Alex's Journey

20 minutes on the elliptical target HR=140

Squat
135lbs x 8, 185 x 8, 225 x 8, 225 x 10, 225 x 10
Lunges
35lb DB’s x 16 steps, 35 x 12, 35 x 12
Good mornings
95lbs x 15, 95 x 15, 95 x 15
Smith machine calf raise
225lbs x 12, 225 x 12, 225 x 12

Weighed in at 172 again, I was hoping for a half pound drop at least. I’m going to scratch that calorie increase and lower by 50 today and see how my weight is on Thursday again. This is starting to be a tricky game, just enough calories for fat loss but not so much that you start to lose strength. My weights in the gym were down a couple reps on squats and lunges but I kept the focus on squatting deep.

Stoked for snowboarding, but no snow yet? Perfect let’s get in shape so we can fly higher and move quicker. Let’s look at some muscle groups that we both can agree are worked in snowboarding and skiing as well:

• Abdominals: used for making turns
• Quads, Hams and Glutes: definitely used for crouching and taking off a kicker
• Calves: Keeping on our toes and making sharp movements.
• Heart: Face it we’re on a mountain and sooner or later were going to have to walk up a steep section. And who doesn’t want to have the stamina to board all day!

Besides strengthening muscles, and probably more important is fat loss. Taking that extra 10 pound spare tire off your gut can improve your endurance and your ability to move. Check out my Fat Loss article for simple and effective fat loss techniques.

Often times after snowboarding I’ve found my muscles to be sore. Hey the hills where I live are only open for a little over 90 days. You’d be lucky to get more time in than that. Let’s get prepared and make the most of it.

Let’s look at my favourite cheapest and most effective method of getting in shape for the slopes.

#1 HIKING! Incline Incline Incline, go to the nearest hike local to you  and make sure its steep and short! Hiking burns calories and promotes fat loss, will strengthen your calves, quads, hams, glutes, and even lower back. Do this, replace those pizza pops and microwave dinners with some brown rice and green beans then your halfway there!

If you have a gym membership then let’s look at the most effective exercises.

Let’s start with cardio as a great warm-up to our weightlifting routine. Use a moderate intensity for 20-30 minutes. Treadmill is best, elliptical is fine, both are better than the stationary bike.

#2 Squat: This is the king of exercises for muscle growth, yet it’s the exercise people look forward to the least. It’s hard, it’s painful, and you’re going to want to take the elevator tomorrow morning. But after enough sessions your legs won’t get so sore and you’ll be adding plates onto the bar. Aim for 3 sets of 12 reps with a heavy enough weight to make that 12^th rep a brutal chore. This is great for our quads, hams and glutes. I suggest finding a high rated youtube video for learning how to use proper form. Do this once a week.

Stretch between sets to promote flexibility and prevent injury.

Crunch: No not a sit-up, a crunch. If you don’t already know, sit-ups work your hip flexors along with your abs. We’re going to concentrate on our abs and oblique’s.  We’re going to do crunches twice a week.

Exercise #3 Crunch:  Much like a sit-up we are lifting our back off the floor however unlike a sit-up you only lift your upper back. This isolates the ab muscles. Lie flat on the floor. Put your hands behind your head, feet steady on the floor. Lift your upper back up off the floor and leave your lower back touching the floor at all times. Pretend like your aiming to drive your shoulders towards your pelvis. Hold for a half second, then slowly lower, without letting the tension off your abdominals repeat this motion. Breath out when you contract your abs and in while your lower yourself. Aim for 12-15 if you can go higher than this, try to hold a 10 pound weight behind your head while doing the motion. 3 sets, after squats.

Exercise #4 Bicycle Crunch: This crunch is geared towards our oblique’s which contract to turn our upper body. Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground. Put your hands behind your head, bring your knees up to a 45 degree angle and slowly go through a bicycle pedal motion. Touch your left elbow to your right knee, then touch your right elbow to your left knee. Breath. Aim for touching each knee 12-15 times. If this is too easy, do it immediately after regular crunches with no rest. Do 3 sets after squats.

