Archive for December, 2008

No matter age or size, it’s easy to make mistakes when working out. These mistakes, with a bit of knowledge, can be easily avoided and it’s certainly in your best interest to take note.

Without further ado; the top 5 mistakes teenagers make when working out.

Diet

Possibly the number 1 mistake made by teenagers. It’s a common scenario when a teenager picks up a magazine or searches online and goes straight to the training articles. They then focus solely on weights and after weeks of minimal gains, end up bored and quitting.

As stated in our guide to protein, it’s really important that you at least try to improve on your diet. I’m not saying you should be counting every calorie or micro-nutrient, but next time you’re craving a chocolate bar, why not have a banana instead. Bananas are a good source of carbs and don’t contain the high levels of sugar and caffeine like chocolate.

These simple substitutions make a huge difference and will have a massive impact on your overall diet. Not only will your gains increase, you will also feel healthy and have more energy in general.

Another mistake teenagers often make is they don’t eat enough. It’s easy to think that by eating less, you’ll loose fat and so your muscles and six pac will show through that much better. This simply isn’t true. Your body would rather eat into your muscle supplies over your fat. This means that by working out and eating less, all you’re going to see is minimal gains, if that.

Consistency

A small, but common mistake. To make positive gains you have to be consistent. It’s easy to become easily excited with the initial gains, which happen fast. But once this period is over, it’s also easy to loose interest, often completely.

This stage after the ‘newbie’ gains is absolutely critical and slacking at this point will cost you. Remember, the body will only get bigger and stronger if you want it to. Getting leaniant in your work outs and eating will only result in your body regressing back to its original strength and size.

Distractions when working out

A good workout should consist of about 30 minutes of intense lifting or cardio. Try to workout in a room or area where you are alone and away from distractions like mobile phones or laptops. These will only hinder your workout and long gaps between sets are not productive. Maximum focus on your current exercise and workout, without distractions, will result in more reps and so leading to better gains.

Over training

Being a teenage means we have tons of energy, maybe sometimes too much. When first starting to workout it is understandably easy to over train. You love that feeling you get every time you have a hard workout and believe the more training the better. This is a common belief, and by thinking this you are just one of many.

As said in the how importance is rest article, by working out you cause microscopic tears in your muscles. If you then don’t give these muscles enough time to repair you’ll end up doing more damage than good and your gains will suffer.

Aim to have no more than 3-4 heavy workout days a week.

Not having fun - Boredom

After the initial few months of gains it’s easy to become bored. Remember, having fun and enjoying your exercise is crucial and getting fed up can be a killer for all of us.

Take a look in the mirror every now and again. Though it may seem vain, seeing how much you’ve improved and grown over the time you’ve been working out can be a huge motivator. Taking a picture of yourself every few weeks is also a good way to see how much you’ve improved.

Varying your exercises can also help. There are literally hundreds of variations of the simple crunch; imagine how many other ways there are to do your other typical exercises. All it takes is a few seconds on google and you have a whole new workout.

Conclusion

Well there you have it, 5 of the most commonly made mistakes teenagers make. If you are serious about your lifting and want to see some positive gains, remember to keep all these in mind. They’re simple to avoid but easy to fall victim to.

Abs. Possibly the most popular part of the body which people want to workout. The result, a stronger, harder stomach with prominent abdominal muscles.

Abs are the core of your body and are used in almost everything, from lifting, to simply getting out of bed in the morning.

Here are a simple set of exercises you could begin with when first starting to workout your abs.

Crunches

A simple, yet effective exercise. It focuses just on your abs rather than your back and other muscles like a sit up.

To perform a crunch, like on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Your legs should be body width apart.

Now, put your hands behind your ears and look at the ceiling. Choose a point and fixate your eyes on this spot. Curl up and forwards so that your head, neck and shoulders leave the ground. The distance you raise your head will increase the more you practise, but you should aim to come up a fair few inches. Once reaching your peak hold for two seconds and you should feel your abs tense, then come back down. This is one repetition.

Perform 4 sets of this exercise with each set consisting of 20-40 repetitions. Give yourself up to 60 seconds rest between each set.

Leg Lifts

Leg lifts are also a simple, core exercise which can be done with dumbbells to increase the intensity.

To complete a leg lift, lie on your back, legs straight out and hands at your sides. Lift your legs till they are at about a 70-80 degree angle then slowly lower down until they are a few inches from the floor. This is one repetition.

Perform 4 sets of this exercise, each set consisting of 30-40 repetitions. Again, give yourself up to 60 seconds rest between each set.

Bicycle Exercise

The bicycle crunch is a great way to finish your ab workout. You’re probably going to be aching at this point so don’t worry if you cant complete many, or any sets at all.

Lie flat on the floor with your head face up. Place your hands on the side of your head so your elbows stick out opposite each other. Now that your in position, lift your left shoulder of the floor and meet your left elbow with your right knee. Then do the same but with your right elbow and your left knee. This is one repetition.

Perform as many sets as you can of this exercise with each set consisting of 20-40 repetitions.

Result

Perform this routine at least 3 times a week but no more than 4 and you will see results within the month. Even if you don’t see results due to a high fat percentage you will still have stronger abs which will be shown as soon as fat is lost.

