When during the day should I work out?

Outdoors Workouts- preferably in the day. Oxygen level are lower in the early morning before sun rises and late at night as considerable amount of plants and trees respiration has taken place. Working out at this lower oxygen level can sometimes be quite taxing on the body.

Indoor Workouts- all day and night. Since indoors are usually air-conditioned, it does not make much of a difference.

Where should I exercise?

Anywhere. In fact one of the best place to workout is your home or nearby park and open spaces as they are very convenient and gives you no excuses for not being able to do so.

Your office is also a good place to workout with exercises like seated heel raises or isometric half squat instead of sitting down all day long in front of that computer. You can also hit the stairs at your workplace for stairs training instead of sneaking snacks from the pantry during breaks.

How much and how long should I exercise?

Five times a week, at least half an hour to an hour each time. Make sure you challenge yourself each time you workout as progressive overload will help you reach your goals faster.

How much should I eat and how long should I eat after a workout?

Not nothing. You should eat something, preferably food that will provide you with some energy, within 45minutes to an hour as your body’s glycogen receptors are the most active within that timeframe. If you eat later then that or if you don’t eat after your workout, you will find yourself very tired the next day and might not be able to finish the exercise that you set for yourself. A handful of nuts will be a good choice; it keeps your hunger pangs at bay too.

What type of exercises should I do? And how frequent for each type of exercise?

Of both, it’s advisable to do two cardio and one resistance training on your own. Swimming and aqua aerobics are two very good examples of low impact cardio training. You can also join us at any regular bootcamp sessions or at our gym at Ulu Pandan; we have bootcamp sessions almost all day in a week.

Lastly, what is all this exercising stuff about?

It is about you, your family and friends, and your health. It is also a lifestyle change and not a temporarily solution. We won’t want the energy and endorphin radiating from within us to stop, do we?

Now that you know the exercise- when, where, how and what- don’t hesitate and let’s move towards your goals!

Ying Bin
Personal Trainer
TeamFitnessGuru.com

I feel a need to share some strategies on gaining confidence and self esteem. Cause in the past, i shared a similar feeling of ‘failure’.

How do people deal with negative people who put others down regarding weight? The experience of say a female”friend” who unfairly puts you down or the man who tells you that you are over weight.

The comments will come from people who are hurt themselves and it’s a way to make themselves feel better about themselves. A happy, confident person would not say something like this to someone else. They would be ENCOURAGING not discouraging.

We all may struggle with Body Image at one time in our life or some may be still ongoing.During the previous years, I used to be in a BMI range of 27 (Max) to 16 (Min – which WAS still very low for me last time). I had the most popular and beautiful friends surrounding me but i felt ‘little’ whenever I am with them. I felt lousy and always received negative comments about my body being too big or even said mean things that im the odd one out from my ‘gang’.. It was devastating to listen to all the negative comments.Feeling the pressure, i decided to change. To lose weight as much as i can,i OVERWORK and STARVED myself.But for the wrong reasons.I want to ensure that nobody ‘criticize’ me. I didnt think about myself.I was thinking of what others think of me. At my lowest BMI, the negativities keep coming. I was too skinny, looking frail and all.

I was frustrated.Not to the people but to myself.It was a hitting point that i want to do this for myself and not for others.

From this experience, i decided to study more in Nutrition and Exercise. Wanting to being aware of the complex works of the body and making a Healthy Lifestyle as a Lifelong commitment.

Now i stand at a BMI of 20. Reflecting back, it was not actually hitting my current weight makes me happy or confident. Its the process of making my body MOVE and getting STRONGER plus all that ENDORPHIN hormones make me feel like i can take over the WORLD!Ok not exactly.But i felt if i can do a good workout and eat right, i can conquer anything.

Remember a Healthy Weight Lose starts in the HEAD and the Heart;

1) You can be what you want to be

Visualize your potentials and see yourself in a new ‘light’.For instance, I can workout in 3 times/wk.Visualize yourself breezing through the workouts and being strong every step of the way.

2) Always go Easy on yourself

Your undergoing a beautiful work in progress.

Remember you are the designer of your self-esteem, do not hand this over to other people.Surround yourself with people and things that make you feel good about yourself and your abilities. When you are around people and things that support you and make you feel good,you will be less likely to base your self-esteem on the way your body looks.

