Time Saving Techniques

Are you looking to save time in the gym? Here are a few ways you can.

High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

HIIT allows you to burn more calories in the same amount of time as steady paced training. Not only that but you continue to burn calories after you've finished unlike steady paced training where the calorie burning stops when the training stops. To perform HIIT you just vary your speed between fast paced and slower paced. You can any piece of cardio equipment to train and the intervals are usually 1:1 or 1:2. That means that if you go fast for a minute you'll then go slow for one or two minutes before speeding up again. As little as 10 minutes of HIIT can provide a great training effect, definitely a time saver considering you probably spend at least double that doing steady paced training.

Compound Exercises

Multi joint exercises give you the biggest bang for your buck when training with weights. If you tried to isolate each specific muscle you'd spend all day in the gym. By using compound exercises you can target 3 or 4 different muscles groups in one exercise. Not only that but you can use heavier weights as well which will increase your total strength and help promote muscle growth. Co-ordination is also enhanced by compound exercises, your muscles and joints have to work together to perform the exercise properly.

Alternating Sets

Alternating back and forth between exercises allows you to perform more sets in a shorter period of time. The best way to alternate your sets is between upper and lower body exercises like pull ups and squats or between opposing muscle groups like your chest and back. If your program calls for 60 second rest periods between straight sets and you alternate between exercises while only resting for 30 seconds it's easy to see that you'll save quite a bit of time. You are able to do this because while you are working one muscles group the other is recovering.

Manage your rest periods

If rest periods are specified in your program then make sure you stick to them. Usually they are specified because you are trying to achieve a certain response from the program. If rest period aren't specified then take the time you need to recover and perform the next set in full. Don't rest more than you need and you won't waste as much time.

Focus on what you are doing

Do you spend too much time socializing in the gym, or too much time walking to the water fountain getting and getting a drink that you don't really need? Focus on the reasons you are training, to get fitter, healthier, stronger. Stick to the basics and you will not only save time, you will make better progress as well.

Are You Fit Enough?

Most people want to be fit and healthy, but what does this mean? Health is relatively easy to comprehend. You are healthy if you have no medical problems and nothing that will decrease your expected life span. Some level of physical fitness is obviously tied into personal health especially when you consider factors such as strength and cardiovascular fitness correlate well with living a long life, along with enabling you to perform daily tasks. With the health part covered, how then do you determine if you are fit enough?

You can be sure that your fitness requirements differ from almost everyone else. Think about it, every athlete has different requirements even if they play the same sport. There are different positions for every sport and different ways of approaching the position based on your strengths. In daily life we all have different tasks that require some form of fitness, be it lifting something, bending down to pick things up and moving around in general. You need to decide how much strength, power, speed, aerobic endurance, mobility, flexibility etc. you require, not only to live a healthy life but to fulfill the requirements of your individual lifestyle.

Check out ExRx.net to help decide your fitness requirements and ask yourself which you have reached and which you need to start working towards. Make sure you are always fit enough for the task at hand.

Follow up

Further to yesterday's post Dietary Habits, check out the new T-Nation article. Specifically the part about trying to out-train bad diets. Also after taking a look at the exercise program that is suggested to be able to out-train your diet, I think I'd rather just eat properly.

Training Frequency

You basically have two options when choosing how frequently to exercise. You can do a lot of exercise a little bit of the time or a little bit of exercise a lot of the time. It certainly depends on your situation but for most people, even if you can get the same amount of exercise by training infrequently I think the latter is better.

By doing a little bit of exercise a lot of different times you have a few advantages over doing a lot of exercise infrequently. The first advantage is that you can still fit exercise in even on busy days. Certainly 20-30 minutes of available time is easier to find than a couple of hours. Also it is much easier to make up a 20-30 minutes session if you miss it than trying to make up a 2 hour session.

Secondly by practising more frequently your body learns the technique of the exercise much quicker. This allows you to push yourself to your limits much more safely. You will also recover much quicker which will also allow your next training session to be of high quality. The ability to recover should not be underestimated. Think of how sore you get every time you start a new exercise program. After a few sessions the soreness tends to decrease as your body adapts to the demands of the program. It’s ok to be sore at the start of a program but I’m sure you wouldn’t want to be that sore all the time. Unfortunately you probably will be if you exercise for long periods infrequently as your body struggles to adapt to that duration of exercise.

Adaptation is what we are trying to create with exercise. Once the body adapts it is time to create a new adaptation. It is therefore an advantage to try to force our bodies to adapt as quickly as possible. There is also much less chance of getting injured if our adaptations are small and frequent rather than large and infrequent.

If you have been doing a lot of exercise a little bit of the time, try frequent and intense sessions that force your body to create adaptations and progress quickly to your goals.

