Totally Fitness

Using Jump Rope For HIIT

Totally Fit — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 14:24:37 +0000

Article by Chris Richards, Personal Trainer, Chris Richards Personal Training

Skip the rope…Not your workout!

Jumping rope is a fantastic method to consider for your metabolic (CV) conditioning work which tones muscles in the entire body while improving coordination which you will benefit from across your subsequent exercises.

Reebok Speed Rope

Skipping can burn up to 1000 calories per hour, making it one of the most efficient workouts possible and I believe that once you get proficient in your technique can be the most diverse CV workout out there compared to pounding the roads for hours on end.

Skipping can be used as a warm up or the main focus of a conditioning session and as it is so portable and affordable there is no real excuse why this little gem shouldn’t go with you on holiday, business trips and be a staple in your gym bag to compliment your workouts.

Learning to skip correctly can take a little time however the key is to be patient and slow the movement down until you are comfortable with the fundamental mechanics. From here increase the speed and keep your weight on your toes so you have a quick bouncy contact with the floor from which you do not need to jump too high.

An important point to note when getting started is that your jump rope should come up to your arm-pits when measured from the ground to ensure it is the correct length to maximise the efficiency of the exercise.

My Favourite Simple 15 Minute Jump Rope Workout

Position yourself so you can see a clock or timer so you don’t stop to check.

Jump Rope for 3 minutes to warm up – comfortable speed fine-tuning technique

Rest for 30 seconds

Jump rope as quickly as possible for 60 seconds

Rest for 30 seconds

Jump Rope as quickly as possible for 60 seconds

Rest for 30 seconds

Repeat this alternating pattern for 15 minutes.

If 15 minutes is too hard to begin with reduce the overall time and then progress when you are ready. On the other hand, if too easy, increase the duration (60 seconds) to 90 seconds and/or shorten the rest periods to manipulate the intensity of the workout.

So say goodbye to 60 min sub-maximal runs! Give this interval style workout a try 2-3 times per week and your fitness will go through the roof while you leave your unwanted body-fat behind!
Skipping rope and jump rope available from Powerhouse-fitness.co.uk

Thirteen Reasons To Use Fish Oils To Get Lean

Totally Fit — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 14:04:55 +0000

This is an excerpt from coach Poliquin’s and Dr. Houston’s book on fat loss.

Thirteen Reasons To Use Fish Oils To Get Lean

Serious trainers want to find a supplement that will give them an edge. For those of us interested in positively and optimally altering body composition and maximizing our training efforts, fish oils offer thirteen possible advantages:

Get Lean With Fish Oil Supplements

1. Cell membrane health: Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), insure that cell membranes remain healthy. The membranes are flexible and contain larger numbers of insulin receptors that are more receptive and responsive to circulating insulin. This results in decreased fat storage in the adipocytes (fat cells).

2. Fish oils turn on the lipolytic genes (fat burning genes).

3. Fish oils turn off the lipogenic genes (fat storage genes).

4. Fish oils diminish C-reactive proteins, a newly identified risk factor associated with various inflammatory diseases, including atherosclerosis, angina, coronary heart disease, heart attack, stroke, congestive heart failure and diabetes. The D.H.A. fraction of the fish oil seems to be one most responsible for that protective effect. DHA also has best ability to reduce blood pressure.

5. Increase utilization of fat stores from the adipocytes.

6. Preferential utilization for energy production once stored in the Adipocytes.

7. Reduced inflammation from physical training.

8. Pain management from the reduced inflammation.

9. EPA regulates blood supply to the brain that is essential in maintaining focus in weight training sessions. DHA is important in brain membranes, memory and cognitive function.

10. Fish oils increase serotonin levels (the happy neurotransmitter). Therefore, fish oils will decrease incidence of depression, anxiety, panic attack and reduce carbohydrate cravings.

11. Fish oils will improve your cardio-vascular risk profile by lowering VLDL, triglycerides, homocysteine, fibrinogen and increasing HDL levels.

12. Fish oils can also decrease blood pressure by several mechanisms. These include increases in the vasodilatory compound, nitric oxide, reducing vascular inflammation, blocking the constrictive elements in the vascular wall such as the calcium channels reducing blood viscosity, and inhibiting a blood vessel constrictor (thromboxane). Lipoprotein (a) is another CVD predictor that can be lowered by fish oils (a 19% reduction was seen with natural, stable fish oils and just 4% with a highly purified fish oil).

13. Fish oils are a great stress fighter. Supplementation with n-3 fatty acids inhibits the adrenal activation of steroids, aldosterone, epinephrine and norepinephrine (catecholamines) elicited by a mental stress, apparently through effects exerted at the level of the central nervous system. Therefore, for the same amount of stress, one will produce fewer stress hormones if consuming fish oils on a regular basis.

Any of these reasons make the case for fish oils in your supplementary diet. Take some today!

Fish oil supplements availble from Sportfood.co.uk:

Maximuscle Maxi EFA

Sci-MX TRI-OMEGA EFA 160 Caplets

Pack on Muscle with the Overhead Press

Totally Fit — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 10:39:57 +0000

Article by Andy Tsang, Personal Trainer, The Varsity Gym

Overhead Press

The overhead press in recent years has been turned into a rouge exercise of sorts and the bench press took over as the king of upper body pressing exercises. I for one think that the overhead press is often overlooked and should still be regarded as one of the staple lifts. Are you guilty of the following?

“ I can’t press, every time I press it hurts my shoulders”
“My elbow hurts if I press”
“I do lat raises I don’t need to overhead press”
“My shoulders are huge I don’t need to overhead press plus I’m strong as fook!”

