Strength Training After 50: Why It Matters & How to Start
We all know the age old saying “if you don’t use it, you lose it.” But did you know that adults can lose 5% of their muscle mass each decade after the age of 30? This is an alarming statistic because the number one way to maintain your independence as you age is to be strong and capable in your own body.
So how do you prevent this and prove that stat wrong? Strength training.
You might be thinking, “I’m too old for that” or “that’s for young people” but I assure you, no matter your age or ability, strength training is not only an excellent way to boost your health, it is a necessity to maintain (and often times increase) your bone density, prevent falls, recover from injury, and most importantly, help you live the life you want to live without depending on others for help for as long as possible.
Today we will examine why strength training matters, combat common myths and concerns, and teach you how to strength train in a safe and effective way.
Why Strength Training Matters After 50
I’ve already mentioned the stat: 5% of muscle mass can be lost each decade after 30. This also accelerates after 50 and is a phenomenon called sarcopenia, which is defined as age related muscle loss. If left unchecked, sarcopenia can lead to weakness, reduced mobility, and a higher risk of falls or fractures. Luckily, this can be prevented by a good strength training program which will be outlined below.
Strength training also helps support bone health and along with a well balanced diet, helps to prevent osteoporosis. By putting stress on our muscles with strength training, our muscles pull on our bones. This act of stress placed on our skeleton causes adaptations to occur and makes our bones stronger. When our bones and muscles are stronger, it helps us be more agile and resistant to breaking a bone during a fall and also helps prevent falling in the first place. Falls and fractures are so important to prevent because approximately 20-30% of adults over 60 who break their hip, will die within one year. That statistic is not only alarming, but in order to prevent it, the number one recommendation is to strength train.
On a lighter note, strength training can also boost your metabolism (and who wouldn’t want to make their metabolism faster as they get older??). By building more lean muscle on your body, your body starts to burn more calories at rest because muscle is more expensive for the body to maintain than fat. This makes it easier to maintain your weight and reduce the risk of developing metabolic diseases like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Pretty cool huh?
Common Myths & Concerns
Now that you know why strength training is so important, let's look at some common misconceptions people have about strength training.
“I’m too old to start lifting weights.”
Fact: No one is ever too old. There are documented cases of people in their 80s and 90s, who do not have a history of strength training, who are able to build muscle and boost their independence from strength training. At every age and with every mobility concern and ability - wheel chair, walker, cane etc. - you are able to strength train. I personally have coached people in their 60s, 70s and 80s with no previous experience in strength training and they were all able to see results.
“Lifting weights will make me bulky.”
Fact: Looking “bulky” takes YEARS of dedication and effort. It means consistently eating in a calorie surplus, getting enough protein, strength training 5-6 days per week, and oftentimes using performance enhancing drugs to get that specific aesthetic. People who strength train 2-3 times per week to help with anti-aging and longevity will not build up the volume necessary to “bulk up.” I have been consistently strength training for over 10 years and no one would consider me bulky.
“I’ll hurt myself.”
Fact: Strength training is perfectly safe when done correctly. You need to lift enough weight to make an impact, but not too much to hurt yourself. We will go into more detail but generally if you’re using proper form and staying around a 7/10 effort level with your weights, you are doing enough to elicit adaptation and also not lifting outside of your abilities.
How to Strength Train Safely and Successfully
Let’s get into the nitty gritty now that you know why strength training is important and hopefully don’t have as many reservations about starting to do it. So where do you start?
Start slowly - focus on form first and weight second. Let me say that again, form first. Whether this means going to an exercise class to learn proper form, watching videos online, or hiring a trainer, whatever it takes to get accustomed to the proper form is first and foremost in your strength training journey. You can also start by using your own body weight. Usually this is plenty when you’re just introducing a program. However, this quickly loses its effectiveness so don’t get stuck only doing body weight training forever.
