How well high intensity training actually works may in large part depend on your genetic makeup. Researchers have developed a genetic test to predict who will quickly improve their aerobic fitness, and who will not.

Recent research also shows that when healthy but inactive people exercise intensely, even if the exercise is brief, it produces an immediate change in their DNA. It appears this contraction-induced gene activation promotes genetic reprogramming of muscles for strength and other structural and metabolic benefits associated with exercise.

Ideally, you’ll want to do high intensity exercises two or three times a week for a total of four minutes of intense exertion with recovery periods in between. For optimal health, you’d also be wise to incorporate aerobic, strength training, core exercises and stretching, for a well-rounded fitness program.

The most recent research shows that relatively short bursts of intense exercise—even if done only a total of a few minutes each week—can deliver many of the health and fitness benefits you get from doing hours of conventional exercise.

By doing just three minutes of High Intensity Training (HIT) a week for four weeks, you could see significant changes in important health indices.

At some research centers, participants were able to improve their insulin sensitivity an average of 24 percent with as little as three minutes of HIT per week.

BBC News reportsi :
“So how does it work? … [P]art of the explanation is (probably) that HIT uses far more of your muscle tissue than classic aerobic exercise.

When you do HIT, you are using not just the leg muscles, but also the upper body including arms and shoulders, so that 80 percent of the body’s muscle cells are activated, compared to 20-40 percent for walking or moderate intensity jogging or cycling.”

But there’s an important caveat…

Just how well high intensity training actually works may in large part depend on your genetic makeup.

Your Genes May Determine How Little Exercise You Need
We often tend to believe that exercise will affect most people in similar ways. But that may be an oversimplification—at least when it comes to how little exercise you can get away with and still maintain good health. In the featured article, Michael Mosley offers the following explanation:
“The fact is that people respond to exercise in very different ways. In one international studyii 1,000 people were asked to exercise four hours a week for 20 weeks. Their aerobic fitness was measured before and after starting this regime and the results were striking. Although 15 percent of people made huge strides (so-called “super-responders”), 20 percent showed no real improvement at all (“non-responders”).

There is no suggestion that the non-responders weren’t exercising properly, it was simply that the exercise they were doing was not making them any aerobically fitter. Jamie [Timmons. Professor of ageing biology at Birmingham University] and his collaborators investigated the reasons for these variations and discovered that much of the difference could be traced to a small number of genesiii. On the basis of this finding they have developed a genetic test to predict who is likely to be a responder, and who is not.”

I thought that the recent report in the BBC News was an interesting confirmation of the Peak Fitness approach I have been advocating for some time now. It is important not to get caught up in the non-responder element of the report as it is was related to aerobic fitness, which we now realize is far less important than anaerobic fitness. It is safe to assume that everyone, including you, requires the metabolic challenge to stay healthy and avoid disease. While some people may actually get more aerobically fit than others, virtually everyone seems to benefit if the exercises are done properly.

1.) Restricting your water intake causes your body to retain fluid. The less water you drink, the more your body feels deprived and the more water it stores.

2.) Restricting your water intake promotes fat retention. Since your body uses water as the major component of blood to transport nutrients and wastes a lack of it can cause your body to perceive it as a major stress. To adapt your body will preserve fat.

3.) Restricting your water intake makes you constipated. When deprived of water, your system pulls it from the lower intestines and bowels, thus creating hard stools.

Try to consume at least half your body weight (in ounces) of water a day (8 ounces = 1 cup). Be sure to drink extra water when you excerise or when it’s hot outside. Aim to get at least half your daily quota from water itself, the rest from organic fruits and vegetables.

EIF’s Guarante- “At EIF, we guarantee a level of professional customer service and attention that will exceed your expectations. I guarantee YOU will get results! Give me 3 months, and if you do not reduce your total body fat I will give you a FULL refund.”