The King of Upper Body Pressing Exercises?

Ok, the first few statements you want to tell them to grow a pair and the last statement, I personally want to jump off a top turnbuckle and with the built up momentum dropkick him in the chin. As I keep emphasizing, the majority of the time it’s down to technique and possibly muscular weakness that doesn’t allow one to perform the overhead press optimally and not one of the many excuses.
Way back in the day, the overhead press (which is regarded the oldest upper body exercise ever) was the standard test of upper body strength. From the old strongmen like Sandow, Saxon to the more popular era of Arnold, it is one of the best ways of developing upper body strength and muscularity. The shift from the overhead, to the bench press as a primary upper body pressing exercise was relatively recent. Much of the fame of the bench press came possibly came from powerlifting’s rise in popularity and bodybuilders alike. It could also be due to people using these lifts more and that is why sports like powerlifting became more popular. Either way there is an obvious connection.

The overhead press or press rather stems from the old version of the Olympics. Until 1972, the Olympics included three lifts: press, snatch, and clean and jerk. But as people chased bigger and bigger numbers the lift became sloppier and sloppier. It basically looked like a standing bench press, with all sorts of bent spines trying to push the weight overhead. With judging become harder and injuries becoming more common they decided to take the press out of competition.

There is no denying though if you were to look at the some of the numbers of the press it’s pretty damn good. They had guys like superheavy weight Vasily Alexeev clean and press numbers like 230 kgs just before it was banned from competition. Regardless of the fact he was a heavyweight, he took 230 kgs from the floor, and pushed it over his head!

Back in the day there was not really much difference between the sports of powelifting, Olympic lifting, strongman and bodybuilding. It really was a hybrid of all of them. These guys were strong, fast, lean and powerful. Old books like Randy Roach’s Muscles, Smoke and Mirrors talked about how old school bodybuilders were basically hybrid bodybuilder-powerlifters. The Olympic lifts relied heavily on skill as well but with the press being kicked out of competition, it basically cut all ties with bodybuilding and Olympic lifting and people started doing things like the seated press instead. Before 1972 if someone was to say to you how strong do you think you are, you would immediately take the heaviest thing you could find and hoist it over your head and say:

“There’s your dinner buddy.”

Nowadays people will look at your bench instead and this could be one of the reasons why the Olympic lifts and its accessory lifts like the high pull, snatch pull etc have been fizzled out by bodybuilders and powerlifters alike since it required technique, just like the press and jerks etc.
The press though through recent famous strength coaches like Christian Thibaudeau and Mark Rippetoe have helped revive this lift. Even though people have kept in exercises like the seated press as an alternative, it does not have the effect of the standing press. Sure it may target the deltoids more directly – well that’s the idea – but it will never have the muscle building potential as the standing press. ALL pressing muscles will come into action on the standing press. If your core and hips are weak too, you will not be able to press with good form since they will act as your stabilisers.

Here are some points for you when you are trying to improve upon the overhead press.

Starting position

Your shoulders should be in what some people call the rack position. Now where you want to be is slightly wider than shoulder width position. With everyone’s leverages different, it’s hard to say where when I can’t see it for my own eye. Take home message is, if it’s too narrow it will put the joint in very risky position and if your too wide it will put too much strain on the wrists and elbows. The elbows should be slightly pushed up in front of the wrists, the lats should be squeezed tight and chest up. The best head position should be up and back, meaning you should look like your looking up slightly and trying to make a fat chin otherwise known as ‘neck packing’. Core muscles should be held tight and feet should be about shoulder width apart. If you put your feet too wide you will have a tendency to lean back too much and if they are too close you will lose stability. Bar should be resting about shoulder height on your shoulders with no straining on the clavicles.

The Press

With the strict press you as you push up what you are wanting to do is to move your centre of gravity under the bar as quickly as possible to allow for as much transfer of force as possible into the bar. The centre of gravity will usually relate back to bar path and the ball of your foot on the vertical plane. As the bar is moving upwards over your face you want to start to move your body under the bar almost like you are trying to shift your body so the bar line is the same as your ear line and this will keep you centre of gravity.

In the starting position for the press:
• Knees, hips, and lumbar and thoracic spine arc all locked in extension
• The bar rests on the deltoids or chest, depending on individual flexibility and body shape
• Elbows are in front of the bar
• The bar is directly over the mid-foot

At the top of the press:
• Knees, hips, lumbar and thoracic spine, and elbows are all locked in extension
• Scapulas are elevated (i.e., “active shoulders”)
• The bar, the scapulas, and the mid-foot will be vertically aligned

Any weakness in posture, shoulders will most definitely be highlighted in this exercise and it will be up to you to strengthen these muscles up as opposed to being a big girls blouse and taking the press out of your programme because it’s hard. For the ones that have never used this exercise before I encourage you to start incorporating it if you want to have a proper set of shoulders instead of looking like a coat hanger. Right, now since we are all on the same wavelength here is a programme for you to try out.

Push Press 6 x 2 40% of max with 45 secs between sets
Standing press 5 x 4-6

Followed by this circuit

5-8 sets depending on how you feel, 60 – 90 secs rest in between

KB Overhead Press   10
Body Weight Rows   15
Close Grip Pull Ups   5
Reverse Flys       10

References:

Starting Strength 2nd edition – Mark Rippetoe, Lon Kilgore
www.t-nation.com – The Overhead Press: Bodybuilding’s Forgotten Muscle Builder
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_weightlifting
http://chidlovski.net/liftup/
Metroflex Gym Powerbuilding Basics – Josh Bryant Ms, Brian Dobson

Related Products

Weight Plates

Barbells

Bodymax 100kg Olympic Cast Barbell Kit

Feel the Burn with Anton’s Bicep Burn Out

Totally Fit — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 11:24:08 +0000

Workout by Anton Danyluk, Trainer at Burn It Bootcamp

Fit this into your existing workout to give the guns a bit of a lift. This is a great little addition for those starting out and looking for a bit of definition.

