Things You Should Do Before Every Workout

8 Things You Should Do Before Every Workout

 

Pre-workout Necessities 

 

A solid pre-workout routine begins long before you step into gym shorts or break a sweat. And like everything else, sloppy prep translates to sloppy execution. That can lead to uninspired training sessions or injury, both of which inhibit strength and muscle gains, or weight loss. So to help you craft a sound pre-training regimen, we asked Patrick Solano CSCS, strength and conditioning specialist at the UFC Gym in Torrance, California for his pre-workout necessities.

1. Eat for Fuel

 

The timing in which you eat a pre-workout meal or snack depends on your digestive tendencies. In general, munching on something an hour or so before exercise should provide you with an adequate amount of energy; however, there’s no hard-and-fast rule.
“Some people get an upset stomach when they eat too close to a workout,” Solano says. “I’m one of those people who can eat right before or even while I train and be fine, so it changes from person to person.”
Regardless of the timing, make sure carbs and protein are on the menu. “Toast with peanut butter is a good option because it contains carbs, fat, and protein,” he explains. “Fruits like bananas, apples, and oranges are complex carbohydrates, which are a more sustainable form of energy. A protein shake or bar also works.” 

2. Drink 20 oz. of Water

 

Hydration requirements hinge on variables like age, gender, weight, height, and the intensity of your workouts. As a guideline, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends that active people drink 20 ounces of water prior to exercise.
What you don’t want to do is start chugging water immediately before you train. The countless pee breaks will be a disruption and you can actually end up peeing out more than you retain.
The importance of hydration can’t be understated. For one, you’ll be more comfortable — unless you enjoy training while battle things like muscle cramps and dizziness; plus, studies show that adequately hydrated athletes perform at higher levels than dehydrated athletes

 

3. Supp Up

 

Pre-workout supplements aren’t a necessity, but they can heighten focus and provide an energy boost.
“Most pre-workout supps are similar in that they contain caffeine and amino acids that’ll help your veins and arteries dilate to increase blood flow,” he explains. “Take it 30-minutes prior to your workout so by the time you’re in the gym you’re at the peak of its effects.”

 

4. Review Your Workout Itinerary

 

Whether you’re using an app like the M&F Trainer or going old school with a pad and paper, knowing what’s expected in terms of reps, sets, weights, and rest periods removes guesswork and can help make your workout more efficient.
“It’s a way to prepare mentally,’ Solano says. “If the exercises you’re doing and the loads you’re planning to move are all programmed in, all you need to do is execute.”
It’s also a way to keep yourself honest. When you’re bushed and only on set 6 of 10, it’s easier to omit a set or two when you’re not looking at stats.

 

5. Warm-Up Part 1: Aerobic 

 

“A well-designed warm-up increases muscle temperature, core temp, and blood flow. It should also allow your tendons to get warm as well,” says Solano. “This will help the muscles work at optimum strength and power.”
In this section of the warm-up you’re looking for a little bit of perspiration; the objective isn’t to get completely drenched. Spend five minutes working at a low-to-moderate level on a treadmill, stationary bike, or rowing machine.

 

6. Warm-Up Part 2: Foam Roll

 

While using a foam roller can be a painful and quasi-unpleasant experience for some people — the exception would be for masochists, obviously — the pros of using one outweighs the cons.
“Muscles are fibers that are held together with tendons and perimysium, which is a sheath of tissues that holds together muscle fibers,” Solano says. “When we train, that tissue can become bunched up. Think of it like a snag in a zipper. Using a foam roller can break the bunched areas up so the muscle contracts more efficiently.”
Spend up to a minute per area ironing out the kinks of the muscles you’ll be utilizing during your workout.

 

7. Warm-Up Part 3: Dynamic

 

Now it’s time to zero in on functionality and ensure that what you’ll be using during specific lifts will be ready for action.
“’Dynamic’ means warming up through movement,” he reveals. “Go through the muscle groups you’re going to use and perform compound bodyweight or lightweight movements that execute the full range of motion. This will help make sure areas like the shoulders, knees, and wrists will be warm and ready.”