Strength train 2-3 times per week. Consistency is key. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends strength training 2 times per week making sure to hit every major muscle group during each session, in order to maintain health. Doing less than this doesn’t provide enough stress on the body to see consistent progress. 2-3 times per week is a great cadence because it allows for enough time for rest and recovery and is much better for you than one super intense workout that makes you sore for a whole week. Consistency always wins over sporadic effort.
Make sure you warm up and cool down. Raising your core body temperature before you start and doing some stretching after can help make sure your muscles are ready for activity and help with recovery after a workout.
Seek guidance and clearance as necessary. If you have zero experience with strength training, I would highly recommend working with a certified personal trainer. If you are over 65 you also might have access to Silver Sneakers through your insurance where you can attend strength training classes in your area. If you have any health or medical concerns, you also will want to check with your physician before beginning a new exercise program.
Example Strength Training Workout
Let’s look at what a beginning strength training workout might actually look like. Remember, at the end of each set, it should feel like you are at a 7/10 effort level. If you are much higher, this variation of the exercise is just a little too advanced for you, and vice versa, if you are lower, you can increase the difficulty of the exercise. All exercises should be performed for 2 sets, with 8-12 repetitions with 60 seconds rest between them.
Body weight squats from a chair
Push ups again a wall, or a chair
Seated Shoulder Press with Dumbbells
Glute bridges
Resistance Band or Dumbbell Rows
Standing Calf Raises
Hopefully by this time you understand how important strength training is for your health and wellness and overall longevity. It is truly one of the best gifts you can give to yourself. So start small, be consistent, and enjoy all of the benefits that come with a good strength training program!
If you would like more help with your personal strength training journey, reach out to Caroline, the author of this article, HERE and get the guidance you need!
Postpartum Nutrition: When (and If) a Calorie Deficit is Appropriate
Hey Mom, this one's for you. If you’re reading this blog post there’s a good chance you are either currently in the trenches of newborn life or about to be in them. You might not be feeling like yourself and you’re probably wondering when you can start to safely lose weight and get back to feeling like you again. I’ve been there. It’s a really challenging time period. There’s so much messaging that says “oh you have a beautiful and healthy baby you should be proud and happy about where your body is” blah blah blah…
Screw. That.
The only person’s thoughts about your body that matters are yours. If you’re deeply unhappy with the current state of your body THAT’S OKAY. You can feel that, and feel grateful for your baby and for what your body did AND also want to be strong and fit, and wear your favorite pair of jeans again. I’m here to tell you that whatever you want to do with your body is FAIR GAME!
Phew, got that off my chest. Now let’s get into how to do it in a healthy way in order to optimize your recovery, energy, and overall well-being.
You might be wondering, can I lose weight, properly heal my body, and breast feed at the same time? I’m sure there are women out there that are super milk producers and “the weight just falls off” but that surely wasn’t my experience. I needed to break my goals up into phases to best support myself and my baby. So let’s break those phases down.
The immediate postpartum period (0-6 weeks ish)
During this phase your ONLY and yes, I mean only, priority is healing from birth and nourishing that sweet baby however you decide to. If you had a vaginal birth, you may have tears that need to heal and ice packs that need to be sat on. If you had a c-section you had literal major abdominal surgery…let me say that again…MAJOR ABDOMINAL SURGERY. Neither of these births are to be taken lightly. Not to mention the trauma you may have from your birth. In order to heal your body (and let’s be VERY clear, your body isn’t healed in 6 weeks, it can just start to work on other things in 6 weeks) you need to rest, you need to nourish it properly and you need to check in on your mental state and reach out to loved ones or professionals if you are suffering or think you might be suffering from postpartum depression or anxiety.
So what does nourishing your body properly look like? First, we need to make sure your meals are packed full of nutrients. It’s really hard in this phase to prepare elaborate meals so if you can prep meals that include protein, healthy fats, vegetables, and complex carbs and put them in the freezer beforehand, gold star. If that’s not possible, using a meal prep service might also be a good idea in this phase. You want to prioritize protein to help with your recovery. Protein is the building blocks for our body. It not only helps us build muscle but it also helps repair tissue. So whether you had a vaginal birth or a c-section, you need your protein. Plus it helps with milk supply if you’re breast feeding.
