Marathoner Dean Karnazes trains on an outdoor elliptical trainer: the “Elliptigo”

Before I give you a killer elliptical trainer workout, I should probably appeal to the elliptical training doubters.

After all, I know there are a significant number of “hardcore” triathletes, marathoners, cyclists and fitness enthusiasts who visit this website and probably consider elliptical training to be slightly subpar to swimming, cycling, running or weight training.

But in reality, elliptical trainers can be both more difficult, more effective, more time-saving, and offer a more full body workout compared to other cardiovascular modes of exercise – which is why I train 2-3 times per week on an elliptical trainer as a substitute for cycling or running.

Here are six reasons why I’m a big fan of the elliptical trainer:

1. Less Joint Impact With Just As Much Fitness.

The elliptical trainer was originally designed by an inventor who created the idea for the motion by filming his daughter running alongside his car, then replicating that running motion by designing a machine that put less strain on the joints.

A study an University of Missouri measured oxygen utilization, lactic acid formation, heart rate, and rating of perceived exertion on an elliptical trainer compared to a treadmill, and found that the elliptical exercise was nearly identical to the treadmill exercise in every respect – but the elliptical trainer creates far less joint impact.

Take away message: compared to running, you can stay just as fit on an elliptical trainer, but you recover much faster due to lower joint impact.

2. Ability To Fix Weak Quadriceps.

Another study compared muscle activity patterns of the quadriceps and hamstring in walking on the ground, walking on a treadmill, stationary bicycling, and the elliptical trainer. The elliptical trainer produced significantly great quadriceps utilization and greater quadriceps/hamstring coordination than any of the other modes of exercise! And a study at Willamette University found that when you pedal backwards on an elliptical, your quadriceps utilization skyrockets even more.

Take away message: if you have weak quads, or a low quadriceps to hamstring strength ratio, an elliptical can help bring your leg muscles back into alignment. 

3. Targeting of Notoriously Weak Muscles In Runners & Cyclists.

There was also a study that compared elliptical training to walking, and found greater muscle activation during the elliptical training for the gluteus maximus (butt) and vastus lateralis (external hip muscles), with a slightly lower activation of the hamstrings.

Take away message: if you need to build stronger butt or hip muscles, which is highly recommend for runners and cyclists, you can do it on an elliptical trainer without aggravating your hamstring.

4. Ability To Maximize Training Effect by Increasing Stride Length.

Interestingly, another study, at the University of Idaho (my alma mater – go Vandals!) found that as stride length increases on an elliptical trainer, more calories are burned without you actually feeling like you’re working any harder – which is very good to know if you exercise on an indoor elliptical trainer with adjustable stride length or on the Elliptigo, which also has adjustable stride length.

Take away message: even though an elliptical is already equivalent to a treadmill in calorie burning, an elliptical that has a long stride length can maximize that effect even more.

 5. Upper Body and Core Muscle Utilization.

On an elliptical trainer that includes arm motion, a shoulder, chest, biceps and triceps workout can be incorporated simultaneous to a lower body cardiovascular workout. In addition, the upright posture on an elliptical trainer will utilize more of your core muscles, and if you go “hand-free” without using the railing on an indoor elliptical trainer, you can increase the balance and postural training effect.

Take away message: you can save a ton of time by working your upper body muscular endurance, lower body muscular endurance, cardiovascular fitness and core all at the same time on an elliptical trainer.

6. Elliptical Trainers Take Up Less Space.

Compared to a treadmill, an elliptical trainer is easier to move and is a great way to save space. Even an outdoor elliptical trainer, like the Elliptigo, can fold up smaller than a bicycle and be placed in the trunk of your car.

Take away message: if your home gym is small or you don’t have room for a bike in your car, an elliptical trainer is a perfect option.

Finally, I know I promised you a killer, full body elliptical trainer workout, so here it is. You can do this workout on an indoor elliptical trainer or outdoors on an Elliptigo, and it takes full advantage of the benefits of high intensity interval training.

-Warm up with easy pedaling for five minutes.

-Perform five, 30 second all-out efforts, each separated by 60 seconds of easy recovery pedaling. If an option, alternate between forward pedaling and backward pedaling with each all out effort.

-Stop the elliptical and jump rope or perform jumping jacks for one minute. If your knees don’t like this, simply do body weight squats.

-Get back on the elliptical and perform five, 60 second all-out efforts, each separated by 30 seconds of easy recovery pedaling.

-Stop the elliptical and perform squat jumps or lunge jumps for one minute. If your knees don’t like this, do body weight lunges.

