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Skinny To Strong: Karina Baymiller’s Complete Fitness Journey

 Eat-fasting 2.0 sanctions eating two meals within a 12-hour period. So does this diet planwork?

The whole fasting and eating at the same time thing has become so ubiquitous, we’re inured to the fact that it’s the stupidest oxymoron since skinny-fat.

But suspending logic and intellect for the sake of being able to buy lunch and stovepipe jeans, we’re digging scientific backing for a pro-grub upgrade to the 5:2 fad.

How does it work

Eat-fasting 2.0 sanctions eating two meals within a 12-hour period, which is – knock us down with a catwalk model’s thigh – almost normal.

According to Salk Institute researchers, the program can help the body to burn fat rather than store it, despite no weird food or kJ rules and occasional cheat meals.

They also put the kibosh on the six-meals-a-day boosting metabolism theory.

Breakfast is crucial to good health. It’s the first meal we eat after a night’s sleep, kick starting the body back into action, or ‘breaking the fast’. The longer you go without foodafter waking up in the morning, the longer you are in the state of shutdown your body adopts during sleep.

“When people skip breakfast they are putting their body into a prolonged fasting state,” says accredited practising dietitian Lisa Renn.

“That is, they haven’t eaten anything since the previous night’s dinner and are asking their bodies to hold off without food for even longer. When this occurs regularly the body is forced to slow its metabolism down in order to conserve energy. The result is usually weight gain.”

The US National Weight Control Registry bears this out, showing that of those people who have lost more than 30 pounds (around 14 kilograms) and kept it off for more than a year, 90 per cent reported eating breakfast most days of the week.

Breakfast is also the meal farthest away from our next sleep, which means the body has lots of time to digest and metabolise what we ate for breakfast throughout the day. So you can eat more and gain less.
It’s why it’s important to eat ‘the breakfast of a king, the lunch of a prince and the dinner of a pauper’. We don’t have time to metabolise a heavy, late dinner before we go to sleep at night. On the other hand, breakfast gives us all the energy we need to lead active lives during the day.

“Breakfast improves alertness, concentration, mental performance and memory,” Renn says. “It can also help improve a person’s mood – that’s why people get tired and irritable when they miss breakfast.
“The optimum breakfast will come from a low GI, high fibre carbohydrate source that is low in saturated fat and sodium. Ideally fruit or vegetables will form part of the mix, and it is a good idea to include a low-fat dairy or dairy-equivalent product.”

The spice of life
Some women don’t feel they can stomach a big breakfast – for many it is the most unappealing meal of the day. The repetitive and routine nature of the meal – cereal or toast each day, without much variation – can be an issue, as can the pressure to eat on the run. For many busy women it’s a question of simply ‘forcing something down’ on the way out the door.

Because of a declining respect for the meal itself, brought about by the way we order our lives and the time constraints we impose as a result of juggling work, children and other commitments, breakfast just doesn’t have the variety or pleasure factor of other meals.

But it’s a very good opportunity to see food as an important fuel for the body rather than simply an indulgence, and to eat foods that are good for you. It’s also a chance to consume important nutrients like fibre, calcium, vitamin C and folate all in one go – a bowl of muesli, yoghurt and berries will achieve this in one sitting, and hopefully you’ll agree it isn’t an entirely unpleasant experience.

There are also plenty of ways to increase breakfast variety, even if you’re time-poor. Consider the range of foods available to us today that are now ‘acceptable’ for breakfast, not to mention the brunch menu of any good café.
The modern continental breakfast includes items like smoked salmon, avocado, bagels, ricotta pancakes, cheeses, bruschetta, fruit compotes – and none of these need too much time to prepare.

A traditional breakfast
Eggs are high in protein and nutrients and are the classic cooked breakfast food. They are easy to prepare, and not as high in cholesterol as you may think.

But to play it safe, stick to the National Heart Foundation’s recommendations and limit your egg consumption to six a week. Boiling, poaching and scrambling (without cream) are the best low-fat preparation options for eggs. Omelettes can add variety – try fillings such as potato, pumpkin, cheese and tomato.

