BENEFITS OF INTERVAL SPRINTING AND HOW TO GET STARTED

HI!

So let’s start from the beginning.

About 6 weeks ago I was at my gym talking to one of the other trainers (who’s like 5x more fit than me, hip thrusts 405 pounds, etc), and I told her that I don’t know what the EF to do because I still have some cellulite on the back of my legs. I lift heavy and often, I eat clean, I live an active lifestyle where I’m standing 10-12 hours out of my day so like WTF. Welllll, to my surprise she immediately said “ME TOO!”.

I was shocked. Especially coming from the girl who can do SUCH heavy hip thrusts and has ass for days and is lean on every square inch of her body – you know?

The next day I asked one of the other trainers (male, football player, long time trainer and coach) what he suggests if I want to get rid of cellulite. He asked my how often I do regular sprints, uphill sprints and stair sprints…

Oh – yeah uh, NEVER?

He said to do that 2x’s a week and said I would probably drop some body fat within weeks.

Two weeks after that I randomly got invited to attend the VIVE Performance Genesis – a conference in Dallas TX – where one of the main speakers and Co Owners of the VIVE gym is an elite trainer of 8+ years. I did a full blog post oneverything I learned at that conference here.

His main focus was teaching us the mechanics of sprinting, why it’s beneficial, how to execute it properly and how to warm up for it.

SO since I’ve been back from Dallas I have been ramping up my sprinting game and I’ve been LOVING it. Aside from moving quickly, doing short workouts and having a sore ass the next day, I’ve been becoming more and more obsessed with learning about all of the benefits.

I know since I’ve been posting about it a lot more on my ig, you guys have been getting out there and trying the uphill sprints as well so I figured I’d do a breakdown on the benefits of sprinting + how to get started with sprinting so that you guys are more motivated to keep going!

5 BENEFITS OF SPRINT INTERVAL TRAINING:

Improve your body’s ability to burn fat:

What better way to get lean than to make your body a fat burning machine, amiright?? We want to have the body be efficient at mobilizing and burning fat so that when we need energy, we can quickly use stored fat instead of feeling like we need to #carbup. According to this article, doing 4 30 second sprints increased fat burn by 75%!

Builds a lean physique and increases BMR (basil metabolic rate):

Your BMR is how many calories your body burns at rest. The more strength training you do, the more muscle you build, and in turn RAISES your BMR so now you’re burning more calories at rest! THE DREAM!! AND GUESS WHAT – so does sprint interval training.

Try to coordinate both strength training and interval sprint training into your week. If you feel like you need help and live in LA, be sure to set up a free assessment with us over at Show Up Fitness in WEHO, Santa Monica or San Diego!

Sprint interval training helps to develop lean legs:

Doing sprint intervals correctly allows you to tap into your type II muscle fibers which are the muscle fibers that want to GROW. Through sprint interval training we are able to grow the muscles in the legs while also burning fat! When we do endurance training we are primarily only using type I muscle fibers which are designed to do tons of work without growing very much. SO if you only do endurance training, chances are you are actually breaking down MUSCLE which is leading to an overall lower BMR ie, burning LESS calories at rest.

Abs become more noticeable:

I know a lot of you want to do crunches for days to get your abs to be more defined but a better idea would be to shed the fat on top of your abs! Like I mentioned above, sprint interval training is AMAZING for blasting fat because it restores your metabolism, reduces inflammation, and gets your body better adapted to using it’s stored energy (fat) for fuel!

Increase testosterone and human growth hormone levels:

Human growth hormone plays a key role in growth, body composition, cell repair, and metabolism. It also helps you recover faster from injury and disease while assisting in growing muscles, boosting strength and improving exercise performance. Sprinting is one of the most effective ways to raise HGH and maximize fat loss.

Testosterone gets a lot of attention as being a primary male hormone but woman actually have a small amount of it as well. Not only does it play an important role in female health but increasing testosterone leads to improved muscle mass.

HOW TO GET STARTED WITH SPRINT INTERVAL TRAINING:

How you start is going to depend on where you are in your training.

• If you haven’t worked out in years then try starting with walk/jog intervals. Jog or cycle for 10-20 seconds, followed by a normal pace walk or cycle until you feel like you’ve caught your breath.

• If you’re fit and want to lean out, moderate or all out sprints 1-3 times a week would be great for you.

• If you’re over weight elderly or have high blood pressure walking intervals would be a good place to start. Speed walk for 30 seconds to a minute followed by 2-3 minutes of normal walking.

Here’s how I’ve been getting started:

• Weeks 1 & 2 I did 5 50 yard uphill sprints outside twice a week. I would end up sprinting for about 14 seconds then would take a 3 minute rest and go again.

• Weeks 3 & 4 I am focusing on sprinting 3x’s a week but changing some variables throughout the week. So for example, Sunday I’ll do 30 minutes worth of uphill sprints; 10 seconds all out followed by a 2 minute rest. Tuesday I’ll do 5 all out sprints at for 15 seconds with a rest time of 2-3 minutes. Thursday I’ll do 15 5 second all out sprints followed by a 1 minute rest.

• Weeks 5 & 6 I will stick to the week 3 & 4 schedule but I will try adding in a little bit of extra work/movement during my rest time to make it more of a circuit. For example, on Thursday I might sprint for 5 seconds, followed by 10 push ups, followed by a 45 second jog, then jump back on for sprint #2.

I’m currently on week 3 so I’ll keep you guys updated! Remember that sprinting can be done anywhere and interval training doesn’t HAVE to be sprinting. It can be cycling, swimming, rowing, etc. Just give it your all for 5-30 seconds then rest.

HOW LONG SHOULD I REST WHEN DOING INTERVAL TRAINING?:

Everyone’s rest time is going to be different depending on how in shape each person is. A 15 second sprint for one person might require 5 minutes of rest where as a 15 second sprint for someone else might require 45 seconds of rest. Make sure you walk around after each sprint and take deep breaths through your nose and think about expanding that breath into your back until you feel like you’re back to a normal breathing pattern.

With that said – if you’re like me and prefer more of a concrete, structured answer to that question, refer to this chart.

For example: if you do a  sprint as fast as you possibly can and you go for 5 seconds, you should rest 12x’s the amount of time that you sprinted (5 seconds x 12 seconds = 60 seconds, or 1 min.

If you say try to run your fastest mile since high school and it takes you 6 minutes, then you would be in the oxidative energy system and you should consider resting for 6-18 minutes before trying to hit another 6 minute mile.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT ENERGY SYSTEMS?

First of all I think it’s important to understand why we WANT to know about the energy systems. Knowing how each one functions allows us to better understand how we fatigue and will give us a better idea of what system we’re using when we’re exercising + the results we’ll get from it.

It can be a little confusing but I’ll break it down.

Second thing to know before we briefly dive into the systems is this little thing called ATP. ATP is a molecule that allows for every single muscle contraction or force exertion that we do, k? SO we gotsta have it, but we have a limited storage of it.

Now imagine that you and two of your friends are on a basketball court. One friend is under one hoop, the other is in the middle of the court and you’re under the other hoop. Your sprinting all out as fast as you can. Your girlfriend in the middle is doing a minute of sit ups, and your other friend is just walking for 5 mins.

SO you’re all using ATP but which energy system are each of you in? And what are the different benefits?

SYSTEM 1: ATP-PC ENERGY SYTEM (HIGH POWER/SHORT DURATION)

This is what you’re using while you Sprint. This system fires immediately and doesn’t need any oxygen to function but lasts for only +- 12 seconds. For just a couple seconds beyond that, the phosphocreatine (PC) system kicks in to help and then after that, you get shifted to another energy system. It is estimated the ATP-PC system can burn appx 36 calories per minute. For example 10 minutes of work in this system could burn appx 360 calories. ZAYUM.

SYSTEM 2: THE GLYCOLYTIC SYSTEM (MODERATE POWER/MODERATE DURATION)

Once the ATP-PC system is tapped out, we start pulling energy from here. We get glucose from the carbohydrates we eat which then is circulated through the blood or it gets turned into glycogen and gets stored in our muscles and liver. While training in this energy system, the body will take the blood glucose or stored glycogen and make ATP. SO if you have been on a low carb diet for a while and try to do a couple all out sprints for 30 seconds, it’s likely that you won’t preform as well because you will shoot through this energy system and shift down to the next one. It is estimated that this system burns about 16 calories per minute so 10 minutes of work here would burn around 160 calories.

SYSTEM 3: THE OXIDATIVE SYSTEM (LOW POWER/LONG DURATION)

Think about the oxidative system as the system we use when we’re working a 8 hour shift at a grocery store, running 6 miles, or walking. Because of the way ATP is created in this system there is pretty much an unlimited supply available, although the process of making it is a little complicated. Just know that you can do hours of work at a low level in this system and you burn appx 10 cals per minute.

My tip would be to take 3 photos of yourself today (front, side and back) in a bathing suit and then schedule your first sprinting session on your own if you’re super disciplined OR schedule a session with a friend. Figure out what your starting point is and make a plan for the next 6 weeks like I did.

Take the same before and after photo every 2 weeks and compare your body composition at the end of the 6 weeks!! Let that 6 week picture be your starting motivation to keep going and set a new 6 week goal!! Don’t forget that pairing this kind of training with strength training is going to get you the best results.

Visit our gym in LA or SD if you feel like you need accountability and want to see how having a trainer can really take you to the next level.

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5 FITNESS INDUSTRY MYTHS YOU (might) STILL BELIEVE

Helloooo :)

If you guys read my last blog then you know I'm doing a mini instagram break right now so I'm coming back to the blog to connect with you! I'll post what I have to post but I'm trying to relax on filming my every move every day because I feel like I'm "supposed" to.

It's really been a nice way to take a step back and think about what I'd like to talk about and how I can hopefully help you guys. I love coaching and helping you navigate your fitness world so today we are going to go over 5 fitness industry myths that you (might) still believe.

I tell everyone literally all the time that I feel extremely grateful for my clients, in person and online. I feel like the fitness gods have blessed me over and over again with clients that I truly love and connect with and clients that are curious yet humble. You guys always ask great questions, listen, and then pivot your way of thinking and I think it has lead to amazing results for almost everyone.

SO thank you!

Unfortunately, this isn't the case for every trainer. Most trainers want to jump off a building because clients typically come in with an idea of what's right, what's wrong, what works and what doesn't, and refuse to trust their trainers.

