Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label exercise. Show all posts

8/09/2012

Eccentric Exercise. Bigger. Stronger. More Powerfuller. Resistant to Injury.


No, it's not a blog posting about weird exercises. It's about the ECCENTRIC or negative phase of resistance exercises.  This often under appreciated and ignored part of an exercise is important for:

1. Increasing strength 
2. Increasing muscle size
3. Giving you delayed onset muscle soreness
4. Producing maximal power, ie, in plyometric movements
5. Rehabilitating injuries like tendonitis and protecting muscles, connective tissues and joints from future injuries

Read on for some simple ideas and changes you can make to help improve your exercise program  ... whether you want to get bigger, stronger, more powerful, reduce the risk of injury , or speed recovery.

Often left unloved

Consider the Chest Press. Most people think this exercise is all about the pushing (or CONCENTRIC contraction). Have you ever just let the weights fall after the last push or pull?  If so, you've eliminated the ECCENTRIC part of the exercise. In a set of 12 repetitions, you're only doing 11 1/2. Skipping the ECCENTRIC movement also reduces the time that the muscles spend working.

In plyometric training, the often overlooked ECCENTRIC movement is important as a loading phase:  like a rubber band, the muscle stores elastic energy that is released in the CONCENTRIC movement.  For best results, perform the ECCENTRIC movement first with an immediate transition into the CONCENTRIC movement.  ECCENTRIC and CONCENTRIC movements for some common exercises are shown below. 

EXERCISECONCENTRIC
MOVEMENT
ECCENTRIC
MOVEMENT
Chest PressAway from body (push)Towards body
Row, Lat PulldownTowards body (pull)Away from body
Biceps CurlFlexing elbowExtending elbow
Triceps ExtensionExtending elbowFlexing elbow
Shoulder PressAway from body (push)Towards body
Lat RaiseRaiseLower
Lunge, SquatPushing body upLowering body
     
Wisely and slow

Your muscles work hard to resist against the weight - or gravity - in the ECCENTRIC phase. They slow the decent of the weight in a chest press or biceps curl, or of the body in a squat, or the return of the weight stack in a cable exercise.
  
Muscles forcibly lengthen during an ECCENTRIC contraction, and this is believed to cause more damage to muscle fibers and sensory organs than other contractions.  In fact, delayed onset muscle soreness is mainly attributed to the ECCENTRIC phase.   Why is it good to damage your muscle fibers?  Your body responds to this damage by repairing the damage and creating new fibers.  Your muscle's sensory organs adapt and respond better to future bouts of similar exercises.  So we get bigger and stronger.  Just don't forget to rest, because this happens on the days off.  The adaptation is pretty quick, do the same exercise after 48-72 hours, and you're not likely to have the same amount of soreness.   
Muscles actually absorb energy during the ECCENTRIC phase; a variety of sources estimate that they are 40% stronger than in the CONCENTRIC phase.  To get the benefits, perform the ECCENTRIC phase completely and slowly.  Most training protocols specify 2 or 3 or 4 seconds for the ECCENTRIC contraction, however, some may call for a last repetition with a 10 second ECCENTRIC contraction.  Be careful trying this, use less weight, and work with a spotter - your muscles will tire more quickly and can fail unexpectedly.

Body builders often use this to continue working longer and/or harder in the ECCENTRIC phase.  For example, you might have a spotter lift the weights to perform the CONCENTRIC contraction in chest press or biceps curl, and complete the ECCENTRIC contraction on your own.
Breathe life into a stone, quicken a rock, and make you dance
 
More and more research is showing that emphasizing ECCENTRIC exercises and movements can be helpful in rehabilitation and prevention of tendon and muscle injuries, especially chronic tendinosis that may not respond to other therapies.  One advantage is that it can both lengthen and strengthen a muscle.  If you're experiencing chronic tendon or muscle problems, talk to your doctor or physical therapist about an incorporating ECCENTRIC exercises into your rehab program, and I can help you transition into the gym.

