Approach Your Workout Like An Athlete At Practice

Approach Your Workout Like An Athlete At Practice

by | Aug 27, 2019 | All, Fitness, Home

When a championship or trophy is on the line, every opportunity for an athlete to practice makes a difference. The same is true of exercise sessions in preparation toward achieving a physical goal. Too many people run through their workout just to check it off as done instead of utilizing the workout to its full potential. Instead, treat the session like elite athletes do – as a rehearsal for the biggest physical performance they’ll do that season.

“Make each day your masterpiece“ – John Wooden

Effort, drive and determination are often attributes associated with athletes pushing through tough practices. Hence, the “no pain, no gain” exercise motto. But enthusiasm, purpose and intense focus may be just as important for progress1. For successful workouts, having a positive attitude, a goal for that session and focused attention are key.

Three Key Factors You Need 

01.

Enthusiasm is a cornerstone of the late basketball coach John Wooden’s famous Pyramid of Success2. He described enthusiasm as that “which infuses hard work with inspired power.” Without the passion and joy for what you are doing, you can easily slip into worker bee mode to get your workout over with. Enthusiasm is a spark that ignites the willingness to proceed. It’s characterized by feelings of excitement and high levels of enjoyment3. If you’re not loving what you are doing, find another way of doing it or switch up your workouts.

02.

Purpose Personal meaning powers action – it’s caring enough about what you’re doing. Finding your purpose goes beyond the outcome you seek, but the “why” you are striving for it to begin with. Putting your personal values as top priority can lead you to perform better4. Nothing else can take precedent during your exercise session. Purpose is supported by the belief that you are responsible for your own success. Having an identified purpose helps you overcome pressure and stress and to bounce back from losses.

“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.“ – Bruce Lee

03.

Intense Focus With digital distractions it’s easy for one’s mind to wander off course. Sport psychologists say that being in the moment is crucial for effective practice5. Worry about what you can execute in the present instead of dwelling on the past. Pay greater attention to the action you’re doing instead of smartphone alerts, the environment around you or thoughts of the outcome. Whereas you might get away with reading while doing some low-intensity steady-state cardio, strength-training requires focus6.

Definition: Practice is the repetition of an action with the goal of improvement.

All that is not to say that the treadmill setting or weights have to be different or more than your last workout. On the contrary, repetition with good form allows you to improve on quantity or speed later. The TED-Ed video entitled “How to practice effectively…for just about anything” by Annie Bosler and Don Greene has an expanded explanation for the reasons why repeated practice works — one of them is neural processing. You actually create the neural pathway to do an action unconsciously by repeating it until the action becomes reflexive.

Treating your workout like a household chore to get done will likely make the session, well, …a chore. Consider each exercise session a rehearsal – a chance to fix mistakes and move forward toward a winning performance, even if you are the only audience. Embrace what you’re doing, make your purpose a priority and narrow your attention to your present action.

References

  1. Developing the Practice Intensity Habit by Larry Lauer, PhD, Institute for the Study of Youth Sports, Michigan State University. AppliedSportPsych.org Accessed July 11, 2019
  2. Accessed July 11, 2019
  3. Athlete Engagement in Elite Sport: An Exploratory Investigation of Antecedents and Consequences. K Hodge, C Lonsdale, SA Jackson. The Sport Psychologist, Dec. 2009, 23(4): 186-202
  4. Purpose Based Identity: Why The Right Mindset Will Determine Your Athletic Success, With Sports Psychologist Ben Houltberg. https://www.hopesports.org/purpose-based-identity/ Accessed July 18, 2019
  5. Sports: Focus Control by Jim Taylor, PhD, www.PscyhologyToday.com Posted Sept. 3, 2010. Accessed July 11, 2019
  6. 11 Things I Learned From 20 Years Of Lifting By Dean Somerset. https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a19547707/lifting-lessons/ Posted Sept. 16, 2015. Accessed July 18, 2019.

Suggested Further Reading:

The Top 10 Most Popular Exercises and How to Perform Them Properly

The Top 10 Most Popular Exercises and How to Perform Them Properly

by | Jan 23, 2019 | All, Fitness, Home, Workouts

Instead of thinking of this as your one-stop-shop gym guide, think of it as an intro to some of the top most popular exercises, and how to perform them properly. Once you have a handle on the basic exercises below, try out some of the advanced alternatives to step up your exercise game!

