Ok, So Where Do I Start?

The case for Mobility and Strength work, and the case against Cardio(aka You're Doing It Wrong!!!!!!11111)

This sounds like crazy talk doesn't it? The "case against cardio"? This guy must be nuts, I mean even my out of shape upstairs neighbor knows that cardio is the most important thing in the world! 

When most people start an exercise program they do it ass backwards(pretty much how uneducated people that don't seek the help of more knowledgeable people do everything but I digress). All energy is spent towards prioritizing "cardio" and little is paid to mobility work and strength training. The exception of which is yoga, where mobility is the main goal, but other aspects of fitness are largely ignored, and in a group setting, each individual's specific needs probably won't be addressed. It's great stuff but can be very inefficient time-wise.

There are almost limitless reasons as to why focusing on steady state cardio is a bad idea for virtually everyone. So why does almost everyone who starts exercising emphasize this mode of training? Ignorance, really, is the main answer. People think it burns way more calories than it actually does, and people are unaware that the best way to decrease body fat levels isn't through exercise(it helps a little) but through moderate calorie restriction. It is way more efficient to not eat 500 calories than it is to burn 500 calories.

Let's crunch some numbers. One pound of fat is 3500 calories. A typical 30 minute cardio session might burn somewhere around 300 calories. If a person did 3 workouts per week for one month, they would burn a total of 3600 calories. Congratulations, you just spent  6 hours and a month of your exercise time to burn ONE POUND OF FAT. Someone on a 500 calorie per day deficit(which is very manageable) will lose ONE POUND PER WEEK with NO EXERCISE AT ALL.

Don't get me wrong, I am not against people doing some steady state cardio work, especially if they really enjoy it, or need it for sport specific reasons. I am however, against making it the focus of your training under some false hopes that it will get you a more balanced, leaner, "healthier" body without paying attention to caloric intake or doing mobility and strength work. Usually you will end up skinny fat, weak, with all sorts of recurring injuries based on your repetitive and faulty movement patterns and muscle imbalances.

When I train a new client who is de-conditioned, I really hammer the mobility work, I want to make sure everything on their body is working like it should before we tackle higher intensity stuff. This doesn't mean we don't train for strength almost from the get go because we do. Strength training will help solve these movement and postural dysfunction, and often helps to uncover them(having a beginner do squats, get ups and swings will tell me A LOT about their body). What I don't have them do is cardio work. Why not? Well if they aren't moving well, are weak, and haven't done any exercise, why would I want this person doing a repetitive movement pattern that won't make their body any stronger or more resilient? Also, the weight training we do will have a bit of a cardio effect as far as cardiovascular fitness is concerned(ever done a set of 15 kettlebell swings?). We have to lay a proper foundation of movement and strength before we go onto other things. 

When I talk about mobility work, I mean everything from a general movement prep warm-up, to static stretching and SMR(self-myofascial release with a ball or roller). Also under the realm of mobility is posture, and uncovering any movement and/or postural imbalances. Think about it this way, if your body isn't moving correctly, using the right muscles at the right time, eventually muscle imbalances occur and injury will be inevitable. Proper posture, movement patterns, and avoiding dysfunctions in these areas are the proper foundation for all other activities.

When it's broken down into simple terms, isn't this approach sound and logical? When a person is deprogrammed from the false belief that cardio training is responsible for fat loss, and made aware of how important it is to eliminate dysfunction from their body, they are well on their way to success in their fitness endeavors.

Let's look at the two vastly different programming models and figure out which one you would rather operate under:

Model 1: Typical Gym Going(thru the motions) Normal Person

-does tons of cardio, like literally can't get enough of that elliptical!

-probably adds a lot of what they think is "core" work

-uses machines because they don't want to get "too big", they strangely weren't concerned about ice cream causing the same effect

-possibly does a few stretches here and there, but nothing that is science or evidenced based, and mostly as an afterthought

If this person pays attention to their diet, they will get leaner, but will still be weak(think about your older age and osteoporosis if you aren't sure why being weak is bad), have a lot of aches and pains from a program that puts wear and tear on their body(lower back pain, knees hurting, etc). People also look at their butt and are generally disappointed.

