Strickland Fitness

Today is going to be strictly calorie burning. For an introduction to interval training, read this post… http://stricklandfitness.com/2008/12/15/interval-training/. There is a formula in there for calculating heart rates for interval training. Getting the maximum heart rate for that formula is a little different than the way you got it for the challenge. That is ok. Use the formula in the attached post. Be sure to write down the percentages (50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, and 85%) of your maximum heart rate for interval training as you will need them for the future. Once you have read the post, you are ready for intervals today. If you have any questions on how to do intervals, please ask in the comment section. Intervals are a great way to shed some pounds…or stones for the UK J

Using any cardio apparatus, beginners do workout A and more advanced challengers do workout B. Once you have done your intervals, put a check in your calendar for Oct. 6^th. Great job!!!

 

Workout A:

10 minutes active warm up

8-10 sprints: Sprint until 65% of your max heart rate and rest until it goes down to 50%.

You can raise the heart rates if you feel comfortable. It should take no more than a minute to hit your selected heart rate and it doesn’t matter how long it takes for it to come down. That will speed up with time. Be sure to be intense in your efforts to hit your top heart rate. Don’t just jog, but sprint!

10 minutes cool down

Workout B:

10 minutes active warm up

8-10 sprints: Sprint until 85% of your max heart rate and rest until it goes down to 60%. It should take no more than a minute to hit your selected heart rate and it doesn’t matter how long it takes for it to come down. That will speed up with time. Be sure to be intense in your efforts to hit your top heart rate. Don’t just jog, but sprint!

10 minutes cool down

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I hope everyone had a great weekend! Now, it’s time to get back to work. Today will be a workout to knockout the weekend! Emphasis will be on legs and abs…topped off with a little cardio. Workout A is for beginners and workout B is for the more advanced. Here are the exercises and at the bottom you will find the workouts. After you have done it, put a check in the box for Oct. 5^th. Great Job!!!!

1 Leg Squat

This exercise is great for targeting the gluts and quads while working on strength and balance. Raise your left leg out in front of you so your left hip and knee are bent at 90 degrees. Standing only on the right leg, slowly lower yourself bringing your hips behind you. Only go down about a quarter of the way. Press through your heel to raise yourself to the starting position. Concentrate on not letting your right knee collapse in towards your left leg. Your knee should stay directly in line with your foot.

Jump Squats

Starting in a standing position, lower yourself into a squat position with your knees bent no more than 90 degrees. Once you reach your squat depth, immediately explode up jumping up as high as you can. Land softly and immediately lower yourself into the next.

Isolated abdominal crunches

Lying on your back with your feet flat on the floor and your knees bent at 45 degrees, place your hands flat on your thighs. Concentrating on contracting your abdominals, use your abs to pull your upper body off the floor while sliding your hands up your thighs towards the top of your knees. Your upper body should only go high enough that your shoulder blades clear the ground. Lower back to the starting position.

Pelvic Lifts

This exercise works the gluts, hamstrings, and the lower back. Lying on your back with both feet on the ground and your legs bent at 45 degrees, press through your feet on the floor raising your pelvis off the ground. You should raise it until you have a straight line from your head to the tip of your bent knees. Lower your pelvis to the ground and then raise again. Concentrate on activating the gluts while going through the motion. You can add intensity to this by extending 1 leg out to straight while holding your pelvis up. The next step would be to raise and lower your pelvis with 1 leg while the other leg is in full extension.

Plank

Start by lying face down on the ground or use an exercise mat . Place your elbows and forearms underneath your chest. Prop yourself up to form a bridge using your toes and forearms. Maintain a flat back and do not allow your hips to sag towards the ground. Concentrate on holding yourself up with your abs and not your arms. Always lower yourself to the ground if you feel any pain in your back.

Cardio

20 minute run

 

Workout A

12-15 one leg squats

Rest for 15 seconds

10-12 jump squats

Rest for 15 seconds

20-25 isolated abdominal crunches

Rest for 15 seconds

12-15 pelvic lifts (both legs on the ground)

Rest for 15 seconds

30 second plank

Rest for 1-2 minutes and return to start of series. Do the entire series 3-5 times depending on exhaustion level.

At the end of all the series, do 20 minutes of cardio on your apparatus of choice with your heart rate between 50%-65%.