We all make mistakes, and mistakes can be used to help us learn. Do not criticize yourself for being human and making a mistake. The only last mistake in the one from which we never learn to grow.

3) Change Today!

Forget about the past and live in the present.As yesterday is over, Today is where you LIVE.Today you would try not to repeat past failures and not WAIT for tomorrow.If not now, when?Tomorrow again?:P

4) Respect your Body

I will treat my body with respect and kindness. I will feed it, keep it active, and listen to its needs. I will remember that my body is the vehicle that will carry me to my dreams!

I will choose to take care of myself and my body!Love it,Embrace it and Respect them!

Everyday is a new day and I am glad to be part of this journey with everybody.I am glad you are part of it too.

Much Love,

Zhywee
Personal Trainer
TeamFitnessGuru.com

Here’s some quick tips on how to lose weight by Hubert, a Fitness Bootcamp trainer from Team Fitness Guru.

1. To lose 10 Kg of body fat in 3 months,  you need to eat 100 -200 calories less per day. Cutting too many calories from your daily intake will sap your energy level and increase your hunger, this you make you want to eat more.

2. Don’t skip breakfast. Eat within two hours of waking.

3. In fact, eat more breakfast than you think you should. Trade in some of your dinner calories for more calories at breakfast.

4. Don’t allow yourself to get hungry. Eat at least every four hours, and split a meal in half to make sure you properly fuel up pre- and post exercise. For example, eat part of your breakfast before your morning exercise (a banana) and the rest of your breakfast afterward (a breads with peanut butter).

5. Eat at least three kinds of food each meal from these four categories: breads, cereals, and grains; fruits and vegetables; low-fat dairy and soy; and lean meats, fish, and nuts. Breads, cereals, and grains should be the foundation of each meal, with protein as an accompaniment.

6. Shoot for a gradual loss of body fat. You’re more likely to put the weight back on (and more) if you drop weight too quickly.

7. Liquid calories add up fast and can lead to weight gain. Minimize the amount of sodas, juices, store-bought smoothies, sports drinks, coffee drinks, and alcohol you consume.

8. Eat closer to the earth, enjoying fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Minimize the amount of processed foods you eat; they tend to offer less fiber and are less satiating.

9. If you can’t resist fast food, ask for nutritional information before you make your choices. Avoid any menu items with the words “fried,” “crispy,” and “special sauce,” which are guaranteed to be high calorie.

10. Remember that the calories in the energy bars, sports drinks, and gels you consume during a exercise, consume them only as needed.

Hubert Tan
Fitness Bootcamp Trainer
TeamFitnessGuru.com

Can I have some water please?

That’s what your body asks from you everyday.

Water is an essential nutrient because of it’s a vital role in the normal functioning of the body. Water contributes approximately 60% of the total body weight and is essential in creating the environment in which all metabolic occur. Water is necessary to regulate temperature and transport substances throughout the body.

Recommended daily amount for men is 3.7L for men and 2.7L for women.

Hydrate your body, before, during and after exercise.

Sweating is the body’s primary mechanism for heat dissipation during exercise.  The amount of sweat lost during exercise depends on the environmental heat and humidity, type and intensity of exercise and the characteristics of the exerciser .

Dehydration reduces the body’s capacity for sweating and can impair performance by decreasing strength, endurance and coordination. It also increases the risk of heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat stroke. We don’t want that do we?

Here are some guidelines according to ACSM on water intake:-

1. A person should consume 400-600ml of water 2hrs slowly before endurance exercise.
2. Then additional 200-300ml, 10 – 20mins before beginning the exercise.
3. During exercise a person should drink approximately 150-350ml of water every 15-20mins.
4. In activities where large amount of sweat are lost, fluid should be fully replaced. Depends on before and after these types of activities recommended, the participant should drink approximately 475-700ml of water for each pound lost. If body weight has not returned to normal in the following days, additional water should be consumed before beginning the exercise.

Remember to sip your water and not to drink it in one gulp. Using straw is one of the effective ways to slow down the intake at a time. For some of us who are not use or don’t like to drink water because it is tasteless compare to sports or soft drinks, here are some tips to enjoy your pure no calories H2o:

• Squeeze fresh lemon or lime juice n freeze it in your ice cubes box. You can add them to your water bottle for to go.
• You can do the same with your favorite fruits like strawberries, mango or water melon which blended to pureed then freeze it in ice cubes box.