Bicep Burn Out

Dumbbell Single Bicep Curls 4 sets 10 reps (each arm)

1) Legs should be should shoulder width apart and slightly bent
2) Use dumbbells of suitable weight to your ability and hold them by your side
3) Keep elbows tucked into your sides and curl one of your arms towards your chest, make sure forearm is facing upwards
4) Ensure you only use your arms to lift the weight and not your back
5) As you lower your arm to the starting position you should alter arms
6) Continue the process until your set is finished

Concentrated Bicep Curls 4 sets 8 reps

1) Find an area to sit, keep legs shoulder width apart and place your elbow,the one with the dumbbell , on you inner thigh
2) Extend the arm that has the dumbbell so dumbbell is at your ankle
3) Keep back straight and curl arm up towards your chest, ensure forearm is facing upwards
4) Lower dumbbell slowly back to you ankle and continue until set is complete
5) Change arm and repeat above process

Seated Barbell Bicep Curls 4 sets 10

1) Use a barbell and add suitable weight to the barbell
2) Rest barbell on your thighs and keep back upright
3) Curl barbell up to your chest
4) Lower the barbell back to your legs and rest it for half a second then lift the bar back to your chest
5) Repeat until set is complete

21′s 3 sets

1) Use barbell of suitable weight
2) Legs should be should shoulder width apart and slightly bent
3) Keep elbows tucked into your sides and curl the bar halfway up, untill your forearm is at right angle to your bicep, lower the weight slowly back to your leg and repeat for 7reps
4) After the 7 reps lift the weight from the halfway point all the way to your chest and repeat for another 7reps
5) After that go straight into full bicep curls for the last 7 reps

Related Products

Bodymax 2 x 32.5kg Selectabell Dumbbells / WTFD2104

Barbells and Barbell Sets
Bodymax Chrome Dumbbells and Chrome Dumbbell Sets

Anton works for Burn It Boot Camp, Scotlands leading outdoor fitness camp and functional strength specialists. For full details please visit www.burnitbootcamp.com

Strategies for Successful Weight Management

Totally Fit — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:00:23 +0000

Article by John Lingley, Personal Training and Wellbeing Coaching, Aspirations Coaching

Successful Weight Management

The dieting industry is a multi-million pound business with many people and organisations promising you great results in a very short space of time. Many of these diets are expensive, unhealthy, and will only produce short term results.

The only way to produce long term results where you not only reduce weight and maintain it is to do it slowly and gradually so that your health will not be compromised, aiming to lose approx. 1-2lbs per week.

Research has shown that a combination of dieting and exercise will produce the best long term results. Dieting can be stressful so exercising can reduce one’s stress as well as reinforcing the feel good factor of reducing one’s weight. Also taking action against your situation and not procrastinating over it can be very empowering as you feel you are doing something to resolve it.

Do you really want to lose weight or do you want to lose body fat?

I often ask this question and most people say that if they could tone up their physiques it would not really matter if they weighed the same!

Linford Christie weighed approx. 18st and had a body fat of approx. 4% when competing in the Olympics and his physique wasn’t too bad!

Resistance training using, weights or body weight is an essential part of weight management programmes as it will help to reduce body fat and preserve muscle tissue when losing body weight. As muscle is a calorie burner and fat is a calorie storer, a muscular body will burn more calories enhancing effective weight management.

Key strategies to achieve the physique that you want

Motivation.

It is not always the motivation that precedes taking action to change behaviours. If someone takes action first the motivation can quite often follow especially if initial goals are achieved.

Results versus excuses.

We can all come up with as many excuses as to why we are not achieving what we want in life and weight management is no exception! Common excuses are: not enough time, working long hours, business lunches, children’s parties, social occasions, on holiday etc. The fact is the excuses will not give you the results that you want!

Cause and effect.

Being at the effect side of the equation means you will forever be blaming outside events for you not achieving what you want. Being at cause means that you are taking responsibility for decisively creating what you want from life and what you want to achieve.

Responsibility.

Ultimately we are all responsible for the way that we think, act and behave. You are the only person who can achieve your weight management goals. The responsibility lies with you.

Stimulus and response.

Between the stimulus (wanting to overeat) and response you have that great human gift….choice. Be reflective and think about what will happen if you go ahead and overeat. Visualise yourself being overweight, is that what you truly want? Creating this gap can be enough to build your awareness of your thought pattern’s and stop yourself overindulging.

Weight ‘loss’.

By the nature of this very term it is as if you are losing something. Body toning can be a better term. The truth is you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. A slimmer, fitter physique, more energy, a great sense of achievement!

There is no failure only feedback.

If you find that you do put weight back on view it as a minor setback not a complete failure. Avoid judging yourself as this can make you feel down about yourself which can lead to using food as a comfort. Instead except that it has happened and use different strategies to prevent the same thing happening again.

Focus on what you want not what you don’t want.

It is important to focus on the physique you want to achieve rather than focusing on what you don’t want, the physique you have now. You are then moving towards what you want. Spend a few minutes every day visualising what it will be like when you achieve what you want: slimmer, toned, more energy, feel good about yourself, the compliments others will give you etc. Place a photograph of what you want to look like on your fridge door to remind yourself of what you are moving towards.

Pros and Cons.

