performance

Overtraining is REAL

Posted on December 4, 2018 by LetlerFit

Have you ever heard of overtraining? It’s very real and very shitty. It is typically caused by repetitive physical and metabolic stresses such as:⠀
-Environmental Stresses like heat⠀
-poor lifting technique⠀
-excess free radical activity and hypoxia⠀
-inefficiency at buffering byproducts⠀
-poor hydration ⠀
-poor nutrition⠀
-glycogen depletion⠀
-poor recovery⠀
-lack of sleep⠀
-high volume eccentric training⠀
-excess total volume or isolated loading⠀
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The last thing you want to do is to over do it. Proper training and rest is KEY!⠀
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Let me help you! LetlerFit@gmail.com⠀
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Biagioli, Brian Dominick. Advanced Concepts of Personal Training. National Council on Strength and Fitness, 2012.

Learn more about the best online fitness program which includes comprehensive programs focused on shifting towards healthier eating habits, staying fit, and building a better booty. You’ll also find a variety of fitness apparel to help get you that extra motivation to take your goals to another level. Contact me today to learn more about the best fitness programs available to get your body in gear.

Breaking Down Your Muscle Fibers

Posted on October 25, 2018 by LetlerFit

Every time I hear someone say an exercise targets fast or slow twitch fibers and have zero idea what they’re talking about, drives me crazy. While science is currently investigating I believe the last number I was told was 16 fiber types, the general teaching consensus is 3. Type 1, Type 2a, and type 2x. Fast and slow twitch in the science community btw is slowly starting to fade away because they realized thats not the best way of describing our muscle fibers. But for now, I put them into the blog explanation below:⠀
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Your type 1 fibers are known as the slow twitch muscle fibers because they have the slowest firing rate, least amount of force production, and smallest circumference. They are however most resistant to fatigue and have the greatest aerobic efficiency of the other fibers.⠀
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Your type 2a fibers are known as your fast twitch oxidative fibers because they have a fast firing rate, produce moderate force, and have a moderate circumference. As opposed to the type 1 fibers, your type 2 fibers fatigue rapidly because of the high force production and they aid in extended work at lower force output.⠀
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Lastly, your type 2x fibers are known as the fast twitch glycolytic fibers and have the fastest firing rate of the 3 muscle fibers, the greatest force production, and largest circumference. They fatigue the fastest, but have the greatest creatine phosphate efficiency.⠀
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Biagioli, Brian Dominick. Advanced Concepts of Personal Training. National Council on Strength and Fitness, 2012.⠀

Do Your Cardio!

Posted on October 23, 2018 by LetlerFit

Did you know that sedentary individuals have a 20-50% greater risk for developing hypertension compared to individuals who are fit?⠀
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Regular exercise can decrease your risk of developing hypertension by:⠀
-improving arterial vasodilation⠀
-Facilitating Baroreceptor adjustment⠀
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Overtime aerobic exercise can reduce diastolic and systolic measures of Blood Pressure by 6-7 mmHG. In order to accomplish this you want to make sure you are exercising aerobically 30-60 minutes, 3-4 days per week at a 60-70% of VO2 Max intensity.⠀

Think a personal trainer and healthy food is expensive?⠀
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-Hypertension costs the US 64 Billion dollars per year!⠀
-By simply reducing your blood pressure by 12-13 points your risk of heart attack goes down by 21% and any deaths associated with CVD go down by 25%⠀
-a 10% decrease in total blood cholesterol level may reduce the incidence of coronary heart disease by up to 30%⠀
-47% of heart attack and stroke victims die before getting emergency assistance⠀
-90% of all middle aged adults will develop hypertension at some point in their remaining life.⠀
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Moral of the story: CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE IS IMPORTANT…as much as I hate doing it⠀

Is there really such a thing as bad food?

Posted on March 15, 2018March 15, 2018 by LetlerFit

In a world where so many people think healthy means protein and veggies only because carbs (including fruit) are bad for you, I decided to dedicate this post for everyone who suffers from labeling foods as good or bad and those who follow restrictive diets.

Did you know that eating a diet that only consists of protein and vegetables can lead to health issues in a different, yet equally dangerous way as a diet consisting of processed foods, salt, and sugar? Crazy, right?

