Page 31 - April 2017 BNP ALL
P. 31
Published by www.EPlusPromotes.com www.TheCatoctinBanner.com The Catoctin Banner Newspaper April 2017 Page 31
fitness matters
by Jason Blough, Certified Personal Trainer
Expert Answers to Your Health and Wellness Questions
Question:
I’d love to run a 5K with some friends this spring, but I am not active at
all right now. How should I go about training for something like this?
Answer:
This is a great question, because we are having a 5K on April 29 at
Anytime Fitness! There are actually several plans on the internet that can
take you from the couch to the 5K course in as little as 8-10 weeks. In fact,
you can even use one of these plans if you have no intention of running a
5K, but simply want to start incorporating fitness (running) into your lifestyle.
Most of the plans start with combination walk/jog/walk session, three
days per week, steadily increasing the actual jog time from just two or
three minutes to about ten minutes by weeks four or five. At this point, you
also start to add an extra day of training, totaling four sessions each week.
As you continue to increase your jog time, you gradually remove the
walking warm-up, thereby finishing each workout with just a basic walking
cool-down. By the time you get to ten weeks, you should be able to run
consistently for 25-30 minutes without stopping. Not bad for a former
couch potato, huh? Do a Google search for couch-to-5K training programs,
or check out www.halhigdon.com for more information. Good luck!
Question:
A friend of min keeps telling me I should be doing more compound
movements. What does this mean and what are the benefits?
Answer:
Your friend is right! Isolated movements are really more appropriate for
targeting weak areas or for rehabilitating after an injury. Today’s fitness trends
typically involve more functional movements that mimic real-life activities.
That’s why compound exercises are becoming so popular. They’re essentially
just multi-joint exercises that work several muscles at a time. Examples include
pull-ups, push-ups, squats, lunges, deadlifts, kettlebell swings, dips, and
even jumping rope. And this is only scratching the surface when it comes
to compound exercises. There are numerous reasons to incorporate more
compound movements into your training. Here are just a few of the benefits:
• Provides a full body workout in a shorter period of time.
• Improves coordination, reaction time, and balance.
• Provides cardiovascular benefits by keeping your heart rate elevated.
• Decreases risk of injury during sports.
• Burns more calories.
• Allows for heavier lifts that will build strength faster.
I highly recommend adding compound movements to your workout
regimen, and if you give them a try, have fun with them and get creative. Try
using barbells, dumbbells, stability balls, medicine balls, bands, kettlebells,
ropes, and, of course, your own body weight to work multiple muscle groups
at a time!
About the author: Jason Blough is the Club Manager/Certified Personal
Trainer at Anytime Fitness in Thurmont. To submit a question for future
articles, please contact the author at [email protected].
Patronize Our Advertisers!
The Catoctin Banner newspaper exists due to the advertising support of those featured in each issue.
fitness matters
by Jason Blough, Certified Personal Trainer
Expert Answers to Your Health and Wellness Questions
Question:
I’d love to run a 5K with some friends this spring, but I am not active at
all right now. How should I go about training for something like this?
Answer:
This is a great question, because we are having a 5K on April 29 at
Anytime Fitness! There are actually several plans on the internet that can
take you from the couch to the 5K course in as little as 8-10 weeks. In fact,
you can even use one of these plans if you have no intention of running a
5K, but simply want to start incorporating fitness (running) into your lifestyle.
Most of the plans start with combination walk/jog/walk session, three
days per week, steadily increasing the actual jog time from just two or
three minutes to about ten minutes by weeks four or five. At this point, you
also start to add an extra day of training, totaling four sessions each week.
As you continue to increase your jog time, you gradually remove the
walking warm-up, thereby finishing each workout with just a basic walking
cool-down. By the time you get to ten weeks, you should be able to run
consistently for 25-30 minutes without stopping. Not bad for a former
couch potato, huh? Do a Google search for couch-to-5K training programs,
or check out www.halhigdon.com for more information. Good luck!
Question:
A friend of min keeps telling me I should be doing more compound
movements. What does this mean and what are the benefits?
Answer:
Your friend is right! Isolated movements are really more appropriate for
targeting weak areas or for rehabilitating after an injury. Today’s fitness trends
typically involve more functional movements that mimic real-life activities.
That’s why compound exercises are becoming so popular. They’re essentially
just multi-joint exercises that work several muscles at a time. Examples include
pull-ups, push-ups, squats, lunges, deadlifts, kettlebell swings, dips, and
even jumping rope. And this is only scratching the surface when it comes
to compound exercises. There are numerous reasons to incorporate more
compound movements into your training. Here are just a few of the benefits:
• Provides a full body workout in a shorter period of time.
• Improves coordination, reaction time, and balance.
• Provides cardiovascular benefits by keeping your heart rate elevated.
• Decreases risk of injury during sports.
• Burns more calories.
• Allows for heavier lifts that will build strength faster.
I highly recommend adding compound movements to your workout
regimen, and if you give them a try, have fun with them and get creative. Try
using barbells, dumbbells, stability balls, medicine balls, bands, kettlebells,
ropes, and, of course, your own body weight to work multiple muscle groups
at a time!
About the author: Jason Blough is the Club Manager/Certified Personal
Trainer at Anytime Fitness in Thurmont. To submit a question for future
articles, please contact the author at [email protected].
Patronize Our Advertisers!
The Catoctin Banner newspaper exists due to the advertising support of those featured in each issue.
