To lose my ‘love handles’ and get a six-pack I need to do lots of sit-ups.

False!

   If you are carrying a little excess body fat, then no matter how many sit ups you do, you will never be able to see the results. You may tone and build perfect abdominals, yet they will always be hidden by that spare tyre. Many people believe that doing lots of sit-ups will burn off the fat from around your middle, yet this is not true! It is not possible to ‘spot reduce’ fat from specific areas of the body. Doing lots of bicep curls will not remove the fat from your arms. Fat is stored all over the body and exercise will burn calories and reduce fat from all areas of the body, not just from the area surrounding the working muscle. So for that perfect visible six-pack combine good abdominal routines with fat burning cardio workouts.

Eating more protein builds muscle.

If you listen to all the hype about high protein diets and supplements, it’s easy to believe that you need to take a protein supplement in order to build muscle. However too much protein can actually be damaging! While adequate calories are needed to make your body build muscle, excess calories of any type are stored as fat. Plus, the processing of protein places a load on the kidneys and can lead to kidney stones. In order to maintain weight, you only need to take in about 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. For muscle growth, a consistent workout using 8-12 repetitions, for 3-5 sets, plus a daily protein ingestion of 1.5-1.8 grams per kg body weight is recommended. It is a fact that the average person exceeds this protein intake with their normal diet and excess protein is removed from the body in urine. The truth is that weight training is the key to muscle growth, not excessive protein intake.

Women who lift weights develop big, bulky muscles

The belief that, if women follow a regular weight training program, they will develop large, bulky muscles is simply not true. Yet it is one of the most common fitness myths. The hormone testosterone is needed in large quantities in order to build muscle and women’s testosterone levels are much lower than men’s. Due to this, women are not capable of building muscle to the same degree as men. Using weights, about 3 times a week, will help women lose weight, tone up, raise their metabolism and strengthen bones and joints. The fact is that putting on large amounts of muscle takes a lot of commitment, including a dedicated weights routine and specific diet, even for men! So, ladies, don’t avoid the weights area in the gym, learn how to use them properly and reap the many benefits that weights can provide.

If you want to know more about the correct use of weights, think about hiring a personal trainer. Even if you can only afford one session, you’ll learn how to train safely and maximize the benefits from this great workout.

Muscle turns to fat once you stop exercising.

The belief that muscle turns to fat has been around for a long time. We’ve all seen cases where former sportsmen have piled on weight once they’ve stopped competing. However, the fact is, that fat and muscle are two very separate tissues. Muscle is made up of around 70% water while fat consists of around 70% fat and the rest water, muscle cannot turn into fat, and fat cannot turn into muscle. The trend for sportsmen to gain fat once they retire is very real, yet it is purely down to a dramatic change in lifestyle. While these athletes are training and competing each day they need to consume a high number of calories to fuel their intense activity. The problem comes when the athlete retires and stops the high level of activity, but continues to consume a high calorie diet. The lack of exercise means that they lose their muscle, while continuing with the high calorie diet leads to weight gain. The athlete loses muscle and gains fat, yet their muscle does not turn into fat.

Exercising on an empty stomach burns more calories

This is a common theory that appears to make sense on the surface of it, the belief being that as exercise burns calories, if there is no food (calories) in your stomach, then you must be burning calories from stored fat. The reality is that it doesn’t work in that way. Exercise burns the same number of calories, regardless of whether you have eaten recently or not, and subsequent weight loss comes from building a calorie deficit over an extended period of time. Exercising on an empty stomach may actually hinder your weight loss efforts, as you may feel light headed and lack the energy required to exercise at any great intensity or for a sustained duration.

If you can’t work out everyday, then there’s no point.

Many people seem to have an ‘all or nothing’ attitude to fitness; they embark on a new training regime with lots of motivation, go to the gym 4 or 5 times a week, and eat an ultra healthy diet, but then once they’ve missed a session or two, they lose motivation and feel if they can’t commit to the same intense level, then there’s no point in doing anything. The truth is that just making small adjustments to your diet and exercise routine can yield long term benefits. In fact, this slow adjustment to aspects of your life can be more beneficial, as studies have shown people are more likely to stick to them. Improving your fitness does not mean having to commit large amounts of time to the gym; by incorporating exercise and activity into your daily routine you can burn more calories throughout the day, without really assigning time specifically for exercise.  

You will burn more fat if you exercise for longer at a lower intensity

Many people believe that exercising for long periods of time, at a low intensity, burns more fat than shorter and more intense exercise. Promoters of this theory believe that you need to use up the energy in your muscles, and then begin to burn calories direct from fat stores. The truth, in relation to fat loss, is that the most important factor in exercise and weight control is not the percentage of fat calories burned, but the total calories burned during the activity. So whether you choose to perform short periods of intense activity, or longer less intense exercise sessions, remember that the total number of calories that you burn is what determines fat loss.

Working out at home is fine, but you need to go to the gym to get real results.

Regularly going to the gym and correctly using all the wonderful equipment is a fantastic way to get fit, yet training at home can be equally effective, and much more time efficient. Many people invest in pieces of home gym equipment, with the intention to do a little exercise each day in the comfort of their own homes, only for it to end up gathering dust and acting as a clothes hanger. The problem comes with a lack of ideas and imagination, which are needed to keep your home sessions interesting. With a few basic pieces of equipment and some advice or personal training sessions to get you started, you’ll be able to develop a selection of home workouts that will ensure your trainings sessions remain varied and challenging. With as little as a set of dumbbells and an exercise ball, you can easily complete a full body workout with many variations.

Just lifting weights will get rid of my ´bingo wings´.

Excess fat surrounding on the back of the upper arms (triceps) is a common problem area for many people. Often referred to as ´bingo wings´, this is an issue that personal trainers are frequently asked about. Many people believe that doing exercises that target specific muscle groups i.e. the triceps, will help to reduce the excess fat and tone the area. While it is true that performing weight training exercises that focus on the triceps will help to tone and build muscle in that area, it will not help to reduce the excess fat in that specific location. This theory, known as spot reducing, is a common myth. Working a specific muscle does not mean that the fat stores surrounding it will be reduced more effectively than in any other areas of the body. When there is a calorie deficit (you consume less calories than you burn) the body will lose fat from all areas, not the closest area to the muscles doing the most work. So, returning to the issue of bingo wings, the most effective way to solve the issue is to perform a variety of aerobic exercises (running, cycling, swimming etc) in addition to a total body weight training routine.

The ultimate 6 week ‘Fit for the beach’ program.

By James Woods

It’s May, and the sun seems to be shining brighter with each passing day. This is the time of year when many of us love to spend our days off relaxing on the beach. However, if you haven’t quite managed to stick to your training program this year, you may be feeling that you’d like to lose a few pounds and tone up a bit, before hitting the beach. Summer means heat, which means shorts and t-shirts, which in turn means there’s more flesh on display and nowhere to hide those parts of our bodies that we’d rather people not see. So here’s ioh’s fantastic 6 week program to get you fit for the beach. We like to think that ioh is a bit different from other magazines, we don’t tell you it’s going to be easy and guarantee you unbelievable results – but we do promise that if you stick to the program, with only the occasional blip, this really does work. It’s not rocket science, there’s no magic formula to our program, just sensible eating and regular exercise. This really is quite a basic program, once you understand the principles of each session, but if you feel you need some guidance to begin with, consult a qualified personal trainer for help.

 The basic training program

The table above outlines the basic training pattern for each week. Cardiovascular training is alternated with weight training and there is one day of total rest each week.