#1 Burpee

  • Muscles Targeted: Arms, chest, quads, glutes, hamstrings, and abs.
  • The How-to:
    • Begin in your basic neutral standing position.
    • Bring your palms to the floor while simultaneously squatting down.
    • Kick your legs back to a plank position.
    • Immediately bring feet back to squat position.
    • Push yourself upward into a jump and repeat.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic burpee, you can increase the level of difficulty by trying a burpee with a pushup. Perform the same moves as a basic burpee but add a pushup before bringing your feet back into the starting squat position and jumping upward.

#2 Bodyweight Squat

  • Muscles Targeted: Quadriceps, glutes, adductors, calves, hamstrings, hip flexors, and abs.
  • The How-to:3
    • Begin with your feet slightly wider than your hips. Your feet should be slightly turned outward, only about 5 to 20 degrees.
    • Keep your head facing forward, don’t tilt it back or tilt it forward.
    • Push your hips backward and bend your knees. Keep your weight in the back of your heels. You can test this by wiggling your toes. If you can, you are balanced correctly.
    • Keep your spine in a neutral position and make sure your knees don’t go past your feet.
    • Once your hip joint is lower than your knees, push yourself back up to your original standing position. Squeeze your glutes at the top for some extra muscle building.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic bodyweight squat, you can increase the level of difficulty by trying a weighted squat or barbell squat. Your form should remain the same, but now you’ll have the weight of a barbell resting on your shoulders. It might be best to start off on an assisted squat machine, if not, and you’re a beginner, try having a friend or fellow gym-goer spot you.

#3 Lunges

  • Muscles Targeted: Glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps.
  • The How-to:
    • Begin in a neutral standing position. Bring one leg forward, about 2 to 3 feet, and bend both knees.
    • Your forward leg should not bend past your knee. Keep at a 90-degree angle.
    • Push off with forwarding leg to return to neutral standing position. Switch legs and repeat.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic lunge, you can increase the level of difficulty by trying a weighted side lunge. Grab a set of dumbbells and lunge to the side of your body. This helps work the inner thighs too!

#4 Plank

  • Muscles Targeted: Abdominals and back muscles.
  • The How-to:
    • Lie on the floor or an exercise mat with your stomach facing down and elbows tucked under your shoulders. You should be resting on your forearms with your arms facing down.
    • Tighten your abdominal muscles. Push your heels out. Your feet should be balanced by your tiptoes.
    • Push yourself up onto your forearms, much like you would in a push-up position.
    • Keep your neck in neutral alignment with your spine.
    • Hold for as long as possible before lowering yourself back onto the floor.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the plank, you can increase the level of difficulty by trying a side plank. Instead of assuming a pushup position, lay on your side and push yourself up off the ground, balancing on your forearm and the side of your foot. Hold for as long as possible. Once finished, switch sides.

Shown: Advanced movement. Side plank. 

#5 Bench Press

  • Muscles Targeted: Chest, front shoulders, triceps brachii, and back.
  • The How-to:
    • Begin by lying on the bench with your eyes directly underneath the bar.
    • Grab the bar with a medium grip, include your thumbs around it.
    • Straighten your arms upward, un-racking the bar.
    • Bring the bar to your mid-chest and press back up to the beginning position with straight arms.
    • Safety tip: It’s always smart to have a spotter when performing a bench press. In case the weight gets too heavy, you have someone who can help safely return the bar to the rack.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic bench press, increase the level of difficulty by increasing your weight. Always make sure you’re not pushing yourself past your fitness level, to prevent potential injury.

#6 Kettlebell Swing*

  • Muscles Targeted: Hips, glutes, hamstrings, lats, abs, shoulders, pecs, and grip.
  • The How-to:7
    • Stand tall with feet shoulder-width apart holding the kettlebell in a firm grip.
    • Squat down while simultaneously swinging the kettlebell through your legs.
    • Stand up and swing the kettlebell forward, making sure you keep your grip firm.
    • The kettlebell should not come higher than the face/chin level for a basic kettlebell swing.
  • Advanced Movement: This exercise is pretty great as is. Trying variations of this move could potentially do damage to your shoulders, so for safety reasons, we recommend sticking to the basics on this one.
  • Disclaimer: *Not all LAF clubs have kettlebells.

