Showing posts with label muscle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label muscle. Show all posts

Thursday 23 April 2015

The best workout for runners at the gym

20:09:00 abs , fitness 0 Comments
The number of injuries I got in the past, thought me that preparing an ultra trail does not only mean running the long distance on the road or hilly&muddy tracks. 
Fortunately, it also means creating diversity in the training, strengthening joints, knees, quads, arms. In three words, HITTING-THE-GYM.
This might sound hard but I'm finding it extremely useful and fun.

So here is a summary of what I have been doing for a while.
In order to spend some hours at the gym I had to decrease the mileage per week. My highest priority has been about improving the core muscles that usually kick in after the 40th km.
No strength in the muscles after 4 hours of running usually means that it's pretty much over. You heard that, my friends. Over. Finito. Go home.
And you don't want that, do you? 

I am not talking about glycogen and lack of carbs. These things remain the same for every ultra marathon and the strategies to replenish the overused resources are those that almost every ultra runner already knows.
What I am talking here about is the lack of power in muscles that have been put under stress for so long and are demanded to climb those last 1000 meters of elevation.

Here is a program that has been provided by www.iamsofit.com, a team of experts in fitness and nutrition. I clearly advise it for the purpose of getting stronger, faster and more resistant, especially on the very long distance.


Day 1
Deadlifts: 3 series of 12 repetitions at 75% maximal weight
Squats: 3 series of 15 repetitions at 70% maximal weight 
Leg-extension: 3 series of 8 repetitions at 90% max
Lunges with barbell on the back of the shoulders (3x10 each leg) 
Abs: crunches on the bench with 20 kg weight 4 series of 25 repetitions
         plank with side step 3 series of 60 seconds each

Day 2
Pull-ups 3 times until exhaustion
Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press: 3x12 with 75% max 
Bent Barbell Row 3x12 75% max weight 
Barbell Push Press 3x8 with 90% max
Abs: Plank with legs on ball (bringing knees to chest) 3 series of 20 repetitions
        Russian twist 3 series of 20 repetitions (with ball or weight)


Day 3
(Biceps) Concentration curl with dumbbells 3x8 with 90% max weight
Chest-press 3x8 at max weight
Hammer curl 3 series of 12 repetitions per arm 75% max weight
Cable Crossover 3 series of 12 repetitions at 75% max weight
Abs: crunches on the bench with 20 kg weight 4 series of 25 repetitions
         Toe-to-head 3 series of 15 repetitions 






The results above are of about one month of workouts. 
I am not only seeing my body changing and becoming really dense and strong, but also running hills and intervals in conditions in which I am already tired, is becoming... easier, if you allow me the term.

That's it for today.
See you on the road!
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Thursday 13 March 2014

Dieting is not a piece of cake

13:16:00 diet , fat 0 Comments
Hello girls and boys!

I am sure that what I am writing here has happened to you at least once in your life. I mean, have you ever had the feeling of being fat and just not comfortable with yourself? 

Exactly! Awkward silence is what I was expecting. So, keep reading.

 Let me go even more in depth. Imagine this scenario: your main ambition of the day is staying at home, maybe sipping a cup of tea right before eating. And that's not even dinner time. Then eating again. You feel like being doomed to eat and prisoner of your blanket, in a virtuous circle that keeps you stuck there until, my friend, it's too late for you to react.
Alright, I might sound quite fatalistic here, but you know what I mean. Moreover, winter is almost gone and there might be the need for your body to realise that. 

 We all know that staying at home will not solve the problem. Diets always look like mountains that are impossible to climb. But keep in mind that your body is usually not capable of doing anything. It’s the brain that can do things, and if that box is working well enough it can do great things. If not, alas, your brain will be the worst enemy you could get. And we don't want enemies. Do we? 
So, keep yourself mentally sharp and follow these not-so-easy (I know) pieces of advice to put yourself one step forward.

The question that I have been asked a number of times goes a bit like this: "what should I do to lose weight?"
My answer, can be as articulated as an exam of nutrition at university or like the guidelines below, depending of who I am answering.

First of all, you have to set some realistic goals. Don’t try to lose 10 kg per week, nor believe those charlatans who claim that is possible. Losing a lot of weight in a short amount of time will have a side effect that we usually call the jo jo effect. What's that? The perfect machine of our body will react to the new condition and will go into a conservation state. Sooner or later, when you or your brain will relax on this drastic diet, it'll gain weight again. Therefore, take it easy and, more importantly, slow. A range from 2 to 4 kg per month is already a good achievement. Diet is like a ultra marathon with an elevation gain that you only experienced on Google maps. Slow and steady wins the race.

Start counting the calories you eat. Losing weight means eating less calories than you really burn and create that awesome deficit that will also burn your fat. Write down whatever you eat and always look at it during your day. Your brain can fool you by forgetting or underestimating the amount of calories that you are taking. 
Split the day in 4 periods: breakfast, lunch, dinner and eventually time for snacks. Because you need it.
I personally use this website to get nutritional facts of whatever I eat. 

How much should you eat? 
Well, math is nice because it's clear. The amount of calories you consume in a day depends on factors like age, physical activity intensity and height, just to name a few.
This website can help you to have an idea about your daily intake.


Another secret you should share with everyone is about what to eat. Eat a variety of foods! It is important to have balanced diet with foods that belong to the five major groups in the picture. Choosing a variety of foods within and across food groups improves dietary patterns because foods within the same group have different combinations of nutrients and other beneficial substances.
Distrust the lemon diet, the potato diet or the rice diet. Distrust all mono food diets and, again, the charlatans that sponsor their effectiveness. 

Drink plenty of water, and avoid all the chemical fuzzy drinks. Water will help you to increase energy and relieve fatigue. Water flushes out toxins, improves skin complexion, boosts your immune system and it does all of this for free. Even if you buy water, that will still be cheaper than those sweetened beverages that will just make you fat. A total of 1,5-2 litres per day should do the trick.

My last recommendation: don’t be passive and move!  Try to move as much as you can. Cycling, swimming, running, fitness, dancing are all good for your body. Physical activity, as the word says, will activate your metabolism, forcing your body to burn more calories that, in turn, will make you smaller (providing you are not eating more too). 

 If one day you end up at the gym and you realise that your weight is higher than the time you were flaked out on the sofa, don't panic. Muscle is heavier than fat. But more muscles usually mean more calories to burn. 

 What now? Get started and sweat all the fat out of that body!
Diet is the only game where you win when you lose.

Love,
Caroline

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