Cardiovascular training sessions

Interval training

The interval training sessions can be performed with a number of activities, such as running, cycling, swimming and rowing, either in the gym on corresponding machines or outdoors. These sessions should only last around 30 minutes each. The aim of the entire program (both weight training and cardio) is to work intensely for brief periods of time.

Interval training 1 – This session involves 2 minutes of activity followed by 1 minute of active rest. This pattern is repeated throughout the 30 minute session. The key is to focus on maximal effort for each 2 minutes of activity, do not pace yourself thinking that you have 30 minutes of activity ahead and that you need to be fresh for the last few repetitions. The 1 minute of active rest will be slow walking, slow pedalling etc. Almost total rest, but keep moving, do not sit down! At the beginning of the 6 week program this interval training may seem difficult, but you will be pleasantly surprised how quickly your body adapts and your fitness improves.

Interval training 2 – This session follows the same format as Interval training 1, but with 3 minutes of activity and 2 minutes of rest.

Crescendo Training session – This session requires you to perform a 20 minute cardio session, in which the intensity gradually builds throughout, until you are at maximal effort for the last stages of the session. Again, this can be done with any activity, but the easiest way to control the gradual rise in intensity is to perform it on a running machine. This way, you can increase the speed of the treadmill every minute, building up to maximal effort. It may take a bit of experimenting before you get to know which pace to start at and how much to increase the pace by each minute. Be sure to be at maximal effort for the last few stages on the session, or it will become too easy and you will not be training at a high enough intensity.

The weight training sessions

These sessions involve 2 upper body workouts and 1 leg and abdominal workout. As with the cardio sessions, the key is to train with maximum effort, so be sure that you are really pushing yourself for the last few repetitions of each set. Most of the exercises (or basic variations of) can be done at home with just a set of dumbbells and a weights bench.

Below is a list of the exercises. For each session, choose one exercise from each body part and perform 4 sets as follows;

Set 1. 12 repetitions

Set 2. 10 repetitions

Set 3. 8 repetitions

Set 4. 12 repetitions

As the repetitions decrease, you will need to add more weight in order to push yourself so that you are at maximum effort to finish each set.

Upper Body Exercises

Chest exercises:

• Barbell Bench Press
• Dumbbell Chest Press
• Dumbbell Chest Flies

Back exercises:

• Pull ups
• Lat Pull Downs
• Seated row
• Bent over row

Shoulder exercises:

• Dumbbell shoulder press
• Front raises
• Lateral raises

Bicep exercises:

• Dumbbell bicep curl
• Barbell bicep curl
• Hammer curl

Tricep exercises:

• Dips
• Tricep cable pull downs
• Tricep kickbacks

Leg and abdominal workout

Quadriceps

• Squat
• Lunges
• Leg extension

Hamstrings

• Lying hamstring curls
• Straight leg deadlifts

Calves

• Calf raises

Abdominals  (perform 3 exercises from the list)

• Fit ball curls
• Bent knee crunches
• Medicine ball crunches
• Lying bicycle kicks
• Oblique curls

Example upper body session.

• Barbell bench press.  4 sets -12, 10, 8, 12
• Lat pull downs. 4 sets – 12, 10, 8, 12
• Dumbbell shoulder press. 4 sets -12, 10, 8, 12
• Dumbbell bicep curl. 4 sets -12, 10, 8, 12
• Dips. 4 sets -12, 10, 8, 12

Eating plan.

Try to eat 5-6 times a day, this equates to eating about every 3 hours. This sounds a lot, but it is important that you only ever eat small amounts at a time. Try to use a small plate so that you are not tempted to eat too much in one sitting. At first it may be difficult to eat every 3 hours as you may not feel hungry, but even if this is the case, try to eat a small amount. Every time you eat something you increase your metabolism and your body burns the fuel. You need to get your body into the habit of burning energy, knowing that the next small meal is not far away. It is important to eat soon after waking, this gives your metabolism an early morning kick start. If you find it hard to eat first thing in the day, try making a smoothie.

  Also be sure to eat protein with each meal. This doesn’t mean eating steak or chicken every meal, but it does mean always having some source of protein on your plate, this could be chicken, tuna, eggs, nuts or beans. Protein helps to make you feel full and slows down the release of energy from the foods, keeping blood sugar levels more stable. Try to reduce the amount of simple carbohydrates you consume, e.g. white bread, white rice and white pasta. Our personal preference is to totally cut out all bread, pasta, rice and potatoes from the diet, but if you feel you need a little of these, then that is fine.

   Due to their high calories, avoid chocolate, cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks and alcohol as much as possible. Remember that you do have one day off a week from the program. Use this day to rest from exercise and to relax your eating plan, but be sensible, you will have put a lot of hard work into the previous 6 days and you don’t want to negate that effort.

Below are a few examples of meals, these are mainly our preferences, but feel free to be creative! Remember the key is to eat small amounts often, what you actually eat is very open, so this program still allows you to enjoy your favourite foods – just in smaller portions!

Breakfast

• Scrambled egg and tomato
• Ham and cheese omelette
• Banana and nut milk smoothie

Mid morning

• Fruit, nuts, seeds
• Yoghurt, berries, nuts, seeds
• Tuna wrap

Lunch

• Chicken salad
• Soup with lentils and beans
• Mackerel on toast

Mid afternoon

• Tuna, bean, tomato salad
• Smoothie with nuts/seeds
• Fruit, nuts, seeds
• Pork in tomato sauce

Dinner

• Stir fry chicken and vegetables
• Steak and vegetables
• Prawn thai curry

The entire program is designed to be very straightforward and to make it as easy as possible to stick to. In order for the 6 weeks to go smoothly, it is important to plan well and be prepared. This applies to both the exercise and the diet. Try to think about what you are going to eat for the next few days and have appropriate foods available. But remember, the diet is not particularly restrictive, so you can still eat out, or meet friends for lunch, just stick to eating only small amounts every 3 hours.

The overall aim of this program is to reduce your excess fat and add some muscle to your body. As muscle weighs more than fat, you may not greatly reduce your weight, but you will lose inches, so don’t be obsessed by the scales each day.

Remember to consult a doctor before beginning any new exercise activity or making any changes to eating habits, if you have a history of illness.

Many people blame their inability to reduce their size on the fact that they have a naturally slow metabolism. However, the idea that metabolic rate is fixed is pure fiction – a slow rate is generally due to low fitness levels, often caused by a sedentary lifestyle. In fact, you can raise your metabolic rate and increase your calorie-burning potential at will.

What is your metabolic rate?

Metabolism is a Greek word, meaning change or transformation. Metabolism is the process by which your body transforms food, internal muscle and fat into available energy. The basal metabolic rate (BMR), or resting metabolic rate, is the minimum number of calories your body needs to function while at rest. Up to 70% of your daily intake of calories is burned up by the BMR. It therefore follows that by revving up your metabolism, you can raise your BMR and dramatically increase your calorie-burning potential, while you’re resting. Various factors impact on your BMR. For example, as you age your BMR drops. The weather also has an effect, because you burn more calories keeping warm in cold weather and also keeping cool in hot weather.

Why tone and walk?

Muscle tone plays a key role in determining your metabolic rate and your body’s ability to burn calories. Muscle is the most metabolically active part of your body and it burns up to three times more calories than any other tissue. Each 450 grams (1 lb) of muscle burns a massive 70 calories a day when at rest, whereas each 450 grams (1lb) of fat burns only 2 calories a day at rest!

Toning exercises create lean muscle and the more lean muscle you have, the more calories your body burns. So toning up increases your metabolic rate and helps your body burn more calories throughout the day.

