Why Cardio Alone Doesn't Work.

Have you ever heard someone referred to as a skinny fat person? Maybe you've seen someone who fits that description. A skinny fat person is someone who is not fat in the typical sense of being large in size, instead this person is small framed yet has no muscle tone. These skinny fat people believe that pounding away on a treadmill, or doing the elliptical for hours a day will get them the dream body they've been searching for, but have probably never picked up a weight in their life. Cardio certainly has it's place in every fitness program but it should be a part of a balanced program including cardio, strength training, and a healthy diet.

The key to losing body fat and keeping it off is strength training. Lean muscle is the driving force behind your metabolism and the only way to increase your metabolism or burn more calories at rest, is to increase lean muscle through strength training. For the women that are afraid to get “too bulky” from strength training that is simply a myth. When most people think of strength training and the results it yields, they think of the heavily muscled bodybuilders that plaster the covers of magazines such as Muscle and Fitness. The models that grace the covers of those magazines are simply models who are hired to sell magazines and not a realistic result of someone who strength trains a few times a week to get healthy. So in order to truly rev up your metabolism and get rid of body fat once and for all, hit the weights!

Circuit Training The Workout!

The last post touched on the benefits and science behind how one particular circuit training workout called a peripheral heart action(PHA) circuit works. Here is an easy beginner's circuit.

Chest Press
DB Row
Pysioball Squat
Physioball Crunch

Lat Pull Down
Shoulder Lateral Raise
Stationary Lunge
Oblique Crunch

Perform each exercise in succession with a short rest in between circuits. For beginners start with 2 sets of 12-15 Repetitions of each cicuit. If your more advanced shoot for 3 sets.

Email me ian@essentialfitnessstl.com with free workout in the subject line for a free PHA circuit workout called the "9 Basic Movements" that comes with full color pictures and exercise descriptions.

Circuit Training Does It Work?

The Fat-Burning Secret
A lot of the woman-only fitness centers in operation work on the principles of circuit training. Have you ever thought to yourself why circuit training? And is it really effective? The short answer is yes it works, but in order to get the most out of your circuit training workout you need to understand why and how it works in order to get the most out of your workouts.
Circuit workouts typically consist of grouping 3 or 4 exercises together in order to get maximal work done in a short period of time. Depending on which muscle groups you work and the order you group them in can have a significant effect on the level of intensity of your workout. One particular circuit that is effective is called the peripheral heart action circuit(PHA). The basis of this circuit is to alternate exercises between four different muscle groups in order to force the heart to pump blood to each muscle group, therefore not being able to fall into a rhythm of pumping blood to the same working tissue. The idea is to keep the heart rate high throughout the workout in order to get cardiovascular benefits as well as the benefits of strength training. By keeping the heart rate elevated and doing resistance exercises you will turn your body into a fat burning machine.

Cardiac Rehab

Cardiac Rehabilitation is a very comprehensive program that can be found in many clinical hospital settings to help those who are at risk or may have already had a cardiac event. Most cardiac rehab programs will target control of cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, stress, nutrition, weight loss, stopping smoking, as well as integrating exercise. By focusing on theses lifestyle factors that can all contribute to many different diseases of the heart you can significantly reduce or reverse many of the signs and symptoms of heart disease.

For more information about cardiac rehab programs available in the St. Louis area check out the links below.

http://www.stanthonysmedcenter.com/healthcareServ/heart/cardiacRehab.asp

http://www.stjohnsmercy.org/healthinfo/adult/pmr/cardiac.asp

http://www.barnesjewish.org/cardio/default.asp?NavID=32

Fish oil is one supplement that has been researched extensively and provides some promising data that can help your cholesterol profile as well as reduce your risk for coronary heary disease(CHD). Check out our fish oil supplement at essentialfitnessstl.getprograde.com/icon. Read more about the positive effects of fish oil in this study published by the American Heart Association at http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/full/94/9/2337. While exercise and healthy eating are the most important factors to consider when reducing risk for CHD, by adding those extra Omega-3's to your diet via Icon you can expect to make some drastic changes in your health. Be sure to check out icon at essentialfitnessstl.getprograde.com/icon and also check out more of the science behind why and how fish oil can be used to improve your health in the scientific reference section.

Pure Genius!

9 Funny Fitness Ads!
I love clever marketing and these companies nailed it on the head. My brother sent me the link to this article in Men's Fitness. These are some seriously great ads! To check them out on the MF site click here.


