How may reps?

Hi Nicole! I love your new workout poster! It’s so simple to read and understand! I’m 23 and I’ve never been much of an athlete. I started going to the gym late last year to try and work off approximately 15 kg’s that I gained due to an under-active thyroid, which I was diagnosed with a couple of years ago. Is the “Body Blast Workout” on your first poster alone enough to do about three times a week along with cardio workouts in order to help me get toned and lose weight? I also wanted to know if about 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps sufficient of each each exercise?
Thanks again for the great workouts and an excellent column!

Nicole Answers

Thank you very much for your message!
Yes, this poster as well as a good cardio program and healthy eating plan will help you achieve your results. As you may have noticed, this poster is a full body workout. We have incorporated 1 exercise per body part. The exercises have been selected so that you may perform them either in the comfort of your home or at the gym. I’d suggest doing this program for approximately a month or so. As you progress and feel that the exercises are getting easier, you may want to change it up a little. You may want to try super-setting i.e. take the first two exercises and perform them one after the other with very little or no rest in between. In this case you would perform 1 set of 12 – 15 ball crunches and straight away perform 1 set of 12 – 15 chest press and then rest. Once you have completed 3 sets, move onto the next 2 exercises and continue down the poster. As you feel yourself getting comfortable with the exercises, you may want to slowly start adding new exercises or changing some of them. In order to achieve results, you need to continuously change your exercises and “shock” your body.
Performing 3 sets of 12 – 15 reps of each exercise is perfect.
Please remember, training is only a part of loosing weight, you need to ensure that you make as many healthy food choices as possible……
All the best and most importantly, ENJOY!

Contraceptives and weight loss

I would like to know what effect the different types of contraceptives have on losing weight and building lean muscle, specifically an oral contraceptive like Yasmin or Triphasil? My gym routine consists of weight training three days a week and three days cardio. Which type would you recommend?
Sarina via web

The Pro’s Respond

Hi Sarina,

To be honest I am no endocrinologist. I do however know that Yasmin (monophasic) and Triphasil (triphasic) both contain oestrogen and progestins as their active ingredients, simply in differing ratios. These hormones, when taken exogenously (as in the pill) disrupt the body’s hormonal homeostatic balance. As such there is a ton of clinical evidence depicting an array of potential side effects resulting from this kind of “unnatural” hormonal manipulation (despite what those prescribing and manufacturing these drugs might have you believe). I guess you will have realised by now that I’m no fan of the pill… no matter what form it’s administered in. The fact of the matter is that a once normal homeostatic balance is disrupted by exogenous oestrogen/progestin administration and you open yourself up to the risk of numerous side effects. These include, but are not limited to an increased risk of certain cancers, depressed libido, emotional ups and downs, as well as lowered testosterone levels. You can be sure that higher oestrogen levels and lower natural testosterone levels will negatively impact on your ability to build lean muscle and shed body fat. So which do I recommend? You guessed it – neither!

Is it possible to train too much?

Is it possible to exercise too much? How would you know that you might be spending too much time training and what are the side effects? And what type of training is more effective, strength training or cardio?

Nicole Answers

Many gym goers and athletes these days are worried about not getting enough exercise. However, the truth is that there are plenty of us out there who may actually be getting a little too much. How do you know whether you are doing too much? And how do you know when enough is enough? It’s time for you to sit down and analyze your training…

Overtraining is becoming increasingly more common. It frequently occurs in individuals who are training for a competition or a specific event, and they end up training beyond their body’s ability to recover. Individuals often exercise longer and harder so they can improve and be “better than ever”. This is where most people make the biggest mistake because, without adequate rest and recovery, these training regimens may actually lead to a decrease in your performance.
The perfect routine requires a balance between overload and recovery. Too much overload and/or too little recovery may result in both physical and psychological symptoms of overtraining.

A few of the more common signs of overtraining are:

• Feeling tired or drained, with a lack of energy when doing everyday activities
• A general feeling of aches and pains in your muscles and joints
• A sudden inability to complete workouts
• An inability to sleep or insomnia
• Headaches
• An increased number of colds and sore throats
• A decrease in your training capacity and/or intensity
• Moodiness and an increase in irritability
• Depression
• Loss of enthusiasm for the sport you once loved
• A decreased appetite
• An increased incidence of injury
• A compulsive need to exercise

If you suspect you are overtraining the first thing to do is reduce the amount of training you are doing or stop completely. Allow for a few days of rest, drink plenty of fluids and you can also consider altering your diet if necessary.

One of the easiest ways of measuring whether you are overtraining is by keeping track of your resting heart rate each morning. Any noted increase from the norm may indicated that you are not recovering fully. This, combined with a subjective assessment and your mental state is the most reliable indicator of overtraining. Unfortunately, most athletes ignore these signs and wait too long before they do something about it. An important component of exercise is to continually measure your training and modify your programmes before any damage is done.

There are a number of ways that you can remedy overtraining. As already mentioned, the most important one is taking a break from training to allow your body time to recovery fully. Another way may include reducing the volume and intensity of your training or possibly splitting your training programme so that different sets of muscles are worked on different days. Ensure you get sufficient sleep and you can also go for a deep tissue massage. You may need to address any vitamin deficiencies and ensure that the calories you are taking in match the calories you are expending. This will all assist in the recovery process.

To answer the second part of the question: both strength training and cardio training are beneficial. However, in terms of which is better, it’s all dependent on what your individual goals are…
Weight training provides the necessary stress for muscular changes to occur. Muscle requires more calories to operate, even at rest (this is known as your basal metabolic rate). Therefore, lifting weights transforms the body into a more effective, 24 hour calorie burning machine, enhancing your ability to metabolise and burn stored fat. Weight training will also give you shapely, toned muscles. Cardio training is great for improving your heart and lung health, as well as endurance. While it is also beneficial for weight loss, as it allows you to keep your heart rate within the 50 to 70% of maximum heart rate range required to metabolise fat, it only burns calories and fat during, and for a very short time after the activity. Cardio can also break down muscle tissue for energy and won’t give you the toned look most women are after.