Eat and drink.

Your eating patterns influence your metabolism, so making key changes to what and when you eat will help you lose weight. Regular, balanced eating is the key to keeping your metabolism revved up and you don’t need to cut out the carbs, either. A healthy, balanced diet will help you support your body as you train. Drinking eight or more glasses of water a day, will ensure that your muscles perform at their peak, as well as keeping your body hydrated and enhancing your overall sense of wellbeing. Make sure you have water close at hand whenever you are exercising.

Toning exercises help you feel and look younger for longer. Your metabolic rate naturally slows down by 2% for every decade of your life, but regular toning exercises halt this and help you to maintain a higher metabolic rate. Regular weight-bearing exercises also help to maintain bone density and prevent the onset of osteoporosis, caused by hormonal changes during menopause.

Metabolism and age.  

In your twenties.

During this time of your life, you naturally have more lean muscle and les fat, so your metabolic rate will be high. By your mid-twenties, if you’re not exercising regularly, muscle mass starts to decline. The muscle fibres deactivate, which slows down the basal metabolic rate and the body’s fat stores increase. However, staying in shape in your twenties can be easier than in your thirties or forties, as you’re more likely to have an active life with time available to spend on yourself.

In your thirties.

The thirties can be a time of plateau in terms of body shape and self-attitude, as we become absorbed with children, home, career development – or all three! You may feel extraordinarily busy, but don’t seem to be able to shape up as you naturally lose lean muscle and gain fat. Extra weight tends to head for the hips on women and we often try to run it off, or we focus purely on any exercise that gets our bottoms moving in the hope of shifting weight. What’s really needed, however, is toning exercises – not only because toning helps you to control your shape, but crucially because toning also helps to protect against osteoporosis. Regular exercise during your thirties, will make your body radically stronger by the time you reach your fifties.

In your forties.

During your forties, your BMR and digestive system start to slow down. Hormone fluctuation can arise at this time, particularly in the mid to late forties for women, with the onset of the menopause. In addition, thyroid problems are more likely to arise during this decade. The thyroid gland in the neck helps to regulate the BMR. When it is not functioning properly, weight, energy levels, muscle strength, skin, hair and periods are affected. Too much thyroxin (the hormone produced by the thyroid) in the body can cause thyrotoxicosis, doubling the BMR. Too little thyroxine results in myxeodema, when the BMR may drop to 30-40% below its normal rate. Because exercise speeds up the metabolic rate, it’s helpful for those with an under active thyroid.

In your fifties.

The average age for the onset of menopause is 51. During the menopause the body produces less oestrogen, which can cause the rapid loss of bone density. For some women, the hormonal changes can trigger weight gain. Given that the metabolic rate continues to slow with age unless it’s speeded up by regular exercise, menopause weight gain can be difficult to lose.

In your sixties and beyond.

During the sixties weight generally returns to normal. This is also a time when

cholesterol levels need to protect the health of your heart. There are three types of cholesterol, or fats, in the body, LDL or bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein), HDL or good (high-density lipoprotein) and VLDL (very low-density lipoprotein). The ratio between them indicates whether or not excess cholesterol is being deposited in the artery walls, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. Aerobic exercise helps to decrease LDL cholesterol and raise HDL, as can eating fewer saturated fats.

Lucy Wyndham-Read. (Personal Trainer) Lucy is the author of the book The No Gym Workout. She has worked as a personal trainer in London for over 10 years and has appeared as a health expert on television. She regularly contributes articles to newspapers and magazines, including The Guardian and OK Magazine.

www.lucywyndhamread.com

 

Cool Running

By Nick Clarke – Founder of www.gunpowder-magazine.com

With people pushing their physical limits further than ever, running a marathon for charity is at an all-time high. Most major cities now have annual runs – most notably, London and New York – and everyone from celebrities to politicians are jumping on the bandwagon. Even good old Jade Goody had a bash at the London Marathon last year, bless her – even if she did pull out little more than halfway through. Brilliant for your overall fitness and great for your self-esteem, running a marathon also gives you good reason to raise money for a greater cause. So what are you waiting for? You don’t have to be a muscle-bound, steroid freak to run a marathon; with a little motivation, dedication and inspiration you’re halfway there.

          A couple of years ago I was two stone overweight, very unfit and very, very sluggish. In fact, I’d have sooner curled up on the sofa with a McDonald’s and an episode of CSI than do something remotely active. Marathons were for other people – mad people. But when I couldn’t fit into my size 34-waist jeans – I was only 22, for crying out loud! – I caught the exercise bug. I refused to be one of those people who needed to be lifted out of their houses by a crane; the mere thought was all the  motivation I needed to sign up to a local gym and start a regular exercise regime. So, for two years, I combined healthy eating with regular running and pretty soon the pounds were falling off. Not only that, but my dread of the gym soon turned into a passion; I was enjoying the buzz of exercise, with all those endorphins rushing around my ever-shrinking body. They said exercise was good for you and I had never believed them, but now I felt great!

          Still buzzing with my weight loss and increased fitness, I decided – over one or two well deserved pints, I hasten to add – to put the new me to good use and do something for charity. ‘Why don’t we run to Wales?’ I had said to my friend, not fully comprehending how far it was from Eastbourne, my home at the time. Thankfully, my friend talked some sense into me and persuaded me to start small. So it was decided we would run to London for the Marie Curie Cancer Care (www.mariecurie.org.uk), a foundation that provides free nursing care to cancer patients and those with other terminal illnesses in their own home. It still wasn’t going to be easy – in fact, it was going to be 54 miles, just under two marathons – but it looked easier on paper and it was going to benefit a brilliant cause.

          Thankfully, we were both keen runners and had trained for a couple of years in anticipation for something like this anyway. But with a week to go until our set-off date, there was still so much to do. Firstly, we needed to raise money and fast; secondly, we needed to plot our route through the countryside and then the towns; and thirdly, we needed to promote what we were going to do. So we set up a website at www.justgiving.com where people would be able to safely and securely donate through, and got in touch with all our friends and family who helped kick-start our fund. Next, we managed to persuade a local rag to run a feature on us, as well as a printing company to sponsor and produce free flyers for us. Trawling around both Eastbourne and Brighton town centres for the rest of the week, we delivered to every office block and shop we could think of, in the hope that somebody would read about our website and donate whatever they could spare. Fortunately, our hard work paid off and when we checked our website towards the end of the week it was heartening to see funds pouring in from all kinds of companies and unknown sources.

          So the day of reckoning came, and we set off from Brighton train station in East Sussex to Clapham Junction train station in London. We began by traipsing across the Sussex Downs, as we thought it would be a nice scenic route. Fate had other plans, however, and rain came down in torrential sheets. Muddy, soaked through and scared of what lie ahead, it was not a good start. Nevertheless, we soldiered on and made our way slowly through the southeast countryside up towards Gatwick Airport, where we pitched up for the night.

          Having already walked about 26-miles – the equivalent of a marathon – we woke up the next morning stiff and in pain. In fact, having broken both my feet some years before in an accident, I struggled to walk at all. I suddenly became terrified, as the reality that we might actually fail hit home. Then I got a call from a friend who was manning our website back home; funds were still pouring in, apparently, and we were now in triple figures. Not bad, for a week’s fundraising! With renewed vigour, we climbed to our feet and began the second half of the journey past Croydon and towards the capital.