Let’s go back to the mental side of things for a second. For many women, this is the phase of their lives when they are the least active. Since exercise and physical activity act as a natural mood enhancer, it’s sometimes really hard to get out of that postpartum depression or anxiety when you don’t have any way to boost your mood. Luckily, focusing on adequate calorie consumption and making sure you’re eating whole, nutrient dense foods, can work to mitigate this. Also, getting outside in the fresh air and getting in the sun in the morning can REALLY help especially if you had a rough night with the baby. That was the only thing that kept me sane on the hard days.
Breastfeeding Considerations
This is like 1b. step, because you need to make sure you’re focusing on yourself first (believe me, even as I’m writing that I’m also rolling my eyes because it’s sooooo hard to do that but I have to say it, even if it only works 30% of the time). Once you are in a good position for healing yourself from pregnancy, birth and postpartum, you want to focus on how to support breastfeeding if you decide to do it. I do believe there is no perfect way to feed your baby. Literally every baby is different and every mom is different so please, do not feel guilty or bad if your feeding journey is not the one you pictured.
Personally, I was lucky enough to have a baby who had a good latch and fed well…for about 3 months. Then he would get WAY too distracted by any tiny noise and we introduced formula to supplement since I didn’t have a large supply pumped yet. Once he got his bottom teeth our breastfeeding journey quickly came to an end after he bit me. I know some women are willing to put up with that but I wasn’t. I knew he liked his formula, I knew he was getting nourished, but I STILL felt like part of me failed because I couldn’t breastfeed for a year. Now I look back and realize that was just internal guilt and pressure I was putting on myself but I think that’s the most common mom guilt.
Okay back to the nitty gritty of nutrition to support breast feeding. You need an extra 300-500 calories a day to support breastfeeding. Does that sound like a lot? It should because it’s basically an extra meal compared to what you were eating before you were pregnant. Even in your third trimester you only need about an extra 300 calories daily so the fact that the need is even higher when you breastfeed doesn’t make sense to try to cut your calories back. Your milk supply might be at risk if you do.
If you continue breastfeeding for a long time, you can lose weight and maintain your milk supply but it’s recommended that you mainly do this through increasing your energy expenditure through physical activity and keeping your nutrition practices consistent. This means, roughly the same intake every day and focusing on proteins, fibrous foods like vegetables and starches, and healthy fats.
It’s time for the calorie deficit
For most women, starting a SMALL calorie deficit is appropriate after about 6-12 weeks postpartum. This is due to the fact that your milk supply will be well established by this point. You’ve probably also gotten through the worst postpartum healing issues. It’s still important to monitor your energy levels, your mood and your milk supply and if any of these start to dwindle, it’s unfortunately probably not the right time for a calorie deficit yet.
Personally, I didn’t start a real calorie deficit until I was 6 months postpartum. At the point, I was starting to wean off brerastfeeding and it finally felt like something I could add to my plate. Before that, I was breastfeeding, working from home, the primary care giver (my husband works out of the house and we didn’t do daycare), and trying to keep up my workouts. It was more mental energy than I could handle. But when breastfeeding/pumping left my plate I felt like I could do it.
Your goal should be reasonable weight loss. This means 0.5-1lbs per week. Also, if you have started your menstrual cycle, you want to look at a monthly average of 2-4lbs of weight loss. Sometimes with our cycles, we hold on to weight more during ovulation and menstruation and we lose weight easier in the other phases.
Also, remember that sleep quality, stress and your overall health are going to be factors that impact the rate of weight loss. Don’t get discouraged if it’s slow at the beginning. Your body is still reeling from everything it has been through. Give it time.
Setting up a reasonable deficit…when you’re truly ready
You aren’t going to change anything about the quality of food you focused on in the first period postpartum. You still want to prioritize whole, nutrient dense foods and especially protein. Protein fills you up for longer so when you’re in a calorie deficit, it makes it so you aren’t as hungry if you increase your protein servings.