Bodyweight Training

Performing strength training without weights is not only possible, the world of gymnastics shows that fantastic strength and physiques can be built using only your bodyweight. Upper body strength developers like the push up and pull up are obvious choices as are squats, lunges and step ups for the lower body.

This Everything Push-Ups article from T-Nation has some great ideas and routines for push ups.

Pull up progression is covered in this Clear the bar article from Experience Life mag.

Beastskills has a range of tutorials that cover the entire body and includes a few different combo moves as well.

Putting everything into a routine is covered by Bodyweight Culture which has a series of 20 challenges to progress through. (Please note: you must register first to be able to view the challenges)

The equipment required for bodyweight training is minimal and in some cases non-existent, so don't let not having access to weights stand in the way of your strength progress.

Abandoning Gimmicks

Watching late night or morning TV you are certain to see a string of commercials extolling the virtues of some new piece of exercise equipment or diet. These ads always seem so appealing with their use of fitness models showing just how easy it is to look great. Fabulous customer testimonials are also a feature of these ads invariably with before and after shots showing just how much smaller they are compared to their previously oversized pants.

I think it’s great that these real people have been able to transform themselves. The question has to be asked though, was it the diets or equipment that caused the results or the people that caused the results? I mean there are so many different products and all of them seem to work, so why is one better than another?

Some are obviously better. Long term results will weed out the true gimmicks but even then it depends on the person following the system. Tried and tested weight management techniques have worked for years and will continue to work. The similarities between these techniques though are much greater than the differences. Details change but the basics don’t.

In order for change to occur it is you who must change. It is your attitude, will power and decision making that will bring about change, not a new diet or exercise equipment gimmick.

Sabotaging your Success

Are you subconsciously sabotaging your own success? This can occur when you reach higher levels than you have previously. Success, even when it’s expected can make you feel uncomfortable. If you have changed your body shape dramatically or reached higher levels of performance you may not be ready for the increased attention you receive. Many people experience this situation and some will subconsciously sabotage their own success. They feel it is easier to go back to being average and become wallpaper once again.

Mental preparation is therefore vital for continued success. Not only preparing for how you will look or feel once you have reached your goal but also how others will see you and how the extra attention will affect you. Prepare yourself to deal with everything in a positive manner and use it as motivation to push you forward.

Once you are prepared for the extra attention you won’t subconsciously sabotage yourself because you are uncomfortable with you new situation. This will allow you to set new goals and progress even further.

Dealing with Injury

What do you do when injury strikes? Even with fantastic preparation and injury prevention techniques sometimes injury is unavoidable, especially in contact sports. The first thing is to establish the extent of the injury. If it's in any way serious it's usually necessary to see a specialist to diagnose the exact nature of the injury.

Follow the specialist's advice when it comes to rehabilitating the site of the injury but don't be afraid to ask questions. Ask for specific rehab advice and if the injury has been caused by overuse or poor training techniques ensure the underlying cause is also treated. Failing to make this sort of correction is only going to set you up to injure yourself again.

Once the exact nature of the injury is known and treatment proscribed you need to plan how to keep the rest of your training going. If you don't remain active and train the unaffected parts of your body you will fall behind. Not only will you be missing training during the rehab period but you will then spend more time just trying to catch up to your pre-injury level. This effectively doubles your injury time and pushes your ability to achieve your goals back much further.

You will most likely need to adjust your training plan during the rehab period. However if you remain active and continue along a similar training path you should still reach your goals in an acceptable time frame.

Combating DOMS

We’ve all felt the effects of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) before. Delayed because it usually takes a day for the soreness to eventuate. Often you get out of bed the day after a session feeling ok but get gradually worse throughout the day. Just starting out or are returning after a long layoff it is common to experience DOMS after the first couple of training sessions. Even experienced exercisers can experience DOMS after a change of program or intensity. It seems unfair, just as you’re excited about a new exercise regime the soreness strikes. It’s not too surprising though, our body has to have some way of slowing us down and protecting itself from more serious injury.

The good news is DOMS is only temporary and we can reduce the severity so it doesn’t wreak too much havoc on our training or daily lives. The number one thing we can do to reduce DOMS is to be cautious during our first session with new exercises or intensities. I know the desire is there to push yourself hard but your body will thank you later if you ease into it. Still once you have DOMS how can you reduce the severity?

The first thing to understand is that our bodies need fuel to recover. It gets this fuel from the food we eat or from the stores we already have. This is why post training nutrition is important and why there is such a huge market for nutritional products that help us refuel out bodies post training. Just fuelling the body isn’t enough. We need to get the fuel into the sore muscles. There is a number of different ways to do this. Anything that promotes blood flow to the sore areas is good.

