10 ways to melt more FAT BodybuildingExercisesFitness ModelsNutritionTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 10th May 202210th May 20220 We turn to the latest science for fat-burning tips 1. Lift heavier weights The theory that lifting light and furiously fast burns more fat than heavy weights is harder to kill than a cockroach. Here’s why it’s hogwash: fewer reps with heavier weights equals a metabolic boost that outlives the increase from high
Hard work hard body BodybuildingExercisesTraining MethodsWeight loss by GymRat - 29th April 202229th April 20220 Enlarge photoSHAUN STANLEY/Durango HeraldStephanie Walker competes in fitness competitions, which emphasize muscular definition but not bulk. She feels the burn of repetitions of weightlifting during a recent workout at Illete Fitness in the Durango Tech Center.SHAUN STANLEY/Durango HeraldStephanie Walker competes in fitness competitions, which emphasize muscular definition but not bulk. She feels the burn of repetitions of weightlifting during a recent workout at Illete Fitness in the Durango Tech Center.For Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and Jayne Mansfield, known for their voluptuous curves, weightlifting and vigorous exercise were not a part of their daily routine.But times change. While a half-century ago the concept of women seeking extreme fitness may have been disdained in this country, now it has a solid niche. That’s especially true in an athletic environment like Southwest Colorado.Take Durangoan Stephanie Walker, for example. Having the ability to change and shape her body to her satisfaction has become an empowering experience.Dissatisfied with her slender appearance, she decided to start building up her body and take control over each muscle she wanted to enhance.Though Walker wouldn’t necessarily be considered a professional bodybuilder by either title or appearance, she does consider herself to be a builder of her body and fitness.“Being a bodybuilder means you work out and see fitness as a sport,” Walker said.She has competed in both Fitness New Mexico and the GNC Nature Colorado Open. She soon will be training for Fitness New Mexico in Albuquerque this summer.Competitions are held for several categories, including model, bikini, figure, fitness and bodybuilding. Many competitions host all or several of the above.Walker attended a recent competition in which only two competed in the bodybuilding division among 200 total women participants,.Women competitors are opting more for the figure category, a less extreme version, and have steered away from bodybuilding, she said.Walker feels that it is unnatural for a woman to achieve an extremely bulky, muscular appearance often associated with such competitions and assumes most who do are using anabolic steroids.“It’s really taboo, and people don’t talk about it,” she said.Figure competitions allow women to remain feminine, she said. Although it’s hard work to achieve the look, it can be done naturally.Walker does not use steroids because of their health consequences, she said, but ironically named her dog “Tren,” short for Trenbolone, an anabolic steroid.Dawn Malinowsky of Vallecito wanted to learn more about her body, so she studied anatomy and researched how to shape it. She quickly got into a routine and was satisfied with her additional strength, she said.“It feels good to be strong,” she said.Malinowsky built her body for 12 years and once placed second in her division in a bodybuilding competition in Connecticut, she said. The winner, twice the size of the other women, appeared to have used some sort of anabolic steroid, Malinowsky recalled.“I’m only 5-(foot)-4, and your muscles can only get so big naturally,” she said. “I don’t believe in steroids. I think it’s cheating.”After experiencing the harsh realities of prepping for competition, she realized it wasn’t for her, she said.Depriving her body of carbohydrates, though unhealthy, was not difficult, she said. The hardest part was limiting water intake to drop her body fat percentage from about 16 percent to 3 percent, she said.Now, at age 48, she no longer bodybuilds but continues to exercise regularly and maintains a healthful lifestyle, she said. But to others considering getting into the sport, Malinowsky said, “Go for it.”Antoinette Nowakowski of Mayday has been retired from competitive bodybuilding for about 18 years. She said she first discovered the weight room when she moved to Iowa to attend chiropractic school.She said it took her awhile to feel comfortable in the male-dominated weight room.