Cardio and Upper Body...and some advice.

Now, the title is misleading. I have been going to the gym for months. But this is the first day of the week in the gym for me. I go to the Brooks YMCA Tuesday - Sunday, and take Monday off. Today was cardio and strength training. Side Note, people have asked me "How did you lose weight?" Here's how you do it; count calories and exercise. Thats it!!! I only consume 2080 calories a day and I do 90 minutes of cardio and strength training. Now, I will say that doing a session or 2 with a Personal Trainer is a good idea! They can give you workouts, meal plans and find out your optimum caloric burn. What is that? I'll tell you. What burns calories during a workout is your heart pumping faster than normal. So when I run, for instance, depending on the speed my HR can get up to 167 BPM (Beats per minute.) In that sustained HR, I burn 18 calories a minute. It's different for everyone, depending on your weight, height, sex and age. I'm a big guy, so the more work my body does, the more calories I burn.

Back on point, I start with 10 minutes of stretching. This is very important! Then a 30 minute bike ride. I try to keep my HR above 140 BPM. Then I move on to weights. Now, me personally, I'm trying to gain some serious muscle mass. So I hit them kind of hard. I start with bench press. I do whats called a "Progression Set," this builds muscle mass faster. I start with 165 pounds and I do 10 reps. Then I increase the weight. Next is 8 reps of 175 pounds. (See, I'm slowing increasing the weight but decreasing repititions) Next is 6 reps of 190, then finally 4 reps of 205. And I increase the weight every week! So next week I'll be doing 175, 185, 195 and 215. Doing this much weight should require another person with you, a "spotter." But I haven't had any problems yet. That is my favorite, love doing the bench press. The workouts following are simple. 2 sets of 12 reps. Maximum weight. I say maximum and I mean it, if you can do 13 reps...add more weight! The workouts I do include:
*Tricep Extensions
*Super Inclined Shoulder Press (Love this one too!)
*Lateral Raises
*Lateral Pull Downs
*Bi-Cep Curls
*Upright Rows
*Chest Extensions

Then another burst of cardio, the strength training portion should take about 30-35 minutes. Rest for 1 minutes between each set. I typically, depending on if my knee is bothering me, do a 2 mile run. The pace I am at is 6.5 MPH, which is about a 9 minute 15 second mile. I'm getting up there in speed! Another great trainig tip is start off with "Interval Training." Get on a treadmill or just walk outside. Walk at a steady pace for 2 minutes, then run as fast as you can for 2 minutes...don't stop, so if you need to pace yourself, slow down but don't stop. Then walk for 2 minutes. Keep that going for 1 mile! Then you'll be able to run the entire mile, then 2 miles, then 3 miles and so on, and so on. Pretty soon, you'll be running marathons. I did this and ran a half marathon on Thanksgiving morning! It was a lot of fun!!! So, I do the 2 mile run. Then I bike for 15 minutes. It's a combination cool down and loosen up cardio session.

I finish off with a 15 minute Sauna! I like it! My trainer says its dumb and bad for you, but I enjoy it a lot. So its up to you if you want to try that out. So thats my Tuesday workout. It usually is a 90-95 minute workout and I end up burning about 1200 calories. Try it out if you like it and let me know what you think. But remember, the only person that can do this is you! No one else, motivation is key, but your loved ones can't make you get out of bed and go to the gym...You have to want to do it! I'm lucky enough to have a wonderful woman that wakes up and motivates me everyday to get to the gym and get to work!!! That is very important. Hope this helped anyone thats reading it.

TIP OF THE DAY: Losing weight is easy. Here are the keys to achieving your weight goal. 1) Count calories. It sucks, but its important. 2) Exercise. You don't have to do a hardcore 2 hour workout to see reults. Get up and walk your dog. Get a bike and ride your neighborhood. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. And 3) Set goals for yourself. Train for a run. Start off with a 5K, then after you do a few of them, do a 10K, then a half marathon, then a marathon and then if your like me and want to go for gold...The IRONMAN! That's my goal. I will do Ironman by my 30th birthday! So its easy, if you eat 2000 calories and do 30 minutes of cardio...YOU WILL LOSE WEIGHT! I PROMISE!