A typical week might look like this:

Mon- 20/20/20 (20 min. cardio, 20 min. body exercise, 20 min. cardio)

Tue- One hour swim along with some core

Wed. Boot Camp -

Thurs. One hour spin class, along with some core and

Fri. Total Conditioning- One hour full body work out with HR in zone 3 and 4

Sat. Rest?

Sun. One hour spin followed by one hour of swim

I do modify Wed and Friday keeping it low impact.

Some lessons I have learned (AGAIN) recently:

-More often much growth comes from setbacks…I try to take them as learning experiences.

-Don’t knock it until you try it!

A quote to sum it up…

“I don’t really think in terms of obstacles. My biggest obstacle is always myself.”
-Steve Earle

1. Test the distance – Do a “practice run” at your own pace about two weeks before the event. You will learn plenty that should help you during your race. Pay attention to:
- Pacing (for example, what pace do I need to do the swim in so the bike and run are doable?)
- Practice your transition strategy.
- How will you feel after riding and then transitioning to the run?
- Can you do the entire swim without resting? (most pool swims will let you rest at the wall but get out of the way of other competitors)

2. Do some “brick” workouts – Practice switching from the bike to the run by following up a long bike with a short run every once in a while. Yes it’s uncomfortable. But you can teach the body to adjust and it can get more comfortable (well, at least everything hurts the same.)

3. Do minimal the week prior to the event. A rested body performs better. Don’t push through a tough workout the week of your first race. If you feel you need more workouts before your first event then skip this one and sign up for one next month.

4. Don’t let an odd challenging course be a surprise (hills, rough roads etc.). Train on similar terrain.

5. Know your course. How do you enter and exit the transition area (swim to bike and bike to swim – sometimes they happen in different places)? Where are the turn-areas? If you know what to expect the day of the race it will be much smoother. KNOW the rules – the USAT website has them posted.

6. Don’t try anything new on race day. Avoid new foods or new clothes. Use your race suit in your training – especially during your practice event. Use nutrition choices that you know you can eat and equipment you are used to.

7. Check the bike carefully before the race. Especially look for the following:
– Tire pressure
- Check brakes for rubbing
- Make sure the handle bars, profile bars and seat are all on tight
- Check that the bike is shifting correctly – put the bike in the gear you will want to start out in (do you start by climbing a hill – if so you need the bike in an easy gear). That way you’ll be ready when you grab the bike.

Just some extra preparation tips from regular participants. Is a Triathlon or a competitive event in your sites along your journey?

Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it. -  Michael Jordan

Here is my challenge. Do the following 6 exercises in a row, no break in between:(optional-I like to do a hard 1-2 mile run prior)

1. 30 squats
2. 15 push ups
3. 30 second wall sit
4. 25 jumping jacks
5. 30 second plank
6. 15 Burpees

Take a 1 minute break and repeat it 2 times!

*modify if necessary!*

If you are looking at revving up your metabolism this will do the trick! Will you join me?

………….“Obsessed is just a word the lazy use to describe dedicated.”

Please welcome Christine Kambourakis she is a Specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist in Melbourne, Australia.

What is my “core”?

You rely on your body to get out of bed, to lift your children, to perform your job and to move around with ease every day. While our limbs provide mobility and strength, it is our body’s core that provides the basis of each movement. Your core is the midsection of your body, from your shoulders to your groin – basically everything in between your arms and legs. The core includes the pelvis, abs, back and chest muscles. It is this core that offers stability, balance and flexibility.

Every movement you make originates in the core – whether you are reaching for a snack or running a marathon. If the core is not properly conditioned, it will limit your ability to move freely and will leave you open to injury. Remember, the most common sites of injury are usually the parts between your arms and legs!.

Working the muscles in your core will improve the effectiveness of movements in your limbs. Most exercise routines focus on building muscle predominantly in your limbs and superficial muscles. By creating a stable strong base, you can optimize the strength and flexibility of each limb.

How do I strengthen my core?

As a physio, I have treated many patients whose main reason for injury was poor strength and lack of flexibility in their torso. The Pilates method of training targets the deep postural muscles of the abdomen and spine to improve overall central core stability and posture. This system of exercise strengthens the entire body from the deepest layers of muscle to the most superficial and also corrects imbalances or weaknesses.

It was devised by Joseph Pilates in the 1920′s. He believed that our modern life-style, bad posture, and inefficient breathing were the roots of poor health and ultimately devised a series of exercises that could be performed on the floor (mat pilates) or equipment based pilates.

Even if there are minimal or no weaknesses present, it gives the body a solid foundation from which to work.

