Here's To Another Happy, Fit Summer!

For the past two years, to celebrate the unofficial kick-off to summer I provided Catapult Fitness Blog readers with a 4-week workout program to ensure everyone would be on their way to being ripped by July 4th!

With the holiday weekend once again upon us, I thought it appropriate to re-post that workout.

Link To Free 4-Week Bodyweight Turbulence Training Workout

After clicking on the above link, make certain to download the file as a .PDF so you have easy access to it via your own computer!

I also wanted to provide CFB readers with two additional workouts - one for beginners and one for those of you who are more advanced Turbulence Training followers:

If you are a beginner, try this:

1) Bodyweight Squat - 30 seconds
2) Kneeling Pushups - 30 seconds
3) Stability Ball Leg Curl - 30 seconds
4) Side Plank - 15 seconds per side

Rest 30 seconds and repeat 1 more time for a 5 minute total body strength circuit.

Craig Ballantyne's 7-Exercise Sweat Circuit (Advanced):

1) Kettlebell Swings - 30 seconds
2) Pushups - 30 seconds
3) Kettlebell Snatches - 30 seconds per side
4) Jumps - 30 seconds
5) Mountain Climbers - 30 seconds (alternating sides)
6) Run at 8/10 intensity - 60 seconds
7) Plank - 60 seconds

Train hard; stay strong; enjoy the long weekend!

Peace.

Susan

What To Drink

David Zinczenko, Editor-In-Chief of Men's Health Magazine, came out with his listing of America's Best & Worst 'Health' Drinks.

IMO Mr. Zinczenko is brilliant. In his 8+ years at Men's Health the magazine's circulation has grown by 30% and ad pages by 80%. Pretty darn impressive stats.

And while I conceptually agree with the premise of his Eat This, Not That mantra which is focused on finding healthier alternatives to the oodles of fast food and convenience options that are 'feeding' the obesity epidemic, I am not convinced that recommending a drink that contains 71 grams of sugar (the Very Berry Chiller) is necessarily the recommendation the general public needs to hear.

With that said, it's already heating up here in NYC with the thermometer teetering around 93 degrees today. Staying hydrated should be on everyone's mind as the heat and humidity begin to rise, so here are a few of my preferred 'health' drink options:

Water. I'm certain this surprised no one. Like David, my personal preference is SmartWater, but clearly there is an argument to be made for forgoing bottled water. We'll leave that discussion to another time and for now hopefully all agree that water consumption is a good thing! If you prefer a little flavor, feel free to add a slice or two of lemon or better yet -- free strawberries and grapes and use them as ice cubes!

Green Tea. Hot or iced, green tea is amongst the least processed of all teas and provides the most antioxidant polyphenols, notably a catechin called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which is believed to be responsible for most of the health benefits linked to green tea.

Protein Supplementation. Anyone who has been reading CFB for a while knows that I prefer whole foods to protein supplementation, but if you need that extra protein boost, there's certainly nothing wrong with a post-workout shake. I personally use water as my base.

Susan's Protein Shake:

- 2 scoops Designer Whey Protein, chocolate flavored
- 8 oz water
- 1 shot black coffee

Combine all ingredients in a blender, refrigerate and enjoy!

Train hard; stay strong and stay hydrated!

Peace.

Susan

To Stretch Or Not To Stretch

Stretching is always an interesting topic and one that is clouded by conflicting opinions, not only in how we stretch, but in why we stretch. Some people stretch to reduce risk of injury, others stretch to provide relief of soreness and stiffness, and other stretch because it gives them a sense of well-being.

My focus for this posting pertains to the first two points. Does stretching pre-and/or post exercise reduce the risk of injury? Does stretching provide relief of soreness?

I did a little digging, and found some interesting research conducted out of the University of Tampa back in 2002 that addressed whether pre and post-exercise stretching affected muscle soreness and the risk of injury.

This research was a compilation of 5 studies, with the focus being on military recruits. The data on stretching and muscle soreness indicated that, on average, individuals will observe a reduction in soreness of less than 2 mm on a 100-mm scale during the 72 hours after exercise.

With respect to risk of injury, the combined risk reduction of 5% indicates that the stretching protocols used in these studies do not meaningfully reduce lower extremity injury risk of army recruits undergoing military training.

