Category Archives: Your Fit Questions Answered

EPOC Training explained and two workouts

Your Fit Questions Answered

EPOC explained and what athletes should understand about this marker, plus two workouts to help improve ii.

TERM:VO2 max

DEFINITION:VO2 max is a measurement of the maximum amount of oxygen that a body can utilize during exercise. It is used to calculate overall fitness. As you become more conditioned, your VO2 max and your endurance increase, allowing you to perform longer and work at a higher intensity with less effort. VO2 max is measured in a laboratory test: You walk or run on a treadmill until you reach your all-out effort, while equipment analyzes the amount of oxygen inhaled and the amount of carbon dioxide exhaled.

Research shows that interval training produces greater improvements in VO2max than continuous (or steady-state) workouts. You can do intervals with any activity by alternating periods of intense and easier effort, or try one of the workouts below.

20-Minute, Total-Body Workout 

WARM-UP:

Jog in place for 15 seconds.

High Knees

Jog in place, bringing knees toward your chest, for 15 seconds.

Butt Kicker

Jog in place, bringing your heels toward your butt, for 1 minute.

Skater

Hop to the left, landing on left foot as you tap right foot on the floor slightly behind you. Push off left foot as you hop to the right. Continue, moving from side to side, for 1 minute.

Lunge and Reach

Take a big step forward with right foot and bend knees, lowering into a lunge; as you lunge, bend your torso over to the right, reaching left arm overhead and right hand toward the floor. Return to starting position and repeat on opposite side to complete 1 rep. Do 10 reps.

Mountain Climber

Get in plank position. Step right foot forward, bringing right knee toward chest. Hold for 1 count, then slowly step back to starting position and repeat with left leg to complete 1 rep. Do 10 reps. Next, jump right foot forward; then switch legs, jumping left foot forward as you extend right leg to complete 1 rep. Do 10 reps.

Inchworm

From plank position, walk feet forward until they’re just behind your hands; walk hands forward until you’re in plank position again to complete 1 rep. Do 6 reps and then stand.

CIRCUIT 1: Running and push-up

Run forward 8 steps, run backward 8 steps, then do 1 push-up. Repeat, this time doing 2 push-ups.

Run forward at a diagonal 8 steps, run backward at a diagonal 8 steps, then do 3 push-ups. Repeat, this time doing 4 push-ups.

CIRCUIT 2: Side shuffle, squat jump, and inchworm

Shuffle 4 steps to the right, then do 1 squat jump. Shuffle 4 steps to the left, then do 1 squat jump.

Shuffle to the right again, do 1 squat jump, then bend forward and place hands on the floor in front of your feet. Walk hands forward until you’re in plank position. Bend elbows, lowering chest toward floor, then push up. Walk hands back toward feet and do 1 squat jump. Shuffle to the left and repeat.

Repeat entire sequence 4 times.

CIRCUIT 3: Alternating lunge and lateral lunge jump

Step back with right foot and bend knees, lowering into a lunge. Rise up as you return to starting position. Repeat, this time stepping back with left leg, to complete 1 rep. Do 10 reps.

Next, push off left foot and jump to the right, landing in a lunge with right foot behind left. Do 4 jumps, each time landing in a lunge with left foot forward, then repeat in the opposite direction with right foot forward.

CIRCUIT 4: Suicide runs

Sprint to the right for 4 counts then bend down and touch right hand to the floor. Immediately rise up and sprint to the left for 4 counts then touch left hand to the floor. Repeat 5 times.

CIRCUIT 5: Multidirectional burpee

Stand and in one motion, place hands on floor in front of your feet and jump feet back into plank position; jump feet toward hands, and then jump straight up, reaching your arms overhead to complete 1 burpee.

Do 2 burpees (see above), jumping feet to the right and left as you rise up.

Do 3 burpees, jumping straight up for the first, to the right on the second, and to the left on the third.

Do 4 burpees: one center, one right, one left, and one forward.

Do 5 burpees: one center, one right, one left, one forward, and one backward.

<<Repeat circuits 1 to 5>>

CIRCUIT 6: Core challenge

Army Crawl

Get in plank position and lower your forearms to the floor. Crawl forward for 20 seconds.

Side Plank Reach

From the army crawl, extend your arms so you’re in a plank position with hands under shoulders. Lift right arm and rotate torso to the right, shifting weight to left arm. Bring left foot forward so it’s in front of right. Lift left leg as you reach right hand toward left foot. Lower left foot and repeat 5 times. Reverse motion to return to plank position, then repeat the entire sequence on the opposite side.

Back Extension

Lie facedown with your arms extended at your sides, palms facing ceiling. Lift your chest and thighs and hold for 5 counts. Lower to the floor and repeat. Do 5 reps.