“You really had to prove yourself,” she said.Nowakowski, now 59, began working out regularly to improve a “weak” body and her health. Her regular routine later progressed to bodybuilding.When asked if she had ever experimented with steroids, she gleefully responded with: “No, I’m a tree-hugging nature girl.”Just before one competition, she entered a women’s bathroom and discovered a woman shaving her chest hair. It was likely that she was on some sort of steroid, Nowakowski said.All three women have heard comments from other women who believe “lifting weights makes women bulk up and look like men.” They assure the statement is false and in bad taste.“I didn’t want to emulate men,” Nowakowski said. “I wanted to have a beautiful, strong feminine body.”Though the women’s bodybuilding community is very small, the women have received an immense amount of support and admiration from friends and curious admirers in the gym.Also, even after achieving a “near-perfect” figure in their minds, like anyone else, they are not exempt from experiencing personal body-image issues.The three women said it’s all about finding a balance.Don Roberts, who owns Fitness Solutions 24/7 in Bodo Industrial Park and has participated in a few amateur bodybuilding shows, expressed a mixed opinion about the sport.“It’s great when women do it in a feminine way,” he said. “It can be very tastefully and gracefully done from a woman’s standpoint.”He did, however, express his distaste for both men and women who obtain their muscular physiques through the use of chemical enhancements.“They are totally different types of people, he said. “I’m all for it as long as it’s drug-free.”The women agreed theirs is not a lifestyle suited for all. But they emphasized the importance of not neglecting your health.“Don’t wait until you’re at the point where you feel bad or are overweight. Find a buddy and work out with them,” Walker said.vguthrie@durangoherald.com
How to measure your strength progression BodybuildingExercisesFitness ModelsTraining Methods by admin - 15th April 202215th April 20220 Strength progression is all about how much weight you can lift, over a certain number of reps or sets, here's how to measure your progression. What is it? Tracking strength progression is vital to any resistance based program, with muscles needing to be consistently challenged in order to fortify the neural connections and muscular adaptions
Lower-body booty circuit BodybuildingExercisesFitness ModelsTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 30th March 202230th March 20220 Combine these three micro workouts to form a lower-body workout that’ll have you working up a sweat.THE WORKOUT5 to 6 rounds, with no more than 10 to 15 seconds’ rest between exercises.5 Burpees // 20 Kneeling Banded Hip Thrust // 5 Burpees // 20 Knee to Squat Jump (10 on each leg) // 5 Burpees // 30 Standing Hip Abductions (15 on each leg).Workout by Kyla GagnonPhotography by Jesse HladyKneeling banded hip thrustPlacing the band just above your knees, kneel down on a soft surface, toes together and knees apart. Slowly with control, lower your hips back and down towards your feet, pause and slowly with control, rise and push your hips to the front, squeezing your glutes at the back.Use the strongest band you can.
5 Ways to Make Working Out Less Miserable BodybuildingExercisesNutritionTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 1st March 20221st March 20220 Everyone wants to be in good shape, but few of us enjoy doing what it takes to get there. Sure, it sounds simple: just eat right and exercise regularly. But sticking to our commitment to our health can be really, really tough. But there are ways to make it easier. Exercising
Booty-building with trainer Tahlia Seinor BodybuildingExercisesTraining Methods by admin - 17th February 202217th February 20220 Booty-building with trainer Tahlia Seinor Activate your glutes with this booty-building workout by Tahlia Seinor.Given the glutes’ lack of use during our day-to-day life, Seinor suggests working them every time you are in the gym – either in isolation or as part of your leg training or full body workout of that day.“My girls are also instructed to complete sets of glute bridges every night before bed,” says Seinor. “If you don’t use it, you lose it. But also be sure to listen to your body and never overdo it.”Seinor suggests varying your training to ensure all areas of the glute muscle are hit during exercise.“There is no ideal training protocol for glute development, as they contain both fast- and slow-twitch muscle fibres. Developing both types requires a variety of training intensities, including low reps and heavier weights, and high repetitions with lighter weights,” says Seinor. “The glutes are a major muscle group in the body, so don’t be afraid to set the weight high.”And on the ‘ass-to-grass’ debate, Seinor says to keep squatting low.“Partial-range training has its benefits, but when it comes to gluteal development, you should perform exercises throughout a full range of motion,” she says.“If exercises such as back squats, deadlifts, split squats and step-ups are executed with limited range, it could create structural imbalances that can adversely affect posture and athletic performance.”Her sessions are all individual but her methods strongly follow that of Charles Poliquin
