It need not be like that, and there are plenty of solutions for your trouble. One of the most effective ones that I want to share with you is rebounding. Rebounders (or mini trampolines) look similar to the big, bulky backyard trampolines, but serve a wholly different purpose.

MIni Trampolines or Rebounders – What Are They?

Rebounders are smaller versions of trampolines, usually between 28 and 40 inches in diameter, that are used indoors for bouncing (rebounding) exercises. Compared to regular trampolines, rebounders are stiffer and aim to provide resistance instead of a high bounce.

There are plenty of rebounders available on the market, from cheap $30 units to $400 pro pieces of equipment. Most are foldable and easy to carry around or store when unused.

Rebounders are made mostly for adult exercise. Even though they may look similar to kids’ trampolines, they are made completely differently, with a goal of fostering exercise instead of fun and entertainment.

Rebounders come in several flavors: some use bungee cords as springs, while others opt for regular coiled springs. Generally, springs last longer than bungee cords, which can be found on low end, cheap trampolines. However, expensive units also have similar cords that are made of high quality material, and are much quieter than regular springs.

What are the benefits of rebounding?

The benefits are numerous – and it’s been proven. Trampoline research from NASA has shown that rebounding is among the most effective ways of exercise – on average, an adult will burn from 300 to 400 calories per hour while bouncing on a trampoline. Overall, trampolining is about 68% more effective than jogging, i.e. you will do more effective work from your time exercising. In fact, bouncing on a trampoline for 10 minutes can be as effective as half an hour of jogging when it comes to cardiovascular benefits.

Rebounding is also fantastic as a great low-impact exercise. Running basically puts a lot of stress on your tendons and bones, especially the ankles. Rebounding distributes the forces linearly across your entire body, making it an excellent way of exercise for those with pain or previous sprains.
But the plus points don’t end there. The G-forces created during bouncing further strengthen the muscles and bones – especially important for middle-age women who are at risk from osteoporosis. Also, the constant balancing motion to help you stand on the trampoline requires hundreds of muscle micro-contractions orchestrated subconsciously by your cerebellum. All this improves your overall muscle tone and look.

There is also evidence that regular rebounding boosts immune function and lymph drainage. Stress reduction is a given, especially if you exercise in the evenings after a rough day. You’ll sleep much better and feel more energized the next day. It sounds counter-intuitive, but it really is true. Try it out!

How Long Can I Exercise for?

That’s yet another benefit. You’ll get much less tired on a rebounder, even though you’ll be spending calories by the hundreds. That means you can exercise more and make the best out of your time. For starters, we recommend you spend 15-20 minutes a day unless you get the hang of it, and then you can advance to half an hour (you can break this down into several smaller periods if you find that easier). Not to mention that you can exercise while watching TV or listening to your favourite music – it’s that convenient!

What Should I Buy?

That depends on what you need. The cheapest serviceable rebounders start just shy of $30 and are a great way to get you into the action. One such rebounder is the famous Stamina 36 inch rebounder. For slightly more you can get a great trampoline with extras such as weights and resistance bands – like Jumpsport Model 350 mini trampoline – that allow you to perform a wider range of exercises. The whole world of rebounding isn’t too expensive, so why not give it a shot? You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the results!

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Music and exercise, you say. If these things sound like night and day to you, well you haven’t thought much about it. Think about dancing – one of the most popular and visceral hobbies and skills a person can know – which incorporates both of these things! But even regular exercise can be affected by music.Many runners have stated that they run worse without music – some surveys estimate the rate to be over three quarters.

The USA Track & Field ban on wearing portable music players caused an uproar, but the rationale was simple – to prevent runners from having an edge. So obviously, music can and does give runners an edge. After all, it is a known fact that listening to music even in a relaxed state increases the electrical activity in the brain both in auditory areas, but also in those responsible for movement. It appears that movement and sounds are well interconnected inside of our brains.