For this post I wanted to tackle some of the foods most labeled as bad:

Foods high in sodium always get labeled as bad because high salt intake has been linked to high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. But did you know if you eat a few foods a week high in salt and the rest of your diet has adequate salt intake and you stay hydrated…those small spikes of ingested sodium WILL NOT MAKE YOU HAVE A HEART ATTACK
Another food labeled as a diet “no no” for many is sugar. But did you know that processed sugar (whole fruit is not processed sugar) once a week is NOT GOING TO GIVE YOU DIABETES. Did you know that you can do “damage control” on that sugary cheat that is high in carbs and very low in fat by consuming is within 1 hour of an intense workout? Not saying to eat it first and then punish yourself with exercise after, I’m saying if you want to go out for ice cream, donuts, or cookies and not see as much short term weight fluctuations enjoy them after you’ve worked out (again, don’t abuse this).
Fried foods are oh so delicious but oh so restricted when people go on diets, but did you know that consuming 1 fried meal a week with multiple healthy whole meals, that bad food IS NOT GOING TO GIVE YOU HIGH CHOLESTEROL.
Fiber is one of those diet worshipped foods. But did you know that if you consume high fiber vegetables/foods post workout it can become a bad food? You want fiber before or during the day not after a killer workout (messes with recovery-i’ll do a whole post on that some other time).

Moral of this blog: BALANCE and food timing is key!

10 Simple Diet Mistakes that make your Calorie Counting to be far Less Effective

Posted on November 21, 2017 by LetlerFit

Mistake #1: Calories are not created equally. 200 calories in chocolate is not nearly as dense as 200 calories in a colorful salad with protein. We need more good quality calories that bad quality calories in order to lose weight
Mistake #2: You are forgetting about macronutrients. Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins make up calories. Carbs and protein yield 4 calories per gram while fats yield 9 calories per gram. The goal is to eat the correct amount of each eating 1400 calories out of your 1800 calorie day in just one macronutrient is not good. Each macronutrient has a purpose and requirement in our body.
Mistake #3: You are forgetting about Micronutrients. While a donut does contain carbs, fat, and protein (usually 1-2g), the calories are empty. When you consume food the goal is to look at food and think “What kind of energy is this going to give me? and what kinds of vitamins and minerals will it give me?” Vitamins and Minerals are equally as important as macronutrients….the good news is they do NOT directly add to the calorie count.
Mistake #4: Consuming too many calories. Trying to lose weight? At the end of the day weight loss is having less calories in versus calories out. Meaning we need to eat less than what our body burns in activities each day.
Mistake #5: Not consuming enough calories. Trying to gain weight? You need to be consuming more than what your body burns in activities each day.
Mistake #6: Most people do not know how many calories they should even be consuming. Advice: My fitness pal does a decent job at giving you calorie needs based on goals and activity.
Mistake #7: Overestimating calories burned while exercising. The calories the machine tells you, is wayyyyyyyy more than reality because it goes off of the machines RPM and not your body’s work.
Mistake #8: Assuming all lasagna at a restaurant is the same. Luckily most restaurants are registered with my fitness pal and give you calorie, macronutrient, and micronutrient breakdown. However, when a food from a menu does not pop up, it’s hard to find an exact match as recipe and portion size really make a difference.
Mistake #9: No Plan. Meal prepping is a must!! I know my entire week’s menu before it has even started…helps me stay focused and organized. Plus i control what goes into my food and then it becomes easier to track if need be.
Mistake #10: Drinking calories. Most people have no necessity for juices. Skip the liquid calories and go for water!

4 Best Pieces Of Exercise Equipment For Your Own Home

Posted on August 20, 2017August 20, 2017 by LetlerFit

Sometimes our schedule does not permit us to make it to the gym. Sometimes we lose the time we would need to actually drive to and from because life just happens. But when life happens I recommend the following 4 pieces of exercise equipment for a killer home workout.

Set of Dumbbells
Exercise Bench
Slam Ball
Bosu Ball

The above 4 pieces of equipment for your home are great because they are INCREDIBLY versatile and also take up minimal space in the house! Everything can be purchased for cheap on amazon, except the Bosu Ball! Go to Bed Bath and Beyond and order that online using the 20% off and you can get it for cheaper than on amazon!

“Stay So Hungry, You Never Stop Eating.”™

Posted on March 27, 2017 by LetlerFit

Stay so hungry, you never stop eating is the LetlerFit motto. It is a way of life, a way of being, a way of going after what you want.

Do you live the LetlerFit Way? Here are 5 characteristics of someone who does!

You are passionate
You love to bring value and contribution to other people’s lives
You are a workaholic
You are a goal digger: Once you reach a goal, you immediately set a new one, because reaching one goal is never enough
You wake up every morning ready to conquer the day

Do you live the LetlerFit way? Never satisfy for anything less than extraordinary in life, relationships, with yourself, or in business. Always “Stay so Hungry you never stop eating.”™

Finding the Right Shoe

Posted on January 23, 2017January 25, 2017 by LetlerFit

Have you ever gone to the gym and felt some sharp pains in your arches from doing different exercises?