What are the pros and cons of losing weight and exercising? Write them down in two different columns. The pros will be all the great things that you will achieve as a result of losing weight and how life changing it will be! Focus on this list daily and place it within easy access to remind yourself of all of the benefits that can be achieved.

Distraction strategies.

If feeling the urge to overeat have four different countering strategies to distract yourself every time you have these thoughts, doing a few sit ups is a good example of an effective distractor!

Develop a plan.

All great things are achieved with the help of a great plan! Identify any problem areas in advance and how you are going to counter them. Plan your meals, shopping and exercise sessions in advance and make a contract with yourself to stick to the plan.

Willingness.

Nobody ever said that dieting was going to be easy. The feelings, thoughts and sensations with dieting and exercise can be uncomfortable but by confronting them instead of avoiding them helps you to achieve what you want and something that you value. Also it gives you the great sense that you are getting control over your eating habits instead of them controlling you!

Environmental control.

Make your environment weight management friendly! Avoid having high calorie foods in the house. Also be wary of the associations that the mind makes with certain situations such as always eating when in the kitchen or watching television. Use counter measures as outlined above.

Goal setting.

It is important to set goals as you will have a target in to aim for. It is crucial that the goals are written down! Have immediate, short term, intermediate and long term goals. For example the immediate one could be that you shop for healthy food and do some exercise within the next 24 hours! Break the goals down into small steps (1lb per week) then the larger goals will not seem to be so unachievable. It is the daily activities that result in achieving the long term goals.

Mind your language!

The language you use is important to support you to achieve the results that you want. Using phrases such as ‘I WILL be slimmer. ‘I AM going to achieve what I want’ is far more empowering than using phrases such as ‘I will try’ or ‘hopefully I will achieve this’

Reward system.

When you achieve your targets give yourself a reward, a new dress or pair of trousers can be a good motivator!

Dietary strategies

Eat healthily – Choose healthy choices: oily fish high in omega 3 (salmon, mackerel, fresh tuna, herring) Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, poultry. No foods are banned, allow yourself limited indulgence every week.
Portion control – Eat off of a smaller plate this will reduce portion sizes and give you the illusion you are eating a full meal
Eat breakfast – Always eat breakfast as this will kick start your metabolism and help to avoid snacking mid-morning.
Mindfulness – Be fully present when eating your food. Eat slowly and chew the food properly, putting your utensils down regularly during your meal. Develop sensory experience. What does the food taste like, smell like, look like etc.

What do you find works best for you? We’d love to hear your ideas or if you have any questions please leave them in the comments section below!

How To Improve Your Squat!

Totally Fit — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 10:17:48 +0000

Article by Andy Tsang, Personal Trainer, The Varsity Gym

Ok so following on from the last article I wrote, I am going to elaborate on the squat. I am a firm believer that the squat and its derivatives are fundamental exercises that you have to incorporate into every single programme. Don’t be mislead though, I’m not saying that every single person has to squat. Everyone however, should be training the squat pattern since it is a very important movement that the body needs – imagine trying to get on the pan if you couldn’t squat. Unless you have all sorts of core strength to projectile the faecal matter its probably wise to keep that motion strong!

So why is the squat such an important exercise? Well one of the reasons is because it’s a compound exercise. It is such a large movement and it utilizes so many of the body’s joints. Think about it this way a squat will use -:

Improve Your Squat

Ankle
Knee
Hip
Lower back
Middle back
Upper back
Shoulder
Cervical

So with all of these major joints in play it is no wonder that the squat creates such a large stimulus for the body and is classed as the king of exercises. How many muscles cross over each of these joints? I can tell you that it most definitely not just a couple. So since the stimulus from the squat can be so significant, in terms of gains and results whether it may be strength, fat loss, balance, co-ordination, agility, speed, muscle mass or just a banging set of pins, it is pretty clear cut that the squat will induce a very high transfer to any of the above mentioned.

Another reason for the squat to be so popular is because the squat and its variations is also one to determine efficiency of movement and is largely used as an assessment tool as well as an exercise. Let me explain say for example if someone came in and we assessed their bodyweight squat and noticed that they are struggling to get down and the hips are rounding under then it is definitely going to flag up issues to why he/she can’t get down. So for us as coaches, having this information is good since we can then work towards improving upon her movement quality and can give us information to programme design off of.

I think you get my point. I reckon I could give a million and one reasons why the squat is pretty damn good but I’d rather not sound like a car salesman and just get to the nitty gritty of it. The squat and its variations even though its very popular and is known to be one of the best exercises to do, it is also one of the most misunderstood. There is so much ‘jibberish’ out there nowadays and even some courses advocate certain protocols for squatting, which is downright stupid. Here are some of the things that I have heard in my time.

Squatting is a quad exercise
Shouldn’t squat past parallel
Shouldn’t lock your knees
Knees are not allowed to pass over your toes
Have to be upright during the squat

You probably have heard more other crazy things about the squat but these are the ones that tend to stick out in my head.

Every joint has been built to move through its full range of motion and yet when we talk about the squat all sorts of funny sh*t seems to be made up. Think about it this way, if you were to take you knee joint and put it flexion and take it as far as you can into a quad stretch, how far can you take the joint? Next, lie down on the floor and bend you knees up to your chest, how far can you take your hips without rounding the lower back? Goes quite far yeah? Probably much further than peoples’ idea of a parallel squat. Then I want you to stand up tall and straighten your legs and squeeze your buttocks at the top and lock off your lower body whilst keeping your chest up. Chances are you can lock off pretty straight yeah? (It is called standing tall). What seems to be quite funny though is when you put these single joint motions together is when so called experts start talking about all kinds of crazy things like the above mentioned and yet during a single joint motion they think that is fine. To me that’s silly and I hate to break this to people who have been stuck in their ways for years without looking at the squat from a biomechanical standpoint. All of the body’s structures were designed to move through a full range of motion and that is why we have that motion. When we start trying to alter motion by taking it through shorter ranges that is how we develop muscle imbalances/weaknesses. It is clear then because people have poor motor control, inter-muscular co-ordination and movement and movement patters, which is why people don’t squat well. Would it not make sense to therefore work on the weakness so we can improve upon them?