 

8. Make a Playlist

 

Some eggheads recently studied more than 6.7 million fitness playlists and complied “the ultimate workout playlist” that featured artists like Katy Perry, Rizzle Kicks, Daft Punk, and Little Mix. We suspect your playlist might contain more power chords, pick slides, and songs that induce head banging.
“Psychologically, listening to your ‘workout’ song or playlist might pump you up,” he says. “It’ll also block out the dumb music that’s playing in the gym.”
Other studies have shown that tunes that fall between 120-140 beats per minute (BPM) were the best for exercise Source: Google, MuscleandFitness.com
 Image Source: TIG/SWNS.COM

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Easy Metabolic Boosters

4 Easy Metabolic Boosters

 

 

Metabolism is such a nebulous term in the fitness industry. But it has a specific and very elaborate meaning. For our purposes, it is the rate at which your body burns energy. This, of course, is good to know for those of us concerned with body composition because the more energy you can burn, the leaner you will generally be. Resting metabolism refers to the rate that your body burns energy while you do nothing. So if you can find a way to crank up your metabolism, you’re on your way to a much better body. There are a few ways that you can enhance this rate of burn and some might be less obvious than others.

Use this short checklist to see if you’re doing as much for your metabolism as you can.

1. Exercise

This shouldn’t come as a shock. Even daily movement such as walking around your home or office will increase your metabolism but they key here is exercise – a conscious effort to train your body (and metabolism). Exercise releases a variety of hormones that benefit your body in more ways that you can imagine. By strength training just a couple of times a week, you’ll reverse 50% of the seemingly inevitable metabolism slow-down that comes with age.

2. Build Some Muscle

Have you ever heard a family member or friend say that a pound of muscle weighs the same as a pound of fat? It’s true! However, what each does to your body is completely different. By exercising and building a leaner and stronger physique you can change your body composition into more muscle and less bodyfat. What’s the advantage there? Muscle is more metabolic – a pound burns 5-6 calories per day at rest – and demands more calories to be burned up in your body than fat. The more muscle you carry the more calories your burn daily.

3. Get a Morning Kick Start

If you are not a morning person, then listen to this: Exercising in the morning can lead to greater caloric expenditure throughout your day. An elevated metabolism throughout the day only means that you'll burn more calories and lose more weight.

4. Eat to Increase Metabolism

Every time you consume food your body needs to break it down so it can be used by your body. That process in and of itself increases your metabolism – it’s called the Thermic Effect of Food. That’s just one of the ways that eating solid meals increases your metabolism. But certain foods contain certain properties that can increase your metabolism.

Source: Google, MuscleandFitness.com, santabanta.com

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Best Fat Burning Exercise

10 Best Exercises To Loose Fat At Home

The best workouts are always going to be those that consist of moves that engage multiple large muscle groups. You can easily take a simple, conventional toning move and turn it into a something more efficient that gives you the most bang for your buck for every moment that you spend on your workout.

For example, consider the bicep curl. It is an extremely effective basic strength training or toning movement, however, 3 sets of them is not exactly going to crank up your calorie burning furnace or cancel out that cheeseburger and microbrew you had for dinner last night. Instead of isolating just the bicep, you could combine the move with a lunge to significantly boost the caloric burn, and simultaneously tone your lower body.

Apply the above concept to the exercises that make up your routines and they become dynamic, fat burning workouts. Here are the best examples that put this principle to work.

Top 10 Best Fat Burning Exercises 

1 Burpees - This at home cardio move tones your core, upper body and legs all at once- it’s a triple threat exercise that everyone tends to dread for good reason; they are hard! But they also work.

2 Jumping Lunges - Lunges are a fantastic thigh toning exercise; add in the momentum required to jump up in between lunges and the move turns into an incredible calorie burner.

3 Pilates Leg Pulls - Tone your core, glutes, and thighs with this one simple Pilates move. Because all of the large muscle groups involved, you burn a high number of calories while you are toning.

4 Jackknife Crunches - Jackknife Crunches are an advanced abdominal move that engage both the upper and lower abs for maximal toning in the least amount of time. They are especially beneficial because lower abs can be hard to target without equipment.

5 Lunges with Reverse Leg Raise - This tones the glutes, thighs, obliques, and lower back, all while building coordination and balance.

6 Jumping Squats - Do this exercise for a minute or two straight and you wont have any doubts about how challenging it is. This plyometric is also great for building explosive speed.

7 Push Ups - Push ups are a total body exercise that are easily modified and can be made to be very challenging, even for the most avid exerciser. If a regular push up feels too easy for you, try the Single Leg Push Up.

8 Side Planks with Leg Raises - While this most specifically targets the outer thighs, obliques, and deltoids, it requires the strength and coordination of the entire body to hold up the base Pilates side plank.

