Can you believe it?

The J-man is turning 35 tomorrow!

It’s all good though.  I feel great.  I am in awesome health: physically, mentally and emotionally.

I’m stronger, faster and more fit than I’ve been in years.

Things are really looking up

The thing of it is, it really just all comes down to attitude.  I forget who said it (must be the old age), but, “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it.” SO TRUE!

This past year has been an absolute whirlwind to say the least.  I moved back to MN after a short stint back in VA.  I completed my book, The Science of Getting Fit: 6 Proven Steps to Achieve Your Weight Loss & Fitness Goals.  I launched Look Great at the Lake Boot Camp and Online Video Boot Camp.  Everyone of those accomplishments came with ginormous road blocks and hurdles.  And, I won’t even get into the personal life stuff…

But, my point is this – it’s all about your attitude.  Your attitude always determines your altitude in life. I am so happy and grateful for all the good, the bad and even the ugly that has happened in my past 34 years & 364 days – still got one day left.   Everything that has happened has made me who I am today and brought me to this point in my life…this very moment where I’m typing a blog post to you – my blog reader who I’m very grateful for.

Now, because I’m so grateful to have you as a reader I’ve got a little gift for you for my birthday.  Naturally, it’s a workout – I am the boot camp guy after all

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Traditional fitness programs isolate only one or two factors. The truth is all factors MUST be in place in order to bring about a lasting, positive physical change. If any one factor is neglected or missing, the program will fail to produce results.

This week I’m going to share the Five Factors of Fat Loss. There’s just no getting around them.  You can’t skip one.  When you incorporate all five factors, you’ll be able to take complete control over how your body looks and feels.  You’ll achieve a consistent results, and enjoy a long-term fit and healthy lifestyle.

Factor Four: Smart Cardio

Cardiovascular exercise is a term that best describes the health and function of the heart, lungs and circulatory system.  This system is considered the body’s transportation network for it functions by circulating blood throughout the body. The goal of any cardio workout should be to get as many large muscles working as possible.  They not only need to work hard, but continuously, in order to burn the greatest amount of calories during and after exercise.

How much is too much? The Concept of “Smart Cardio”:

It is important to perform “smart cardio” for your body quickly adapts to cardio-based workouts. The more you do, the more efficient your body becomes, causing you to burn fewer calories from your fat stores each time you exercise.

Because your body adapts so quickly, cardio-lovers are forced to adjust their workouts to last increasingly longer in order to provide the same calorie burn. This not only increases the amount of time you have to spend in the gym but also increases the odds that your body may start breaking down muscle instead of fat for fuel.

Additionally, the benefits are temporary. Aerobic activity doesn’t increase the amount of fat you burn after your workout like resistance training. Your metabolism returns to normal shortly after stepping off the treadmill.

Smart Cardio will greatly enhance the rate at which your body burns calories. The most effective Cardio programs are design around the FITT Principle: Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type.

Frequency

Frequency refers to the number of times cardio exercise is performed per week.  No less than three days per week, with no more than two days rest between workouts is recommended.  For the first six weeks, beginners should work out every other day.  However, if you are extremely overweight and perform a weight-bearing type of cardio (jogging, aerobic dance, etc.), rest at least 36 to 48 hours between sessions to prevent injury.

Intensity

Intensity is described as the speed and/or the workload of a workout.  When beginning a new exercise program, a Fitness Professional can determine the intensity level most appropriate and effective for you.  It is important that you continually monitor the intensity level to ensure that you reach your fitness goals in the least amount of time.  The very best way to determine the right level intensity for you is with an Exercise Metabolic Rate Assessment.  You can learn more about this in chapter 2 of The Science of Getting Fit: 6 Steps the Achieve Your Weight Loss & Fitness Goals.

Time

Time is the length of time an exercise is performed, not including warm-up and cool-down.  In order to gain cardiorespiratory benefits, you may need to exercise for 20 to 30 minutes per session.  It is important to remember that as you become more fit, both intensity and time can increase.  You Fitness Professional will recommend when these adjustments should be made.  Remember, more is not necessarily better.

Type

Type refers to the activity used to create a stimulus.  Before choosing an exercise, consider your goals, physical capacity, interests, available equipment and time constraints.  Any activity that continuously uses larger muscle groups and is repetitive (rhythmic), in nature, is best.

In the end, you want to make sure that your cardio is strengthening your heart and lungs and improving your cardio-respiratory efficiency, which is going to help oxygenate and feed every cell of your body.  And you also want to make sure you’re burning fat without sacrificing muscle tissue.

Now, get up and get moving! 

Have Faith & Take Action!

Justin Yule, B.S., CPT

Your friendly neighborhood Chaska / Chanhassen boot camp instructor and online personal trainer.

Burn 9x more fat at a fraction of the cost of other personal training programs.

P.S. – For a FREE 2-week Trial to the area’s number one weight loss & fitness boot camp visit www.LookGreatAtTheLakeBootCamp.com

P.P.S. – For a $9 30-day Trial to the first and number one Online weight loss & fitness boot camp visit www.OnlineVideoBootCamp.com

This week’s workout video of the week is a little extra special thanks to Sunshine & O’Neil Hampton from The Biggest Loser.  At Look Great at the Lake Boot Camp in Chanhassen, MN we’re cheering for the Yellow Team because one of our campers is friends with O’Neill and Sunshine.

So, what lesson did we take from Sunshine and O’Neil?

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