Use can almost change the stamp of nature

You may be able to prevent injuries in the first place and avoid re-injury by using ECCENTRIC exercises to "prehab" vulnerable spots.  For example, I have several clients who are runners and athletes incorporating ECCENTRIC calf exercises into their programs to protect the achilles tendon and plantar fascia.  Early intervention may help keep you from developing chronic injuries and landing in rehab in the first place.  This applies across the board, from competitive athletes to those just beginning a fitness program.  

7/26/2012

Myths About Perspiration, Fluid Replacement Guidelines, Your Personal Hydration Program

We're on track for ta hot summer, and with everybody sweating more, many of you have asked about hydration and fluid replacement strategies.

This posting  reviews common myths about perspiration and provides hydration and fluid replacement guidelines to enhance performance and avoid heat related illnesses.  Information comes from authoritative sources including position stands of The American College of Sports Medicine and peer reviewed publications of the National Strength and Conditioning Association.



MYTHS ABOUT PERSPIRATION

#1 - The More I Sweat the More Calories I Burn.  FALSE.  Perspiration is part of our body's cooling system, it does not necessarily require burning calories or correlate with caloric expenditures.  Example:  stand outside on a very humid 90 degree day, and you will sweat profusely.  Run indoors in a very dry 65 degree environment, and you may hardly break a sweat.

#2 - I Can Sweat The Weight Off.  FALSE.  -Weight loss due to sweating indicates dehydration.  This weight is water that needs to be replaced, it is not the stored body fat that you really want to lose.  In sports like boxing, MMA and wrestling, participants may temporarily sweat off a few pounds to make weight - but will immediately begin rehydration before the exercise event.

YOUR BODY'S HEATING AND COOLING SYSTEM 
Whether from exercise, movement or shivering, muscle activity generates heat, which your blood circulates. Your body cools itself by increasing blood flow close to the skin and through evaporation of sweat. Research has shown sweat rates range from .5 to 2 liters per hour with marked differences between individuals.  The amount of sweat varies based on individual characteristics such as body weight, genetics, heat acclimatization, and conditioning, and environmental conditions such as heat, humidity, clothing and equipment. 

EUHYDRATION, DEHYDRATION, HYPERHYDRATION  
Euhydration means we're at our normal hydration level and weight, and this is the most desirable state.  For most people water is about 60% of body weight when we are euhydrated. Dehydration is easily measured by calculating lost body weight before and after exercise.  Ten to 14 days of training in heat will help you acclimatize and reduce risk of dehydration.

  • Lose 2% of body weight, aerobic exercise performance and cognitive abilities are degraded. 
  • Lose 3-5% of body weight, there is risk of heat related illness.  The rate of sweat production declines and can lead to hyperthermia - overheating of the body and brain.  Life-threatening exertional heatstroke occurs when body temperature exceeds 104 and internal organs begin to shut down.
Whether you're working out, running, walking, or even sitting outside in hot humid weather, every pound you lose is a sign that you've lost about a pint of water. Hyperhydration, drinking an excessive amount of water before an athletic event or exercise (more than euhydration), has not been found to improve athletic performance and is not recommended.

GENERAL FLUID AND ELECTROLYTE GUIDELINES
NSCA provides the following general guidelines for fluid and electrolyte replacement:
Before exercise event:  Drink 16 ounces of water two hours before;  drink 8 ounces sports drink 10-20 minutes before.
During exercise event:  Drink a sports drink that contains 30-60 grams of electrolytes and 120-240 grams of carbohydrates per hour to prevent fuel depletion.  Drink 8 ounces of fluids every 15-20 minutes.
After exercise event:  Drink 2-3 cups of fluid for every pound of body weight lost.
Competitive athletes, marathoners and triathletes will benefit from a more personalized hydration program tailored.

YOUR PERSONAL HYDRATION PROGRAM
 Developing your own individualized program is actually easy. ACSM'smost recent position stand on fluid replacement  recommends individualized programs because our sweat rates vary.

Weigh yourself before and after exercise to determine your rate of fluid loss due to sweating, and rehydrate accordingly.  If you lose a pound in a half hour, replace it with 16 ounces of fluid per half hour of exercise.  This may vary depending on weather, intensity and clothing, but over time you should be able to make adjustments.