To be fair, a lot of trainers out there are down right horrible BUT I know a ton of elite professionals in the fitness industry who are WAY more qualified than I am, and they have all had their fair share of clients who refuse to face the truth.

Let me give you an example. I once had a client who talked to me every single session about how she didn't want to squat anymore because it was making her bigger, she never ate before a session because felt that fasted workouts we're king, she had 30-40lbs to lose but wanted to focus on bodyweight and banded exercises, and she always wanted to do more core workouts to lose fat around her midsection.

I kept trying to pivot her way of thinking by showing her girls who had curvy, gorgeous physiques and then would tell her that they hip thrust 200 pounds, or I'd explain to her that I've had countless clients who have lost upwards of 20 pounds within 3 months by strength training, adhering to their diet and walking, but nothing swayed her.

I don't ever blame women for being afraid of weights or for thinking that crunches will burn their belly fat, and it's not my style to call people out or make them feel like a moron because I WANT to educate them. But if someone is just unwilling to hear the truth, there's not much you can do.

So with all of that said, I wanted to go over 5 Fitness Industry Myths That You Still (might) Believe, so that I can try to help you become more efficient with your training!

Your watch and the treadmill do not accurately tell you how many calories you burned.

Annoying right? I fell into this trap for a while as well. I’d finish a workout, check out how many cals I burned and think “wow. 870 cals! That basically means I burned off my breakfast and lunch!”. But unfortunately AT BEST, our fitness watches are miscalculating the calories we burn by 30%. AT BEST. Some miscalculate cals burned, also known as energy expenditure, by 93 fucking percent. HOW DO YOU EVEN HAVE A BUSINESS.

Shcherbina et al 2017, found that most wrist-worn devices adequately measure HR in laboratory-based activities, but overestimate energy expenditure (calories burned) by 27.5% to 93%

As stated above, most fitness trackers adequately measure Heart Rate and steps even, but don’t be fooled by the calories they say they burn.

Now – that doesn’t mean that you still can’t check on that number from day to day if it motivates you to work a little harder! I totally get that. And if you wear the same one everyday then it will be “relatively correct” meaning that if you burn “400 calories” one day and then “650” calories the next, then it’s safe to say you burned more calories on day 2, but I would advice you to multiply that number by AT LEAST .30 and subtract that from what you think you’ve burned, to get a more realistic idea.

You cannot burn fat in specific areas aka spot reduce.

Running will not just make your legs smaller, crunches will not be the reason you get rid of your pooch, and 800 tricep dips (please do not do tricep dips) will not be the reason you get rid of your “wings”. So before someone comes after me, if you want to get into the nitty gritty of this conversation…YES, there is a little bit of science that says you technically can burn fat in a specific area, but it is very slim and a HUGE waste of time.

Notice how I said that these things won’t be the REASON you get rid of significant amounts of fat. If you have a pooch that you want to get rid of, you need to focus on being in a caloric deficit, strength training, and hitting your NEAT (non exercise activity thermogenesis), which is essentially just moving around throughout the day.

This will allow you to burn more calories than what you are consuming and will begin the process of burning fat everywhere. Your body’s genetics will decide what goes first. Maybe you notice that your face always slims down first, or maybe your stomach is the first thing to flatten out – it depends on each person individually.

The reason that trying to spot reduce is such a waste of time is because you are focusing on isolated movements that don’t burn many calories. Why try to lose fat in your belly by doing crunches when you could burn wayyyy more calories by doing goblet squats, reverse lunges, deadlifts, chin ups and other big compound lifts that require a ton of your energy?

With that said – know that you CAN build muscle in spot specific areas though. Yippee! Build that booty girl.

Weight training does not make you bulky.

I know we covered this in the last post but it’s worth restating. I read every consultation that comes in from online clients and of course do a consultation with all of my in person clients as well. What’s interesting is that clients come to me wanting to do strength training but in the little area where I ask for any additional questions or comments, 70% of the time the client will say “I don’t want to get bulky”, or “I bulk up really easily because I used to play soccer”, or “I’d prefer to stick to light weights as I do not want to get bulky”. It’s everywhere.

Again, I understand your fear completely! You have access to anyone in the world with an instagram account. Chances are – you’ve seen girls who fucking LOVE lifting weights and who also look “bulky”. There’s nothing wrong with that at all, it just isn’t your style. You don’t want very large rounded shoulders, you don’t want to see your quads through your jeans in a way that they look extremely muscular, and you don’t want to feel “manly”.

I know I know I know.

So think about it this way. Would you say you want a nice, toned, lifted ass? Would you say you feel like you’ve been trying to grow your glutes for a long time and “it’s just not working?”. I get that too. Because it’s HARD. It takes proper training, proper discipline, adequate protein, sleep, stress levels and patience to grow a muscle. You don’t just easily get bulky.

Women who lift heavy weights and eat in a surplus though, tend to look more bulky that a women who eats at maintenance calories or in a calorie deficit and also lifts weights, because there is more fat sitting on top of the muscle OR because they are just smashing life, eating a lot, lifting a lot, and building a lot of muscle.

Lifting weights will develop your muscle which will give you that lean, toned look you’re going for and will help you burn more calories throughout the day.

You don’t need to “confuse” your muscles with random exercises.

Whether it’s because you’re trying to confuse your muscles or because you just want to switch it up, I promise that 90% of the stuff you see on instagram is not effective, and not confusing to your muscles.

When you do a ridiculous exercise like a single leg bicep curl on a bosu ball while you throw a ball with the other hand, your muscles don’t think “wow this is so crazy, and sooo confusing! I’m not sure what’s happening so I’m going to burn more calories now until we figure it out!”.

Your mind is probably the most confused, as well as me lol, I’m lost just watching.

While variety is definitely a good thing in your training, consistency is absolutely necessary for optimal results. You definitely shouldn’t strive to always “confuse” the muscles. Certain lifts can and should be performed week-in and week-out for your entire training career. – Bret Contreras

The problem is when every workout is something completely different, and I see this on insta a lot. Workouts start to look like this:

Workout 1 – bicep curls, ice skaters, bosu ball squats, squat to knee to elbow tap, hamstring stretch, front kick, front kick, air boxing, plank to down dog to frog jump to pulses blah blah blah blah blahhhh what is happeenninngggg.

This is excruciatingly ineffective.

You want to stick to your main lifts and focus on getting stronger at them. Pick one to two patterns a month and really focus on them in each workout and then you can add in your “variety” at the end of each circuit. So if your two main patterns for this month we’re Hinge and Push, one of workouts might look something like this:

Workout 1 – hip thrust 5 x 10, push ups amarap (as many reps as possible), single leg hip thrusts x 20, single arm overhead press x 12, deadlift x 15, glute bridge chest press x 20, seated banded abductions x 50, plank variety x 90 seconds.

Reach out to me if you are interested in getting a personalized workout plan! I have been training my clients for years and they always tell me that they enjoy how different each workout is. I take that as a huge compliment because we are literally focusing on the same exercises every single workout, but switching up time, tempo, reps, volume, or range of motion. See this post here on my insta to understand how I do this with reverse lunges for example.

Sweat and soreness do not equal a great workout:

“I sweat so much it was such a great workout!” “Yesterday’s workout was sooo good because I’m literally SO sore!”. Don’t get me wrong I love sweating during a workout and feeling sore is a nice reminder of the work I did, but it doesn’t mean that I had an effective workout.

Too many clients rate their trainers on their ability to make them sore and sweaty that it makes most trainers feel like this is what they need to do in order for you to come back. Until a few months go by and the client realizes WTF why don’t I see any changes? At the end of the day, this is the trainers fault but it’s nice when the clients understand that sweat and soreness will not get them their dream body.

Wanna get in on the secrets to sweat and soreness?

Don’t rest in between exercises = sweat.

Do a new exercise, stretch the muscle while you add load or add more range of motion = soreness. Easy peasy.

This is why walking lunges with 50 pounds will make your ass stuuuupid sore but doing hip thrusts with 200 pounds might not. When you do a lunge you’re getting a biiiig stretch in the glute at the bottom and have to come up with weight (stretched muscle with load), where as in a hip thrust, you don’t get quite as big of a glute stretch BUT you get MAXIMAL glute contraction at the top which is why hip thrusts are optimal for growing the booty.

These are the top 5 fitness industry myths that I find myself debunking. Hopefully going over them was helpful to you! If you have any questions about these myths or others that you have heard, please leave a comment below!

Love you guys!

EASY TO GET AT HOME WORKOUT EQUIPMENT

Hi!

As you guys continue to reach out about my online training programs and services, one of the biggest questions I keep getting is

“I don’t have any equipment, but I’m willing to get some…what do you think I should get?”.

This is such a valid question because if you’re not used to training at home (which most of us aren’t), then it can be hard to know what’s worth getting and why.

Not to mention, it’s fucking obvious that it’s been nearly impossible to get any weights. Today on a podcast, I heard that a woman ordered a pair of Bowflex weighs in June, and got them in November……………………

I want you guys to feel confident with the equipment you have which is why I will always tailor your workouts around whatever you have to work with but, I figured this post would be a good way for me to share links to what I use + give you ideas on how to use household items as weights. (please do not use your couch for deadlifts or single leg kick backs…it just seems a bit much and you don’t have the time to adjust your living room that much, right? Right.).

Alright –

Here is the easy to get at home workout equipment that I have been using during quarantine.

• Doorway Multi Grip Pull Up Bar – I mean, if you don’t work on pull ups while your locked away in your house, I don’t know when else you’re going to work on them lol. This has been so nice to have and it’s only 20 bucks. There’s a lot of other versions but I like this one because it gives you three different pull up options so you can practice narrow grip, wide grip, pull ups and chin ups.

• My Booty Band – Anyone that has purchased this band knows that the resistance is unmatched. You have never felt your glutes burn out like this. No more shitty rubber booty bands that slide and snap. NO. This will actually change your glutes.

• 30lb Kettlebell – I actually don’t have a kettlebell but I’ve noticed that they are WAY easier to get than dumbbells AND if you get a moderately heavy one like 25/30lbs, then you can use it for soooo many things and get in such a great workout. You can do step ups, Bulgarians, squats, deadlifts, hip thrusts, reverse lunges, literally everything. Definitely worth 100 bucks.

