Audio Archives - Page 5 of 8 - Under Ten Fitness

What the gym has taught us with Brittany Meier

Brittany Meier joins the show again today to tells us all of the great and wonderful things working out has taught her.

Fitness has so much to offer other than just a sexy body. Over time we have learned that fitness can teach us humility and patience. Understanding that results take time and if you really want to make a long lasting change you will have to work for it. It teaches us how to make a plan and find a way to achieve the things that we want, not just in the gym, but in our everyday lives.

Brittany Meier joins the show to talk about her life and how health and fitness has become more and more involved. Brittany shares some personal stories about herself and how fitness has really changed her life and given her more confidence, she has completely change her life over the past two years. She shares a story about how she felt very frail and weak before she started to train.

Since she started training Brittany has competed in multiple Power Lifting competitions and has sculpted her body in to a lean mean lifting machine. Listen to this episode to find out more about Brittany and her story and be sure to check back in all week where we will talk to Brittany about her workout program including diet and mindset.

Brittany went from working in a job that she was hating at the time to a job now that she has control over her future. Transforming her body and mind in the gym, proving to herself that anything is possible and with a little hard work and dedication, over a period of time, she has shown herself how strong she really is.

She is an inspiration to us all at Under Ten Fitness and we want to thank Brittany for being a guest on the show and sharing her story.

Strength transcends the gym and finds it’s wary into our lives giving us the confidence to achieve things we had only dreamed of before. You can find your strength too and with some squats, dead lifts, and a little sweating anything is possible!

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Body Image and Physique with Brittany Meier

Brittany tells us about self-image and how her body has changed over the years and how she sees herself. She describes how her body has changed since she began power lifting and good she feels.

Working out and fitness can be so powerful when it comes to how you feel about yourself and building confidence.

In this episode we get up close and personal with Brittany talking about body image and how we see ourselves.

She is an inspiration to us all at Under Ten Fitness and we want to thank Brittany for being a guest on the show and sharing her story.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Inside A Power-Lifters Training and Diet with Brittany Meier

Brittany Meier is Back today to talk more about her training and diet and how they have progressed over time. During Brittany’s beginning stages her workouts were more simple and the weights were light. She focused on a few main movements including Squats, Bench Press and Deadlift. She describes how frustrating it can be when beginning her program and how she learned to be patient over time. Brittany goes on to describe her first power lifting and what it was like getting there. She also goes on to tell us the different phases she goes through when preparing for a competition.

In this Episode Brittany breaks down her complete workout cycle and lets us in to her kitchen to see what her diet is like!

She is an inspiration to us all at Under Ten Fitness and we want to thank Brittany for being a guest on the show and sharing her story.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Brittany Meier and the Power of Fitness

Spoiler alert! In this episode Brittany tells us a story about how she couldn’t lift a gallon jug of milk to pour herself a glass before she started weight lifting and now she pours milk with the best of them!

She is an inspiration to us all at Under Ten Fitness and we want to thank Brittany for being a guest on the show and sharing her story.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Personal Trainer Jake Opel Shares Some Tips on Fitness

Personal Trainer Jake Opel

Jake joins the program and gives us some helpful tips on motivation as well as some movements and exercises he likes to incorporate in to his clients programs.

Jake has played sports for his entire life so being active has always been a priority. After joining the military Jake has come back to his home town to pursue a career as a personal trainer and coach.

In addition to training Jake also hosts a podcast! The show is called Information Assault and can be found here: iTunes or Stitcher It’s like a variety show where Jake and other hosts interview guests and discuss trending topics.

You can also check out the website Information Assault Website

Listen to this episode of Under Ten Fitness!

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

How Often Should you Workout?

How often should I work out?

As a personal trainer I get this question a lot and the answer isn’t always the same. There’s no secret combination of workout days that works for everyone so the real question is “what are your goals?” If someone wants to be a marathon runner and another person wants to be a bodybuilder then the frequency of training will be different for both people.

When starting to design a program defining your goals will be the first step in deciding how often you need to be in the gym.

My expertise is in powerlifting, muscle building and fat loss so for this post I will be focusing on those three programs and what frequency of training I have found that works best.

Let’s start with powerlifting. First off I have coached multiple people to and through their first powerlifting competition and of those clients most of them were women, one was a 12 year old girl! When you think of powerlifting it would be a mistake to think it’s a “guy” sport. There are many women competing and most of them are much stronger than myself! Designing a program for powerlifting can be a bit overwhelming at first and a quick google search will prove that because there is so much content out there but I am here to help. I have looked at many different programs for powerlifting and have found some similarities that are important.

