct links between participating in a sport and feeling more willing and able to take on the world; thus people who strength train tend not to feel as intimidated by many of the tasks and challenges, physical and mental, that face us in our daily lives.

Please talk to our fitness instructors for more information on the link between strength training and confidence.

Cultivating confidence

• Working out with weights will improve your muscle tone, posture and appearance.

• When you feel good and look good your confidence will rocket.

• And when you are confident life’s challenges become that much easier.

STRENGTH TRAINING BOOSTS MIND AND BODY

"Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in hospitals dying of nothing." Redd Foxx. We can’t guarantee that strength training will make you live any longer but we can tell you that it is quite likely to help you nail some of life’s nastier little surprises while you are here.

For example,

strength training facilitates the same sort of improvements in depression as anti-depressant medications. Right now we don’t know if this is because people feel better when they are stronger or if strength training produces a helpful biochemical change in the brain – or a combination of both – but we’ll take it anyway.

Sometimes we forget that the heart is a muscle too and although there is no weight machine for the heart – we use cardio equipment for that - strength training helps to create a leaner body which in turn decreases the risk of heart disease. Two significant reasons, one psychological the other physiological, to work out with weights.

To learn more about the benefits of strength training for heart disease, please talk to one of our fitness instructors.

Physical and mental benefits

• Strength training will help you to deal with many of life’s challenges – physical and mental.

• Studies show that regular weight training is a really effective way of managing depression.

• It also produces a leaner body and a healthier heart. All great reasons to work out regularly.