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Getting Started

If you have not received a physical within a year, do so. It is also a good idea to obtain a physician’s medical release for initiating a strength program. Fancy equipment and expensive shiny machines are not necessary to benefit from a well-designed strength-training workout. Usually, the machines that are the most complicated to operate do the least. Working out at home with a set of dumbbells or adjustable dumbbells (Sport Blocks or Power Blocks) and a bench or Swiss ball will do just fine. I train many people with varying fitness levels (from 80 year old stroke victims to pro athletes), and no one needs much more equipment than previously mentioned. Many quality exercises do not even require any equipment.

Keep It Simple

A complete total-body strength-training workout should take you no longer than one hour. Compound multi-joint movements such as pushups, chin-ups, and squats should be the core of your workout. Multi-joint movements stimulate the most muscular growth because they work many big muscle groups. The big range of motion from these exercises also stimulates a greater metabolic response (i.e. burns fat at a more rapid rate), as opposed to an exercise like calf raises that isolates a very specific area. I could write at great lengths about this topic, but just “keep it simple” – perform compound multi-joint movements. Seven to nine exercises are sufficient for a complete workout. In general, one set is sufficient, but two sets can be performed.

The Workout

A “set” consists of 8 to 20 repetitions using impeccable form taken to a point of momentary muscular fatigue or close to that point. A typical workout would look like this: pushups – 1 to 2 sets of 8 to 15 repetitions, chin-ups – 1 to 2 sets of 8 to 15 repetitions, squats – 1 to 2 sets of 12 to 20 repetitions, presses- 8 to 15 reps, rows – 8 to 15 reps, lunges – 12 to 20 reps, and crunches or sit-ups – 15 to 20 repetitions. Take about 3 to 4 seconds to raise the weight and 3 to 4 seconds to lower it. Make sure you allow at least 48 hours between workouts in order for your muscles to recover and grow. These are very broad and basic guidelines for setting up a strength program. I would suggest consulting a qualified strength coach or fitness professional regarding any questions you may have and or designing a more personalized strength-training regime.

It’s a simple fact–muscle burns fat. It makes sense, therefore, that stronger muscles burn fat more quickly. These muscles continue to burn calories whether we are working out or sleeping. The more lean muscle mass a person has, the more calories their body burns, even at rest. Improving lean muscle mass can have a great effect on weight loss and body fat reduction programs.

Because muscle burns more calories than fat, increasing our lean muscle mass can have a positive impact on our metabolism. As we age, our body slows down its metabolic rate, and this process starts around age 30. A big reason this slow down occurs is unless we are actively strength training, our bodies lose about 1/2 pound of muscle every year. Working on your own or with a personal trainer, you can help stop this process.

In addition to the many benefits to our health, strength training helps improve our overall appearance. A lean, toned body is obviously more appealing than a flabby body, and can help people feel more confident. Toned muscles also help you maintain better posture.

There are several reasons why people are not strength training. One reason may be that they lack the equipment, however there are simple exercises that can be done at home with inexpensive hand weights. Some people may belong to a gym, but feel uncomfortable and unsure of how to utilize the equipment. Personal trainers are available to help you maximize your workout time, and they can teach you how to use weights in your fitness program. A personal trainer is also able to tailor a program specifically to you and your body type.

Strength training just may be the most important part of your workout.

If any of those problems have your training regimen at a standstill, or if motivation, lack of accountability, or simply knowing where to start has you in a training rut, a personal trainer may be your answer. A qualified personal trainer has the expertise to guide you in the direction you need to go to accomplish your goals. As your trainer becomes more involved in your training, he can suggest changes that may be slowing your progress, such as dietary or rest habits. In addition, if your present routines do not fit your goals he can adjust your program. He knows different routes to the same destination, thus you won’t be bored. The two of you can devise routines that include short and long-term goals in order to motivate you. Your mutual interest in your progress makes you accountable to him.

The training agenda she plans for you will challenge you, as she urges you to set higher standards for yourself on a regular basis. If you enjoy working out at home, she will teach you the art of exercising alone. In addition, if you have an old injury, or present health problem, she can adjust your regimen to compensate for them. Your personal trainer will be well-versed in programs that produce the best results, in the least time, with the lowest risk of injury. Thus, he will be familiar with high intensity strength training, which meets that criteria, and was developed in the 1970’s for professional athletes. You will find access to more information about high intensity strength training, and other physical fitness questions at excellenceinfitness.com.