Most of the physical benefits of a warm up (increased blood flow to the muscles, enhanced metabolic reactions, reduced muscle viscosity, increased extensibility of connective tissue, improved conduction velocity of action potentials, etc.) are obtained during the first few repetitions of an exercise.

2007 research conducted out of Sydney, Australia concluded that stretching before exercise reduced soreness on the day after by just half a point on a 100-point scale, and stretching after a workout reduced soreness by one point, and neither measure was statistically significant.

The 2007 study by Robert Herbert, Ph.D., and Marcos de Noronha, Ph.D. of the University of Sydney, conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 10 previously published studies of stretching either before or after athletic activity. They concluded that stretching before exercise doesn't prevent post-exercise muscle soreness. They also found little support for the theory that stretching immediately before exercise can prevent either overuse or acute sports injuries.

Much of this confusion comes from a misinterpretation of research on warm-up. These studies found that warming-up by itself has no effect on range of motion, but that when the warm-up is followed by stretching there is an increase in range of motion. Many people misinterpreted this finding to mean that stretching before exercise prevents injuries, even though the clinical research suggests otherwise. A better interpretation is that warm-up prevents injury, whereas stretching has no effect on injury.

If injury prevention is the primary objective the evidence suggests that athletes should limit the stretching before exercise and increase the warm-up time.

It is important to note that there are a multitude of studies that support the use of 30-second stretches for increasing range of motion and as such, it makes sense to add stretching as part of a general fitness program.

I choose to stretch independent of my workout (usually at night while watching the news). For my warm-ups I usually focus on a few of the core exercises I’ll be performing. For example, a typical warm-up may include:

• Prisoner squats
• Push-ups
• Stability ball knee curls

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Time Well Spent

I decided to head over to the gym last night around 7pm and quickly remembered why I typically DON'T go to the gym at night - it was mobbed.

My main goal was to get in my workout and get out of that gym as quickly as possible.

My workout of choice was day 1, workout A of the Turbulence Training Hardcore 2K10 program. The workout is comprised of supersets, a big plus when you're crunched for time (or just in a hurry to finish!).

Another big time saving factor was that like most TT programs, the workout has minimal rest between sets. This helps to burn more calories over the course of the workout by keeping your metabolism cranking.

I also wanted to add in an extra day of ab work this week so I decided to integrate my ab work between sets. I've found that integrating ab work and/or cardio between sets is a great time saver (sometimes, instead of working my abs I'll toss in 100 reps of jumping jacks or jump rope).

Total time spent in the gym - 50 minutes.

Results - priceless.

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Evolution Of Push-Ups

I've been asked many times if I have one favorite exercise. My answer is NO, but if I had to pick my top 5 you can be certain that push-ups would be included!

Why should you include push-ups in your workout routine?

1. The require zero equipment and can be performed pretty much anywhere (even your cubicle at work!).
2. They're extremely versatile in that a simple change in hand position can make the movement easier or more difficult.
3. Push-ups work your chest, shoulders, triceps and core.

If you need some ideas for getting started with push-ups, check out this video by Turbulence Training founder, Craig Ballantyne:




Remember to tuck your head when performing push-ups. You do not want to look forward as your neck should stay in-line with the rest of your spine.

You can check out Craig's bodyweight exercise packages HERE.

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

The Smith Machine - Friend Or Foe?

My neighborhood New York Sports Club has gone heavy on the Smith Machines, while providing only 1 full power rack - something that quite honestly has peeved me off.

It's not that I'm entirely anti-Smith machine and admittedly, I do use it for inverted rows and sometimes for incline push-ups. Oh yeah, it's also a great place to hang my towel when I'm using the power rack.

Regardless, the Smith machines do get a fair amount of usage at the gym and just this past week I was watching one guy loading up the Smith Machine and using it for bench presses.

He really had a good amount of weight on the bar and seemed incredibly pleased when he was able to complete 6 reps. So much so that there was a good amount of gloating between him and his friend who was doing free weight bench presses across the gym.

