The importance of what you eat a life lesson learned

Today I went to get my resting metabolic rate measured expecting it to be great with no issues.  After all I workout and eat better than the average person.  Well boy was I in for a surprise.  My calorie burn was within the average by 20 calories which is rare for someone who works out 5-6 days a week.  We than looked at the percentage of calories I was burning from fat and it was 19% the average person burns 50% and you want to burn around 75% or higher.  So a whopping 19% is not good at all.

So now I am logging all of my foods and changed the percentage of carbs, fats and proteins I am eating.  If you chart your own you should only be getting 100grams of carbohydrates when on websites it will allow for close to 300 which is much more than the body can process I learned today.  So I thought if my body is this out of whack on my metabolism and I am in the average weight and body fat percentage.  This is a major issue that can be affecting millions of americans and we don't even know it.

So my advice for you would be find someone who can measure your metabolic rate at rest so you do know how many calories you should be eating and of what percentage you should be eating of carbs, proteins and fats.  I was under eating and thought I was eating plenty of food throughout the day. So get your nutrition in check to help change that metabolism it can take months but stick with it, it can be done.  I will be doing it myself right along with you!

Creative Cardio Workout Plans

How many people like to trudge away on the treadmill to get their cardio workout in 3-5 times a week?  The answer, not many. I myself enjoy the treadmill but know I am not the majority on this one.  So what can you do to get your heart rate up to burn those calories without being on the treadmill for hours on end?  Here are some options:

Option 1: Cardio Lifting
*Don't be scared by the title

1. Squats with a shoulder press
2. Step-ups onto a bench with a bicep curl
3. Lunge w/woodchopper
4. SB-V-up pass thrus
5. Up-Down Planks
6. Dips w/toe reach
7. Chest press to a crunch
8. Deadlift to a row

*Repeat above exercises 1 time if you are a beginner, 2 times intermediate and 3-4 for advanced, you want to do 10-15 reps of each exercise

Option 2: Cardio Mix-Ups
*Note this workout is best when the gym is not to busy

1.On cardio equipment of your choice 2 minutes at the top speed you can handle
2. Get off and perform 20 squats
3. On another piece of cardio equipment of your choice 2 minutes at the top speed you can handle
4. Get off and perform 20 lunges
5. Back to 1st cardio equipment 2 minutes at the top speed you can handle
6. Get off and perform 15 jump squats (regular squats if you cannot do jump squats)
7. Side step-ups to bench w/shoulder press- 10 a side
8. Cable Woodchoppers- 10 a side
9. Pull-ups or assisted pull-ups- 15
10. Split Jumps (regular lunges if you cannot do split jumps)- 14

*Repeat above exercises 1 time if you are a beginner, 2 times intermediate and 3-4 for advanced

***Note above workouts are to be performed after a 5-10 minute warm-up and should include a 5-10 minute cool down to get your heart rate back down.

If you don't know what some of the workouts are google the names and it should pop up or check out my website for videos on some of the exercises.  www.safiretraining.com