• Heel Wedge Blocks – These are cheap and they are specifically for heel elevated squats. I started doing these often over quarantine because it’s an easy way to switch up your basic squat. Elevating your heels allows you to get deeper into your squat so a killlllller exercise that you can do weekly to progress your squat is -> Banded heel elevated constant tension squats. I put my booty band on over my knees, grab my two 25lb weights, elevate my heels, and go for 20 reps…..PFFFT it’s such a good burn it’s ridiculous. I wouldn’t necessarily grab these first if you have NO equipment, but if you’re looking to add a little something and switch things up, go with these.

• Hip Thruster with Resistance Bands – I got this from Bret Contreras and still can’t believe it’s only 200 dollars. It comes with 90 pounds of banded resistance, it’s obviously the perfect height for hip thrusts so you don’t have to keep trying to figure out your couch or even worse, bed set up. It also can be used for Bulgarians really well because instead of curling your back toes up on a flat surface, you can just rest your ankle which feels WAY better and allows you to get deeper. It’s just made all of my hip thrusting so much better and so much more comfortable, and now I have the option of banded so highly suggest!

• Set of 5 Resistance Bands with Handles and ankle straps – 20 bucks!!! Insane! I just got this set and am so excited to use it. My back workouts have been shit because my weight options for single arm rows are usually too heavy or too light, and back flys tend to bother my lower back. With these bands you automatically get a ton of resistance options and can use them for small isolated movements like bicep curls or tricep extensions, but I’m looking forward to using them for bigger movements. You can do chest press, row, single arm row, lat pull downs, side lateral raises and with the ankle straps you can also do kickbacks which I like because the mini band kickbacks either don’t give me enough range of motion because they’re too tight, or they don’t give me enough resistance because they’re too weak.

• Sliders – These sliders are cute and they’re only 7 bucks. If you don’t have heavy weight and feel like you’re missing out on your hamstring work, slider hamstring curls are actually death. They are sooo hard and you can do so many variations like eccentric hamstring curls, or single leg hamstring curls, orrrrr single leg eccentrics….ooo those kill. Aside from that you can use these for mountain climbers or stick them under your feet in a plank position and do super slow abductions with them for inner thigh work. OR if you have the space you can put them under your feet, come into a push up position, and use your hands to walk forward while you keep your lower body still – this is a really good upper body and core exercise.

Luckily I have dumbbells but aside from those, this is the equipment I’ve been using and it’s a great set up. I could easily make someone months of training with these things alone – hit me up if you’re interested!

Okay now let’s quickly touch on some household things you can use for weight in case you don’t have dumbbells + other household exercise options.

I’ll skip out on the obvious laundry detergent and water bottle hack for weight because I think we’ve all already heard that about 8 billion times.

One of my old clients told me the other day that her husband has been using their crockpot filled with water as a weight and I really just wanted to take a moment to applaud that big dick energy. I mean, wow. No excuses lol.

If you don’t have a crockpot or don’t want to make you’re living room a splash zone, try these:

• Backpack filled with Heavy Books

• Sandbag / great for squats, deadlifts, and loooove this option for hip thrusts because it’s way more comfortable than a bar.

• Rags or paper plates / Use for hamstring curls, mountain climbers, plank abductions, inner thigh work.

• Tall Table / If you’re dining room table is tall then you can use something like this for inverted rows which is a nice option if you don’t have a pull up bar. AND you can use this for reverse hypers which – if you don’t do reverse hypers – you’re missing out on some insane booty work. This photo below shows that you can also do reverse hypers on a much shorter table so that’s an option as well.

• Gardening pot or cooking pot / Something like this is a really easy way to progress your average reverse lunge into a deficit reverse lunge because it allows you to get more range of motion.

I think that about covers the basics of what to use differently at home and some cheap and available workout equipment you can get your hands on! Remember to reach out if you are interested in having me make a personalized workout program for you! You can get more information and see/read testimonials here

HOW TO MAINTAIN MUSCLE WHILE LOSING FAT

Welllll hello there…!!

Why I’ve blogged 4 times in the last year is beyond me BUT I’ve been craving it more than ever so here we are! Surprisingly it took me going on an instagram hiatus to feel reconnected to writing – and I’ve only been on my hiatus for a day and a half hahah. I’m planning on going on occasionally this week to make sure I’m not missing any potential new client messages but aside from that, I’d prefer to stay off of it as much as possible for now. I just feel disconnected with people in a weird way. Always having access to you and what you’re doing makes me feel like I never actually need to check in.

Anyway

I’m happy to be back and cannot wait to share this info with you!

Mmmmm girrrrrll today we are talkin about the goooooal of a lifetime.

How to maintain as much muscle as possible while losing a significant amount of fat.

First of all, let’s quickly go over why this should be the goal, rather than the goal being “I’m just trying to lose weight”.

Muscle is going to add that shape to your body that you’re trying to achieve and muscle increases your basal metabolic rate (BMR) which means that you burn more calories at rest. If you are solely focused on trying to lose weight without maintaining muscle, then you will LOSE muscle mass, then fat, and then burn less calories while you stand on the scale and look down at a number that might seem like an achievement, but ultimately isn’t. At this point you are now burning less calories at rest than you would be if you had maintained muscle which means that your caloric intake cannot be very high unless you plan on running it off everyday.

Sounds like a recipe for fatigue and unfortunately it is the recipe that most people opt for because they simply don’t know any better. I’m a woman. I grew up reading the same articles and interviews that you did about “how to lose weight”. It was cardio cardio, cardio, juice, smoothie, no cheese for the love of god, more cardio, don’t eat after 7pm, cardio, 6 meals a day blah blah blahhhhh I could go on.

I hate that we all became so brainwashed and that this information was blasted to us 24/7 but luckily more and more professionals are providing research on how strength training + proper diet will help you achieve your ideal physique.

Lastly – before we get into the 4 main ways you can maintain muscle mass while losing weight, I want to remind you guys that muscle is about 18% more dense than fat.

This is a dexa scan that shows a male who went from 31% body fat to 21% body fat (yellow). The red represents his muscle. So as you can see, his body shape in the 4th photo is slimmer but it’s possible that his weight on the scale remained the same or even increased as he maintained or built muscle mass.

This is why you see before and after photos of girls on insta all the time who show you a picture of themselves at 120 pounds with a pooch, poor posture, and no booty, to a pic of them with abs, an ass, and toned arms, weighing in at 135. They decreased their body fat % while putting on muscle !

Here’s a few examples from me and a couple of my clients. These transformations are all a result of lifting weights and walking. No cardio.

Alright, here are the 4 main things to focus on when looking to maintain muscle mass while decreasing body fat.

Focus on Progressive Overload:

This basically means that you just want to focus on getting stronger. It’s hard at first but instead of paying so much attention to the number on the scale, I want you to start paying attention to the weight you’re lifting and the amount of reps you’re able to get on various exercises. If you can get 15 squats right now with 30lbs but can get 18 squats with 30lbs in 3 weeks, that means you’ve gotten stronger! This means you are building muscle. If you are just starting your fitness journey then you will likely see massive gains in your progressive overload somewhat quickly. As you start becoming more advanced with your training, these achievements will take a bit longer but will be equally as satisfying. This advancement of strength will contribute to overall fat loss assuming you’re following a appropriate diet. Which leads us to step #2.

Get your protein up!:

I’ve coached hundreds of women and have talked to most of them on the phone while we go over their current macros. I’d say 90% of them would be consuming 40-60g of protein a day on average, while the other 10% would hit around 90g. Sooo everyone was lower than where I wanted them! The general rule is to consume 1g of protein per lb of lean body mass. So for example, if a client is 130 pounds and has 20% body fat, then we would do 130 x .20 = 26. Take 26 away from 130 which gives us 104 meaning she’d have 104lbs of LEAN BODY MASS. So I would want that client to aim for 104g of protein a day MINIMUM. Eating enough protein not only helps you maintain your muscle, but it SERIOUSLY helps to regulate your appetite. It also has a high thermic effect of food (read my blog about Thermic Effect of Food, here) which means that it burns more calories when consumed as compared to fat and carbohydrates.

Maintain a Caloric Deficit:

OK who’s afraid of lifting weights because you’re scared you’re going to get *BuLky*? We have covers of bodybuilder magazines to blame for that fear BUT I have good news. You ready? You will not get bulky from lifting weights if you are not consuming a surplus of calories. Same way you won’t be overweight if you don’t consume a surplus of calories. I know. It’s crazy. But trust me. As long as you are burning more calories than you are consuming, then you will lose weight. (I have a blog all about this, here). A good way to figure this out is to take your body weight and multiply it by 12. That will give you a pretty close estimate of how many cals you should consume to be in a caloric deficit. If you’re not looking to lose weight but you’d like to build more muscle and maintain your weight, then take your current body weight and multiply it by 15 to find your maintenance calories.

Lose Weight Gradually:

A common message I get from online clients who have been killing it for a couple of months is, “I feel like I was doing really well and now I feel like I’ve plateaued. I lost 20 pounds from Jan to Feb and then in March I only lost 10 pounds. What’s wrong?!” Nothing is wrong. You are actually doing this perfectly. When people go into too much of a caloric deficit and lose too much weight too quickly, they lose a ton of muscle, decrease their BMR, and usually end up gaining that weight back + some, quickly. Ideally if you have 70 pounds to lose for example, you’d lose 20 in month one if you’re really on top of your game, maybe 10 pounds in month 2, and then 40 pounds over the next 10 months. Just like with progressive overload, beginners will experience huge results in the first few months but your progress will slow as you become more advanced. That should be exciting to you! You’re becoming a stronger, healthier and more fit version of yourself so continue making goals for yourself and enjoy the process!

I’m happy to answer any questions you guys have! Also don’t forget to check out this page to see what online services I’m currently offering! Whether you’re looking for a 30 day program or a customized month to month training plan, I got you!

x Chelsey.

HOW TO PROPERLY FUEL UP AND RECOVER FOR ENDURANCE TRAINING

I had my first legit “Ah-Ha” moment about a month ago in regards to how food seriously is FUEL.

Before a month ago I would say I was just maintaining my body weight. I wasn’t really focusing on trying to lose weight and I wasn’t really training any differently so I would strength train 3-5 days a week and pretty much was eating whatever I wanted. So it’s safe to say…I was fueled up haha.

My coach challenged me to get 20 hip thrusts with 225lbs…I FOR SURE thought there was no way in hell that I would be able to do that but I gave it a shot and ya girl pumped out 25 SOLID reps at 225.