-Get back on the elliptical and perform five, 2 minute all-out efforts, each separated by 60 seconds of easy recovery pedaling.

-Stop the elliptical and perform regular push-ups or squat-thrust-jumps for one minute.

 -Get back on the elliptical and cool-down for five minutes OR repeat this entire workout one more time. If desired, you can substitute new exercises the second time through.

Source Of Article:www.bengreenfieldfitness.com

Your local Personal Trainer Everett, WA Always Has Openings!

Everyday life at times is stressful. Choosing a healthy way to reduce pounds never should be stressful. Numerous people eat to lose weight while others choose to exercise. These two techniques are useful for removing excessive pounds.

Most individuals understand working out is necessary for losing fat. One mistake is just one type of exercise is completed. For instance, going for walks tends to be a preferred exercise.

Even though going for walks probably is the best exercise, other kinds of physical activity ought to be completed too.

Building muscles in addition to improving flexibility are beneficial as well. A wonderful way an individual could incorporate toning muscles is lifting weights or using resistance bands. An additional technique a person can add strength training is doing lunges and push ups. Muscle tissue helps burn off food calories. For this reason, the more muscle mass a human body has, and more calories the body can use.

A terrific strategy an individual could improve flexibility is doing yoga and Pilates. Another great method is just doing stretches. Pilates and yoga not only keep the body flexible but additionally assist in minimizing tension. In addition, Pilates and yoga have been discovered to control blood pressure and cholesterol.

Reducing stress helps in losing excessive body weight since anxiety raises cortisol levels and that slows the metabolic rate. Therefore, managing stress normalizes cortisol levels and therefore raises metabolism rate.

Eating for weight loss involves changing eating habits in order to include food items which help with removing weight. Yes, certain products could help in dropping pounds. A misunderstanding is the bulk of products dieters believe are healthy; do not actually help with eliminating pounds. The explanation is those food items actually are not healthy.

Simply because a certain food is marked as healthy certainly will in no way indicate that product helps with decreasing unwanted body weight. An excellent example is bread. Millions of people assume wheat bread is healthy. But, reading the ingredients many of these breads have sugar. Processed sugar promotes weight gain and not loss of weight. Therefore, wheat bread might not be a healthy product dieters should eat for losing weight.

Food products dieters eat to lose weight are whole products like fruits and veggies. Vegetables and fruits are rich in nutrition. Moreover, these foods have abundant water. Both these things help with reducing weight.

Everybody has methods they prefer using for weight loss. Choosing the best method to lose fat never should be stressful. Though many people eat to lose weight and others opt to do exercises, a healthy weight loss system includes the two.

 article from Short URL: http://fatlosslifestyle.bizbuzzweekly.com/?p=855

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The New Science of Cardio

January 27, 2009

Overview

Energy System Development (ESD) is the cardiovascular component of Core Performance training programs. The intensity of the workouts is broken up into three different heart rate zones, which are differentiated by color: Yellow is easy/recovery, green is moderate/strength, and red is hard/power.

Jonathan Shield / flickr

How It Works

Forget everything you currently believe about cardio work. Forget keeping your heart rate in some “fat-burning” zone. Forget plodding along with the vague goal of increasing the distance you can plod. Instead of training like a plow horse, start training like a thoroughbred.

You’ll only work at the same effort level for an extended period of time, as you would with traditional cardio exercise on regeneration or recovery days. But you’re going to take the time you typically spend on cardio and develop the ability to perform at a more intense level. You’ll improve your energy levels, gaining physical strength and stamina without investing additional time.

You don’t have to head to the track and train like a middle-distance runner, although it’s not a bad place to do your ESD work. For convenience, you’ll probably want to work on a stationary bike, stair-climber, or treadmill at the gym. Even better is to find a hill or stairwell somewhere nearby. If you’re city bound, parking garages are perfect for uphill running. Spring up the ramps and walk down.

The bottom line: Instead of slow, plodding workouts, ESD will have your muscles, nervous system, and hormones acting together into efficient movement patterns that help your body work as efficiently as possible.

Building Your Energy Systems

There are three different energy systems that are important for you to build:

1. Lactate threshold - This is your capacity to do high-intensity work for up to 3 minutes. The ESD unit of your training program is a form of interval training in which you will alternate between periods of intense exercise with less strenuous periods.
2. Lactate power – This is your body’s ability to do high-level work for periods of up to 12 seconds.
3. Aerobic system – The ability to work beyond 3 minutes and help you recover from your bouts with the lactate threshold. For instance, if you’re sprinting up hills and walking down, you’re using the lactate system on the way up and the aerobic system on the way down. In this case, the aerobic system enhances your recovery from these intense bursts of energy.