          With little food having passed our lips over the last two days, we were beginning to feel very tired and emotional. In fact, as we slogged up an impossibly steep heel, we began to snap at each other. Then, in the distance, we saw the formidable shape of London. Never had it looked so beautiful or appealing. Little did we know, however, that our raised hopes and celebratory moods were a little premature. Three hours later, we had still not arrived. Trudging through Clapham for what seemed like a lifetime, our feet blistered, bruised and bleeding, we collapsed onto a bench at a bus stop. At that moment a bus pulled in, with Clapham Junction plastered across the front. Looking at each other, my friend and I had exactly the same thought; who would ever know if we climbed aboard? We would, that’s who. We had come this far, it seemed stupid to trip at the last hurdle. No, we would carry on and finish this thing fair and square. It was for a brilliant cause and kind people had trusted us enough to follow it through until the very end. So we took the remainder of our run slowly – a jog, if you will – before finally coming down the hill to Clapham Junction train station and finishing what we had set out to do.

          The next day I spent with my feet raised against a wall so that the blood could rush back down my legs. In two days I had lost three kilos (!) and had become severely dehydrated, but with the adrenaline pumping I had never felt so fantastic. Brilliant for the body and even better for the mind – with enhanced strength and confidence in equal measures – running is made even better when you run for somebody else.

Want to run for charity?

If you want to raise money for charity by running, it couldn’t be easier to set up. Simply go to www.justgiving.com and register an account for free. Once you’ve signed up, you can search for and add a charity to your account, write about what you intend to do and alert friends to your cause so that you can start raising money straight away. Plan ahead, prepare yourself and do it with a friend to motivate each other. 

I want to lose a few pounds and tone up for the summer. People say that doing weights will help lose weight, but surely cardio burns more calories. I’m not sure which to focus on most, my cardio or weight training, how can I get a good balance of both?

I believe that a combination of both these types of exercise will provide an effective program to lose fat and produce good muscle tone. However the balance of your training will depend on the amount of sessions you are able to fit in to your weekly schedule. If for example you were only able to commit to 2-3 sessions per week then I would advise you focus on weight training. For weight loss I would use a circuit-based format of 5-8 exercises performed either to a set time period (e.g. 30 secs) or rep range (8-15) for 2-5 circuits depending on fitness levels concentrating on total body primal movements (e.g. Squatting, bending, lunging, pulling and pushing).

The theory here is that the more muscles you use the more calories you will burn and as you are working with little or no rest between each exercise this will ensure you get a good cardiovascular workout too. If this wasn’t enough, working at this type of intensity will elevate your metabolic rate, making sure your still burning calories long after your workout has finished. If you still have the energy and want to add more workouts to your weekly regime then some pure cardio sessions would be of great benefit. Again the recent research seems to indicate that working at higher intensities in an interval training approach seems to work best with weight loss rather than the traditional view of, low intensity cardio sessions. Remember the intensity you can work at will be based on your fitness levels so if you’re unsure you are suitable for this type of training I would advise you speak to a fitness professional or doctor before starting any routine. Combined with a sensible eating plan this form of training will guarantee you look and feel great on the beach this summer

I am a keen endurance runner, but worried about my hydration levels in the coming summer, do you have any advice for fluid intake with exercise?

Exercising in hot, humid environments can be challenging, often leading to muscle cramps in the early stages to heat illness in the later stages. So how can we help eliminate these effects for our training sessions?

Do you know your sweat rate? 

Typically, your sweat rate can range from a loss of 0.5 litres -1.5 litres per hour in normal conditions. However in hot, humid conditions it could rise up to 2.5 litres per hour. Studies have shown that a 2% loss of body fluid can lead to a 15% decrease in performance. 

How do you know if you’re dehydrated before your workout? 

Have a pre exercise pee. If dark in colour with a strong odour you’re starting the workout dehydrated. If clear you’re hydrated and ready to begin.

How to hydrate before your work out……..

3-4 hrs before training you need to drink 5-7ml of fluid per kg of bodyweight. If still dehydrated when you have a pee, drink another quarter of a litre before the work out (around 1 hr before).

Staying hydrated throughout your work out……….

During your work out you need to match your sweat rate which you will have worked out on a previous workout out.

After the workout………….

Over the next few hrs you want to be looking at taking on board 150% of total body weight loss.

• So if you lose 1 kg in body weight look at drinking 1.5 ltrs of fluid.
• This is because you will keep losing body fluid by sweating and urination over the next few hours.

What should we be drinking?

In hot humid climates it is best to look for a drink with a higher content of sodium, as a lot of sodium is lost during sweating. If playing or training for longer than one hour look for a drink containing carbohydrate to replace fuel in the muscles.

I am determined to get for this summer and think I should make finally make use of my swimming pool! What are the particular benefits that swimming offers?  

In 2500BC, Egyptian hieroglyphics featured a person propelling themselves through the water. This being one of the first recorded indications that humans swam, an activity that has remained with us ever since. But why? What is it that swimming has which other physical activities lack?

Although swimming has changed and developed through the ages, the beneficial properties associated with it are relatively new by comparison. These properties can be divided into psychological, physiological and social or mind body and spirit.

The psychological benefits of swimming are greatly understated, as it tends to be promoted as either a sport or as a form of physical exercise; both very important but not the only reason to get into the water. Swimming can produce a heightened sense of well being, it is extremely relaxing and brings a meditative experience to the participant. Just floating can bring a sense of calm and peace as water supports and massages the swimmer as they take ‘time out’ from daily routines.

The physiological benefits of swimming tend to gain greater publicity, probably due to the support of the medical profession. Swimming conditions most of the muscles as the water provides a greater resistance than air, causing the muscles to work harder. Blood pressure can be reduced as the heart becomes stronger. Body weight is reduced by 10%, taking pressure off bones and joints. Therefore swimming is ideal for sufferers of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, or those suffering from injury or surgery.

The social benefits of swimming can be found simply by being with other likeminded people. Comparing experiences or creating and achieving personal goals can greatly improve self esteem. This in turn increases confidence in other areas.

Being a swimmer of any ability brings new friends, new skills, new knowledge, a calm relaxed mind, a toned healthy body and much laughter. So that’s why the Egyptians must have got in the water. Now it’s your turn – anyone can do it!!!

For the past few months I’ve been going to the gym 3 or 4 times a week, with the aim of gaining muscle and strength. I saw good improvements in strength in the first 2 months, but since then I seem to have become stuck on a plateau and I’m finding it hard to improve. Do you have any tips or suggestions for how I could change things about and move forward again.

I know the feeling when your bench press or squats have been stuck at the same weight for weeks and you’re now dreading stepping on the scales, just in case they show you haven’t gained any muscle since last month. For most people who train for strength and muscle gains we all go through this scenario at one time or another.

There a number of suggestions I could offer to help you but for the purpose of this question we will focus on one possible strategy.

You might want to consider adding to your training programme partial repetitions. Partial repetitions are just that – small movements performed in the range of an exercise you’re strongest in. In a bench press, for example, you’ll probably find you’re weakest in the bottom part of the movement (when the bar is just above your chest). Conversely, you’re stronger in the top half of the movement.

If we take the bench press as our example exercise and you want to add muscle size, do partial reps at the very end of a normal set when you can no longer complete a full rep. Use this technique for only the last set of an exercise.

To boost strength, perform partial reps using a weight with which you normally achieve only one full- rep. In the bench press example lower this weight only two to five inches from the top position and return to the start. Do two or three sets this way. Follow with one full-ROM (Range Of Movement) set of that exercise (obviously with a lower weight.). Then finish that chest workout with two more exercises using full-ROM reps for all sets.

Do this for four to six weeks before switching back to strict full-ROM training.