For example, when I first started participating in pilates classes, I thought as a runner, my body and abs were quite strong. I quickly discovered muscles that had been untouched by traditional exercise. Obviously, pilates was able to address any strength or endurance issues in those muscle groups. After a 6 week break from running (for injury rehab) which included pilates classes only twice a week, I went back to running my usual route and couldn’t believe the faster times I was achieving in my long runs.

I soon discovered, as my core became stronger, it supported my upper body weight with ease. This freed up my legs to focus on running and propel me forward instead of supporting upper body weight AND running. In other words, this type of strength translates to any sport one plays as the body is literally able to support it’s own spinal and upper body weight more efficiently than if the core was unconditioned. I sometimes liken it to having strong arms and legs attached to an eggshell foundation or attached to a brick foundation. This is the difference core conditioning exercises can make to your overall strength.

Exercises
Many Pilates exercises are great muscle-toners that work large muscle groups beyond just the abs and lower back. The Plank position effectively works almost every muscle in the body in one move! Leg kicks work the glute and hamstring muscles very well. Free squats are one of the best lower-body exercises around, working the quadriceps, the hamstrings, and the glutes whilst engaging the core musculature for stability.

It is important to perform all movements with maximum control to ensure it is you that is managing your body and limbs and not use gravity or momentum.

To see these and many more go to Trim and Tone Workout Plan (scroll down on that page to see examples).

As always, please consult your doctor before embarking on any new fitness program, especially if you have a pre-existing medical condition or have not exercised in a long time.

Kind Regards,
Christine Kambourakis

Please visit Christine at This Week In Health. You can also find her onTwitter: http://twitter.com/christinekambo

Thank again Christine for sharing with us some of your experience and vast knowledge!

I am always looking for new changes or reminders during my journey.

Let’s keep the metabolism burning!

Prevention has some fantastic tips for us to keep the fat burning.

It is summed up into 4 areas:

1.MAKE SOME EXTRA MUSCLE
2. OUTSMART A PLATEAU
3. BE A STEALTH CALORIE BURNER
4 HALT HUNGER HORMONES

For the full explanation for each of the 4 tips visit Live the Fat-Burning Life.

Your Fat-Burning Game Plan

Every day

Wear a Pedometer
Eat five minimeals (300-400 calories each).
Log your food choices before you eat.
Drink at least six 8-ounce glasses of cold water

Three times a week

Lift weights, doing multi-muscle moves such as chest presses. (For free routines, go to Fat Burning Dumbbell Workouts.)
Rest no more than 20 seconds between sets while strength-training.

Whenever you exercise

Snack before your workout (see Eating Healthy for suggestions).
Schedule exercise before a meal so you eat within a half hour of finishing your workout.
Track your heart rate during cardio.

Weekly
Change one move in your workout routine every Monday. For example, swap push-ups for chest presses one week, lunges for squats the next, and so on.

Plan an active outing such as hiking.

The engine is burning……..what do you think?

Stay Active, Stay Healthy!

I took a metabolic exercise test at Life Time Fitness to get a more accurate number for both my resting and maximum heart rate.

-Try this if you want to get an estimate of your Anaerobic Threshold: Subtract your age from 180.
Subtract 10 if you have not been exercising. Subtract 0 if you have been exercising 2 to 3 times per week for the past year. Add 10 if you have been exercising 4 times per week for the past few years.-

Now take a look at this chart to get an idea where you are: LIFE TIME FITNESS® HEART RATE TRAINING maximize your workout

If you have reached a plateau, you should begin to alter the frequency, intensity and duration of your workouts. The body is smart and adapts to routine. If you follow the same program, and have done so for a while, you may have stopped seeing results. Variety is the key. Focus on different workouts, at different target zones, on different days while adjusting your workout time.

During exercise I wear a Polar watch to monitor my heart rate, very simple I can simply take a look at where my heart rate is, how many calories I have burned, how long I have been working out for etc. Some of the watches have additional features that will allow you to log your progress into a chart on your computer etc.

It seems like allot of work initially but once you know your zones it is well worth it!

Knowledge is so important for your succesful journey!

Stay active, stay healthy!

How about a walk? Walking at a moderate pace for 35-60 minutes burns stored fat and can build muscle to speed up your metabolism. Walking an hour a day is also associated with cutting your risk of heart disease, breast cancer, colon cancer, diabetes and stroke.

Here’s a quick way to figure out how fast you walk. Instead of timing yourself on a measured track, you can calculate your walking speed by counting your steps. Once you’re warmed up, count how many steps you take in a minute of walking (or count your steps for 20 seconds and multiply by 3).

• If you’re walking for your health, a pace of about 3 miles per hour (or about 120 steps per minute; fewer if you’re tall) is about right. That’s a 20-minute mile.