Many runners have stated that they run worse without music – some surveys estimate the rate to be over three quarters. The USA Track & Field ban on wearing portable music players caused an uproar, but the rationale was simple – to prevent runners from having an edge. So obviously, music can and does give runners an edge. After all, it is a known fact that listening to music even in a relaxed state increases the electrical activity in the brain both in auditory areas, but also in those responsible for movement. It appears that movement and sounds are well interconnected inside of our brains.

The effect is not confined just to amateurs. One of the best sprinters around, Michael Phelps, is known to exercise to very, shall we say, aggressive rap tunes, stating that it helps improve his performance.

Why Does it Help?

There are various reasons for this interesting effect. Fortunately, now we know much more than in the previous decade. The amount of research has swelled as the streaming music providers aim to tailor their playlists for optimal enjoyment. If you’ve ever played a playlist tagged “pump up” or “exercise”, then you’ll know that we’re talking about.

It appears that when people play music during exercise, it has a distracting effect on them and increases their heart rate. They feel less pain and fatigue and can carry on working out for longer. Music is a good mood elevator. There is a real reason for that. When listening to music, your brain releases endogenous opioids that enhance your mood and raise your pain threshold. People who listen to music while exercising routinely rate their exercises as more enjoyable than those who do not.
Most people markedly improve their performance – most often unknowingly – when exercising to music, sometimes even by more than 20 percent! The effect is most prominent during cardio exercises of moderate intensity. It’s much less useful when partaking in anaerobic exercise, where your muscles are stressed-out to the max. That’s understandable – it’s much harder for your brain to distract you from the distress signals your muscles are sending.

It Gets You In the Zone

Some ascribe the motivational effect of music as putting you ‘in the zone’. It’s the zone where everything else around you becomes unimportant. It’s only you, the road and the aim of making the best time possible. It’s the purest form of motivation, bar none. It occurs when you listen to a tune that is not only appropriate to the

Some ascribe the motivational effect of music as putting you ‘in the zone’. It’s the zone where everything else around you becomes unimportant. It’s only you, the road and the aim of making the best time possible. It’s the purest form of motivation, bar none. It occurs when you listen to a tune that is not only appropriate to the occasion, but also strikes an emotional chord. It’s the uplifting and motivational songs that do it, usually.

What Genre Should I Choose?

The choice of music is important. There are no hard and fast rules, as musical tastes differ. However, research has shown that the most popular genres of music for exercise are hip-hop, pop and rock. The tempo of music depends on the type of exercise you do. It appears that 120 bpm (beats per minutes) sounds the best to us, but for exercise faster bpm’s of 140 to 160 bpm are recommended. Rap seems to be popular due to fast-spoken lyrics, which gives the effect of speed even with a rather gentle beat.What About the Volume?

What About the Volume?

You might feel the urge to crank it up to eleven to get groovin’, but we advise you against it. Not only is loud music dangerous when listening on headphones, but it’s doubly so during exercise. The blood flow to the brain and the inner ear is increased during physical exertion, making your hair cells more sensitive and susceptible to damage.
Some experts suggest that every few sessions, you should exercise without music. This will plant your feet on the ground and increase your awareness of the surroundings.

Getting into the Rhythm

Besides getting you all pumped up and ready to exercise, music can be a lot more involved in the way you exercise. By choosing the right song, it can help you get into the rhythm of exercising along with the music. This will speed you up and you’ll feel much more satisfied. The neurons in your brain literally synchronize with the tempo of the music, which aids when performing repetitive motions.Music then serves as a metronome, which helps your body adjust its movement to the song, thereby using energy more efficiently – you’ll tire slower and get the most from your exercise session. And if you’re having trouble sleeping after a workout, a slow, easy-listening track is what you need.

Music then serves as a metronome, which helps your body adjust its movement to the song, thereby using energy more efficiently – you’ll tire slower and get the most from your exercise session. And if you’re having trouble sleeping after a workout, a slow, easy-listening track is what you need.

It’s Worth a Shot

Looking at all the available evidence, it appears that exercising to music is immensely beneficial. It’s definitely a thing to try if you haven’t done so already. We suggest trying out the internet radio playlists featuring exercise music, but even simple Youtube lists can do. If you find out it’s not working for you, that’s okay. But it might just be the key to motivate some of us to reach new heights.