If you don’t have an undiagnosed condition or have one that has already been diagnosed like plantar fasciitis or heel spurs (at that point a podiatrist will usually create your own pair of custom orthotics) chances are you’re wearing the wrong shoe! In my almost 2 years of working at New Balance in South Miami I learned a lot about fitting people for the right shoes, and have recently noticed people wearing the wrong shoes at the gym, or even clients complaining about pains in their arches. So it inspired me to right these simple tips.

Shoes for Weightlifting: Weightlifting shoes typically are flat or on a flat, but have elevated heels. This is because shoes with arch support typically cause instability during lifts, which causes an unnecessary strain on your ankles and knees & the ligaments.
Shoes for Flat Arches (aka flat feet): People with flat arches, require shoes that have a lot of arch support in order to create a false arch. This is especially important when going on a run
Shoes for High Arches: People with High arches get lucky because they don’t really require shoes with technology. people with high arches can use neutral shoes with padding for arches or cross training shoes for regular workouts
Shoes for Regular Arch: People who have a normal arch can use neutral shoes with cushion for running or shoes with a slight arch support

Remember this was a basic rundown on how to pick your shoes, if you feel you have high maintenance arches I recommend seeing a podiatrist for the best recommendations or a New Balance Fit Specialist.

Unfortunately sometimes these shoes are not attractive, but at the end of the day are you really going to choose vanity over practicality? It is crucial we invest in the right running shoes, after all our arches basically carry our entire body weight!

Common Gym Mistake

Posted on January 11, 2017 by LetlerFit

One of the most common gym mistakes I see made is in the warm up. So many people have been taught or assume stretching is all the same, right? Wrong. There are actually 7 types of stretching methods:

ballistic stretching: using your body’s momentum to attempt to move a limb passed normal range of motion
active stretching: holding a stretching with no assistance from anything or anyone
static stretching: stretching a muscle the farthest it goes and then holding that position
passive stretching: also known as partner stretching, but it can also be stretching with the help of an apparatus
isometric stretching: a type of static stretching that uses no motion
dynamic stretching: consists of controlled lime swinging, not to be confused with ballistic stretching
PNF stretching: (proprioreceptive neuromuscular facilitation) It is not so much a stretch as it is a combination of isometric and passive stretching with the goal of achieving max states flexibility.

For the purpose of the article I am going to be emphasizing static and dynamic stretching.

Static stretching is what most people do to warm up, but it is actually one of the worst things you can do as it leaves you more prone to injury.

static stretching actually cools down your body temperature, yet the purpose of a warm up s to increase your body temperature and heat up your muscles in order to prevent injury.
unlike dynamic stretching, static stretching very VERY simply put tells your brain that your muscles will no longer really be needed to contract turning off those specific signals wishing the body
Given the above information, plus given the conclusions reached through scientific research, it is safe to say static stretching goes AFTER your workout or training as part of the cooling down process.

Before a workout you should be utilizing dynamic stretching in order to send the signal to your brain that the muscles will soon be needed to contract at a higher rate than normal and avoid potentially pulling a muscle or even worse.

If you’ve fallen victim to this common gym mistake, you aren’t the only one. People just don’t know, because not everyone studies or understands basic human physiology. Unfortunately, too many personal training certification courses do not even touch on this subject because they focus on more simple topics, so many trainers themselves don’t even know and I blame the curriculum and how easy it is to get your CPT. But anyways, now you know!

Remember Dynamic Stretching for warm ups and Static Stretching for cool downs!

Reach Your 2017 New Year Goals!

Posted on January 9, 2017 by LetlerFit

We are officially moving into week 3 of 2017 and many people unfortunately have already given up on their resolutions. Personally, I am not a fan of calling them resolutions, simply because I believe they are more likely to be attained if we use the word goals & actually create a plan of attack vs just saying our resolutions. Here are my top 5 Tips to reaching your goals in this new year!

Find an accountability partner. Someone who is just as motivated or even more so to help you and herself/himself to reach your 2017 goals.
Create daily and weekly goals. For example, today I want to eat all of my snacks and drink 1 gallon of water or this week I want to lose .5-2 lbs (healthy recommended weightloss).
Find a program that works for you and is something you can easily accomplish despite your schedule. For example whether you are someone who does not have access to a gym or you do, my programs come with 12 week, step by step exercises that you can modify based on your own level! I recently just released my total body package so you can get all 7 of my e-books at a discounted rate!
Write your goals down in a place where you know you will be reminded of them often. I put mine always in my accountability chat that I have for my nutrition clients so we can keep ourselves and each other motivated.
Don’t stress! If you had one rough day it’s not the end of the world, it’s called life! Just pick it up, stay focused, and don’t stress! Fitness should be fun! Definitely not a chore.