#5 Calf raise
Calves are a stubborn muscle to stimulate, to stimulate the calves make sure your getting the full range of motion and your going to have to go extra hard to get those last few reps. Use a calf machine or the smith machine bar with a block for your toes to lower and raise yourself. 3 sets 12-15 reps, if you don’t feel it tomorrow increase the amount of sets and reps.

20 minutes on the elliptical target HR= 140.

Bench press
135lbs x 8, 155 x 8, 185 x 6-, 185 x 4-, 175 x 7-
Superset:
B1: Dips
13 reps, 11 reps, 8 reps
B2: Pec deck machine
105lbs x 8, 90 x 12, 90 x 10
Closegrip smith machine bench press:
115lbs x 12, 115 x 10, 115 x 8
Flat DB Tri ext
15lbs x 12, 15 x 8, 15 x 7

Great pump today, i can see my shoulders and traps starting to pop out of my shirt a bit. Strength was down by a few reps on bench. 2100 calories was definately too low for me at the 176lbs I was this time last week. So today I weighed in at 172lbs again and upped the calories to 2150.

This is a question I had at one point. Whenever I would do seated overhead tricep extensions with a dumbbell my elbows would make a popping sound. Now it wasn’t a painful click or pop, if it was painful I would have stopped the exercises immediately. It always happened during the same part of the movement. I didn’t want small weak triceps so I continued to work out anyways. Some experienced bodybuilders say they just continue on as usual with no problems. However it’s better to get around the issue if it’s possible, whatever puts less stress on the joints and more on our muscle right? If it’s not possible to get around the popping, it might be wise to see a doctor and make sure it’s not the start of something serious.

For me I abolished the overhead tricep extension and now do a tricep extension with a barbell on a flat or decline bench, or do close grip bench press. When I do those exercises the cracking seems to cease, not to mention they are great mass builders. Experiment with different exercises and grips until you find something that eases the popping or stops it all together. Again it would be wise to see a doctor and make sure it’s not the start of something more serious.

Tip: If something hurts, STOP. If your injured you won’t be able go to the gym.

Hit the treadmill at a steep to maximum incline (12-15) at a solid pace (3.0). Target heart rate was 140. Beautiful day today, all the mountains are snow capped like ice cream cones. Weighed in at 172lbs another pound lower than yesterday, I’m beginning to dread my bench press might suffer tomorrow from this rapid weight loss I’ve had in the last two days. I’m going to up my caloric intake by 100 calories. I’ll do this by adding a 1/2 can of tuna at lunch and 5ml of flax oil to my afternoon shake.

Hanging leg raises w/ legs fully extended:
15 reps, 15 reps, 12 reps

Weighted crunches
Superset:
Set #1: 25lb x 12, 10lb x 12, 0 x 12 reps, side plank hold for 20 seconds both sides
Set #2: 25lb x 12, 10lb x 12, 0 x 12 reps, side plank hold for 20 seconds both sides
Set #3: 25lb x 12, 10lb x 12, 0 x 12 reps, side plank hold for 20 seconds both sides

The miracle food? Fibre of course. Eating fiber has many benefits for your health. The consumption of soluble fiber has been shown to protect you from developing heart disease by reducing your cholesterol levels. The consumption of insoluble fiber reduces your risk of developing constipation, colitis, colon cancer, and hemorrhoids

The two types of dietary fibre:

Soluble Fibre

• Dissolves in water
• Can be broken down by bacteria in the large intestine
• Slows digestion of food
• Reduces absorption of and lowers total cholesterol
• Regulates blood sugar

Sources:

• Legumes (peas, soybeans, and other beans)
• Oats, rye, barley
• Some fruits (plums, berries, bananas, apples, pears)
• Some Vegetables (broccoli, carrots)
• Root vegetables such as potatoes and onions

Insoluble Fibre

• Does not dissolve in water
• Cannot be broken down by bacteria in the large intestine
• Prevents constipation
• Binds up carcinogens, reducing exposure to them

Sources:

• Whole grain foods
• Nuts and seeds
• Potatoe skins
• Flax seed
• Vegetables such as green beans, cauliflower, zucchini, celery

The average Americans daily intake of fibre is only 12 to 18 grams. 25 to 35 grams are recommended. Although excess of 40 grams can lead to diarrhea.