The Benefits of Tracking Your Rest Periods Between Sets

When you step into the gym, you likely have a clear plan in mind: to push your body, build strength, and achieve your fitness goals. You diligently track your reps, sets, and weights lifted, but there's one often-overlooked aspect of your workout that can make a significant difference in your progress: rest periods between sets. In this blog post, we'll explore the importance of tracking your rest periods and the benefits it can bring to your fitness journey.

The Role of Rest Periods in Your Workouts

Rest periods are the intervals of time you take between sets or exercises during your workout. They serve a crucial purpose in your training routine, affecting various aspects of your performance and results.

1. Muscle Recovery

Rest periods allow your muscles to recover partially between sets. During intense exercise, your muscles accumulate fatigue and metabolites like lactic acid. Adequate rest helps clear these metabolites, reducing muscle soreness and enabling you to perform better in subsequent sets.

2. Strength and Power 

For exercises focused on maximal strength and power, longer rest periods are essential. They provide sufficient time for your nervous system to recover, ensuring you can exert maximum force during each set.

3. Hypertrophy (Muscle Growth)

Shorter rest periods (typically 30-90 seconds) are often employed in hypertrophy-focused workouts. These brief intervals create metabolic stress in the muscles, a key driver of muscle growth.

4. Fat Loss and Conditioning

In workouts aimed at fat loss and conditioning, shorter rest periods keep your heart rate elevated, enhancing calorie burn and cardiovascular fitness.

The Benefits of Tracking Rest Periods

Now that we understand the significance of rest periods, let's delve into why tracking them is so beneficial for your fitness journey.

1. Precision in Training

Tracking rest periods ensures that you adhere to your intended training regimen. It prevents unintentional variations in rest times, helping you maintain consistency in your workouts 

2. Progression Monitoring

Just as you track weight lifted and repetitions, monitoring rest periods enables you to track your progression. Over time, you can reduce rest times as your conditioning and recovery capacity improve.

3. Effective Time Management

Efficient use of your workout time is essential, especially if you have a busy schedule. Tracking rest periods ensures you neither rush nor unnecessarily prolong your workouts.

4. Enhanced Workout Planning

When you record rest periods, you gain valuable insights into your workout planning. You can tailor your rest times to align with your specific goals, whether it's strength, hypertrophy, or endurance.

5. Preventing Plateaus

Plateaus can be frustrating on your fitness journey. By tracking rest periods, you can identify if stagnant progress is due to excessive rest or inadequate recovery between sets.

How to Track Your Rest Periods

Tracking your rest periods is a straightforward process that can be done with minimal effort. Here's how you can incorporate it into your workout routine:

1. Use a Timer: The simplest method is to use a timer. Most smartphones have timer apps that you can set to your desired rest period duration.

2. Wearable Fitness Devices: Many fitness trackers and smartwatches offer built-in timers that you can use during your workouts.

3. Workout Apps: There are numerous workout apps available that not only guide your exercises but also time your rest periods.

4. Traditional Stopwatch or Clock: If you prefer a low-tech approach, a traditional stopwatch or wall clock with a second hand can work just as well.

Tailoring Rest Periods to Your Goals

The optimal rest period varies based on your specific fitness goals and the exercises you're performing. Here's a general guideline:

- Strength and Power: Longer rest periods of 2-5 minutes between sets are ideal.

- Hypertrophy (Muscle Growth): Rest for 30 seconds to 90 seconds between sets.

- Fat Loss and Conditioning: Shorter rest periods of 30 seconds to 60 seconds help maintain an elevated heart rate.

Tracking your rest periods between sets is an often-overlooked yet crucial aspect of optimizing your workouts. It ensures precision, helps you monitor progression, manages your workout time effectively, enhances your workout planning, and can even break through plateaus. By taking this simple step, you can fine-tune your training, align it with your goals, and accelerate your journey toward improved strength, muscle growth, and overall fitness.

Get ready for Flu Season...Again 🙄

Should You Work Out If You're Sick? Listen to Your Body

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The question of whether to work out while you're sick often arises, but the answer may not be what you want to hear. The truth is, it's generally best to refrain from exercising when you're unwell. While you may believe that sweating it out will help, here's the reality you need to consider:

✔️ Working out with below-the-neck symptoms could potentially worsen your symptoms or prolong your illness. It's essential to give your body the time and space it needs to recover fully.

✔️ When you exercise while battling something like the flu, you divert energy that your body requires to fight off germs, redirecting it towards your workout instead.

✔️ Listening to your body and allowing it to rest will not cause regression in the progress you've made. In fact, giving yourself the necessary time to recover will help you come back stronger than before.