The first thing to try is some light exercise emphasising the affected areas. Again I stress this must be light exercise. It’s no good trying to push too hard as you’ll only make the soreness worse. Climbing stairs or walking uphill works well for the legs and similarly light pushing and pulling work well for the upper body.

Light massage either by yourself through the use of foam rollers or balls (tennis ball work well) or from someone else for the hard to reach places gets the blood flowing to the right areas. Performing a gentle warm up and the stretching the affected areas can be helpful in restoring the muscles to their proper length. You can also try contrast showers. Sprint coach Charlie Francis recommends cold for 1 minute, the hot for 3 minutes, repeated 3 times. There should be a noticeable difference between the hot and cold temperatures and you should feel refreshed afterwards.

Try these methods and see which work best for you. Don’t let DOMS derail your training right when your enthusiasm is highest.

More motivation from other sources

Check out FitBuff, one of my posts is featured this week. They feature a number of different blogs under different categories.

I have also come across a few different motivation for health and fitness related blogs in the last few days.
The Educated Athlete covers categories such as mindset, leadership and emotions.

Simply Fitness has a post on Motivation for running when you don't want to! The tip about getting yourself to exercise everyday by simply getting out the door with your exercise gear on is brilliant and something I definitely think works. I have usually gone for just making myself do a warm up when I don't feel like training. This works for me because the warm up has the effect of getting me moving and clears my mind. This in turn makes me feel better about the training I have planned so I invariably end up training properly and successfully. By simplifying it further to just making yourself get outside with your gear on I think you are further increasing you chances for success.

MusclePost also has a post about motivating yourself to work out. The are some useful and improtant tips like tracking your progress, setting goals and changing your workouts to continue the callenge.

Successful Exercise

Successful exercise will only occur if you enjoy what you are doing. Trying to grind out a daily or weekly regime that doesn't interest you or help you feel better about yourself will only lead to dissatisfaction and stagnation. Studies have shown that people who exercise for 5 or more hours per weeks are more likely to be happy with their self image. Five hours seems like quite a bit of time to be doing something especially if you don't enjoy it.

Questions to ask yourself before starting are:
Do I prefer to train with a group or by myself?
Do I prefer fast or slow paced exercise?
Do I prefer a few long sessions or many quick sessions?
Do my exercise preferences match my exercise goals?

This last question is especially important. It's no good having the goal of being a good weightlifter if you much prefer to train like a marathon runner. Set up your goals based on what you enjoy and what you want to achieve rather than what you think you are expected to do. This is part of the process of individualisation. There are many different paths to health and fitness, pick the one that is most enjoyable for you.

Combating Rising Obesity Rates

This question “Doesn't it seem a total waste of time for us to be debating about the best fat loss methods (and I admit - I'm also guilty of this), when we're pretty much failing as a profession to actually make much of a difference?” from Alwyn Cosgrove is telling. Browsing through fitness related websites illustrates how many different approaches and options there are when it comes to training and nutrition. For the person just starting out on their pursuit of a healthy lifestyle the huge amount of different approaches can be daunting. Good training advice and readily available exercise equipment isn’t the problem, so what is?

The issue to me is the perceived time and commitment to benefit ratio. If exercise is seen as too hard or complicated then it’s unlikely that sedentary people will take it up. How then do we help them up off the couch and down the healthy lifestyle path? So much of out time and effort is spent preaching to the converted and nitpicking over the various details. Wouldn’t we be better off just trying to convince everyone to just do something, anything?

Getting sedentary people to realize that exercise doesn’t have to be complicated and that eating a healthy diet is just as easy as eating an unhealthy diet is a big challenge. Until we meet this challenge obesity rates will unfortunately continue to rise.

Adherence to the Plan

Any plan is better than none. In health and fitness even a relatively poor plan can create good results if you believe in the plan enough. Plans don’t need to be complicated to be effective in fact the most effective are simple and easy to follow.

There is simply no point in creating a complex plan that incorporates every possible training system and convoluted nutritional program. It is not enough however to say, “Just eat well and exercise.” The plan must have some specifics. The number of training sessions you’ll complete in a week or month even if you don’t necessarily designate the exact days you’ll train on. A list of food you can eat and a list you’ll avoid, without counting calories or macronutrient totals. These are the beginnings of a plan.

Next you need to plan the type of exercise you’ll do. From aerobic based jogging and swimming to heavy strength training you have a huge range of options and plenty of different approaches can be chosen. Find a few that suit you and your goals best. This shouldn’t be too hard using the internet, t-nation and men’s health have a huge range of articles and there is plenty of running and aerobics based sites out there. Once you’ve found the plans you like and established that you have the time and equipment to perform them, try following each of the separately for a month or two. At the end of each time period evaluate your results, what you liked or disliked, what worked or didn’t work and your adherence to the plan.

