Month: January 2013

Here is the second in a three-part series on the 5 most critical
mistakes people typically make when starting a fitness or weight
loss program – AND how to avoid them so you stay on the fast track
to radiant health and fitness.

MISTAKE #2: WORKOUTS THAT LAST TOO LONG

This mistake could also be described as, “Doing too much too soon”.

When beginning a new fitness program, most people have a lot of
enthusiasm. So much enthusiasm, in fact, that they are prepared
to take drastic action to get their body into shape.

They typically begin with a high volume and intensity of activity,
such as long sessions of walking, running, lifting weights, doing
aerobics, or whatever their chosen activity is.

This approach is guaranteed to lead to undue post-workout muscle
soreness, excessive tightness in the muscles, joint pain, and
possibly even injury.

Also, long exercise or training sessions involving high volumes
and/or intensities usually mean sacrificing quality for quantity.
This leads to a focus on fatigue as the determiner of a “good”
workout, versus assessing how you feel as a result of a sequence
of workouts.

These long, fatigue producing sessions lead to a rapid decrease
in motivation. Pretty soon, that initial enthusiasm wanes and
excuses for not being able to work out start cropping up.

A better (and healthier) approach is to focus on the quality of
your workouts.

Focus on fewer exercises or modalities of training. Make a more
intense and focused effort at each of them. Until you have built
a solid base, keep your workouts short, say 30 minutes to one
hour maximum. The reality is, you can achieve excellent results
with only 30 minutes a day of training.

You need to give your body the chance to adapt to any new level
or type of activity. So begin rationally. Don’t do too much
too soon. Plan on doing less than you think you can handle.
Build up consistently.

In order to experience a training effect, your body only needs
to experience stress that is slightly greater than what it
normally encounters. There’s no need to kill yourself with mega
long workouts.

When scheduling your workouts, plan on exercising for an amount
of time you know you can fit into your schedule. Exercising for
an hour or two per day may seem impossible. What about 15
minutes? Is that doable?

Yes, “Only 15 Minutes Per Day” has become a cliché. But it’s a
good place to start if you haven’t been doing anything. Once you
get going and begin to experience the benefits of even 15 minutes
of focused activity, you will naturally want to do more.

You’ll make more time in your schedule for exercising because you
want to, not because you think you have to or ought to.

MISTAKE #3: FOLLOWING A ONE-DIMENSIONAL FITNESS PROGRAM

When beginning an exercise program, people often take up one
particular type of exercise and become immersed in it. They focus
all or nearly all of their time and energy on this one activity.
They don’t complement it with supplementary modalities that
balance and enhance the core activity.

Here are a couple of examples:

-The runner or cyclist with puny, underdeveloped torso and arms,
because he or she doesn’t do any strength training;
-The body builder with the impressive physique who can’t walk up
a flight of stairs without getting winded, because he or she
never does any aerobic activity.

Imbalances in training lead to imbalances in the body’s
development, muscle and joint problems, and overuse injuries
caused by repetitive motion.

Insufficient diversity can also lead to boredom and stagnation.
It deprives your body and mind of the variety that’s conducive
to growth and development.

To get the most from your fitness program, strive for a balance
between the following activities:

-Deep breathing and visualization for mental rehearsal, stress
management, and health;

-Strength training for development of strong muscles and bones,
good posture, and improved capacity to handle the activities of
daily living;

-Stretching for flexibility, avoidance of injury, and relaxation;

-Aerobic activities (or “cardio”) to improve aerobic capacity
and heart health, enhance recovery from strength training
workouts, and get yourself moving.

As you plan your fitness program, seek to integrate each of these
elements. You can include all of them (or some subset) within
each workout. Or you can include them over the course of a
series of workouts performed over a week or so.

You can also structure cycles in your program. Within each cycle,
emphasize one of these areas as your priority. Do enough in
the other areas to maintain. This is great way of keeping
yourself fresh and keeping your body guessing.