The 3 Heart Rate Zones

You’ll work within three heart-rate “zones.” To calculate your maximum heart rate, begin by subtracting your age from 220. For example, if you are 40 years old, your maximum heart rate is 180. (It may actually be higher than that, but this is a close enough estimate to allow for productive workouts.) Multiply that rate by 60 and 70 percent for zone 1. Multiply it by 71 and 80 percent to determine zone 2, and multiply by 81 and 90 percent to determine zone 3.

Zone 1 Lower Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 60%
Zone 1 Upper Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 70%
Zone 2 Lower Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 71%
Zone 2 Upper Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 80%
Zone 3 Lower Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 81%
Zone 3 Upper Limit = (220 – Your Age) × 90%

These are general guidelines.

You may need to raise or lower the numbers by 10 beats across the board. If nothing else, you will need to raise them as your ESD improves.

Understanding the color-coded ESD bars

• When you see a single bar indicating a time duration (e.g. 3 minutes), keep your heart rate in that zone.
• When you see a progressive set of bars with the same amount of time (e.g. 30 seconds), progressively work towards the higher end range of that heart rate zone.
• When you see very short intervals (e.g. 5 seconds), exert the power needed for that zone, then go easy to let your heart rate recover. For instance, with a 5-second burst in the Red zone, you would work at an all-out effort for 5 seconds. Your heart rate would not be in the Red zone initally, and that’s OK. After a series of 5-second sprints, your heart rate will gradually climb into the Red zone. Likewise, your heart rate may not return to the Yellow zone during an extremely brief rest period, but your goal should be to go at an easy enough effort to lower your heart rate towards that zone.

ESD Workout Phases

You’ll notice that your ESD training is not the same each day. It changes and progresses much like the rest of your training components. This section explains the different ESD levels and how they work to improve your performance across all energy systems.

Level 1

Level 1 focuses on steady-state aerobic work. Aerobic simply means that your body will use oxygen to provide a steady and consistent, low level of energy for a long time, without building up any waste products in the body that hinder performance.

Think of it as a low-horsepower, highly fuel-efficient, four-cylinder engine that can run all day but does not generate a whole lot of power. A good rule of thumb for level 1 is that you should be able to carry on a conversation when you are in the aerobic zone. Some of the best activities for level 1 are:

• Outdoors: Brisk walking, walking up hills, biking, swimming, rowing
• Indoors: Biking, treadmill climbing/walking, elliptical trainer, Airdyne

Using the aerobic zone during Level 1 will improve your cardiovascular system and prepare your muscles for the greater speeds of level 2 through 4. This lower-level work will let your movement patterns, muscles and joints adapt and prepare for the more intense training coming in these next phases.

When you get into Levels 2, 3, and 4, you’ll perform interval training, where there will be bouts of harder effort mixed with easier-effort periods to give your body time to recover. You’ll use the lower-intensity Level 1 aerobic work in Levels 2 and 4—the more advanced zones of the program—as a recovery tool.

Interval training increases your body’s release of positive hormones, which builds lean body mass and signals your body to dump fat. At the same time, it keeps your heart rate from dropping out of the aerobic zone.

Level 2

Level 2 will introduce interval training by mixing moderate intensity (heart rate zone # 1) with bouts of Level 1 easy-intensity aerobic work to allow you to catch your breath and recover from the slightly more intense intervals.

You will notice that these exercises include some work and some rest; we call this the work-to-rest ratio. The greater the rest, the higher quality the work should be. The lower the ratio—for instance, 1 second of rest per 1 second of work (1:1)—the bigger the challenge, since the body has less time to recover. That increases your capacity to do work.

You’ll know you’ve reached Level 2 moderate intensity if you would find it difficult to carry on a conversation. You could, but you wouldn’t be able to say much more than a couple of words at a time. Some of the best activities for Level 2 are:

• Outdoors: Running-to-jogging/walking, jogging-to-walking
• Indoors: Bike, elliptical trainer. treadmill, stair climbers, Airdyne

Level 3

In Level 3 you will work harder, performing intervals that include time spent in heart rate zone # 2. The times and rest intervals both decrease. Don’t be intimidated by more intense work; you’ll be ready for it. In fact, you will be looking for a greater challenge. Some of the best activities for Level 3 are:

• Outdoors: Running-to-jogging/walking, jogging-to-walking
• Indoors: Bike, elliptical trainer. treadmill, stair climbers, Airdyne

Level 4

Level 4 is the shortest of the intervals, increasing your heart rate to the highest zone (zone # 3). It requires mobility, stability and strength. At this level you will ride, run, or climb as hard as possible for between 10 and 30 seconds. In order to get the most out of Level 4, you’ll need to pack as much power and energy into these segments as possible.