I was STOKED. “Wow I’m like so much stronger than I thought I was AMAZING life’s awesome.” Whatever.

The following week I had decided that I wanted to cut a couple pounds so I dropped my calories a bit too much and on day 4 of my caloric cut, I didn’t think much of it and I tried to hit 25 reps at 225lbs again.

Uhm. FAILED at 15 reps. Like COULD NOT get that shit up.

WTF??

I kinda sat with this for a few days and had to ask myself if this caloric cut was even worth it if I wouldn’t be able to exert the same amount of energy. Not to mention, I was just about to start training more seriously for my first triathlon and 1/2 marathon so then I started asking myself some questions like…

“How much do I really need to be eating right now in order to fuel up properly but not GAIN weight?”

“What if I actually not only want to fuel up properly but I also would like to lose weight while I’m at it?”

“What do I need to eat before a run?”

“What distance of a run classifies as something that I should probably fuel up for vs. something that I can do without the extra cals?”

“Do I need protein and carbs after or just protein? What’s up with having fat before or after my workout?”

The list goes on. My brain was spinning and I started hitting up my coach at @SHOWUPFITNESS for all the details. I’ve been sticking to strength training and maybe a 30 minute beach run here and there for the last year so I didn’t feel confident in understanding any of this. AT ALL.

BUT now I will say that I feel like I’m getting the hang of it. I’ve been doing strength training, run practice, and swim practice and I feel AMAZING though all my training sessions, I’m sleeping like a baby, I have energy throughout the day and I can see my body toning up.

SO let’s GET INTO IIIIIIT.

Beginning with question #1: “How much do I really need to be eating right now in order to fuel up properly but not GAIN weight?”:

First of all – depending on what your goals are, you need to figure out how many calories your body really needs.

For me for example, I’m 133 pounds. SO my body burns appx 1,200 cals a day at rest. This means that on a day where  don’t work out, I would need to consume roughly 1,200 cals in order to maintain my weight.

But I workout 6 days a week so that puts me closer to 2,100 cals burned a day. This is important to know because I could easily feel much hungrier from all of these new workouts and down 2,500 cals in a day – EASY. But that would put me in a position where I would be consuming more than I’m burning which would lead to weight GAIN.

Question #2: “What if I actually not only want to fuel up properly but I also would like to lose weight while I’m at it?”

So if 2,100 cals is what I need to maintain my current weight AND fuel up properly for my workouts, then in order to lose weight I would need to create a deficit from there. This number is entirely up to you and what you feel good with. I’ve decided to try 1,550 daily. I feel great with the workouts I’m doing and consuming this amount per day. I had to play around with this number so don’t expect to just nail it your first time. If you need help figuring out your personalized macros you can email me at info@chelseyrosehealth.com to inquire about a nutritional consultation, OR check out my 2020 training plan here.

Question #3: What do I need to eat before a run?

Once I figured out how many calories I can have a day, I needed to figure out my macros + WHEN the ideal time was to have those macros. (Macros = macronutrients = carbs, fats and protein). Since I’m doing running, biking, cycling and some resistance training, we needed to bring my carbs up so my macros look like this: Carbs = 200g a day // Fats = 20-30g a day // Protein = 125g a day.

This is where I was super curious about food timing because like I said, for the last year my main focus has been strength training. Typically I would wake up around 5 am, have a cappuccino and then do my strength workout at 10:00am and feel great. (Remember I wasn’t doing any cardio at the time). So why is it that I feel like I need more carbohydrates now that I’m incorporating running, biking and swim into my routine?

Well when we eat carbs, they get broken down into glucose and from there they get stored as glycogen primarily in the muscles and liver. When we do strength training we use glycogen primarily from our muscle storages but since strength training includes rest in between sets, we don’t use a ton of what we have stored.

Endurance training on the other hand is typically non stop work which we need constant fuel for over the course of 30-90 minutes or sometimes even longer.

If our glycogen storages are low then they will deplete quickly which will cause us to fatigue out much faster.

So before any of my running, swimming, or biking practice, I’ll have a small packet of oatmeal with a tbsp of almond butter and a matcha late which comes out to about 45g of carbohydrates.

Question #4: “What distance of a run classifies as something that I should probably fuel up for vs. something that I can do without the extra cals?

I also tested this out. I signed up for a running class every Sunday morning at the start of my training. The first 3 weeks before practice I would have my oatmeal breakfast and week 4 I decided to see if I could exert the same amount of work and not feel fatigued during practice. What I noticed was that I completed the practice just fine but a few hours later I felt way more tired than I had the weeks prior. At that point my glycogen storages we’re just too low so I can avoid that by making sure I’m fueling up properly before each practice.

Before a 30 minute endurance workout it’s good to aim for 25-30g of carbs while it’s better to actually carb load days prior to practice for any endurance training that will last 90 minutes or longer.

Question #5: “Do I need protein and carbs after or just protein? What’s up with having fat before or after my workout?”

To understand what would be most ideal after your workout it’s important to look at what kind of exercise you did and what your body did in order to fuel you for that. So remember that in a strength training workout, you definitely used glycogen but not quite as much as you would have had you done a 1 hour endurance workout. Also, you broke down a little but of protein so post workout would ideally be something that refuels your glycogen storages and helps to build up that broken down muscle.

According to this article on HealthLine, Studies have shown that ingesting 20–40 grams of protein seems to maximize the body’s ability to recover after exercise (6Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source).

Consuming 0.5–0.7 grams of carbs per pound (1.1–1.5 grams/kg) of body weight within 30 minutes after training results in proper glycogen resynthesis (1Trusted Source).

Furthermore, insulin secretion, which promotes glycogen synthesis, is better stimulated when carbs and protein are consumed at the same time (10Trusted Source, 11Trusted Source, 12Trusted Source, 13Trusted Source).

If you plan on working out again later that same day then you would want to have more carbs than usual after your first workout. So for example if you’re going to do a 30 minute run in the am, you’d want to have 25-30g of carbs before your run. Afterwards you would go for 20g of protein + 80-100g of carbs instead of just 50-60g. This way you replenish from workout 1 and fuel up for workout 2.

As far as fat goes – it’s not highly recommended to consume a lot of fat after a workout because it slows down the absorption of the other nutrients you’re having BUT it doesn’t reduce the benefits. But I just feel like the faster I can replenish – the better, so I stick to a very small amount of fat in my post workout meal.

Now before you go and get all excited about extra carbs – remember that things like sweet potatoes, fruit, oatmeal and quinoa are all great sources of carbohydrates. This doesn’t mean you should just start downing donuts and pasta everyday! Haha even though that sounds ideal. Enjoy your cheat meals as your normally would and go for low cal, high carb options for training so you can hit your calorie AND macro goal.

There’s definitely a benefit to paying attention to these things instead of just winging it. Like I said, I’ve noticed ever since I’ve upped my training and have been food logging that my body is starting to lean out and I have enough energy to get through all of my workouts.

Let me know if theres anything else you have questions about or would want me to cover! Excited to continue this training!

x

HOW TO MAKE YOUR H.I.I.T CLASSES WAY MORE EFFICIENT

Hi hi!

I am so excited to write this blog because it is all I can think about every time I get about 10 minutes into one of my ClassPass classes.

If you're new and don't know much about me, I am a personal trainer at a boutique private training studio in LA. I went through a 6 month internship at my gym Show Up Fitness before I got hired and since then have been training women ages 25-40 at Show Up Fitness!

I freaking love my job because I'm constantly connecting with women, hearing what workouts and diets they've tried, and then I have the opportunity to teach them why they haven't seen results.

MOST women that come to me tell me that they do lots of cardio, yoga, H.I.I.T. classes like Barry's and Orange Theory and feel like they may have lost a little weight at first but then hit a stopping point. Or they tell me that they injured themselves in class so they had to stop working out all together. Or I hear that they may have lost weight but their big goal is to build a booty and reduce fat around the thighs and hips and just can't seem to make it happen.

Girrrrrl let's talk about all of that.

Today I want to quickly remind you that you will see the best results that you didn’t even know were possible once you start incorporating strength training into your weekly routine + SMART H.I.I.T classes. (DM me at @chelseyrosehealth if you’re in the LA or SD area and feel like it’s time for a Personal Trainer that can help you with your strength training).

I know most of you are currently doing H.I.I.T. classes though so I want to begin to help you by giving you some tips on how to optimize your current workout classes.

TIP #1:

TRY TO GET AT LEAST 5 ALL OUT SPRINTS DURING CLASS

This can be on the rowing machine, on the tread, on a bike, whatever. Rather than giving 70% of your effort all class, it would be more beneficial for you to decide that you’re truly going to go all out with everything you’ve got, 120%, for a fraction of the class.

For example: When I take a spin class, they usually give us 2-3 sprints towards the end of class. I go in knowing that I want to hit closer to 8-10 sprints throughout class so what I’ll do is glance at my watch, and when I feel ready or when my heart rate is closer to 130bpm, I’ll check the time and try to go ALL FUCKING OUT for 10, 15, 20, or 30 seconds, getting my heart rate closer to 180bpm. I usually start with 30 seconds and then bring it down to 10-20 as class is winding down.

Don’t bother trying to sprint for more than 30 seconds. You’ll likely get through 2 energy systems by the time 30 seconds pass and I want you to try to stay within your first two energy systems.

If that’s confusing, check out my blog on sprinting here. It will make more sense once you know the benefits of interval sprinting.

So why is this better than going at a steady pace all class?

Well because when we do ALL OUT explosive movements, we tap into our type II muscle fibers and those are the muscles fibers that want to GROW. Also because when we tap into that first energy system, we burn about 36 calories per minute! Typically in classes we never go ALL OUT. Like I said, we give partial effort throughout the full 45-60 minutes of class and end up burning about 10 calories per minute. NOT BAD, but why not optimize it?

Another example is if I go to a place like Training Mate where they don’t have treads or when the cardio bursts are scattered throughout the workout, I focus on giving my absolute ALL during the cardio sections. This tends to be battle ropes, bike, or row. And then I make sure to pay attention to the time since in their classes, you hit one exercise for 45 seconds before break so no matter what the instructor is saying or if the people next to me go all out the entire time, I’ll go at a moderate pace for the first 15 seconds and then I’ll give it everything I’ve got for the remaining 30 seconds.

Make sense?!

