HIIT Archives - Simple Endurance Coaching

Learning the Hard Way to Focus on Process

I learn the hard way. Lessons need to beat me upside my head before they sink in. And what I have slowly learned over a 35 year career of doing endurance sports is that to focus on process in training our bodies and minds helps us become better people. As a cyclist, runner, cross-country skier, […]

HIIT for Endurance Athletes Gives Big Boost

High-Intensity Interval Training Builds Endurance, Speed, and Power Among all the endurance sport training techniques out there, none have gotten the attention as high-intensity interval training or HIIT. And with good reason. HIIT for endurance athletes works, not only to build speed, power, and snap, but to build endurance. Yes, you increase your aerobic capacity […]

Polarized Training Offers the Best Tool for Endurance Sport Training

There has been a growing body of research shows that polarized training increases: VO2 max, your ability to use oxygen to fuel your efforts; time to exhaustion; adaptation to training stress; velocity and power. With polarized training, endurance athletes do a majority of long, slow distance work at their base aerobic level. And they do […]

Fitness Adaptation Takes Four to Eight Weeks

I wish I had a dollar for every person at my gym who starts a fitness program, then, after a couple of weeks, never shows up again. Fitness adaptation is the reason so many people stop their exercise and training plans after four or six weeks. People with great intentions don’t much in the way […]

Real Weight Loss Requires Challenging Exercise and Calorie Deficit

Here’s what you need to know about weight loss: You need to eat a little less, eat better and real food, and exercise more intensely.

Client Uses Menstrual Cycle, Marathon Training Plan to Improve Time

Several months ago, the daughter of a friend agreed to try out the ideas in Dr. Stacy Sims‘ book Roar, which argues that with nutrition and training, women are not small men, for her marathon training. One major part of Sims’ work is how women can use their menstrual cycles to guide and boost their […]

Bicycling: A Spin Bike Workout Options to Keep Riding

If you’re stuck inside or want to step up your intervals, doing a spin bike workout is a great way to get some solid work in in a short amount of time. Bicycling Magazine posted a story about three good spin bike workouts if you are riding solo inside. They could also be used for […]

A Gym Cycle Class Can Be a Great Tool to Gain Fitness

In Praise of Cycle Class An indoor cycle class at my gym was turned out to be a great option to try to maintain some fitness after I broke my arm right before final training for cyclocross season. I broke my arm July 29 and needed two surgeries to get all the bones back in […]

Four Ways to Understand Periodization to Build Peak Performances

If you want to be ready to bust out a PR or result for your endurance sport priority event, periodization is the tool to get you there.

Using Menstrual Cycles to Boost Performance

I’m a man. We’ll acknowledge that right away. So the topic of using menstrual cycles to boost performance is not something I have personal experience with. All I know about women’s menstrual cycles comes from research – except that I live with a female wife and a female teenager. And we’ll acknowledge that anything I say […]

Belly Fat After Menopause Requires Weight Training

Combatting the post-menopausal belly fat gain requires dedicated strength training using good form and deep breathing to jump start fat-burning metabolism.

A client wanted to work on the unwanted belly fat that appeared since a hysterectomy. This kind of weight gain is common after this surgery or after menopause due to a slowing in metabolism and a reduction in hormones that affect fat burning, plus the natural effects of aging.

The client, in her late 40s, does cardiovascular training two to three times a week, plus she’s working with a nutritionist on her diet. She also is time-limited during the week.

Since strength training is necessary to kick up metabolism and strengthen muscles, I suggested a simple routine that she can do at home with body weight or some dumbbells. She should do this at least twice a week, three if possible, to reduce belly fat.

The goal is not to increase HR but to get stronger by stressing and fatiguing the muscles to force adaptation. The stronger the muscles, the more your metabolism increases and the more fat gets oxidized. And so therefore the belly fat will begin to melt away.

Slow and Deliberate Focus on Form, Breathe

She should do three sets of four repetitions, slowly and deliberately, and keep her core tight, stable, and tensed.

I’m recommending that she tense and tighten her core with breath held in on the down path. At the bottom of the movement, breath out, then in again slowly, holding the position. Then tense and tighten core on way back up, then breath out, then in again. She should move slowly to focus on stability.

We started with some simple body measurements: tape measure around the belly button and hips. This will give us a baseline data point to see what is working and what we need to modify.

Each of these exercises works on a key muscle group as well as working the core and a lot of stabilizing muscles. The net effect is reducing more belly fat by engaging more muscles.

Squats

Push your butt back as you slowly sit. Weight should be centered, but more on your heels. You should be able to wiggle your toes like tiger claws. Go down in three seconds, hold for two second while you breath, go up in three seconds.

– Add weight as you get stronger. Hold the weight with both hands next to your chest and do goblet squats.

Single Leg Roll-up

– Lie on your back with arms stretched over head. While raising one leg, do a rollup with your spine rolling off the ground until your arms are outstretched pointing to the ceiling.

Shoulder Press

– Hold any kind of weight with elbow at 90 degrees to the side of your body. Keep glutes and core activated.

Single Leg Deadlift

– Bring back leg back and weight up slowly with breath in and tensed. Release breath at bottom..

These can be really challenging for your balance, but they do so much to work off belly fat.

Push-Ups

Slowly down and slowly up. Keep core tense and fired. Do these on your knees to modify.

Bulgarian Split Squat

– Drop back knee slowly. Maintain strong core. Front leg should do all the work.

Russian Twist

– Move slowly and deliberately with as heavy a weight as you can use for six rotations

We’ll start with this routine for three weeks, then retest body fat. We’ll modify the exercises as she gains strength.

Process Before Results

Category: HIIT

Learning the Hard Way to Focus on Process

HIIT for Endurance Athletes Gives Big Boost

Polarized Training Offers the Best Tool for Endurance Sport Training

Fitness Adaptation Takes Four to Eight Weeks

Real Weight Loss Requires Challenging Exercise and Calorie Deficit

Client Uses Menstrual Cycle, Marathon Training Plan to Improve Time

Bicycling: A Spin Bike Workout Options to Keep Riding

A Gym Cycle Class Can Be a Great Tool to Gain Fitness

Four Ways to Understand Periodization to Build Peak Performances

Using Menstrual Cycles to Boost Performance

Belly Fat After Menopause Requires Weight Training

Slow and Deliberate Focus on Form, Breathe

Squats

Single Leg Roll-up

Shoulder Press

Single Leg Deadlift

Push-Ups

Bulgarian Split Squat

Russian Twist

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PAULW@SIMPLEENDURANCECOACHING.COM