WORKOUT: TOOLS FOR THE HOME, NO EXCUSES

Winter is approaching and many of us want to retreat, hibernate, and comfort ourselves with delicious food. This can and should happen, but of course in moderation.

Don't use the changing season as an excuse to not exercise. Here are a few great tools that will help you maintain your active lifestyle in the comfort of your own home so there really is NO EXCUSE to not SWEAT. For optimum results, exercises should be paired with a good nutrition program. If you need guidance or just a change in your routine, JOIN THE TBW CLUB TODAY.

1: RESISTANCE BANDS (W/HANDLES)

These bands are perfect for standing or seated upper (shoulder press/raises, bicep curls, triceps extensions, rows, etc) and lower (overhead squats, donkey kicks) body workouts without heavy weights. The resistance challenges your muscles beyond your own body weight, which stimulates muscle growth.

2: RESISTANCE BANDS (CLOSED LOOP)

The closed loop is great for lower body workouts: squats, lateral squats, standing kick backs, donkey kicks, lying hip abductions, russian twists, etc.

3: KETTLEBELLS

This weight allows you to incorporate cardio and strength training all into one session. For a great leg workout try supersetting swings with goblet squats using a kettlebell.

4: PULL UP BAR

Pull ups are a great complex upper body workout engaging multiple muscle groups (biceps, deltoids, shoulders, back) at once. You can also use the bar to do hanging core workouts by extended leg raises, knee ups, or a controlled jog. If you can't do a pull up, use a closed loop resistance for assistance and work your way off it.

5: YOGA MAT

Having a soft surface allows you to do a many exercises that require the support of the floor. From stretching to core to upper and lower body workouts.

NUTRITION: PRE-WORKOUT MEAL

Your health and fitness goals are tied to your nutrition and physical activity, so why not maximize your gains by knowing what to eat, when to eat it, and why it is crucial for fat loss, muscle growth, and recovery.

PRE-WORKOUT MEAL
1-2 Hours Before Training

1. Clean Source Of Moderate To Slow-Digesting Carbohydrates:

In order to power through your gut-wrenching, muscle-fiber-tearing workout, you need a premium source of fuel. That's why it's fundamentally important that you consume a slow to moderate digesting source of carbohydrates.

Not only will they provide a source of energy, thereby preventing your body from tapping into muscle for energy, but a slower digesting carb will sustain you throughout your entire workout.

This is why it's not recommended to use mainly high glycemic or fast-digesting carbs as you'll quickly burn out once their energy source is used up during your workout.

Some recommended low to moderate GI carbohydrate sources are brown rice, oatmeal, Ezekiel bread, white rice (long grain) and even whole wheat pasta. Of course, portion control and timing is a must when consuming a meal pre-workout.

If you consume an overabundance of carbs or consume them too close to your workout, your body has insufficient time to metabolize the food.

This results in blood being redirected to your working muscles rather than being reflowed to your stomach to aid in digestion, causing stomach cramps. As a general rule, consume anywhere between 20 to 40 grams of carbohydrates one to two hours before working out.

2. Fruit:

Fruits, such as oranges, make an excellent addition to your pre-workout meal. Now that you have a slower digesting carb source (as outlined above), it is also beneficial to have a small but sufficient source of fast-digesting carbs to kick-start your workout.

Oranges provide this type of quick energy source. That's why you always hear bodybuilders talking about eating or sucking on oranges before a workout.

Aside from providing a solid source of simple carbohydrates, oranges are packed with vitamin C and electrolytes. Bananas and apples are also excellent options if oranges are not to your liking.

3. Protein:

Of course, no meal is complete without protein. As the building block of new muscle growth, protein - composed of essential and non-essential amino acids - is vital to maintaining a positive nitrogen balance necessary to stimulate maximum protein synthesis.

Obtaining the correct ratio of amino acids is vital to achieving an anabolic state and the best way of achieving this is by consuming complete protein sources such as egg whites, chicken, turkey and even skim milk.

Don't waste a good workout with bad nutrition!

SOURCE: BODYBUILDING.COM

FITNESS: B3: BUILD a BETTER BOOTY

Photograph by Torbjørn Rødland

There is no secret on how to get a bigger, fuller, shapelier booty. It's not magic, it just takes hard work and consistent exercise over the course of at least 30 days!

Try integrating this booty exercise into your normal regimen:

25 regular squats
30 walking lunges
Rest 30-60 seconds
Superset x 4

25 sumo (wide) jump squats
12 bulgarian split squat (on each side)
Rest 30-60 seconds
Superset x 4

8 minutes HIIT (high intensity interval training)
Stairmaster: 30 second fast / 30 seconds slow
Stairs/Bleachers: Sprint up / walk down
Track/Treadmill: 30 second sprint / 30 second walk
Indoor rower: 100 meter sprint / 50 meter rest

(beginner: body weight;  intermediate/advanced: add weight/resistence)

FITNESS: 6 Effective Kettlebell Exercises

Build strength and efficiently work the muscles in the legs, shoulders, and lower back by exercising with the squat cast-iron weights.

The Routine

Want an exercise regimen with ironclad results? Pick up this cannonball-like weight. The handle lets you swing it, so you can rev up your heart rate while challenging multiple muscle groups. Research shows that using a kettlebell can burn 40 to 50 percent more calories (!) than a typical strength-training session.

Move 1: Swing

(A) Begin with your feet hip distance apart, both hands on the handle.

(B) Bend your knees and hinge from your hips to swing the kettlebell between your legs.

(C) Straighten your legs and swing the kettlebell to chin height. Repeat for 90 seconds, creating momentum in the swing. (Let your gluteals and hamstrings, not your shoulders, do the work.)