This process can be followed for nutritional plans as well. Make sure to give yourself enough time to evaluate each plan. If you change them around to quickly your body won’t be able to adjust and your results will be hard to judge. Once you’ve been through a few different plans you’ll know what works best for you. You can then take your knowledge and create your own plan specifically tailored to your needs.

Remember non-adherence to the plan is the same as no plan at all. Dr John Berardi, a noted nutritionist and exercise scientist works on the 90/10 rule which suggests you need 90% adherence to be able to evaluate a plan’s effectiveness.

Motivation

What is it that makes you train hard? Knowing how you get yourself motivated can be a big help. If you are internally motivated you push yourself because you like the feeling hard training gives you. If you are externally motivated it's the external rewards from training that drive you.

When you first start training you'll likely be externally motivated. Wanting to lose weight, gain muscle, get healthier or achieve athletically are all examples of external motivation. External motivation is great at the start and if you set achievable short term goals it can carry you a long way.

There will be times those external sources aren't motivating enough. Tough times indeed and you'll need to look inside and inspire yourself. Inspiring yourself can be easy if you've kept detailed records about your training. Simply look back and see how far you've come if your destination seems too far away. You might also go back to a particularly good session and visualize how you felt during and after that session. For those that train in a group or with a partner use the energy of others around you to pick you up. Anything you can use to get you excited about training is a motivating force.

Motivation, whatever yours is make sure you make the most of it to ensure great performance.

This article was featured in The Fourth Edition of the Carnival of Improving Life.

A Great Training Session

Having a great training session can be elusive. The key to consistent great training is focusing on the small, simple things that make up each session. Adequately prepare through proper recovery, nutrition and hydration. Make sure you have your training log and the proper equipment required for training, nothing ruins a session quicker than realizing you don't have a vital piece of equipment.

Once you have your pre training routine in place continued focus throughout the session is much easier. Through the warm up, technique should be worked on. The more you properly practice a skill the more automatic it becomes. During the main part of the session small things will determine if the session is a success. Things like ensuring your hand placement is correct on the bar if lifting weights, making sure your shoes are tied correctly and won't come undone and controlling your breathing pattern during every exercise.

Controlling the small things is what separates ok sessions from good and good sessions from great. Some days you'll feel so good that everything will fall into place without even thinking about it. Other days will be a struggle and unless you concentrate on the things you can control they will be wasted training sessions. Reduce the difference between your best and worst training sessions by improving your focus and you can continue to improve even when things aren't going your way.

Planning and Preparation

There are some simple steps to success that must be taken. The first is having a goal. Everyone needs a goal to strive for in their training. It doesn't matter if it's to lose 10 pounds, get your blood pressure under control or achieve something athletically. You need a goal to keep you going, to remind you why you are training hard. Give yourself a time frame and measure everything.

Secondly you need a plan to achieve your goal. Great progress cannot be made without a plan. While your plan should be set out from the start it can and should be fluid. An exercise can be changed if it isn't working, a diet can be tweaked if you are not progressing as you should. Just don't stray to far away from your original plan and evaluate everything at the end of your designated time frame.

Finally we have preparation. Preparation comes in many forms, making sure you can't fail your diet because you have everything cooked, packed and ready to go. Making sure you are physically prepared for each training session by getting enough sleep and following some sort of recovery system. Mentally preparing for each training session by reviewing what you have previously done and blocking out everything else to concentrate fully on the specific exercise you are currently performing.

Once you have a goal, a plan and prepare well success will be made much easier and come much quicker than otherwise.

Strength

Strength. It’s the very foundation of our lives. It influences everything we do and everything we attempt to do. From daily activities like getting out of bed in the morning or putting something away in a cupboard to running a marathon or lifting a heavy weight you need the appropriate amount of physical and mental strength to complete the task. Physical and mental strength go hand in hand. You may have the physical strength to perform a task however if you don’t have the mental strength your body will not be able to fully use its physical strength. Equally if you psych yourself up to the point that you’re more mentally strong than physically strong, injury is the likely result.

It’s amazing how co-ordination issues, balance, body composition (less fat, more muscle) and the ability to move faster and further all improve as your physical strength is improved. The first step to physical strength improvement is mental strength improvement. You can't just expect to grab something and heave it up any old which way and improve so you need to focus on the task and mentally have the strength to perform it properly.

Whether you are training for performance improvements, physique improvements or health improvements strength is the key to it all. You should prepare to improve some kind of strength every time you train.