Some of the best activities for Level 4 are:

• Sprinting (flat or uphill)
• Shuttle runs (5 yards and back, 10 yards and back, 15 yards and back)
• Bicycle intervals
• Versaclimber sprints

Core Performance training programs use different combinations of these zones or levels to create varied and personalized workouts that develop all your energy systems. You’ll spend more time in the lower level zones initially and progress to performing intervals in which you spend more time in higher intensity zones to improve your overall endurance, strength, and power.

Tags: Triathlon, Cardio, Elliptical, Conditioning, Energy System Development

References

1. Verstegen, Mark, and Pete Williams. Core Performance: The Revolutionary Workout Program to Transform Your Body and Your Life. Pennsylvania: Rodale Press, 2004.
2. Verstegen, Mark, and Pete Williams. Core Performance Essentials: The Revolutionary Nutrition and Exercise Plan Adapted for Everyday Use. Pennsylvania: Rodale Press, 2006.

Recovery

Pete Williams August 8, 2011

Thinkstock Photo

When it comes to recovery strategies, endurance athletes are a notoriously stubborn bunch, preferring to push forward with tough workouts day after day. While such a work ethic is admirable, it’s impossible to go all-out all the time. You won’t train as effectively and you’ll likely break down with injuries and ailments. On the other hand, if you can focus on having high-quality rest and regeneration, you’ll be able to get more return on investment from every minute of your workout.

Regeneration increases your energy, boosts your immune system, and helps you get the most out of each training session, which ultimately will improve your performance. Regeneration improves your hormone profile, decreases inflammation, and improves tissue quality, thus decreasing the number of overuse injuries you may experience. Here are five recovery secrets of endurance athletes:

1. Get More Sleep

Getting adequate sleep is the easiest way to boost endurance performance, says Scott Peltin, whose Tignum Institute for Sustainable High Performance works closely with Core Performance. It’s crucial to maximize deep, restorative sleep time, which happens in the first few hours of sleep each night. Though butterflies and adrenaline can contribute to an uneasy night of pre-race sleep—especially when you’ve set the alarm for 3:30—it’s important to make adequate sleep a regular part of your lifestyle. Need more incentive? Charlie Futrell, a Florida resident who still is doing triathlons at 91, attributes his race longevity in part to going to bed at 9:30 and waking at 7. That’s unrealistic for most working adults, but there’s no doubt most of us should make time for more sleep.

2. Recover with Nutrition

Nutrition is one of the four pillars of the Core Performance system, but it’s also a key part of recovery. Many athletes gather their gear or head for the beer tent immediately after a running event or triathlon. Be sure first to take advantage of that 30-minute post-race recovery period when your body is craving nutrients to replenish itself. “Give your body what it needs when it’s most open and able to absorb it,” says pro endurance guru Jessi Stensland. It’s ideal to consume a shake, energy bar, piece of fruit, and/or sports drink immediately following a workout or race. Do this before anything else. The food or supplement you choose should provide about 0.8 gram of carbs per kilogram of body weight and 0.4 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. To learn more, read “The New Science of Recovery Nutrition.”

3. Re-Hydrate

It’s impossible not to want water following a race or workout, and you should drink two cups for every pound lost during exercise, says Amanda Carlson-Phillips, vice president of nutrition and research for Athletes’ Performance. But you can jumpstart your recovery and optimize performance by staying hydrated throughout the day. Keep a water bottle with you all day. Drink ½ to 1 ounce of water per pound of body weight per day to stay hydrated. Keep an eye on your urine color.

It should be clear. If not, drink more water.

4. Get a Massage

Ideally, we’d get professional massages immediately after every race or tough training session. Since that’s not usually practical or affordable, do some self-massage with a foam roll or tennis ball. Cold plunges also are an effective way to jumpstart recovery. Lynn Gray, a Tampa-based running coach, combines both using washcloths dunked in ice water. “Giving yourself a massage and using some ice water really accelerates recovery and keeps you from waking up tight and sore the next day,” Gray says.