We understand that the current season of sickness may feel more intense than previous years, and it can be frustrating. However, don't hesitate to prioritize your well-being and give yourself the time you need to heal.

By allowing your body to rest and recover, you'll bounce back faster and stronger. Giving yourself permission to rest doesn't equate to regression—it's an essential part of the healing process.

So, when you're feeling under the weather, remember to listen to your body. Be kind to yourself and recognize that rest is a crucial component of your overall well-being. By taking the time you need to feel better, you'll be back on your feet in no time.

Remember, your health comes first. Take care of yourself, give yourself permission to rest, and trust that you'll emerge from this period of sickness even stronger than before.

Overhead Work

I Love Sitting for Overhead Work: Boost Efficiency and Get Better Results

Sitting for overhead work may seem unconventional, but it's a technique that can yield significant benefits. By eliminating the wiggles and shakes from your legs, you create a stable foundation that allows you to focus solely on your arm strength.

When you remove the assistance that your legs could provide, you gain a clear understanding of your true arm strength. This revelation is essential for accurately assessing your progress and pushing yourself to new heights.

The beauty of eliminating compensatory work is that it increases the efficiency of your exercise. By focusing solely on the target muscles, you optimize the movement and maximize the effectiveness of each repetition. This heightened efficiency translates to better and faster results.

It's important to note that this approach may lead to quicker burnout compared to other workout methods. However, if you're seeking tangible proof that your workout is working, this is the easiest and fastest way to do it. The intensity and targeted nature of this technique ensure that you feel the burn and experience the benefits.

When you strive for efficient workouts, removing potentially compensatory work becomes paramount. It makes all the difference in honing your technique, challenging your muscles, and achieving your desired outcomes.

So, embrace the unconventional and give sitting for overhead work a try. Experience the increased efficiency, undeniable burn, and accelerated progress that come with this technique. Push yourself to new limits and witness the transformation in your strength and overall fitness.

When it comes to achieving your fitness goals, efficiency is key. By focusing on targeted movements and eliminating compensatory work, you pave the way for faster progress and exceptional results.

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Ladder

2 minutes

1 seated overhead tricep press

1 sit up

Add a tricep press every round

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Create New Habits

You Won't Have Workout Results Without the Habit of Working Out: Prioritize Your Health

Consistency. It's the key to achieving the workout results you desire. Yet, it's the one aspect that seems to elude many. I often hear the frustration in the voices of those who struggle to maintain a consistent workout routine. What baffles me is the mindset that treats health as a convenient on-and-off switch.

Here's the truth: Taking care of yourself is a form of preventative medicine. It's more than just weight loss or stress relief. It's a comprehensive approach to overall well-being. However, in order for it to truly work for you, you must actively work for it.

Consistency isn't about pushing yourself to the limit with a grueling workout once a week. It's not about taking extended breaks because your schedule is packed. It's not about relegating your workouts to the back burner due to other pressing tasks.

Consistency is a habit—an ingrained part of your daily routine. It's about showing up for yourself, day after day, without excuses or justifications. It's about prioritizing your health and well-being as a non-negotiable.

Remember, no one else can show up for you in this journey. It's up to you to make the commitment, take ownership of your health, and prioritize your workouts consistently. Embrace the responsibility and the rewards that come with it.

Make a conscious effort to carve out time for yourself and your physical fitness. Treat it as a vital appointment in your calendar—one that you cannot afford to miss. Prioritize self-care and recognize that your health and well-being deserve your unwavering commitment.

By developing the habit of consistent workouts, you're investing in a better future for yourself. You're nurturing your body, mind, and soul. So, let go of the excuses, push through the challenges, and show up for yourself day in and day out.

Because when it comes to your health, there's no substitute for consistency. It's the key that unlocks the door to a vibrant, fulfilling life.

Motivation Comes After Discipline

Motivation Finds You After Discipline Gets You There: The Reality About Regular Workouts

Achieving regular workouts is a challenge that many people face. The truth is, most individuals lack the discipline to stay consistent on their own. That's why classes and group fitness options hold such strong appeal. They provide a built-in accountability that working out solo often lacks.

The key to working out regularly lies in the discipline to show up consistently, whether you're exercising alone at home or attending a class. Deep down, you know it's true. Late cancel fees exist in classes precisely because discipline is required to honor your commitment and show up as scheduled.

Establishing a habit is crucial. It's about showing up even when you don't feel like it, pushing through the desire to do something else, and not allowing excuses to dictate your actions.