Begin to prehydrate a few hours before your exercise event, so that your stomach contents are emptied, fluids are absorbed by your body, and urine flow returns to normal.  Rehydrate during the exercise event to replenish the fluids being lost. 

ELECTROLYTES, SODIUM AND HYPONATREMIA
Electrolyte and sodium depletion and replacement is more difficult to individually quantify and program because it requires blood testing.

  • Electrolyte and sodium depletion can cause muscle cramping.  
  • Profuse sweating over time can literally flush sodium out of your body;  if not replaced, a dangerous condition called hyponeutremia resuts.    
Most people don't need to be overly concerned with hyponatremia, but participants in extended exercises events, including marathons, triathalons and sports in hot humid weather should consider electrolyte replacement or salt tablets. The concern here is the potential for athletes to overhydrate with water.

Interestingly, ACSM has found that sodium replacement does not reduce cramping in triathletes, implying that muscle fatigue and energy replacement may be more important factors. 
 Contact me  if you have any questions or want to set up some sessions to develop your personalized program, or visit TrainerCary.com for more information.

1/14/2012

Sweet 16 - Push Up Progressions

How many kinds of pushups can you think of?  A generic pushup is included in the new Jump Start Program - now some of you may pushups a bit challenging, others may find it boring or not particularly challenging.  

How do you make a push up harder?  Make it less stable so you have to use your deep core muscles more.  After all, a push up is a plank with an up and down motion. My own clients range from those doing "girl pushups" to those doing push ups on 2 stability balls or 4 medicine balls.  For an illustrated guide to 16 more different variations of the pushup from easier to harder click here. 

5/03/2010

Interval Training: Burn More Calories. Improve Performance. Reduce Exercise Time.

Yes this sounds almost too good to be true.

Interval Training involves alternating between higher and lower intensity in your cardio workout. It could be right for you if you have a good cardio base and want to improve performance or results. If you're just beginning to train, we start by getting your cardio base established first, and prepare your body for the demands of this training. A cardio base is usually established with moderate exercise, 60-70% of your maximum heart rate or a rate of perceived exertion of about 5-6 on a scale of 10*. (A simple estimate of your maximum heart rate is 220-your age, I can give you a better estimate if you give me your age and resting pulse).

Research shows that Interval Training burns more calories than training at a steady rate, partly because it raises your metabolism for 2-3 hours after you stop exercising. The scientific term for this phenomenon is EPOC for Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption. It also seems to cause molecular changes in the muscle that increase fat burning. Interval Training may also improve your performance by increasing your body's ability to remove lactate from the bloodstream, so it can help well-trained people get to the next level. This point is often described as reaching your anaerobic threshold or "going anaerobic". Scientists now believe that "going anaerobic" is a myth, - along with "the myth of the Fat Burning Zone." Remember that you burn more TOTAL calories in the cardio zone than in the fat burning zone, and interval training can help you get there. Numerous studies have shown that for many people, interval training produces better results in less time than steady state aerobic training.

A typical starting interval training program might consist of a warmup followed by 60 seconds of high intensity exercise followed by 90 seconds of recovery at a lower intensity repeated about ten times. As you become more conditioned, decrease the recovery to 60 seconds. In more advanced programs, the high intensity intervals can be 2-3 minutes long, with rest periods equal to or less than the high intensity interval. High intensity exercise generally means that your heart rate is 75-85% of maximum, and the recovery rate is about 60%. To use rate of perceived exertion, you should feel that you're at about 8-9 on a difficulty scale of 1-10 in the high intensity period, and about 5-6 in the lower intensity period.

You can do interval training on any cardio equipment, or with other activities such as running or jumping rope. Beginners may get their heart rate up with walking on a treadmill and varying the incline, while very fit people will need to do something more challenging.