Many people think they should select aerobic activities as their
primary focus. Aerobic capacity is important, and regular doses
of steady state activities, such as running, cycling, swimming
and walking are beneficial. However, too much of this type of
activity can cause your body to lose muscle.

A better way is to incorporate intervals or “pulsing” into
your program. (I’ve written about this before in past blog posts).

Resistance training should be the foundation of your fitness
program. Building strength helps you function better in daily
life. It promotes better posture and is very effective at reducing
the risk (and even reversing the effects) of osteoporosis.

Studies have shown that strength training has a more dramatic
effect on body composition changes – that is, putting on lean
body weight and losing fat – than aerobic activity.

Stretching should also be a priority, especially when you are
first starting out. Properly done, stretching helps you learn
about and establish control over your body. It promotes
flexibility which enables you to move more fluidly and freely.
It also helps avoid injuries and relieves nagging aches and pains.

We’ll conclude this series with Mistakes #4 and 5 – and how to
avoid them – in the next post.

You Can Do It!

“Best Breathing Exercises: Transform Body Mind and Spirit with
Dynamic Energy Exercise!”
http://www.BestBreathingExercises.com

Copyright, Karen Van Ness, 2013

Happy New Year!

As I sit here typing, I’m thinking about my goals and plans for this
year. And I have already taken action this morning to get me moving
toward several goals in important areas of my life.

I know I feel better when I get off to a good start, be it the
beginning of a day, the beginning of a project….or the beginning
of a new year. In that spirit, I would like to share some thoughts
to help you get off to a great start this year: the 5 most critical
mistakes people typically make when starting a fitness or weight
loss program.

And, more importantly, I will tell you how to avoid these.

These mistakes commonly derail fitness programs, leaving the person
with a feeling of failure and frustration. This in turn makes it
that much harder to get going again.

The good news: these mistakes are avoidable. Avoid them and you’ll
find yourself on the fast track to radiant health and fitness.

MISTAKE #1: NO GOAL

When it comes to planning and beginning an exercise program, most
people don’t focus on what they really want. They know they need
to “lose some weight” or “get in shape”. They may have been
encouraged (or even warned) by their doctor to get more active, eat
better and lose some weight.

But most folks do not take the next step to set a specific goal,
or set of goals, that will attract and energize them.

Instead, they set off on a “get into shape” program without
identifying what exactly that means to them. Consequently, they
meander through various routines and diets. They often jump on the
latest fads.

They may lose a few pounds, but the pounds invariably pile back on
as they lose motivation.

Does this sound familiar to you? If so, don’t feel bad.

The same thing has happened to all of us at one time or another.

When this happens, you lose out on the feelings of achievement,
success and vibrant health that come from a rationally structured
fitness routine.

Having a specific goal or set of goals is the critical starting
point to a successful fitness regimen.

It’s best to focus on one major goal. This should be the one
thing above all that, if achieved, represents true success to
you. For example, your primary goal may be to lose 20 pounds
by the end of the year.

Then articulate two to three minor goals that support your major
goal. For example, you could set interim weight loss goals you
wish to achieve at the end of each month. Or you could set
activity goals, such as building up to walk or run for 30 minutes
straight.

Write down your major and supporting goals and review them
frequently, preferably every day. This is a key point. There is
tremendous power in seeing your goals in writing and saying them
out loud to yourself on a regular basis. This keeps them top of
mind and helps you stay focused.

Once you have established your goals, create a general plan for
how you will achieve them. Decide which activities you want to
focus on, such as walking or running, lifting weights or doing
bodyweight exercises, and so on. Also decide on which days per
week you will train, and at what time of day.

Be specific on this, but also be prepared to make course corrections
along the way as you assess how your plan is working.

A big boost to the success of your fitness program is to record
your activities.

Keep a simple log of your workouts and what you eat. Record not
only what you have done (the process), but also your results,
such as recording your weight once per week.