So, nourish your body with H2o to prevent dehydration, increase metabolic and helps detoxification.

Happy hydrating!

Lisa Jacob
Personal Trainer
TeamFitnessguru.com

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Source:Fitness professional’s handbook/Edward T.Howley,B.Don Franks-5th ed.

1)  Make exercise a social thing

Grab some friends (Especially from your workplace!Heard of lunchtime workout?)with the same exercise interests. Having people to work out with is a sure bet for motivation. You’ll keep each other going and will be less likely to quit early. It’s nice to have others to talk with and cheer on.

2) Choose your workout timing that works best for you based on your schedule and your energy.

Remember, you have to make EXERCISE as a priority and to include them in your timetable every week.Im a very night person. I do my workouts during the night time for weekdays and morning runs for the weekend. How about you?

3) Do something active everyday.

This is one of the simplest and most overlook! Take the stairs instead of the lift. Do calf raises while photocopying. Park your car a lil’ bit further. Maximize the calorie burn per day.Hey!Every little thing counts! *Brisk walk for 30mins burns about 200++ calories – Thats about 1 prata. So Move That Body.:D

4)  If you were to wake up in the morning and exercise first thing, what would sound good to you?

A quick walk outside? Yoga exercises? A circuit workout? Make a list of activities you enjoy and imagine yourself doing those activities on a regular basis.
As for myself, I love Variety. My workouts range from Bootcamp, running, gym training, yoga, dancing and even Muay Thai. Variety is the key to get your body going and you will have fun at the same time. It will also help you avoid weight loss plateaus.Its never BORING!

5) Remind yourself.

Write yourself notes and put them on your computer, your car, your shoes…everywhere. Remind yourself of your plan (”I will exercise for 30 minutes today”) and why you’re doing it (”I’d love to wear a sleeveless shirt for the holidays”).

6) * Reward! Reward! Reward!

If you find exercise is torture, give yourself something for getting through it. Whether you exercise for 4 days in a row, or jog an extra mile–if you’re happy with your performance, give yourself a prize! This could be a day off from the gym, a new pair of jeans…make yourself happy because you deserve it!

7) Train for a local 5K or 10K walk or run.

This can be great motivation to exercise on a regular basis. I’ve seen many people transformed from couch potatoes to lean, mean, exercising machines because they decided to enter and train for a competition like this. Don’t think you can’t do it…YOU CAN!

8 ) Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a workout.

Life is full of challenges and unexpected obstacles. Setbacks happen. Don’t let a couple of missed workouts turn into two months of inactivity.Seriously!You do not want to go through that CYCLE.If you fall down, just get back up again. I believe me and my team of trainers have encountered some days of missing a workout.Its Never too late to get back in the wagon.

9) Get plenty of rest.

That means sleeping for at least 8 hours a night as well as giving yourself recovery days during the week. Working out too much can cause fatigue and possibly, overtraining symptoms. Sleep well.I proudly admit, I love my SLEEP!zzzzzzzz

Heres a last motivational quotation for you before i end my post.

“If you believe in yourself, have dedication and pride and never quit, you’ll be a winner. The price of victory is high, but so are the rewards.” – Paul “Bear” Bryant, the Late, great coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team

Love your body and respect them well.
See you at Bootcamp!

Much Love,

Zhywee
Fitness Manager & Personal Trainer
TeamFitnessguru.com

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My Basic rules while working out: Intensity, Modality, Consistency, Quality & Pacing.

INTENSITY- HIGHER & STRONGER

During physical training, your body has three possible sources of energy: glucose/glycogen (blood sugar and sugar stored in the muscles), fats, and protein (Sugar first, protein last). The harder your workout, more energy will be burned. But remember Sugar is the first to be burned.

Low calories in body = High chances for fat burns

Knowing your Basal Metabolic Rate and having Food Journal are the best ways to keep track.

Exercise with a higher heart rate will burn more calories which help to boost your metabolism for up to 24 hours. Metabolism helps you to burn calories and fats even when you are not exercising BUT DAILY WORKOUT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO MAXIMIZE FAT BURNING!