9 Mountain Climbers - Mountain Climbers can feel like a punishment, but they truly are one of the best overall toning and fat burning moves out there that don't require a bit of equipment.

10 Jumping Jacks - This simple at home cardio essential is an excellent way to get your heart rate up quickly. Add it in between strength training sets to keep your caloric burn high.


Source : Google, FitnessBlender.com.

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10 Tips for fat loss

TIPS FOR FAT LOSS 

1.CONSUME 5 TO 6 MEALS PER DAY!

Food's consumption involves digestion of foods and absorption of nutrients (proteins,carbohydrates and fats). Digestion and absorption require energy to occur.

So, food consumption leads the body to spend energy to support digestion and absorption processes.

The increased frequency of food intake throughout the day will boost your body's metabolism for the following 2 main reasons:

• Your body will be forced to increase the daily energy expenditure because of the frequent activation of digestion and absorption processes induced by the repeated food intake throughout the day.
• Eating frequently is perceived by the body as a sign of energy/food abundance.

Because of this, the body will increase energy expenditure (increased metabolic rate) since there's no need for such frequent calorie intake to be stored as energy depots (such as fats in the adipose fat tissue); which happens during starvation states (occurring during periods of food deprivation).

From a hormonal point of view the food abundance (represented by an increased frequency of food intake) triggers an increased thyroid hormone (T3 and T4) secretion - this ultimately determines how much the metabolism will increase.

Remember high levels of thyroid hormones increase metabolism, low levels of thyroid hormones depress metabolism leading to fat gain!

If you pay attention, fat people are usually those who split their daily food intake into no more than 2-3 meals! Such meal frequency puts the body into a starvation/food deprivation state, so the body replies by decreasing the metabolism through the lowering of thyroid hormones!

The increased daily food intake frequency is one of the easiest and most natural weapons we have in our hands to manipulate and enhance thyroid hormones secretion and thus to increase the body's metabolism!

So the fat loss deriving from the increased daily frequency of food intake is better schematically represented by the following events:

1. Increased frequency of food intake.
2. Food abundance.
3. Increased thyroid hormones secretion.
4. Increased metabolic rate.
5. Increased fat loss.

2. CONSUME PROTEIN-RICH FOOD SOURCES AT EACH MEAL TO BOOST YOUR METABOLISM!

For every one of your daily meals make sure you include foods that contain high quality proteins (poultry, eggs, protein powders, red meat, fish) if your goal is to increase your metabolism!

Proteins have the highest T.I.D. among all the other nutrients (carbohydrates and fats). T.I.D. stands for Thermogenesis Induced by the Diet.

Explanation: each nutrient (protein, carbohydrate and fat) needs energy to be digested by the gastrointestinal system and then absorbed into the bloodstream. The energy the body burns to digest and absorb the nutrients is named T.I.D.

T.I.D. is different for each nutrient:

• T.I.D. for proteins is 25%
• T.I.D. for carbohydrates is 5%
• T.I.D. for fats is 2%

Let's make a practical example to understand this concept better.

Body's energy expenditure to digest protein:

• 100g of water-canned tuna contains approximately 25g of protein.
• Each gram of protein has a calorie value of 4kcal.
• The total calorie intake for 100g of tuna is therefore approximately 100kcal (25g protein x 4kcal= 100kcal).

Body's energy expenditure to digest carbohydrates:

• 227g of apple contains approximately 25g of carbohydrates.
• Each gram of carbohydrate has a calorie value of 4kcal (same as protein).
• The total calorie intake for 227g of apple is therefore 100kcal (25g carbohydrates x 4kcal= 100kcal).

Body's energy expenditure to digest fats:

• 11g of extra virgin olive oil contains approximately 11g of fats.
• Each gram of fat has a calorie value of 9kcal.
• The total calorie intake for 11g of extra virgin olive oil is therefore 99kcal (11g fats x 9kcal= 99kcal).

As you can see protein consumption raises the body's energy expenditure more than other nutrients. This explains why it is important to introduce them in each of the daily meals if the desired goal is to increase the body's metabolism, which ultimately represents the key factor for a guaranteed fat loss. In fact the best and most effective diets for dramatic fat loss are those involving high protein intakes!

3. EAT CARBOHYDRATES WITH A LOW GLYCEMIC INDEX!

Glycemic Index (GI) is the rate at which a carbohydrate contained in a food is converted into glucose (simple sugar) and enters into the bloodstream.