While it certainly wasn't my place to burst this guys bubble, the reality of the situation is that using the Smith machine requires less strength and less muscle than free weights. Because the Smith machine balances the weight for you and the bar is within a fixed plane, stabilizing muscles are taken out of play and muscle imbalances often occur.

The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research published in March of this year an article on The Comparison of Muscle Activation Between a Smith Machine and Free Weight Bench Press.

The purpose of the study was to compare muscle activation of the anterior deltoid, medial deltoid, and pectoralis major during a Smith machine and free weight bench press at lower (70% 1 repetition maximum [1RM]) and higher (90% 1RM) intensities.

Normalized electromyography amplitude values were used during the concentric phase of the bench press to compare muscle activity between a free weight and Smith machine bench press. Participants were classified as either experienced or inexperienced bench pressers. Two testing sessions were used, each of which entailed either all free weight or all Smith machine testing. In each testing session, each participant's 1RM was established followed by 2 repetitions at 70% of 1RM and 2 repetitions at 90% of 1RM.

Results indicated greater activation of the medial deltoid on the free weight bench press than on the Smith machine bench press. Also, there was greater muscle activation at the 90% 1RM load than at the 70% 1RM load. The results of this study suggest that strength coaches should consider choosing the free weight bench press over the Smith machine bench press because of its potential for greater upper-body muscular development.

As the authors of the study point out, there were no differences in muscle activation for anterior deltoid or pectoralis major between exercises, regardless of load or experience level. The authors speculated that this may be due to the greater stability of the fixed path of motion in the Smith machine. However, activation of the medial deltoid was significantly greater during the free weight bench press.

The results of this study support the findings on the 1994 study by Steven McCaw and Jeffrey Friday comparing muscle activity between a free weight and machine bench press. Interestingly, these appear to be the only two research studies conducted on this often contested topic.

From personal observation, with the exception of the individual undergoing rehab, many of those who gravitate towards the Smith Machine for bench press, squats and deadlifts are more focused on ego than functional strength gains.

Start light, learn proper form and reap real benefits from the time you put in at the gym.

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Ask The Trainer

CFB reader Anne M. sent in a question a couple of weeks ago concerning probiotics and belly fat.

Question: A co-worker mentioned to me that probiotics cuts belly fat. Is this true? I carry excess weight around my mid-section and was wondering if adding probiotic supplementation would help to get rid of the bulge. Anne M., San Francisco, CA

Answer: Anne, I personally do supplement with probiotics as these live cultures help to improve digestion and alleviate bloating.

In regards to probiotics reducing belly fat, let's just say the jury is still out.

There was a great deal of chatter about this last year, surrounding the 2009 European Congress on Obesity conference in Amsterdam.

The study referenced during that conference specifically focused on pregnant women and how if they had been given probiotics from the first trimester of pregnancy, they had a lower level of belly fat and overall body fat a year after giving birth, than those who were not given probiotics.

In the study, 256 women were randomly divided into three groups during the first trimester of pregnancy. Two of the groups received dietary counseling consistent with what's recommended during pregnancy for healthy weight gain and optimal fetal development. They were also given food such as spreads and salad dressings with monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, as well as fibre-enriched pasta and breakfast cereal to take home. One of those groups also received daily capsules of probiotics containing Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, which are the most commonly used probiotics. The other group received dummy capsules. A third group received dummy capsules and no dietary counseling. The capsules were continued until the women stopped exclusive breastfeeding, up to 6 months.

The researchers weighed the women at the start of the study. At the end of the study they weighed them again and measured their waist circumference and skin fold thickness. The results were adjusted for weight at the start of the study.

What I feel is a major limitation of the study is that it did not control for the mothers' weight before pregnancy, which may influence how fat they later become. So, the question becomes, did the women taking the probiotics have less belly/body fat to begin with?

Ultimately, this is one research study and while it certainly helps to develop a hypothesis, more research needs to be conducted to conclude any validity to this hypothesis.

Getting back to your original question of should you add probiotic supplementation to your daily regime?

There are many studies that support the effectiveness of probiotics in preventing and managing common GI disorders. They improve digestive health, strengthen the immune system and help lower cholesterol.

With that said, the sad fact of the matter is that a good deal of the probiotics available do not survive the manufacturing process.