Babes full-body barbell workout BodybuildingExercisesFitness ModelsTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 30th January 202230th January 20220 Get stronger, fitter and feel more confident in the gym with this exclusive full-body workout by the Base Body Babes.”The barbell is our favourite piece of training equipment, as it can be used for such a great range of exercises. We like to say that ‘Load is King’ – the exercise that allows you to lift the heaviest loads will ultimately give you the best results, and the barbell allows you to do just that. Although there is no magical number, we love the eight rep range as it allows you to build strength while still keeping the heart rate elevated for optimal calorie burn,” says the ladies, Felicia Oreb and Diana Johnson.Here’s what you need to doA1 Barbell Back Squat A2 Barbell Military Press A3 Barbell Romanian Deadlift A4 Barbell Bent-Over Row A5 Barbell Split Squat A6 Barbell Glute Bridges Perform each exercise A1–A6 back to back, with no rest in between exercisesComplete 8 repetitions of each exercise Rest for 4 minutes after A6 Repeat 4–6 times NOTE: Choose weights that you believe you can complete all repetitions and sets with without failing, yet still keep the weight challenging enough to complete a great workout. Technique is most important when lifting heavy, so don’t compromise your form. Ensure you are completing all repetitions and sets with perfect technique before increasing the weight.Let’s do this!Words/Workout: Felicia Oreb and Diana JohnsonPhotography: Vanessa Natoli / @vanesSanatoliphotography
Are you putting off going to the gym? BodybuildingExercisesTraining Methods by admin - 16th January 202216th January 20220 Here are 5 ways you can find motivation to work out Sometimes, it’s tough to take the first step and sign up for a gym membership. Other times, it’s hard to get back to your routine after a break. We round up five ways to get back into the swing of things
Burn Fat The Old-School Way With Sprints and Stairs BodybuildingExercisesTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 7th January 20227th January 20220 Want to take your lower-body workout to the great outdoors? Bodybuilding.com athlete Samantha Leete hits the track to show you how! Most of my workouts take place in the gym, but sometimes I need a change of scenery. I'm a former track and field athlete, so my first impulse is often
4 ways to increase fat loss ExercisesNutritionTraining MethodsWeight loss by admin - 29th December 202129th December 20210 4 ways to increase fat loss Progressively burn more fat with these top tips from personal trainer, Pilates instructor, and owner of KE Fitness Kris Etheridge.Body fat is simply stored energy, so giving your body a reason to use it is vital. This can be done through diet or exercise, but most commonly a combination of the two.“To lose body fat, you need to place your body into a calorie deficit, forcing it to use its fat for energy. Muscle is also your body’s engine – the bigger the engine, the more fuel it uses and the more calories you burn, making it easier to lose fat,” says Etheridge, who suggests any good fat loss plan contains gradual progressions in both fat-burning cardiovascular activity and resistance training.“Strength training is the most important element; the amount of cardio you need to do to achieve fat loss depends on how strict you are with your diet and what kind of strength and conditioning program you’re doing,” he says.“Utilise progressive overload to make your resistance workout more difficult than what you can comfortably perform in your current program. Whether it be using different training principals, such as supersets and circuits, or increasing the weight or reps, keep progressing by asking more from your body.”Etheridge suggests increasing your weight, sets, reps or intensity each week for six weeks, followed by one week of lighter training (aka. a deload week) to allow the body to recover.“Lighter weeks or rest weeks are imperative to minimise overtraining and reduce the chance of overuse injuries.