Remember it is crucial when looking to get bigger and stronger that you give your body adequate time to recover, feed it with high quality nutrition and get plenty of rest when possible. Good luck!

I’ve recently become pregnant and want to exercise regularly during my pregnancy. I’ve been told from a friend that pilates can be very beneficial for pregnant women. It does worry me that I have never done pilates before, so I would be starting as a beginner. Can you tell me a few of the benefits pilates would give me?

Sarah. 31

Pregnancy and Pilates can go very well together. However, the golden rule with pregnancy is that you should be very careful if starting something new during pregnancy and in some cases it may not be suitable to start at all during pregnancy. This rule applies to Pilates and any other form of exercise. Therefore, to attend a group class whilst pregnant and as a beginner, is something I would not recommend. In certain circumstances Pilates on a “one to one” basis may be suitable. This will depend on the stage of pregnancy when you are starting and also you must have been given permission from your Doctor to do Pilates. You would need the exercises to be adapted to your own individual needs; no one program is suitable for all pregnant women. Your personal fitness level, medical conditions and ability to perform the movements will all need to be considered. Pilates will help your body adapt to your ever changing posture during the pregnancy as your baby grows. Through gaining stronger abdominal muscles your body will cope better with carrying the weight of the growing uterus and baby. Your pelvic floor muscles will become stronger which will help you during the birth.  Furthermore, if you have practiced Pilates regularly during pregnancy, then your post natal recovery will be quicker. You will be less likely to suffer back problems during and after the pregnancy and will have a head start in regaining your abdominal strength and shape. In conclusion, for many ladies Pilates and pregnancy are a fabulous combination, as long as you are taught correctly, by a qualified and experienced teacher.

Clare Brannan

I play golf about 3 times a week, and although I consider myself fairly fit, I often get pain and stiffness in my back towards the end of a round. Are there any exercises I could do at home to strengthen my back?

Graham. 52

The stiffness in your back could be a result of a couple of different things…tight hamstrings, not enough strength in core or a posture issue. You can do a couple simple test to find out exactly where the problem lies. Try the following:

Core- Activation Test

• Lie on your back with your knees bent
• Place one hand under your lower back, then extend your knees to 90 degrees
• Press the lower back firmly against your hand.
• Slowly lower your feet towards the ground by keeping the same tension on your hand.

You should be able to lower your feet towards the floor while keeping the same pressure on your hand beneath your low back.

Core Strength and Endurance test

• Lie face down in the plank position
• Your elbows should be directly below your shoulders
• Push off your elbows and toes into the full plank position
• Your body should form one line from ear to heel
• Only hold this position as long as you can without feeling any pain or discomfort in your lower back.

If you possess good core strength and endurance, you should be able to hold this plank position without any discomfort in your back for up to 90 seconds or more.

Hamstring and Lower back test

• Sit down on the floor with your hips firmly against a wall
• Place your feet about 12 inches apart
• Place one hand on top of the other and reach forward with a straight back (not rounded)

You should be able to reach to your toes.  Golfers with tight hamstrings typically have a history of low back pain and discomfort in addition to other injuries. Once tight hamstrings place greater stress on the spine, a loss of flexibility can occur and valuable distance can be compromised

Stan Blair

A couple of months ago I decided it was about time I got fit, and since then I’ve been exercising about 4 times a week. It’s now coming to the summer and it’s getting pretty hot, as I normally train outside I need a few tips on how I can cut the length of my workouts but still make them effective. Do you have any advice for short weights workouts and cardio sessions?

Hi Austin,

There are a number of things you can do in order shorten the overall workout time whilst getting that bit extra out of the workout as well.

1: RESISTANCE: You can increase the weight you train with.

2: REST: You can reduce your rest time in between exercises.

3: DOUBLE UP: You can combine 2 exercises at the same time.

Say for example you normally use 3 kilos when exercising. You exercise for 30 seconds at a time and rest for a further 30 in between exercises. And you do the following 8 exercises, Overhead Press, Squat, DB Row, Bicep Curl, Lunge, Tricep Extension, Calf Raise & Crunches. The 8 minute workout is in reality only 4 mins of exercise.

By applying the 3 suggestions above you could use 4 kilo weights, exercise for 40 seconds at a time and rest for 20 seconds in between exercises, as well as combining exercises. Your new workout could look like this:

Squat with overhead Press, DB Row, Lunge with Bicep Curl, Tricep Extension with Calf Raise, Crunches. This 5 minute workout is in reality 3 mins 20 seconds long. You are lifting 20 per cent more weight and testing 2 muscle groups at the same time!

As for you cardio sessions you could try interval training. EG: Run at your normal pace in order to warm up the muscles, then run hard for 1 min, return to your normal pace or a little slower and then repeat the process several times. This again will ensure that you run for a shorter period of time without feeling as if you haven’t achieved anything.

I go to the gym and do 3 weights sessions a week, I’m trying to put on a bit of muscle, but am unsure how to structure my sessions. Should I work each muscle group in every session (one exercise per muscle group), or should I divide it up, for example work half the muscle groups intensely in alternate sessions. While I prefer to work less muscle groups intensely each session, it means that each muscle group gets trained less frequently per week. Do you have any advice?

Steve – 29.

What you have to remember is that when it comes to effective muscle building there is no “one perfect routine”.  In fact, the best workout is the always the one that you are yet to do, because your body adapts rapidly to set routines and can plateau very easily.  Haven’t you noticed all those people at your gym who make great gains when they start and then don’t change for the next three years?! This is why all of us, even myself, can benefit from working with a good coach from time to time to ensure that we don’t get stuck into that all too common rut.

If you only have the opportunity to train three times every week then there are several options that you can take – why don’t you try them all and see which fits best for you.

1)      Whole Body Workout 3 times per week

Pick 6 compound exercises for 3-4 working sets,  that work your major muscle groups (please don’t waste your precious time worrying about the lateral head of your tricep) by shifting big free weights through space – so no pec decks or leg extensions please!

2)      Split your body into 2 – Legs and abdominals one workout / Upper body second workout.

Again choose basic compound exercises, do NO MORE than 20 sets per workout.

This split will mean that one week you work your legs twice and upper body once, the following week its legs once and upper body twice.

3)      Split your body into 3 – I prefer Chest/Back, Legs, and Arms/Shoulders.

Each workout should last no more than 1 hour once you have warmed up.

Experiment with all 3 options and I am sure that you will make great progress.  And please remember that in the quest for muscular size nutrition is of paramount importance – try to consume 4 grams of protein per kg of bodyweight.

I would like to lose weight and get fit for Christmas. The problem is that every time I set out to do this, my enthusiasm wears off after a few weeks and I find it difficult to stick with to any routine. Do you have any advice to keep me on track?

Andrea

You need to establish an honest assessment of your fitness. Be specific and state how many pounds or inches you want to lose and the time frame in which to lose them. Write this plan down, put it on your fridge and commit to it for the next 30 days. It only takes 30 days to make a habit!

   Without purpose we lack motivation. Purpose is the driving force behind your commitment to exercise and should be strong and powerful. Saying: ‘I want to lose weight for Christmas’ is not acceptable. Add power to your purpose: ‘I have bought a dress for a Christmas party that I am going to fit into and I will look fantastic and it will give me a whole new boost of self confidence’.

Get creative and spice up your routine. Make a list of 10 different ways you could exercise in a group environment. Activities such as salsa, aqua aerobics, tennis, marital arts are great ways to keep and fit and have fun. Group exercise will also increase your commitment to yourself and your team.