Oh and by the way, always be careful if you’re listening to music in traffic. It’s best to exercise caution – accidents are no fun!

The post The Importance of Music on Your Workout Routine appeared first on Workoutr.com.

Whether you’re doing cardio or strength exercises, you’re doing your body a favor. That’s why it’s important to optimize your workout routine to be the most efficient as possible, in order to reap maximum benefits.

Juices can help. They provide you with plenty of energy, nutrients and electrolytes you need for proper exercise. That’s a natural performance enhancer! A good juice also helps post-workout, to help your body heal and relax. Ditch the sports drinks and enjoy the natural goodness of fresh juices – your body will thank you later!

We generally don’t recommend strenuous exercise while on a juice cleanse, as calorie intake is usually minimal. Experienced juicers know their body limits, but novices could very well overstress their body.

Pre-Workout Nutrients

Electrolytes are very important for proper function of muscles and your body in general. Potassium, magnesium, zinc, and even trace amounts of salt are all present in juices to varying degrees, depending on the fruit used. Bananas are good for smoothies and juices thanks to their high potassium content.

Orange-colored fruits and vegetables are the best for pre-workout. Beta-carotene is an excellent antioxidant which helps protect against exercise-induced damage and oxygen stress. Carrots are excellent for that. Add a dash of garlic and ginseng for best results. Believe it or not, garlic is said to increase stamina (and is a potent human repellent).

Beetroot is great for increasing your oxygen uptake. It helps you exercise harder and for longer periods of time, thanks to nitrates in beetroot juice. Complex sugars found in fruit are a great source of energy, while adding some nuts ensures a steady release of fuel. And also don’t forget the dependable, trusty glass of water along with your juices.

Stay away from caffeinated drinks, even if they help you achieve better performance. Caffeine causes your body to lose water excessively and bump up your heart rate. Both of these effects could be dangerous!

Bulking Up

Weight lifting requires the consumption of protein that will be used to build muscle mass. The conventional wisdom is to eat lean meat and consume the so-called protein shakes. A protein shake post-exercise is one of the best way of gaining muscle mass.  Well, juices can help you do the same with natural nutrients and a dash of protein.

Green-colored juices are the best source of protein. Various leafy greens such as kale and spinach provide lots of fiber and protein, making them the best choice. Asparagus is great too. For an extra protein punch, add chia or flax seeds. At least a half of juice content should be comprised of various leafy greens. That’s a lot of greens as they don’t produce much juice. For the other half, use bananas, apples, or oranges, with some ground or sprinkled seeds.

After a Workout

There are several healthy juice options to take after a heavy exercise regime. While protein shakes and energy bars are a fine way of replenishing your energy stores after exercise, there are more natural options around.

Just like before exercising, your body will be in need of electrolytes and, possibly, energy. Proper hydration is also a must, so anything you ingest should contain at least some of the aforementioned nutrients. Juices fit the bill completely!

Light juices are the best for this. So pick simple recipes, and ensure that the juice will freshen you up. Some pineapple juice with a hint of celery and mint leaves is a panacea after a sweaty summer workout! Some swear by green juices after a workout – that’s also fine, although we prefer something slightly lighter and tastier, akin to a (much healthier) sports drink. Watermelon juice also works wonders. High glycemic index juices like blackberry or raspberry juices are great if your energy needs are high. Don’t go overboard and overload on carbs after the workout, though.

Read more about pre & post-workout nutrition!

 It’s best to prepare the pre- and post-workout juices at the same time, so you can come home to a nicely chilled juice right away. A few ice cubes can mellow the flavor if you find it too strong, while also refreshing you at the same time.

Whatever you do, make sure your juices are either freshly squeezed or delivered to your door. Ensure that only organic ingredients are used, otherwise you run the risk of ingesting nasty pesticides – why take the chance?

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Even if it`s still winter, and a lot of people are bulking, maybe even you, but you can shock your body with some lean tips. Maybe you aren’t in bulking phase, and just wanting to look better. These few tips will help you to become lean and mean machine, and look better than ever. Read carefully, maybe now you don’t need these tips, but someday you will need them.

