WHAT TO EXPECT: each class begins with a mobility warm up, all of the stations/exercises are explained with progressions and modifications for each station. You choose where you want to begin on the circuit, and then you work at your pace with Trainer Jimi cheering you on and encouraging your best effort in a POSITIVE way! No yelling, drill sgt type BS in this class. Call Jimi for your free trial: 248.735.8850 ext. 233 or email at Jimi@JimiVarner.com

Monday at 6:15am – 7:00am
Tuesday at 8:00am – 8:45am
Wednesday at 6:15am – 7:00am
Thursday at 8:00am – 8:45am
Friday at 6:15am – 7:00am
Saturday at 6:15am – 7:00am

All fitness levels welcome!

Call the Sports Club of Novi at 248-735-8850 ext. 4063 for more details

July 5, 2009

Vigorous Exercise Protects Your Heart This week, Norwegian researchers reported their findings that high intensity interval training maximally improves every conceivable measure of heart function and heart strength. It also helps to prevent both the pre-diabetic metabolic syndrome and the heart damage it causes (Exercise and Sports Sciences Reviews, July 2009).

This is more evidence that older people who compete in vigorous sports, such as biking and running, live longer and suffer less disease than people who exercise at a more casual pace. The most intense exercise includes interval training: running or cycling very fast to become severely short of breath, then resting and repeating these almost maximum efforts several times in the same workout. Controlled interval training is now a treatment for heart failure. High-intensity interval training raises the good HDL cholesterol far more than less intense exercise (Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, March 2009). Intense exercise for older people is still a controversial subject, but these new results concur with many earlier studies. Intense exercise is far more effective than casual exercise in preventing and treating diabetes (Circulation, July 2008) and reducing belly fat (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise [MSSE], November 2008). Vigorous exercise protects obese people from heart attacks and prolongs their lives, even if they don’t lose weight (MSSE, October 2006). Intense exercise is more effective in preventing heart attacks than less intense exercise done more frequently (MSSE, July 1997). Death rate from cardiovascular disease is lowered by high intensity activities such as jogging, swimming, hiking, tennis and climbing stairs, but not by lower intensity activities such as walking, bowling, sailing, golf and dancing (Heart, May 2003). Paul Thompson, of the University of California at Berkeley, showed that the faster aged runners run, the lower their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels (Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, October 2008).

From what I can see in the gym and the questions I get, most people are going about it all wrong. Here are 5 common mistakes people make when trying to get abs!

Mistake # 1:
Doing 1,000s of crunches – it’s not enough to do traditional mat crunches. Now, you can turn your knees to either side, hold a weight behind your head, medicine ball, everything but the kitchen sink. Do any of these variations help? Not quite. Flexion and extension are but one way you can train your midsection. It takes a variety of movement patterns and strategies to sculpt a six-pack!

Mistake # 2:
Going on a low-fat diet – sure, reducing calories is important. But not to the point of starvation. You should be going slightly below maintenance. Shoot for 250 calories LESS than what you are currently doing. You should see results within two weeks, if not, shave off another 250 calories and repeat the process. Don’t crash diet, slow and steady will win the ‘abs’ race.

Mistake # 3:
Having a ‘Core’ day – midsection training should be a part of an overall balanced program, not the entire focus. You can insert midsection training ANYWHERE in your program. It doesn’t have to go at the beginning, middle, or end. In fact, mixing it up can bring better results.

Mistake # 4:
Too many isolation exercises – be careful not to include too many ’small bodypart’ movements like, arm curls, triceps kickbacks, side raises, etc.. at the expense of chin ups, presses, rows, squats, etc… Big body part movements are going to burn more overall calories and help you to lose fat faster. Faster fat loss leads to better looking abs.

Mistake # 5:
Inconsistency with good nutrition – sure, you can take a cheat day, just make sure it’s not more frequent than once a week. Most people would do best to eliminate it all together, but some of you can control yourself and enjoy a small spike in calories without blowing your diet all together.