So, the higher the GI of a carbohydrate the faster it enters the bloodstream, the lower its GI the slower it enters the bloodstream.

Carbohydrates trigger insulin secretion. The faster a carbohydrate enters into the bloodstream the higher the insulin secretion.

Insulin is an anabolic hormone. As such it's also responsible for the growth of the adipose tissue (fat gain) through an increased conversion of carbohydrates into fats.

So, the lower the glycemic index of a food, the lower the insulin secretion and the less likely the tendency of a carbohydrate to be converted into fats.

Also, low GI foods have been shown to trigger a longer lasting satiety feeling after a meal which blunts the tendency to crave for sugars between the meals!

Furthermore, low GI foods decrease the calorie intake on the following meal! This is a valuable aspect since it will allow you to successfully stick to a calorie restricted diet for longer periods of time without starving!

Instead, high glycemic index foods (e.g.: white bread, white pasta, white rice, puffed rice cakes, corn, carrots, etc.) are responsible for a shorter satiety feeling and excessive food intake on the following meal.

These are the main reasons why people consuming high glycemic index foods while on a calorie restricted diet cannot stick to it for longer periods of time and thus fail to lose fat permanently!

Switch your carbohydrate food sources toward low GI foods if you want to successfully stay on a fat loss diet for longer periods!

4. LIMIT THE CONSUMPTION OF FRUCTOSE-RICH FOODS TO THE MORNING!

Fructose is a simple sugar that is contained in fruits!

It's a controversial type of sugar - since being a simple sugar one would think it enters the bloodstream at a faster rate, and therefore should trigger a higher insulin secretion which would ultimately promote fat gain!

Instead fructose, although a simple sugar, has a very weak tendency to stimulate insulin secretion because of its low glycemic index (GI).

For this reason fructose has been speculated to be a diet-friendly sugar since it doesn't stimulate the secretion of high insulin levels, and as such wouldn't promote fat gain!

Well, let's defy the myth: "Despite the fact that fructose has a low GI and doesn't stimulate insulin levels to raise so much, IT ACTUALLY MAKES YOU FAT"!

This is why:

Our body has only 2 main deposits for sugar storage: "muscle glycogen" and "liver glycogen". Fructose cannot be stored in muscle as glycogen, but only in the liver! Liver glycogen depots account for a total of 90g in the average 155 pounds adult man.

So, if liver glycogen depots are already full, an extra intake of fructose will spill over the storage capacity of the liver and thus get converted into fats!

The best time to consume fructose, while avoiding it being converted into fats, is in the morning.

This is because during the overnight sleep, your liver glycogen depots get depleted (consumed) in order to feed and meet the energy needs of your brain with simple sugars.

Remember: The brain needs sugars to live, and if you don't supply your body with sugars for several hours (just like it happens while you sleep), the sugars for your brain are provided from the liver glycogen!

So upon rising in the morning the liver glycogen depots are almost empty (since your brain ate them) and this is the right and only optimal moment of the day for fructose intake since it will be driven to fulfill the depleted liver glycogen depots and not toward the adipose tissue (fat mass)!

5. PERFORM HIGH INTENSITY WEIGHT TRAINING TO LOSE FAT!

Intensity is a parameter of physical effort determined by:

• Number of reps.
• Weight used.
• Rest period between sets.

By manipulating each of these factors intensity will vary accordingly.

A number of reps between 6 and 12, the use of a weight meant to reach muscle failure within such range of reps, and the 60 second rest period between sets are the presuppositions for the highest intensity reachable through the weight training.

High intensity weight training translates into optimum fat loss for 2 main aspects:

1. High intensity increases the levels of "Epinephrine" and "Noradrenaline". Epinephrine and Noradrenaline are hormones! These two hormones target specific receptors located on the fat cells that are responsible for fat loss!
2. High intensity weight training promotes the production of a high quantity of lactic acid. Research has shown that lactic acid increases the secretion of Growth Hormone (GH). Growth Hormone is also one of the most powerful fat loss agents!

So, increase your workout intensity to trim down your fat!

6. PERFORM AEROBICS IN THE MORNING ON AN EMPTY STOMACH!

Aerobics is well known for its fat loss properties so people use treadmill and every other cardio equipment mostly for this reason.

Unfortunately, fat loss is more a matter of manipulating hormones favorably rather than merely manipulating calories.

