The nice weather and a look in my own back yard got me thinking that it was time to get into the garden and start cleaning up.  I would think most people here in my home town of Victoria would have already started their spring gardening or like me are thinking about the outside chores that need to be done.  So, that brings up the topic of today's newsletter – the hazards associated with the extreme sport of gardening.

Most people would never think that gardening is a hazard and I am sure no one ever thinks about preparing for a gardening session or warming up.  Just as most golfers (at least recreational golfers) never think about the need to warm up or prepare for their round of golf, most gardeners never give it a thought as well.  But, it is important to prepare.  It never fails that as soon as the weather warms up and people are headed outdoors, the gardening injuries start.  Just as in the winter with the white stuff (snow), there is a rash of back, shoulder or wrist injuries.

I think for the most part, clients here at our facility are better prepared that the average person that isn't fit and in shape.  But, even our clients should take just a few minutes to warm up and prepare.  After all, no one ever starts their workout in the gym without going through a structured warm up.   Gardening is exercise.  Think of the movements associated with gardening – walking, bending, lifting, turning, twisting, lunge movements, squat movements.   All these movements are typical of an exercise session in the gym, so why not spend a few minutes doing a little warm up.  Chances are you will be less stiff when you start and it will go a long way to preventing injuries.

A little warm-up that you could do at home just prior to picking up those gardening tools:

Ankle Circles – 10 each direction on each foot.
Leg Swings – Swing leg front to back and then side to side. 10 each direction on each leg.
Squats – 12 body weight squats.  Maintain a nice straight back; go only as low as comfortable.  Stance should be just outside shoulder width.
Arm Swings – giant arm swings – move through as full range of motion as possible and pain free.  10 swings in each direction.

These few warm ups will take about 5 minutes to do and will just help prepare your body for the job ahead.  Remember to use good body mechanics as well.  If you must lift, lift from the hips and not bent over at the back.
Remember that gardening is exercise and if you spend 8 hours in the garden you will most likely feel some sore muscles the next day.   If you have had a long day gardening, a hot bath with epsom salts, a session with your foam roller if you have one, will go a long way to alleviating some of the aches you may feel the next day.  Now you are ready to take on the back yard.   Enjoy.

Till next time,
Narina
"Monitoring, Mentoring, Motivation"

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The topic of today's article is exercise, adaptation and how that relates to how, why and when to change an exercise program.  First, we should discuss a little physiology so you getter a better understanding of how the body responds to the "stress" of exercise.  Remember that not all stress is bad.  Stress in the form of exercise is what our training program is all about.  In physiology there is a response from the body to exercise.  This
is called the SAID Principle.  This means:

   ***  Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands (SAID) ***
The demands of the exercise program (weight training for example) would be the stress involved.  The "imposed demands" of the  weight training program would bring about specific adaptations by the body.  This would translate to muscle growth resulting in strength gains, leaner body composition, improved range of motion as well as a host of other benefits associated with exercise.

Adaptation is specific to:
1)  Mode – this is the type of training (strength training, aerobic training for example).  This also involves more specifically the movement patterns, muscles involved, range of motion.
2)  Intensity – this refers to the effort of the exercise, the resistance used, at what speed you move through the exercise as well as the metabolic pathways that are used. 
3)  Duration – this centers around the number of reps and sets of each exercise you perform in a workout.  This also involves the rest between exercises.  In an aerobic capacity this may refer to work intervals.
4)  Frequency – the amount of recovery time allowed between exercise sessions.

The body requires a certain amount of stress imposed before it will respond with increased fitness (strength, aerobic capacity).  If the body is not stressed (to a reasonable limit), it will not respond.  In other words, you must have a tolerable amount of stress imposed to elicit a physiological response.  The body adapts to this stress by building stronger muscles and  once this adaptation has occurred no further response will take place.
Physical training is beneficial only as long as it forces your body to adapt to the stress of the effort involved.

So how does all this physiology relate to your workouts in the gym?  One of the most frequently asked questions I get is:  when do I change my exercise program?

The Boredom Factor:
This can be a killer for some people.  Variety is key.  The body does  require a certain amount of continuity when learning specific exercises or movement patterns.  But that aside it is important to allow some variety in exercise selection to keep the program fresh.

Reps/Sets/Training Tempos:
This is a topic for a whole newsletter in itself.  But suffice to say you don't want to be doing the same number of reps and sets with  the same tempos indefinitely.  Not only are we looking at the boredom factor again, but the body will adapt to this quite quickly.  The classic 3 sets of 10 repetitions is a killer to the body if done too long.  Change up your reps, sets and training tempos every few workouts.  Mix it up a little; vary the number of reps you perform.  Vary the number of sets.

Rest Intervals:
This is another way of changing the stress imposed.  Mix up the rest/recovery time between exercises.  Perform exercises in a circuit; perform supersets or giant sets.

