How F.I.T. are your workouts?
The way you approach your exercise session is critical to the results you get. An acronym to go by is F.I.T., otherwise known as Frequency...Intensity...Time. How F.I.T. are you workouts? Let me break this down.
Frequency: This is the number of days each week you do that activity (i.e., walking on the treadmill). The frequency of your work outs is very important. As far as cardiovascular exercise goes, you should be getting 3 to 6 days a week of cardiovascular activity. When it comes to weight resistance exercise it is another story; it all depends on what your goals are. Two days a week is the very minimum and you can train up to six days a week. The key here is to never exercise the same muscle two days in a row.
Intensity: The intensity of your exercise session is critical to the results you obtain. A great line of thinking is, "You get out of it what you put into it." Of course, before starting any exercise program you should get permission from your physician. The critical component here too is what your body can handle. Depending on your current physical condition, your intensity would vary. When devising a cardiovascular routine you need to start with this basic formula: 220 minus Age times Desired Intensity. For example, if you were a 35 year old person who is overweight by 25 pounds I would use the formula like this: 220 - 35 x 60% = 111. This means your heart rate should be at a minimum of 111 beats per minute. I usually give a range to my clients in the beginning of 60% to 70%; so this would bring this client's range to 111 bpm to 130 bpm. As you get more aerobically fit you can increase your intensity up to 90% of your HR max. Weight resistance is a little different. Depending on your goals you lift weights differently. Some programs are set up for 1 set of 18 repetitions (reps) while others can be 5 sets of 5 reps. The key here is that no matter how many reps you are doing you need to push yourself so that you really feel it at the end. If you are doing 12 reps, I want you to barely be able to make 12 reps. Push it! If you are supposed to do 12 reps and the weight is too light, you will get very little out of it. Increase your weight! And ladies, don't worry, you won't gain bulky muscle.
Time: The amount of time you exercise each session can and will vary. Cardio work outs can be as little as 20 minutes and as long as 45 minutes; it all depends on your goals. When I say 20 minutes or 45 minutes I mean 20 minutes once you get in your target heart rate range (i.e., 111 bpm - 130 bpm from the example above). So if it takes you 5 minutes to get your HR elevated, you need to start your exercise time from that point forward. Weight resistance work outs can vary from 30 minutes to 2 hours; again, it all depends on your goals. A critical component with weight training is the amount of rest between sets and exercises. Rest is critical, as is lack of rest depending on your goal. A typical weight training session lasts about an hour.
I know this is a lot of information all at once. And believe me, I could have gone into much more detail. I tried to make this as simple as possible, but unless I know someone's specific goals it is hard to give a great work out in a post like this. If you have any questions at all regarding this topic or exercise, please feel free to ask.
Frequency: This is the number of days each week you do that activity (i.e., walking on the treadmill). The frequency of your work outs is very important. As far as cardiovascular exercise goes, you should be getting 3 to 6 days a week of cardiovascular activity. When it comes to weight resistance exercise it is another story; it all depends on what your goals are. Two days a week is the very minimum and you can train up to six days a week. The key here is to never exercise the same muscle two days in a row.
Intensity: The intensity of your exercise session is critical to the results you obtain. A great line of thinking is, "You get out of it what you put into it." Of course, before starting any exercise program you should get permission from your physician. The critical component here too is what your body can handle. Depending on your current physical condition, your intensity would vary. When devising a cardiovascular routine you need to start with this basic formula: 220 minus Age times Desired Intensity. For example, if you were a 35 year old person who is overweight by 25 pounds I would use the formula like this: 220 - 35 x 60% = 111. This means your heart rate should be at a minimum of 111 beats per minute. I usually give a range to my clients in the beginning of 60% to 70%; so this would bring this client's range to 111 bpm to 130 bpm. As you get more aerobically fit you can increase your intensity up to 90% of your HR max. Weight resistance is a little different. Depending on your goals you lift weights differently. Some programs are set up for 1 set of 18 repetitions (reps) while others can be 5 sets of 5 reps. The key here is that no matter how many reps you are doing you need to push yourself so that you really feel it at the end. If you are doing 12 reps, I want you to barely be able to make 12 reps. Push it! If you are supposed to do 12 reps and the weight is too light, you will get very little out of it. Increase your weight! And ladies, don't worry, you won't gain bulky muscle.
Time: The amount of time you exercise each session can and will vary. Cardio work outs can be as little as 20 minutes and as long as 45 minutes; it all depends on your goals. When I say 20 minutes or 45 minutes I mean 20 minutes once you get in your target heart rate range (i.e., 111 bpm - 130 bpm from the example above). So if it takes you 5 minutes to get your HR elevated, you need to start your exercise time from that point forward. Weight resistance work outs can vary from 30 minutes to 2 hours; again, it all depends on your goals. A critical component with weight training is the amount of rest between sets and exercises. Rest is critical, as is lack of rest depending on your goal. A typical weight training session lasts about an hour.
I know this is a lot of information all at once. And believe me, I could have gone into much more detail. I tried to make this as simple as possible, but unless I know someone's specific goals it is hard to give a great work out in a post like this. If you have any questions at all regarding this topic or exercise, please feel free to ask.
Wow, this is a lot of great information. I am kind of a novice at this exercise thing and my doctor says I should be exercising. Is it okay if I use the free consultation to discuss what kind of exercising I should be doing?
Thanks.
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Mary -
Thanks for reading the post and for your comment. You certainly can use your 30 minute free session to ask me questions about exercise, that is why I am here. You can reach me directly at 610-873-7767 or email me at Steve@FeelGreatCoaching.com. I would say it is best if we schedule a time so that I can block out the entire 30 minutes for you.
I'll talk to you soon!
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Mary...
way to go! It is great to see that you are recognizing your novice level of experience and seeking the guidance of a coach! Steve is great at this stuff and will definitely guide you along the way to getting FIT!
-bryan
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