Squat depth

With regards to squat depth there is also so much information out there nowadays it is really hard to actually know how far do u descend. Do you go parallel or further down into a full depth position? My answer to this is simple; you need to take the motion through its full range of motion. If there are inhibitions stopping you from doing that you need to find them fix it and continue squatting through a full range of motion.

Strength
Sport specific e.g a powerlifter
Improving movement and efficiency
Aesthetics e.g bigger legs
Improving general strength quality to transfer into sport e.g football?

Here are some of the reasons of why you want to squat. From this you need to work out where does YOUR weaknesses lie as well so we can paint a more clearer picture of how we train for the squat. For example lets take bodybuilding. I have a client who was once a great bodybuilder and his knowledge of training is pretty good I must say. He always trained based on time under tension and always worked in the hypertrophy range and his legs were pretty good. One of the things he never did though was he never moved weight based on speed and didn’t have much force development and absolute strength. Nor did he ever go full range, which caused his hips to be tight and also he never ever locked his legs either which meant his joints and the surrounding structures were never conditioned to be strong and powerful. By the way if he’s reading this, that is why I smoked him on a rack lockout session! Sorry inside joke. For the record it is very god damn hard to hyper extend a joint especially in a controlled environment. Unless someone tried to break that sh*t off or a freak accident you are going to find it pretty hard to do so. Olympic weightlifters jerk weight overhead, which is considered to be one of the most ballistic movements in ALL sports. They find it hard to hyperextend their joints and they are lifting some crazy ass weights pretty much all of the time!! No wait a minute though, quite clearly that doesn’t account for you, oh no, your different with your 10 kg a side, your special. If you lock off your knees it’s going to cause adhesivecapsulitisinflammationotuspainus joint locking problem……… don’t think so! Quite a silly statement in itself is it not?

Back on track, so remember previously I said that in order to progress you have to constantly train based upon what the weakness of the body is, well for him he had to work on the things he didn’t do. Create hip mobility strengthening up his core muscles working on developing rate coding yada yada yada. After a short while he was getting all sorts of muscle gains, which he hasn’t had in ages, plus the fact that his movement quality was improving as well as athleticsm and he was squatting ass to grass. Pretty cool eh?

Remember guys everybody can move through full range of motion and its only because you have a weakness, instability or mobility issue that doesn’t allow that movement pattern to occur. Here is something that might interest you. In 1957, Karl Klein of the University of Texas was at Austin addressed the 4th annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine on the dangers of squatting. When he published his research in 1961, the alleged dangers of the squat gained many supporters over years and have done so to this day which is why so many people are still harping on about things like squat depth and has plagued our industry for years. Much like the long distance running for fat loss myth that people still are going on about but that is for another day. Many of today’s modern scientists have proved this theory to be wrong and yet us the general public, we are like sheep, so now we are still stuck on that bandwagon and probably will be for the next millennia.

As for any dangers of the squat can cause are due to faulty technique and movement rather than the exercise itself such as:

Bouncing passively or relaxing in the lowest position
Rotating or tilting the knees inwards
Descending to rapidly and stopping very suddenly
Relaxing or flexing (and rotating) the lumbar spine
Squatting unevenly with more force on one leg that the other
Squatting with unstable shoes or on a soft or slipper surface.

Here is something that I wrote previously before on the squat-:

For the majority of squatters, they will probably more than likely have some sort of tightness in the hips and a common theme that we will see is depth related issues. Having tightness will basically not let the hips move efficiently and squat deep. If you do try to, the lumbar spine will round to create extra motion in order to compensate for the hips lack of mobility. This rounding of the lumbar spine will therefore not let the gluteus maximus (the main hip extensor) to contract properly. Usually, if the main hip extensor does not contract properly the hamstrings (the secondary hip extensor) will have to make up for it. What we are then left with is partial squats and sore backs. In addition to this, during hip extension the inner hamstrings and adductors are also involved significantly. These muscles are also the antagonists to glutes medius, which in motion should provide stability and abduction to the hip so you can hold the knees in traction. Now over time chances are you will become tighter in the inner hamstrings and adductors, which technically will set you up for glute medius inhibition. So hence why people should focus on the hips and base training around activating the outer hip and the glutes. On top of this, if you are crashing your knees in due to a weakness in stabilising the hips or inability to squat depth, the knees main stabilising muscle known as the VMO will have an inability to contract and stabilise the patella within the patella grove to track and allow optimal movement.

So if we know that majority exercise should be based around strengthening up the core to protect the spine, developing glute activation, the outer gluteal muscles, hip mobility and VMO strengthening, we can then also choose exercises that will do this job as well as work on mobilizing and stretching the tight muscles out. This will therefore lead to a better squat and help achieve the gains you desire.

“Ok I get your point what kind of squat should I do then?”

