In today’s issue of FUN, HOT, NO B.S. Fitness Magazine!…
You’re going to learn… Women’s Top 10 Results-Robbing Training Mistakes
Belinda Benn – VFT’s Featured Fitness Expert, International Fitness Model and Transformation Coach doesn’t pull any punches…
THIS IS for ladies that want to make real advances with your training efforts.
I hope you enjoy today’s lesson and PLEASE leave your comment BY CLICKING ON THE COMMENTS box below, we love hearing from you!
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VFT – NO BS Fitness!
Are you making the most common training mistakes? If so, you’re probably robbing yourself of great results. Read on to discover how to avoid these mistakes and start achieving better results with less time in the gym…
Mistake 1: Trying to Spot Reduce
You’ve heard the spot-reduction claims before: “Just do 500 crunches a day and you’ll flatten your stomach in no time.” Or, “Leg exercises will melt the fat right off your thighs.”
Sorry ladies, it doesn’t work that way. The only way to reduce fat in one specific place is to go under the knife and use liposuction to vacuum it out. Otherwise, you need to work with Mother Nature. If you reduce your calories and up your exercise, the fat will melt off, usually in the order of disappearing first from the last place you put it on.
Now, once you’ve started stripping away the fat to reveal the muscle, then you can work on specific body parts to improve them. For example, chest exercises will help lift your breasts by building muscle beneath them. Leg exercises will make your body more shapely. But that doesn’t mean you should focus on isolation exercises to the exclusion of the big lifts (see Mistake #7 for more details).
Mistake 2: Fear of Turning Into the Incredible Hulk
The key to getting in shape is to include both weight training and cardio into your weekly routine. Some women avoid weight training altogether. Still others avoid lifting with any seriousness, because they’re afraid they’re going to bust out of their clothing like the Incredible Hulk.
Listen, that’s not going to happen. And it certainly wouldn’t happen overnight. You’d need to get a big boost in testosterone and train like a championship bodybuilder in order to put on huge, rippling muscles quickly. So assuming you’re not taking anabolic steroids – and assuming you’re not a male — you have nothing to worry about.1
Mistake 3: Avoiding the Heavy Weights
Men often make the mistake of lifting weights that are too heavy, so they end up “cheating” with bad form. Women tend to go the other weight – they often lift too light. Some will opt for the pink dumbbells in order to “tone.”
Look, you either put on muscle, or you don’t. You either burn fat to reveal that muscle, or you don’t. You can call it toning if you’d like. But no matter what label you put on it, the training remains the same. Namely, you need to lift heavy weights – those that you can only lift 8-12 times before failure. Then you’ll get the results you want.
Mistake 4: Neglecting to Take Into Account Your Natural Cycles
Like clockwork, you’re going to have hormonal surges and drops every month. Sometimes these fluctuating hormones wreak havoc with your diet. Sometimes they drag you down in the gym. Sometimes the cramping makes it too painful to even get out of bed.2
Here’s what I suggest: Go with the flow (so to speak). When it’s that time of the month, give yourself a break if you feel you need one. And at other times when you feel great, then give your best effort in the gym.
Mistake 5: Falling in Love With the Cardio Machines
Some women start a love affair with cardio machines whenever they start a new fitness program. Suddenly they’re spending hour after hour stair-stepping, spinning, and jogging. And soon they’re neglecting weights in lieu of cardio.
That’s a disastrous metabolism-reducing mistake.
Sure, you need to incorporate both cardio and weight training into your weekly routine. Cardio helps burn fat and keeps your heart healthy. But you also need weight training to maintain or even build muscle. That’s because every extra bit of muscle you have boosts your overall metabolism, which makes it even easier for you to burn fat (even while you’re at rest).
Point is, if you do too much cardio, you’ll destroy your muscle right alongside your fat. Your metabolism slows down to snail-like proportions. You’ll have to drop your calories and up your cardio just to see results again. And the vicious cycle continues, until you have the metabolism of a plump, 90-year-old grandmother. Yikes!
So skip all that and just make sure you’re weight training every week while doing moderate amounts of cardio.
Mistake 6: Not Putting Your Deodorant to Work
Whether you’re lifting weights or doing cardio, if you’re not sweating then you’re probably not trying hard enough. And that means you’re robbing yourself of valuable muscle gains, fat losses and better cardiovascular health.
Not only should you be giving 100% every time you go to the gym, you should also be seeking to improve over last week’s performance. That means:
• Adding another pound or two to your lifts.
• Eking out an extra rep… and giving it your all on every rep.
• Using proper form, which is critical to long-term results.
• Going a little harder or longer during cardio.
If you improve your weight training and cardio every week, then your body will improve every week, too.
Mistake 7: Ignoring the Big Lifts
Earlier I mentioned that you can make certain body parts more shapely by working on the specific muscles. However, that doesn’t mean you should avoid the big lifts, like deadlifts, bench press, rows, squats and shoulder presses. These big lifts naturally incorporate the smaller muscles, like the triceps. And when you do these big lifts with good form and heavy weights, you’re creating a balanced, shapelier body – the kind that stops traffic.
Mistake 8: Getting Addicted to the Scale
Some women check the scale multiple times per week or even daily. If that’s what you do, then you need to stop that bad habit right now. That’s because the scale only tells you whether you’re losing weight, but it doesn’t tell you if you’re losing fat or gaining muscle, both of which contribute to a more beautiful body.
So go ahead and step on the scale from time to time (once or twice a month). But don’t rely on it. Instead, focus on how you look in the mirror, especially your shape and symmetry. Focus on what the body fat calipers are telling you. And focus on how you feel – sexier and stronger, no doubt.
Mistake 9: Avoiding Foreplay
Wait… this sounds like a man’s problem, doesn’t it? In the bedroom, maybe. But in the gym, not warming up (AKA avoiding foreplay) is just as much of a woman’s problem. If you skip this crucial step you’re just opening yourself up to injury. That’s why you should spend about 10 minutes doing a full-body warm up.
I like to skip rope for 10 minutes before my workout. I also stretch lightly between sets and at the end of my workout.
Mistake 10: Eating Too Little
We women like to go to extremes. When we decide to lose weight, we often slash our calories to extreme proportions. Problem is, doing so makes the body think you’re starving, which makes your metabolism predictably drop like the New York City Times Square apple on New Year’s Eve.
Instead, what you need to do is eat enough to support your activity. Your body needs fuel to lift weights. And when you eat enough, you’ll give it what it needs to build muscle… and you’ll also make your body confident enough to shed the fat.
References
1. Brodsky I, Balagopal P, Nair K (1996). “Effects of Testosterone Replacement on Muscle Mass and Muscle Protein Synthesis in Hypogonadal Men—A Clinical Research Center Study”. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 81 (10): 3469–75.
2. Menstruation and the Menstrual Cycle. The National Women’s Health Information Center. http://www.womenshealth.gov/faq/menstruation.cfm. Accessed November 1, 2010.
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Belinda Benn: As someone who hadn’t exercised until I was 37, I know how tough it can be to get into shape—at any age.
In my 30s, I realized that my body had paid the price for years of office work, eating a lot of sugar and fat, and a lack of exercise. I made some drastic changes—both inside and out—and after a few years backpacking around the world and learning to surf with the pros, I hunkered down in my 40s to study nutrition, leaning out, and body building.
It’s all paid off! Now I’m a leading Fitness Expert and Transformation Coach and an internationally published fitness model. My no-nonsense, down to earth approach to nutrition, food preparation, and fitness has proven results for both men and women who want to lean out, get fit, and be the best they’ve ever been—at any age!
Get Lean Program.com
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