Workout duration

I recently joined a gym again after gaining weight from leading a “lazy” lifestyle. I am really motivated and want to do as much as possible to lose weight. My question is, what is the maximum time you would recommend to work out daily? I would like to do a 2 hour work out session each time, but I have heard via the grapevine that you should not exceed an hour, is this true?
Gerda via info@fitnessmag.co.za

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Safety of supplements

Thank you for a great mag! I have been health conscious and training regularly since I was 18 years old, I am now 27. My long term boyfriend unfortunately does not share the same healthy lifestyle or love for training as I do and has always been “very concerned” regarding the supplements I take.

I love training with weights and do so at least 4 times a week, along with cardio every other day. I am currently taking Hydroxycut Max (I recently went overseas to work and put on 12 kilos in the few months I was there, I have since lost all the weight). I also take a protein shake (after each training session) and I take a multivitamin in the morning and calcium in the evenings.

I previously (before I went overseas) used Nitric Oxide and enjoyed the results I got using this supplement, so would like to start using it again, however my boyfriend doesn’t support me taking all these “pills”, as he puts it. I think he is ignorant with regards to this lifestyle, so I would like to hear from you whether taking these supplements could be detrimental to my health in the long term. I need to let him know that there is no real problem, so he won’t have something to say every time I buy or take my supplements. My eating plan is healthy and I have one cheat day a week and drink plenty water. I don’t smoke or drink alcohol, nor do I suffer from any illness/conditions, etc.

Please let me know, so I can put his mind to rest that these supplements are here to help me achieve results without affecting my health.
Bronwyn via info@fitnessmag.co.za

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My body fat is dropping but Im not losing weight

I am 24 years old. I exercise 4 times a week, 2 cardio sessions and the other 2 times with a personal trainer.  I have done this for the last 3 months. My body fat % has dropped, and I have lost centimetres, but I don’t loose weight. Why is that? Now the other thing, I’m on the Depot provera* injection, and I just can’t loose weight. Is that perhaps the problem?
Thanks for a great magazine; it really inspires me to exercise.
Regards
Louizan via info@fitnessmag.co.za

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Getting back my body!

Thank you for an awesome and inspiring magazine. I am 25 years old and I have been training since the age of 18. It has always been a huge part of my life and, up until a couple of years ago I was in my best shape ever. I now have two children, both of whom were surprises and they were only a year and a half apart. Since having my boys, and also staying on an isolated farm my training has taken a back seat and my body has changed drastically.
I do train (with weights mainly) and I know that diet is key when it comes to losing body fat. My diet is ok, but having two young boys means temptation is always present. On a good day my diet looks like this:

• Breakfast: Oats with fat free milk and raisins, and a lean protein powder
• Snack: Fat free yoghurt
• Lunch: Tuna and potato or Provita’s with light mayo or fat free cottage cheese
• Snack: Fruit
• Dinner: Grilled chicken breast with salad or cooked veg

I drink about 3 litres of water every day and use USN Phedra Cut Liquid and Lean Protein. I superset my exercises and keep my heart rate up with a minute of cardio between my sets. Is it really possible to lose the “post pregnancy pouch” or am I fighting a losing battle?

Any diet and training advice will be greatly appreciated.
Mon via www.fitnessmag.co.za

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Meal timing with cardio for fat loss

Hi there Fitness Mag! I recently started training with a personal trainer. He said that on the days I did cardio , I must not have breakfast until after my cardio session. He also would not allow me to do spinning for cardio, why is this? On alternate days, when I do weight training, I have to eat before training – what would be the reason for this?
Jane via www.fitnessmag.co.za

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The best fat burner

Hi Nicole, after having 2 complicated pregnancies (giving birth by c-section) I settled into a sedentary lifestyle, piled on the kilo’s and diagnosed with PCOS (PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome) and borderline diabetes. I have decided this year enough is enough. I’m going to get off my butt (a mighty big one I might add) and I am going to work hard and get a FIT and TONED body.

I’ve signed up with Weight Watchers and my local gym. I do 2 days of cardio, 1 day of weights & 1 day of yoga. My body feels like it cannot handle more than that at this stage, so I am hoping to increase my exercise regime as I get fitter.

My major problem is that while losing weight (steadily) I’m not getting rid of fat. My tummy, thighs, knees and arms look like they’ve been taken over by some wobbly space- creature. I’m too embarrassed to even undress in front of my hubby.

Please help by advising the best fat burner out there and if I use a good fat burner in conjunction with Whey Protein & CLA (3000mg/day), if this will this help me achieve my dream of having a toned body once again. I am 1.7m tall, weigh 90kg and my BF% is through the roof. PLEASE HELP ME!

Once again thanks for a FAB, FAB, FAB MAG – you have a fan for life.
Humeira (via info@fitnessmag.co.za)

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Do I do heavy lifts or do I lift light?

Hi Nicole! Firstly, I think you are a great inspiration for so many women out there. As a goal, I have your magazine cut out against my wall at work right next to Ava Cowan. I am about to start my life-changing lifestyle. I eat 100% correctly, but it’s the training I’m not so sure of. I do one day cardio, the next day, weight training… now my question is: do I do heavy lifts or do I lift light? I’ve heard so many explanations in this regard.

Currently I’m 1.6m and weigh 95kg. Everyone tells me I must not do heavy weights at all, because I will bulk up too much and not lose weight. Please help.
Janelle (via info@fitnessmag.co.za)

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