An advanced probiotic formulation containing strains of the bacterium Bacillus coagulans offers promise in sidestepping the difficulties and maximizing the benefits of probiotic supplementation.

These microorganisms are each surrounded by a natural protective shield, which helps them survive the heat and pressure of manufacturing and the acids and bile of digestion, so they have a far better chance of arriving alive and well in the intestines, where they go to work.

My brand of choice is Udo's Adult Blend which is typically found in the refrigerator section of a vitamin and/or health food store. Refrigeration will ensure maximum potency and stability of probiotics.

Send your fitness questions to AskTheTrainer@CatapultFitnessBlog.com

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Rose Goldstein

My great-aunt, Rose Goldstein, passed away yesterday at age 105.

It got me thinking last night about all the inventions, novelties and events this woman saw in her lifetime:

- The airplane
- The radio receiver
- The bra
- Talkies (movies)
- Television
- Sliced bread
- Antibiotics
- The ballpoint pen
- Nuclear weapons
- The credit card
- The Polio vaccine
- Fiber optics
- Digital clocks
- FM synthesis
- The hard-drive
- Dolly, the cloned sheep

... and the list goes on and on (and on).

Rose lived through two World Wars, the Philippine American War, the Mexican and Russian Revolutions, the Israel-Arab conflicts, the Korean, Vietnam, India-Pakistan, Iran-Iraq, Falkland Islands, and Persian-Gulf wars, in addition to a handful of invasions and most recently, the war on Terror.

During Rose's lifetime there have been 19 U.S. Presidents beginning with Theodore Roosevelt and ending with our first African-American President, Barack Obama.

She was around when McCarthy's Communist witch-hunt began in the U.S. (1920), was an adult during the stock market crash and Great Depression, and I'm sure was in front of her TV to watch the U.S. astronauts land on the moon in 1969.

If I lived to be 105 years old the year would be 2068. It's difficult to fathom what the world will be like at that time. I'd like to think that there will be cures for many of the inflammatory diseases that plague us (cancer, heart disease, Parkinson's, obesity) and that we will be at least on the road to ending famine.

I would also like to think that should I live to be 105, I'll do so with the same grace that my great-aunt Rose did.

Peace.

Susan

Abdominal Exercise and Infomercial Gadgets

The insomniac that I am I found myself watching infomercials in the wee hours of the morning. It seemed that every time I flipped the channel there was a commercial for some gizmo that promised rock-hard abs for minimal effort.

First and foremost, abs are made in the kitchen.

With that said, the fact of the matter is that there are people who are going to purchase these toys and the best I can do is share the facts.

I reached out to Turbulence Trainer founder Craig Ballantyne and ask him for permission to re-post an excellent article he wrote on what we both feel is one of the better ab gadgets in the marketplace - the good, old fashioned ab wheel (I got mine from New York Barbells, but you can pick up an ab wheel in just about any sporting good store).

Review of Ab Exercise Infomercial Gadgets
by Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

Believe it or not, one of my favorite ab exercises includes one of those cheap infomercial gadgets, The Ab Wheel. You can pick one up at Walmart for under 20 bucks, and it works your abs hard without crunches.

But do other ab gadgets hold up?

Researchers (from the Mayo Clinic, of all places) tested the "Ab-Slide" device and compared it to the ab crunch, the supine double leg thrust (seated knee tuck-in), and side plank.

Reference: J Strength Cond Res. 2008 Nov;22(6):1939-46.

Ten young men and twelve young women did all the exercises.

Tests showed that the Ab-Slide, a contraption fairly similar to the Ab Wheel, worked the abs the hardest.

On the other hand, the seated knee tuck-in required a lot of hip flexion, and the doctors believed it could cause BACK PROBLEMS in people prone to low back injury.

Personally, I'm going to stick with the Ab Wheel, but as usual, I'm going to keep crunches out of my program, and add the Seated Knee Tuck-in to my list of ab exercises to avoid.

Not only are crunches and knee tuck-ins hard on your low back, they are also useless for helping
you get a flat stomach. Instead, stick to interval training and research proven ab exercises if you want to transform your body.

