It’s
that time of year, again!

Time
for those dreaded New Year’s Resolutions.

How
many times have you made a resolution to get something done only to
fall short of your goal? I’ve been there many times as well. It
can be tough to stick to a new goal, a new schedule, or a change of
routine.

If
you’re even a little bit like me, you tell yourself you don’t
need to make a resolution. You can just change what you do at any
time and make it work. I like to think that…but I think I’m just
lying to myself.

So…for
all of you that need to make a change this year in your fitness and
exercise routines (this includes me), I decided to write a short list
that will help us make good decisions on how to start our workouts
and to know how much is too much.

1. What is your exercise
goal?
To determine this, you need to ask yourself what goal you are trying
to complete? Do you want to lose weight? Do you want to gain
muscle? Do you want to lower your blood pressure, improve your
energy, improve your health? Are you looking at performing a race
(marathon, ½ marathon, triathlon, bike a 100-miles) this year?

If
you are having trouble with setting your goals, remember that you
need to be very specific, set a time frame for reaching them, and
break them down into shorter, more manageable stepping-stone goals.
Reaching your stepping stones along the way is a great
“pat-on-the-back” that can really help to motivate you to keep up
the good fight.

For
more on writing and setting
your goals,
read my blog from last New Year’s. You can read that one right
HERE.

So
now that you have taken a moment to consider your exercise goals for
the New Year, there are several factors that also need to be
considered to help you make good decisions about 1) how hard to
workout, 2) how often to workout, and 3)with how much resistance.

2. How hard should you
workout? The
answer to this is a little tougher than just giving a single piece of
advice. There are tons of hypotheses floating around about how
intensely you should workout.

The
American Heart Association advocates a target heart rate as follows:

Moderate
Exercise – 50%-70% of age predicted HR maximum

Vigorous
Exercise – 70%- 85% of age predicted HR maximum

If
you are just starting out, it is recommended to stay in the lower
grouping (50-70%). If you have been working out already and want to
advance things, then you can workout between 70% and 85% of your
age-predicted heart rate maximum. But what exactly does that mean,
and how do you measure it?

You
can do a simple search to get the formulas, or even have an online
calculator do all the math for you. I’m going to break down two
ways for you here. One is the long form, the other is the simple
form.

Here
is the long form (with my age used in the calculations as the
example):

1. Subtract
   your age from 220. (220-50=170) 170 is my age-predicted
   maximum heart rate.

1. Subtract
   your resting heart rate from the remaining number (age-predicted max
   HR). (170-63= 107) This number is called the Heart
   Rate Reserve (HRR).

1. Multiply
   HRR by 70% (.7) then add that number to your resting heart rate
   number, which will be the lower
   limit
   of your workout heart rate range. 107*.7=75+63 (my resting HR)=138

1. Multiply
   HRR by 85% (.85) then add that number to your resting heart rate
   number, which will be the upper
   limit
   of your workout heart rate range. 107*.85=91+63 (my resting
   HR)=154

This
means that for a vigorous
workout, I should keep my hear rate between 138 and 154 beats per
minute.

If
I were just beginning, I would use 50% and 70% as my multipliers to
get 107*.5=53.5 (54 bpm) and 107*.7=75 bpm. This means, after
adding in my resting HR of 63, my moderate
workout heart rate range would be 117 and 138 beats per minute.

Now
for the simple formula to get near the same numbers…

Just
use this single step arithmetic problem.

1. Take
   180 and subtract your age. For me that would be 180-50= 130bpm

That’s
it. No more steps…okay maybe a small step.

If
you’re just starting out (or rehabing an injury), subtract 5-10
beats, and if you are an exercise fiend already, add 10-15 beats.

That
means the beginner’s range (moderate)
would be 120-130bpm, while the exercise fiend’s range (vigorous)
would be 130-145bpm.

You
can see that the first equation is more complete and most likely more
accurate, but the second one gets you pretty much the same numbers
really quickly. The most accurate way to get the heart rate ranges
is through a metabolic stress test…but that’s a discussion for
another day…or maybe not.

The
easiest way to follow your pulse while you are working out is to wear
a heart rate monitor. I have used Polar
Pacer products for years and they are easy to
use and accurate. I have tried other brands as well with mixed
results on getting a reading from the chest strap, so I can really
only recommend the Polar
Electro products. Many Garmin and Fitbit
watches now can give real-time pulse readings as well, but I haven’t
found these to be as reliably accurate as a HR monitor with a chest
strap.

So
now you know your workout heart rate range. Time to choose your
workout.

If
you are doing aerobic fitness workouts, you simply need to choose
your form of exercise. You could walk, use an elliptical, use a
stair climber, go for a run, ride a bike…it’s up to you. But
keep in mind that you do need to monitor your heart rate to get the
most out of your workout. Doing too much is tough on you and often
times makes people so tired or sore that they don’t want to
exercise again. But the flip side is also a problem…doing too
little is likely a waste of your time. And time is and unrecoverable
commodity. So make your aerobic workout count by getting into the
appropriate workout hear rate range.

But
what if your goal is to get stronger or build more muscle?

3. How much weight should
you lift?

Again,
if you search this out, you will get a very large range of answers.
There is so much information out there that it gets overwhelming. So
let’s try to simplify this as well.

If
you are trying to build strength and muscle, you need to workout with
a weight that will fatigue your muscles. For strength, that fatigue
should happen in around 8-11 repetitions. To build bigger muscles,
that fatigue needs to happen more quickly, in 3-7 repetitions.