It is now also possible to purchase very lean or soy bacon. Grill or barbeque to ensure the fat drips off during cooking, or use a non-stick pan. A healthy vegetarian variation, or an addition for omnivores, is to add baked beans and vegetables like spinach or mushroom to increase the nutrient content of your cooked breakfast.

Ultimately, however, bacon and eggs is simply not a viable option seven days a week. If you eat this sort of breakfast every day, you are not only consuming high levels of sodium and saturated fat, but you risk missing out on dietary fibre and calcium.

Renn suggests overcoming this by mixing up your breakfast options, saving the cooked breakfast for the weekend and having a high fibre cereal with low-fat milk, a low-fat smoothie, a bowl of porridge or pancakes with yoghurt and berries during the week.

“The more variety in your food intake, the more likely you are to get the right balance of nutrients,” she says.

Get more diet tips and start planning your healthy eating program.

So you want to be one of those super-fit (and perky) people? Set a goal and time frame and train using these HIIT workouts.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) involves alternating short periods of intense anaerobic exercise with active recovery sessions. These short, intense workouts burn high levels of calories and improve athletic capacity.

How: Try the following routine over two to four weeks and complete two times per week. Make sure you record whether you reached the program goal or not. 

a.Workout 1: Incline sprints (lvl 35) 
30-second maximal output then drop incline and actively recover for 2 min x 5 sets

b. Workout 2: Incline sprints (lvl 35) 
45-second maximal output then drop incline and actively recover for 2 min x 5 sets

c.Workout 3: incline sprints (lvl 35) 
45-second maximal output, drop incline and actively recover for 1.5 min x 5 sets

d. Workout 4: Incline sprints (lvl 35) 
45-second maximal output, drop the incline and actively recover for 1 min x 5 sets

Insider’s tip: Try this instead of long steady-state cardio sessions and watch your fitness levels soar!

Discover more way to fast-track you fat loss here.

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Exercise is great for the mind, body and soul, right? But what happens when it starts to take over your life?

PT Marisa Branscombe ponders the dangerous effects of too much exercise

Exercise is generally accepted as a positive behaviour associated with enhanced physical and psychological wellbeing. But is it possible to do too much exercise? So much that it takes over your life?

This may sound strange, but lately I’ve come across several women who seem to be controlled by eating and exercise. I have to admit, for a few years I was in that headspace too and every now and then I have to keep myself in check. There really is a fine line between exercising enough and becoming obsessed about it. Read on to find out how exercise addiction may be affecting you or someone you know.

Exercise addiction: positive vs. negative

“Addiction occurs when adaptive changes in the brain cause symptoms of tolerance, sensitisation, dependence and withdrawal,” (Leuenberger, 2006).

Positive Addiction, written by William Glaser (1976), first addressed positive and negative addiction to exercise. He refers to positive addiction as “involving a love of the activity that is characterised by controllability, an ability to integrate exercise into everyday activities, and an ability to miss exercisesessions when it is necessary”. People with a positive dependence schedule exercise carefully around other aspects of their life, so their exercise schedule is not detrimental to their wellbeing in these areas. They feel increased feelings of control, competence, physical and psychological wellbeing. Negative addiction to exercise, on the other hand, “involves a compulsive desire or need to exercise that overrides a person’s considerations about their health, relationships and career”. When these people have to miss an exercise session they experience feelings of loss, guilt, physical and psychological discomfort. Large amounts of time are dedicated to training, leading to many ‘negative addicts’ giving up other important aspects of their life.

Health risks of too much exercise

Exercise, like anything, can be carried too far. Overexercising stresses the body to the point of weakening the immune system, making people more prone to illness. Pushing yourself beyond your limits can lead to sore muscles, loss of appetite, headaches and trouble sleeping. More serious effects include joint pain and injuries, anaemia, weakening of the bones and the hormonal cycle shutting down (Cline, 2007).