To do the ab wheel exercise, kneel on a mat with your hands on the ab wheel. Keep your body in a straight line, brace your abs, and keep your low back tensed. Slowly roll out as far as is comfortable. Keep your abs braced, and contract them maximally to come back up to the start. That's a great ab exercise.

If you don't have an ab wheel, you can use a stability ball for a similar exercise. Kneel on a mat and place your clasped hands on the top of a medium sized ball.

Brace you abs and slowly lean forward and roll your hands over the ball while the ball moves away from your body. Keep your body in a straight line and go as far as you can with perfect form.

Contract your abs and reverse the motion to return to the upright position.

And to do the side plank, lie on a mat on your right side. Support your body weight with your
knees and on your right elbow. Raise your body in a straight line so that your body hovers over the mat.

Keep your back straight and your hips up. Hold your abs tight. Contract them as if someone was about to punch you in the stomach, but breath normally.

Hold this position for the recommended amount of time. Switch sides.

All of those exercises are powerful, non-traditional ab exercises that will help you get more results in less time, plus they are safe for your back. Avoid crunches and stick to those exercises to work your abs.

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Quinoa Salad Recipe

Tried this recipe (yes, if you click that link it will take you directly to the Quinoa Salad recipe!) from The City Cook today and loved, loved, LOVED it!

Some modifications that I made to this recipe were that I left out the salt and the prosciutto (doesn't work with my sodium restricted diet). Also, being that it is ramp season, I substituted ramps for the scallions.

For those of you unfamiliar with ramps, also referred to as 'wild leeks', they fall somewhere between a scallion and garlic. They truly are a spring delicacy as they have a very short-lived season - late April to early June. If you come across these at a local farmers market over the next few weeks, give them a try!

If you haven't yet tried Quinoa, this is a fabulous starter recipe for you to try. While considered a grain, Quinoa is a 'complete protein' which means that it contains all 9 essential amino acids.

Quinoa is especially rich in lysine, an amino acid essential in tissue growth and repair.

I personally add it to home-made chili and use it in place of potatoes and rice.

If you have a Quinoa recipe I'd love to hear it! Please post details in the comments section of this posting!!

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

May Is National Arthritis Month

Some of you reading this posting may think that you’re way too young to be thinking about Arthritis, or like me, some of you may be experiencing a few more aches and pains than you did a few years ago (and perhaps wondering, “why?”).

While arthritis does affect 50% of adults over the age of 65, there are ~ 9 million people under the age of 44 suffering from doctor-diagnosed arthritis including osteoarthritis, gout, fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis.

It’s important to consider that regardless of your age, people who are overweight or obese report more doctor-diagnosed arthritis than people with a lower body mass index (BMI). Statistically speaking, 66% of adults with doctor-diagnosed arthritis are overweight or obese so if you need yet another excuse to lose those extra pounds, there you go.

Check out the Website Fight Arthritis Pain for fantastic resources, including a tool for assessing your osteoarthritis risk, community support forums a local events calendar, and a movement tracker widget that can be shared on social networking sites and will help keep you on track as you try to move daily.

Remember, if you’re already suffering from arthritis; discuss an exercise plan with your doctor as some exercises may be off limits depending on joint issues.

With that said, one exercise just about all of us can benefit from is walking and throughout the month of May there will be over 100 Arthritis Walks held nationwide to help raise awareness and funds to help improve the lives of those that live with arthritis. For more info visit: http:// www.fightarthritispain.org

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan

Running Season

The weather is warming up and several of my friends throughout the country currently training for half and full marathons. This posting is for you!

MapMyRun.com is a social networking community for, you guessed it, runners. Using Google Maps the website allows users to plot a route, track distance and calculate calories burned. (note: There's a nifty iMapMyRun app that can be downloaded via iTunes for you iPhone users.)

The website also allows users to record workouts and monitor progress. You can even set up email reminders to ensure you do not miss a workout and keep track of when you should replace your running shoes (how cool is that?).

One of my favorite features is that you can visualize your running route in a 3D view.

If you're a biker or hiker, you can check out MapMyRide or MapMyHike (there's also MapMyTri, MapMyWalk and MapMyMountain).

These sites are excellent tools for anyone in training that needs some extra motivation.

Train hard; stay strong.

Peace.

Susan