How to have a lean physique? How to build lean muscle?

Training

In order to become a leaner, you need to build muscle, or if you have some muscle, you need to define these muscles. Try to train more frequently, if you train 3 days a week, start to train 4 days then 5 days per week. Train heavily, compound movements followed by isolated exercises. Try to mix your weights with HIIT, or some other form of cardio. Train hard, and aim for muscle fatigue, tear down those muscle fibers and make new, bigger and stronger. The more muscles you have, the more you calories you burn trough out the day.

Nutrition

You can’t do any progress if you don’t pay attention on nutrition, if you are a strongman, there is a special diet for you, if you are a fitness enthusiast and trying to lower your body fat, there is diet for you, and of course, if you want do become lean, there is diet for you! Start with protein, 1-1,5 per pound of body-weight, eat quality form of protein like chicken, turkey, tuna, lean red meat, eggs, cheese and so on.
Carbs are crucial for everything, building muscle or losing fat. Eat 3 grams of carbs per one pound of bodyweight, and try to eat all of your carbs in only three meals, breakfast, pre-workout and post-workout. Breakfast-20%, pre-workout-60% and post-workout-20%.

Cardio

Don’t be afraid of cardio. Most of the guys that thinks that they are a serious athletes, bodybuilders are afraid of cardio, “I will lose my muscles”. I have one question for people like that, do you have a quality muscle mass? Or you have just fat? If you have a quality muscle mass, you can’t lose it that easy, of course if you the right amount of cardio, if you overdo it, you will lose it, but I don’t think that you would run for two or three hours every day. Three times a week do a 30min of cardio and it will do the trick.

Check our article on Most Effective Cardio Workout!

Bodyweight

Calisthenics or street workout, your body and bars, that is all you need. When I was training only calisthenics I was shredded like crazy, my workout session was hitting a nine muscle groups and for hour and a half I was pushing it hard. Monday, Wednesday and Friday it was a upper body, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday it was lower body and some cardio. Switch for some time, gym for calisthenics, or maybe the other way around. Remember the goal is to shock muscles and to speed up fat burning.

Rest

There is no way for you to gain muscle mass, lose fat, look better, feel better if you don’t rest properly. 7-8 hours every day is a must. Try to go to bed around the same time every day, and waking up by itself, you will feel better and lift better, and after all that, look better. If you lack sleep, try to incorporate a power nap in your daily schedule, but don’t do it right before your workout, because you will be sleepy during your workout, and you won’t be able to train as hard as you would like, I’ve made this mistake a couple of times, it wasn’t good, sleep during the day, train during the day.

Try something new

Do you train the same for a period of time? Do you eat the same for ages? Are you doing the same treadmill cardio for hours? If the answer is yes, than read this with eyes wide open and listen carefully.

Find a new workout program, the internet is full of workout routines, weekly routines, specific muscle group routines, what do you want, everything. So find some other program, and crush it for a 3-3 weeks and then you change it.

Try some new foods, change the grocery store that you are going to, find some new things to eat, research, you can click here for some tips, and here for pre and post workout nutrition. There is always some good source of protein, carbs and fat that you aren’t tried.

When it comes to cardio, there is really a lot of different ways to do it, and you can do it whatever you like, you can do steady pace cardio on a treadmill, you can do HIIT,  you can go for a swim, run, boxing, cycling, skating, football, soccer, you name it. There is something you love but not doing, for sure.

Less fruit more veggies. Apple or broccoli? I think that I 9 out of 10 situations, broccoli would win. One medium apple (7oz) has around 95 calories, and 25 grams of carbs, broccoli (7oz) has a 70 calories and 15 grams of carbs, calorie by calorie, and you will start to see the difference in you appearance. Eat fruit in the morning or before your workout, but every other meal, protein, veggies, and optional carbs or fat.