Yes, exercise is good for you, but when it reaches the point of excess it can indeed make you sick. A study of Harvard Alumni by Stanford University’s Ralph Paffenbarger found death rates were lower for men who were involved in regular physical activity. But then death rates began to go up in those who burnt more than 3000 calories per week. His 10-year study also found that mood disturbances such as tension, depression, anger, confusion and anxiety were found to rise significantly as training loads increased.

Dr Kenneth Cooper, author of Aerobics, believes excessive exercise also produces unstable oxygen molecules called free radicals that cause harm to the body. These have been linked to health problems such as premature ageing, heart disease and cancer.

Why the addiction?

Psychological and physiological factors

There is still a great debate happening on the ‘why’ of exercise addiction. Some believe it’s associated with certain personality traits, including obsessive compulsive disorder, high-pain tolerance, high self-imposed expectations and narcissism.

Others propose it may be a result of low self-esteem, where exercise is used to improve this, or that endorphins released in the body during exercise, lead to a psychological state called ‘runners high’, which creates a relaxed state of being that people thrive to achieve over and over again. Some also say there are physiological causes, where the exerciser relies on exercise to increase their arousal to an optimal level.
Participants in sports that focus on body size and shape, such as dance, figure skating, ballet, gymnastics, distance running, body building, wrestling and boxing may be at higher risk.

Are you at risk?

Does all of this sound a little too familiar? Or perhaps alarm bells are ringing around one of your friends or family members? Well here are some of the typical symptoms of someone who is letting exercise take over their life:

• Withdrawal

They will experience anxiety, fatigue and other similar symptoms if they don’t exercise. Or will have to exercise to relieve these.

• Intention effects

The amount of exercise or length of exercise sessions is longer than originally intended.

• Loss of control

A persistent desire to train or make unsuccessful attempts to reduce the amount of exercise they do.

• Time

Large amounts of time are spent exercising and conflict with other areas of their life.

• Continuance

Will continue to exercise even with persistent physical or psychological issues that are made worse from exercising, such as a recurring injury.

Other warnings signs are a fixation on weight loss, whereby they will talk about exercising to burn off a meal or treat. Compulsive exercisers will also try to lose weight in order to improve their exercise performance.  They often exercise alone and avoid interaction and exercise assessments, and will usually have a rigid routine.

However, as Amy Gleason, senior nutritionist from the McLean Hospital in the United States says, “unhealthy uses of exercise are not necessarily obvious. Exercisers won’t complain or bring their potential problems to anyone’s attention. Asking why a person is training or what their goals are is a great way to find out more.”

If you still feel like you can’t break the chains of obsessive exercise, consider talking to an expert, who can help you let go of it gradually.  A great book to check out is Appearance Obsession: Learning to Love the way you look, by Joni E. Johnston. This contains quizzes than can help you assess whether your exercise habit is becoming an unhealthy one. It also offers helpful suggestions, in addition to the ones I have given you.

To increase lean muscle mass, progressive overload is essential – here’s how to build up your gains. Angelique Tagaroulias writes.

Progressive overload not only does it stimulate muscle hypertrophy by forcing the muscle to adapt to increased loads, it also aids in the development of stronger and denser bones, ligaments, tendons and cartilage.

“Progression is forcing a muscle to adapt to a tension that is more than it has experienced before. When a muscle is stressed, there’s an increase in blood flow to the region being exercised, stimulating more responsive nerve connections between the brain and muscle,” says personal trainer and owner of Fully Loaded Fitness, Ethan Hyde.
Hyde.

“I’m a firm believer in keeping things interesting. Your body gets used to what you do, as does your mind. Changing things frequently allows your body to work harder and not get used to it, and also allows your mind to stay entertained and not get complacent.”

Hyde says adding lean muscle mass requires increasing volume, frequency and resistance, and decreasing rest periods:

» Volume: increase the number of sets/reps per workout or over the course of a week.

» Frequency: train a body part more often.

» Resistance: increase weight on a weekly basis or as often as you can while keeping good form.

» Rest periods: you might be resting for 60 seconds but if you drop that to 30 seconds, this requires your body to become more metabolically efficient with anaerobic exercise.