Recording your activities and progress helps you maintain focus and
momentum. It’s very satisfying to record a successful day during
which you completed your planned workout and followed your nutrition
plan.

Documenting the less successful days is also important. This helps
you identify trends in your behavior. For example, you may find
yourself missing workouts every Friday for three weeks in a row.
You realize that, by Friday, you are usually tired and worn out
from the hectic week. You are coming up with excuses not to work
out.

Realizing this, you can take action. You can make Friday a recovery
day (a day when you don’t work out). This allows you to follow your
own natural rhythms, and sets you up for a successful and energetic
workout on Saturday or Sunday.

When reviewing your progress and setbacks, keep in mind you are
only competing with yourself, not with anyone else – and NOT
woth anyone else’s idea of what you should be doing. Progress at
a pace that makes sense for you. You’ll enjoy the process more
and will be pleasantly surprised at how much you can achieve.

Mistakes #2 and 3 will be coming along in my next blog post.

You Can Do It!

“Best Breathing Exercises: Transform Body Mind and Spirit with
Dynamic Energy Exercise!”
http://www.BestBreathingExercises.com

Copyright, Karen Van Ness, 2013

How balanced is your health and fitness program?

Are you hitting all the important areas, such as strength, stamina,
flexibility, and diet.

It’s easy to get into a rut when you’ve been exercising for
awhile. And if you haven’t been exercising, you will probably
re-start your program doing pretty much the same things you were
doing before.

In my experience, most people tend toward a certain type of
exercise which dominates their training time and energy.

The two major camps are strength training versus aerobics. Seems
like many people either run, work out on the elliptical or
treadmill, or do aerobics or zumba or whatever the latest fad
is…or they tend to hit the weights.Sometimes a little
stretching is thrown in for good measure.

It’s important to ensure some balance and variety in your
training.

After all, variety is the spice of life. If you keep doing the
same type of workout, over and over again, you get diminishing
(or even disappearing) results.

You will also get bored. Which means it’s more likely you will
quit your program, especially when you hit the inevitable
plateaus.

On the other hand, when you have some balance in your training,
you’ll find that you are more enthusiastic about it. Changing
the combination or order of elements in your workout can add a
wonderful dimension. The variety keeps you (and your body)
guessing and craving more.

When it comes to fitness and health programs, one area most
people ignore is their breathing.

You should devote part of your time to the cultivation of
breath control and power. Making a small investment of time in
dynamic energy exercises – like the ones I teach you in “The
Secret Power of Dynamic Energy Exercise Course, Volume II”
(http://www.bestbreathingexercises.com/dynamic_energy2.html)
will enhance the results you get from exercise, as well as your
internal energy and focus.

Breathing is the direct and instantaneous way to tap into the
life force, the vital energy that flows through each of us.

Performed properly, deep breathing coupled with dynamic
exercises is a powerful method for accessing and flowing your
internal power.

Doing these exercises strengthens your body from the inside
out, and has a more profound and lasting effect.

From a purely practical standpoint, this type of dynamic deep
breathing helps develop breath control, expand the capacity
of the lungs, and build stamina. It improves posture. It also
develops the diaphragm, abdominal and other core muscles in
such way that they are strong and coordinated – a key to
developing power for movement, as in athletics, martial arts,
even activities of daily living.

This type of dynamic exercise creates harmony between the breath
and the physical. Not only are you strengthening the muscles
associated with breathing. You also are creating and
increasing a sense of harmony and relaxation across both mind
and body.

It’s health-giving and life-extending, and I strongly encourage
you to tap into the benefits that await you from investing just
a few minutes a day – or a few minutes at the start of your
regular workouts.

To learn more, visit
http://www.bestbreathingexercises.com/dynamic_energy2.html

You Can Do It!

“Best Breathing Exercises: Transform Body Mind and Spirit with
Dynamic Energy Exercise!”
http://www.BestBreathingExercises.com

Copyright, Karen Van Ness, 2013