Vitamins and minerals

Some vitamins and minerals are crucial for hormonal release of decrease, depends on your gender and your needs. Some combinations of vitamins and minerals can help you shed your fat more efficiently and faster.
B complex vitamins helps you to use your fat stores for energy, more energy from fat, less fat around your belly.
C vitamin helps your immune system, your sleep, your overall health…
D vitamin help your body to increase lean muscle mass by improving protein synthesis.
Magnesium helps you to relax, to build more muscles, to hydrates your body…
Calcium will help you to shed your fat down.
Iron improves contraction and elasticity of muscles, it is a oxygen carrier, and improves your brain function.

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When the winter comes, not only that is colder, we stay more inside, and eventually the snow will fall. For the gym crew and bodybuilding enthusiasts fall/winter means, bulking season. That means that a lot of people are trying to get as much mass gain as possible, but not always the mass is muscle, a lot of times is more fat or water than the muscle. In this article I will try to shed some light on bulking, and the things to watch out for, and how to do it properly. But bulking means, calorie surplus. More calories, more weight, but what kind of weight?

Junk food

I want to talk about junk food first, because people think that bulking means, eat whatever you want, train and the muscle will grow like crazy, if you are thinking only about size your arms, not thinking about body fat or definition of the muscle, that’s your way to go. But for me, bulking means to gain as much muscle mass as possible and as less fat as possible.
It’s hard to eat everything and not counting calories too much, and not to gain fat, but when you are bulking, you have excuse, “I’ll have that burger and fries, because I am bulking”.
I know a lot of people that have done 2-3 cheat days per week to start bulking, and eventually they were cheating/junking every day, because it becomes a habit, and few weeks later, they had 10 pounds of fat, even they have worked out.
Bulking does not mean, eat junk and you will be okay, you can eat it sometimes, but not too often.

Clean VS Dirty

There is two different kinds of bulking, clean and dirty. Based on your lifestyle, food choices or something else, find one that works the best for you.

Clean Bulking
With this technique you will gain smallest amount of fat in your bulking process. Distribute your calories and macros carefully, your body needs a lots of stuff during day and night.

Macros: 1-1.5 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight, 2 grams of carbohydrates per pound of bodyweight, and the 0.20-0.30 grams of fat per pound of bodyweight.

Training: During your bulking period, your workouts should be heavy, 4-6 reps, focus on your 1 rep max during your bulking, because you’ll have a lot of energy coming from your carbs, and you need to use it.

Food: For your protein sources; meat, eggs, cheese, fish. For carbs choose whole grain; oats, sweet potato, barley, fruits. Fats; yolk, nuts, olive oil. For every meal, try to have some veggies; broccoli, peas, beans, carrot, peppers, tomato.

Dirty Bulking

Dirty bulking is just eating whatever that has calories and protein. If your lifestyle doesn’t support clean diet, and you can’t do a clean bulk, and your only choice is dirty bulk, it’s okay.
Macros: you need to eat 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight and for fats and carbs there is no calculation, because mainly you eat everything.
Training: must be as hard as possible, every now and then, add a 10 minute cardio at the end of your workout, and after do just one more exercise for a muscle group that you have been working that day; example, if you are doing back, do a 10 minute jog on a treadmill and after do a 4 sets of pullups, max repetitions.
Food: Everything, if you are dirty bulking, eat what you like, what makes you happy, and a lot of protein. Benefits of dirty bulking is that you can eat what you want/like and that has a great influence on your mindset. Taking a break from your strict diet, meal plan, and all of those things. Give yourself a couple of months of mind training, minimize stress about nutrition, but don’t forget to come back on track.

Supplements

What to take in order to bulk as big as fast as possible?
Whey – bulking or not, you need protein. Whey is the best post workout food/shake.
Creatine – Choose what kind of creatine you want/need, but watch out for water retention.
Multivitamin – You’ll need a lot of vitamins to help speed up your recovery and your gains.
Mass gainer – Lot of calories, lot of strength and a lot of gains. Build some serious mass.
BCAA – Push your protein synthesis to maximum, help your body to make new muscle.

Bulking tips

1. Compound movements
Focus on compound movements, squats, bench press, deadlift, pullup, lunges, military press…
Compound movements will help you produce more growth hormone, and you can assume what will growth hormone do with your muscles.

