kThere are as many exercises out there as Jeff Bezos has in dollars and choosing what exercise will work for you is a lot more difficult than spending money (insert amazon Wishlist here).[1] But here are some things to think about.

1. Do you have any injuries?

If you’re in rehabilitation or have been through rehabilitation you probably don’t want to reinjure that area. What exercises are going to support your recovery or maintenance. If you have been through rehabilitation, a great place to start is by including those exercises into your exercise routine or progressing them to be more challenging. Also knowing what exercises you should avoid, basically meaning any exercise that puts that joint in a less optimal position or under way too much force.  We need to take this slow. Adding GRADUAL weight, add balance and keep it functional.

1. Let’s talk about functional exercises.

To me these are exercises that support your day-to-day activities. Being able to single leg squat 500% of your weight might look super sweet for the gram, BUT in your life outside of the gym will you ever need to complete that task? Probably not, but you might frequently pick up 20lbs and carry it 5 meters. [2]  Meaning that strengthening the surrounding musculature that help support this task is going to save you from future injuries. If you have a super physical job and don’t know where to start in your exercise programing start with the core, and by this, I mean all your core muscle not just the abdominals. In the next blog we will really break this sucker down!

1. Machines, Dumbbells and Bodyweight ohhhhhh my[3]

There is so much more equipment than these 3. Every week there is a new gadget, but I am going to focus on these 3 today. Machines are great for beginners. For example, if you want to lift a heavy weight, they a) put you in a proper position (if set up correctly) and support the body b) isolate muscles well. These reasons make them great for rehabilitation and beginners. There are more functional choices out there, but machines are a great place to start. Dumbbells and Body Weight exercise need a lot more stabilization from the core, as well as the joint it’s moving. Ensuring your positioning takes a bit more concentration, and your need to engage your core more. This means you’re probably able to lift more when using a machine vs lifting free weights. Free weight exercises can be super functional because they can mimic everyday activities.

1. Choosing Weight

Start conservative. Think about the size of the muscle, start with body weight exercises for the lower body (Squats, Lunges,) If you have access to machines start at 20lbs. Upper body exercises start at 5lbs and go from there. The rule of thumb is that if for 2 consecutive workouts you can do the exercise easily on the 3rd set, it’s time to increase the weight.

1. It’s not what you can do for your exercise program it’s what your exercise program can do for you!

Seriously, why are you at the gym or in your living room holding a pair of dumbbells? I don’t know, you tell me! Pick exercises you find fun, or at least will help you improve at a sport, reduce your back pain, or do something physical you have never done before. Hello handstand. Weight loss is a popular goal, and while weight loss can have a lot of benefits, focusing primarily on the scale can just lead to disappointment.[4]. So, I challenge you to dig a little deeper. What will the weight loss allow you to achieve? Healthy heart? Decreased back pain? Look super ripped – (muscle mass gain). Work towards those goals! How you feel matters more. The biggest thing is that you like your exercise program, and you will continue to come back!
 
Still confused and have no idea where to start? Have no fear! I am creating a January fitness challenge to get moving EVERYDAY! It’s a great place to start your fitness journey or simply get back into it. The goal is to move your body every day! The exercise programs will be from 10 – 45 mins and it will target your whole body and a lot of training goals (flexibility mobility and strength).  And of course, if you want something more individualized because you do have injuries or very specific goals, reach out to me! We can figure it out.
But let’s work out together now!
 
 Blog Workout #2
 
Warm up – Keep movements dynamic, Low lunge, Dynamic pigeon, chest stretch, thread the needle, neck side bend (both sides), rotations. Isometric extension.
Front Lunges, walk out to pike, front plank to side plank squat with shoulder raise, single leg lift
Stretching – Low lunge, Dynamic pigeon, chest stretch, thread the needle, neck side bend (both sides), rotations. Hold 30 seconds each side!


[1] There are not 201.7 billion exercises, gawd that guy is rich. Seriously #shoplocal

[2] If it bothers you that I just used measurement units from 2 systems, you’re not alone I am with you… 9.09kg 20lbs is 9.09kg. Okay maybe I can sleep at night.

