A Case for The Burpee
Oh, the dreaded burpee. We love to complain about this uniquely punishing movement, and try to avoid doing them as much as possible. But have you ever stopped to wonder where the burpee came from and why this torturous exercise is a favourite of fitness professionals across the globe?
Burpees: A Short History
Royal H. Burpee was a physiologist in New York City in 1939. He invented the first version of the burpee as a part of a fitness test. The original movement was milder than the burpee we know and love hate today.
Mr. Burpee never intended for his fitness evaluation tool to become the form of exercise that it has become today. The burpee was intended to be performed 4 times in a row, and he would measure the participant’s heart rate before and after in order to assess their heart’s efficiency at pumping blood, thus determining their overall fitness rate.
Burpees: An Evolution
Over time the burpee was modified from its original, fitness evaluation form to the more vigorous modern movement. Here’s how the burpee evolved:
Original Burpee: Squat down and place both hands on the floor in front of you. Jump feet back into plank position. Jump feet forward. Return to standing. Perform only 4 times in a row, measuring heart rate before and after.
Modern Burpee: Bend over or squat down and place both hands on the floor in front of you, just outside of your feet. Jump both feet back into plank position. Drop to a pushup — your chest should touch the floor. Push or snake up to return to plank position. Jump feet back in toward hands. Explosively jump up into the air, reaching arms straight overhead. Perform as many times in a row as instructed by your trainer!
Burpees: The Most Effective Exercise Ever?!?
When you perform a modern burpee you are essentially doing a vigorous six-count bodyweight movement that requires you to move between six unique positions as quickly as possible.
Everything burns as you go through a series of burpees: your lungs, your legs, your arms, and most of all…calories. Burpees cultivate agility, strength, coordination and stamina while burning fat.
So the next time that you are told to do 10, 20 or 30 burpees: smile to yourself, think of Royal H. Burpee and be happy that you are doing an exercise that gets you enviable results in the shortest possible time.
5 Reasons To Motivate You…Even In December from a Personal trainer in St Johns Wood
Motivator #1: Health
Have you looked at the long list of health benefits that exercise delivers? Pretty impressive. Not only does exercise help you achieve and maintain a healthy weight, it also helps lower bad cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure, while improving the amount of good cholesterol in your body.
Additionally, exercise strengthens your bones and muscles, lowers your risk of cancer, decreases stress, helps you battle depression.
Motivator #2: Enjoyment
If exercise hasn’t been enjoyable for you, it’s time to find a way to make it fun. Everyone likes doing things they enjoy. You might hate running but enjoy swimming or riding a bike. Perhaps you don’t like being alone and would rather be social. So join a team! Or maybe you don’t like the idea of driving all the way to the gym, changing out, and exercising with a crowd. Find out when your local gym is least populated, and hit the weights then. Do what’s most fun for you and you’ll be less likely to stop.
Motivator #3: Increased Confidence
If you’re out of shape or overweight, it can take a lot of courage to start an exercise routine. Remember to be confident in who you are, no matter what size or shape. Don’t compare yourself to the skinny, toned figure strutting her stuff through the gym. Keep your eyes on your goal and don’t expect perfection after just a week of exercise. Strive to have your best body—not someone else’s.
Motivator #4: Goal Achievement
If you’re just getting started in the world of exercise, or if you’ve simply gotten stale, a good place to start is by setting goals. How much weight would you like to lose? How far would you like to run? Working towards a goal is a great motivator. However, don’t set up for failure by striving after unrealistic goals. Do this and you’ll soon feel overwhelmed and give up altogether. To avoid this, set realistic milestones. When you reach them, enjoy your accomplishment and then set new goals to take your good health even further.
Motivator #5: Rewards
Rewards are a great motivator. In fact, much of what you do in life is motivated by a reward of some kind, whether intrinsic or extrinsic. When it comes to exercise, a good reward probably shouldn’t be an ice cream sundae, but it may be that new pair of jeans you’ve been eyeing, or perhaps a night out with friends. Maybe for you, weight loss and lowered blood pressure are reward enough. Just know that your hard work is paying off and deserves to be rewarded.
I would love to help you find the motivation to create a healthier life for yourself and your family.
