Monday, February 24, 2014

BIGGEST LOSER "19" (WEEK FIVE) -- INTERVAL TRAINING

Interval training is one of the most effective ways to get in shape, stay in shape, and for our Biggest Losers, weight loss. Interval training workouts are also usually pretty quick, which is good if you’re running short on time.

The first type of interval training used five stations in a circuit: KettleBell swings, Box Jumps, Dumbbell Curls, Ball Smacks, and Assorted Ab exercises for 45 seconds on each, with 15 seconds rest while moving to the next one. This was done for a total of four rounds. You can always change out the exercises to make a completely different workout.

Last week they did some High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) in the cardio room. They each started on whatever equipment they happened to be using (treadmill, elliptical, rower, recumbent bike, Schwinn AirDyne, or stair-stepper). Here’s what it looked like:

• 2 minutes warm-up
• 1 minute “harder work”, 1 minute “recovery”
• 1 minute “even harder work”, 1 minute “recovery”
• 1 minute “really harder”, 1 minute “recovery”
• 1 minute “as hard as you can go”, 1 minute “recovery”
(Repeat on different equipment four times)

This week they incorporated both high intensity cardio intervals together with circuit training intervals to create a monster workout. These can be the most difficult. Here’s the basic one they started with:

Run ¼ mile on treadmill
25 push-ups
25 body squats
25 sit-ups
(4x)
Note: Try to do each ¼ mile run faster than the one before.

Our Week Five Biggest Loser was Sarah Mitchell, who lost 3.2 lbs and 2.2% of her body weight. Rhonda Arthur was second, losing 3.8 lbs and 1.9%. Michelle Clark placed third, losing 2.0 lbs and 1.2%.

Friday, February 14, 2014

BIGGEST LOSER "19" -- WEEKS 2, 3, 4

BODIES-IN-BALANCE: BIGGEST LOSER “19” – WEEKS 2, 3, & 4

It’s been a pretty busy time around here, what with the winter storm and other goings on, but finally, here’s the skinny on Biggest Loser “19.”

Week Two was another great week, following that amazing first week. Cheryl Redman was the winner, losing an amazing 7.0 lbs, and 3.0% of her body weight. Lori Newlin was second, losing 5.2 lbs and 2.2%, and Penny Spinner placed third, losing 3.6 lbs and 2.1%.

I have to say, things went a little south in Week Three. Anytime you get taken out of your routine, something has to suffer. The weather derailed a lot of people, and in this case, it also derailed their weight loss. After an amazing first two weeks, ten of the thirty participants actually gained weight!

It’s not unusual for a few to gain, since weight loss tends to be a little erratic at times. We’ll often see someone have a great week, and then a so-so week, followed by another great week, and so on.

But something else seemed to be going on in Week Three, because it’s pretty unheard of to have a third of the group gaining. And the ones that did lose weight, didn’t lose that much, either. Only the top two put up numbers similar to those we saw in the first two weeks.

My guess is that the weather was responsible for forcing people to miss several workouts, as shown by the low turnout for the weekly Monday night workout. It might also have had an effect on their eating habits, too. Hopefully, as the snow gets cleared away, everyone will get back on track with the program.

The winner for Week Three was Sarah Mitchell, who lost 4.2 lbs and 2.9% of her body weight. Second place went to Brooke Bishop, who lost 2.4 lbs and 3.7%. Rhonda Arthur came in third, losing 2.4 lbs and 1.2%.

Week Four was a better week all around. We had more participation in the Monday night workout, this time doing High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). I’ll tell you more about the workout another time.

It looks like people were able to get their routines established again, because only a few people had a gain for the week, and the average weight loss was much better than the week before. With a month down, it’s time for them to take a look at their original goal to see if they are on track, and make any needed adjustments.

Our Week Four winner was Beth Motley, who lost 4.0 lbs, and 2.1%. I’ve heard through the grapevine that she attributes that to moving their elliptical inside from out in the garage! Penny Spinner placed second, losing 3.0 lbs and 1.8%. Christen Reed was third, losing 2.8 lbs and 1.7%, and Terra Ogle finished in forth place, losing 3.2 lbs and 1.6%.

For more information, you can reach by email at tomdolanfitness@gmail.com, or through Facebook at www.facebook/tomdolanfitness!