Rests importance?

You’ve probably heard mentioned multiple times that rest is important in exercise. In fact, you could say it’s almost as important as the training itself.

As said before in a previous post, muscles grow by tearing and repairing. When performing a vigorous and repetitive exercise you are in fact tearing your muscles. As these muscles then repair, leaner, more stronger muscle takes it’s place. The efficiency of this cycle is crucial to your gains.

By not giving yourself enough rest between exercise, you don’t give your muscles adequate time to repair themselves. Remember, you don’t build muscle in the gym, but as it’s repairing, during rest. So not only is not having enough rest going to limit your gains, but it could also be dangerous.

Just like eating too much chocolate makes you ill, too much exercise can do just the same. It could also give you long lasting pain which may stop you from doing certain workouts for a period of time.

How much rest?

On average a muscle needs 24-48 hours to completely recover after a heavy workout. There’s no exact science to this as it varies from person to person though this is the rough figure.

If you feel the need to workout somehow every day, you can overcome the rest period by exercising different muscles every day. So for instance on Monday - abs, Tuesday - biceps, etc. This technique requires a little know how; though you may be focusing on your biceps for instance, secondary muscles such as your shoulders or chest may still be used depending on the exercise, thus some muscles may not get the rest they require.

Can you reduce rest time?

Short answer. No. But you can prolong it by not eating/drinking enough protein.

Why Protein?

By working out and training, you are in effect ripping your muscles. This is what causes the pain and aching after a session in the gym. When your muscles rip they then need to repair themselves, forming larger, more leaner muscle. This constant cycle of repair is where protein comes in. Without sufficient protein your muscles will be unable to repair themselves and your gains will suffer.

It’s a common myth that to build muscle you need to overdose yourself on protein. Though you do need to increase your intake, you certainly don’t need to go over board. Excessive intake will just result in you urinating it out or in it just being left undigested.

How Much?

So, how much protein should you take? According to scientific studies you should be aiming to increase you’re protein intake to 1.5 grams per pound body weight. Chances are you’re not going to stick to this like a religion, though you should make some sort of effort to increase your intake.

Here are a few tips:

• Simple things like ordering fish instead of sausage at the take-away.
• Try to eat some kind of meat with every meal.
• For breakfast include a glass of milk.
• Drink a protein shake before or after your workout.

Protein Shakes

Not everyone has the time or money to be cooking good quality and vast quantity’s of meat everyday. This is where protein shakes come in. They provide a safe, relatively cheap alternative and can be brought from most major retailers or health shops.

There is much debate over protein shakes but the facts are simple. Drinking just one shake a day will do wonders for your protein intake and contains barely any fat.

The safest and most commonly used type of protein, which I myself personaly advise, is whey protein as it is the safest and has been known to have no side effects.

Finding the right shake for you might take a while as some taste nicer then others and others may not agree with your body. Personally I use strawberry flavoured, pro power, whey protein. It can be mixed with either water or milk, costs only

Chances are you’ve stumbled across this blog looking for some incentive or advice on working out as a teenager. The benefits are endless, but without further ado, here are the top 5:

5. Start the habit young

One of the best things you can do to your body is exercise and keep fit. It is absolute fact that people who exercise regularly live longer and healthier lives, and so the younger you start the better. You’re also more likely to keep exercising throughout your life when starting the habit soon rather than later.

Teenagers (like myself) also often fail to realise that they have more free time now than they will probably have for the rest of their lives. This means you’ll have more time to focus on your diet and exercise without money stresses or bills to pay.

4. Lose Weight

Muscle not only weighs more than fat but also burns more calories. By having a higher muscle to fat ratio your are effectively burning more calories in your everyday life than you would be normally. This basically means that weight training and aerobic exercise are your best bets in the fight against fat.

3. A stronger body

People often forget the actual practicalities of being a stronger, leaner person. Every one’s had that moment where someone fails to lift/open something and you wish you could just walk over there and show them how it’s done.

It’s a strange feeling at first but what you first start to work out you’ll soon begin to notice that things you initially thought were heavy, suddenly become lighter. Even simple things like opening heavy doors and carrying bags seems not quite as hard as you initially thought it was.

Unsurprisingly it’s a satisfying feeling when you can lift twice as much as your parents and an impressive practicality when with friends or that special somebody.

2. The biology bit

Regular exercise increases the strength and efficiency of your heart. An unfit person will have more beats per second compared to a fit person doing the same amount of exercise. A fit person will also recover quicker then an unfit person.

During exercise it has been shown that blood circulation increases up to 30 times in individual muscles and organs. This supply’s the muscles with more nutrition and oxygen.

Going through that spot phase, a.k.a puberty? Forget Clearasil, go and exercise for a while. The pores in the skin open up during intense activity. The result is a healthier, cleaner skin.

1. Better body tone

Finally, the main reason why most teenagers choose to workout, specifically weight train. You’re going to look more lean and toned. Yes we’re talking about bigger biceps, six pac, pecks etc.

The fact is, it’s going to happen. By efficiently strengthening your muscles they’re going to get bigger and leaner. This is certainly impressive physically when wearing short sleeves or a tank top, and is even noticeable by a general touch. Though it wont get you the girl, it will certainly help.