ELIMINATING EXCUSES | fitness

This week’s theme is dispelling exercise myths. The first one that I want to tackle is the myth that a few workouts will lead to rapid, substantial muscle developement. I have heard some folks say in a concerned voice, “I don’t want to get too big” when talking about exercising. I believe this to be a myth. Developing muscle mass occurs over a period of time if you have consistent, intense workouts (not too intense or too often because you risk injurying yourself) and consume the right quantity and types of foods to support muscle mass development. Be mindful of this myth as you train. Train hard and train towards the specific goals that you have. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments or if you need tips on how to reach your goals. DO SOMETHIN’!

Alright folks across the world, time to get those abdominals tight and right. I have an exercise for you that will meet that objective: leg circles. If you feel any back pain or discomfort during this exercise, I recommend that you do not do this exercise. Lay on your back on the floor. Support your lower back and stabilize upper body by laying on your arms so that your hands are next to each other under your rear end. Keep your legs straight and together. Lift them 2-3 feet off the ground; this height will vary according to the length of your legs. Rotate you legs in big circles, clockwise and counterclockwise. Keep good form on this exercise: legs straight with no bending and go for big circles.

Game time. DO SOMETHIN’!

Today, let’s hit chest and triceps at the same time. I have another good exercise for you: triangle close grip push-ups. This exercise will help you get that tone and definition for your triceps and chest so you’ll be ready to hit the beach, swimming pool, volleyball court, etc. Ladies, some of you may be concerned about becoming too musclar by doing this exercise. Don’t worry. Doing a few sets of these won’t make you look like a body builder. Trust me. Ok, back to the exercise. Rather than taking the standard push-up form of having your hands about shoulder width apart, let’s bring our hands close together. Form a triangle by touching your thumbs and index fingers together. Now assume push-up position. Go down as far as you can comfortably. Aim to have your nose almost touch the floor in the middle of your triangle. I know; you don’t have to tell me how fun this exercise is. DO SOMETHIN’!

Time to run it back! Let’s hit the forearms today. I’ve got an exercise for you that’s great for tone and definition: hammer curls. You’ll need some weight for this exercise; it’s ok to improvise if you don’t have dumbells. You’ll also need a chair. So have a seat and grab your weights. The motion for a hammer curl is similar to the bicep curl that we did on April 5th except that we will not rotate our wrists/forearms as we curl the weight. As you bring the weight up, keep your thumb facing upward. Alternate right and left. This exercise is an excellent example of how your grip on the weight can impact which muscle you work — something to be mindful of as you workout. You know what to do . . . DO SOMETHIN’!

Yesterday, we stretched the quads. Today, I want to show you a great quadricp exercise that can follow your stretching: lunges. This exercise is great for tone and definition. You’ll need some weight for this exercise and a bit of room also. Start out standing with your feet together and a weight in each hand. Lunge forward with your left leg. Keep your back straight as you lunge forward. Your left leg should be bent at the knee at about a 90 degree angle. Your right leg is extended but bent at the knee and about 2-4 inches from the ground. Now step back with your left leg bringing yourself back to the starting position for this exercise. Repeat these same steps with your right leg. Keep your back straight throughout the entire exercise and do your best to maintain your balance. No need to rush through these. If you feel any pain or discomfort during the exercise, I recommend that you stop the exercise and address the root cause of your pain.

So, excuses? Huh? What? None! DO SOMETHIN’!

Hope everyone had a good weekend. You know what time it is? Today we have a stretch for the quadriceps. Add this one to your regimen of stretches that you do on a regular basis to help prevent injuries during your workouts. Sit on the floor on your legs with your knees bent. Your shins and the insteps of your feet should be on the floor. You may want to do this on a padded surface. Lean your upper body backwards and reach your arms out to the floor to support your upper body. In this position, you should feel your muscles in your quadricep stretching. The further you lean back, the more you’ll stretch your quads. Some of you may be leaning all the way back with your back on the floor. But don’t lean back so far that you start to feel pain or discomfort. Go for a good stretch. I like to hold this stretch for about 10 seconds. Find a holding time that’s comfortable for you. Stretch the quadriceps until you feel ready for your workout. Alright, DO SOMETHIN’!

Hello All,

I was a bit under the weather on Friday, so I wasn’t quite ready to DO SOMETHIN’. Thanks for your understanding.

Oye!!! Ya es la hora de ejercicios!! Alright y’all, time to hit the biceps today with bicep curls. To kick up the intensity, let’s work the negative. You’ll need a chair and some dumbells for this one. If you don’t have dumbells, be creative. Ok, so I still have not bought dumbells yet, but I will soon. Sit down and grab a weight in each hand. Let’s start on the left. Curl the weight up bringing your forearm upwards by bending at the elbow until the bicep is fully flexed. Rotate your forearm on the way up; this motion helps to develop the bicep more (it’s also good for making the forearm do extra work too). As you bring the weight down, guide it down slowly so that you force your bicep to work rather than letting gravity bring the weight down. This technique is referred to as “working the negative.” Don’t let the weight come to rest at the bottom (when back to starting position); keep your elbow slightly bent so that you keep your bicep under tension. After you have done a curl on the left, perform the same technique on the right arm. Continue to alternate left-right-left-etc. Excuses? None. DO SOMETHIN’!

Today, I want to revisit the exercise that I posted on March 19, 2007: oblique crunches. We did this exercise standing and balanced our weight on one leg as we did the exercise. Some of you commented that this version of the exercise was not as manageable as you would have liked. So I am posting seated oblique crunches today to offer an alternative to the standing oblique crunches. Seated oblique crunches are just as effective at working the obliques as the standing version: 1) Grab a chair and take a seat. Sit up straight. Good posture/form is critical for every exercise we do. 2) Let’s start on the left side. Move your left shoulder down towards your left hip at the same time that you bring your left hip up toward your left shoulder. 3) Work both the right and left side. This exercise will make you feel IRIE! You know what time it is: DO SOMETHIN’!

Time to hit the arms again! Today, we have a tricep exercise that’s great for tone and definition. You’ll need a chair and some weight for this exercise. Sit down and take your weight in your left arm. Bend your left arm behind your head. Press the weight up and stop slightly before locking out your elbow. Locking out the elbow puts extra stress on your elbow joint; for this reason, I suggest that you do not lock out your elbow. As you bring the weight down, guide the weight down so that your tricep is continuing to work. Don’t bring the weight down so low that you allow the weight to come to a resting position behind your neck (if you do so, the tricep muscle will be relaxed). We want to keep the tricep under constant tension to maximize the work done. Got it? Good. DO SOMETHIN’!