Fix Up My Body by Jackie O.

Burning the Fat: Aerobics and Your Body

Advice from Pittsburgh personal trainer and life coach, Jackie Omotalade, “The First Lady of Fitness, Fashion, and Fun:

There are many great things about starting an aerobics program for your body. One of the greatest things about aerobics is that you can use it to burn fat in ways that are easier on your body than dieting. You can use aerobics to very easily burn fat, because while you are building up a sweat and working on your heart rate, all of your muscles are also hard at work. As you bring new blood and oxygen to all of your body systems, you are going to find that you are giving yourself the best chance to really get rid of all that unwanted fat.

Burning fat is something that you can finally take control of when you are doing aerobics on a regular basis. When you body is in constant motion, all of the body systems are working hard to maintain body functions at a normal rate. Because your muscles need to be moving more, your heart is going to have to work harder because the only way to get your muscles to move faster is to supply them with more blood and therefore more oxygen. Because your heart has to work harder your lungs need to work harder to provide your heart with the oxygen that it needs to keep pumping.

All of these things are going to work in tandem with each other so that you are getting the most out of your entire work out. When all of these systems are working together, you are going to find that you are much stronger than you think you would be. As your entire body fights to work harder, you are going to find that actually you are burning fat because your body needs energy to keep moving and to stay moving at a certain rate. It will find this energy in the stored pockets of fat that you have in your body. All of these things are going to happen quickly, and you will find that you are going to be much better off as you start to work out using aerobics more often.

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Advice from Pittsburgh personal trainer and lifestyle coach, Jackie Omotalade, “The First Lady of Fitness, Fashion, and Fun.

Have you seen Michelle Obama’s arms? Wait, let me rephrase that. . .Who hasn’t seen Mrs. Obama’s arms?

They are to die for- toned and sculpted and so is her 5″11 frame. Her arms have taken on a life of their own, with women all over the world declaring that they want arms “just like Obama!” And it doesn’t hurt that the woman with the arms is the epitome of style, grace, and class. Man oh man. . . neither Hillary Clinton or Laura Bush had arms like those!

And you too can have amazing arms. . .but in the word of Rue Paul. . YOU GOT TO WORK IT! Before you start any workout routine it is best to check with your physician to make sure you are fit for physical exercise (Man. . I sound like a Cialis commerical, but the only side effect here is AMAZING FREAKING ARMS).

Next, you must understand your arm as a series of muscle groups. Your arms are made up of three target muscles:
- the Triceps – they are located at the back of your upper arm and straigten the elbow. Triceps are sometimes called “bat wings” or “grandma arms.”
- the Biceps – these muscles are the front part of the upper arm and are used to raise your forearm
- the Deltoids – these muscles run from your collarbone to the long bone on your upper arm and they are used when you lift your arm away from the side of your body

Now. . .what is strength training? Strength training increases muscle mass and revs up the body to burn fat at a higher rate, allowing for the lean muscle definition to show.

Even if you just want Obama arms, you will want to train all major muscles, because if you fail to strengthen the entire body, it limits lean mass. Strength training builds lean body mass and decreasing body fat. If you are a video person, I would suggest Leisa Hart: Sexy Arms Upper Body Toning Workout. The video does an excellent job of showing you a variety of exercises perfect for toning your upper body and getting arms like Michelle!

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You do not have to lift heavy weights to tone and sculpt your arms, but the lower the weights, the more repetitions you want to do. I would recommend 3lb, 5lb, or 8lb, weights to begin. You should do 3 sets of either 8-10 repetitions or 10-12 repetitions. You should choose a weight that is heavy, but not too heavy and that by the last set, you have to struggle a little to complete. Lift weights three times a week, every other day. I suggest doing bicep curls, triceps kickbacks to exercise the back of the arm, shoulder and lateral raises. Visit the American Council on Exercises library for detailed instructions on these arm exercises.

A common misconception is that women will bulk up if they lift weights. THie simply is not true. Woman do not produced enough testosterone naturally to bulk up in the same way men do.

I also suggest moderate intensity cardio for 30 minutes, five times a week or vigorous intensity cardio for 20 minutes, three times a week. Both cardio exercises and strength training are needed to speed up metabolism and burn body fat.

Are you ready? Now go get those arms you have always wanted. Above is a list of some of may all time fav and time tested killer arms products. Why wait to get those arms? GO FOR IT!

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So you are headed to the gym for the first time or perhaps the 113th time, here are a few gym etiquette tips you should remember to make the experience enjoyable for yourself and those around you from Pittsburgh certified personal trainer and lifestyle coach, Jackie Omotalade, “The First Lady of Fitness, Fashion, and Fun:

1) Respect People’s Zone: Do not over socialize. People come to the gym to workout, not to hear a long drawn out story about why you hate your sister. Respect your workout as well as the workout of others.

2) Share. Don’t horde all the weights or stay on the treadmill for hours when others are wating. When you are finish with a particular weight, put it back where you found it, so that others may use it.

3) Clean up After Yourself: Just walking away from a machine, without wiping it down is just NASTY. Always bring a towel with you and wipe the machines down when you’re finished. Most gyms offer wipes or sprays for this purpose.

4) Leave your cell phone in you locker: Unless it’s an emergency, save your cell phone chatter for after your workouts.

5) Making Crazy Noises: The gym is not your bedroom. You are not having crazy passionate sex, nor are you giving birth to a child. You are working out. So keep the noises, grunts, and howls to a minimum.

6) Cover it up: The locker room is NOT a nudist colony! Respect that! No one wants to see your pubic hair or breasts, or whether you have perfect abs or a gut. Cover up in the locker room.

7) Toting around your gym bag: Do not carry your bag from machine to machine. You know those large hollowed-out rectangles called lockers? That’s where you store your gym bag.

Unload your weight bar: After you finish using a bar, leave it completely empty. Don’t assume that everyone can lift the same amount of weight you can. This rule doesn’t just apply to heavy lifters. Clean up after yourself! Your momma does not work at the gym!

9) Give people space: Have you ever been in the gym lifting free weights and someone comes right next to you and starts lifting inched from you? Not only is it intrusive and annoying, it can be harmful. Out of common decency and for safety, plain and simple, don’t get in the way.

10) Do not fool around. You do not want to get hurt and you do not want those around you to get hurt. Practice common sense.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED FOR THE GYM

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