#7 Lat Pulldown

  • Muscles Targeted: Latissimus dorsi (back), biceps and forearm.
  • The How-to:
    • Stand tall and grab the bar while simultaneously sitting down on the bench. Your arms should be in a “V”-shape.
    • Keep elbows pointed down. Pull the bar down towards your chest, squeezing your lats (back muscles).
    • Lower the bar to your chin or slightly below.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic lat pulldown, increase the level of difficulty by increasing your weight. Always make sure you’re not pushing yourself past your fitness level, to prevent potential injury.

#8 Russian Twist

  • Muscles Targeted: Abdominals/obliques.
  • The How-to:
    • Sit on the floor and place your feet under something weighted or use a workout partner to help hold your feet in place.
    • Bend your body back slightly and twist/rotate from side to side.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic Russian twist, you can increase the level of difficulty by balancing your feet off the ground or holding weights when you twist.

#9 Leg Press

  • Muscles Targeted: Quadriceps, calves, glutes, hamstrings and hip adductors.
  • The How-to:
    • Sit on machine with head and back on padded bench.
    • Please your heels flat against the footplate. Your feet should be about hip-width apart. Make sure your knees aren’t inward or outward. They should align with your feet.
    • Carefully release the assist handle, making sure you have the appropriate weight on the machine beforehand and bend your knees towards your body.
    • Push away, back to starting position. Repeat.

#10 Curl

  • Muscles Targeted: Biceps.
  • The How-to:
    • Stand tall with a dumbbell in each hand.
    • Keep elbows close to your body with your palms facing outward.
    • Curl weights upwards towards your shoulders while contracting your biceps.
    • Lower back to starting position. Repeat.
  • Advanced Movement: Once you’ve mastered the basic bicep curl, increase weight for a more enhanced burn.

Sources:

  1. Dima, et al. “Five Reasons Why Burpees Should Be Your Favorite Exercise.” 12 Minute Athlete, 27 Nov. 2012, 12minuteathlete.com/burpees-are-awesome/.
  2. Rail, Kevin. “Muscles Targeted While Performing Squats.” COM, Leaf Group, www.livestrong.com/article/328228-target-muscle-area-for-squats/.
  3. Ardison, Staci. “How to Squat Properly – A Step-By-Step Guide.” Nerd Fitness, 7 Dec. 2018, nerdfitness.com/blog/strength-training-101-how-to-squat-properly/.
  4. Farley, Ashley. “What Muscles Do Lunges Target?” COM, Leaf Group, www.livestrong.com/article/439335-what-muscles-do-lunges-work-out/.
  5. Lowis, Steven. “Muscles Contraction During Plank Exercise.” COM, Leaf Group, www.livestrong.com/article/520533-muscles-contraction-during-plank-exercise/.
  6. Reifkind, Tracy. “Swing For The Fences: Kettlebell Training-Burn Fat And Build Muscles!” com, Bodybuilding.com, 27 July 2018, www.bodybuilding.com/content/swing-for-the-fences-kettlebell-training-burn-fat-and-build-muscle.html.
  7. Vennare, Jen. “How to Do the Perfect Kettlebell Swing.” Greatist, Greatist, 10 July 2017, greatist.com/move/how-to-do-the-perfect-kettlebell-swing.
  8. Cespedes, Andrea. “What Muscle Does the Lateral Pulldown Work?” com, 21 Nov. 2017, livehealthy.chron.com/muscle-lateral-pulldown-work-8582.html.

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What’s Up with Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness?

What’s Up with Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness?

by | Dec 19, 2018 | All, Fitness, Home

Why do muscles sometimes hurt right away and other times up to 48 hours afterward? Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) is something every gym goer experiences, but it can affect everyone differently. DOMS is a common result of physical strain put on the muscles and the microscopic tears, or damage, done to the muscle fibers. This “damage” done to the muscles is extremely beneficial in helping with muscle growth and building strength, but it can cause some discomfort.

While no one likes to be in pain, the slight aches are a good indication that your body is benefiting from the new workout routine. When your body adjusts to the exercise, you’ll experience less pain, but this may be a sign it’s time to switch to a new exercise routine in order to keep your muscles guessing and not getting used to doing the same movements. A shock to the system will help increase muscle awareness and help contribute to continued muscle growth.

Minor discomfort is considered normal, but if your aches and pains are preventing you from doing everyday tasks, this could be an indicator that you’ve strained a muscle too far. In that case, focus on another muscle group in order to give your sore muscles enough time to heal. A good way to help prevent muscle soreness (or at least minimize it) is to properly stretch after each workout session. Some articles on the benefits of stretching can be found here and here.