9.) Weight Watcher's Wide Door



8.) The Fitness Company's "Crack" Problem


7.) Silberman's Fitness Center's Tilting Sign


6.) OxyGo Gym's View From Above


5.) Metro Gym's Butt Print


4.) Slim Fast's Disappearing Act


3.) The Fitness Company's Subway Iron


2.) Powerhouse Gym's Billboard Man


1.) Weight Watcher's Bacon Boomerang

Prograde Nutrition Sale!

As you probably already know, Prograde Nutrition was started by a couple of fitness pros to be a resource for ethical trainers, such as myself. They created a company that I can have complete faith in recommending to you.

I think a lot of people in my industry were laughing behind their backs hoping they would fail. Well, not only have they silenced their critics, their products are so in demand they are now shipping to the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand! Plus, they will soon be able to ship to just about anywhere in the world.

Yes, the products are THAT good and they are that much in demand.

So to celebrate their new shipping destinations, and just to ring in the New Year, they are having a 10.9% off everything sale.

Yes, that's 10.9 as in January of 2009 ;-)

Here are some other details I want to make sure you know about:

- Again, you receive 10.9% off all Prograde products.

- It will run from Thursday, January 8th until Thursday, January 15th at 11:59pm EST.

- Yes, that 10.9% off will be applicable to SmartShip orders. But it only applies to that first purchase. Not ongoing.

- The coupon code you enter at checkout is:

012009

- The website is essentialfitnessstl.getprograde.com
Oh, and you should definitely check out the VGF 25+ For Men or Women - that's my favorite Prograde product. I've been using it with pretty amazing results.

Yours in health,

Ian Fagala

PS- Remember, this Celebration Sale ends next Thursday, so be sure to order right away and take advantage of these BIG savings. essentialfitnessstl.getprograde.com

Attention Fitness Pros and Enthusiasts!

After browsing some of the regular fitness websites I check out every week I was reading on IHRSA's website (International Health, Racquet, and Sportsclub Association) and found a link to change.gov. This is a link to the President Elects website and has a form to voice your opinion about our nations healthcare system and how you would like to see it changed.

As a Fitness Professional I felt it was my responsibility to let our new administration know my feelings on how best to help alleviate some of our nations health problems. Below is part of the diatribe I sent in. What do you think is the key to bringing down our health care cost? Leave me a comment about your thoughts on healthcare and then I dare you to send them to the President!

"I am a small business owner in the fitness industry and think that one way to combat rising health care costs is to focus on preventative strategies to manage disease and chronic conditions. Exercise is a very powerful prevention strategy that reduces the risk of many diseases such as diabetes that are incredibly costly. I have one client in particular who after suffering from 2 heart attacks and being diagnosed with diabetes started exercising and has now lost over 30 pounds, better manages his diabetes, and feels better than he has in 20 years! I think we should create programs that lower the barrier to exercise and promote healthy lifestyles. Also by making it easier and less expensive to run our businesses we can help the economy by providing more jobs in our communities."

What Is Cholesterol??

What is it? The molecule itself is actually a combination of protein and fat and the ratio of protein to fat will determine which type of cholesterol it is. A cholesterol molecule that is high in fat content and low in protein is called LDL or low-density lipoprotein, which can cause the blood vessels to narrow and eventually lead to a blockage when the levels are elevated. A cholesterol molecule with a higher protein content is called HDL or high-density lipoprotein, which will help transport LDL cholesterol back to the liver where it is broken down and cleared from the body. Triglycerides are free floating fat in the blood, that when elevated will be transported to the liver and turned into unhealthy cholesterols.

Where Does it Come From? Cholesterol comes from two sources the first being the body and is produced in the liver. The other source is from the foods that we eat. Your body produces most of the cholesterol you need so being conscious of the total cholesterol intake from your diet is recommended.

How Do I Manage It? Most people can manage or decrease their cholesterol profile with simple dietary changes and an increase in exercise. It is usually recommended to try diet and exercise modifications before trying drug therapy. There are many drugs out there that can help to reduce cholesterol and ultimately decrease your risk of heart disease. If you are looking to reduce your cholesterol numbers be sure and speak with your primary care physician first in order to figure out the most effective way for you.

Which Exercise is Most Beneficial? Cardiovascular exercise seems to help the most when one is looking to reduce the LDL cholesterol in the blood. By adding 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise 4-5 days a week you might expect to see benefits in as little as 4 weeks. While strength training doesn't necessarily effect LDL cholesterol it has been linked to increases in HDL cholesterol.