5 Ways Strength Training Will Change Your Life
Change #1: Toned
This one’s obvious for anyone who has ever stepped inside a gym. When you add strength training to your routine, your body shapes up quickly. Working with me, you can determine an appropriate strength-training regimen that will give your body the look you desire. When you look better, you feel better and more confident. But lifting weights isn’t just about looking good…
Change #2: Health Risks Drop
Want to reduce your worry factor significantly? Then start lifting weights. When you do, you’ll find your body has better defence against the common cold and other everyday sicknesses. But that’s not all. By lifting weights and staying healthy, you’ll be better able to sidestep countless diseases that plague so many—from diabetes and cancer to heart disease and stroke.
Change #3: You’ll Go Longer
Ever just want to crash and burn after a hard day at work? Wish you had the stamina to play a game of kickball with your kids on the weekends? Lifting weights will help you improve your stamina so you can do just that. Once you’ve lifted weights for a while, your muscles grow stronger and you learn how to power through even when you’re feeling a bit worn out. Going longer, however, isn’t reserved for the athletic field.
Change #4: You Can Focus
Meetings aren’t the most exciting events in the world. They drone on for hours, and your involvement does little to help those you’re meeting with find solutions. Until you start lifting weights. Suddenly, your brain is getting the blood flow necessary for optimal function and your brain even grows new cells. Once your most important muscle kicks into overdrive, you’re ready to be alert and thoughtful.
Change #5: You’ll Smile More
Life is not easy. And when it comes at you full force, the stress can be too much. When this happens, you may find yourself spiraling into a bout of sadness or even depression. Lift weights regularly, however, and you’ll experience something the prescription-producing world doesn’t want you to know. Lifting weights gives your body what it needs to fend off depression. And you don’t need a doctor’s appointment for a weight-lifting session.
7 Habits of Highly Fit People
Habit #1: They Don’t Buy Junk
Fit people know that if they keep junk food in the house it will land on their waist sooner or later. So they don’t buy any. Even buying junk food for your kids or spouse is not advised since 1) you’ll likely eat some of it eventually, and 2) your loved ones shouldn’t be eating that junk either. It’s called junk for a reason.
Rid your home of chips, cookies, sweets, baked goods, pre-packaged snacks and anything else that belongs in a vending machine. Replace the above with fresh fruit, veggies, nuts and other healthy whole foods snacks.
Habit #2: They Have Priorities
Fit people make exercise a priority. Along with keeping a job, paying the bills and going to the doctor, exercise is an important part of their lives. What I’ve found is that fit people put exercise before leisure time. Sure, fit people enjoy leisure, but it is scheduled around their workout time.
Treat exercise time with the same importance that you would a business meeting or trip to the dentist.
Habit #3: They Stop When Full
Fit people stop eating when they feel full. Sound simple? It is, but how many times have you stuffed yourself simply to clear your plate? Or how many times have you eaten another piece of cake despite being stuffed?
The next time you feel full, take it as a sign to stop eating. Yes, even if your plate isn’t empty.
Habit #4: They Push Themselves
Not only do fit people make time to go to the gym, they challenge themselves during each workout. While it is easy to simply go through the motions while exercising, you’re cheating your body out of great results when you don’t push yourself. Exercise should make you sweat, make your muscles burn, and leave you with a feeling of accomplishment.
Find ways to make each workout more challenging. For competitive people, the best way to push yourself is to exercise with a friend of similar strength. Another great way to challenge yourself is to set small attainable goals. These goals could be to push heavier weight, to sprint longer, or to do cardio at a higher intensity setting.
Habit #5: They Don’t Eat and Watch
Fit people know that eating in front of the T.V. is mindless eating. When your attention is on your entertainment and not on your food, then you’ll be less tuned in to what and how much ends up in your mouth. Eating in front of the T.V. is also very habit forming. Ever notice how you crave munchies just as a reflex of sitting in front of the T.V.?
Eat before or after your entertainment and pay attention to what and how much goes into your mouth.
Habit #6: They Drink Water
Fit people drink lots of water. And not just in addition to other beverages, but instead of them. Water is their main drink, while other drinks are occasional treats. Calorie-filled drinks are one of the quickest ways to consume excess calories which quickly turn into fat. Consider water your beverage of choice. Drink plenty of it each day and drink other beverages only a few times each week.
Habit #7: They Are Supported
Fit people don’t leave their motivation to chance. They know that if their personal trainer, boot camp instructor or workout partner is waiting for them, then they are less likely to skip a workout. It is so easy to hit snooze or to talk yourself out of the gym as soon as your behind hits the couch after work. Fit people take the option of skipping out of the equation.
If you already do some of these habits then congratulations – you are on your way to a better body. Make an effort to incorporate the rest of the habits to take your results to the next level.