TIP #2:

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE WEIGHTS WHEN YOU CAN

I understand that in a lot of group classes, it’s the instructors job to show you something new, something flashy, and something that is weirdly hard so that you are entertained, sweaty, moving, and feeling like you’re getting the best workout in the world. I always used to just do exactly what the instructor told us to do but now that I understand how to get results, sometimes I switch things up a bit. Most of the time instructors won’t say anything to you so don’t be nervous to kind of beat to your own rhythm during class. If they ask you why you’re doing something, instead of saying “I think this way is better” haha you can just say you have an injury or something idk. Whatever.

So for example – If I want to really work on my legs during class and the instructor has us doing weighted bosu ball squats, I’m going to just grab a heavier dumbbell and do my squats on the ground. Doing anything on a bosu ball might seem harder but if my goal is to lift heavy for legs so that I can tone them the EF up, then it makes more sense for me to be on a stable surface so that I can safely lift more. Not to mention – if you’ve never grabbed a 40-60lb dumbbell for squats and tried to do as many as you can in 30 seconds – let me just tell you – it’s going to be WAY harder than doing bosu ball squats with 15 pounds.

(Of course the term “harder” is always relative. What may be heavy for one person may be light for another person, so always do what feels best for you).

TIP #3:

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY

If your back hurts then take it upon yourself to stop doing 383 leg lifts at the end of class and adjust to another core exercise that doesn’t hurt you. Half the time these instructors don’t even ask if you have any injuries (half the time they do) but if they don’t then you need to make sure that you do what’s best for you because well, YOU know best.

I once went into a Barry’s class so that I could do SOMETHING while I was in physical therapy for my back. I went in just wanting to move, get in some cardio and do light weights.

I was walking on incline on the tread while the instructor had everyone sprinting and he came up to me and screamed into his headset to the whole class “you just taking a stroll over here??? Pick it up LET’S GO!!!”

I just looked at him and said “I’m good – thanks!” Like wtf. I get that it’s your job to turn up and get the room excited but you haven’t even asked me if I have any injuries, and also have no idea if this is my first workout in months. UGH it just drives me crazy.

So don’t be afraid to DO YOU. If your knee hurts when you’re jumping, stop jumping, and be confident for your reasoning. Being tired and getting a shooting pain through your kneecap are two different things so let your regression be for a SMART reason and give it your all when you can.

TIP #4:

SLOW IT DOWN

When you’re not doing your sprint intervals and you’re more focused on your exercise, SLOW IT DOWN. Catch your breath, find your core, stabilize, and get in adequate reps, not quick sloppy ones.

Literally soooo many of my clients are sore from their ASSESSMENT with me which is just the basics. We do some squats, reverse lunges, step ups, push ups, and planks but they’re just not used to going slow and paying attention to form and what muscles they’re supposed to be working that it literally feels like a brand new workout…and in a way it is!

But the great thing is that if you pay attention, you can incorporate this method into your group classes.

The step up for example – SO easy to do wrong, and SO beneficial when you do it right.

Here’s what I do:

• I do all 10-15 reps whatever it is, on one leg first and then I switch legs, as opposed to switching feet each rep. This way I really burn out one leg and my stabilization is better.

• If you can get a higher step up and handle it, try that! Going higher than what you’re used to will engage different muscles.

• Don’t launch off the foot that touches the ground. This makes a huge difference. You’re supposed to be working the leg that’s doing the step up so let it work! If I’m stepping up with my left leg for example, I will press the heel of my left foot into the platform as much as I can, slightly bend at the waist, tighten my core, and push into my left foot to bring myself up. When I come back down I try to only come to my tip toes on my right foot, then press up through my left foot again.

• Come down SLOOOOW. If we can’t come down slowly from a step up then that’s typically a sign that your posterior chain (glutes and hammies) are weak. We should be able to control that motion so PRACTICE! It makes such a big difference.

TIP #5:

CHALLENGE YOURSELF

Similar to the sprint intervals, when it comes to weights, it would be better to give your all out effort for a short period of class rather than 70% for the entire class.

Something I always hear in classes that involve weights is the instructor will tell girls to grab 5-12 pounds and men to grab 25-30lbs. Or they’ll say something along the lines of “girls grab one set of heavy weights and one set of light weights” and the girls always grab a pair of 5’s and MAYBE a pair of 15’s.

Like I said before “heavy” is relative to the person and to the exercise. 15 pounds may not be your heavy weight for squats but if you’re doing tricep kickbacks, that’s probably super heavy.

Challenge yourself if you notice that you’re using your heavy upper body weight ALSO as your heavy lower body weight. I swear this happens all the time. This is why a lot of women will start to see results in their arms from classes but their lower body doesn’t change much. Don’t be afraid or too lazy to walk back over to the weight rack when you realize you could go heavier. If I’m in class I’ll grab 1 pair of light weights for high rep upper body exercises BUT I’ll also grab one set of medium weights so that I can get in as many reps as I can with those weights before dropping them and going to my lighter weights.

THEN I grab 1 heavy dumbbell for leg work like a 35 – 50 lb dumbbell so that I can use it for lunges, squats, hip thrusts etc.

Too often girls just stick to their super light weights and it’s just not optimal. Why are we using the same weight for our tiny bicep muscle as we are for our glutes and quads which are HUGE muscles!

Just try it next time! And remember that when you have more muscle, you burn more calories at rest and therefore increase your basil metabolic rate!

All good things!

PROPER REST TIME DEPENDING ON YOUR FITNESS GOALS

Hi beauties!

|All Photos Shot By www.rionoirland.com |

I would like to start this by saying that I am currently sitting in a coffee bean, SUCCESSFULLY ignoring my massive craving for a bagel with peanut butter right now…just pretending to enjoy this cappuccino with burnt milk, living my best life.

Also - listening to the new Kevin Abstract album, on repeat. Anyone else a fan? Ugh it’s so good.

ANYWAY - I want to talk about rest periods because there’s a lot of contradicting convos going on and I feel like it would help to just clear the air up a bit.

> I have a lot of clients say they want to get a bigger butt or sculpted arms but they don’t want to lift any weight.

> I have other clients who are so used to the quick fast paced environment of fitness classes that they tell me they don’t feel like they’re getting in a good workout unless they sweat a lot but they also don’t feel like they’re getting any stronger in their weekly classes.

> And I have other clients that I train online that just want to know how fast they should be going. How much rest is too much rest? How much rest is actually too LITTLE? What’s the benefit of longer or shorter rest periods?

WELLLL it all depends on your goals, but you can really think about it in 3 separate categories. Let’s start here:

1. STRENGTH TRAINING

Strength training of course means using weight but today it holds more meaning than just that. If your goal is to build strength faster, then your focus should be on doing strength training workouts. According to ASSM, if you’re looking to get stronger faster, then the best rest time for you is 3-5 minutes between sets.

Keep in mind though that if you’re doing proper “strength” training then you are doing 1-6 reps per set MEANING that you are using a weight that you can literally only lift between 1-6 times before failure. With that said, it’s pretty clear that whatever you’re doing is HARD and heavy af.

During this kind of training, your body uses phosphagens from your ATP system (Adenosine Triphosphate Phosphocreatine System) in order to produce energy VERY quickly without the use of Oxygen (less than 10 seconds).

BUT your body’s phosphagen reserve is like the shitty street light that everyone hates. It lasts for about 15 seconds then takes 3 minutes before it turns green again.

So we use up our reserve within that 15 seconds while we do our 1-6 reps and then if we wait the proper 3-5 minutes before we try to go again, then we’ll be able to lift more weight, and get stronger, faster.

According to Bodybuilding.com :

In one study, athletes lifted a weight more times in 3 sets after resting 3 minutes compared to when they rested only 1 minute (Kraemer, 1997). Another study showed a 7% increase in squat strength after 5 weeks of training with 3 minute rest periods.

The group that rested for 30 seconds only improved their squat by 2% (Robinson et al, 1995). Two more studies that examined very short rest periods (30 to 40 seconds) found they caused nowhere near the strength gains from longer rest periods (Kraemer et al, 1987; Kraemer, 1997)”

MY SUGGESTION:

If you’re looking to build strength in a specific area (like booty for example) then try adding one day a week of STRENGTH TRAINING. Try doing 5 sets of hip thrusts for 5-6 reps, then rest for 3-5 minutes before trying again.

Follow that up with some complimentary exercises like:

3 x 12 Romanian Dead Lifts

3 x 10 Goblet Squats

And then end with some band work and really chase the burn with:

3 x 30 band walks.

UNLESS - you are a beginner. If you are just getting into weight training then you might want to do a month of training where each exercise is done for a rep range of 10-15 to strengthen ligaments and avoid getting hurt.

2. HYPERTROPHY TRAINING:

Who’s heard of this one?!

Hypertrophy training is what you do when you want to get bigger, faster. The rep range for this type of training is typically anywhere from 6-12 reps.

The rest time for this kind of training is 1-2 minutes because this short rest period causes a greater release of anabolic (growth) hormones than longer rest periods. Resting for shorter periods of time also causes more of a burn in the muscles which I’m sure we’ve all experienced. This burn is the sign of lactic acid building up and the “pump” for lack of a better word, is the blood flow to that area, which is actually a great thing because where there’s quicker blood flow - there’s more protein being delivered to that area as well! Woooo!

I think hypertrophy training is my favorite kind of training. You might be thinking, well I don’t WANT to grow my muscles, and I don’t WANT to get BULKY. Fortunately for you, getting bulky is SUPER hard to do. You may think that your training is making you bulky but chances are, it’s your diet that’s throwing you off. Plus - we don’t have nearly enough testosterone to grow the way that men do.

Guys on average have 300 - 1,000 u/dL whereas females only have 30 - 90 u/dL. We’re like delicate little flowers lol and thinking that we’re going to get as bulky as men is like thinking a little flower can turn into a huge palm tree. It’s just not going to happen, unless you’re taking steroids…then, well…we know what that looks like.

True anabolism from hypertrophy training only last about 48 hours which is why for someone who wants to grow their ass, they need to be CONSISTENT and SHOW UP REGULARLY in order to see the kind of results they’re expecting. If you do hypertrophy training 1-2 times a week then don’t do it again for a week, your muscles are just in a maintenance phase rather than a growth phase.

MY SUGGESTION:

Do 2-3 days of hypertrophy training a week with your 1 day of strength training. I make sure to set my timer during rest periods to ensure that I get going again as soon as I need to… or else I end up getting distracted and taking 5 minute rest periods which is no bueno.

