Fit 200: Fat Burning, Diet, Competition

In this episode: Training: Using Short Rest Periods To Build Muscle and Lose Fat, Nutrition: Beware the four letter word, Motivation: Can competitions keep you committed?

News and Updates:

This podcast was delayed a little, I had hoped to have the new stuff done and ready for you, but…..school field trip, work, revisions and new ideas have put me behind.  What I am working on is a video workout site at QuickFitClub.com. I will need a few people to test the site, so if you are interested, go to QuickFitClub.com and get on the notification list.

Here are some of the details for the QuickFit Club:

Quick Fit Club is for the busy woman, or Mom, who is pulled in many different directions, constantly interrupted and rarely has time to herself! On the site, you’ll find video workouts that can be done at home. Your workouts will be from 5-30 minutes and can be combined. The 5-10 minute mini fat blast workouts fit into any crazy schedule! The 30 minute full body sculpt workouts burn fat and tone at the same time.  These are the same workout formats that have gotten all my clients such amazing results! Click here to see some of those results! 

There will also be other sections for nutrition, motivation, daily tips, recipes, the NEW video library. Clubfit is still active and has the gym workouts that were used for the Fitness Makeover Program, where most of the ladies lost up to 10 pounds and up to 10 inches one month! So, if you prefer to have workout logs to take to the gym, that’s for you.

TRAINING
Use Short Rest Periods To Build Muscle and Lose Fat! Two recent studies have shown the success of rest time periodization in burning fat and increasing testosterone, the muscle building hormone.  Manipulating the hormone response to exercise is one of the best ways to get lean fast. These two recent studies varied the reps and sets along with the rest periods, to blast fat!

The first study was done with short 27-second rest periods for 12 sets of 3 reps.  The exercise used was the squat. The study found that better results were had with the shorter rest period, when compared to the longer 60-second rest periods.  This suggests that the shorter rest condition was metabolically more taxing and will thereby result in more growth hormone being released, which, in turn, will lead to greater fat burning in the body.  Remember, if your goal is sports performance your workouts would be different. When training for power, longer rest conditions work better.

The second study shows even more support for short rest periods! Two training protocols were compared using a 60- or 90-second rest interval. The test subjects were young, trained men.

The workout parameters were as follows:
a hypertrophy program at 70 percent of the 1RM with 3 sets of 10 reps,
a strength program at 85 percent of the 1RM with 8 sets of 3 reps.

Both programs used the same exercises:

• barbell bench press
• back squat
• lat pull-down
• leg extension

The 60-second rest interval, using the hypertrophy program, produced the best results with a 22.5%  increase in testosterone response post-workout.

The (same) hypertrophy program using 90-second rest intervals, had the second greatest testosterone response, with an elevation of 20%. Still a very significant response!

The strength programs had similar results for both rest intervals of 60 and 90 seconds. The increase in testosterone response was about 13%.

Plus point: None of the programs actually increased cortisol, indicating that both programs can be used to build muscle and strength without causing too much muscle breakdown (catabolic stress).

NUTRITION
What do you think of when you hear the word “diet”? How often do you hear people saying that they are on a diet? And the next minute they are no longer on the diet.

That four letter word ‘diet’ brings about all sorts of different emotions in people and more often than not those emotions tend to be negative. To most people a diet is a struggle, unpleasant, something they’d rather not do. People usually undertake “diets” because they have to improve their weight or their health. It’s not their first choice! Rather, it is a way to get the end result.

Now, go back to your thoughts or impression of diet especially if it is helping you to get in shape.

Do you believe that when you are on a diet, you eventually have to come off the diet? Are you worried about what will happen when you get off the diet?

For most people getting off a diet means reverting back to their former lifestyle and that is the lifestyle that got them overweight in the first place.

What makes more sense is not dieting but making lifestyle changes, because lifestyle changes are something that you can continue with forever. If you make lifestyle changes that result in healthy body weight then you will maintain that body weight for as long as you maintain that lifestyle. It is not something that you will get off at the end of achieving a result. A lifestyle is a way that you intend to live for the long-term and that is how you will remain in good shape for the long-term.

How do you make lifestyle changes? You create new habits! (see episode Fit 199)

Creating permanent lifestyle changes, such as your eating habits and how you handle stress, has the end result of a reduction in body fat, an increase in energy levels and an overall improvement in health.

That is what lifestyle changes can do for you and it is something that short-term diets rarely achieve.

Now, return to the diet question. Are you on a diet? Or are you making changes, new habits, new thoughts toward food?

Now, here’s what I want you to do…go to the FitGirlUSA facebook page and tell me the answer to that question!

MOTIVATION

Can competition help you stay committed to your exercise program? You’ve heard of contests or competitions for sports or weight loss. Competitions like the Crossfit challenge, Mud Run etc. Why do these competitions work to motivate people? Many people have a very competitive nature and fine competitions motivating.

With a friendly, mutually-supportive component,  we know that competition is more against ourselves or for self improvement, more than anything else.

Another component that makes weight loss or physical competitions fun, is the big public commitment that is made by contestants. This helps you become fully committed.  You tell the world you are going to do something and you have to get it done!

There is also a deadline that provides motivation, and usually a prize, in addition to achieving a weight loss goal or challenge.

There’s still time to do the new survey and get my training advice free! Just go to the Fitnessmakeover.com home page and enter your name and email so I can send you the survey and follow-up with you!

Get all the most recent episodes on iTunes or download this episode here:Fit 200: Fat Burning, Diet, Competition

Grab my new book, (available in paperback) “Mindset Makeover,” available at The Book Patch.com. Contact me for private coaching at CoachKira.com.