Now
what that means is that the higher repetitions will be with slightly
lighter weights. The lower number requires heavier weights.

When
you are starting out, stick with the higher number (8-11 reps).
Otherwise it is likely that you will work your muscles so hard that
it will cause a ton of soreness, and possibly cause excessive
breakdown or tearing of the muscles you are trying to build.

But
what amount
of weight should you lift?

The
simplest way of answering this is to figure out your 15-rep max.
“What is a rep max?” you ask. It is the
amount of weight that will fatigue the muscle when you lift it for
the number of times specified.

This
means that a 15-rep max would be the amount of weight that you can
move 15-times for a specific movement or exercise…and that you
could NOT lift a 16^th
time. Your muscle would be fatigued on the 15^th
repetition.

Not
sure what that amount is? Start with the lightest weight you can on
the equipment you are using. If you can move it 20-times, move to
the next heavier weight. If you can move it 20-times, move to the
next heavier weight. Repeat this process until you get to the weight
you can’t move more than 15-repetitions. That’s your 15-rep max
amount. (Note: There is no need to do more than 20 repetitions of a
weight when searching for the 15-rep max, so don’t waste your time.
Doing a weight for 45-50 reps will give you no information about
what your 15-rep max is).

 

Use
that amount of weight (15-rep max) for that particular
movement/exercise, and do the exercise for 3 sets of 8-11
repetitions. Yes, I know…that sounds too easy. But here is the
secret. Take
SHORT rests
between the sets. By short, I mean 30-seconds…not
a second more.
By that third set, you should be pretty darn fatigued, without
having to resort to lifting super heavy weights that also bring a
higher risk of injury with them.

And
don’t get too complicated with the workout at first either. Begin
by choosing four (4) exercises. Need help choosing? Consult a
trainer or physical therapist and discuss your goals with them. They
should be able to help you choose the four most effective exercises
to help you in reaching your strength goals. Depending on your
goals, you might need to split your routine into four upper body
exercises and four lower body exercises, to be performed on different
days.

If
you are trying to get bigger muscles, the same rules apply, just go
with an 8-10 rep max weight and lift it for 3 sets of 3-7
repetitions. Same short rests between sets. But be prepared to have
a lot
more muscle soreness
than if you were doing the lighter weight sets described above.

4.
Consistency Matters!

Unfortunately,
there are no short cuts to making changes in your health. This is
going to be a marathon, not a sprint. So get used to the idea that
you will be making small, incremental gains that will build through
the year.

Don’t
think that losing a pound every week is enough? Do that math for the
year…52-pounds lighter by this time next year. And losing the
weight at that slow, consistent pace makes your weight lose much more
likely to be permanent.

What
about those bigger, stronger muscles? What if you can lift another
pound every week? That’s lifting an extra 52-pounds by the end of
the year. Might be possible with some movements, like squats and
bench press, but don’t think that’s going to happen with a biceps
curl or a dumbbell raise. But you will still see gains.

The
key is to get into a good routine that you can do consistently.

How
often should you exercise?
Well that depends.

For
aerobic
workouts,
you should be staying in that target range for 30-40-minutes six (6)
times a week.

Yup,
you read that right. Six
times per week.
You can do less frequently, but believe it or not, three
times
a week is actually more stressful on your heart.
Current recommendation is at least 4-6 times per week.

 

For
weight
lifting workouts,
you should be doing 2-days
of resistance training on each body part.
That means two days of those four-exercise-routines we just
discussed. For strength gains, it only takes 40-45 repetitions per
body part per week. I know, that sounds like too few, but that’s
what the research shows. So 3 sets of 8 repetitions twice a week
adds up to 48 repetitions/body part/week.

You
guys that want to lift the heavier weights will stay lower in the
number of repetitions, but don’t worry. The higher load makes up
for that…and your muscles are going to need a longer time to
recover even from those fewer repetitions.

By
keeping your workouts in the correct range of intensity, you should
not experience an excessive amount of post-workout soreness. Working
at too high an intensity early in your workout experience will make
you very sore. And in my experience, being that sore often is a
DE-motivator
for people to want to return to the gym…ever!

So
to give you a brief summary…

1. Don’t
   just start working out without a goal in mind. Without a goal,
   there is no way to stay motivated, and no way to measure your
   progress. Set your goals first.

2. Figure
   out at what level you should be working. Use the calculations above
   to find your heart rate range.

3. Use
   the gym to find your rep-max figures.

4. Set
   up a list of 4-exercises to do for your resistance training and
   stick with them. Do 3 sets of 8-11 repetitions to get stronger.

5. Be
   consistent! Don’t skip days…even there’s always an excuse to
   not
   work out… I tell those lies to myself as well. But ignore those
   lies. Set your goals, break them down into attainable levels, and
   keep moving forward.

Remember,
there is no 5-minute
fix
for your weight loss, your strength gains, or your muscle building.
Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something.

This
is a marathon, so pace yourself. Start small, get some early
successes, and build on that momentum to reach your goals…and
beyond.

Have
a safe, happy, physically active and healthy New Year!

NOTE:
The
information in this blog is not
intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health
care professional and is not
intended
as medical advice. It is intended as a sharing of knowledge and
information based on the research and experience of the physical
therapists at Lifestrength (www.Lifestrengthpt.com).
We encourage you to make your own health care decisions based upon
your research and in partnership with a qualified health care
professional. Significant injury risk is possible if you do not
follow due diligence and seek suitable professional advice about your
injury.