ISSA’s Cameron Baker (BS, CFT) Tells You How To Shape Your Summer Body

This article was featured in an archived edition of ISSA's Associate Newsletter. To sign up for this bi-monthly newsletter, please visit: http://ipost.com/issa/prefs

Summertime is approaching quickly and for most of us, that means days of fun at the beach, hanging out by the pool, and afternoon barbecues. It also means it's time to kick our training into high gear so that when the heat turns up, the clothes can come off with confidence, ready to show off that body you've worked so hard for all year long.

Certainly you've heard from at least a couple of fitness enthusiasts claiming high repetitions are key to getting "cut." However, science tells us just how accurate this common belief is: it's NOT! In fact, there is no logical or physiological reasoning for this type of training, and the masses that have spent hours of training time pumping out 30+ repetitions per set have been sacrificing some true fat burning, body shaping potential, and could be impeding their progress.

When trying to shape or tone your body, there are a couple of things that are important to remember. First of all, there is no such thing as spot reducing. It is impossible to target a location on your body that YOU decide to pull and utilize fat from. Doing 20 repetitions of chest presses is not going to magically sculpt your chest or give it a harder look. The ultimate goal of a sculpting or cutting program is essentially to increase the percentage of lean body mass (muscle) and decrease fatty tissue so that the muscles will be more visible. The only appropriate way to do this is through a resistance program that promotes muscle hypertrophy (term for the growth and increase of the size of muscle cells) and a diet that promotes fat loss. Science has proven in both men and women, that only resistance training that is high in intensity, utilizing 8-12 repetitions, moderate to heavy resistance and a maximum of one minute rest between sets will maximize serum testosterone and growth hormone levels, thus allowing for successful recovery, adaptation, muscular growth and hypertrophy.

Since we have established that a primary focal point of getting toned is body fat reduction, than obviously nutrient and caloric intake are paramount. Consider that 1 pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories. In order to lose 1 pound of fat per week, logically you'll have to expend or burn 3500 calories through diet and/or exercise over the course of that week to achieve that objective. As suggested by the ISSA's zigzag diet method, the ideal way to lose fat while preserving muscle is to consume fewer calories on non-exercise days and slightly increase calories on days of moderate to intense activity to provide the body with fuel it needs for the workout. Some other helpful hints include consuming 5 to 6 smaller meals throughout the day. This will ensure that your metabolism stays elevated at all times and will your body will remain in a constant fat-burning state. Also, limit your intake of saturated fats and simple sugars, and focus instead on consuming lean sources of protein and low glycemic carbohydrates. It is also very important to keep your water intake high at a level of around 0.6 ounces per pound of body weight.

Finally, what would an efficient fat-burning program be without some good old fashion cardiovascular exercise? If you want to maximize your body's fat burning capacity and also minimize muscle loss (catabolism) that inevitably accompanies a fat-burning cycle, I suggest that you do your aerobic work directly after your resistance training at less than 75% of your maximum heart rate. If you are doing cardiovascular work on your off (non-resistance training) days, then I recommend that you train at 85% to 95% of your max heart rate for the first 30 minutes and drop the intensity to 75% for the last 20 to 30 minutes. These types of workouts will shoot your resting metabolism through the roof and will allow you to burn maximum amounts of fat even when you are at rest. That's the skinny folks. Take the "light weight and higher reps" philosophy and throw it away with the multitude of other training myths you've heard through the years. Following this misguided method will only put you at risk to lose strength and muscle mass, and will not assist you in burning fat or defining your physique. Stick to the basic principles stated above and you should be well prepared to shed fat, and eventually clothing, come summertime!

As always, we want to cover fitness topics that you want to read about. If you have a topic of interest that you'd like to see in the next issue, send me an email at FocusOnFitness@issaonline.com.