Think getting fit means running marathons – not so, with a few sneaky tricks you can cheat yourself fitter at work, at the gym – or even sitting in your armchair at home

Everyone who’s ever dragged themselves out for a walk when they don’t want to go knows that to exercise you’ve got to work your mind as well as your body– but a recent study from scientists from Harvard University showed just how important exercising your mental muscles (as well as your physical ones) can be. They told one group of hotel cleaners that their job counted as exercise, another group didn’t get told this. In four weeks, the group that thought they were working out on the job, lost two pounds in weight, and dropped 10 points in blood pressure. The scientists don’t quite know why this happened – but it proved that boosting your fitness doesn’t just involve pounding the pavements for hours. In fact, there’s a heap of tricks and tips that can help you cheat yourself fitter.

Cheat yourself fitter: At the gym

• Go between 4-7pm: According to experts at Liverpool’s John Moore University, exercise feels easiest now – making it more likely that you’ll work harder.
• Get off the bike and onto the treadmill: You’ll burn 98 calories more every 20 minutes jogging on a treadmill than cycling on a stationary bike.
• Up the incline on that treadmill. ‘Going up to 1-2% won’t feel that much harder but it does get your heart beating faster – and it works more muscles through the back of the leg,’ says Carl McCartney from Virgin Active gyms.
• Or try walking backwards: Because you take smaller steps, you actually burn 25% more calories in the same time as you would walking forward – and your heart beats 47% faster which improves your fitness.
• Do weights standing on one leg: ‘This burns up to 30 per cent more calories than doing a move the regular way,’ explains Peter Hood from David Lloyd Leisure. Moves that you can do the one leg way include shoulder presses, bicep curls and lat pulldowns.
• Psych yourself up: Athletes work 12 percent harder when they do this – and so will you. ‘But to make it work you have to be specific,’ says Joslyn Thompson, from One Personal Training. ‘Really see yourself completing your task focusing on details like your dream time, distance or weight. Then go for it.’

Cheat yourself fitter: At work

• Walk there: But instead of just ambling along, count your steps. If you’re doing 40 steps in 20 seconds you’re working hard enough to boost your health, reach 50 though and you’re going at a speed that actually increases your fitness.
• And carry your work clothes in your backpack: ‘Walking with extra pounds takes more energy,’ explains personal trainer Ben Jones from Lifetime Training. In fact, if you fill your pack with 15lb of goodies, you’ll increase your effort enough to burn 10% more calories.
• Ban yourself from the lift: Climbing stairs for two minutes, five or six times a day boosts fitness by 17% in just two months say experts at the University of Ulster. But for best results, miss a step each stride on the way up. ‘By stepping up two steps the legs work through a greater range of motion, taxing the thighs and buttocks,’ says personal trainer Dean Hodgkin.
• Stand up whenever you can. If you spend two hours a day on the phone, you’ll burn 38 more calories doing the calls standing than sitting. ‘Standing engages more muscles and so uses more effort,’ explains trainer Pat Leahy from London’s Fitrooms.
• And get your muscles working when you’re sitting down. ‘It’s enough to simply tense up the muscle you want to tone and hold it for seven seconds. Rest for seven seconds then repeat.’ explains Pat Leahy. Do this 3-4 times a day to tone wherever you are.

Cheat yourself fitter:  At home

• Do all your cleaning in one go: According to a study at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, most of us do household chores (like picking up kids toys or washing) in one-minute bursts. Do 8-10 in one go though, and do them as fast as you can however and they count as a mini workout, says the study’s author Dr Melissa Whitt Glover
• And pop on the stereo while you do it. ‘Music makes you work harder, so if you crank up the stereo while you workout you’ll do everything faster and harder,’ says Pat Leahy
• Take the kids for a walk: A recent study at Texas A&M University found that walking with a stroller increased heart rate by 10 beats per minute making you fitter as you stroll. ‘The best time to take a baby is just after feeding when they’re happy or nap time as they’ll sleep as you walk,’ says post natal fitness specialist Melinda Nicci (www.baby2body.co.uk).
• Do butt squeeze and heel raises while you wait for the kettle to boil. According to US experts, 50 of either of these exercises is the same as doing 2 minutes of walking.
• And tone your tummy while you iron: This is the perfect time to do a move, personal trainer Amelia Watts (www.benefitpersonaltraining.co.uk) calls stomach squeezes: ‘These are actually better at toning your stomach than sit ups as they use more muscles, ‘she explains. To do one draw your belly button in towards your spine making your stomach as small as possible. Hold it tight for 10 seconds. Repeat as often as you can.

Cheat yourself fitter: In your armchair 

• By drinking green tea: The equivalent of four cups of green tea a day improved fitness in a set of swimming mice by up to 24% in ten weeks – and the Japanese researchers believe it would do the same for people too. If you don’t like the taste, adding lemon makes it more palatable 
• Turn on the TV: And watch either sport – studies from the US’s Penn State University have found that even watching sport increases levels of muscle toning and metabolism boosting hormones in the body – or a comedy. Laughing causes your heart to beat 20 per cent faster than normal strengthening it– and it burns up to 40 calories say bods at the US’s Vanderbilt University. 
• Play with your Wii: Experts at Liverpool John Moores University have found heart rates reach 130 beats per minute when playing with the new Nintendo game that requires real movement to make things happen on screen. The result, the average gamer playing 12 hours a week burns 1830 calories a week – that’s enough to lose 27lb a year.
• Do the ad break workout: ‘If you watch three hours of TV a night you can get in half an hour of exercise a day simply by doing some simple toning moves like squats, lunges and sit ups every ad break, explains Ben Jones.
• Or simply think about moving those muscles. In trials at the US’s Cleveland Clinic, asked students to imaging moving their finger back and forth for 15 minutes a day five days a week – after 12 weeks the muscles they’d mentally trained were 35 per cent stronger than before.

Aerobics

This is one of the original gym classes. During the eighties, came the introduction of aerobics classes and videos, gym studios full of dozens of lycra clad women following the choreography of the aerobics instructor. Aerobics is a fantastic class for those people with a good sense of co-ordination and rhythm. If you lack one, or both of these, then it could be a class to avoid! The class involves a series of choreographed dance and fitness moves and is great for raising your heart rate and improving cardiovascular fitness. Due to a combination of women’s enjoyment of dancing and either the inability of men to co-ordinate dance moves, or an unwillingness to try, most classes are predominantly made up of women. If you like the music and find you can follow the routine fairly easily, then aerobics classes can be very fun, and the hour of activity will pass very quickly. If you are new to aerobics, be sure to start with a beginner’s class, or you may become confused and disheartened if you struggle with complicated routines.

Ioh verdict. Great class for cardio workout and calorie burning, but possibly one to avoid if you have two left feet.

Circuits.

For a total body workout and cardiovascular fitness, it’s hard to beat circuit training. The use of resistance weights helps develop muscle tone and muscular endurance, while the high paced intensity pushes your heartbeat to its maximum. Circuit training involves doing high repetition resistance exercises with short recovery times. The exercises are often a combination of body resistance exercises, such as press ups and star jumps, and exercises using free weights. A typical class may involve two minutes of exercise on 8-10 exercise stations set out around the room, with a short rest period between each exercise. The number of times the circuit is completed will depend on the intensity of each particular class. Circuits can be high intensity and physically demanding, but do not be put off if you are a beginner. If you pace yourself and are aware of your own fitness levels, you will quickly get into the feel of the classes and be able to push your body hard, without exhausting yourself before the class has barely begun.