Ok many people will have different leverages goals strengths weaknesses etc so my type of squat and your type of squat will be different. Generally speaking though, the longer the legs the wider the stance will be. Also you are going to select a squat variation based on what you need to work on. If you are unsure you can hire me as a trainer to sort it . Also remember guys to always go full range of motion. As for type of squat, front or back? Overhead squat or zercher squat? Box squat or Anderson squat? I don’t know. Sorry but unfortunately I don’t have the power to magically find that out without adequate screening and finding out what your goals are. You have to work out things like what would you benefit more from, what your body needs, what you want etc and if I did write it out on this article it could end up like a book. What I will say is you try and work out what is most beneficial to yourself and also change up your squat variations often. For people that are still working on their squat technique, they don’t have to change it up as often since they will benefit more from drilling that motion into them for a longer period of time.

“My back is rounding at the bottom of the squat, isn’t that bad?”
Yes it is but it also means your core is weak, your backs weak, posterior chains weak, and your hip mobility is sh*t. So then for you to progress you need work on that then.

“I think I push off one leg more that the other”
Incorporate more single-leg work then to offset any imbalances then.

Starting to understand it more? Hopefully this can help you to improve your squat patterns and techniques and benefit from the results that it can give you like so many athletes and gym warriors alike have done so in the past and get a massive set of legs to stop you looking like a chicken as well. Here is a sample workout for you to try out for improving the squat.

Squat technique work 85% of 1rm in sets of 1-3 for 5-8 sets
Good mornings 3 sets of 6-8
Weighted Hip thrust 6-8 sets of 6-8
Weighted back raises 6-8 sets of 6-8
Glute ham raise 5 sets of 8-10
Ab Wheel roll outs 6 sets of 8-10

Bodymax CF310 Heavy Duty Squat Stand

Related Products

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Barbells

Top 10 Carb Intake Rules

Totally Fit — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 09:10:43 +0000

Article by Chris Richards, Personal Trainer, Chris Richards Personal Training

(Adapted from Charles Poliquin’s Top 10 Carb Intake Rules For Optimal Body Composition)

1. Eliminate grains, particularly wheat. This is the most important principle regarding carb intake. Wheat influences blood sugar levels the same way as plain table sugar.

2. Yes, eliminate grains, part II: Gliadin family grains such as oats, wheat, spelt are the most common food allergen. People of the Celtic ancestry, are more likely to be gluten allergic. Besides raising insulin levels in the body and their rapid carb intake, grains also release cortisol in response to the stressor, a food allergen.

3. The main source of carbs should be fibrous. Fibrous carbs typically have very low carb content. Their inherent high fibre brings about a very moderate insulin response, thus making them an ideal fat loss food. The best sources of fibrous carbs include:

Broccoli
Lettuce
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Mushrooms
Green beans
Onions
Asparagus
Cucumber
Spinach
All forms of peppers
Zucchini
Cauliflower

4. The darker the fruit, the better it is for you. Dark fruits tend to have very thin skin, (hence they need to produce more anti-oxidants to protect themselves from the sun). That is why darker fruits are great anti-inflammatory foods. Bananas have thick skins therefore they have lower anti-oxidants contents.

5. The darker the fruit, the better it is for you, part II. The darker the fruit, the lower the glycemic load. Again, compare berries, and cherries to bananas and pineapple. Of course, this applies to fruits in their natural state; when grapes become raisins, their glycemic index goes up because of dehydration of the fruit.

6. Replace grains with greens in sandwiches. This one is promoted by Jonny Bowden, author Living The Low Carb Life: Instead of using bread, use dark leafy greens to wrap the meat. It will slow down the glycemic index and help shift in your favour the acid/alkaline base.

7. Limit fructose intake. Even though fruits are great foods loaded with nutrients, they also contain fructose. Fructose in too high quantities can slow down thyroid function and increase glycation. Glycation in layman’s term is browning, like the browning that makes crust in bread. Glycation is the cross linking of proteins (and DNA molecules) caused by sugar aldehydes reacting with the amino acids on the protein molecule and creating Advance Glycosylation End-products (AGE’s). If you want to see protein cross linking in action, cut an apple in half and watch it turn yellow! Very few people realize that glucose can go through oxidation. Why is the worst glycation agent fructose? Because it does not raise insulin. In other words, the insulin is not getting it into muscle cells. Therefore, it lingers around and wreaks metabolic havoc. As nutrition expert Robert Crayhon would say: fructose is like the guest that won’t go home once the party is over. Crayhon recommends that the average person should eat no more than 5-10 grams of fructose a day! For very active individuals, 20 grams of fructose should be the maximum intake.

One of the worst sources of glycating fructose is the weight loss bars containing high fructose corn syrup.

8. The best time to load up in carbs is the first 10 minutes following your workout. Since insulin sensitivity is at its highest after the workout, this is the time to take in your carbs to maximize muscle mass gains. The greater the number of reps per training unit, the greater the carbohydrate intake. Of course, one can assume that all reps are equal. A squatting or deadlifting rep is more demanding than a curling or triceps extension rep. By the same token, 3 reps slow tempo squats has different caloric demand than 3 reps in the power clean. As a general rule, I would recommend the following carbohydrate intake based on training volume for a given workout:

12-72 reps per workout: 0.6 g/Kg
73-200 reps per workout: 0.8 g/kg
200-360 reps per workout: 1.0 g/kg
360-450 reps per workout: 1.2 g/kg

9. Use insulin sensitivity supplements with high-carb post workout meals. Nutrients like taurine, arginine and magnesium will help dispose of glucose to muscle cells instead of fat cells.

10. Add protein to your post-workout carb intake. Using 15 g of protein for every 50 lbs of bodyweight will increase glycogen storage by as much as 40%.

Chris Richards

Chris is based in the city centre of Edinburgh and has an ever growing number of fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter

Philosophy:
“The human body combined with patience, focus, education and an unyielding spirit allows for the achievement of any goal!”

