Hopefully this q'n'a is not too late to help you out...
Q: I've got a cold. Should I be working out when I'm sick?
Answer:
The general consensus that you'll read in online articles is...
a) If the symptoms are above the neck (i.e. a cold), you can exercise.
b) If its a flu, don't exercise.
I've read that many times.
And when I was in University, I would always workout no matter how bad my cold was...
Now, I look at it this way:
What will I gain by working out? What will I gain by resting?
It's only one workout - it's not going to make or break your fat loss program.
Last week, I forced myself to add a day of rest while I had a cold. And when I returned to the gym, I broke 2 strength records, even though I was still a little under the weather. Extra rest is good - it allows for quality training.
In most cases, just take a rest, get some extra sleep, and avoid spreading the virus on to someone else. That one workout is not going to make or break your success. On the other hand, there's no guarantee that the extra rest will make the illness go away quicker.
Sometimes these things will run the same course no matter what. But at least by staying home, you don't make your cold (or flu) someone else's problem.
By exercising when sick, we are demonstrating an old-school bodysculpting approach...that its all about the volume of work, rather than the quality of work. I'll let you make an adult decision about whether or not the benefits outweigh the negatives.
Q: I like to add extra shoulder work to my TT workouts. So recently I've been doing seated Smith Machine presses and upright rows, like old-school bodybuilder workouts. Do you have any other suggestions?
Answer:
I didn't like the sounds of that, so I asked Bill Hartman, CSCS, PT, the smartest man in fitness and co-author of The Best Upper Body Warm-up DVD, what he thought...
Seated pressing and worse, pressing on a Smith Machine, provide external stability to the exercise. While it may appear "safer" to use the Smith Machine, the reality is that given enough time, the larger muscles (the deltoid in this case) become stronger than the stabilizers (rotator cuff).
When this happens the rotator cuff can't overcome the pull of the deltoid and impingement results. This occurs even if you don't have pain as it is a progressive situation.
Upright rows for most folks are not even worth the risk to perform. The exercise itself is actually an impingement mechanism (internal rotation with elevation). The same arm position is used in clinic to confirm impingement.
If you must perform overhead pressing, do it standing and with dumbbells to prevent the arm from getting "locked" into a bad position that will eventually compromise joint stability.
Q: Do you have any resources on teaching squat form?
Answers:
Yes, I have a couple of bodyweight squat videos available to Platinum TT Members. By showing you the side view of the exercise, you get a better understanding of what I'm looking for when I say "push your hips back first".
Compare these two videos:
Normal Stance Squat Side View:
http://www.ttmembers.com/members/158.cfm
Sumo Squat Side View:
http://www.ttmembers.com/members/159.cfm
Notice how the model is able to sit deeper and easier with the wider foot stance position.
If you are having trouble with squat depth, slightly increase your stance width, but be conservative and don't make your stance too wide. Just go 1-2 inches wider than normal to start.
Q: I try and eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, but I'm not sure if I'm getting as many as Dr. Berardi recommends. What exactly is a "serving"?
Answer:
I googled this question and found a site that described 1 serving as...
- 1 cup raw leafy greens
- 1/2 cup any other chopped vegetable
- 3/4 cup vegetable juice
So that's what you need, it's not as intimidating as you might have originally thought.
I answer a lot of nutrition questions on the TT forum, including others such as "Is there a danger of eating too much whey?". Become a Basic Level TT member for only $9.95 and get access to the forums for a month.
Q: Does it matter what order I do my workout? Should I do intervals first and then cardio?
Answer:
If you care at all about getting stronger, do weight training before intervals.
A total body workout would not fatigue the legs enough to impact interval training, whereas interval training would impact both upper and lower body strength training. The "systemic" fatigue would lower your upper body lifting performance, and the local fatigue from intervals would lessen your lower body performance.
If you want to run a 4-minute mile, then your endurance training would take precedence, and you would schedule your lifting on off-days or only before easier running sessions.
However, if all you are doing is beginner slow-steady cardio and beginner weight training, then it probably doesn't matter what order you use.
When it comes to fat loss, there really is nothing magical about doing cardio before weights, or vice-versa. But every TT program recommends strength training before interval training.
It just makes more sense to do weights first if you want to be strong and build muscle,
CB
PS - The April TT Monthly workout is...
...going to be a TT For Mass program that can be done at home with only dumbbells and bodyweight exercises.
Become a TT Member today and you'll get the March ten 10-minute workout program and you'll be among the first to get April's program when I release it on March 31st.
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