A great strategy to begin to lose weight that is actually realistic postpartum is to do a 3 day audit of your current intake. Write down EVERYTHING you consume in a day for 3 days. Go through with a highlighter and highlight any foods that you ate when you weren't truly hungry or when you felt really full after a meal. These are the things to focus in on:
Eating only when you’re truly hungry, and not just bored or already in the kitchen.
Being a LITTLE bit hungry after every feeding. Like you could have 5 more bites. You want to be satisfied but not totally full.
If you go to bed and you’re a little hungry, that’s also a normal feeling. Try your best not to eat more.
Increasing your physical activity daily can also help you be able to eat a little bit more and still lose weight. Taking an inventory of your steps, and trying to increase your average by 2,000 means you get about an extra mile of movement in every day which can go really far into helping you lose weight. This might look like an extra walk with your baby (or by yourself), or parking a little farther away at work, Target, and the grocery store.
Special Considerations
The above advice is intended for women who are generally healthy with no medical complications. Remember, if you have a history of disordered eating or metabolic disorders or are struggling mentally with this transition, reach out to a professional for help.
All women go through the most significant “hormone dump” postpartum that they will ever experience in their lives. This can change how you respond to a calorie deficit, what your body needs, and how you handle things mentally. That being said, approach a calorie deficit with ease, and don’t get down on yourself if it’s harder than you think or even if you need a little more time before you dive into this endevor.
Remember, your focus should be on recovery first, strength to make sure you can keep up the with demands of motherhood second, and your mental well-being third. If you have taken care of all of these things, and continue to do so, a calorie deficit should be the next thing you add to your plate. If you need help with what an appropriate calorie deficit should be for you specific needs, please reach out to schedule your free 15 minute consultation.
Healthy Living Tips to Age Gracefully: Simple Steps to Stay Active and Vibrant
Picture this. It’s your 90th birthday party. You’re at a park surrounded by your family. Your great granddaughter asks you to play catch with her - she just joined the middle school softball team. You don’t hesitate, you just say yes. You have no doubts about your physical ability because you haven't stopped moving or living a healthy lifestyle your whole life. With people living longer and longer lives the importance of increasing your health span rather than just your lifespan has increased dramatically. However, it’s hard to know what is important to focus on to truly increase the quality of your life, not just the quantity. We will explore tips and tricks to help boost your energy levels, keep your mobility, and improve your overall well-being. These small but consistent lifestyle changes can lead to long term benefits and help you get to that 90th birthday party where you get to play catch with your great granddaughter without your family worrying you will hurt yourself (although they will probably do that no matter what).
1. Staying Physically Active
If you don’t use it you lose it. We’ve all heard that phrase before but it is extremely important to remember when it comes to activity. There is absolutely no age restriction on ANYTHING when it comes to physical activity. I’ve seen 80 year olds go from needing a walker to confidently walking upstairs without using the hand rail. Just because you’re aging doesn’t mean you need to downshift. So let’s talk about what you can do to stay physically active.
First of all, the most important thing to do is make sure you are cleared for activity by your physician. If they have never given you any activity restrictions and you have no serious medical conditions, you can typically assume you can try some of these activities. However, it’s always wise to have a conversation first if you’re at all worried.
Next, find a variety of activities you like to do regularly. Is there a walking club in your town? Water aerobics? Group fitness classes? Have you checked out Silver Sneakers offerings in your area? These are all excellent ways to start to build consistency in your routine because they are also social avenues that will help to keep you accountable.
Another important element of a well balanced physical activity program is strength training. That doesn’t necessarily mean joining a gym and pumping iron like Arnold but it could mean standing up and sitting down from your couch 10x in a row when you finish watching a TV show. It could mean lifting a heavy pot up to the cabinet 5x in a row a couple times a day. Or doing glute bridges while you’re listening to the news. Remember those physical therapy exercises you got that one time? Take a peak at those again and incorporate them in your everyday life.
