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CountryLife4U
Fitness
Are
You worried about Gaining too much Size from
Weight Training?
A
Common Concern
I
have written about this specific topic several times in my
Newsletter as it seems a very common concern among women
especially. The most frequently asked questions regarding this
issue are: "I would like to increase my muscle tone but I am
afraid that if I use weights I will look like the body builders in
the muscle magazines etc" or "I have recently begun a
weight program and I am finding that I am putting on more weight
plus bulking up. How do I achieve muscle tone without getting
bigger?"
You
Need to Train for Big Muscles to Get Big Muscles
Body
Building for very large muscles or muscle mass is only achieved by
training long hard hours, for many years in a specific manner to
reach those goals. I myself love the physique of a body builder
but it doesn't necessarily mean that I want my muscles as big as
that. However I can appreciate the sheer hard work that goes into
that type of training. I have often used the techniques of body
building myself to gain muscle size when wanting to create a more
muscular look without gaining too much size or looking masculine.
What
You Eat will Encourage You to Bulk Up
One
thing you need to watch out for when beginning your weight
training program is what you eat. Why!? Because what you eat
effects the way your body reacts to your training program. Certain
foods and the amount of those foods eaten can cause you to bulk
up, rather than reduce your body size or to cut up rather than
bulk up.
How
Eating Affects Your Size and Shape when Partaking in a Training
Program
Ok.
Reviewing your eating program is one of the most important things
for you to do when starting your exercise program. When most
people start training they find that they become very hungry,
because they are expending more energy, which then leads them to
eat more. The most common food people reach out for when they are
super hungry is either really fatty foods, high sugar foods or
foods that are extremely high in starchy carbohydrates. Eg Rice,
pasta, bread, cereals, grains, etc.
Overeating
to Compensate for Exercise and How it Increases Your Body Size
If
you begin to "carb up", as mentioned above, you need to
be training to burn off that type of food intake, which would
often be more in the line of an athlete's or a body builder's etc
training program. This means that any excess food you eat, and are
not burning off, will most likely "store", making it
harder for your body to burn off fat as fuel for energy.
Putting
On Weight when Starting Your New Exercise Program
Most
people when they start exercising will put on a kilo or so. This
is normally due to muscle growth. Even just a small amount of
resistance training can cause this, especially if you haven't
trained in a while. But don't worry because this is only weight
not your measurements. Muscle weighs more than fat so you may have
already started losing some body fat, but because you have been
performing weight training exercises you have stimulated muscle
growth, thus the gain in weight. This is GREAT NEWS and means your
body is reacting to your new training program. If you are doing
the right thing by your program you will soon be seeing some
fantastic changes in your bodyshape. So be persistant!
It
is Easy to Get Confused when Trying to Choose What Food Types will
Help Your Training Goals
Choosing
what we should eat can be baffling. Often we tend to place it in
the too hard basket and decide to start "tomorrow" on
our new eating program. Honestly, once you get started you will be
so impressed with yourself for making the effort to learn and
educate your self further on this matter. Learning what is right
for you and your body type will offer you the freedom to start
experimenting with new recipes and to start seeing new results
from your eating program. My advise is "give it a shot",
you won't regret it.
Steps
to Prevent You from Bulking Up
Eat
Low Fat Foods
Reduce
your fat and oil intake
Reduce
your Starchy Carbohydrates - breads, cereals, potato, pasta and
rice etc towards the end of the day.
Make
sure you are performing a Fat Burning Program 3-4 times per week.
Don't
forget about your weight program. To start with, keep your weights
light and perform more repetitions per set of each exercise. eg.
Bicep Curls: 3 sets x 15-20 reps
Use
Variety in your Fat-Burning.
Reduce
your alcohol consumption.
Make
sure you take one day off from your low fat eating program per
week.
Increase
Lean Meat intake and / or low fat protein in your diet.
Eat
more veggies and salads, rather than filling up on starchy
carbohydrates.
Get
your workout weight resistance program renewed every 12 weeks or 3
months, no longer.
Measure
certain parts of your body to keep track of size and fat
reduction. Don't rely on what the scales say. Muscle weighs more
than fat, so concentrate on taking your measurement only.
Skin
fold measurements are also great for helping observe fat loss.
Just
a few last words......
Weight training and exercise in general not only gives us the
opportunity to change our body shapes but can also increase our
fitness level, assist in rehabilitation, improve our self esteem
and boost our health in general. Choosing the right program for
you is important so you can benefit and enjoy your workouts plus
feel confident that you are on the right track to your health and
fitness goals. Always remember to check with your doctor too,
before starting any new eating or exercise program.
For
more info on personalised health and fitness training programs
please feel free to visit my site: http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com
or
For more Health
and Fitness articles click here!
Happy
Training!
Yours in fun, health and fitness
Mandy
http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com
Persons
who are of good health, suspect of their health or are aware of
any conditions, physical deficiencies or diseases should always
consult a physician before undertaking any eating or exercise
program. Mandy Gibbons, Virtual Fitness Trainer,
www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com.au and www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com
disclaims any liability or loss in connection with the above
program or advice given in this article.
Mandy Gibbons, Personal Fitness
Trainer info@virtualfitnesstrainer.com
http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com
http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com.au
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