Workout and Diet Advice for Women over 45

 Build muscular endurance with yoga moves like this one, called “plank pose into chaturanga dandasana.”  Practiced correctly on a regular basis, you will strengthen your chest, shoulders and arms as well as your core muscles.

Begin in a straight-arm plank position.  This is more difficult than the regular plan we’ve spoken about in other posts.  In this position your hands are directly under your shoulders, your arms are straight, (without “locking out” your elbows) and your fingers pointed forward.   As with the regular plank push back with your heels and draw the crown of your head forward to create a long line throughout your body.   Most important is not to let your hips sag.  It may help to think of your butt as being slight “up”, rather than feeling yourself tightening your hips and “thrusting forward” – which is definitely not the position.  Pull in your abdominal muscles to support your spine.

You’ve now moved beyond the basic plank from previous posts (or you were already doing the Plank anyway).  Here are some more interesting and more advanced Core exercises.

These will help you to flatten your abs; work the core beyond your sixpack – such as the obliques (see the side plank); and also make you focus on balance (see the lunge in 1.)

1.        Lunge with Rotation

lunge rotation

 Now that I have heard from my readers that the regular “plank” was either fairly easy or a good challenge ‘that made my legs shake’, it is time for the next level.

This time, after stabilizing your position you will lift up one leg while maintaining that stable posture.  Hold for a count of 10 or twenty and lower the leg.  Repeat this with the other leg.  The pictures below are really good to follow.

 First review the Basic Plank

It had to happen.  We were just discussing the Tabata high intensity workout regime  in these pages –  and what did I see on late night TV  “The 20Second Fitness” workout Infomercial.   Could  hardly believe it.  (I was traveling and the hotel TV is usually background noise when I am getting ready for bed.  This background caught my attention.)

Made some notes to check it out later.  And of course the ubiquitous UTube video clips made that task easier.

4 minute Workout??  In 4 minutes you can burn fat, increase power and endurance, and improve your fitness level.   No this is not another one of those ‘all you need is 10 minutes a day to get in bikini shape’ article.  This workout is definitely not for people just starting to exercise.  The regimen of Tabata training is for people who work out already, are in good condition, know their bodies and abilities and perhaps are looking for something to break through a plateau, reach the next level of athletic  fitness  or break up the boredom of a routine.

Your friend says:  “I am addicted to cardio” – and you think Wow, that is a good thing to be addicted to, as you think of Belgium chocolate as the something you would normally associate with “addiction” – or worse, alcohol or drugs!

First let’s look at the definition of addiction. 

                        Addiction is doing something you know is detrimental to your mental, physical, or emotional well-being, yet you do it anyway.

In my previous blog post I discussed getting the most from your trainer; how to do it and what your responsibilities are as a client. So why are we talking about whether to end the relationship with the trainer? Fact is, like any relationship, things can feel ‘old and stale’, or we reach the point where we are no longer ‘feeling the love’. Though these generally apply to a male-female romantic relationship, the metaphor applies equally to the trainer-client relationship.
As women we are pretty sensitive and intuitive and can sense when things are ‘just not working’. If you are unsure of your instincts, then ask yourself the following questions:

What a concept – if you have lots of brown fat you are a calorie burning machine!

Wait a minute – let’s look at all the facts.

• Scientists have known about brown Adipose tissue (“brown fat”) for many years.  Didn’t think adults had it, until they recently found it in specific areas of the body.  Using PET-CT scans, the presence of brown fat in adults has been proven to exist. http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/10/brown.fat.obesity

• Brown fat is activated in cold temperatures to burn calories for warmth.  So bundling up in the cold is unlikely to activate this tissue.