Get Back to Basics and KISS Your Way to Fatloss & Muscle Gain

Totally Fit — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 13:25:07 +0000

Article by Robin Tintelen, Personal Trainer, Best In You Personal Training (Dutch Site)

KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid!

For those of us who have a more down-to-earth and realistic view on training, the gym can be quite a ‘Twilight Zone’. Groups of teenagers doing fist pumps after their max-effort set of Leg Extensions, women balancing on Bosu Balls while tugging on Dynabands, or the 100+ pounds overweight guy who believes there must be some strange and unexplainable cause for his bum knee.

Sticking to simple and proven basics is a concept that some people just cannot seem to grasp. Perhaps they get bored quickly, or think of themselves as special snowflakes who need their own unique approach (that’s what I think of my clients actually). But in my cold and hard opinion, they either don’t know any better or are just not willing to do some hard work.

Let me give you a few examples. You might do three rounds of some ‘Celebrity Bicep Circuit’, or ditch these in favor of some good old (weighted) chin-ups. You can go all Jane Fonda with your collection of leg raises for 15 minutes, or do a set of Kettlebell Swings or Stiff Leg Deadlifts to hit those glutes way harder… in 30 seconds.

And I lost count of all the miracle diets out there blaming our excess weight on a blood group, screwed up hormones, processed foods or the length of your toenails. Now I am not saying they won’t do anything for weight loss; a lot of them actually do. But is this because of all the nifty science backing them up? Just take a good look at the suggested meal plans and notice the amount of calories being restricted. Of course a 1500 calorie diet is going to help you lose weight, no matter the exotic science behind it!

The problem with these simple basics, such as chin-ups and putting less foods in your mouth, is how hard they are. Most people want to achieve big results but with a minimum of effort. They will gladly choose ten sets of Leg Extensions over of a single set of heavy Lunges, or stuff themselves with exotic ‘fat burning foods’ instead of actually eating smaller portions. Now I know I am being somewhat short-sighted, and that there is a lot more to building your physique than just ‘Squats and Milk’ (as the old Powerlifter mantra goes). But we should start accepting that building our physique is a long and hard road with no short-cuts. And the things that worked for a lot of other people, for example compound exercises or eating less, is going to work for us as well.

So here is my ‘KISS approach’ to training, applicable to both gaining muscle and losing weight. You are going to strength train three times a week on non-consecutive days, with Monday – Wednesday – Friday being the most logical split. Every training day will be full body, with 2 to 3 sets (warm-up sets not included) of 6 to 8 repetitions. The training will consist of only three exercises, those being a lower body (either push or pull), upper body pull, and upper body push exercise.

My Suggestions:

Lower Body Push: -Squats, Front Squats, Goblet Squats, Lunges, Step Ups, Split Squats

Lower Body Pull: -Deadlifts, Stiff Leg Deadlifts, Single Leg Deadlifts, Kettlebell Swings

Upper Body Push: -Bench Press, Dumbell Press, Dips, Overhead Pressing variations

Upper Body Pull: – Chin-ups, Pull-ups, Dumbell Rows, Barbell Rows

You can do these as stand-alone exercises, or do them in a circuit / superset
style with a minute of rest in between exercises. To give you an example:

1A: Goblet Squats, 6 reps, resting one minute before going to…
1B: Pull-ups, 6 reps, resting one minute before going to…
1C: Dips, 6 reps, again resting one minute before you start over to repeat the circuit 2 or 3 times.

This approach will not only do a lot for gaining muscle and becoming stronger (1 + 1) but it will also help you burn that excess fat more quickly. There is just one problem… It’s going to kick you @ss, HARD. No talking about what happened during X-factor or texting in between exercises here, softie!

Now as I mentioned earlier, I am well aware of the probably too basic set-up of this training. And pretty much every trainee will benefit from a more individualized approach to their training, especially in terms of injury prevention and structural balance. But the point that I am trying to make here is that you don’t need twelve sets of side raises while hopping on a Bosu ball. You can do a lot more in half of the time by focusing on those three basic exercises hitting a large group of muscles. Is it harder? Yes. Is it less fun to do? Probably. But has this approach worked for thousands of people around the world, and way better than all the fancy isolation exercises that you picked from some bodybuilding magazine? Hell yes!

So you want results? Just Keep It Simple Stupid!

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Beginners Muscle Building Workout

Totally Fit — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 14:09:18 +0000

Workout by James Cooper, Personal Trainer, JCFitnessExperience.com

Have you ever heard the expression ‘Walk before you can run”? The world of resistance training follows the exact same principles. If you are new to resistance training it is important that you develop a solid foundation that can be built upon as you progress.

The first time you walk into a gym and pick up a weight can be a nervous but exciting occasion. It is common to see ‘newbies’ demonstrating poor technique, lack of muscular strength and endurance, poor posture, poor proprioception (bodily awareness) and weak connective tissue. Any of the above listed issues can lead to injury, ultimately meaning time away from the gym.

Before attempting this 3-day split routine I would highly recommend conditioning your body with a ‘full-body’ workout routine that will help improve proprioception, increase tissue tolerance for exercise, enhance function, improve posture and core strength.

Gyms nowadays tend to offer exercise programme design for free, so the next time you visit your gym make an appointment with an instructor and ask for a ‘full body’ workout routine to follow 3 times a week over a period of around 6 weeks. If all else fails come visit me at JCFitnessExperience.com and I will provide you with a suitable workout plan.

The following workout is based on a 3 day a week split; this will ensure it follows some basic guidelines for maximum results.