Model 2: Smart, Hard Working, Kick Ass Renaissance Chick

-mobilizes effectively 

-lifts heavy things

-does interval conditioning and steady state cardio as needed

If this person pays attention to their diet, their butt will have the power to rule nations and when you wave goodbye to them, their hand is the only part of their arm that waves back to you.

*I realize some of this is redundant if you have already read my initial entry, but these are fundamentals that literally can't be read enough.

Manifesto/Agenda/Why I am writing this stuff.

Lift and Get Hot. Female Beauty through Strength Training. Say what? Let me break it down into the simplest of terms: 

Women who eat correctly and train hard with weights look really, really good. 

That's the gist of it. Like it or don't like it but embrace it and believe it, for it is certain.

The devil is in the details(and probably some lululemon tights) but at it's core, that is probably the most correct statement you will ever hear espoused from any so called fitness expert(such as myself), so I will repeat it: 

Women who eat correctly and train hard with weights look really, really good. 

So, if I make a statement that says X+Y=Z I had probably better at least attempt to define what constitutes X, Y, and Z. 

Let's start with X, eating correctly. Without going into excessive detail, as there are countless sites and blogs dedicated exclusively to this, I will say it has to do with eating the correct number of calories(if you are overweight this means less than you eat now) and right amount of protein(probably more than you eat now). The rest is somewhat important but nowhere near as important as those 2 factors, run from anyone telling you differently especially if they are pushing an agenda like veganism or "clean" eating or mention anything about "cleansing" or "toxins".

Now on to Y, what constitutes training "hard" with weights? My definition is training full body, multi joint movements, and trying to get as strong as possible at them. Squats, deadlifts, rows, presses, kettlebell exercises like swings and get ups, or dragging a sled with as much weight as you can move. I think you get the idea. Notice I did not include anything machine related or small isolation movements like curls or standing on a bosu ball pressing pink 5 pound dumbbells. 

When I train female clients I use body weight exercises, med balls, the TRX, bands, gymnastic rings, sandbags, all sorts of things for conditioning/core work, but the foundation is laid with heavy, basic weight training. It comes back to the basic idea: Lift some heavy s**t on a regular basis and you will look better.

We've covered X and Y, so now onto the hard part, Z. This is of course subjective and there are many body types and looks that most people will consider attractive. Most of these come down to a lean, athletic body, which is what lifting heavy and eating properly will certainly give you. The following is one of my favorite quotes(and there are many) of noted author Mark Rippetoe:

"The fact is that aesthetics are best obtained from training for performance. In both architecture and human beauty, form follows function. Always and everywhere, the human body has a certain appearance when it performs at a high level, and depending on the nature of that high-level performance, this appearance is usually regarded as aesthetically pleasing, for reasons that are DNA-level deep. The training through which high-level performance is obtained is the only reliable way to obtain these aesthetics, and the only exceptions to this method of obtaining them are the occasional genetically-gifted freaks-people who look like they train when they were just born lucky. As a general rule, if you want to look like a lean athlete-the standard that most active people strive to emulate-you have to train like an athlete, and most people lack the "sand" for that."

Women lack the testosterone to build huge muscles, the women you see with huge muscles are hormonally more male than I am(ie they are on PED's). Women who train hard with weights generally arrive at two outcomes:

1. A disciplined woman who eats correctly will get smaller and firmer/tighter almost proportionally with her increases in strength.

2. A less disciplined woman who has a hard time managing her caloric intake will get stronger and generally stay at the same body fat levels depending on how bad her eating is.

Both of these outcomes compare favorably to their counterparts who base their workout routine on "cardio" and don't lift weights. 

1. A disciplined eater who does a lot of cardio will be lean, but they will usually have a flimsy body(typically skinny-fat), bad movement patterns(and posture) and be susceptible to injury(as well as a stiff wind knocking them over). 

2. A non-disciplined eater who does a cardio based program(this is the standard person in a commercial gym that just doesn't get any noticeable results at all despite exercising frequently) will just keep being overweight AND have the movement and postural dysfunctions and imbalances, talk about a lose/lose situation! 

Blah, blah, blah. Lift and Get Hot.