4 Easy Steps to Quit Junk Food From A St Johns Wood Personal Trainer!
If only junk food didn’t taste so good, then it would be easier to resist. The reason for its craveable flavour is a specialised balance of sugar, fat and salt.
But while it tastes phenomenal…it’s detrimental to your fat loss results.
Wondering what exactly classifies as junk food? You’re not alone, especially now that many junk foods are being cleverly marketed and packaged as healthy choices.
Here’s what classifies junk food:
- Junk food has little to zero nutritional value
- Junk food is processed and packaged
- Junk food is high in sugar, fat and salt
- Junk food is high in calories
- Junk food is rarely eaten out of hunger
- Soda pop, convenience foods, packaged snacks, frozen treats…
4 Easy Steps to Quit Junk Food
Imagine being 100% free of junk food for the next 30 days. How would your weight improve? How would you feel? How many empty calories would you save yourself from? Now let’s take some action!
Step #1: Get Rid of It
Step one is simple: get rid of all the junk food that currently resides in your home, office and car. Go through with a big garbage bag and toss anything that remotely resembles junk food. Remember, junk food is stuff that is high in empty calories.
Step #2: Stock Up on the Healthy Stuff
Don’t worry, you aren’t going to starve now that your junk food has been cleared out. Step two is where you go to the store and stock up on delicious, nutritious foods that will take the place of the junk food. Nuts, seeds, fruit, veggies, hard boiled eggs, meatballs, and hearty salads or burrito bowls (like the recipe below) are great items to have on hand. You’ll eat less of these healthy snacks, since these aren’t empty calories, but rather nutrient-filled calories that satiate.
Step #3: HALT!
When the next craving strikes you, tell yourself to HALT! This word is actually a handy acronym. Ask yourself, “Am I Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tyred?” If you’re hungry then reach for one of the healthy snacks from step two. If you’re angry, then explore the issue and seek resolution. If you are lonely, then reach out to a friend, instead of reaching for junk food. And if you are tyred then make the time to grab a nap or get to bed early to catch up on sleep.
Step #4: Stick With It
The first day that you go without junk food will be the hardest day. The second day will be a smidge easier. The third day will be even easier than the second…and so on.
The fact is that your taste buds adjust to the foods that you exist on. When your diet is filled with junk foods then that is what your taste buds will crave, but as you shift to a diet that is filled with fresh, nutritious foods then your taste buds will forget all about that old junk food. Stick with it, one day at a time, and you will break free from the grip of junk food addiction.
Eating Clean by a St Johns Wood Personal Trainer
You want to lose weight, and have been trying hard for months without success.
You’ve heard fitness people refer to ‘eating clean’ but what does that really mean?
The labels on hundreds of different food items proclaim to be ‘healthy’ but can you trust labels? There are so many misconceptions when it comes to what constitutes as clean eating.
What are you eating wrong?
Let’s dispel the myths and outline your simple, straightforward 3-step guide to eating clean and watch as the pounds melt off.
Step One: Steer Clear of Packaged Foods
Your worst enemy in the fight against weight gain is packaged foods. Yes, even those packages that are described as ‘healthy’.
Think of packaged food in these 3 categories:
- Sweets: Cookies, brownies, muffins, cupcakes, donuts, sweets and desserts. These packaged items are laced with sugar and bad fats, and lack any viable nutrient that your body actually needs. All the empty calories from these items will end up deposited on your waist and hips as stubborn fat.
There’s never a good reason to eat these so-called foods.
- Processed Grains: Crackers, breads, cereal, chips, instant oatmeal, energy bars, and popcorn. This category is tricky because many of the packages are labeled as ‘heart healthy’ or ‘low fat’. The reality is that packaged, processed grains contain sugar and more carbohydrates than you need while striving to lose weight.
If you have a weight loss goal then stay away from processed grains.
- Whole Grains: Brown rice, wild rice, whole oats, sprouted grain pasta, and sprouted grain bread. Here’s a category of packaged foods that you are able to include in your clean diet. You don’t, however, have a free pass to eat as much of these items as you’d like. Whole grains, while healthy and acceptable, are very calorie-dense. This means that a little bit goes a long way.
Eat whole grains in moderation in order to meet your weight loss goals.
Step Two: Fill Up on Fresh Foods
Fresh vegetables and fruits are a huge part of your clean diet.
The nutrients and fiber found in these natural food items are vitally important for your weight loss journey and your overall health.
Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables in all shapes, sizes and colours.
The only ones that you need to limit are vegetables that are high in starch, such as potatoes and corn, and fruits that are very high in sugar, like melons.