In a few words the fat loss is more related to increasing the secretion of fat loss hormones (such as: Glucagon, Growth Hormone, Noradrenaline and Epinephrine) and inhibiting the secretion of fat gain hormones (such as: Insulin) than shifting negatively the total daily calorie balance through an increased calorie expenditure (with exercise) and reduced calorie intake (with a calorie restrict diet).

Remember insulin promotes fat gain, boosts glucose utilization and puts a halt to fat use for energy production to sustain physical effort.

After the several hours of overnight sleep and fasting, insulin levels are very low.

Blood sugars are needed to feed the brain and to meet the energy needs for physical activity, but since you are coming from a fasting state and there's no food consumption at all, then the body gets sugars from stored energy depots (Liver glycogen).

This is accomplished through the secretion of the hormone named "Glucagon".

But glucagon has receptors also on the fat adipose tissue. This means that glucagon also promotes the breakdown of triglycerides (fats stored in the adipose tissue) into fatty acids. Fatty acids then are used as fuel for energy to sustain the physical activity you perform on an empty stomach in the morning and this ultimately leads to a guaranteed fat loss!Glucagon breaks down the liver glycogen into glucose so that an increase in blood sugar is satisfied.

So, exercising in the morning on an empty stomach will put the pedal on the metal in terms of fat loss because of this favorable fat loss hormonal environment (more glucagon, less insulin).

Meal consumption triggers insulin levels to raise up, and insulin levels promote sugar utilization while inhibiting fat use for the physical effort.

In a few words: if you do aerobics in another moment of the day rather than on an empty stomach in the morning, you'll be burning calories from sugars and not from fat! So, you'll be burning energy but still remaining fat!

7. TAKE A POWERFUL FAT BURNER BEFORE YOUR AEROBIC SESSION!

A good fat burner taken on an empty stomach prior to your early morning aerobic session will increase and optimize the favorable fat loss hormonal and metabolic cascade induced by exercise.

At the present time there are many effective supplements for fat loss.

A good supplement for such purpose would be a combination of synephrine and caffeine.

Synephrine increases the secretion of Noradrenaline which is a powerful fat loss agent.

Caffeine destroys chemical agents produced during exercise that normally interfere by slowing down the fat loss process. So caffeine allows the fat loss process induced by Noradrenaline to last longer!

8. DRINK PLENTY OF WATER DURING THE DAY TO BOOST YOUR METABOLISM!

Drinking a high quantity of water not only makes you get rid of subcutaneous water retention but also increases your metabolic rate!

In fact, scientific studies show that drinking 17 ounces (approximately 500ml) of water increases the metabolism by 30%!

The increased metabolism was measurable in just as little as 10 minutes after fluid intake and the peak of the body's thermogenic response to fluid intake was 30 to 40 minutes after the fluid intake!

In order to increase your fat loss potential drink 500ml of water in the morning before your aerobic session and another 500ml before your weight training.

Make sure your total daily water intake is at least 4 litres a day and not less!

9.SUPPLEMENT YOUR DIET WITH CALCIUM!

Scientific research found that calcium intake increases fat loss!

In detail, researchers found that supplemental calcium (800mg/day) or high dietary intake of calcium (1200mg/day) promoted a greater fat loss (38-64%) compared to subjects on a low calcium diet (500mg/day).

Furthermore, it's been seen that dairy sources of calcium promotes 50-100% more fat loss than supplemental calcium.

Researchers hypothesize that dairy calcium is more effective for fat loss than supplemental calcium most likely for the bio-active ingredients contained in dairy products such as: whey protein peptides, Conjugated Linoleic Acids (CLA) and Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA).

10. GET A GOOD AND RESTFUL NIGHT OF SLEEP TO TRIM DOWN!

A good night's sleep is a potent stimulator of growth hormone secretion. As mentioned above, GH is one of the most powerful fat loss hormones within the human body! Scientific studies show that an adequate night's sleep is essential in order to get the six pack!

In order to see if nighttime GH secretion is fundamental to fat loss, the researchers measured the fatty acid mobilization from adipose tissue under 2 conditions:

• During a good night's sleep.
• During the night's sleep in conjunction with the administration of a drug that inhibits GH secretion.

The result was that the inhibition of GH release during night's sleep shuts down the fatty acid mobilization from adipose tissue!

The take home message is that not getting an adequate quality and quantity of sleep at night will blunt your efforts toward fat loss!

Hope you like it.

Source: Google, Bobdybuilding.com

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