How often:
An exercise program should be constantly evolving.  Even within specific parameters of a given program there is always room to make minor changes.  The key is to keep the body forever guessing and having to adapt new stresses.  Each workout you should be striving to make progress, looking to see how you can improve each exercise, each set.  The weights chosen for a particular exercise should be changing as well.  Look to see
where you can increase the weight.  If you are performing all your reps/sets with a given weight, it is probably time to increase the weight.

Overall program design should be reviewed and changed about every 3-4 months.  If you are still doing the same program now that you were doing before Christmas, it is time for a change.

 
So in a nutshell:
1)  Body adapts to stress – this is good
2)  Exercise is stress – this is good
3)  Each workout strive to see where you can improve
4)  Don't perform the same workout longer than 3 months
5)  Change the reps and sets every few workouts
6)  Incorporate circuits, super sets, giant sets to add variety
7)  Always look to improve – each workout!
8)  Get help from a fitness pro to keep you always moving forward

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I think before we talk about easy ways to increase metabolism we should first define metabolism and get a better understanding of what metabolism is and how it can be affected by lifestyle choices.  Wikipedia defines metabolism as:

“the set of chemical reactions that occur in living organisms to maintain life”  Whole textbooks could be written about metabolism and all the different chemical processes that occur.  But, basically for the purpose of this article we are concerned about the body's ability to convert the food we eat to energy to be used during activities of daily living or in some cases to be stored as fat.  We all know people who for whatever reason seem to be able to eat whatever they want, however much they want and never seem to gain an ounce.  These people may not even be that active either.  These people are blessed with what we all refer to as a “fast metabolism.
On the other hand there are those individuals who must be very aware of what and how much they eat to maintain a healthy weight.

There are some things that will cause your metabolism to slow.  One major cause of a slower metabolism is aging.  This we can not prevent, but some of the other causes of a slow metabolism are preventable.  They are:

• Extreme fasting
  Excessive dieting
  Lack of physical exercise
  Skipping meals
  Poor sleeping habits
  Too much of a gap between meals
  Eating too many foods that are loaded with sugar

If you notice the list above, 5 of the items all involve food and meals.  It is well known and documented that those successful in their weight loss endeavors have all included breakfast.  As we sleep our bodies are in a fasting mode.  In order to “kick start” our metabolism it is essential to eat breakfast. Without food, our metabolism slows and to start your day off on the right foot and waking up your metabolism, then breakfast is imperative.

The same can be said about skipping meals or going too long between meals/snacks.  You should attempt to eat something about every 3-4 hours.  It doesn't have to be huge meals.  But, each meal and snack should contain a balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats.  Skipping meals and allowing too much time to elapse between meals once again put the body into a fasting mode and the metabolism slows down to accommodate.  In fact, if weight loss is your goal, the worst thing you could do is eat a too low a calorie diet, skip breakfast or other meals throughout the day.

So, that brings us to the question raised – what are easy ways to increase your metabolism.  There are several ways to do this:

1)  If you are not involved in a resistance/strength program, then start now. The more you can increase your muscle mass, the more active your metabolism will be.  It is known that muscle mass burns more calories than  fat, so the goal of everyone should be to change their body composition and increase their lean body mass.  This can best be achieved through a properly designed exercise program that involves strength training and conditioning.

2) If you don't eat breakfast – then you must start now to include this most important meal.

3)  Never skip meals. Even a a small snack of fruit/yogurt/nuts can be enough to maintain an active metabolism throughout the day.

4)  Try to ensure that you are doing something in the way of physical activity every day for at least 20 minutes.

5)  Make sure that your exercise program is of a necessary intensity to create EPOC (post exercise oxygen consumption).  If your exercise program is of a high enough intensity, your metabolism will remain elevated for several hours after you have finished exercising = bonus!!

Increasing your metabolism is not that difficult, but you must be consistent and incorporate the above noted items to make a difference.   In a nutshell:

1)  Eat breakfast
2)  Never skip meals
3)  Weight train minimum 3x/week
4)  Do some form of conditioning (aerobic work) every day – minimum 20 minutes
5)  Clean up your diet – eliminate wheat, sugars, all junk food –     period!

If you have any specific questions regarding metabolism, how to make necessary lifestyle changes or how to incorporate an exercise program into your life.

Till next time,
Narina
“Monitoring, Mentoring, Motivation”

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Being successful at whatever you choose depends on how prepared you are.  If weight loss is a goal, then you must be prepared.  And that preparation will take several faces

1)  How prepared are you to be committed to this goal? Without a level of commitment success is unlikely.  You must be committed 100% to your goal.  You must not give yourself permission for excuses not matter what they are.  Stand fast, stand strong – be committed!