[3] Adapted from Lions Tigers and Bears oh my… which is from the wizard of Oz, which I did not know, until now.

[4] To be honest at my most fit I weighed my heaviest

Starting a new exercise program can be really challenging and it is so easy to get overwhelmed with all the different types of things you should be doing vs what you want to be doing and on and on and on (and on). But of course, you don’t want your 60 minutes of exercise to be a total time suck and be strength training when you really wanted to be focusing on endurance. Just like how you choose to watch friends over and over again because do you really want to waste that whole 30 minutes watching some new release on Netflix when you know FRIENDS is *probably* better?
In this blog, we are going to focus on strength training sets and repetitions to maximize your workout time. There are 4 goals to resistance training. Endurance, Strength, Power and Hypertrophy.
Okay, so let’s break these down for second.
Endurance – Is that ability to for your muscles to last for a while, think going the distance. This area is where a lot of your cardiovascular workouts fit in. And you might be thinking, “but Jess I thought we were talking about muscle training”. GUESS WHAT? your heart is a muscle! Cue Carly Rae Jepsen (yes, she has other songs besides CALL ME MAYBE). Muscle endurance helps you complete those repetitive tasks at work but also allows you to carry 50 bags of groceries those 500 meters because we all know I am  only making one trip. 
Strength - Strength is the ability for your muscles to contract and withstand (and overpower) what you are trying to move or lift. This is the goal that most people think of when it comes to traditional strength training. The internet is full definitions about what strength is. It is summed up well here  but to me specific strength training should be considered functional strength training. Exercise that benefits  and  helps YOU get through your day-to-day stuff without injury.
Power- This one, like strength is the ability for your muscles to contract BUT this is a one and done kind of thing. Think basketball player vertically jumping to sink a 3 point basket – I don’t follow basketball how do you say that in a cool way— anyways, that player isn’t going to be able to jump that high again immediately after, power needs to get stored again. Powerlifting uses this type of training, because they need to lift something super heavy, but just once and then they can drop it immediately.
Hypertrophy – Think giant muscles!
 
Once you have your goal in mind, then you’re well on your way to creating an exercise program, because the sets and reps have well defined parameters. Below is a useful visual when planning your repetitions, as you can see all repetitions hit a little bit on each of the training goals, but the goals highlighted in yellow is where you can see the biggest results for that specific goal * the sweet spot*  
 
Repetition sweet spots for
Endurance 13-20
Strength 2-6
Power 2-5
Hypertrophy 6-12
​This chart also gives a good indication of where to work if you want to work on two goals, if you want to be toned and strong, you want to look for an area that works both strength and hypertrophy (12-16 reps)                    

Okay so now you know what repetitions to use for your specific goals, but how do you determine sets?
For Power and Strength 3-5 sets
Hypertrophy and Muscle Endurance – 2-4 sets
Now that you have your sets and reps figured out, it’s time to figure out what exact exercises to pick, and what weight to choose.
That’s on the next blog.


Lets Workout
(In the blog I will be offering a weekly fitness challenge/workout) This week we are going to focus on full body Endurance what reps should we be working in????
 
RIGHT 13-16

But first, why endurance? This workout is a full bodyweight exercises, this will ensure the weight is enough to get results! The upper body exercises might get sticky, remember to modify if needed!


Kin Co. Blog #1 Workout: Endurance
 Warm up – 30 seconds each
Jumping Jacks, Right Hip Swings, Left Hip Swings, Standing Knee to chest alternating sides, Hamstring curls, Mountain Climbers, Plank Jacks, Dynamic pigeon pose.
Squats, Lunges, calf raises, Row pulses, bent over lat pull down, Pushups, Side lying Triceps, plank dips, 4 point kneeling hip extension.

Check out the video below for the how to!

​References
Sands et al., “Basics of Strength and Conditioning Manual” National Strength and Conditioning Association, 2012
Hargrove, Todd. “What is Strength.” Web blog post. Better Movement. October 23, 2011