Training For Your Goals!

When you begin a training program, you will have some goals that you want to achieve. If you do not have any goals, then you probably will not achieve much success. Goals can be combined into multiple categories. Some of the most common categories are weight loss, muscle gain, general health, enhanced athletic performance and training for a specific event. How you train should be directly related to the goal that you have set. You must also have a proper nutrition program to accompany your training program. I will cover nutrition in a future blog.

Training for weight loss is the most common of all training goals. Obesity is a major problem in our society. There are many options for dealing with weight loss. I personally feel that the best way to change your body is to work with a good fitness trainer, but I am a little biased. The best way to train for a weight loss goal is usually cardiovascular training. Cardiovascular training for weight loss most commonly starts with walking or riding on a bike. This is a good safe way to start your training program. I would recommend 30 minutes of cardiovascular training when you first start. In addition to your cardiovascular training program, you need a beginning core strengthening and weight training program. I will not go into specific exercises, but your core and weight training programs are basic and light. Basic and light does not mean easy. You must be pushing yourself to progress in your program, at every workout.


The #1 failure of people who try and lose weight is the lack of progression in their program. Walking on the treadmill at a fast pace, with an incline is good for a start. A month into your training program, you should not be doing the same thing. For example, I have taken new clients that start out walking at 3.0 mph on the treadmill. Within two months that same client is jogging a mile at 4.5 mph. That client did not get there over night: every week they made small improvements that contributed to a big improvement. The main idea I try to get into the clients' mind is the belief that they can do it. So much of success is believing that you can do it!

Next Blog I will cover the goal of building muscle!

Casey Wilson

A good explanation about body composition!

I read a lot of fitness related materials, so from time to time I will post informative articles and studies. I have explained body composition many times to clients. Weight on the scale is never more important than your body fat %. This article gives a good explanation about body composition.

Casey

Body Composition - Body Fat - Body Weight
Learn why body weight and body fat are not always an indication of health
By Elizabeth Quinn, About.com
Updated: May 08, 2009
About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by the Medical Review Board
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sports nutrition
exercise physiology
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Body composition is the term used to describe the different components that, when taken together, make up a person's body weight. The human body is composed of a variety of different tissue types including lean tissues (muscle, bone, and organs) that are metabolically active, and fat (adipose) tissue that is not.
Body Weight Measurements Standard body weight scales provide a measure of total weight, but don't determine the lean-to-fat ratio of that weight. Standing on most scales can tell you only if you weigh more than the average person, but not if that weight is fat or muscle. Based only on scale weight, a 250-pound athlete with 8% body fat may be considered "overweight" by a typical weight chart. Such charts are not a good indication of ideal body weight for general health or for athletic performance.
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Body Composition Body Fat Measurement
There are many methods of assessing a person's fat and lean mass. The most common methods include the following.
Underwater Weighing - Hydrostatic Weighing
One method of body composition analysis in which a person is weighed while submerged in a large tank of water is called underwater or hydrostatic weighing This method of determining body composition relies on Archimedes' Principle of displacement which states:
The density of fat mass and fat-free mass are constant
Lean tissue is more dense than water
Fat tissue is less dense than water.
Therefore person with more body fat will weigh less underwater and be more buoyant. Underwater weighing has been considered the gold standard for body composition assessment, however new, more sophisticated methods may make underwater weighing obsolete in the future.
Skinfold Thickness MeasurementsBecause underwater weighting it is complicated and cumbersome and requires special equipment, most exercise physiologists use simple skinfold measurements to determine body fat percent. The American College of Sports Medicine says that when performed by a trained, skilled, tester, they are up to 98% accurate.
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Bioelectrical ImpedanceBioelectrical Impedance is another method of assessing body fat percentage. There are a variety of body composition and body fat analyzers and scales available for home use that provide more than just total weight measurements. These devices determine total weight, the percent and amount of body fat, muscle mass, water, and even bone mass. While the readings can be affected by hydration levels, food intake, skin temperature, and other factors, if you follow the directions and take the reading under similar conditions, you will obtain the best results.
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BMI - Body Mass IndexBMI or Body Mass Index, is another method of estimating a person's body fat percentage based upon simple weight and height measurements. While the BMI calculation is an indirect measurement, it has been found to be a fairly reliable indicator of body fat measures in most people. Although some studies still question the accuracy of the BMI method of body fat measurement, especially for athletes.
Ideal Body Weight and Body Fat Percent
The ideal weight and fat-lean ratio varies considerably for men and women and by age, but the minimum percent of body fat considered safe for good health is 5 percent for males and 12% for females. The average adult body fat is closer to 15 to 18% for men and 22 to 25% for women.
Athletes tend to be at low end of this scale due to their increased lean weight (muscle mass). While low levels of body fat seem to be related to improved performance, body composition alone is not a great predictor of sports success. A linebacker needs to have enough body mass (lean and fat weight) to generate high forces and avoid injury. Body fat among elite athletes vary largely by sport. There is little evidence of any benefit when men drop under 8% and women drop under 14 percent body fat.

New Fitness Blog

Hey Everyone,

I am starting a fitness blog. My intent is to bring you valuable fitness, nutrition and supplement information. I also want my blog to be interactive, with a lot of questions to be asked by the readers. I will draw on my 9 years of experience and multiple certifications to answer any questions you may have about living a healthy lifestyle. If I do not know the answer, I have a wealth of resources to draw on to get an informative answer. I would also like to help the readers of this blog dispel myth's and falsehoods about all things fitness related. Trust me, their are plenty of myth's and falsehoods to be dispelled.

I had a common question asked by a client today, "when am I going to start enjoying the workouts". He relayed the example of people who just love the actual workout, that make the gym their second home. My response to him was, "they are a rare group of people". Most people don't like to workout. Most humans try and find the path of least resistance to all things in life. Most people that workout regularly do so because it is a necessary evil to stay healthy and looking good. I also related to him that getting in shape is the hard part of the process. Once you have achieved your desired level of fitness, then your maintenance program is not nearly as difficult.

Their is not magic pill or magic machine that is going to bring you a fit and healthy body. Their is no easy way to get truly healthy and fit. Hard work and discipline are the true keys to getting fit. Their are many more things you will need to get fit, but if you are willing to work hard and be disciplined you will be successful. One of the other key components is knowledge and that is what I am here for. A good personal trainer will have all the knowledge you need to get you fit and will have a lot of tools in their tool box. If a trainer is for some reason not the path for you, start researching fitness yourself through reading and watching video. This can also help you gain fitness knowledge. Unfortunately those sources are no substitute for a good trainer, all my clients will second that premise. Their are many path's you can go down to get fit and only you will know the right path for yourself. The bottom line is, that you may or may not enjoy the journey, but the final results will be worth it.

Keep an eye out for my upcoming posts and please send me any questions you may have about fitness.

Casey Wilson

http://www.wilsonpersonaltraining.com/