• To walk for weight loss, you’ll have to pick up the pace to 4 miles per hour (or 135 steps per minute), a 15-minute mile

Useful links for walking:

Burning Calories – How to Walk for Weight Control

Walking Schedule – How to Walk for Weight Control

Walking Shoe Guide-The Best Shoes for Walking

Isn’t it time to work 1-hour walks into your busy lifestyle?

Stay active. Stay Healthy!

The biggest challenge for many of us is getting started, where do I start, how, what?

I read a fantastic article at WebMD that provides a wealth of information that would be beneficial to anybody that wants to become more active….

“There you are, sitting on the couch, remote in hand, thinking, I should be exercising. If only I weren’t too tired to get off the couch!” Indeed, fatigue is among the most common complaints doctors hear. But you might be surprised to learn that experts say one of the best antidotes to beating fatigue and boosting energy is to exercise more, not less.

It’s now been shown in many studies that once you actually start moving around — even just getting up off the couch and walking around the room — the more you will want to move, and, ultimately, the more energy you will feel,” says Robert E. Thayer, PhD, a psychology professor at California State University, Long Beach, and author of the book Calm Energy: How People Regulate Mood With Food.

And, experts say, when it comes to fighting fatigue, not all exercise is created equal. Read on to find out what kind of exercise — and how much — you should be doing for optimum energy-boosting results.”

Continue reading: Exercise for Energy: Workouts That Work

Get up move around, the energy will start to flow. Each day add a new goal to your journey. Maybe 10 push ups, tomorrow maybe stop eating snacks after dinner etc. ? Take a step at a time….

“Every waterfall starts with a drop!”

Stay active! Stay healthy!

What step(s) will you do today to move towards the results you desire?

A squat is considered a compound or multi-joint exercise which is the basis for just about any weight training program no matter what your goal is. Compound exercises work more than one muscle group which means you can use more weight. Using heavier weight is how you build lean body tissue. The more lean body tissue you have, the higher your metabolism and the more calories you burn on a regular basis. Plus, you’re targeting every major muscle in your upper leg, up to and including your quadriceps (front of the thigh), hamstrings (back of the thigh), and gluteal muscles (the muscles in your fanny).

Simple exercises to firm up the backside that you can do 1 to 2 days each week at home!

The Squat

Form Pointers: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Slowly lower
your body as though you are ‘sitting’ in a chair until your thighs are parallel with
the ground. Keeping the weight in your heels, push yourself up
slowly until you’re back where you started. Key points: don’t allow
your knees to extend over your toes and keep your torso tight and erect.

Do this exercise 1 or 2 times per week, 2-3 sets of 12 to 16 reps with medium
to heavy weight.

The Lunge

Next to squats, lunges are the next best thing for your butt and thighs. This is also a compound movement so, like squats, when you do them you get more bang for your buck. There are many ways to do lunges. There are static lunges (shown in the example below) . An advanced version of the lunge would be to start with your feet together and then step forward into a lunge, then back to starting position (front lunges). Dips or reverse lunges also start with feet together and then you step back with one leg into a lunge position and then back to starting position.

Form Pointers: Stand with feet together holding a medium to heavy weight.
Slowly lower your body into a lunge position, keeping the front knee and back knee at
90 degree angles. Keeping the weight in your heels, push back up
(slowly!) to starting position. Remember to never lock your
knees at the top and never let your knee bend past your toes. Keep
torso tight and upright (i.e., don’t hunch!)

Do this exercise 1 or 2 times per week, 2-3 sets of 12 to 16 reps with light
to medium weight.

When done properly and consistently soreness will likely follow which usually means it is working!

Increase weight and/or reps as necessary.

Stay Healthy!

First exercise: Upper body-The tension in the band as you lift and lower your arms will add a unique challenge.
Grip one handle in each hand, put both feet on the middle of the band, separate your feet so they’re hips-width distance apart. Resistance and slack should be even.
Engage your core, your spine straight, and your shoulders back. Begin with your arms by your sides and your thumbs pointing away from you. Now bend your elbows and slowly raise your hands up toward your shoulders. Slowly reverse the motion and lower your hands back down.

I Do two to three-four sets of 12 to 16 reps. A great workout for your biceps, forearms, and shoulders.

Second Exercise: Lower Body

Stand on the band, hold the handles up near your shoulders. Simply squat until your thighs are parallel with the floor then stand back up. The movement is similar to what you would do with free weights.

I do 3-4 sets of 20….I feel a nice burn on the legs and buttocks.

Two exercises that take minimal time and add a nice variety, you will feel the results!

If you want more resistances band information see the following links:

More Strength Training With Resistance Bands

More on the Resistance Bands

Stay Healthy!