Archive for the ‘Workouts’ Category
Fuel For A True Alpha Workout
If your stomach can handle it, it’s always a good idea to fuel up before a strength training workout. This is true, especially in the morning, when you’re a little groggy. It’s vital that you stay focused and have enough energy to sustain a high intensity, True Alpha Workout. It’s always good to include come complex carbohydrates, as these will convert to glucose. This is vital, as your body will often have very low glycogen levels and the glucose will provide a quick energy boost and the fuel you need to get you through that tough workout.
Your body may already have some stored glycogen AKA your muscle fuel, but this fuel source may only last for 30 minutes or so, especially when you’re muscles are working to the max. The carbs you eat, will make sure that you’ve got two fuel sources and will act as your fuel backup. Make sure you choose carbohydrates that are healthy and not filled with the wrong fats or sugar. Something like steel-cut oatmeal with maybe some Banana pieces and a few walnuts is a great source of carbohydrates that is good for you and can help you with filling you with energy. Read the rest of this entry »
Time Under Tension
Time Under Tension – In traditional weight training programs, there are typically three standardized repetition ranges, each designed to accomplish a different goal or result. Typically you’d perform anywhere from 1-6 repetitions if your focus is to improve strength, 8-12 repetitions if your focus is muscle hypertrophy and an increase in muscle size, and 15-25 repetitions if your focus is to improve muscular endurance and maximize fat loss. Each has its’ place in a successful overall training routine and should be incorporated in order to accomplish each of these goals. Read the rest of this entry »
Changing the Tempo
In music, the tempo is the speed or pace of an arrangement. In resistance exercise, the training tempo of a repetition is the speed at which you perform the repetition. For example, for a bench press, the training tempo is the time during which the weight is lowered (eccentric contraction), how long it’s held at the bottom of the movement, how fast it’s lifted (concentric contraction), and how long it’s held at the top before being lowered again. Each of the four phases of the rep is measured in seconds. Varying the training tempo will vary the stimulation to the muscles being worked, and elicit different responses. It’s also a terrific way to keep your training fresh, and you’ll find it throughout the Alpha Wave Basic training program. In fact, we’ve done all the work of creating a sophisticated system of varied training tempos (we’ve thought it all out, so you don’t have to!).
Age Isn’t a Barrier to Being in Great Shape
Needless to state, most fitness programs target the young-to-middle aged demographic. If you’re over 55 – 60, the fitness materials aimed at your age group typically assume you’re ailing, frail or largely sedentary… so it’s more about being “active,” preventing falls and keeping your weight under control, vs. being lean, strong and in amazing shape.
Personally, I find this limiting: I like to think I’ll be capable of doing more hardcore workouts like the AMC in my golden years, vs. settling for Tai Chi and water aerobics. I don’t see why not, either. Admittedly, there aren’t too many 60+ role models available to inspire, but they do exist - which gives me hope. Diana Nyad is a great example. Ditto Sylvester Stallone and fitness stalwart Jack LaLanne. But my favorite senior icon is “The Wild Man” – specifically, Don Wildman. I was charmed by this 2009 LA Times profile of the man…
Monitoring Your Heart Rate
How hard should you be working out? As James and I explained in Alpha Male Challenge, one long-accepted benchmark for cardiovascular intensity is your heart rate. When you’re sitting around doing nothing, your heart beats approximately 70 beats per minute (give or take, depending on your fitness level). That’s your resting heart rate. Your maximal heart rate is the fastest rate at which your heart can beat. It’s typically estimated to decline with age.
You can use your heart rate as a guide to determine the proper intensity for your aerobic exercise. The guideline formula is subtracting your age from the number 220 to estimate your maximal heart rate (e.g., a 30-year-old guy would have an estimated maximal heart rate of 190; of course, this is a very rough estimate, and his actual maximal heart rate may be much higher or lower depending on his individual fitness level).
Got Muscle? Get To Training Your Legs!
The Gym Leg Section…A Ghost Town
If you workout in a public gym or health club, there’s a great chance that the leg area, which is often segregated, is the quietest area in the entire gym. Truth be told, a big part of me loves this, as it allows me to have free reign of any machine or piece of leg apparatus my little heart desires. However, the James that loves to see people succeed, which usually takes precedence over the gluttonous James, is completely bewildered as to why someone would neglect this Diamond Mind of a physique transformer. I understand why most people hate to train legs. That’s easy. Training legs hurts and it will totally exhaust you, once you’ve completed a well prepared leg workout. Read the rest of this entry »
So Many Exercises, So Little Time – The What & Why
Choice of Exercises: You’ll know if you have a good workout system when it provides you with a variety of exercises. There are multiple exercises for each major muscle group. At first glance, all of these same body part exercises can be a bit overwhelming.
The broad variety actually happens to be a great benefit to you, as it will keep your muscles consistently challenged and will keep you mentally motivated throughout the total workout plan. The variation of the exercises extends beyond just the type of machine or training apparatus that you’ll be using.
A good workout program will also instruct you to train your body in various anatomical positions, which will allow you to isolate specific muscle groups. For example, when you do a chest press on an incline bench, you are helping to engage the upper chest (pectoral) muscles. If you move to a flat bench and now perform a chest press, you have now moved the primary muscle concentration to the center of the chest. Read the rest of this entry »
What not to eat … after your workout!!
Don’t believe everything you read on the Internet! A brand new article posted by Dr. Joseph Mercola is entitled “Two Foods You Should Never, Ever Eat After Exercise.” He asks, “Did you know that what you eat directly after exercising … can have a significant impact on the health benefits you reap from your exercise?” The question’s a great one. It’s his answer that misses the mark. If you’re looking to get the most out of your workouts, that is! Read the rest of this entry »
Banish Your Belly Forever!
Achieving a tight and toned tummy or a “six-pack” isn’t as simple as just working the abdominal muscles, something I learned the old-fashioned way — through trial and error.
Anyone can have book knowledge — However, you need to get in the trenches with trial and error to see if what you have truly works.
I have been in the trenches, so to speak, for most of my life. Although you’d never know it by looking at me…If you held two pictures of me up, one recent and one from my youth, you can barely see a resemblance.
I was a heavy kid. I was bullied. I actually took on an eating disorder and became bulimic. I didn’t know what I was doing. I was ignorant! In one year, I dropped from a chubby 275 lbs. to a bony 135 lbs. and became very scrawny and very ill. Read the rest of this entry »
John’s Alpha Male Challenge – Week 1
Week 1 is now behind us…
John did a great job following the Fuel Rules this week. He had a small “cheat-ish” snack on Friday (a couple of ounces of extra-sharp cheddar), but otherwise stayed within the limits of the Handshake Diet. The scale rewarded his efforts: this morning, he weighed 216 lbs. – 4 pounds down from where he started (220 lbs.). Obviously, that 4 pounds isn’t all fat: when reducing carbs and sodium, some water weight goes too. Thus, the results of next week’s weigh-in won’t be nearly as dramatic, but what the hey… it’s motivating to start out with a bang. 