Ioh verdict.  Fantastic total body workout, using high tempo resistance exercises helps build and tone muscle, while also burning fat.

Spinning.

Spinning was first introduced to gyms about ten years ago and it is still one of the most popular classes. The class uses specialised static bicycles to provide a fast paced, fun session that gives a great workout for the legs. Classes usually last around 45 minutes, during which you are guided through the workout by the instructor. Following along with carefully chosen music, you will be taken through a gentle warm up, after which the session becomes a virtual ride, imitating hills, sprints and interval training. The great thing about spinning classes is that the level of intensity can be controlled by the individual. The resistance control is available for you to adjust and no one else is able to tell exactly how much resistance you have at anytime. Therefore, if you are really struggling and need to take it a little bit easier for a few minutes, you can loosen off the resistance and get your breath back. Spinning is one of the best exercises for developing cardiovascular fitness and with the right instructor, the classes can be fun and enjoyable, as well as hard work!

Ioh verdict. The ultimate calorie burning workout, pedalling in time with the music makes the class fly by!

Step class.

Step classes became very popular during the nineties and are a variation on aerobics classes. The moves are not as difficult as aerobics, so it is a great class for those people that struggle with the co-ordination required in aerobics. That is not to say step classes are easy! The classes involve a combination of moves focusing around the step, using music to provide you with the rhythm. Step classes are great for cardiovascular fitness and also provide a tough leg workout. If you are new to step classes, you can begin with a low step and as your fitness and leg strength improves, you can progress to a higher, more testing step.

Ioh verdict. Great leg and cardio workout, ideal for those who enjoy learning dance moves but struggle with the choreography of aerobics.

Boxercise.

Boxercise, as the name suggests, involves a class based around boxing and martial arts moves. Due to the somewhat aggressive nature (though no one actually gets hit!) of the classes, these classes are particularly popular with men. However, boxercise provides a good all round workout and is suitable for everyone. It’s a great way to release some built up aggression and once you’ve finished you really know you’ve worked hard. A typical class will begin with a warm up, introducing some of the moves, then progress onto a session using punching and kicking moves. The main part of the class will use combinations of moves, to keep your heart rate up and your muscles working hard. Boxercise classes can be great fun and very rewarding, but be warned, you’re in for a tough workout!

Ioh verdict.  Top class for releasing built up aggression and relieving stress!

Bodypump. Image ID: 2255544

Bodypump classes use weights to tone and build muscular endurance. Using a combination of exercises with barbells and dumbbells, you’ll follow the routine of the instructor. As with all modern exercise classes, you’ll be helped through the tough parts by carefully chosen motivational music. It’s a toning and conditioning class with weights and is for just about everybody who wants to add strength training into their aerobic workout. If you are new to weight training techniques, you’ll need to have an introductory session to learn the correct form. And don’t fall into the trap of trying begin with weights that are too heavy! Bodypump classes generally involve very high repetitions, and what can seem a manageable weight at first, can quickly feel like a dead weight! This class, popular with both men and women, is fantastic for toning muscle, while also burning calories.

Ioh verdict. Like circuit training, this class has it all, muscle building and fat burning.

James Woods met up with Hollywood star Dolph Lundgren, at the Qi Sport Gym in Puerto Banus, Marbella, to find out about his martial arts background and how he got into the film industry.

IOH: Most people know you best for your acting, but fitness is also a huge part of your life. Which came first, the acting or fitness?

Dolph Lundgren: Well it was sport that was my first interest. Back in Sweden when I was about fourteen, I got into martial arts and sports; karate, judo, soccer and ice hockey. Slowly I got more and more into karate and that became my main sporting focus. As I got a bit older and stronger I started competing all over Europe, in Japan and Australia, in fact I was the European karate champion for a couple of years. This was all in my early 20’s and I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. Then I moved to America where I thought about becoming a boxer for a while and getting involved in health and fitness.

IOH: So what led you into acting?

Dolph Lundgren: I was doing some modelling and I had a small role in a James Bond film, A View to a Kill, largely because my girlfriend at the time was in the movie and they just needed somebody to point a gun at Christopher Walken. I played a Russian bad guy, but if you blinked you’d have missed me! It was the role in Rocky that really kicked off my acting career.

IOH: You studied engineering and gained a masters degree in chemical engineering, becoming an actor was a big change in your career plans?

Dolph Lundgren: You’re right, it was a huge change of scenery. I was following in my dad’s footsteps with the engineering and got a scholarship in Boston, but I never really worked as an engineer. I’m happy to have a good education and think that it’s served me well, I use it occasionally, and now that I direct films I can use it a little more. The career change was totally different, acting is a very personal job compared with chemical engineering.

IOH: I’ve read some of your quotes where you seem to suggest that although you enjoyed your roles, they didn’t always require the degree of emotional acting that you would have liked. Is that a fair assessment?

Dolph Lundgren: Yeah, I think that’s true. I think what happened was that I got into the business very quickly and I was very successful playing tough, indestructible characters. What I didn’t get to do was to apply my whole personality to my work as an actor, but at least I’ve been busy working and not starving for the past twenty years! If you take the role of He-Man as an example, I’m basically playing a toy in a children’s movie. Don’t get me wrong, I actually like the He-Man film, but there was only so much that you can do with that kind of role. However, now as a director, it gives me the opportunity to apply myself deeper into the films.

IOH: You’ve always been into fitness and trained hard, but when you got chosen for the part in Rocky, and then subsequent films, did you have to adapt your training in order to suit your roles? Was there more focus on image and muscle mass rather than functional fitness?

Dolph Lundgren: Definitely, when I was fighting for real I was concerned with knocking the other guy down and not getting hit myself. There’s a lot of great fighters out there that don’t actually look too good, they’re skinny or even a little podgy, what’s important is their technique. When I got the part in Rocky, I met Sylvester Stallone and he wanted me to gain some muscle and look a bit more physically perfect. I trained for five months with Stallone to get in shape for the filming. It was quite intense, training twice a day, but I was used to that anyway, so it wasn’t too tough for me. We had a team of trainers and of course a long script with all the details of the fight scenes, it was about 50 pages of left, right, right left, duck, and I had to memorise the whole thing. When you’re filming there isn’t much time to discuss stuff, so you’ve just got to know it. I put on weight for the film and for various other roles, but slowly over time I realised that I liked the way I used to look better, which is more athletic. So now I’ve gone back to that type of training, which is more sparring, less weights and more circuit training.

IOH: In this issue of InsideOut Health we have an article on the best muscle building exercises; do you have any favourites that you can recommend?

Dolph Lundgren: I think the best muscle building exercises are definitely dead lifts and squats, if you can really concentrate on those two then you’ll have a great basis for your workouts. Dead lifts work your whole body, so I’d definitely include those. The theory is to focus on the big muscle groups and work those, rather than worrying about the smaller muscles.

IOH: And what about nutrition for muscle mass?

Dolph Lundgren: Chicken and rice (laughing!), typical but it builds you up pretty well!

IOH: We also have an article in this issue debating which sport is the toughest; from your experience do you have any views on this debate?

Dolph Lundgren: On a professional, international level I’d say that any sport is tough, whether it’s curling, swimming or any top athlete performing their sport at that level. Take a top sprinter or a boxer, they’re all in amazing physical shape and it’s tough to achieve that. I can’t say which is the toughest sport, they’re all tough! All I know is that if you look at the bodies of people doing the sports, something like kick boxing, those guys have great bodies; they have great athletic physiques, not too muscular but fit and strong. So I think the combat sports are great for developing a good tough physique and of course they’re physically tough.