Note: if you’re starting out, try manipulating just one of the variables at a time; if you’re more advanced, you can try more than one.

“Save a couple for when adaptation occurs. You can then bring out shorter rest periods or increase the volume to get the body growing again,” explains Hyde.

Frequency and rest periods are good variables to start with. “By increasing frequency, you increase your total volume across the week. This will focus on the major (weekly) goal, while manipulating rest periods will focus on the minor (daily) goal. Keep rest periods on larger lifts the same but shorten rest periods on isolation work – large compound movements require more energy thus demand more rest.”

As a general rule, more reps equals less rest and less reps equals longer rest.

While some trainers advise to alter programming every four weeks to allow your body to adapt, others will recommend changing it every week – or at least aiming for a slight strength progression on a weekly basis. Hyde believes one to two weeks is best depending on the program: it keeps your muscles guessing and your mind stimulated, while still allowing time for muscles to adapt.

“Everyone should be using a periodised program that allows constant change. And following a prescribed program forces you to change when you’re meant to – not just when you’re bored or feel like it,” says Hyde.

“I like to change my program often to avoid plateauing. If you plateau for two weeks then change it for another month and plateau again, you end up spending a lot of time not growing muscle.”

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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 and hopefully keep your fitness regime going.

1. Find a friend

Pairing up with a workout buddy is one way to keep going with your fitness schedule. Making plans to work out together will make it harder to cancel, and make you both more accountable. Exercising with a friend or partner can also help you both stay motivated by congratulating each other on a workout well done and any goals reached. You could also make exercise more of a fun, social event by organising to grab a post-workout brunch or smoothie together.

2. Update your workout wardrobe

If you’re struggling to get back to the gym, buying some new sportswear to show off might help. Alternatively make a new purchase a well-deserved treat for hitting your exercise goals, it will help give you something to work towards.

3. Try a new class

Not only will a new sport or workout give your fitness regime a shake-up, but it could also teach you some new skills and help you make some new friends. If you’re always running why not try a Body Pump class for some resistance training? Already love resistance training? Stretch it out with some yoga. If you always swim breast stroke, book in with an instructor to teach you front crawl. The possibilities are endless!

4. Set a new goal

If you’ve taken a break from the gym, you might be feeling back to square one. Setting a new goal now that you’re back is one way to get yourself more motivated to start again, and to push yourself further. Try signing up for a run or sponsored swim, set yourself a new amount of steps to walk each week, or increase your workouts from 3 per week to 4. It doesn’t have to be too far or too much to start with, just something that is a challenge but also fun for you. Once you’ve achieved this goal, you can push yourself even further with another!

5. Keep track of your progress

Even if you’re not working towards a goal, keeping a track of your workouts will show you how far you have progressed and help keep you going. Invest in a fitness tracker as part of your back to the gym kit, a bit like updating your stationery for school, and make sure you’re wearing it daily to track all your activity as well as other important factors such as sleep. Alternatively, schedule workouts into your diary to keep a track of how many you make it to and what you achieved.

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THE LEG-DAY FINISHER

EXERCISE 1

KETTLEBELL SWINGYou’ll need: KettlebellsHow to

4sets

40 sec.reps

10 sec.rest

EXERCISE 2

LATERAL RESISTANCE BAND SHUFFLEHow to

4sets

40 sec.reps

10 sec.rest

EXERCISE 3

POWER LUNGE

4sets

40 sec.reps

10 sec.

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The Leg-Day Circuit to End Your Workout Right

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Pro Advice: 6 Surprising Fat-Loss Facts

Sam Wells is one lucky girl. The aspiring women’s physique competitor not only met the first-ever women’s physique Olympia winner, Dana Linn Bailey, she trained with her too. Sam won MHP’s 2013 “Train With Dana” contest, and her prize was spending the day at City Athletic Club in Las Vegas trading reps with her idol.

Originally posted here:

Train With Dana Linn Bailey Contest: Winning Back Workout

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Fitness Tips-Make fitness a hobby