 

Workout B

Try not to rest between exercises

15 one leg squats

12 jump squats

25 isolated abdominal crunches

15 pelvic lifts (try doing it with one leg)

Plank for as long as you can up to 1 minute

Rest for 1-2 minutes and return to start of series. Do the entire series 4-5 times depending on exhaustion level.

At the end of all the series, do 20 minutes of cardio on your apparatus of choice with your heart rate between 65%-80%.

 

 

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How did the first cardio session go? I hope everyone was able to put a check mark in the first box on your calendar? Remember, even if the first challenge was easy, this program is based on progression so it will get harder. If the first challenge was tough, don’t worry, keep at it and you will succeed! On that note, you will only get results if you put the work in. Work out as if I was standing there with you. When I train my clients, they work hard; not only for me, but for themselves. So give this Challenge everything you have and you will get results!! You will feel stronger, fitter, and most importantly, better!

Today’s challenge is doing exercises that only require your body weight. Beginners do work out A, and non-beginners do workout B. Total workout time: 35-45 minutes.

Before starting the workout, be sure to warm up and do some active stretching (http://stricklandfitness.com/2009/07/05/pre-workout/). 10 minutes.

These are the exercises you will need….

Squats: with your feet shoulder width apart, lower yourself until your knees are bent to 90 degrees and return to the standing position. Keep your back straight and pretend you are going to sit in a chair. You can put your arms out in front of you to help you from falling back.

Push-ups/knee push-ups: In a push up position, make sure your body is in a straight line from head to toe. Keeping your stomach tight, lower yourself to the ground and then push up to the starting position. Make sure your head does not fall lower than your body and your mid-section stays in line with the rest of your body. Knee push- ups are exactly the same except you will have your knees on the ground with the straight body line being from head to knees.

Walking lunges: You should have about 20-30 feet of space to do this. Take a big step forward, stop, and then drop your butt straight down. Your front leg and back leg should both be bent 90 degrees at the knee. Keep your back straight and stop lowering yourself when the back knee is a few inches off the ground. Rise up and bring the back leg even with the front and step that leg forward and repeat the lowering and raising. This sequence should be even paced and controlled.

Plank: Start by lying face down on the ground or use an exercise mat . Place your elbows and forearms underneath your chest. Prop yourself up to form a bridge using your toes and forearms. Maintain a flat back and do not allow your hips to sag towards the ground. Concentrate on holding yourself up with your abs and not your arms. Always lower yourself to the ground if you feel any pain in your back. This means your abs have given up and your back has taken over.

Workout A:

10-15 repetitions of squats

Rest for 10 seconds

10-12 repetitions of push-ups (try doing regular push-ups first, lower to your knees to finish the set if needed).

Rest for 10 seconds

10-12 repetitions each leg of walking lunges

Rest for 10 seconds

2-3 times plank holding each one for 10 seconds.

Rest for 1-2 minutes and return to start of series. Do the entire series 3-5 times depending on exhaustion level.

Cool down with stretching.

 

Workout B:

In the order of Squats, push-ups, walking lunges, and plank, do each exercise for 45-60 seconds without stopping. Challenge yourself to a pace that will raise your heart rate and still be able to complete the time. Do not rest between the exercises. Once you have completed all 4 exercises rest for 2 minutes and then repeat. Do 4-5 rounds. Finish with stretching.

 

Put a check mark in your calendar for October 2^nd when completed. Great job!!

 

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Consult a physician before beginning any exercise program. Be sure to read the tips at the bottom of this post!
Ok Challengers….The time has come!!!! Let the challenge begin.
You should have your maximum heart rate from a previous post. Calculate 50%, 65%, 80%, and write down each of those numbers (you will need them for the entire challenge). You can also use the formula 220 – your age = Maximum heart rate. Your Challenge for today is….
Using any cardio apparatus of your choice (bike, running outside, treadmill, etc.), beginners or just starting exercise challengers do cardio program A. Intermediate or have been exercising challengers do cardio program B.

Cardio Program A: work for 20-30 minutes on your cardio apparatus. Raise your heart rate to at least 50% of your max heart rate. Maintain that heart rate making sure it doesn’t fall below 50% and doesn’t go above 65%. Even if you feel you can go higher, stay in this zone. We will raise it later. If you are tired at 20 minutes stop; otherwise work for the entire 30 minutes. If you can go the entire 30 minutes and feel ok, you will move to cardio program B next time. If you can’t find your heart rate, use the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) scale at the bottom. Stay between 11-13.