By developing this discipline, you lay the foundation for sustainable motivation. As the habit becomes ingrained and your discipline is firmly established, motivation naturally follows. It becomes a driving force that propels you forward.

So, don't wait for motivation to strike before taking action. Focus on cultivating discipline and creating a routine. Be consistent in your efforts, even when it's challenging. Over time, you'll find that motivation arises effortlessly because you have built a strong foundation of habits and discipline.

Remember, motivation is not something you can rely on consistently. It fluctuates and can be elusive. However, discipline is within your control. It's the anchor that keeps you grounded and helps you stay committed to your fitness goals.

Embrace the journey of developing discipline, and you'll discover that motivation becomes a natural byproduct. The rewards of regular workouts and the sense of accomplishment will propel you forward on your path to a healthier, happier you.

Start today, prioritize discipline, and watch as motivation finds its way to you.

Do the Work

If you don’t do the work, this isn’t going to work for you. 

Let me be clear: I don’t train idiots.

We all know the power behind eating healthy and working out consistently. We know the positive impact it has not just on our immediate future but also the longevity of our lives.

We know working out needs to be a priority, and yet it’s the first thing to fall down the list of our priorities.

We also know it’s the thing that no one else can do FOR you.

After over 10 years of training people from ALL different backgrounds and with all different goals, this is what I know for sure:

The people who SEE change are the ones who consistently put their health back on their priority list.

They’re the people who get creative with the type of workout they’re doing so they can continue to workout regularly.

They’re also the type of people who are flexible with their workouts. The time, the type, even the day because they know that working out needs to be a regular aspect of their routine.

Ultimately, they know if they don’t do the work, the work isn’t going to happen and then the work won’t work for them.

The Power of Prehab

The more you do to recover, the more you do to prepare for your next workout.

Think of it like prehab.

Prepping your muscles for the next adventure you’re going to put them through. The better prepped they are, the harder you’re going to be able to work and see results.

I push the importance of recovery with my clients.

Realistically speaking, most of us don’t know what to do for recovery beyond just being lazy on our couch.

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Things like:

• Stretching

• Hydrating

• Low impact work

• Foam rolling

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All serve to get your muscles back to baseline.

There’s a dichotomy of thought around the idea of recovery:

You’re either:

✔️ fully embracing your recovery days, like a sloth, to the point where coming out of the recovery day SUCKS.

OR

✔️ you don’t see the point. At all.  

Hate to break it to you B U T…your recovery matters just as much as your workouts.

Your body is working hard for you. It needs that TLC to KEEP working hard for you.

Sit in Discomfort

I am asking you to voluntarily sit in a space of discomfort. 

Especially after the past couple years of LIVING that life, who would willing do that?

right?!!

Who in their right mind would WANT to be uncomfortable?

That’s the thing about working out: you’re not going to see change from a place of comfort. From the place of doing the same thing on repeat.

But you know that…

You also know that if you don’t step into those moments of discomfort NOTHING is going to change.

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EMOM

15 minutes

Switch circuits each minute

Circuit #1:

12 tuck ups

12 toe touches

Circuit #2:

12 deadlifts

12 jump squats

Circuit #3:

12 bicep curls

12 push press

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The Strongest Version of You

I don’t want you to be the strongest person in the world. 

I want you to be the strongest version of yourself.

I’ve been in the fitness industry long enough to know that the mirror results you’re looking for aren’t what matter the most.

I know you think they do. I know they give you your initial motivation to show up because who doesn’t want to feel amazing in a bikini?

But I also know that those mirror results won’t be what keep you coming back. You need more than that after your mirror results are achieved.

I know it’s what you want, I know the frustration of NOT having it is what’s driving you to FINALLY make the change you’ve been thinking about for years.

But I also know, with complete certainty, that the mirror result you want won’t be what keeps you going once you get it.

✔️ strength

✔️ power

✔️ confidence

feeling like a bada$$…that’s what’ll keep you going long after the novelty of the mirror results wear off.

My Fave Kind of Workout

The deceptive a$$ kicker. My favorite kind of workout.

Not that I would EVER admit that out loud.

But there’s something to be said for the workout that looks like it’ll be doable until you’re 10 reps in and feel like you might die.

Mostly because once you’re done, you feel like an absolute boss. That kind of confidence is the kind of confidence that ripples into the rest of your day.

That’s the kind of accomplishment, as a trainer, I’m here for because that’s the kind of confidence that keeps you showing up.

It’s the positive reinforcement that subconsciously lets you know that you’re capable of anything.

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3 Rounds

15 reps each exercise

Reverse Lunges

Deadlifts

Sumo Squats

Lateral Lunges

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