Healthy B.P.M.

Many people of body building as abandoning life and devoting hours in the gym like a monk in a monastery. Thinking, perhaps that the only way to chisel the body into a hot muscular physique is by toiling hour by hour over the rusty iron day in, day out and year in, year out. Not so, unless of course that’s the lifestyle you choose. Although hard work is required, having a chisel body doesn’t mean you’re a slave of the iron weights. Full-body work outs yield fantastic results and can easily fit into your schedule. Full body workouts are convenient and may be the best option if a single body part or upper and lower on different days don’t work for you.

Focused full-body work outs make for maximum muscle contraction using heavy weights. They also make room for full recovery so your muscles can actually grow. Adequate recovery also allows you to continue to train hard; plus it helps to prevents burnout and injury, which is inevitable when you over train. Consider also that this type of workout is a time saver. The biggest plus about having the whole body trained at once is that you go to the gym less frequently. Two to three days a week would do you. Let me make one more point, I’m not speaking of competitive bodybuilding. That will require more time, intensity and dedication that the average fitness enthusiast. At the competitive level you’d expect to be in the gym two or more hours. At either level, it is all about the quality of exercise. If you’re going through your workouts hap hazard, expect the same kind of results.

Full-body work outs can also boost the cardiovascular system. The larger muscles of the lower body require more oxygen, which means your heart rate is going up. Which means you’re working harder and your heart and lungs are working more efficiently. Allow for two to four sets for every body part in a one hour session. That one hour jam packed session will get your whole system pumping and up to speed in a flash. Now that you’re all pumped up and ready to go, here are the rules of engagement:

Train once every two to three days. This is so easy isn’t it? On alternate days continue to do your cardio. All of your hard work with the weights will be for naught if you don’t burn some fat. When it comes to actually putting a training program together you can ask ten different people and get ten totally different perspectives. One thing is certain if your goal is to put on some muscle mass, the cute little pink and blue weights won’t get you there.

• The general guideline is that to become stronger you’d lift heavier weights and perform fewer reps.
• If toning is your goal then you’ll use lighter weights and do more reps. One more reminder, lighter weights is not 2-3 lbs. Put away the ooh-baby-don’t hurt yourself sizes.
• To gain mass, lift moderate weights and do moderate reps.

Again those are general guidelines and there’s tons of gray area in between.

In the beginning stick to one to two exercises per muscle group. This is very easy to follow and is an important safety precaution. Basic exercises can be intense when you’re doing them correctly. Which brings me to form. Posture and structural alignment are key in preventing injury and getting the results you want. We’ve all see people in the gym slinging the weights all over the place, and grunting to get our attention. Let your results speak for you. Trying to break the world record doing crunches will only give you neck problems and a lower ab pouch that will be hard as heck to get rid of. Always go for quality.

Resistance training affects the natural hormones of the body. Intense exercising boosts the testosterone levels and long work outs increase those of catabolic cortisol. Sixty minutes of work out allows you to get the best of both worlds. Keep it simple, pay attention to what you’re doing and be consistent. Once you get the basics down pat you’re on your way. Venice Beach lookout!!