Maximum Heart Rate (beats per minute) = Male (220 – your age) or Female (226 – your age)

MODALITY – NO PAIN, NO GAIN

Doing same exercise routine allows you to become accustomed to it, and after a while, your workout stops giving you results. You must constantly apply new and challenging stimuli. Example: Push-Ups – Modified to Standard to Military to Triceps

CONSISTENCY – BE FOCUS

Inconsistency will lead to gradual progress instead of getting your body in gear and maximising crazy results in no time. Setting non-scales goals are great.

EXAMPLES

Week 1 – Clothes fitted differently (Loosen NOT TIGHER!?)
Week 2 – See changes in your physiques

QUALITY – SAFETY & EFFECTIVENESS

I can’t stress enough; ITS FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY AND ITS REDUCE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE WORKOUT!!! Remember this;

1. PRECISION – Go through the motion which helps you to understand how its performed and committing muscle memory

2. CONCENTRATION – To achieve maximum results, you must focus on the movement and specific muscle you are training to make every rep count.

3. CONTROL – Full range of motion in a deliberately, steady manner will increase you flexibility. Maintain control and focus on every movement which allow you to max out the benefits of your training

4. BREATHING – Helps to keep your blood pressure steady and promote slow, controlled movements for maximum results. Exhale while doing the difficult part and inhale to starting position.

PACING – BODY MAINTAINANCE

Exercise is the architect and recovery is the builder. Muscles grow and develop after workout. You must know your limit and do give yourself a break before burning out. Sleeping (Deep Sleep) & relaxation are another key element to lose weight. Lack of sleep will imbalance hormones level and triggers us to increase appetite and develops abdominal fats.

May your workout be Hard, Safe and Smart! Cheers! =)

Matt Azmy
Fitness Executive
TeamFitnessguru.com

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Copyright TeamFitnessGuru.com™ 2009

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Many people believe that exercise controls weight by increasing your metabolism so you burn extra calories all day long. A review of the world’s literature from the University of South Australia in Adelaide shows that you have to be in very good shape to exercise vigorously enough to increase your metabolism (Journal of Sports Science, December 2006). This means that most exercisers are not able to exercise hard enough to burn extra calories for a significant time after they finish exercising, so increased post-exercise metabolism does not cause most exercisers to lose weight.

Researchers monitor changes in metabolism by measuring how much oxygen your body uses over a period of time. The maximum amount of oxygen that you can use during exercise in a given time is called VO2max. To increase the amount of oxygen that your body uses after exercising, you must exercise at an intensity of at least 50 percent of your VO2max, which is too much for casual exercisers. You have to exercise very vigorously to increase your oxygen consumption and body temperature for more than a few minutes.

This study shows that if a person wants to increase his metabolism for from 3 to 24 hours, he must exercise for more than 50 minutes at 70 percent of his VO2max, or more than 6 minutes at 100 percent of his VO2max. You need to be very fit to be able to exercise at these levels. For most people, weight control depends on more on how long you exercise, and far less on the extra calories that you burn after you finish exercising.

Dr Mirkin

Dr. Mirkin is a graduate of Harvard University and Baylor University College of Medicine. He is one of a very few doctors board-certified in four specialties: Sports Medicine, Allergy and Immunology, Pediatrics and Pediatric Immunology.  www.DrMirkin.com

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Sharm’s Thoughts

It is important to remember – we want to exercise to burn the calories while doing the activity, and also many hours after that. You’ll need to work hard enough. If you’re a beginner, start slow, and progressively increase your intensity at every week. Remember to take a day of rest in between so that your body can recover. If you’re at the advanced level, always push for personal bests (automatically increase the intensity by increasing progression). At any level, remember not to progress too fast too hard.