A story in Newsweek in 2001 highlighted the story of Dr. Philip Alexander, who had run 60 miles a week for 10 years. Then he discovered Super Slow, and switched to spending just 20 minutes a week exercising-and he still managed to shed 20 pounds and shrink his waist by four inches.

For those un-indoctrinated to the Super Slow method, it requires spending a significantly longer time to lift and contract a weight – 7 to 10 seconds to contract, another 5 to 7 seconds to return the weight to the starting position. Compare that to the much more typical 4 to 5 seconds the typical person spends on the entire movement. The theory is that Super Slow works the muscle more completely and deeply, enabling a person to walk away with a much fuller and comprehensive workout in a fraction of the time.

Backing up the Super Slow theory are several studies, one of which published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness in 2000. Researchers in that study trained two groups two or three times per week for eight to 10 weeks, all performing one set of 13 exercises on a Nautilus circuit. The key difference between the two groups: rep speed. One group did 10 to 12 regular speed reps and the other used Super Slow lifting of 14 seconds for the entire movement. The study showed that the slow lifters gained more strength than regular speed lifters by 50 percent.

That’s no small difference.

Anecdotally, I’ve heard stories of amazing results from slowing down weight lifting reps from my clients. At EIF, we believe that performing weight lifting slowly is an important aspect to working the muscle as deeply as possible and creating a comprehensive workout. While I don’t use “Super Slow” as a standard workout protocol – I prefer our clients spend five seconds contracting a weight and five seconds returning the weight to the starting position – I do sometimes use a Super Slow workout to change the client’s routine and challenge their muscles.

Excellence in Fitness is continuously searching for new ways to challenge our clients’ bodies, both as a way to keep the muscles from “memorizing” a certain routine and to keep the workouts fresh and new. We don’t look for the latest fads in exercise, but work in time-honored techniques that break the traditional mold for working out. This includes total body personal training sessions that deliver results superior to what our clients have seen with more traditional personal training techniques such as three sets per exercise using less weight and cardio workouts. Excellence in Fitness’ workouts provide a cardio workout and a weight lifting routine, all in a 45- minute-or-less block of time.

A key part of our exercise regimen is approaching each movement slowly with special attention to positioning and technique. Our clients lift each weight in a controlled, slow motion, working the muscle deeper, creating more muscular inroads from deep within the muscle fiber.

My Annapolis area Personal Training Studio is equipped with machines from some of the top strength manufacturers in the industry such as MedX, Hammer Strength, Nautilus, and Pendulum. It is conveniently located on Ritchie Highway in the Severn Commerce Center (across from Severna Park Golf Center) and is just north of Annapolis and a short drive from Baltimore as well as Washington DC.

I have hand selected all of the studio’s machines, which are designed to give the most effective and efficient workouts through the fullest yet safest ranges of motion possible. My vast knowledge of strength training coupled with the most technologically advanced equipment enables me to gear my instruction towards weight training for weight loss, weight training for women and men as well as sports conditioning.

I practice and teach high intensity strength training which is the ideal exercise method of weight training for seniors, youth weight training and physical rehabilitation. This provides greater RESULTS in a short amount of time – maximizing your time in the studio and allowing you to spend more time enjoying life with strength and enthusiasm.

It’s hard work – but hard work and a positive attitude, coupled with expert instruction and motivation, equals RESULTS!

All clients have sole and exclusive use of the new and fully equipped Personal Training Studio and are given my undivided attention – focused only on YOU! This uninterrupted environment reduces distraction and helps maintain proper focus during the training session. All workouts are by appointment only and you pay NO additional membership fees.

Your anonymity and confidentiality is guaranteed. You can be assured that there are no prying eyes or eavesdropping and because the workouts are private there is no waiting and competing for the use of machines with other gym members. Every workout is private and each client’s progress is charted in a personal journal with meticulous records kept for each exercise, setting, weight, repetitions, etc.

Call us today at (410) 544-5780 to schedule an appointment, or contact us to receive a free consultation.