Spring Into Shape For Summer – Week Two

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Have you implemented some or all of the tips from last week’s column and started to develop some good healthy habits? Continue doing everything you learned last week and add on today’s tips. The goal is to get you into incredible shape just in time for summer and we’ve got a few months to make that happen. Give us three months and I’ll give you the best summer of your life!

Cardiovascular Conditioning

Add up the total minutes of cardio activity you did last week.  If you want to continue improving, implement the overload principle which means this week you increase your total minutes by 10%.  So if you did 100 minutes last week, this week you do 110 minutes.

Muscle Conditioning

We’ve reviewed a variety of muscle conditioning exercises in this column over the years. Today, choose two lower body, two upper body and two core exercise and complete 8-15 reps of each exercise two to three times this week on alternating days.  You can access past columns HERE.

For example, you could choose a set of squats, push-ups, v-sits, lunges, rows, and planks.

• Beginner:  Perform 1 set of each exercise.
• Intermediate:  Perform 2 sets of each exercise
• Advanced:  Perform 3 sets of each exercise

Remember, that each repetition should be slow (4 seconds per repetition) and controlled.  In each of the exercises maintain proper posture and keep your abdominals pulled inwards.

Stretch

Glutes on the wall –Lay on your back with your feet flat on the wall and your knees bent at 90 degrees. Cross one ankle over the opposite thing. You should feel a light stretch in your glutes around the outside edge of your hip.

Nutrition

In addition to drinking 10 glasses of water every day, this week, find an online resource like www.sparkpeople.com, a free website that will allow you to determine a healthy nutrition plan based on your goals and your current favorite foods. It will give you a much clearer picture of what you should be eating every day to achieve your ideal health and physique.

Other Helpful Strategies

In addition to tracking your exercise and nutrition, this week also start journaling and recording things/people that you are thankful for.  This gratitude mindset can help positively impact your ‘Spring into Shape for Summer’ program and your entire life!  Also start to look for patterns – you can’t change something if you aren’t aware of it! So for example, if you notice on the days you don’t exercise you don’t eat as well, that will provide you with the extra motivation to always get your workouts in.  Or if on Fridays, you always notice you hang with the same friends and always eat poorly, it will help you to establish better habits and suggest alternative ways to get together.

Yours in health & fitness,
Sherri McMillan

Note:  As an avid Columbian reader, you can redeem a 2 week pass at her world-class training studio to help get you started.  Contact 360.574.7292 for more details. 

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Join us for the…..COUVE CLOVER RUN – 3, 7 & 10 MILES – March 25th, 2018
Celebrate in your festive green while running or walking 3, 7 or 10 miles along an extremely fast and scenic course to support local charities! We will make you earn your post-event party but it will be off the charts hosted by Main Event and other downtown Vancouver Pubs & Breweries.