You're Not Too Old or Too Out Of Shape

I have a personal training client who started out as a real novice. She'd never participated in sports or been very active. She works hard (because she knows she has to or I'd fire her as a client :-) ) and in the few months she been working with me, her fitness level has improved tremendously.

Unfortunately, she can be a whiner. (I'm not telling tales out of school; it's actually kind of a running joke.) The other day I wanted her to finish up her workout with a bodyweight circuit rather than cardio intervals. You'd have thought I'd suggested she run a marathon.

Anyway, one of my gym members happened to be finishing up her strength training and I asked if she wanted to do the circuit with my client. I thought it might help the client to have some company in her "misery". I also hoped that the fact that the member was 77 years old and was willing to give it a go might decrease the whining.

These are the 4 exercises in the circuit:

* Prisoner Squats
* Standing Medicine Ball Shoulder Press
* Lying Hip Bridge
* Mountain Climbers

To make it a little easier, I set my GymBoss for 20 second intervals (rather than 20:10 Tabatas). So, they did as many Prisoner Squats as they could in 20 seconds (with good form, of course), rested 20 seconds, did 20 seconds of Standing M.B. Shoulder Presses, rested 20 seconds, etc.

They both completed the circuit 4 times straight through and got a great cardio workout in just shy of 11 minutes.

The kicker? Janet, my 77 year old member, asked me to review the circuit with her because she wanted to do it again today! Go Janet!

Here she is in action...




Prisoner Squat

















Medicine Ball
Shoulder Press

















Lying Hip Bridge













Mountain Climbers








Tell me again why you're not exercising regularly.

2 Quickie Circuits For You

Looking for a quick workout? Here are 2 super fast workouts that engage lots of muscles and will fire up your metabolism.

Do them when you're crunched for time or after your regular strength training session in place of traditional cardio.

You can do the circuits different ways:

* Perform 15 reps of each of the 4 exercise with no rest in between. When you've completed all 4 exercises, rest for 30-60 seconds and repeat the circuit 4-6 times.

* Do them Tabata style. Perform as many reps as you can (with good form, of course) in 20 seconds. You then get 10 seconds to rest and get set for the next exercise. Repeat the circuit 4 times. You'll see how intense an 8 minute workout can be.

* Choose other work/rest interval times depending upon your fitness level. If you're a workout pro, you could perform all 4 exercises for 1 minute each with no rest in between. Then, rest 1 minute and repeat. Total time 10 minutes. If you're a novice, play around with different times to see what works for you. Results come from challenging yourself, not from specific interval times.

To get the best workout and to avoid having to keep your eye on a watch or clock, use some kind of timer with an alarm. For around 20 bucks, you can't go wrong with the GymBoss. I use mine all the time and I love it. If you want access to a ton of quickie workouts with a built in timer, check out BodyBot.

Try these and tell me what you think.

Easier:

Prisoner Squats
Pushups / Incline Pushups
Lying Hip Bridge
Plank Lift

Plank Lift: Start in a Plank position then lift your butt up in the air. Pause. Return to Plank position. These are the only photos I could find and they call it "Dolphin Pose" (and she doesn't seem to be coming all the way back down to the plank position).

Harder:

K.B. or D.B. Swings
Pushups - Incline, Standard, Decline or T-Pushups
Alt. Reverse Lunge
Spiderman Climbs


Remember to always warm up properly.

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Fitness Products Recommendations

I originally posted this on the 6th but realized yesterday that it had disappeared from the blog. I didn't know how long it had actually survived so I decided to repost it. After a frustrating search for a cached copy, I finally found one. My apologies to anyone who may have already read this info.


I often see people on the internet asking about different fitness products. Sometimes there's little difference between the cheap brand and the more expensive brand; sometimes there is.

You don't need a ton of equipment to get a good workout but there are some items that I definitely think can enhance the experience.

Here are a few items I recommend:


GymBoss Interval Timer

I'm not usually not one of those people who gets off on gadgets but I love my GymBoss. If you're a regular reader, you know that I'm a big proponent of interval training. Cardio intervals, bodyweight intervals, Tabata training, etc. The GymBoss is an inexpensive and convenient way to keep track of your intervals.

You can set it for 1 time or 2 different times. For example, you can program it to beep every 30 seconds if you're doing a bodyweight circuit or you can program it for a 20 second work and 10 second rest Tabata workout or any combination of times for other interval training. There is also a handy clip, which is helpful when I'm running outside.

To get the most out of your workout, you need to focus on the exercise at hand. Trying to keep track of the time is an unnecessary distraction which the GymBoss eliminates.

You can get your's here.


Plate Mates

In lower weight dumbbells, you can easily find a slightly heavier weight to progress to. At Body & Soul, I have 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 10 and 12 pound dumbbells. However, once you hit 15 pounds, the dumbbells increase by 5 pounds.

That can be a big jump, especially for some exercises and that's where Plate Mates come in. Each pair contains two 1 1/4 pound magnetic weights that attach to each end of the dumbbell. So, instead of trying to jump from 15 pounds up to 20, you can make 17.5 pound dumbbells using Plate Mates.

Just a reminder- because they are magnetic, they only work on metal dumbbells. Also, you'll need to get two pairs because you need two Plate Mates per dumbbell.

PlateMate Micro Loading 5/8 Pound Hex Weight Plate - 1 Pair


Thera-Band Stability Balls

When I first saw exercise balls popping up at gyms, I thought they were probably just another gimmick. I was wrong. While I have no use for the crazy acrobatic "functional" exercises some trainers have their clients perform, I have found stability balls to be a valuable addition to any gym. If you work out at home, an exercise ball is an excellent way to greatly increase the number of exercises you can do.

I have always used Thera-Band stability balls at the gym. They're a quality product used by many physical therapists and they're very sturdy.

I've read comments by exercisers who had to constantly refill their balls or whose cat had burst multiple cheap exercise balls, etc. I very occasionally need to top off my Thera-Band balls with some air but they get used every day by many members.

If you are 5'1" - 5'6", you would get a 55cm (red).

For those 5'7 - 6'1", go with the 65cm (green).

If you have exceptionally long legs and are close to the upper height range, you may want to go with the next size up.

Thera-Band Exercise Balls


Spri Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are another item you can find at many discount stores and they may be fine. I haven't had a lot of experience with different brands. An aerobics instructor once told me that she had tried different kinds in her classes and found Spri bands to be the most durable. They're the ones I use at Body & Soul and I've been happy with the quality.

Each band below comes with a door attachment and exercise chart. Regardless of which brand you buy, you will probably do best to get at least two different resistances because you'll be able to use more resistance on some exercises than others- just like with dumbbells. (Please don't tell that you do all your exercises with the same weight. If so, you're definitely doing yourself a disservice.)

The different colors signify different resistances, going from "light" to "very heavy"

SPRI ES500R Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment and Exercise Charts (Green, Light)

SPRI ES501R Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment and Exercise Charts (Red, Medium)

SPRI ES502R Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment and Exercise Charts (Blue, Heavy)

SPRI ES503R Xertube Resistance Band with Door Attachment and Exercise Charts (Purple, Very Heavy)

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