2. Water
Bulking, cutting or just eating healthy, you need water, and a lot of it. Water helps nutrients to travel to your cells, speed up your recovery…
Drink at least one gallon of water every day.

3. Rest
If you are working hard, eating a lot, you will need a lot of rest.
Sleep at least eight hours every night, and try to incorporate a power nap, for me it was always helpful to take a power nap (20 minutes) after my workout and after my post workout meal, it helps me to reduce cortisol levels after working out.

4. Positive thinking
One of most important things in your life is positive thinking.
Your job, fitness, success, happiness depends on positive thinking, you can’t have a good workout without your mindset pushing you past your limits. Go out your comfort zone and push yourself past your limits.

5. Nutrition
You are eating a lot, but two most important meals are, pre workout and post workout.
Pre workout meal will give you needed calories to lift heavy, and you need to try to burn them all with heavy lifts and maybe you will need to be in the gym a little bit longer than usual, do a bit more sets than usual.
Post workout meal will give you protein for muscle repair, carbs for helping your muscle recovery, and supplements for muscle growth.

Check our article on Pre & Post Workout nutrition!

6. Progress
Having goals for every 90 days is one of the best ways to progress.
But you need to track your progress every week. Measurements, your bodyweight, taking pictures every week, this all will help you a lot. It is a very crucial to track your progress because you can see if you are going in a wanted direction, and you can correct some things if you see them on time.

7. Routine variation
Change your routine for bulking, maybe some old school working out routine will do the trick, or some newer like FST-7, it is up to you. But change two or three routines during your bulking period. It will help you to shock your muscles into growth. Focus on 4-12 repetitions range, focus on strength and on quality of the movement.

8. Stretch
Maximize your workouts with stretches. After every training session, stretch that muscle group for ten to fifteen minutes. Hold every stretch/move for at least fifteen seconds, never hold less than ten seconds.
Also, warm up properly before you work out, let the blood flow into your muscles, elevate your heart rate, and prepare your mindset with some motivational videos.

The post 8 Tips for Bulking: Training, Food & Supplements appeared first on Workoutr.com.

Preparations for Spartan Race

We had only one month to prepare ourselves for race. I will try to explain everything I can, and how did I prepare for something like this, step by step.

Running:
I was never a good runner. I was doing a HIIT cardio, I didn’t run around, it just wasn’t my thing. But when I started with my preparations, the first step was to start running, because it is a race and it was very crucial for me to gain some endurance. So I started with a 2 miles, then 5 miles and at the end, 8 miles.
I knew that with obstacles there will be no more than 1-2 of running between each obstacle, so I focused on getting as much speed as possible in 2 miles, and to run without a break. It was very hard because I haven’t run for more than 8 years, and first 2 miles were easy, but later on it was a lot harder, but I have set my goal, my challenge, and I have needed to push myself.

Explosive movements:
Burpees, burpees, and more burpees. That is definition of a Spartan race.

I’ve been familiar with burpees, but 20 repetitions every now and then, but 30 burpees if you don’t make trough obstacle, ooh man, harsh. First time that I’ve attempted to do 30 burpees, I was sweaty, and my heart wanted to pop right out of my chest. But it was awesome. Every day I did a 100 burpees, first thing when I would wake up, I would do 50 burpees as my morning cardio routine, with some squats and pushups. Last week I was doing a 100 burpees at once, and when I measured time, 100 burpees under eight minutes, I was so satisfied.
Jumps, you need to train your jumps, because when you have a 8ft wall in front of you, you need to jump as high you can.

Strength:
In order to carry a 50 pound bucket or a sandbag, you’ll need a strenght.
When I was preparing for a Spartan race, I was currently working out at street workout, so bodyweight exercises only. That has helped me a lot, because I was doing pull ups, dips, push ups, all of those things are very helpful when it comes to obstacles at Spartan race.
Pull ups are crucial when it comes to walls, because if you can jump high, you still need to pull yourself up, and over that wall, that was time when I learned how to do a muscle up, because muscle up is jumping over wall but without a wall, only bar. And of course, burpees.