Additional ways to help the body recover from DOMS is ice, rest, pain medication, massage, heat, and of course, stretching.1 Some people may even benefit from a post-workout cooldown, which would be about 10 minutes of light cardio, followed by stretching. This works because “when muscle temperature is increased, blood flow increases, bringing fresh oxygen and healing nutrients to the injured site.”2 It’s also important that you switch up the muscle groups you’re targeting at the gym, in order to build overall muscle and avoid over trained muscles. This is where injury can occur.

What if you don’t experience soreness after a workout? Well, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re not working out hard enough. Different body types handle pain and exercise differently. It could just mean that you’re one of the lucky ones not experiencing as much inflammation as others might. Another way to help decrease DOMS is staying properly hydrated.3 Drinking enough water helps prevent dehydration and assists with circulation.

What are your tips for helping combat DOMS? Leave your suggestions in the comments below. 

Sources:

  1. Sarnataro, Barbara Russi. “Sore Muscles? Don’t Stop Exercising.” WebMD, WebMD, www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/sore-muscles-dont-stop-exercising.
  2. Ibid
  3. Zickl, Danielle. “Is Muscle Soreness Really a Sign Of an Effective Workout?” Men’s Health, Men’s Health, 30 July 2018, www.menshealth.com/fitness/a19542200/what-is-delayed-onset-muscle-soreness/.

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Trot Off the Turkey Challenge

Trot Off the Turkey Challenge

by | Nov 14, 2018 | All, Fitness, Home

LA Fitness invites you to trot off the turkey with us this season!  

Thanksgiving is the perfect time of year to give thanks to all that is good in our lives – including giving thanks to our bodies. Before sitting down with friends and family, try challenging yourself to this 2-week pre-Thanksgiving dinner workout! 

But first, a fun fact.  

Did you know the average number of calories that a person consumes at Thanksgiving dinner is a whopping 4,500!?1 That’s a whole lot more than the daily recommended amount (over double for some!), and that’s just one meal.  

But fear not, let yourself splurge for the holiday by burning off the 4,500 calories in the next 15 days leading up to the big event.  

The Turkey Trot Challenge is designed to increase in difficulty as we get nearer the holiday, but make sure you go at your own pace and never push yourself to the point of exhaustion. Remember, this should be fun!  

Share your journey with us using the hashtags #LAFitness #TurkeyTrotChallenge. 

Starting Point: 4,500 calories to burn. 

DAY 1 – Starting off slow 

  • Running (5 mph) 
  • Time: 30 minutes 

Calories Burned: 240 

Calories Remaining: 4,260  

DAY 2 

  • Walking (3 mph) 
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Calories Burned: 247 

Calories Remaining: 4,013 

DAY 3 – Time to up the training! 

  • Elliptical Trainer  
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Calories Burned: 645 

Calories Remaining: 3,368 

DAY 4  

  • Jogging 
  • Time: 45 minutes 

Calories Burned: 298 

Calories Remaining: 3,070 

DAY 5  

  • Running (6 mph) 
  • Time: 45 minutes 

Calories Burned: 427 

Calories Remaining: 2,643 

DAY 6 – We’re in the home stretch! 

Workout #1 

  • Elliptical Trainer  
  • Time: 60 minutes 

AND 

Workout #2 

  • “Power” Walking (4 mph) 
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Total Calories Burned: 937 

Calories Remaining: 1,706 

DAY 7  

Workout #1 

  • Running (7 mph) 
  • Time: 30 minutes 

AND 

Workout #2 

  • Hiking  
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Calories Burned: 832 

Calories Remaining: 874 

DAY 8 – One day out from Turkey Day (The cool down.) 

  • Walking (3 mph) 
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Calories Burned: 247 

Calories Remaining: 627 

DAY 9 – GOOBLE GOOBLE DAY (Thanksgiving!) 

  • Elliptical Trainer 
  • Time: 60 minutes 

Calories Burned: 645 

Calories Remaining: -18 

Yay! 18 extra calories burned!  

A Special Message from the Writer: 

In the spirit of the holiday season, I would like to take this time to thank all of our Living Healthy readers and subscribers. Each of you is such an inspiration to our community. I hope this holiday season brings you an abundance of love and gratitude and a desire to keep working towards all your health and fitness goals!  

Now it’s time for the moment we’ve all been waiting for… Thanksgiving dinner!  

Disclaimer: Calories burned are approximate and based off a weight category of 125lbs. In order to calculate calories burned using your own weight, click here.  