3. ENDURANCE TRAINING:

Endurance training is best for anyone who is looking to increase their muscular endurance. This is what most of us ladies are used to with all the classes that we typically attend. As a trainer I know that if I take a women through a endurance style workout that she’s most likely going to do a great job BUT if I were to take a man though the same kind of workout, it would kill them. Men don’t do as much endurance training as they do strength and hypertrophy.

Classic endurance training is when you use light weights for 15-20 reps and rest for 45 seconds to a minute between sets and it’s biggest purpose is to make your muscles more resistant to fatigue. If you want to start applying true endurance training to your workouts, try doing a 1:1 work to rest ratio or a 1:2.

So if you did the 1:1 ratio you would do for example, squats for 30 seconds then rest for 30 seconds. If you did the 1:2 ratio then you would do squats for 30 seconds then rest for 1 min.

MY SUGGESTION:

Add one day of endurance training to your weekly training regime!

So now you can see why if you’re someone like the old me, you’re wondering why your butt ins’t getting any bigger even though you’re going to Orange Theory and Barry’s every day.

Or maybe you can now see why going to Yoga and doing cycling a few times a week isn’t exactly getting you the toned look that you want.

As women we need to work on not being so afraid of the gym and of lifting weights. We don’t have NEARLY the same amount of testosterone that men do so we can get away with doing the “same” training as men and experience great results without looking like a man.

Also something to note is that you can’t spot reduce (burn fat in one particular area on your body) but you can build muscles in specific areas.

So for me, I might do 2 lower body hypertrophy days a week + 1 lower body strength training day and then I’ll do 1 upper body hypertrophy day + 1 full body endurance day.

My main focus isn’t to grow my arms but I never neglect them and I still use heavier weights than most women. I’d say my arms are strong and toned and not bulky. Before when I was using 2-5 pound dumbbells for my upper body, I had flabby arms. Now I curl with a 40 pound barbell, bench with 35’s, do overheads presses with 25 pounds, etc and my arms have done nothing but toned up.

Just try it and see how it benefits you!!

If you feel like you’re lost or would like some personal guidance in the gym, e-mail me at info@chelseyrosehealth.com to talk about your goals and get a personalized work out plan!

x

NEW YEAR. NEW YOU. HOW TO BECOME A RUNNER

So I went for a run outside for the first time in MONTHS the other day (but now that its 2017 I can say I ran for the first time this year!..HA). 

Um and I WANTED TO KILL MYSELF. I felt like I had a tumor taking over the right side of my stomach that was getting ready to explode.

And I work out...like I do HIIT and do cardio on the stair master a few times a week but running outside is a whole other ball game. 

The worst part is? I used to play 90-minute soccer games and run the whole game. That was years ago BUT STILL! Then last year when I was living by the beach I got into running again and I noticed myself getting faster. I noticed my legs getting smaller but looking strong and lean and I even noticed my abs and arms toning up.

I started to CRAVE running. I would get off work around 3:30, sit in an hour to an hour and a half of traffic, it would be 90-degrees outside but I would still get home, throw on my shorts and a sports bra and run for my 30 minutes.

Seriously fell in love. I remember I was motived as soon as I read Cameron Diaz's "The Body Book". She explained how she stays in shape and that getting up and running first thing in the morning was part of it. 

So, I channeled my inner Cameron Diaz and started running my ass off, or should I say on ;)

Okay so ANYWAYS - enough recap. Moral of the story is that I miss running and I'm trying to get back into it but HOLY SHIT that first run sucked ass.

I guess through this post I want to motivate you to pick up running if that's something that you want to do and remind you that it's not going to be easy but it will be worth it! And I suck right now so that might be motivating for you also! HA.

I want to give you some pointers on what to do as a new runner + I want to show you the app that I use every time I run!!

TIP 1: START SLOW

Meaning, don't be upset if you end up walking, because you should. Don't try to run yourself into the ground. You want to start with some low intensity cardio which could be walking, jogging or hiking. Even going for a run but breaking it up with some walking is good for newbie runners. This will start to build strength for those higher intensity cardio days. 

TIP 2: GET SEXY...AND COMFY

I think that when you're picking up a new workout hobby that you donnnn't really want to be doing in the first place, it's important to feel good about the way you look. If I take a while off from something like yoga or cardio for example, I like to run to Marshall's and grab 1-2 new pieces of workout gear. 

ALSO - especially when it comes to running you need to invest in some ACTUAL running shoes. This might also motivate you because they can be a little pricey so it will push you to at least get your money's worth.

But since running can be lots of impact you want to make sure you're protecting your joints with the right shoes. Look for something like these nikes with lots of cushion and support. 

TIP 3: THIS APP

This running app is called "Run Keeper" and I've been using it for forever. I like it because before I found this app, I would look at my phone every 10 seconds to see how long I've been running for. 

I didn't want to just run around a track for a certain amount of miles. I wanted to get in a 30 minute workout of running but I was so over checking to see if it was time to turn around yet. 

Also, just by looking at my phone I wasn't able to see if I was making any progress so the whole thing was pretty UN-motivating. 

This app allows me to set a timer for 30 minutes PLUS it alerts me when I've been running for 15 minutes so that I know when I need to turn around. 

It also tracks my pace, incline and distance then records my personal best record for each.

So even if you're nervous just go out and give these tips a try !! Leave a comment below to let me know if you have any other tips!

5 REASONS WHY YOUR WORKOUTS AREN'T HELPING YOU LOSE WEIGHT.

Well, I think we can all agree that there's pretty much nothing worse than working out 6 times a week and feeling like you look the same way you did on day one. Am I right or am I right?

I think there's something that happens when we start going to the gym or just working out in general that sort of makes us feel so proud and accomplished that we feel like it's a big enough step to make a difference. Sometimes it totally is but sometimes we start to notice that it doesn't really seem to be doing much. 

We feel like that since we went to the gym that day, we can still eat whatever we want later or sometimes even more than what we would have if we hadn't hit the gym.

There's a few habits that I'm sure a lot of us do that we need to change if we're looking o actually notice a difference in our physique. 

1. WORKING OUT ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.

If we don't go to the gym with at least some healthy carbs in our system then we are setting ourselves up for failure. Our muscles use carbs as energy so if we keep ourselves depleted of that energy then we get fatigued a lot faster and we have a harder time finishing our workout. Kind of defeats the point don't you think?

I like having a piece of whole grain toast with grass fed butter in the morning or a banana AT LEAST. Especially if you're going to be having L-Carnitine, BCAA's and Pre Workout (Which I always do and highly suggest:)) then you definitely want to make sure that you have something in your stomach. 

I also love doing 1/3 cup of cous cous with 3 egg whites and 1/4 of an avocado to get a good balance of healthy carbs, fats and protein.

2. DOING THE SAME WORKOUT EVERYDAY.

You can be going to the gym 6 times a week but if you're doing the same 30 minute treadmill walk everyday then eventually your body will take a plateau and stop letting go of weight. You want to surprise your body and constantly switch things up. Your workouts should vary throughout the week so that some days you are doing heavy heart beating HIIT workouts while other days your doing longer workouts at a lower intensity. 

You can see how I've been scheduling my workouts here. 

3. OVEREATING...EVEN IF IT'S HEALTHY.

I don't think you're damaging your health from eating a lot of healthy foods but it might not be helping you in the weight loss department. I can work out everyday but I'm not a body builder or a man for that matter so I don't NEED soooo much food. 6 small meals a day is ideal.

If I workout then come home and have 3 cups of couscous then fruit, then oatmeal and dabble into some greek yogurt...I've already added back on all the calories I just burned + more. 

All of those foods ARE healthy for us but if you're feeling super full after each meal then chances are you're eating too much. 

Go for a protein shake after a workout or a 3-4 ounce piece of salmon with veggies. Have something else a few hours later...this will happily supply your muscles with what they need to get stronger plus make your metabolism work faster. 

4. YOU'RE NOT PLANNING YOUR WORKOUTS.

Compare those days that you walk into the gym knowing what you're doing vs. the days that you walk in and stroll around for a while debating what the hell you're even there for. When I go to the gym with a pre thought out workout I know exactly where I need to go, what I need to grab and how long it's going to take. This motivates me to finish the entire workout in a certain amount of time (usually 30 minutes) and then get on with my day. 

When I go to the gym without a plan I walk in...start walking on the treadmill...try to decide if I want to do arms or legs or abs...get bored of the treadmill...go to the stair master...hit about 20 minutes and then want to bounce. 

In my mind I count that as a workout for the day but when I look back at it, it was pretty much just a waste of time.

5. YOU'RE COMPARING YOURSELF TO OTHERS. 

PLEASE don't do this. I know it can be so hard to avoid but you really need to focus on yourself and where you are at with your personal goals. Someone may be tinnier than you but maybe they are trying to gain weight. Some people are in the gym for the first time in their life and they might look better than you while others are in the gym for the 200th time and may be heavier than you. 

It doesn't matter. Their story and journey is for them and you need to write your own. If you continue to focus on other people and compare yourself, it can be extremely discouraging and may even make you just want to give up. 

I suggest taking pictures of yourself and keeping your own tab on yourself. Watch how you progress and always make sure that you have short and long term goals for yourself. 

Make yourself happy :)

HOW I'M SCHEDULING MY WORKOUTS

So I'm back at my job after our glorious 6 week paid time off annnnnd, I've officially decided I want to work from home for the rest of my life...

I went from waking up and having all day to hit the gym, do computer work, write, clean, RELAX..and now I am at work from 5:00 pm until 2:00 am, 6 nights a week.

Not ideal, BUT I'm happy to be working (I guess. HA, so bitter), and making money before christmas and before my boyfriend and I get our first place together in March!! EEEEEK.

Anyways. I'm not one for excuses and even though i'm freaking exhausted during the day after working so late, I'm still doing my best to eat clean and hit the gym. I don't know about you guys but If I skip the gym or eat unhealthy for days on end, on top of being stressed, and sleepy...I become so...gross feeling, you know?

I feel like I'm not myself, I eat more because I'm thinking that I just might as well since I haven't been to the gym, I start eating the shitty food at work that's filled with oil instead of my healthy snacks...the list goes on. 