IOH: So what brought you to Spain and to Marbella?

Dolph Lundgren: Well I came here to Marbella on my honeymoon, my wife’s been to Marbella since she was a kid and we planned to go up to Rioja and do the wine tours, but we never got there and we stayed here for three and a half weeks. Since then we kept coming back to Marbella a lot of the time, renting houses and staying in hotels, and finally we bought a house here two and a half years ago. So now we live here, our two daughters are here in school and I’m here a lot. Marbella is now what I’d call home.

IOH: You train regularly at the Qi Sport Gym here in Marbella, what do you like best about the facilities here?

Dolph Lundgren: I know Johnny (the gym director), I like his philosophy towards training and he used to be a boxer so we do some sparring together as well. I really like the circuit training here and it’s very different for me. I like to not have to think too much during my workouts and not have to come up with it all myself. My training is very different now from years ago, I do weights every week but I prioritise and do sparring sessions as well. My training is now more health focused and more performance focused than before. Martial arts training really helps to keep you fit and if you look at martial artists when they’re older, they tend to look in pretty good shape and have a youthful kind of appearance.

IOH: In general do you think Marbella is a healthy place to live?

Dolph Lundgren: Well….. the sunshine and the outdoor living are  good, but I’m not sure that everyone’s healthy here, people seem to eat a lot of unhealthy food. However, on the whole, the lifestyle here is good, people don’t have a lot of stress here and I think that stress is the biggest killer and the thing that makes people age the fastest. If you look at those guys on Wall St. and the stress they go through, that can’t be healthy. I think the relaxed atmosphere and culture here does make it a healthier place to live.

If you want to build muscle, simply going to the gym a few times a week is no guarantee for success. It takes a lot of planning and dedication to put on just a pound or two of lean muscle, so here’s a few tips to point you in the right direction.

Vary your workouts regularly

If you are new to weight training you will probably build muscle and strength at first whatever type of training program you follow. This is because it is all new to your body. The problem comes when your body gets used to a training program, this is when athletes reach a plateau and any progress slows or stops completely. To avoid these plateaus you must regularly vary your training sessions. This can be done a number of ways, by either changing the exercises or changing the number of repetitions.

Drink plenty of water

As with the entire human body, muscles are mainly made of water (not protein). Therefore it is vital to consume enough water on a daily basis. Even just a 1% level of dehydration has been shown to lead to a 10% reduction in muscle function.

Rest and sleep

Muscles do not grow when you are in the gym; they grow in the recovery and rest period following workouts. If you are not getting enough rest and sleep then you are not giving your muscles the opportunity to recover sufficiently and grow.

Eat big to build big

In order to allow your body to build muscle you must consume more calories than you are burning on a daily basis. These excess calories are used by the body to repair the damage done by weight training. If the body feels there is a shortage of calories then it will not promote more muscle growth. Of course that doesn’t mean you can eat whatever you like, it’s important to eat the right type of calories. Also, be sure to consume enough fat. By this, we mean enough healthy fats and essential fatty acids.

Plan each session

Building muscle is not easy, and you’ll need to plan each and every session. It’s no use just wandering around the gym doing whichever exercises you feel like on a given day. Use a log book to monitor and record your sessions, this way you’ll be able to accurately see your progress, or lack of!

Progressive resistance

To get bigger you need to continually increase the amount of weight you are lifting. When you lift a heavy weight, you are putting stress on your muscles, tearing the small fibres within. The muscle fibres will then repair themselves stronger so they can perform the task that damaged them without the damage reoccurring. To build muscle mass you need to be continuously repeating this process, increasing the weight you are lifting, so your muscle fibres are being broken down and repairing stronger and stronger each time.

Consume sufficient protein

Your muscles need protein to grow, however it is the exercise and subsequent recovery that actually lead to muscle growth, not simply eating protein. Though this is a subject of much debate, it is generally recommended that you should consume around 1.3 -1.5 grams of protein each day per pound of body weight. This can com directly from food, but if you feel your diet is lacking good sources of protein or you need a more convenient option, you can include protein shakes in your diet. But remember, simply consuming large amounts of protein does not build muscle alone!

Use compound exercises

The best way to train for optimal muscle growth is to use basic compound exercises. This means using exercises that work large muscle masses rather than fine tuning the smaller muscles. There are so many different exercises that people often recommend for working every last muscle in isolation, but concentrate on the core muscle building exercises if you want to build muscle size. These exercises include bench press, squat, dead lift and pull ups. These exercises work a number of muscle groups at the same time, for example the bench press primarily works the chest, but also trains the shoulders and triceps in the same movement.

Use free weights when possible

Free weights are the generally preferred option for building muscle. Using free weights requires the athlete to balance and control the movement more than fixed machines. This extra focus stimulates more muscle fibres during the movement. Machines can be incorporated into your workouts where appropriate but it is best to let free weights dominate your sessions.

Power Plate – sending vibrations through the fitness world

Regular readers of IOH will have become familiar with Power Plates over the past few issues. Rarely, if ever, has one piece of fitness equipment created so much interest. Power Plates have taken the fitness world by storm over the past few years and their popularity looks certain to continue with more and more people ‘converting’ to Power Plate training every week. Many celebrities, including Kylie Minogue, Elle McPherson and Sienna Miller have all credited their physiques to Power Plate technology, while in the sporting world European Champions Manchester United use Power Plates to get their players into top shape. The PGA golf tour has also appreciated the benefits of Power Plate technology and players regularly train with them. Power Plates were developed to optimise the effects of acceleration training exercise and effectively training with a Power Plate allows the athlete to perform a full body workout in as little as 15 minutes.

How do Power Plates work?

The Power Plate works by transferring vibrations to muscles, which naturally activates reflexive muscle contractions. By holding different positions on the machine’s vibrating platform for up to 60 seconds, you are able to target specific areas of the body. Perform a squat, bicep curl or stomach crunch, and multiple muscle groups are activated simultaneously to stretch, tone or strengthen. Training with Power Plate machines creates instability in the human body, as with each vibration the body is forced to perform reflexive muscle actions, 25 to 50 times per second, significantly more than the normal 1 or 2 times a second that a muscle contracts. Furthermore, these contractions must work in multiple dimensions as the Power Plate machines actually oscillate in all three planes, exactly as the human body is designed to do. The net result is an incredible improvement in force production, or strength and power.

Power Plate equipment uses Advanced Vibration Technology to activate the body’s natural response to vibration. This creates rapid, involuntary muscle contractions, producing significant results in less time. Power Plate training is capable of delivering a full body workout in just15 minutes, with three short sessions a week enough to notice visible results. Muscles contract in response to the platform vibrating at a rate of 25 to 50 times per second. This creates instability in the body as it senses the vibration and movement of the platform, engaging more muscles to react and stabilise. Power Plates increase speed of movement by incorporating more muscles and teaching them to fire more quickly.

What benefits can be gained from Power Plate training?

SPORTS / FITNESS:

• Improve overall strength and power
• Improve muscle tone
• Improve core strength and stability
• Increase movement efficiency and range of motion
• Improve flexibility and agility
• Improve sprint performance and explosive

SPA / BEAUTY / ANTI-AGEING:

• Reduce appearance of cellulite
• Reduce body fat
• Improve muscle tone
• Increase fitness and general well-being

The key science behind Power Plates is the Advanced Vibration Technology. This activates the body’s natural response to vibration to create rapid, involuntary muscle contractions, giving significant results in much less time than traditional exercise.

So if you want to get fit for the summer and train like the celebrities, then look no further than Power Plates!