Step Three: Get Plenty of Protein
The cornerstone of your clean diet should be lean protein.
Great examples are chicken breast, albacore tuna, lean ground turkey, white fish fillet, whole beans, tempeh and egg whites.
Protein is what holds your clean eating plan together, for two reasons.
- Protein satiates your hunger, keeping you full and keeping your blood sugar stable. This eliminates false hunger and prevents unnecessary snacking.
- Protein helps to grow and maintain your muscle mass, which increases your resting metabolism. This means that your body will be naturally leaner.
7 Reasons To Be FIT From a ST Johns Wood Personal Trainer
#1: You Always Look Great
When you are at your ideal weight clothes look and feel amazing. Every. Single. Day. Gone are the days of looking for ways to cover your ‘problem’ areas because even those areas look great. Friends, family members and co-workers tell you how fantastic you look and that you’ve never looked better.
#2: Your Confidence Is High
The act of accomplishing any worthwhile goal is enough to seriously boost your confidence, and this is even more apparent when reaching a fitness goal. When your body goes through a transformation there’s no hiding it. You are tighter, leaner and more attractive. You stand straighter, walk taller and exude a genuine confidence that can’t be missed.
#3: You Have Lots Of Energy
Before you met your fat loss goal, getting off the couch was a challenge…one that you didn’t always win. Once you became fit, new surges of energy course through your veins. You thrive on motion and activities that used to tire you out now leave you energized.
#4: You Are Strong
The life of a truly fit person knows no limits! In your free time you hike, bike, walk, pick up new hobbies and play with the kids. Picking up items that used to feel heavy is now a breeze as your functionality for daily tasks has never been stronger. Gone are the days when you’d tell yourself, “I can’t do that. I’m not strong enough.”
#5: You Have No Health Worries
You’ll never forget the look on your doctor’s face when examining your transformed body. Gone is the lecture about the many risks of weight-related ailments. Those days are behind you. Your healthy, strong thriving body is health-worry-free.
#6: You No Longer Have Weight To Lose
How long have you been trying to lose the fat and get down to your ideal weight? Long time, right? In all that time your fat loss goal has been a giant monkey on your back – always in the back of your mind, always weighing you down.
#7: You Are Able To Enjoy Life
Once you transformed your body, life got decidedly more fun and exciting. You never knew how much your weight had held you back from excitement and adventure until the day that burden was lifted.
Asian Spinach Salad
Here’s the perfect fresh salad to serve as a compliment to your next healthy stir-fry dinner. The dressing is simple to mix together at home and is filled with delicious Asian flavours like sesame and chili garlic. Use fresh organic spinach, radish and cucumber for the best flavour and highest nutritional value.
Servings: 4
Courtesy of RealHealthyRecipes.com
Here’s what you need…
For the Salad Dressing
- 3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon coconut palm sugar or honey
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon chili garlic sauce
For the Salad
- 4 cups fresh spinach
- 1 cucumber, sliced
- 1 bunch of radish, sliced
Instructions:
- Whisk the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- Combine the spinach, cucumber and radish in a salad bowl. Toss with the dressing and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!
Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 67 calories, 5g fat, 5g carbohydrate, 282mg sodium, 2g sugar, 2g fibre, and 2g protein.
10 Essential Fat Loss Tips From A St Johns Wood Personal Trainer
Fat Loss Tip #1: Keep Track
Your willingness to track your food intake is equal to your desire to lose fat. Being serious about losing fat means taking note of every calorie you consume, making sure these calories contain enough protein, and stopping when you meet your daily allowance.
Fat Loss Tip #2: Eat Breakfast
Possibly the most fundamental eating tip of all time, a healthy breakfast with a good protein source will help your body have good calories to burn throughout the a.m. hours, letting you get to lunch without being tempted by that mid-morning doughnut.
Fat Loss Tip #3: Avoid Getting Too Hungry
Dieters often fast until they can’t take it any longer. Unfortunately, many poor choices are made in the heat of the hunger moment. Keep healthy (high protein and low carb) snacks nearby to stave off hunger and drink plenty of water to avoid eating when you should be drinking.
Fat Loss Tip #4: Underestimate Your Routine
Yes, you just pumped iron for an hour and ran six miles. But you probably didn’t burn as many calories as you think. To keep from overeating after a workout, grab a bite immediately after, but make it a small bite. And drink plenty of water. Then wait. Your brain needs time to tell your body it’s full.
