If you are losing focus of your heath and fitness goals, then you need to start looking at the resolutions you made at the beginning of the year. If you the goals you made are just impossible, scale them back a bit, but remember what the big picture is. Have your personal trainer plan out your workouts so you know what you are planning for.
Good Luck,
Oregon Personal Trainer
One of the best training moves you can do to build strength and to add some muscle to your body is the dead-lift. Why, because this movement involves the entire kinetic chain of your body. You are lifting a weight from the ground (dead weight) all the way a direct standing position. The challenging part of this exercise is it do it with correct form and that takes, time, patience and a lot of practice. You want to hire a professional trainer who is skilled in this type of training, so do your research before picking one.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
If you are in a plateau, then you need to implement some new training strategies. If you are just burned out of fatigued, then you probably need to take a week off of training and just rest and relax. You are suffering from over-training and burnout, you need to take a break.
If you are not in that stage, then you need to implement some timed sets that will take you to failure. Rather than going heavy all the time or practicing the overload principle, cut the weight down and start doing timed repetitions. I hope this helps!
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
You should always have a routine that is going to exercise all of the muscle groups. For example, males tend to do a lot of chest and arms, but neglect their back, shoulders, core muscles and their legs. If you do not have strong legs, then your foundation is weak. If you do not have balance between your chest and back muscles, then your shoulders will start to round forward creating unnecessary tension. Practice working all of the major muscles including the opposing muscles.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
If you want to do your best to maintain great bone density and/or support your bones, then you need to start doing some resistance training. Basically, you need to stay active as soon as you can. That is why it is great to start when you are young, in order to develop great habits. If you are just getting around to this at a later stage in life, it is better to start now, then not start at all.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
You are better working out with your MP3 portable head set versus using an e-reader to read a book. I don’t know anyone who got a huge boost of energy when reading a book, versus coming up to a great song on your playlist and just crushing your routine or last 3 minutes of cardio. I would stick with the music and ditch the reading when you are working out.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
Well, you cannot go wrong with water during a workout, but if you are going to exercising longer than one hour then you can try some different options. If you are going to be doing an endurance type of event or activity, like running, then you will want to have an electrolyte drink to replenish your carbohydrates. There are various brands out there, but I would stick to the well-known brands, but there are also some great powders out there that you can make at home with water. If you are interested in the powders, I would visit your local health food supplement store and see what your options are.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
If you need to burn a few extra calories because you have just been slammed at work or just could not go to the gym that day, then play with your dog. Have them chase you or throw their favorite toy and then chase them. Try to keep the game going for a good 10 minutes. You will be amazed how heated up you will get by running back and forth and going around furniture. You heart rate will increase and you start to burn more calories the longer your dog wants to play. When they get tired, then that is when to stop. Don’t stop because you are tired, stop when they have had enough.
Have Fun,
Oregon Personal Trainer
One of the biggest concerns that people have is snacking while doing nothing at home.It is okay to have snacks once in awhile, but if you know that one of your weaknesses is snacking because you are bored, then don’t buy the snacks. Our mind will play weird tricks on us and will say things like, I won’t finish the bag at one time, I will practice portion control and make it last. Will power is something that takes practice and one way to start is by not buying the products that are going to make you weak and give in. The rule of thumb is that if you don’t buy it, it won’t be in your home and you won’t eat it.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer
If you are going to weigh yourself, then it should be done the first thing in the morning after you have gone to the bathroom and before you put anything in your mouth. Also, don’t get into the habit of weighing yourself every morning, because you will be setting yourself up for failure. What you need to do is weigh yourself every 10 to 14 days. If you start to gain weight or you can feel that fluff coming on, then you know you need to buckle down and start looking at your food and exercise regimen with a little more attention.
Thanks,
Oregon Personal Trainer