Stability:
Carrying stuff around, cargo nets, balancing yourself, walking on the hill, all those things are very connected with stability. Even running itself is very stabilizing movement, because you are running up the hill, down the hill side to side, sliding down the hill, walking down the hill, my abs were so burned up.

You can check our shop if you need exercise equipment!

Spartan race itself

It was October, it was fairly cold. My mindset was right, but when I have felt the rush of seeing the track, coming to registration and seeing other racers, they were taller than me, buffer than me, they were Spartans. But I knew, that I will give all I’ve got, and I did.
I have eaten around 3000 kcal before race, I had my cheat day the day before to fill my glycogen levels, and that has helped me a lot!
When you step into that “mosh pit”, and wait for couple of minutes, starring at people around you, it was like the whole universe has come to one place, just to see you race.
I knew at that time, “This is it, all workouts, all miles, everything will pay off, I will push myself more than I’ve ever pushed myself, and I will finish”.
I didn’t care about ranking, I saw that more than 2500 people are racing that day, I’ve told myself, “just be in upper half, and it will be okay”.
BANG, the race has begun, when I think about it, I didn’t think about anything, just emptying your mind, step after step, tree after tree, obstacle after obstacle. It was more running that I’ve expected.
I’ve done a 4×30 burpees and that had killed me, because, after couple of miles, and you have to pump 30 burpees, but keep in mind, you still have to run, a lot, and that process has killed me, it was really hard.
The hardest, and for me one of the worst experience in my life, was swimming trough lake, and it  was cold AF, around 5 degrees Celsius, and after 5-8 miles of running, to jump into water that cold, I had a little panic attack, I couldn’t catch my breath, shallow breathing, and so on. I was trying to flex every muscle in my body, just to get blow flowing, but eventually, I was out of that ice cold lake.
Mud, and obstacles, little swim in the mud, that was fun, a little bit dirty, but fun.
And for last, barbwire crawl, and it was lower than any barbwire before, and also longer, I was so thankful to captain Price from “Call Of Duty” games, because he has taught me how to crawl.
As I stood up, I was searching for a smoke. I knew that at the end of the race, there is some fire I will have to jump over, but I couldn’t find any smoke, so I just run as fast I could, this was the end, and I ‘ve had some energy left in me, and that needed to go out, so I just gave everything.
In the end, everything was awesome, only, it was very cold, very, and we’ve rushed to changing room to put on some dry clothes.
We were waiting about a week to get results, and when I saw, that I am around 700th place I was more than happy, not a runner, only a month of preparations, and being in the top third of the race, that was it. Medal and T-shirt are only a plus, but my result and my experience is everything.

At the end, a little wet, and a little muddy.

The post Spartan Race – How to Prepare and Finish It appeared first on Workoutr.com.

If you are new to working out and fitness lifestyle, maybe you don’t know that nutrition is the key to good results. Meals around your workout session are most important meals you’ll have. Pre workout meal will give you the energy required for your workout session and post workout meal will give you all the nutrients required for your muscle repair. If you are working out hard, you must focus on nutrition even harder.

Nutrition

Nutrition is the most important thing for any kind of result, weight loss, muscle gain or just health. Your body needs about 114 nutrients every day, and your goal must be to give your body all of them.
If you are reading this article, most probably you are already in the gym, you are training and you need some advice about nutrition. First, you need to boost your metabolism, this means to eat a 4-5-6 meals a day depends on how your day looks like. But 2 meals are the most important, pre/post workout meals. This period is about 4 hours (pre-workout meal, workout session and post workout meal) and your body significantly increase capacity to build muscle because it is the time when the body is most in demand, but also need the most of the nutrients that you need for the process of muscle growth.