SO. I'm all about time blocking in order to make time for the things I want to be doing and need to be doing for my health before I have to go spend my time at work. I've noticed that if I don't time block then my day completely goes to waste and next thing you know, I'm on another shift. 

Alrighty so my workouts need to be short and sweet as I'm sure your guys' do to. I need to get the most out of my workout in the 30 minutes I have to be at the gym and I need to go in there knowing what I'm doing. If I don't, then I just end up unmotivated, walking on the treadmill and sitting in the sauna. You feel me?

If you need ideas on quick, efficient workouts then check out my blog about how to make your own HIIT workouts!

My workout schedule I have set up right now goes like this:

MONDAY: LEGS

TUESDAY: HIIT

WEDNESDAY: ARMS

THURSDAY: STEADY STATE CARDIO (45 MINUTES)

FRIDAY: ABS

SATURDAY: STEADY STATE CARDIO

SUNDAY: ACTIVE REST (WALK OR HIKE)

Each day is only 30 minutes long!! Except for Thursday's when I do steady state cardio I try to stay for 45 minutes. 

Also Tuesday's are pretty simple. I do 10-15 minutes of HIIT cardio (meaning high intensity interval training) and then I stretch in the sauna for 15 minutes. 

When I do HIITT cardio I sprint for 30 seconds then rest for 30 seconds. I always walk at speed 3.0 for my "rest" and the sprinting pace depends on how long I'm doing intervals for. If i'm doing them for 15 minutes then I try to make my sprinting speed 8.5 and if I'm only doing intervals for 10 minutes, then I make my running speed 10.0.

That kind of kills so I might just stand on the sides of the treadmill during my "rest" rather than walk at speed 3.0.

I love this though because these HIIT exercises TORCH calories and SERIOUSLY get your metabolism going, so don't be surprised if you're a bit hungrier than normal later on in the day! (Remember to eat 6 small meals a day to keep your metabolism going!).

One of these days I'll have a fitness guide for you guys to follow so that your totally set up but for now, try following a schedule similar to this ESPECIALLY if you're always on a time crunch so that you can keep your body and mind in check.

LOVE YOU!

XOXO C.

HOW TO CREATE A HIIT WORKOUT

"Running late is my cardio". HA. I couldn't agree more. 

Sometimes I find that my most effective workouts are when I'm short on time. If I know I only have 30 minutes to workout that really means that I ONLY HAVE 30 MINUTES.

That means there's no time to drive to the gym and I'm probably working out in my pajamas. 

BUT luckily 30 minutes is the perfect amount of time for a sweaty HIIT workout. 

H I I T = HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING 

This is the kind of thing that allows you to burn MORE calories in LESS time and as long as you know a couple different variations, you can do a HIIT workout everyday in 30 minutes or less and see some crazy ass results. 

Basically the point of a HIIT workout it to keep your heart rate up most of the time. That's the HIGH INTENSITY PART. 

You want to make sure that you're pairing something that gets your heart rate up with something a little less intense, this is the INTERVAL part. 

Then just make sure you have enough exercises to last you about 27-30 minutes and you're golden!

Here's my technique for making a HIIT workout:

+ Pick 8 exercises

+ Make 4 of them HIGH INTENSITY

+ Make the other 4 LOW INTENSITY

+ Then combine them into 2 circuits

EXAMPLE:

  CIRCUIT 1                       CIRCUIT 2

- Low intensity                          - High Intensity

- High Intensity                             - Low Intensity

- High intensity                             - High Intensity

- Low intensity                              - Low Intensity 

Pretty easy right? Now you just obviously need some examples of what is high intensity and what is low intensity.

When you think high intensity think about anything that is going to get your heart rate UP. 

I always think of anything that's going to make me RUN or JUMP.

Use these for some high intensity options:

(Reps are based on fitness level. Beginner -> Extreme. I find that 15-20 reps is plenty for me right now). 

- Jump Squats (10-30)

- Jump Lunges (10-30)

- Burpees (10-30)

- Commandos (10-30)

- Pop Squats (10-30)

- Mountain Climbers (10-60)

- Mountain Climbers x 4 + 1 Push up ( 10 times)

- Jump Rope (1-5 minutes)

- Run Outside (1-5 minutes)

LOW INTENSITY OPTIONS:

(Should still keep your heart rate up, just not as high as it would be if you were running or jumping continuously).

- Weighted Step Ups (10-30 reps, 5-20 pounds)

- Push Ups (15-30)

- Squats (15-30)

- Abs Bicycles (20-50)

- Scissor Kicks (20-50)

- Crunches (15-50)

- Leg Lifts with hip raise (10-30)

- Walking Lunges (12-20 on each side)

- Medicine Ball Squat and Press (15-25)

- Triceps Dips (15-30)

- Straight Leg Sit Ups (15-30)

- Raised Reverse Lunges (10-20 each leg)

- Weighted Wide Squats (15-30)

So notice how the high intensity workouts involve JUMPING or RUNNING or FULL BODY MOTIONS where as the LOWER intensity workouts are more PUSHING or STEPPING.

If you're making a HIIT workout for your very first time then maybe try the lower number of reps but still give it everything you've got! 

I tend to do appx 15 reps of each move.

---

SO IN ORDER TO MAKE THIS LAST ABOUT 30 MINUTES YOU NEED TO DO THE FIRST CIRCUIT TWICE, AND THEN MOVE ON TO THE SECOND CIRCUIT AND MAKE SURE YOU COMPLETE THAT ONE TWICE AS WELL. 

---

Start incorporating a HIIT workout into your weekly routine 3 times a week.

This is what my schedule looks like:

Monday: Steady Cardio for 30 minutes

Tuesday: HIIT WORKOUT

Wednesday: Steady Cardio for 30 minutes

Thursday: HIIT CARDIO + A HIIT Workout

Friday: Steady cardio for 30 minutes

Saturday: HIIT WORKOUT

Sunday: Hike

Create one, try it, and then let me know how it goes for you! Challenge yourself and don't be afraid to pick the running outside option or the burpees. I swear i'm doing like 90 burpees a week right now and my arms and abs are toning up fast!!

xoxo

MY MORNING PRE WORKOUT MUST HAVES

About time I do this right?? I'm realizing that a lot of you guys are more into working out than I thought SO i'm trying to add a lot more info for you to the Let's Get Physical Section. 

So if you guys follow me on SNAP (chelseyrose) you know I'm kind of obsessed with all of these products.

I literally won't go to the gym until I finish this little routine because I 100% feel the difference in my workout when I don't have it compared to when I do.

When I don't have it my workout is ehhh pretty good.

When I DO have these little workout boosters my workout is AMAZING.

I'm sweating off all my regrets, I'm in a competition with myself, I'm focused, and I'm KILLING IT.

(The other day at them gym WHILE I HAD MY HEADPHONES IN, this guy stops me to tell me how focused I looked while I was working out....COOOOOOL STORY GUY, thank you for CLEARLY ruining that.)

I just can't stand when guys stop to talk to you while you have headphones in. I mean come on.

Anyways.

This morning gym prep takes about mm 7 minutes total? And it's such a game changer and SO obtainable so I feel like I need to share.

---

Here's the plan:

---

1. Green Things First 

1. As soon as I wake up, I go downstairs and make my Green Drink.

+++ 24 Ounces of Alkaline Water

+++ 1 Lemon, Juiced

+++ 4-5 ice cubes

+++ 1 Scoop of MRM Global Greens

This re hydrates me, starts my digestive system, starts my metabolism and starts cleansing my body. AND i've actually replaced my coffee with this. Not intentionally, BUT I started to realize that after I drink this I have energy.

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2. Eat a Piece of Fruit

If you guy's saw my last post on pears, you would know why I'm SERIOUSLY OBSESSED with pears right now. 

I make sure that I have SOMETHING in my stomach before taking my pre workout supplements even though I'm not hungry until after the gym.

It's way better on your stomach if you have something in there, trust me.

I used to take it on an empty stomach and it was AWFUL. So just eat something. Even if it's 4 spoon fulls of cold left over quinoa, I don't care.

---

3. Pre-Workout & L-Carnetine

Ah, my two best friends. What's up. I first have a cap full of L-Carnetine and then I have my pre workout with alkaline water in a short glass because although it's not bad tasting, I don't really want to just sip on it.

WHY L-CARNITINE?

In the most simplest terms...L-Carnitine allows your body to transport your fat into the mitochondria (remember science class? That's the power house of the cell). Once the fat is there, your body will start using it to FUEL you, so now you are using your body's fat storages as energy.

I TOTALLY feel this while I'm working out, plus i've noticed that it kinda suppressus my appetite which can be some what beneficial for anyone that over eats compared to what they burn.

Mainly though, I love the energy it gives me.

WHY PRE WORKOUT?

Girl do you want to sweat or nah? Haha, this pre workout is just such a great little tool to get some pep in your step first thing in the morning and it makes me sweat like crazy. I can't go to the gym without it. 

By the end of my workout I'm drenched. 

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4. ATP?

According to breakingmuscle.com, ATP is one of the major players in the human body when it comes to energy, and my guess is...we could all use as much energy as we can get. 

ATP is something that our bodies produce naturally and it is responsible for our exertion of energy. So throw a punch, or jump in the air and throw out a thank you to ATP.

BUT, throw out punches for 5 minutes straight or jump 30 times in a row and you're going to deplete your storage of ATP.

Taking ATP supplements helps us get thru those last couple of reps on say a round of 20 jump squats.

SO, since i've been focusing on a lot of HIIT workouts lately in order to burn fat efficiently and quickly, I've been doing a lot of jumping and a higher amount of reps so this has been GOLD for me.

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Ready for the BEST news of all?

All these products are made by MRM-USA and they want to give all my readers 40% off all their products, ALL THE TIME.

Amazing, right? All you need to do is enter my code CHELSEY (make sure it's with a Y)... at checkout !

Just head to their website, (linked here) and shop away for almost half off!

xoxo Have fun!

Q&A WITH TRAINER VERONICA PRINCE

Getting advice is my JAM.

And I know that physical fitness is something that a lot of you are passionate about so I wanted to link up with my good friend Miss Veronica Prince and just ask her a fewww questions about the whole working out thing.

I personally do some kind of exercise about 5 times a week but that doesn't mean that every now and then while I'm busting my ass on the stair master I don't think to myself...is this realllly helping me?

You know what I mean? And then you start to wonder...is this building my legs up or is this toning them down? Is there even a difference? So while everyone else is sweating their life off and thinking about their ass, I'm over there thinking about if what I'm doing is even working.