Move 2: Clean to Rack

(A) Begin with your feet hip distance apart. Hold the top of the handle with your right hand, palm facing you. Squat and lower the kettlebell below your knees.

(B) In one motion, stand and curl the kettlebell to your chest, allowing the weight to rotate toward your right. This is “rack” position. Lower and repeat for 30 seconds, then switch sides.

Move 3: Push Press

(A) Begin in rack position, with the bell in your right hand. Place your left hand on top of your right.

(B) Lower into a squat, bending your knees to 90 degrees.

(C) Straighten your legs and press your right arm overhead, releasing your left hand from the bell; rotate your wrist to turn your palm forward. Return to rack position. Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch sides.

Move 4: Chop Lunge

(A) Begin in rack position, with the bell in your right hand. Place your left hand on top of your right.

(B) In one motion, step your left leg forward into a lunge, twist to the left, and lower the kettlebell to your left hip. As you step back, bring the bell to the starting position. Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch sides.

Move 5: Lateral Lunge and Biceps Curl

(A) Stand with your feet together. Hold the kettlebell with your right hand, arm down at your side, palm facing you.

(B) Step your left leg to the side in a lunge as you hinge forward and lower the kettlebell to shin height.

(C) Curl the kettlebell up, keeping your wrist straight. Lower the kettlebell back down, then step your left leg back to the starting position. Repeat for 30 seconds, then switch sides (right leg lunging and left arm curling).

Move 6: Halo

(A) Begin with your feet hip distance apart. Grab the kettlebell with the weight facing up, hands on both sides of the handle. Hold it at chest height.

(B) Lift the kettlebell to the right side of your face and slowly circle it behind your head to the left side (C). Repeat for 60 seconds, continuously alternating directions.

Health: CONSISTENCY, CONSISTENCY, CONSISTENCY

Does this illustration look familiar? The journey towards a healthier lifestyle is not a straight line, however, it does not need to be a jumbled mess. When there is no clear plan it is difficult to stay on track. Success requires CONSISTENT hard work, eating well, and rest. When you’ve set goals and expectations for yourself in this new year, make every decision count towards accomplishing them. 

Last week we talked about PREPARATION, this week we focus on CONSISTENCY. The two go hand in hand. Preparing in advance and identifying all known obstacles allows you to solve problems before they happen. Need help? #TBWClub’s Jumpstart 30 provides exactly that, a CLEAR, FOCUSED, and SUSTAINABLE program designed specifically for your goals.

DON'T SKIP A MEAL

Eating CONSISTENTLY throughout the DAY keeps your metabolism up, which directly contributes to the burning of excess fat. Skipping a meal and letting yourself go for more than 3 hours without eating, even if you don’t feel hungry, leaves your body wondering when the next time it will be fed. In turn, whatever you eat next, will be stored as fat and kept as reserves in the event that you skip another meal and leave your body feeling starved again. You can prevent this from happening!

PROBLEM:
Being hungry in the middle of the day and running between two meetings that are directly across town from each other with no healthy and quick options in sight!

(Left) Roy Lichtenstein, Crying Girl (1963); (Right) Claes Oldenburg, Fried Egg

SOLUTION:
Pack an easy source of PROTEIN (eggs!), HEALTHY FATS (unsalted almonds!), COMPLEX CARBS (Mary’s Gone Crackers!) that you can easily eat in the car, cab, or bus ride over.

DON'T SKIP A CHEAT MEAL

Stephen Shore, Trail's End Restaurant, Kanab, Utah, August, 10, 1973

Eating clean CONSISTENTLY throughout the WEEK doesn’t come without any rewards! A cheat meal is waiting for you so plan accordingly. Don’t go off the rails! If you’re in the mood for a burger, go somewhere that will give you 100% grass fed beef, a whole wheat roll, and all natural fixings NOT a fast food chain. Foods that are overly processed can set you back much longer than the same meal made with preservative free whole foods. Weekly cheat meals are crucial for maintaining CONSISTENCY because you need to have THOSE moments ONCE IN A WHILE to satisfy your cravings so you don’t completely fall off the wagon.

DON'T SKIP A WORKOUT

At the start of any project there is an unrivaled energy and confidence. This is especially true when it comes to health and fitness. We tend overcommit and burn out after 2 or 3 weeks of going to the gym everyday, eating a strict diet with no cheat meals, and not allowing for proper recovery time. When you commit to a healthy lifestyle remember that it is for LIFE. Of course there will be fixed goals to achieve along the way, but the focus should be creating a SUSTAINABLE way of living that can allow for life’s surprises.

Here are some tips on how to set up a sustainable workout schedule:

• Get a calendar 
• Identify all fixed obligations/responsibilities (work, school, pick up kids from school, date night, weekend brunch, etc.) for each day and pencil them onto the calendar
• Identify the windows where it is possible to fit in a workout ranging from 15-60 minutes (this may require you to wake up earlier or reevaluate what you wrote above as an “obligation/responsibility.” Find ways to integrate health and fitness into some of these responsibilities. Get active with your partner or kids, add squats throughout your day, etc.)
• Chose 1-2 days of rest (typically those can be the weekend, but if those are the days you have the most time to workout, place each rest day after a day of working out. 
• For the smaller periods of time focus on cardio/interval/circuit training
• For the longer periods of time focus on strength training
• Evaluate and finalize your calendar

BOOM! Stick with this schedule for 2 weeks. If you’ve completed every single task through a 2 week cycle, go on for 2 more. Once you’ve reached 30 days, congratulate yourself! Continue until you reach your initial goals. If you need help #TBWClub’s Jumpstart 30 is perfectly designed with you in mind. Join the club today.