Building a physical activity routine is all about what you can do on a daily basis. Finding a way you like to move and challenging your muscles regularly will help boost your energy, make you more independent as you age and also keep your metabolism high from building and maintaining muscle.
2. Eat a Balanced, Nutrient Rich Diet
Ahh nutrition. Everyone’s favorite and most confusing topic when it comes to health. You probably have a lot of questions when it comes to this topic. Most people do thanks to the millions of diets that have been introduced to us over the years. But in reality nutrition is really, really simple.
If you know it’s junk food. Throw it out.
Eat *majority* non-processed foods (this means shopping the perimeter of the store rather than the aisles)
Eat protein, fiber, and healthy fats with each meal.
Make your plate look colorful.
Minimize alcohol intake. Recent studies have shown that there is no positive health benefit to any amount of alcohol. In fact, it is being proved to be detrimental for our health in any quantity.
Stop eating when you’re full and comfortable, this is usually at 80% full, not 100%.
As we age, the importance of getting enough calcium, vitamin D, B12 and omega-3s goes up. You can get calcium from high quality dairy sources, nuts and seeds. Vitamin D comes from the sun primarily but has to be absorbed by the skin when you don’t have sunscreen on. Depending on the intensity of the UV in your area, 10-30 minutes of sun exposure a day is healthy and doesn’t increase your risk of skin cancer. If you live in the northern half of the United States, it’s recommended to supplement with Vitamin D year round because the sun is not powerful enough to get you everything you need. B12 typically comes from eating high quality lean meats and is helpful in red blood cell formation which can help prevent things like anemia. If you are plant based, you still receive some B12 from plant sources but it is also recommended to take a high quality B12 supplement. Lastly, you can find omega-3s in fatty fish, or if you’re plant based, in flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts and soybeans. You can also take a high quality fish oil supplement if you do not eat these foods daily.
3. Prioritize Mental and Emotional Well-Being
We’ve talked a lot about how to keep your physical body healthy but as we age it is just as important to keep your mind healthy. If you are past the point of working everyday - congrats! Hopefully, your stress levels have naturally lowered. However, working in some mindful practices, like deep breathing, drinking your coffee before you read or watch any news, or getting outside first thing in the morning, can really help maintain your stress levels.
In addition to keeping your stress levels low, keeping your brain active is also very important. Doing different puzzles, reading, learning a new skill, finding fun social interactions that push your comfort zone are all ways to keep your mind sharp and help ward off dementia and Alzheimer's. Finding a hobby you enjoy no matter what it is is key to keeping you excited about life on a day to day basis. We’ve all met those older people who have nothing they enjoy doing and they are just angry at the world all the time. I truly believe no one wants to end up like that so finding something to do daily that makes you happy and challenges your mind can help you keep a positive outlook on life.
4. Get Quality Sleep
Before you roll your eyes at this just wait. We know that as we age, your sleep need goes down so that means you might not need the 8 hours of sleep that your 30 year old kids need but when you sleep, you need to make sure you’re getting truly restful sleep. These small steps can help you to ensure when you do sleep, you’re truly recovering and regenerating your body.
Keeping a consistent sleep schedule. This means going to bed around the same time and waking up around the same time daily. One hour of variation doesn’t impact your sleep too much but any variance greater than that can impact your sleep quality.
Limiting screen time and over-head light before bed. Ideally, screens are off an hour before bed and don’t come in the bedroom but sometimes that’s not realistic. Using blue-light blocking glasses can help minimize your exposure to this sleep blocking light and help your drowsy signals work better. Also, turning off the overhead lights and using lamps after dinner can naturally tell your body it’s time for bed, much like the sun going down.
Creating a calm sleep environment. As said before, screens don’t really have a place in the bedroom. Ideally, your bed should only be for sleep and…well we’re all adults here. You know what the other activity is. Setting up your bedroom in a way that makes you let out a big breath and feel calm as you enter is key. Sometimes that means using an essential oil diffuser with lavender oil. Sometimes that’s making sure your bed is made in the morning and your room is decluttered so when you walk in it’s your oasis. Whatever it is for you, take steps to make sure your sleep environment is as calm as possible.