•The workout days are split in a way, which avoids adversely affecting previous sessions.
•Adequate recovery is planned within the 7-day cycle, as you will hit each major body part once a week.
•Designed to hit each muscle group once a week through compound and isolation exercises.

Stimulating and fatiguing as many muscle fibres as possible is the primary objective of the muscle building workout routine, although your primary focus should be on your technique and not the weight you’re lifting. Ensure you are using correct technique to help maximize your results and avoid injuries.

This workout will target your chest/biceps on Monday, back/triceps on Wednesday and legs/shoulders on Friday. Please note you do not have to stick to the Monday/Wednesday/Friday split. As long as you allow one days rest in between each workout you will prevent any risk of over-training.

The training system that is used predominantly within this workout is Pyramid training. Pyramid Training involves manipulating the load and repetitions over the course of multiple sets of the same exercise. The concept within this workout involves progressively increasing the load (weight) and decreasing the repetitions with each successive set.

Monday – Chest and Biceps

Chest

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Dumbbell Bench Press	3	12, 10, 8
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press	3	12, 10, 8
Dumbbell Bench Flies	3	15, 12, 10

Biceps

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Standing Barbell Curl	3	12, 10, 8
Bicep Hammer Curls	3	12, 10, 8

Workout Notes:

Warm up for a minimum of 5 minutes (Increase heart rate/nose to mouth breathing)
Perform 8-10 repetitions of dynamic stretching e.g. Dynamic Pectorals
Allow for sufficient rest in between sets (1 minute should suffice)
Cool down for a minimum of 5 minutes (Lower heart rate/body temperature)
Perform static stretches that target the worked muscles.

Tuesday: Rest Day

Wednesday – Back and Triceps

Back

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Assisted Wide Grip Pull Ups	3	12, 10, 8
Seated Row	3	12, 10, 8
Single Arm Dumbbell Row	3	12, 10, 8

Triceps

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Triceps Dip	3	15, 12, 10
Standing Single Arm Extensions	3	12, 10, 8

Workout Notes:

Warm up for a minimum of 5 minutes (Increase heart rate/nose to mouth breathing)
Perform 8-10 reps of dynamic stretching (e.g.) Squat with overhead swing
Use Lat Pull-down machine if assisted pull up machine not available
Allow for sufficient rest in between sets (1 minute should suffice)
Cool down for a minimum of 5 minutes (Lower heart rate/body temperature)
Perform static stretches that target the worked muscles.

Thursday: Rest Day

Friday – Legs and Shoulders

Legs

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Dumbbell Squat	4	15, 12, 10, 8
Leg Curl	3	15, 12, 10
Leg Extension	2	15, 12
Dumbbell Calf Raise	3	20, 15, 10

Shoulders

Exercise	Sets	Reps
Dumbbell Shoulder Press	3	12, 10, 8
Barbell Upright Row	3	12, 10, 8
Dumbell Lateral Raises	2	12, 10

Workout Notes:

Warm up for a minimum of 5 minutes (Increase heart rate/nose to mouth breathing)
Perform 8-10 reps of dynamic stretching (e.g.) Arm circles / Leg swings
Allow for sufficient rest in between sets (1 minute should suffice)
Cool down for a minimum of 5 minutes (Lower heart rate/body temperature)
Perform static stretches that target the worked muscles.

Saturday and Sunday: Rest Days

I hope you find this workout useful and effective. Please ensure you properly warm up and cool down and use correct technique to prevent injury. If you are unsure of any of the exercises please simply type in the exercise within your preferred search engine or alternatively you can ask a member of staff at your gym.

Train Hard but Train Smart!

Gordon Hunter’s Quadzilla Leg Workout

Totally Fit — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 11:31:28 +0000

Workout by Gordon Hunter, Personal Trainer, Burn It Bootcamp

Your legs are the foundation of your body, so its important to train your legs properly. This Giant Set will give your legs a great workout; try incorporating it into your routine once or twice per week!

Please remember to warm up properly before attempting the workout.

Giant Set

A Giant set is typical described as three or more exercise placed together with minimum rest in between each exercise. This particular exercise lay out is to aid plateau and shock the body. A longer period of rest is achieved

Gordon Hunter Leg Pressing!

once one full set of The Giant Set has been successfully completed.

Leg Extension (Toes out)
4 sets of 10

1.Ensure both legs are firmly secure in machine, position toes outwards.
2.Fully extend legs out avoiding locking out the knee joint.
3.Ensure to hold the top position for 2 seconds before slowly lowering the weight back to the start position and repeat.

Leg Press
4 sets of 10

1.Place feet shoulder width apart, keep a slight bend in the knees and slowly lower the weight down to the chest.
2.Hold the bottom of the movement for 2 seconds before pressing up through the heels back to the starting position and repeat.

Leg Extension (Toes in)
4 sets of 10

1.Ensure both legs are firmly secure in machine, position toes inwards.
2.Fully extend legs out avoiding locking out the knee joint.
3.Ensure to hold the top position for 2 seconds before slowly lowering the weight back to the start position and repeat.

Walking Lunges
4 sets of 10

1.Start in a normal standing position with feet shoulder width apart and arms crossed over chest.
2.Place right leg out in front and slowly lower back leg to the ground.
3.Ensure when bending the front leg the knee is directly over your toes whilst maintaining a upright position.
4.Lower the left leg to the ground and ensure both knees are positioned at 90 degree angles.
5.Press up through the front leg bringing the back leg forward and repeat with the opposite leg.

Burn It Boot Camp are outdoor fitness specialists that run more fitness bootcamps than any other provider in Scotland. Training over 500 people each week Burn It use functional strength and the great outdoors to help people achieve their fitness and health goals in a safe and effective manner.

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