Here’s an example of a staircase workout (please change it accordingly)

• Week 1 -
  • Monday – 2 flights of stairs x 2 sets (have rest in between)
  • Wednesday – 2 flights of stairs x 3 sets (have rest in between)
  • Friday – 2 flights of stairs x 4 sets (have rest in between)

• Week 2
  • Monday – 3 flights of stairs x 2 sets (have rest in between)
  • Wednesday – 3 flights of stairs x 3 sets (have rest in between)
  • Friday – 3 flights of stairs x 4 sets (have rest in between)

• Week 3 -
  • Monday – 4 flights of stairs x 2 sets (have rest in between)
  • Wednesday – 4 flights of stairs x 3 sets (have rest in between)
  • Friday – 4 flights of stairs x 4 sets (have rest in between)

Different people have different abilities in the adaptation to exercise, so if you think you can push on a little more,  go ahead (but not too hard). If you think the progression is too fast, slow it down. Always use the Rate of perceived exertion as a gauge, and work at 5 to 7 if you’re starting out, if you’re in the advanced stage, workout at 8 to 9 out of 10.

About VO2max

VO2max maximal oxygen uptake or the maximum volume of oxygen that can be utilized in one minute during maximal or exhaustive exercise. It is measured as milliliters of oxygen used in one minute per kilogram of body weight.

If you’re interested to calculate your VO2max, there is an easy way to do so by doing a beep or Pacer test , and it’ll only take about 15 minutes. You can find out more about it here.

Hence, remember to exercise more than 50 minutes at 70% of your VO2 max (or roughly a rate of perceived exertion of 7 to 9 out of 10).  As you need to be quite fit to workout at this intensity, please progressively increase your fitness level before attempting such moderate to high intensities.

A great way to ensure that you’re doing a good workout is by doing circuit or bootcamp type of training – the variations in the exercises will help increase your workout intensities accordingly.

Have fun!

Written by Sharm
TeamFitnessGuru.com

Sharm (Hisham Musa) is a fitness consultant in Singapore to many high profile clients since 1998. He is equipped with a Master of Science (Exercise and Sports Studies) degree from Nanyang Technological University, (NTU) with 7 distinctions. He also has a Bachelor’s degree from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Postgraduate in Physical Education and Sports Science from NTU. Armed with international certifications, memberships and affiliations with the American College of Sports Medicine & National Academy of Sports Medicine, he stays current with the latest in the fitness and nutrition industry. He is NCAP 3* certified and is undergoing TRX Master Trainer development. His expertise have been featured in ChannelNewsAsia’s documentary – Vanity the Slim Society, Ch5 & Ch8 Lose To Win Reality TV, The Straits Times, & The Sunday Times. Magazines: Shape, Timeout, Women’s Weekly (Panel of Experts), The Finder, Her World. He is the owner of FitnessBootcamp.sg – the most creative fun group fitness workouts that has more than 500 individual signups in 5 months, with clients losing 10kgs of FAT in 3 months. Sharm shares how you can lose weight and get fit fast at Teamfitnessguru.com

Copyright TeamFitnessGuru.com™ 2010

A new study from Israel shows us once again that dieting without exercise does not work. The participants took off only six to 10 pounds in two years. No matter what diet they were on, most regained some of the weight they lost in the early months by the end of the study (NEJM, July 17, 2008). It didn’t make any difference whether the overweight person was on a low-fat or low-carbohydrate diet, or the healthful Mediterranean-type diet that stresses fruits, vegetables, whole grains beans, seeds, nuts and seafood. However, their small weight loss did result in improved cholesterol and blood pressure readings.

If you really want to lose weight for good, you have to exercise. Appetite is controlled in a part of your brain called hypothalamus. If you try to lose weight just by eating less food, your hypothalamus makes you miserable when you see tasty food and know that you shouldn’t eat it. If you exercise, you will eat more, but you will not increase your intake of food to equal the extra calories that you burn when you exercise. After you have been exercising for a few months, your muscles will be stronger, you will feel and sleep better and you can actually start to enjoy your new activity. Then you are set for a life-long pattern of burning up the calories you take in.

Unfortunately, the majority of older people who start exercise programs drop out in the first six weeks. People are more likely to stay in an exercise program if they have company and find a sport that is fun for them. The best success comes when a husband and wife exercise together. You can also increase you chances of sticking to an exercise program by having a personal trainer, going to regular exercise classes, or joining an exercise group that is also a social club, such as Road Runners, a bicycle club or a square dancing society.

Dr Mirkin

Dr. Mirkin is a graduate of Harvard University and Baylor University College of Medicine. He is one of a very few doctors board-certified in four specialties: Sports Medicine, Allergy and Immunology, Pediatrics and Pediatric Immunology.  www.DrMirkin.com