5. Maintain Social Connections
Blue Zones are areas in the world where there are an unusual amount of people who live beyond 100. They are not just living beyond 100 but many are healthy and thriving beyond 100. Across all of these Blue Zones, one constant is there. It’s not the food they eat, or the physical activity they do, but the purposefulness of their community. All of these areas in the world have a strong connection to their community that keeps them going. We can all take a lesson from these areas to our own lives. Most of the time it’s not realistic to move into a new community where this naturally happens so you have to create it for yourself. Some ideas to boost and create your social connections are:
Joining clubs that pertain to your hobbies, interests, or skill sets.
Volunteering. Finding a purpose beyond yourself that fuels you.
Connecting with your friends and family regularly. Whether that’s in person, or making sure you call them regularly, connections make life worth living.
This is your bonus step because you should already be doing this. Stay on top of your preventative care.
Seeing your physician is important and essential for managing any health concerns that do come up. Also, when health concerns come up, make sure to advocate for yourself and get second opinions. This is especially important if you do not live in a big city. Unfortunately, the highest paying jobs in the medical field are in big cities so the best doctors with the most resources are there. You are the expert on your own body. It is your responsibility to advocate for, and manage your own body and your own health. Ask questions, seek to understand a diagnosis, ask for second opinions, and have someone you trust come with you to big appointments to take notes so you can be sure you have all the information you need about your own health. It’s not nearly as important for anyone besides you.
Now that you know the 5 essential steps for increasing your health span - staying physically active, eating a well balanced, nutrient rich diet, prioritizing mental and emotional well being, getting quality sleep, and maintaining social connections - it’s time to implement some of these tips. Changing your routines can definitely be a challenge at first, but with consistency, it gets easier and easier and easier. Hopefully you find joy in these tips and you are excited to do them daily because joy truly makes it so much easier to stick with. Are you picturing your 90th birthday now? Good. Keep that image handy anytime you need a reminder for why you’re making these changes.
If you have any questions or concerns about your own personal health and wellness and want to set up a consultation, please use this link to be connected with the author of this article and health expert, Caroline Beebe.
Time Efficient Workouts for Busy Parents and Professionals
When you are juggling parenting, a career, and trying to be healthy there’s one thing that needs to happen above everything: time efficiency. Maybe in your twenties you had all the time in the world to go to the gym, hit the sauna, and leisurely shower. Those days seem like a fairytale to me now. I have a one year old, and I manage my own business so I personally know how important it is to not waste any time when you do get a chance to take care of yourself.
But the biggest question I get from most of my clients trying to juggle family, careers, and health is what is the most effective workout? There are a couple I will highlight below, these types of workouts boost your energy, help reduce stress, and are proven effective in improving your overall health. However, the most important type workout of all is the type you can be most consistent with.
For example, I’ve been loving these 30 minute Dance Cardio workouts on Youtube. Do I know as a USA Triathlon Coach and an endurance athlete for the last 25 years that going for a 30 minute run would be more effective in increasing my cardiovascular fitness? Yes, yes I do. However, I need to get these workouts in while my son is napping and my husband’s at work. So it’s not realistic for me to leave the house. Are the Dance Cardio workouts better than doing zero cardio? Abso-freakin-lutely.
Let’s talk about timing…
What’s the shortest duration of a workout that will still improve your health? According to mata analyses the ideal duration for workouts are 30-60 minutes. However, it’s also proven that regularly engaging in shorter duration workouts is more beneficial for your overall health than sporadically doing longer duration workouts. So bottom line, whatever time you have, consistency is key and something is always better than nothing.
For this reason, HIIT (high intensity interval training) became popular in the early 2000s and is still one of the most popular workout types to this day. HIIT workouts can boost your metabolism, and improve your cardiovascular health while also helping increase your strength if you’re also using a strength training program.