If you tried one of these work outs and you like them, please leave a comment below.
NAMASTE Shari

 

Rise, lift and shine featured in Boulder’s Daily Camera

Your Fit Questions Answered

Rise, lift and shine article from the Daily Camera

By Katie Nelson

For the Camera

The Spring Fitness Challenge at Balance 2B Fit, Paul Derda Recreation Center, 13201 Lowell Blvd, Broomfield, 720-232-8976 or balance2bfit.com.

Instructor: Shari Lesser has been a personal trainer and boot camp instructor for 15 years. She specializes in full-body functional training.

What is the workout? An early morning boot-camp class that hits you to your core.

Lesser describes the workout as timed intervals that work all systems of endurance and all plains of motion.

“”It’s) designed for strength, flexibility, mobility and endurance,” said Lesser. Lesser sets up each exercise and goes through the movements, breaking down the technique. For more complex moves, she has everyone practice the exercise. Each member of the class then picks a station and completes the circuit of exercises multiple times.

Lesser focuses on building muscle and working on muscle endurance. It’s not just lifting heavy weights a few times — instead, it’s repetitive movements for a specific amount of time.

“I work a little bit more on form and the posterior chain, so we are working a lot more back body,” said Lesser.

What’s different? It’s clear Lesser puts a significant amount of effort into planning her exercises. Many boot-camp classes are organized by an over-arching organization, like Les Mills. Lesser choreographs all of her workouts and each class is different. Even if the exercises are similar, she’ll switch up the machines or will throw in a stability element, offering variety.

She gets creative with her workouts and incorporates functional exercises, like assisted pull-ups. Some movements, however, require mental gymnastics to get the timing and control right. For me, balancing on a Bosu ball while doing a single-leg weighted toe touch was outside my skill level. It was a huge challenge to keep my balance while trying to not lose the weight and touch my toes — once. My stability clearly needs work.

Cost: The session runs from Jan. 28-March 20 and is $180 for non-residents, $155 for residents and $105 for recreation center pass holders.

Level: This was a physical challenge that was easy to scale. The class was small and Lesser kept an eye on everyone. Since it is an exercise series, she has the time to get to know her students and their limitations. At the start of the class, she had alternative movements ready for specific students.

When: 6:30-7:30 a.m. Monday and Wednesday.

What to prepare: Athletic shoes, water and workout clothes. All equipment is provided.

Muscles worked: The class is a “full-body with core emphasis” workout, said Lesser.

She’s not kidding. There wasn’t a major muscle group left untouched. We worked our backs and core the most, but she threw in arm and leg exercises.

What I loved: Lesser’s attention to detail and well-thoughtout exercises were great. Some workouts were new to me and others I hadn’t performed in the particular way we did in class. Lesser likes to keep the body guessing, something instructors often overlook in classes that are overly formulaic. Workouts are repetitive when pulling from the same laundry list of exercises, so it’s good to switch it up.

What I didn’t like: I am not a morning person — at all. Not only am I whiny about it, I tend to get nauseous when I work out early. An afternoon option might be a good idea for people like me who morally oppose getting up before the sun.

How I felt after the class: I was ready for a nap and it was 8 a.m. This made me realize that I’m turning into my father, but he’s retired and I have no such excuse.


BROOMFIELD, CO – December 19, 2018: Shari Lesser twists and slams her ball to the wall. Shari Lesser is teaching the Balance 2B fit workout of the week at the Paul Derda Recreation Center in Broomfield on December 19, 2018.
(Photo by Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

Shari Lesser twists and slams an exercise ball to the wall. Lesser is the instructor for a Spring Fitness Challenge exercise series at Balance 2B Fit class at the Paul Derda Recreation Center in Broomfield.

Photos by Cliff Grassmick / Staff Photographer


BROOMFIELD, CO – December 19, 2018: James VandeHoef, right, and his mother, Cyndi, workout at one of the stations.Shari Lesser is teaching the Balance 2B fit workout of the week at the Paul Derda Recreation Center in Broomfield on December 19, 2018.
(Photo by Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

BROOMFIELD, CO – December 19, 2018: James VandeHoef, left, and his mother, Cyndi, workout at one of the stations. Shari Lesser is teaching the Balance 2B fit workout of the week at the Paul Derda Recreation Center in Broomfield on December 19, 2018.
(Photo by Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

BROOMFIELD, CO – December 19, 2018: Sary Gurmendi flips the 180-lbs. tire at this station. Shari Lesser is teaching the Balance 2B fit workout of the week at the Paul Derda Recreation Center in Broomfield on December 19, 2018.
(Photo by Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)

Source:  dailycamera.com.

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Happy Thanksgiving

Inspiration & Quotes, Your Fit Questions Answered

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! From all of us girls with so much love to you and your families.  I hope your day is blessed with love and laughter. Thank you for all your support through the year. I am so grateful for your friendships, dedication & hard work in the gym. The best part of loving what I do is seeing you achieve your goals and be happy in your own skin.

Love Shari, Nikole & Taylor