Love the home gym chalkboard walls!
Today I set up my own (and first) circuit training at home workout. Since Kev gets the treadmill on Thursday, I had to figure out something for me to do other than spin. So I quickly threw together this workout today. Now, I am NOT a personal trainer so I have no clue if this workout was even a good one but I burned over 400 calories in 30 min. so to me it went well. Here’s what I did.
Benefits of Heart Rate Monitor Training
A lot of people think that heart rate training is too hard and only used by elite athletes but I am here to show you that is not the case. It’s actually really easy and a wonderful tool for weight loss and building general fitness. It’s important to measure the intensity of your workout. I am still learning all about my newest Polar heart rate monitor but here are some reasons why you should pay attention to heart rate monitor training.
As you have read in past posts, my personal training contract ended and I have chosen not to renew. This is NOT due to the trainer but rather the gym. We have since moved on to join a new gym and although they offer personal training sessions, I have decided to go at it on my own. For now at least.
Today I wanted to share with you tips on what to look for in personal fitness trainers.
Not all area created equal
When I first started at the gym, I ‘shopped around’ for a personal trainer. The first one, Karen was absolutely awesome. But I wanted to give some others a chance too just to see how we meshed together. The 2nd trainer they put me with was definitely not for me. He didn’t look at me when he talked, talked under his breath so I could hardly hear, had me lift weights that were obviously way too heavy and I knew the next day that I did not need to shop around any longer. I had Karen as my trainer for a while but then she moved. I liked her because she incorporated boxing and did a variety of different things. She changed it up and made it fun. I also liked that she talked about healthy eating and she would give her clients printouts with healthy recipes, tips, and more.
But when she left, I started working with Scott and wasn’t sure how that would go. At first, I was sure it wouldn’t work because I was under the impression that all he focused on was the weights at the back of the gym where the big buff guys are and I did not know what to expect. It was a bit intimidating at first however Scott made me realize that I could lift with the best of them just at a much smaller weight. He is a trainer that makes sure all the settings, form and weight is perfect. He is also someone who paid attention and listened well.
I was most impressed that he agreed to do some things that were out of the norm for him (boxing, Bosu, etc.). Another thing he did that stood out to me was that he came in each day sharing what he learned from trainings outside of the gym. He watched videos, read books and brought his own equipment to use in our personal training sessions.
Those are just a few things that stood out most to me and that I would recommend others look for in a trainer. [Read more...]
Please help me welcome Wozniacki who is guest posting here on the blog today. This article will give you some fun new ideas for ramping up your cardio and we could all use some new ideas.
There’s no question about it, one of the most boring forms of exercise for most people is the dreaded cardio training. While cardio is definitely not necessary for fat loss if you have a good diet in place, it’s important to know about heart health and all the benefits regular cardio can provide. If you aren’t looking after your overall health and well-being, this could come back to get you in the long run so along with achieving your body weight goals, it’s something else that you must take into consideration. Fortunately, if you’re willing to get a bit creative there are many ways that you can spice up your cardio training so you can take your results to the next level. Let’s take a look at what you should consider so you can stay away from those boring cardio routines.
Add Intervals Of Varying Lengths
If you currently aren’t on the interval bandwagon, now is definitely the time to do so. This variety of cardio passes by quickly and will take your fitness to a whole new level. All you have to do is alternate between higher intensity exercise with lower intensity ‘active rest’ periods, forming an effective workout that takes just twenty minutes to complete. Since you are working at such a high intensity during the intervals, you’ll see significant benefits to your fitness as well as your metabolism at the same time. Aim for intervals of varying lengths, anywhere from twenty seconds to one full minute to really spice it up and prevent boredom.
I really want to get back on the treadmill. I miss it because it’s a great workout if you don’t get bored easily. My favorite things to do on the treadmill are walk with weights and walk on an incline and I *might* like to throw a quick one minute run in there too. I like to change things up to make treadmill workouts a challenge for me. Walking indoors or out is a very healthy exercise. Make sure you have the right shoes and you’re good to go.
As many of you know, at the beginning of last year, I started training to run a half marathon in Jamaica. I had an extremely hard time with running both on the treadmill and outdoors (due to breathing issues). Well you can now read my story about how I completed my first half marathon just 3 months ago and what a struggle it was. BUT it was also an amazing accomplishment! I am pretty sure long distance races are not in the cards for me but never say never. There are a few races I would like to do for FUN (hello Disney Princess!) and I’m OK if we have to walk them. A treadmill at home could really help with the training for future races though.
Active beach vacations are my cup of tea! There is so much you can do when it comes to having active vacations. If you’re at a resort in the Caribbean you can obviously take day trips and do things like zip lining, horseback riding, etc. but there are activities that you can do right there in the water and on the beach at your resort that will keep you burning calories and getting fit as you play! Nothing better I don’t think.
When it comes to a gym or beach workout, my choice would be the beach workout. You can run and walk for miles on gorgeous soft sandy beaches, play beach volleyball and even build sand castles. Move from the beach workout to water and you’ll find a ton more options for an excellent workout.
Here is a list of water sports that you can participate in and burn numerous calories in addition to getting fit:
