Keep Trucking!

Exercise tip:

Aerobic exercise is a great way to stay in shape and burn fat. We often get comfortable in our routines and stop challenging ourselves. In order to keep getting results it’s important to keep your exercise intensity up. Keep pushing yourself but remember if you can’t talk during your exercise your pushing to hard. Now get out there; walk, swim or jog but stay active!
Have a great day!

Calculating your Target Heart Rate

Maximizing your aerobic workout can be tricky. Most of us just jump on the treadmill, pick a setting and hope for the best. A great way of reaching your fitness goals safely and more efficiently is by adding your heart rate to the exercise equation.

Target heart Rate

Your Maximum Heart rate is the highest capacity at which your heart is able to perform in beats per minute (bpm). If your maximum heart rate is 180bpm that means your heart can not beat more than 180 times per minute while satisfying your bodies demand for oxygen and nutrition.
Your Target heart rate is quite simply a percentage of your maximum heart rate at which you chose to exercise. Using your target heart rate during exercise maximizes safety and work out efficiency. The equation for finding your standardized maximum heart is 220bpm minus your age. For example; if you’re 35 years of age your standardized maximum heart rate is 220-35. Though this standard is excellent for establish maximum heart rate, calculating your target heart rate based on it alone can be inaccurate. The equation is effective for setting general population guidelines but can be inaccurate for the individual. Your maximum heart rate can vary by as much as plus or minus 10 to 12 bpm of the standard.
In order to calculate a more accurate target heart rate the Karvonen Formula is widely used. The Karvonen Formula uses the 220 bpm general standard as a basis of calculation. However, it is more accurate as it adds individual resting heart rate to the equation. Your resting heart rate is the bpm of your heart when you body is at rest. The best time take your resting heart rate is as soon as you wake up in the morning preferably while still in bed.

Safety

Safety is the most important consideration when starting a fitness routine. Exercising at high intensity (elevated heart rate) can be dangerous for those with health conditions or a previously sedentary life style. One of the primary benefits of exercising within percentiles of your maximum heart rate is increased safety. Heart attacks have been known to occur after high intensity workouts. This phenomenon generally afflicts those with health conditions who do not consult their doctors prior to embarking on a fitness program. People who have sedentary life styles (i.e. little or no exercise for 6 months to a year) are also at risk.
An effective way to avoid this is by starting out slowly. Improve your cardiovascular capacity by starting aerobic activities at lower intensities before graduating to higher intensity workouts. If you have a health condition your doctor may suggest keeping your target heart rate at 20% to 45% of your maximum. If you have a sedentary lifestyle, the general recommendation is that you start at 40% to 60% of your maximum heart rate. Depending on age, health and fitness, you can graduate to 60% to 90% of your maximum heart rate after at least 4 to 6 weeks of low intensity workouts. Remember if you have any health concerns, are overweight or have any doubt, consult your doctor, he/she will let you know what exercise intensity is right for you.

Maximizing your performance

Knowing your target heart rate can help you design a fitness program tailored to help you get the most from your workouts. Over time an aerobic program will become easier to perform. For instance, you’ve been going to the gym for several months. You jump on the elliptical trainer for 30 min set at the same fitness program each time. At first the weight seems to just fall off. After 2 months you notice that you’re not making the same progress you were. One of the reasons for this plateau may be a drop in your workout intensity.
When you started your aerobic routine your body was working harder to get the same thing done. Your heart is now used to the activity and doesn’t have to work as hard to meet your bodies demands. After your workout, have you noticed that you’re not as tired as you used to be? Aerobic workouts are like practicing an instrument. You get better with time and repetition but you won’t improve without new challenges. What this means to your work out is you have to step it up a notch. Make sure you increase the intensity of your work out periodically. You can do this by changing the target heart rate at which you exercise, ex: from 65% to 75%. Also, calculate your target heart rate about every 6 to 8 weeks. Increase in aerobic capacity is generally marked by a drop in your resting heart rate. Using the Karvonen Formula to recalculate your target heart rate will help you continue to achieve fitness goals and maintain aerobic progress. Recommended target heart rates for healthy active adults (active= exercise 2 to 3 times a week for 30min or more) is 65% to 90% of your maximum heart rate.

Calculating Your Target Heart Rate

Karvonen Formula: Target heart rate = ([maximum heart rate - resting heart rate] x percentage of maximum heart desired) + resting heart rate.

I know it looks a little complicated but trust me it isn’t. First get your resting heart rate. As previously mentioned, the best time to take your resting heart rate is first thing in the morning. Take your pulse for a period of ten seconds (tip: start counting your pulse at zero not at one), multiply the result by 6 and you have your resting heart rate per minute. Ex: you count 11 beats in a 10 second period, multiply 11 by 6, your bpm is 66. Second, to calculate your maximum heart rate subtract your age from 220bpm. EX: 220- 32 (age) = maximum heart rate. Third, input the information in Karvonen’s Formula keeping your desired percentages in mind.

Example: Lucy is 30 years old. She has a desk job, wants to lose 30 lbs and hasn't exercised regularly in over 5 years. She has just started a cardio workout at home. She is often short of breath and exhausted after her workout. She heard that in the first 4 to 6 weeks of starting a fitness program she should keep her target heart rate between 45% and 65%. In order to maximize her progress she decides to monitor her heart rate. To find her target heart rates she must do the following. Calculate her maximum heart rate, find out her resting heart rate, then calculate her target heart rates. Her maximum heart rate is 220 bpm - 30 (her age). Therefore Lucy's Maximum heart rate is 190. She took her pulse at rest for 10 sec and counted 12 beats for a 10 sec period. Her resting heart rate is 72. From here she can find her target heart rate by entering it into the equation listed above.

190 Maximum Heart Rate
72 Resting heart Rate
45% percentage lower limit of maximum heart rate desired for training

Target heart rate = ([190-72] x 45%) + 72
= ([118] x 45%) + 72
= (118 x 45%) + 72
= (53) + 72
= 125 bpm

125 represents the lowest Lucy wants her heart rate to be during a cardio work out.

Lucy wants the highest percentage of her maximum heart to be 65%. To get this number she substitutes 45% for 65% in the same equation.

Target Heart rate = ([190-72] x 65%) + 72
= (118 x 65%) + 72
= 77 + 72
= 149 bpm

Therefore Lucy wants her pulse to be between 125 bpm and 149 bpm during her aerobic workouts.

note: in calculating % you'll usually have decimal answers ex: 118 x 65% = 76.7, simply round numbers up or down according to basic math rules.

Factoring target heart rates into your aerobic routine is a great way to exercise safely monitor cardiovascular improvement, and individualize your aerobic routine. Remember it's just as important not push yourself to hard as it is to make sure you're working hard enough. Have fun and sweat!


References:

American Council on Exercise. ACE Personal Trainer Manual: The Ultimate Resource for Fitness Professional. San Diego: American Council on Exercise, 2003.

YMCA. YMCA's Fitness Leader's Basic Theory Manual. Toronto: YMCA Canada, 1999

Stage 2

Before you start an intermediate level exercise regimen, you should have been exercising regularly for a month or 2, 3 times a week. Starting out slowly is key to success. Build a muscle base and improve cardiovascular function (aerobic capacity) with simple none strenuous exercises. This provides a healthy foundation that allows the body to produce better results and reduces the chances of injuries. Studies have shown that people who skip the foundation building period make smaller health gains than those who start out right. If you have any medical conditions be sure to consult your doctor. He may be able to advise you on exercises that will help you safely increase your the level of exercise difficulty without endangering your health.

Intermediate level exercising is characterized by an increase in exercise duration and intensity. The recommended duration of aerobic exercise for sedentary beginners is from 10 to 20 min. The natural increase is then from 20 to 30 min, gradually working your way up to 60 min per session. Of course, this growth should be made in stages. To increase intensity during aerobic workouts, raise your target heart rate. Your heart rate increases as you work harder. Go from a walk to a jog. In an aerobic dance class, lift those knees higher, don't just go through the motions throw yourself in. Recommended beginner level target heart rates are between 40% and 60%, depending on your fitness level, age, weight and cardiovascular responses. Intermediate level exercise heart rates are from 60% to 90%. As you progress you will notice that your resting heart rate and your working heart rate are lower than before. This is an excellent sign of improvement.

Intermediate level exercising applies to muscular fitness programs in much the same way it does aerobic programs. Having a solid base to work on is key. A beginner should start out with a 30 min muscular program of about 2 sets of 10 repetitions for about a month. To increase duration, add exercises that incorporate new muscle groups into your daily routine. In muscular training there is no recommended cap on duration; your body will let you know when your done for the day. For intensity, you can switch from weight machines to free weights (barbells, dumbbells),use heavier weights, increase the exercise difficulty of your routine ex; switch squats for lunges, or all of the above.

Once you've started your intermediate fitness routine you will notice an accelerated pace of improvement. It's important to capitalize on this progress by closely monitoring changes and challenging yourself accordingly. Continue to increase the intensity and duration of your exercises, within recommended limits. This will help you to continue to improve and see results.

Train safely!


References:

American Council on Exercise. ACE Personal Trainer Manual: The Ultimate Resource for Fitness Professional. San Diego: American Council on Exercise, 2003.

YMCA. YMCA's Fitness Leader's Basic Theory Manual. Toronto: YMCA Canada, 1999

The Wonderful World of Squats

Squats are a basic component of almost any fitness regimen. Whether they're in an a aerobic or muscle building program they are almost inescapable. Why should you do squats? They're extremely useful for burning fat, muscle building and eliciting an aerobic response. Studies have shown that squats release growth hormones in the body. These hormones encourage fat loss and help regulate your metabolism (the exact way growth hormones work are complex and will be explained in another blog.). Squats also tone the thighs (quadriceps and hamstrings) and buttocks (gluteus maximus). The primary muscle groups squats solicit are the quadriceps (front of the thigh) and the gluteus maximus. Squats do also affect the hamstring muscles (back of the thigh) but only as a secondary muscle group. If you want tone your hamstrings I highly recommend doing an exercise that focuses on the hamstrings as the primary muscle group.

Squats are also ideal for eliciting a aerobic response. The muscle groups required to perform the exercise are some of the biggest in the body. Large volumes of blood are required to shuttle nutrients to the working muscles thereby increasing heart rate and producing an aerobic response. Needless to say, squats alone cannot be a single element in an aerobic workout, but they are an excellent way of increasing a flagging heart rate. So now that you now the wonders of the squat how do you get started? First, if you have any kind of knee pain stop! Consult your physician first. If your physician gives you the go ahead, squat carefully!

Squat to-dos:

• Keep your weight on your heels. You should almost be able to pick your toes up of the ground
• Keep your knees away from your toes! When you squat your knees should not move forward towards your toes. This increases stress on your knees and decreases the effectiveness of the exercise.
• The angle at the knee should form a 90 degree angle . More than this adds stress on the knee. If you can't go get down to a 90 degree angle, don't worry about it you'll get there. If you have knee problems, you may never want to get there :)
• Keep your chest up. Yes you will have to stick that bootie out! It's a squat not a ballet plier.
• Keep your feet parallel and hip distance apart. You may step out a bit to decrease difficulty.

Tips:

• The action of the squat is much like sitting down. If you're having problems getting it right you can practice by sitting.
• Try and use something that brings your knees to a 90 degree angle when you sit. If you don't have anything that high your couch will suffice.
• If you're having trouble keeping your balance try bringing both arms out in front of you as you squat.
• Be aware of your body as you sit. Notice how your butt moves out behind you, the position of your feet and knees and keep that chest high!

Alright, now that you know the how and whys; get out there and squat!

References:

American Council on Exercise. ACE Personal Trainer Manual: The Ultimate Resource for Fitness Professional. San Diego: American Council on Exercise, 2003.

YMCA. YMCA's Fitness Leader's Basic Theory Manual. Toronto: YMCA Canada, 1999

It Takes More than Weight to Measure Sucess

So your doctor has given you the go ahead to exercise. You've signed up at the gym or purchased your favorite work out equipment and you're ready to go. Before you start, you jump on the scale and pick that magic number as your goal. A few weeks in you start to get demotivated; the numbers aren't dropping as quickly as you'd hoped. You start to get discouraged. STOP! The culprit may be muscle. While muscle gain is desirable, as it allows you to burn more fat, it makes judging progress through weight alone an inaccurate measure of success.

You've probably heard it many times before: muscle weighs more than fat. It's true. So how can you evaluate your progress in fat loss relative to muscle gain? If you are a member at a gym, you can probably get a fitness evaluation done by one of the trainers. If it's unreasonably expensive, you can visit a site like Health Canada and calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). Your BMI is a good indicator of your fat to muscle mass ratio. Unfortunately, your BMI should be calculated roughly every 2 to 4 months and may not give you the motivation you seek. So what's the solution? I recommend using Girth Measurement to complement your weight loss management program.

Girth Measurement is simply taking the circumference of key body parts for future comparison. The repeated measurement of these sites will allow you to appreciate the loss of inches even when your scale barely moves. I recommend taking your measurements once a week to every two weeks.

How to take your Girth Measurements:

1- Use a non-stretch measuring tape to take the circumference of body parts.
2- Always measure at the same spot when checking progress.
3- Try not to measure after a work out. Increased blood flow to the muscles may inflate your numbers.
4- Always use the same side of your body (i.e. right leg, right arm)

Measurement Sites:

- Upper Arm at largest point
- Hips at largest point
- Calf at largest point
- Wrist at smallest point
- Waist at smallest point ( just bellow the ribs)
- Chest, just above the nipple
- Thigh just below the bum

Girth measurement is a great way to complement weight loss management programs. It's sometimes hard to appreciate the changes in our bodies, particularly when the scale stops moving. Girth Measurement allows us to see weight loss results despite the scale and stay motivated.

Keep sweating!


References:

American Council on Exercise. ACE Personal Trainer Manual: The Ultimate Resource for Fitness Professional. San Diego: American Council on Exercise, 2003.

Starting out Healthy

If you've decided to start a new physical fitness regimen, my congratulations. However, before you pick up those weights or jump on that treadmill, remember safety comes first. Regardless of whether you think you have any health issues, it's always best to check with your doctor first. If a trip to your doctors office is too inconvenient, an easy way to verify your exercise readiness is by answering a few simple questions. You can access this information via this link to Health Canada http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/sth-evs/english/parq.htm

Congratulations on your new quest towards physical fitness. Best of luck!

Abui