Cardio Program B: Work for 20-30 minutes on your cardio apparatus. Raise your heart rate to at least 50% of your max heart rate. Maintain that heart rate making sure it doesn’t fall below 65% and doesn’t go above 80%. Even if you feel you can go higher, stay in this zone. We will raise it later. If you are tired at 20 minutes stop; otherwise work for the entire 30 minutes.
If you can’t find your heart rate, use the RPE (rate of perceived exertion) scale at the bottom. Stay between 13-15.

Always exercise with intensity but comfort ability. Stop if you feel dizzy or nauseous. Once you have completed this challenge, put a check in the October 1^st box of your calendar. Great job!!

 Perceived Exertion Scale

 The following is a scale which you can use to describe and/or rate your level of exertion.

6

7 – Very, very light

8

9 – Very light

10

11 – Fairly light

12

13 – Somewhat hard

14

15 – Hard

16

17 – Very hard

18

19 – Very, very hard

 

Tips For Beginning Your Fitness Program

 

Proper preparation for a fitness program is essential in order to achieve the best results.  The following tips will not only help you when starting a new fitness program, but help you to stay consistent with it over the long term.

Following is a list of general principles:

1. Prior to beginning an exercise program, speak with your physician, especially if you have a medical condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure, are overweight, sedentary, over 35 years old, have any heart problems, or have a history of heart problems in your family.

2. Set achievable, measurable, attainable, realistic goals.  Write them down and keep them someplace visible.

3. Wear comfortable clothing that will absorb perspiration. Choose clothing that won’t restrict your movement, and remember that this is about fitness, not fashion. Wear good athletic shoes that provide plenty of arch support. Dress for the climate.

4. Choose and schedule times to work out that fit your daily routine. There really isn’t a time of day that is any better than another, but it helps to pick a time when you usually feel energetic and your schedule allows for consistency.  If you have a busy lifestyle, put your workouts into your schedule just like any other appointments or responsibilities that you have.

5. Track your workouts in a log or notebook.  This helps ensure that you consistently challenge yourself to do more in your program, allows you to see the progress you are making, and gives you a record to monitor so you know when to build variety and progression into your program.

6. Warm up for 3 – 5 minutes with a light activity that targets all the major muscle groups prior to beginning your fitness program.

7. After your workout, finish with a cool down phase of 5-10 minutes.  This is also a good time to incorporate any stretching into your fitness program.

8. Consistency is the key with any fitness program designed to achieve lasting, long term results.  Start with small steps, but keep moving forward with your program consistently.

9. Do not go overboard with your fitness program.  Exercise is like anything else, and too much of a good thing can be detrimental.  Give your body adequate rest, not only by getting a good night’s sleep on a consistent basis, but by varying your exercise routine so that you do not suffer from repetitive use injuries.

Use of any knowledge from this website is voluntary. By reading this post, you agree to the terms and conditions outlined in the disclaimer in the about section of this website. Thanks for participating!

 

The Challenge starts Thursday!!!!

Last Prep tool you will need….and it’s a simple one. You should have figured out your BMR and how many calories you are actually taking in (from your food journal); If you haven’t yet, be sure to do so before Thursday. This Challenge is not for crash dieters or for losing weight in an unhealthy way. This is a challenge to educate about nutrition and exercise. The safest way to lose weight or to gain weight is to make healthy decisions. With that in mind, the rule of thumb is you should not decrease or increase calorie intake by more than 15% either way. So, if your goal is to lose weight (fat), you should decrease your calorie intake by no more than 15% of your BMR. If your goal is to gain weight (muscle), you should increase your calorie intake by 15% of your BMR. Figure out what the number is and that should be your daily goal for the month. Weight loss or weight gain will come from being slightly below or above your BMR and exercise, both cardio and resistance. We will not be starving or gorging ourselves to meet our goals. Besides reaching the goal for the month, the long term goal should be to learn and make these changes become part of your life.

If you have any questions, please post them in the comment section and I will answer for everyone. I will also be posting some specifics about good nutrition. Right now, the idea is to eat only what your goal allows, eat low fat foods, and stay away from high sugar and sodium foods. Don’t drink soda, drink lots of water. And as far as alcohol goes, this might be a good month to see if you can refrain

I look forward to hearing about your success!!!!

Use of any knowledge from this website is voluntary. By reading this post, you agree to the terms and conditions outlined in the disclaimer in the about section of this website. Thanks for participating!