Rest days should not be overlooked.
Form and technique are of utmost importance.
Focus on the big lifts and NOT accessory work.

Rest Days – The first thing that comes to mind when I think of rest days are boxing movies like “Rocky.” You see Sylvester Stallone training non-stop. He’s in the gym and then he’s running and then he’s back in the gym and next thing you know he’s in the ring. There isn’t a scene of Rocky lying in bed or stretching… It’s all action all the time. The truth is rest is very important and needs to be built into your workout program from the beginning. When you lift weights you create microscopic tears in your muscles which need time to heal. Just like a cut or scratch you need to give it time to heal and if you keep scratching at it, it will take longer to heal. You might be in the gym four days a week but you will be training different parts of your body giving the other parts time to rest. Here’s an example of what one of my clients training week might look like:

Monday – Squat, Leg Press, Hip Extensions

Tuesday – REST

Wednesday – Bench Press, Military Press, Floor Press

Thursday – REST

Friday – Dead Lift, Split Squat, Hyper Extensions

Saturday – REST

Sunday – REST

Form and Technique – Before we can go any further it’s time to “check yourself before you wreck yourself!” Proper form and technique when weight training will ensure that you can do it for many years to come. Every person is built differently so naturally everyone’s form will be different. It would be in your best interest to spend some time and even a little money to make sure your using proper form. You can hire a personal trainer to teach you or you can video tape yourself working out so you can watch the videos to see what your form looks like. A good rule to follow when lifting it to always be in control of the weight, don’t use quick jerking movements, instead control the weight with smooth reps. Also start slow, select a weight to start that you could easily lift for 12 – 15 reps and slowly increase the weight over time.

Focus on the big lifts – This is really more of a personal preference for me however I think I make some good points here. Utilizing your time in the gym is very important especially if you’re a busy adult who doesn’t have a lot of time in the first place. For this purpose I focus on three main lifts and sprinkle in supplementary lifts as needed for different goals. My three main lifts are Squat, Bench and Dead Lift. When you do the squat and dead lift you are using so many muscles that it’s more of a whole body workout. The bench press isn’t as important but for power lifting it’s one of the main lifts, plus it’s a good break between squats and dead lifts. By focusing on these three lifts you can see great results in less time. Here’s an example of how I build a program around these movements.

First I decide how many days a week I will be training. I’ll make a workout for two different weeks one for training three days and another for four days. Also you can use the same exact workout program for 4-8 weeks, it’s a myth that you need to switch your workouts up constantly to create muscle confusion. Your muscles don’t know the difference and you actually get better results if you stick with the same workout for weeks at a time.

3 Days a week:

Day 1 – Goblet Squat, Step ups, Leg Press, Planks

Day 2 – OFF

Day 3 – Bench Press, Lateral Raises, Shoulder Press, Floor Press

Day 4 – OFF

Day 5 – Dead Lift, Lat Pull-down, Stiff Leg RDL, Seated Row

Day 6 – OFF

Day 7 – OFF

4 Days a week:

Day 1 – Back Squat, Tricep DB Press, Plank

Day 2 – Shoulder Press, Split Squat, Bent Row

Day 3 – OFF

Day 4 – Bench Press, Goblet Squat, Skull Crushers

Day 5 – Dead Lift, Lateral Raises, Glute Bridges

Day 6 – OFF

Day 7 – OFF

The workouts are broken down into different days but the movements are very similar and the sets are the same. Whether I’m going 3 days a week or 4 it’s still 12 exercises total for the week. As far as supplementary exercises those can be added as needed. If I waned to add some bicep curls or cardio I can as long as it doesn’t interfere with my scheduled training. It would be safe to add in a few extra reps on day 5 because I have two days to rest after and I could do some light cardio on off days as well.

Summary – Get plenty of rest, keep an eye on your form and focus on the big lifts. The human body is amazing and should be a priority in everyone’s life. Remember to make time to rest that precious body of yours and do what you enjoy! Strength training is very important and I believe everyone should lift, however, if your passion is something else I believe you should also enjoy what you’re doing. If you hate it you’ll quit.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Top Three Supplements

The supplement industry is booming with business and is responsible for billions of dollars in revenue every year. In this episode we will discuss some of the top supplements and the thoughts behind taking them.

Protein – Protein powder is a household item and can be found in pantries, kitchens and on top of refrigerators across the nation. Protein powder is a fan favorite among workout enthusiast, gym rats, soccer moms, bodybuilders who are trying to make those massive muscle “gains” and just about anyone who has been to a GNC.