3/03/2009

Losing Body Fat

There are only 2 proven ways to lose body fat: Burn more calories than you consume or consume fewer calories than you burn. Most of use a combination of both - exercise and watching our diets. What about watching carbs? Sure, if you load up on empty calories your body may crave more nutrition and you'll end up eating more, but protein shakes are also loaded with calories that you may not need. I've got some tips, by no means a complete list but just my personal top 10:

Cary's Top 10 Fat Burning Tips
1. Eat a good breakfast. Numerous studies have shown that people who eat breakfast do a better job losing weight and keeping it off. Breakfast skippers tend to make up lost calories later in the day. They don't have the energy to work out as hard, and the body doesn't produce the enzymes need to burn fat during their workout. One theory is that if you workout hard on an empty stomach, the body goes into "survival mode" - sparing fat and burning muscle protein for energy.
2. Use a combination of cardiovascular and strength training activities. Both burn calories while you are working out. Strength training has the added advantage of building muscle mass so that your metabolism increases - so you burn more calories at rest. Start with a cardio warm up, but avoid long cardio sessions before your strength training if you want to burn fat. You want as much energy as possible available for the strength training session. (If you're already lean and training for a marathon, you can skip this advice). Exercise at least 150 minutes er week, more to make real changes in body composition.
3. Work in the "cardio training zone" and you'll burn more fat than in the "fat burning zone." The fat burning zone is a myth: you may get a higher percentage of calories but the total calories burned is lower. You actually burn the highest percentage of calories while sleeping, not exactly a fat burning activity. The cardio zone begins at about 70% of your maximum heart rate. People who aren't on medication can use 220-age to get their maximum hear rate. (In my fitness orientations, we use a different formula that is more personalized.)
4. Interval training for your cardio activities can increase your calorie burn for several hours after you are done exercising. This is recommended for those of you who have already established an aerobic base. Try alternating between 65%-75% of your maximum heart rate for 2 minute intervals.
5. Circuit Training for your strength activities keeps the calories burning - The idea is to keep your heart rate up by eliminating the rest in between sets. Most of my workouts are organized in compound sets, working opposite body parts so that while one side works the other side rests. You may need to rethink or reorganize your traditional split routines. Just be sure to rest each muscle group for 48 hours in between workouts.
6. Gear your strength training to building lean muscle and burning fat. Target the large muscle groups, your legs, back and chest muscles burn more calories than arms and shoulders, and the latter get worked along with the big muscles. You should generally be working in the endurance strength training zone, so do 2-3 sets of 12-20 repetitions of the exercises at moderate weight. Exercises that require you to stand and/or stabilize generally burn more calories than seated or lying exercises. Total body exercises (i.e. lunges with chest press/lat pull down/biceps curls) really turn up the heat.


7. Don't rely on fad diets and supplements. Try to make lasting changes in your diet and lifestyle. Be careful of supplements containing large amounts of stimulants like caffeine and guarana, these can increase your heart rate and you may already be consuming caffeine in your coffee or tea. Caffeine in moderation does help burn fat. If you're already getting enough protein in your diet, ship the protein supplement you don't need the extra calories! The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that endurance trained athletes consume 1.2-1.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily.
8. Periodize, or change your exercise routine, at least every 4-6 weeks. Your body adapts during this period and you will see diminishing returns on the time you invest. You can change the pace and duration of your cardio routine. For strength training, change the sets, repetitions, tempo, try less stable exercises and total body exercises.
9. Avoid Overtraining - Muscles grow while you rest. If you are spending more than an hour 3-4x a week working out and not seeing results, and often feel tired and sore, you may be overtraining. Your body shuts down the muscle building process and stops burning stored fat. Work hard, but also rest.
10. Pay careful attention to posture, aches, pains and injuries. You're in this for the long haul and cannot afford to be sidelined by pain or injury that keeps you from working out. It is important to incorporate corrective exercises into your program - call it "prehab" - and avoid exercises that can exacerbate your problem areas. The most common problems that I see include: a. Feet Turn Out /Knees Turn in - sets you up for foot pain (plantar fascitis), knee or hip pain or injury, back pain; b. Shoulders Roll Inward - sets you up for rotator cuff injury, possible upper spinal injury; c. Arched Back - Sets up disk injury may also indicate predisposition to abdominal herniation. I am happy to meet with you, assess you for these potential issues and discuss appropriate corrective exercises and program modifications.

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