 Separately, a healthy balanced exercise program should consist of a mixture of both strength training and cardio. Do not use this as an exercise training program. This challenge is simply designed to be a fun addition to your normal workout routine.  

Sources:  

  1. https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/14/how-many-calories-do-we-really-eat-at-thanksgiving/  

Referenced:  

  1. https://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc/  

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Anything is Possible: The Story of Matt Martin-Hall (And His Quest for Running Success)

Anything is Possible: The Story of Matt Martin-Hall (And His Quest for Running Success)

by | Oct 29, 2018 | All, Home, Member Stories

I’ve always had a strong academic and metaphysical fascination with what makes us human. So much so that while studying digital video and audio production in college, I also majored in Anthropology- the study of human beings.  Fast forward five or six years after graduation and I find myself sitting behind a desk well into the “cushy corporate gig” phase of my career, still making videos and producing a wide range of audio projects for LA Fitness; feeling like I’m only using half of my education; that question still relatively unanswered and still burning.

What makes us human?

If asking that question is ultimately asking, “What makes us unique from other mammals or creatures with whom we share the condition of possessing vertebrae?”, then the answer is simple: Bipedal ambulation (walking on two feet) and our brains ability to create and operate abstractions (imagine a cat composed of various citrus fruits with a baby shark for a tail. That thing you see in your head, that’s what I mean. So far as we know, only humans can conjure that up).

After a few existential breakdowns into my job here at LA Fitness, I had resigned myself to the reality that these partial answers to such a big question would have to suffice. There was no sense in pursuing them further. I worked for a gym. The place people go to get fit, not answer big questions. In my mind, those two things were forever incongruous.

Then a few important things happened that changed my mind quite profoundly:

  1. I read a book titled Born to Run by Christopher McDougall to learn more about the indigenous Tarahumara of Mexico’s Copper Canyons.
  2. I fell in love with a long-distance runner (whom I originally bought that book for).
  3. I succumbed to the unbridled peer pressure to try and be fit at work. Something that naturally exists in a place whose primary function is to promote and provide an environment to do just that.
  4. I agreed to be a part of a spotlight series at work where I go from the couch to accomplishing some athletic feat.
  5. I fit into a pair of jeans.

I think the most magnificent abstraction we’ve created as humans is linear time. The idea of seconds begetting minutes begetting hours begetting days and so on as if a series of incremental points on a timeline. None of this existed until the 14th century, whence the clock prevailed as a timekeeper. It’s from the invention of the clock and the hours and seconds contained within it that we have this perception of time. What makes this seem like such grand ruse of an abstraction is that: it wasn’t until I fit into some jeans yesterday that I realized or felt like all these things happened FOR something. I mean, of course, I knew sequentially when I had read and finished the book; what made me fall in love with my girlfriend and when; why I had agreed to do the spotlight series; when I walked into the gym and started forming that habit; when I fit into the jeans; and in what order these all occurred. But some genie was released from the bottle when I clasped the top button and didn’t feel like I should face away from the mirror out of fear of that button bursting off and shattering my reflection. A genie that couldn’t be returned after I needed a belt to fasten those same jeans to my waist.

All at once past, present and future, happened to me; The book I read piqued my interest in long-distance running; it taught me about our adaptation to sweat and endure beyond that of any other vertebrate. I was standing at the finish line of her marathon, the first one I attended, filled with pride as she caught her breath. I was walking into the gym for the first time at 29 running a 5k on the treadmill to see if I could (I could). I was poised and excited to pounce on this opportunity at work to serve my (until now unadmitted) vanity. I was attaining the great sense of accomplishment after fitting into three older pairs of jeans. And I was standing there, at the end of my own first race, dead tired but proud beyond comprehension.

The last of these events hasn’t happened yet. But it will. Past, present, future: All at once. I intend to explore the depth of the answers to my initial question. Though, presently, I find myself in a familiar dilemma: exploring and challenging the nature of human abstraction is only one part of the answer. If I’m to truly dive into this journey, I must do one more thing. That thing will require me to not just push myself, but figure out how to push myself, and what it means to push myself to do it. It’s no big reveal, you see, I’ve already told you what it is. It all happened at once, remember?

I. Must. Run.

And I will. A half marathon at first, a full marathon at last, and I’ll tell you all about it.

*Matt is a current employee of LA Fitness.  While the opinions herein are Matt’s own, Matt receives a free membership in connection with his employment. 

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