Best was to get fit

DinoBot

Hi,

So, the wife wants to get fit and loose some weight. She had been walking (1 hour) but I think there are faster/better ways to get fit. So my plan is to do a sort of circuit training program. Did first session and went well.

But Im not sure if this is the best way to get fit.

Basic plan:

3 min light jog (to warm up)
1 min stretch
1 min jog/30 sec light sprint combo x 3
1 min rest
2 min jog / 30 sec of Jumping jacks or fast jog on the spot x 3
3 min light jog to finish

Any comments ??

arybvtcw0eolkf

DinoBot wrote:

Any comments ??

Yup, use the fitness forum http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=252

Sorry, I'm not being short with you but unless she's into Martial Arts or training to get fit for it I'd suggest going there.

Scramble

I headed down and did a session with our own mod Colm O'Reilly on thursday last ... Definitley recommend it to anyone who wants to try something a bit different (in a good way).

http://www.crossfit.ie

DinoBot

Mairt wrote:

Yup, use the fitness forum http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=252

Sorry, I'm not being short with you but unless she's into Martial Arts or training to get fit for it I'd suggest going there.

No problem mate

Well I had a look at that forum first but they all seemed to be into weights and body building. I thought this forum matched a bit better for fitness advice.

Thanks for the link scramble.

Colm_OReilly

Dinobot,

A crossfit protocol would be the best way to get fit. If your wife is concerned with the intensity/weights based nature you can help here by explaining that she won't put on muscle mass as she simply doesn't have the testosterone to build massive muscle.

Just looking at your routine you don't want to spend time statically stretching before any sort of physical extertion - do that at the end. Normally performing an action helps elongate the muscle, or dynamic stretching.

Any other questions, just post, email or give me a shout!
Colm

DinoBot

Colm_OReilly wrote:

Dinobot,

A crossfit protocol would be the best way to get fit.

Hi Colm,

So is the program I am doing at the moment, minus the stretching, any good ? I plan to mix it up a bit once we get into a regular routine.

Colm_OReilly

So is the program I am doing at the moment, minus the stretching, any good?

In and of itself it's not a bad workout, and if someone is sedentary (which I'm presuming your wife is) anything will increase their fitness/health levels. What we're looking for is whether it's the most efficient use of time.

As a standalone workout, is it intense? Intensity is the independent variable most commonly associated with optimising return.

A brief explanation of intensity:

Intensity is power - the amount of work done in a time. work = force x distance.

You need to move relatively large loads, long distance, and quickly.

Relative to what? Physiological and psychological thresholds.

I can't answer whether that workout is intense because I don't know the limitations of your wife's fitness.

Now, a programs main benefit lies in ditching it for another one. The body adapts to stress specifically. If you just run a 5K your body gets good at running 5K, and will perform poorer at 3K or 10K.

So, if you just do that workout, you'll just adapt to doing that workout and soon enough (within a few workouts since cardiovascular adaptations approach their limits relatively quickly) it will stop having any real benefit.

What's the answer? The simplest one is to change the workout everytime you do it. In life, you don't get to chose what stresses will be placed upon you - life does. So a constantly varied program best helps you prepare for that and maximising fitness/health gains.

www.simplefit.org has crossfit primer programs in it that call for 3 workouts a week.

Or you could read the WoDs on the Crossfit main site and scale them down (Brand X Martial Arts posts scaled versions for you)

Better yet, come down to a Crossfit facility. I'm not just pimping my services here - I recently took a trip to Crossfit Manchester and taking part in a group class was brilliant. Quality instruction and friendly competition and motivation throughout the workout increased my performance and pleasure tenfold.

I've thrown a lot of into at you there so if you need anything clarified just let me know.

Col

DinoBot

Thanks Colm, A lot of good info there