SO.

Let's get into the questions ay??

Okay.

1. 

ME: Okay so the first question that comes into my mind that I feel like I get asked A LOT is how can girls slim down/ tone up/ their legs? 

VERONICA: So it kind of depends. You have to determine if your legs are MUSCULAR and you want them a little less "bulky" or if they are big and "soft". 

If they are muscular and you want to tone them down, then you are going to want to do HIIT workouts. HIIT = high intensity interval training. So an example of this would be jump squats and jump lunges. 

I would do 4 sets of 15-20 reps. Another type of HIIT is sprinting intervals so I suggest getting on the treadmill and sprinting with 90% effort for 30 seconds then taking a break for 30 seconds. Do this for a total of 15 minutes. 

Also!!! Jump roping is GREAT for the legs whether you're wanting to tone up or slim down!

2.

ME: Amazing! Okay so what do you suggest as an ideal week of working out? I personally do 3 HIIT workouts, 2 days of steady cardio for about 30-45 minutes and 2 days of interval sprints. Sound good?

VERONICA: Yes that sounds perfect! So this is what I suggest BECAUSE this way you are always surprising you body and burning a TON of calories.

- 4 x's a week = RESISTANCE TRAINING. This means just using something a little bit more than your body weight so try incorporating a medicine ball, resistance bands, or light weights.

- On these days also do 10 minutes of interval sprints.

- 2 days a week do 30 minutes of steady cardio

- The last day you should so some kind of active rest so try going for a walk or a hike for 30-45 minutes.

3.

ME: What would you say to someone that feels like they are killing it in the gym but they stopped seeing results?

VERONICA: I would tell that person that they definitely need to check their water intake. Water is a huge reason why some people hold on to weight.

ME: YES! I totally understand that. When I was right out of high school and started to work out on my own, I noticed that after two weeks of drinking a gallon of water a day my love handles SERIOUSLY shrunk. It was amazing. 

VERONICA: Yeah it really really helps! When it comes down to it, your results are going to come from what you're feeding your body. If you're eating more than your burning then you will maintain or gain, if you are burning more than you are eating then you will lose weight.

ME: I feel like this is why girls starve themselves sometimes though and then they can't even make it thru a workout because they don't have enough energy. WE NEED TO EAT NUTRITIOUS FOODS! 

VERONICA: Oh totally. Yeah we NEED food to workout. I would also tell someone that if they're not seeing results that you DON'T need to go buy every supplement on the planet. Really the only supplements I suggest are Protein and BCAA's. (Branch chain Amino Acids).

4.

ME: What do the BCAA's do for us?

VERONICA: Basically Amino Acids are the building blocks of protein so it leads to greater muscle gain and it helps maintain lean muscles. This also promotes fat burning which can lead to weight loss AND they help replenish muscles after a workout so you're not as sore!

5.

ME: Okay amazing!! Yeah I remember my trainer had me drinking those like all day every day when I was training for a fitness competition. Speaking of hardcore fitness training, what are your thoughts when girls say they are afraid to lift heavy weights because they don't want to bulk up?

VERONICA: So....it takes body builders A LONNNNNNG time, a TON of work and a BUNCH of weight to look that way. Us lifting heavy a few times a week isn't going to magically turn us into that. Not to mention that those body builders are usually on some kind of growth hormone, testosterone and steroids.. 

Heavy lifting is ESSENTIAL for us and has so many great benefits. The higher percentage of muscle mass that we have the faster our metabolism is working all day long, even when we're at rest. This is because muscle is harder to maintain than fat so your body has to burn more energy to keep it!

When lifting heavy the idea is that you're toning right? So when you say that you want to TONE you're basically saying that you want to lose body fat and build some muscle. 

Next time you do a heavy workout, do 6-12 reps with the last 2-3 reps being pretty hard for you to finish, and rest for 60-90 seconds in between sets.

TRAIN SMARTER, NOT HARDER. 

ACHIEVE THE SAME SUCCESS IN LESS TIME IN THE WEIGHT ROOM RATHER THAN RUNNING. 

6.

ME: Yeah honestly, I see AMAZING results when I lift heavy, especially ass workouts ;) haha, okay! Next question. I LOVE LOVE LOVE fasted cardio, what are your thoughts?

VERONICA: It's great because it revs your metabolism for the rest of the day! I definitely don't suggest weight training first thing in the morning because you need more fuel for that but fasted cardio is great. Something like the bike or the stair master. 

7.

ME: Okay, what are some of your favorite pre and post workout snacks? You want to have carbs before a workout for fuel and protein after to rebuild muscles, right?

VERONICA: Yeah Ideally! I like to have 1/2 a sweet potato, quinoa, oatmeal or an apple or banana with almond butter before a workout. Afterwards I like to have a protein smoothie or salmon :)

8.

ME: One last question...I feel like girls ask me this question a lot which is why I've focused on it so much with my 8 Tips to a Flat Tummy Newsletter...Girls always want to know how they can loose the belly, get abs, and just tone their core. I have always noticed that I get the best results from WHAT I EAT, but I'm interested in asking you on what your thoughts are on this from the perspective of a trainer.

VERONICA: You NEED to focus on your diet. Core strength exercises can help, like planking and leg raises but honestly the core starts to peek through after a clean diet and just working out in general. Whenever you start consistently burning calories from cardio, weight training, and other workouts, the overall calorie burn will result in weight loss from your mid section. 

ME: Good to know!! Yeah that's why I made the 8 tummy tips because I feel like with just a few habit changes, you'll really start to notice that bloat goes away and your abs peak though. Everyone HAS abs, their just hidden!

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If you want to sign up for my 8 tummy tips just leave your info below!!

Follow Veronica on Instagram @VERONICA.PRINCE

7 HABITS OF A FIT GIRL - Shamira West

Want to be a fit girl? Well, there are some things you need to put in practice first. Not all fit girls do the same thing. We all have our own routines, favorite workouts and meals. However, there are something’s we all have in common. Here are 7 habits of a fit girl:

1. She meal preps every week – Fit girls love to be prepared and have healthy food on hand at all times.

2. She never skips a Monday – Fit girls love getting the week started with a sweat session. It sets a positive tone for the rest of the week.

3. She always has a bottle of water with her - Fit girls love staying hydrated.

4. She lifts heavy, boxes, does yoga & boot camp style training – Fit girls love mixing it up & challenging themselves. It’s fun that way!

5. She eats small, but often - Eating throughout the day makes you less tempted by the monster-size buckets of popcorn and supersize fries and drink containers that include double servings.

6. She makes sleep a priority – Fit girls love their rest. It is the only way they have the energy to go hard in the gym.

7. She believes in balance - Fit Girls know that extreme diets, extreme working out and a rigid schedule are not sustainable. They opt for a sensible lifestyle by building in habitual wellness practices for a healthy life.

What are some habits you have that makes you a Fit Girl? 

- Shamria West

TIPS FOR TONING

Okay I don't want to scare you of but at the same time, let's just jump to the point, shall we?

in order to start toning you’re going to want to start lifting heavy weights, don’t be scared, you’re not going to turn into a man haha, it takes A LOT of work to do that and our bodies aren’t the same as men. 

 I lift heavy often for my legs and booty because, well, i want toned legs and a big booty! DUH. For my arms I tend to lift lighter weights because I just want to maintain what I have, i don’t want to make the muscles there much bigger.

In order to build muscle we also need to FEED our muscles! We need to make sure we are giving them the proper nutrients before and after working out.Before a workout I eat COMPLEX CARBS! Something like oatmeal, sweet potatoes, or ezekiel bread to FUEL my muscles and then AFTER I workout I need to FEED my muscles protein so that they can rebuild! This is either a protein shake, tuna, tofu, egg whites, or beans with avocado.

The heaviest I’m doing right now for legs is about 85 for the leg press, and then i’ll do lunges, squats, and dead lifts with a 30 lb barbell. 
You should start much less than me then work your way up!!

Embrace the soreness :) Or catch this blog on how to actually help seriously avoid being super effing sore. 

HOW TO WANT TO RUN

I’m someone that pretty much loves everything. I don’t like to be in a bad mood, I like to try basically anything and everything blah blah blah.

But ever since I stopped playing soccer I have not even sort of been a fan of running outside. For the longest time I hated it because I thought it was boring. That’s basically the only reason actually. I preferred to be on the same elliptical every day for 30 minutes rather than somewhere outside but the problem with that was that that also got boring. Surprise surprise.

But, just like with anything else in life, I believe that things are what you make them and you can adjust your mind to like or not like something in an instant. I knew that running would allow me to lose the weight I was hanging on to AND FAST so first I told myself over and over again that I LOVE running outside…!

From there I made sure that I had music on my phone so that my internet wouldn’t give out on Pandora in the middle of my run and make me want to kill myself, and I downloaded a free running app. After the self-convincing all I had to do was make it more exciting to me than watching paint dry.

I did this a few ways.

 I put together a few playlists that made me zone out and set a good pace for me so that I wouldn’t really think about how hard I was pushing myself.

If I needed to get in 30 minutes of cardio I would set my running app to let me know when I had been running for 15 minutes then I would know when to turn around. This way I could go the same way back to where I started and know that I had hit 30 minutes. This took out the annoying aspect of having to continue glancing at the time and it also gave me the freedom to run wherever I wanted rather than saying “I’m going to run to the pier and back” and then only thinking about how far away the pier is the ennttiireee timmmeee.

 If I only had 20 minutes to run I would do intervals to get the most out of my time. I would set my running app to let me know when I had hit 10 minutes and then I would turn around and do the same drills back. I would usually do something along the lines of jogging an easy pace and counting to 45 steps. Then, I would SPRINT but I would count at the same pace I was when I was jogging, but only count to 12. Make Sense? Again, this way you don’t have to keep looking at the clock and you know that you just keep doing it until you hear your running app that its been 10 minutes, then turn around!

Also, LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! Change it up. Sometimes I hit the ground running from the first step I take out of my apartment, other times ill drive to a random neighborhood in Santa Monica and just see where I end up. This usually leads me to different bridges, overpasses, stairs and pathways (Q the fun, ex out the boring)

Just some tips for running if you think you can’t or if you find it to be too boring! Now I actually really do love running outside, I’ve slimmed down and my playlists are on point ;)

Let me know how it goes!