Why is protein so popular?

In 2014 protein powder sales totaled over 6 Billion dollars. Stats like this are used often so let’s take a second and break down exactly what 6 billion dollars in sales means for protein powder. The average price for a 2lb bag (30 servings) of protein is about $50. At that price you could buy 40 million pounds of protein powder and pretend you’re Scrooge McDuck and leap off a diving board to swim in a sea of potential muscles gains! Protein is one of the building blocks of muscle and has been shown in studies that increasing your protein intake while strength training can help build muscle.

Fish Oil – Fish Oil sales are on the rise and we imagine it’s because a “gym rat” was out on a hike and noticed a large grizzly bear chowing down on a freshly caught salmon, the “gym rat” then decided that if they ate the fish too they would in return see some huge gains! Spreading the findings with their friends the “gym rat” single handedly flooded the market with a need for fish oil supplements. That is one theory we are working on, the other one is that fish oil has been show in studies to be very beneficial for health reasons. Containing omega fatty acids fish oil has benefits including but not limited to being associated with healthier blood vessels, helping maintain a healthy level of triglycerides, decreasing the risk of diabetes and other benefits. Also those who currently take fish oil pills can agree that the “fish burps” are a delicious surprise throughout the day.

Multi Vitamin – Wouldn’t it be nice if you could get all of your nutrition with a simple pill? Well maybe we can’t get everything we need from a pill but multi vitamins are the next best thing and have been very popular for many years. Multi vitamins come in all shapes and sizes and there are kids out there right now getting a dose of vitamin C by biting off the head of Fred Flintstone… Poor Fred. The argument for this supplement as our number three is very simple; multi vitamins have tons of nutrients and are easy to take. However there is a new multi vitamin and it is not a pill but rather a patch, yes a patch similar to a nicotine patch that smokers wear to help wean them off of cigarettes. We imagine vegans will be using these patches soon to help wean themselves off of vegetables.

Vegan 1 says: “Would you like some broccoli?”

Vegan 2 replies: “No thanks I’m trying to quit, I’m on the patch.”

Also listen to this episode of Under Ten Fitness for a breakdown of supplements and exercise.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Sleep and Weight Gain – How to sleep Better

Sleep and Weight Gain – How to Sleep Better.

Sleep is so important for a healthy happy life and I feel like sleep has been the middle child for a lot of people. It’s easy to forget to find time to rest and recharge the system. When I think of sleep I imagine it as the reset button on the super Nintendo, when things freeze up and stop working properly you try a few things including slapping the game system and blowing into as hard as you can until your start seeing stars and almost pass out. When all else fails you turn the system off for a few seconds and try again. Sleep is like a hard reset, shut everything down and start fresh.

Having trouble sleeping can be the most frustrating and painful situation to be in, feeling like you’ll never feel good again mixed with mood swings and a never ending hunger can make for a roller coaster ride of emotions and shameful eating habits. There are multiple studies that have found a connection between lack of sleep and weight gain and if you have some free time you can check those out here: SLEEP STUDY. Also lack of sleep just flat out SUCKS! Anyone can agree that not sleeping and trying to function normally are two conditions that cannot exist at the same time. But how do you sleep better? Can you really justify taking time out of your busy and uber important schedule to sleep?

First and foremost you must remember you are the single most important person in your life and you must take priority, especially if you’re an important part of other people’s lives. A parent should make sure to take care of themselves first before others to ensure they can give their best to their children. This should also apply to all of us and it’s ok to take some “me” time and that includes sleeping.

Staying up and working or being busy aren’t the only reasons people aren’t sleeping there is also a problem with actually falling asleep. How many times have you laid in bed trying to sleep but just couldn’t do it! Whether you can’t get comfortable or your brain won’t stop running a million miles per hour one way or another something was determined to keep you awake.

Here are a few tips for a better night’s sleep, these might seem simple but they are very effective:

Brain Dump – If you are the type of person whose brain just won’t turn off and no matter how exhausted you are you just can’t stop thinking. Take a couple of minutes before bed (or when your brain won’t stop) and write things down. This will allow you to free your mind of your thoughts and pick up where you left off in the morning.
Relax your body – Getting comfortable might just help you fall asleep faster. Take notice to how tight and rigid your body is when you’re going to bed and loosen up a little bit. Starting with your face relax your muscles, let go of the tension in your eyes and forehead. Relax your jaw and stop grinding your teeth. Work your way down your entire body and relax all of your muscles and let your body really sink into your bed. Take note of your breathing and inhale deeply and when you exhale really allow yourself to become more and more relaxed.