5. Stretch it Out

Active isolated stretching, developed by Aaron Mattes, is a great way to recover post-workout. Take an 8-to-10 foot length of rope, about the thickness of jump rope, and wrap it around one foot at a time. You can perform a series of moves that will reprogram your muscles to contract and relax through new ranges of motion. Use the rope to gently assist the muscle’s range of motion about 10 to 20 percent farther than your body would ordinarily allow. To learn more, read the ”Beginner’s Guide to Active Isolated Stretching.”

source: core performance

When thinking about top muscle building foods, most people think that they have to eat as much as possible of big meals and without thinking about what they are eating, as long as they eat enough.

If you know just a little about diet you know that the above statement is not true. It is true that if we want to get bigger and build mass we need to eat more, but we need to eat the right foods that will provide your body with the right nutrition that it can use to grow.

We need to eat several times a day, preferably around 6 meals and the size of the meals should depend on what your goal is, to gain mass or to lose weight.

Muscle Foods

-1st Food for building muscle:

Eggs are among most people’s top foods for building muscle and for good reasons; eggs contain a good amount of protein along with healthy fat. It is also easy for your body to break down eggs into amino acids.

-2nd Food for building muscle:

Salmon is great for building muscle as it is rich of protein and omega-3 fats. Omega 3 fats promotes muscle repair and controls your cortisol level, which will increase your testosterone level and ultimately build muscle.

-3rd Food for building muscle:

If your goal is to gain weight, but are a hard gainer then I will introduce whole milk as an option. Whole milk contains a great amount of proteins and fat. The fat found in whole milk has shown to help against muscle breakdown and unlike many other fat types; it has a lower chance of storing the fat as body fat.

Whole milk is especially on a lot of bulker’s top muscle building foods, but if you are on a diet, then you should rather go for other kind of milks in your top muscle building foods.

-4th Food for building muscle:

Yoghurt is in the top muscle building foods because it is a great source of protein and fat. Yoghurt used to have a lot of calories, but it is now possible to find great tasting yoghurt, with low calories and a lot of proteins and fat.

Another reason why yoghurt is on the top muscle building foods list is because of the so called “good” bacteria’s that it holds and good bacteria’s are essential to a healthy stomach.

-5th Food for building muscle:

Lean meat is on most people’s top muscle building foods list as it is rich in proteins and iron, which transport oxygen to every part of your cell and results in energy and is also great for memory.

Other top foods

Other worthy top muscle building foods are fish, chicken, nuts, cheese, spinach, beans, protein powder, bacon etc.

If you include the above 5 top muscle building foods, you will quickly start to see the results that you might have lacked and provide your body with essential nutrition’s that will help you in your daily life.

Exercising is the key for leading a healthy life. We have seen many people start with the notion one day, workout rigorously, stick to the routine for two or three days and taking a break forever then onwards.

It always becomes a question of resilience. And most people never exhibit that. Let me rephrase it. Exercising is a must and when you start for the first time, you body is never tuned to the work out and invariably after 2 or 3 working out sessions, as our body is quite fragile, it breaks down. More so most people tend to act lazy thanks to the tiredness.

It is always very difficult to stick to exercising as a daily routine when we are not focused on our goals. This happens to be so true when you workout rigorously on the first day itself. There is a method and technique for everything we pursue. You ought to start with a simple routine, be focused, stick to it for weeks and then increase your efforts. Of course most problem people find during working out is that over a period of time, the routine gets mundane and boring. There are two solutions for this problem. One solution would be to push hard and stick with it no matter what. But there is another solution wherein you don’t have to be so hard on your mind and body.

Firstly find a suitable friend. Just get along with a friend with same hopes, expectations and goals. Sign up for a weight loss camp. Teaming with other health conscious people to lose weight safely and effectively has significant benefits. It has been true for several centuries and always worked out for all those who aspired to lose weight.

Besides the mundane routines which tend to make you tired and lazy, our world is a busy world and we all have hectic work schedules. So even if we are determined to stick to a routine, our life sometimes doesn’t allow us to do so. This is where weight loss camps turn out to be very effective. They find out about a person, analyze how to motivate them, understand their medical and emotional history and create a routine just for that person. Most times we never succeed in our health goals and we always wonder what’s stopping us from achieving them and trust weight loss camp executives never give up until they find out those reasons.

They conduct workout sessions with trained trainers, dietitians, nutritionists etc. The dietitian and nutritionists charts down your diet schedule based upon your medical history and eating habits. The trainers assist you with physical workout sessions. The best part is that these sessions are conducted in groups and thus in a way it creates a competitive atmosphere for all and motivates you to stick to the routine and help you realize your health related goals. Working out these days is no more the same mundane boring routine. It can be achieved in a fun filled way.

Reference: DS