2)  How prepared are you to undertake the physical requirements of a weight loss program? Diet alone is not the ideal method of weight loss.  A well balanced exercise program that combines aerobic work with strength training will help kick start your metabolism and get you started on the road to a successful weight loss program.

3) How prepared are you in the food department? Having the right foods ready to eat at the right time and in the right amounts is paramount to successful weight loss.  When life get busy, as it does for all of us, not having a ready supply of the right foods will lead to either going without or eating junk food, both of which will sabotage your weight loss efforts.

4)  How prepared are you for objections and resentment? Quite often when someone undertakes a weight loss program, there is resentment or subtle objections from either family members or friends.  Friends may be envious of you and your strength/commitment to your goal.  They may make you feel uncomfortable in social situations about your food choices.  Family members also can undermine your weight loss efforts without meaning to.  Having to prepare different meals for different family members is a reality if you are trying to monitor your own nutrition.  This comes back to #1 and being committed to your goal – stand fast, stand strong!

Preparation is the key to success in whatever endeavors you undertake from personal goals to business to life in general.  If you have  a goal you must be prepared and that preparation in itself takes time  to develop.  A successful plan takes successful preparation – that will ultimately lead to a goal achieved.

Being prepared is an important element in success of whatever you choose to do.

Till next time,

Narina

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A question came up in the gym the other day about cycling and that led to a talk about the Tour de France.  With the Olympic Games in full swing just 40 kilometers from where I live, I thought an article about athletics/sport and how we can learn from athletes might be timely.   If you are a cycling fan you will be glued to your televisions every July watching the coverage of what is called the “greatest cycling event” in history.   This historic race was in its 96th year last July..  The race course will usually vary from year to year and cities around Europe will vie for the honor of hosting a stage of this great race, just as Cities vie for the opportunity to host a Summer or Winter Olympic Games.  2009 saw the tour begin in Monaco with a 15 km time trial and will continue daily until July 26th.

The race will cover parts of Monaco, Spain and France finishing on July 26th in Paris.  The race will cover 3500 kilometers in 21 stages, over flat and mountainous terrain.  During the course of the race they will cover 10 flat stages, 8 mountain stages and 3 time trial stages (normally relatively flat).  Through this three week period, the racers will have just 2 rest days.  Daily mileage will vary from 160 km to 211 km. Imagine spending 5-6 hours climbing through the Pyrenees mountains with probably a sprint finish, rest up the rest of the day and night and get back on your bike to repeat the same thing again and continue this for 3 straight weeks!  You can only imagine the condition of these athletes.  They are known to consume in excess of 10,000 calories a day and will still probably lose weight over the course of the 3 weeks.  But nothing is left to chance with these athletes. 

The technical aspects of the race – namely the bicycles and all their components are a whole other topic in itself.  To say the technology has advanced over the 96 running of this race would be an understatement.  Special
metals that make the frames not only incredibly strong, but feather light is just on advancement in bike technology.  Wind tunnel testing is also a common test to help make the bike and riders as aerodynamic as possible.
But, aside from the technology of the bikes, there is also the rider himself to consider.  You can bet that nothing is left to chance with the riders as well.  Each team will travel with their own physio therapists, massage therapists and associated personnel to ensure that every aspect of the rider's rest and recovery is taken care of.  One of the most difficult challenges of this type of event is the recovery of the athlete. 

In most sporting event, once the event has taken place the athlete is free to rest, recover and train for the next event which may be days, weeks or months away.  But, with this 3 week race, the rider has less than 24 hours to recover and repeat again for 21 days.  Along with ensuring that their bodies get the treatments they need to recover, their nutrition is also an integral part of their recovery process.  Not only must they fuel throughout the ride, they must ensure that adequate nutrition meaning the right foods in the right amounts at the right time are ingested to promote the recovery process.  The same holds true for the Olympic athletes.  They are often competing in several events (one sport, but varying distances).  Also some sports will have several qualifying heats.  This requires these athletes to be able to compete, recover and compete again, usually in a very short period of time.

So what can we take away from the Tour de France?  What can we take away from watching these amazing Olympic athletes competing right now in Vancouver, B.C. Canada?  We can start by thinking of ourselves as athletes as well.  No, we are not competing for the honor of wearing the yellow jersey or to win a medal,  but all of us have daily obligations whether it be work or home related that require us to be alert and ready to tackle whatever tasks comes our way.   We can all take a little lesson from the the pro riders and athletes and start to treat our own bodies like those of the athletes.  Ensure you get the proper nutrition daily, starting with breakfast and continuing throughout the day with small meals.  We also need to ensure that we are getting adequate rest to tackle the needs of the day.  Without adequate rest you won't  be able to operate at your peak and your workouts at the gym will most certainly suffer.  Proper nutrition, adequate rest and training are just as important to each of us as it is to the professional bicycle racer battling it out in the mountains of France.

Till next time,

Narina

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