Listen to this episode of Under Ten Fitness where we discuss the importance of sleep.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Increase Your Metabolism

What is your metabolism? Just until recently I believed the metabolism was a body function that was working magically inside my body. I had no clue what it was or what it did. It turns out that your metabolism is actually a number of things combined and the actual word “metabolism” is used to describe a process.

The textbook definition of metabolism is: “The chemical process occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for life.” In other words how much energy/calories your body needs to function. This process is very complex and for a deeper explanation of how it works and what’s involved please refer to the links at the end of this article.

Your metabolism is also known as your BMR (basal metabolic rate) this is the amount of calories your body uses just to exist. Even when you’re not working out or exercising your body is still using calories to perform basic functions. All of the organs in your body are using calories and every move you make no matter how small requires energy/calories to do so, from a blink of your eye to digestion of food which happens without any thought whatsoever. All day every day we as using calories and everyone is using energy a little different.

Your metabolism isn’t some random occurrence where people who were lucky enough to be blessed with a good metabolism are skinny and others who got a slow metabolism are fat. In reality your metabolism is also combined with your lifestyle and body composition. Generally speaking someone with a fast metabolism is a more active person, they exercise regularly or move more. A person with a slow metabolism doesn’t exercise regularly and is more sedentary. Also your body composition will change your metabolism. A person who is very tall and has more muscle mass will use more calories and someone who is shorter and has less muscle mass will use less calories.

Can you change your metabolism? Yes you can! You can’t change how tall you are or how fast your organs use calories but you can exercise and lift weights which will both increase your metabolism. Exercises like running and cycling will increase your metabolism right away as you are moving your body will use calories instantly. Lifting weights will help your metabolism over time, as you increase your muscle mass you will also increase your metabolism as muscles use more calories than fat. This doesn’t mean you have to turn into a huge body builder to have a fast metabolism, but building some extra muscle will help burn those extra calories.

Finally your lifestyle is a huge factor in your metabolism. If we know that people who are more active have a faster metabolism and that is something that we want to achieve ourselves then we need to incorporate those changes into our everyday lives. Having a higher metabolism means having a more active life and better overall health. If that’s your goal then finding active hobbies such as weightlifting, hiking, running, cycling, tennis, racquetball and many other sports and activities might be something to think about to include into your life. Also at Under Ten Fitness we love the gym and have put together a free strength workout for you to help you get started or continue with your fitness needs.

SUMMARY – INCREASE YOUR METABOLISM IN TWO BASIC STEPS

Have an active lifestyle.
Build some muscle.

For a FREE 4 week muscle building program sign up for our monthly email and get yours today!

Also try a two week free trial at Under Ten Fitness for circuit workouts under ten minutes that are perfect for the busy person who wants results fast!

References –

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/weight-loss/in-depth/metabolism/art-20046508

http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-Metabolism.aspx

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith

Q & A with Personal Nutritionist Anita

Anita has her masters in personal nutrition and is the owner of Fact Vs Fitness.com she is a personal trainer and enjoys working out herself! She joins the show to talk about her site and how she is helping clear up some confusion with a few fitness myths out there.

Chances are good that you’ve heard something about health and fitness that might be exactly true. It might have been some diet tip or trend or maybe it was a new workout that promised to get you ripped fast. Whatever the case may be there is a lot of content out there but it’s not always the most accurate. Anita has noticed this and that’s why she came up with the idea for her website, everything that she publishes is based on science and studies built on facts that are measurable and can be proven.

On this episode Anita talks about nutrition and how we are not all the same and different diets are better suited for different people. Anita was recently inspired by another trainer who gave the advice to eat less and move more for weight loss. While this advice isn’t the craziest idea out there, eating less and exercising more doesn’t solve every problem. Sometimes food is a huge factor and Anita describes further why people have different dietary needs and why one diet that might work for you might not work for someone else.

Also Anita talks about protein and carbohydrate combinations and how a low carb diet might not always be the answer. We see a lot of fitness pros utilizing a low carb high protein approach but is that always the way to go? Anita goes on to explain how our bodies have different genetics and different gut bacteria which also have an effect on how foods break down and are used in our system.

Contact Anita on Twitter: @factvsfitness

Website: factvsfitness.com

The body is very complex and it’s always good to ask questions and pursue knowledge. If you would like to know more or have any questions feel free to reach out and connect with us on any social media platform or email us directly.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @undertenfitness
Facebook: undertenfitness
Instagram: undertenfitness

And as always remember – Stay Motivated!

Drew Smith