Pre-workout meal

The pre-workout meal is second most important meal in the day. Main goal of PWM is to prepare your body for your workout session, to give you energy that you can use trough out your session of pouring it on the iron.
During your workout session, your body uses sugars for energy, and if you want to have that sugars. The sugars that your body needs you can find in food, your muscles and in the fat, fat is sugar that you haven’t used so it is stored in fat. Here is some fat loss tips to take those sugars and use it in your session.
First when you start to work out, your body burns the sugars stored trough out your body, and those sugars you need to replenish, so your body starts a process of glycolysis. Glycolysis is the process of conversion sugar (carbohydrates) into ATP, a form of energy that your body uses for muscle contraction.
Second, don’t forget on your protein intake BEFORE your workout session. During your session the carbs and protein are fairly digested, so your muscle repair starts when you are still working out. A couple hours before, I would suggest cottage cheese, because of casein, and 90-60 min before workout, chicken breast or eggs. And for carbs, oatmeal, rice, or fruits, try to stick with slow releasing carbohydrates.

For me, I always tried to consume a 100 grams of carbohydrates, and 30 grams of protein before working out, I eat a 60% of total daily carbs before workout, and 40% after workout.
You can also eat some fast digesting carbs, for me it works great, some mini “cheat meal”, but you must train in 60 min if you eat some fast digesting carbs, so they can’t go to your fat reserves.

Don’t eat fat before working out, it will slow your metabolism and that is something you definitely you don’t want to happen.
Pre workout meal will give you the energy and the strength for your session, so play a little bit, try different things before and see what works best for you.

Post workout meal

You have hit your iron, and your muscles are sore, you are tired, but feeling awesome. Now it’s time for some good post workout meal. I would recommend a post workout shake with minimum a 30-40 grams of protein with BCAA and some sort of amino acids. When you drink your food, like shake, it digest faster than regular food and that is something you want and need.
The main goal of post workout meal is to quickly and efficiently deliver the fuel that your muscles have used and allow them to repair itself, and to build new muscle tissue.
Half an hour after your workout session, your body has a process called “protein window”, this means that in half an hour your body is in state of shock and want to replenish all cells that are broken, like muscle fibers of replenish glycogen cells. And in these half an hour absorption of these nutrients is much faster and efficient.
An hour after your post workout shake, it’s time to eat, but this time solid food, but what?
After a workout session your body needs glycogen and protein, and you have to give it all. And if you remember a casein I’ve mentioned before, casein is slow releasing protein and it will help your post workout recovery a lot, but you need more protein.
I like to eat a fast digesting carbs to get my insulin level a little higher, because insulin is like a “gate opener” and it helps nutrients to go to your cells and to repair your body.
Like I’ve mentioned, a 40% of daily carb intake I eat after my workout, and minimum of 40 grams of protein.
Eat a variable sorts of protein, eggs and cheese, chicken and fish, add some soy, pees or beans, so you will get a different combinations of amino acids in your “protein window”.
Eat a fruit right before your post workout solid meal, like an apple or banana, sugar goes up, insulin is here. Or even some chocolate bar, I tend to eat a dark chocolate after my workout session because of magnesium. Don’t forget on your vitamins and minerals after your workout. Antioxidants are very important after your session because they protect your body against free radicals that are often produced during hard workout sessions. A glass of water with lemon will help you, combine vitamin C with a vitamin E for even better protection.
Magnesium is also a great nutrient that your body needs. It helps with synthesis of protein in your muscles. Magnesium may speed recovery and help protect you from inflammation due to how it regulates gene expression

What to eat after a workout session?

Mainly focus on protein. Like chicken, fish, eggs and etc. And don’t to forget to rehydrate. If you don’t consume enough water, a lot of nutrients won’t absorb. Drink a 1L of water during of your workout and before your solid post workout meal drink a 0,3L of water, it will help your body to recover faster.

For the end, this were some advices on your pre and post workout meals, what you should eat, and way, but for the end, test yourself, maybe some of these things won’t work on you, but mostly they will. Try with types of protein, carbs, and see how your body responds to it, if you eat a fast digestive carb before workout, maybe you’ll be strong as Hercules, or maybe you will feel sluggish in the gym afterwards, so try what works best for you. What kind of protein is the best for you, what you can eat after, which protein shake works best for you.
Thank you all for reading, hope it is helpful, so stay tuned and share!

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