Happy Friday!
Question: I’ve been working out, doing your workouts and some cardio but I haven’t lost a pound. I’m so discouraged. I see that I’m getting stronger but the scale is stuck. JR
Answer: JR, this is a common concern among many of my clients, especially my boot camp clients. I highly recommend doing some measurements along with your weight at the start (especially around the belly). What typically happens when you start training is that while you lose a bit of fat, you also gain a bit of muscle, there by evening out the scale. The fact is, muscle is more dense than fat. It takes up less space so that while you gain strength you also lose inches.
It’s actually not WHAT you weigh that’s important, it’s WHERE you weigh. Typically with exercise, belly fat will be reduced and your pants will fit differently, even if you weigh the same amount. Disappearing belly fat is even more important that weight loss. Belly fat is associated with increased risk of diabetes and heart disease, so you reduce your chances of suffering from either of these. And you look and feel much better….
A ‘no brainer’ resource for reducing belly fat is my friend, Craig Ballantyne’s Fat Burning At Home workouts. With the holidays coming up, there will be times when a workout is nearly impossible. I highly recommend getting his program. Well, it’s actually FIVE programs for only $20 till midnight tonight.
This also includes 15 minute metabolic resistance training workouts. Short, quick workouts to kick your own butt in only 15 minutes. As well, the rest are bodyweight workouts so you can use them pretty much anywhere, sort of like the airport workout I did here.
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Question: I know I’m in sad shape when I can’t hold my body weight from the pull up bar, let alone be able to do a pull up. I tried some hanging leg raises as I thought they’d be easier than attempting a pull up. This was even discouraging. How do I begin? Annette
Answer: Dear Annette, The hanging leg raise is a helpful exercise to do when working towards maximizing your pull up strength.
For those that can’t hold their body weight for the hanging leg raise, it’s best to have a bench under the feet. In between each rep, rest the feet on the bench. This will help build the necessary strength to be able to hold the entire bodyweight from the bar eventually.
Here’s a tip for those of you that are more advanced….
The hanging leg raise is often done incorrectly. Typically, people tend to just bring the knees to hip height which utilizes the hip flexors. To target the deep muscles of the core, it’s best to rock at the hips, bringing the knees up towards the chest.
Here’s a video to help:
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Question: My abs are pretty weak. What’s a great bodyweight move to help?
Answer: I’m going to leave that one to my pal, Sylvia who’s an expert in Pilates. Take a look at this video to see a great move to help your core:
If you want to learn more from Sylvia, you can check out her Bodyweight Pilates program that’s on sale this week HERE.
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