Fat Loss Tip #5: Stay Home
Your favourite restaurant may be calling your name, but don’t listen! By cooking your own dinner at home, you’ll sidestep a variety of pitfalls that occur while eating out.
Fat Loss Tip #6: Reduce Alcohol Intake
It helps you relax and—if you drink red wine—can offer health benefits. But alcohol also comes with a lot of useless calories. To avoid having more calories to burn than necessary, skip the bar and grab another glass of water.
Fat Loss Tip #7: Redirect
Sticking with a fat loss plan gets hard. The next time it gets unbearable, grab your phone and walk out of the danger zone (your kitchen) and call a friend or loved one. Ask how life is going or plan a movie night—just talk about whatever will take your mind off the temptation that will ruin your efforts.
Fat Loss Tip #8: Hit the Hay
Remember when your parents gave you a curfew because “Nothing good happens after midnight”? This is particularly true when fat loss is your goal. Get to bed to avoid late-night snacking and help your body function its best!
Fat Loss Tip #9: Weigh Yourself
You might not like the idea of jumping on the scale, but if you don’t weigh yourself, you may not recognise your progress. Just as you should count your calories, you should also count your pounds and make adjustments to your eating and exercise routines as needed.
Fat Loss Tip #10: Disconnect Diet from Life
Life comes with ups and downs. Your diet should not. When stressed, don’t go to the vending machine. Put on your walking shoes and get going.
5 Metabolism Myths-Busted from a Personal Trainer in St Johns Wood
Myth 1: Metabolism Works from 9 to 5
Difficult as it may be to believe, your body’s metabolism does not stop working when you do. In fact, your metabolism works all day, every day. If it didn’t, you wouldn’t even have the energy to get out of bed in order to read this article. (You are out of bed, aren’t you?) Also the time of day that you eat isn’t what makes you gain pounds. It’s what you eat. So if you think you can get away with eating that quarter-pounder with cheese, bacon, mayo, and bun; a large order of greasy fries; and a 32-ounce milkshake without any consequences—just because you ate it at lunch and not late at night—think again! Eat smart all day long, have a healthy snack at night if necessary, and then sleep well, knowing your metabolism is doing its thing even while you’re catching some Zzzzs.
Myth 2: It Can’t Be Controlled
You’ve probably met someone who seems to be able to eat anything they want without gaining weight. You may have even dreamed of having such a metabolism. Well, there’s good news. You may not have the metabolism that lets you do that just yet, but you can work toward it. Help boost your metabolism by lifting weights, getting a good night of sleep, eating enough protein to power you through the day, and drinking plenty of water. Want something more than water? Here’s another smidgen of good news: a little caffeine in your daily intake will help you get rid of calories faster than going without. Just make sure your caffeine isn’t bathed in sugar and unnecessary calories.
Myth 3: Skinny people Have Higher Metabolism
Yes, a high metabolism can help you burn more calories than a low metabolism. But don’t let that fool you into thinking the skinniest people around have the highest metabolism. Quite the contrary. If the thinnest individuals had the highest metabolism, they would likely be dangerously underweight. As it is, when you are very thin, your metabolism will likely be lower, as there’s not much of you to burn away safely.
However, you shouldn’t grab the ice cream carton in order to put on extra pounds to up your metabolism. Instead, focus on adding muscle pounds via the weight room.
Myth 4: Getting Old Makes Your Metabolism Go Bye-Bye
There is a bit of truth to this myth. As you age, your metabolism will drop a tiny bit. Not enough to make a meaningful difference, but it does drop. Much of this decrease (again—it is almost negligible) is due to the typical muscle loss that accompanies aging.
Want to curb your body’s age-related drop in metabolism? Include resistance training in your exercise routine. As you age, keep up the weight training and you’ll keep your metabolism strong and steady throughout all the stages of life. In the event it does drop a little, you’ll be in such good shape you won’t notice.
Myth 5: You Can Eat Your Way to Higher Metabolism
Occasionally, the world is taken by a weight-loss idea that is so simple you’d be a moron not to give it a try. One of these recent ideas is that you can eat or drink certain things to boost your metabolism and lose weight with greater ease.
While eating peppers on a regular basis and drinking gallons of green tea each week offers some health benefits, it won’t do more than temporarily boost your metabolism. Approximately half an hour after consuming these supposed metabolism mega-boosters, the boost is over and you’re back to your normal metabolism. A normal, well-balanced diet is a much better option.
When it comes to achieving and maintaining your most effective metabolism, a consistent and challenging exercise routine is key. Call or email today and I’ll get you started on an exercise program that will take your metabolism to the next level.
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