But you don’t have to subscribe to Beach Body to get a good HIIT workout. You can simply follow this formula:
30 seconds Lower Body body weight exercise (squats, lunges, etc)
30 seconds Upper Body exercise (push ups, rows, etc)
30 seconds Core exercise (mountain climbers, plank, sit-ups etc)
30 seconds Cardio exercise (jumping jacks, high knee runs etc)
Rest for 60 seconds
Repeat 4-5x
Believe me, this workout will be done in 15-20 minutes and you will be toast.
Another way to get a really time efficient workout in is to do 30 minutes of strength training. Strength training is famously overcomplicated to the point where it scares people off if they “can’t commit to the full workout.” This is the biggest BS in the industry. Lifting weights for overall health is prescribed by the American College of Sports Medicine as two times per week making sure to hit each muscle group. That’s it. Not a 5 day per week upper lower split making sure to hit “weak spots” and “accessories.”
So when you’re busy and you need to be efficient take a look at what I personally do and I fit these workouts into 30 minutes or less:
Warm Up 3-5 minutes max:
The goal is to get your blood flowing and warm up each joint with low impact exercises. Examples: Band walks, body weight squats, leg swings, pogo jumps, arm circles, band pulls. You’ll notice that there isn’t a whole lot of “corrective exercise” or foam rolling…this truly isn’t needed so go ahead and throw that out. Sorry not sorry.
Workout Structure:
Choose 2 “big” Lifts and do 6-8 repetitions of these exercises with 60 seconds rest between sets.
Choose another 2 “big” Lifts and follow the same pattern you did above.
Choose 2-4 “accessories” and do 10-15 repetitions of these exercises with 30 seconds rest between sets.
You’re done.
Let’s look at an example of what I actually mean by big lifts and accessories.
Big Lifts:
Squats, Deadlifts, Lunges, Split Squats, Bench Press, Rows, Lat Pull Downs, Overhead Presses
Accessories:
Bicep Curls, Tricep Extensions, Flys, Shoulder Raises, Calf Raises, Leg Curls, Leg Extensions
Another excellent way to get your workouts in is to find a workout you like on Youtube. I’ve been following Yoga and Pilates videos on Youtube regularly and they are so easy when I don’t feel like thinking. And the best part? They can be done in my living room. Again, while my son’s sleeping. If you have older kids, they are also easy enough for them to follow along.
Now that we know what you can do to be effective, let’s discuss strategies for how to incorporate these into your life. But let’s first remember the number one rule. The best workout program is the one you can be the most consistent with. So whatever your strategy is, pick the one with the fewest barriers to entry and the one you can see yourself sticking with in a year from now. For me, that’s workouts during nap time.
Top 3 Strategies for squeezing in a workout:
Wake up 30 minutes earlier and do it before work
Get a workout in at lunch time
Make it a family activity
Top 3 Strategies for Staying Consistent:
Tell someone you love what your plan is and have them check up on you/report to them when you do a workout.
Track your progress in a journal or an app. Progress doesn’t have to be your weight, it can be how winded you felt, how many push ups you can do, how much weight you can lift, etc.
Share what you’re doing on social media. It sounds silly but this is what I do to stay consistent. I posted my goal of doing 1 thing for myself a day on my social media (IG @cbsmartbody) and now I feel like I didn’t turn my homework in if I don’t post what I did that day.
Let’s look at a sample of a weekly flow with these time efficient workouts in mind:
Monday: Lunch time strength session at a gym next to the office
Tuesday: AM Youtube class at home before the kids wake up
Wednesday: Lunch time strength session
Thursday: AM HIIT at home
Friday: AM Yoga class on Youtube
Saturday: Playing outside with the kids
Sunday: AM HIIT class and find a bike path near you to take the kids in the afternoon
In conclusion, just remember that something is always better than nothing. If you only have 10 minutes to move your body DO IT. Shorter workouts consistently are proven to be more effective than longer duration workouts done sporadically. So what are you waiting for? Start today and prioritize your health!
Need some more specific advice? Sign up for a free 15 minute consultation with myself and let’s figure out a plan that will work for you and your specific lifestyle, health concerns, and goals.