Reduce Belly Fat and Brain Fog Strategy2: The Magic of Burst Training Exercise

In a previous post I discussed  7 of my favorite strategies for reducing brain fog and reducing excess belly fat.  These are:

1. Get a handle on stress.
2. Burst exercise
3. Regulate your Blood Sugar
4. Eat a Nutrient dense diet rich in whole, raw plant foods and test nutrient levels and function regularly
5. Balance  Your Immune system, avoid allergens and eat a Gluten Free Diet
6. Get sufficient high quality  Sleep
7. Incorporate regular Cleansing and Detoxification, like a 7 day green cleanse every quarter.

As you know, I am a big fan of exercise. Not only do I LOVE to move my body and work up a sweat, I recognize just how important it is as a  vibrant health solution.

I all too often see people who are struggling with their health, in spite of eating a pretty clean and nutritious diet.

When I ask them about their exercise, they often reply,”Exercise? I don’t have time for exercise!”

Let me ask you this. If you were building a house would you follow standard protocols for housebuilding and include all the parts needed to create a sturdy house, like foundation, sub-flooring, floor, studs, wall boards, sheet-rock, roof…etc?

Or would you decide you didn’t have time to put in the wall beams and go right to sheet-rock? Unlikely! The house would lose some of it’s integrity if you did. In fact, it would most likely fall down with a huff and a puff just like the first two houses in the 3 little pigs story.

When you are working on building or rebuilding a strong and healthy body, you CAN’T omit any of the important ingredients.

Exercise, unfortunately, is the one that falls by the wayside most quickly.

BUSY PERSON’S GUIDE TO EXERCISE

One of the best ways to get started is what’s called burst training.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YldDkFYkkwE’]

Burst training has become one of my absolute favorite methods of exercise.  What this entails is short bursts, between 30 and 60 seconds, of extremely intense exercise.  It needs to be at intensity that you cannot continue past 60 seconds.  I prefer 30 second bursts.

Research shows that 30 seconds of full out exercise to the point of panting induces the equivalent amount of growth hormone as does 30 minutes of aerobic exercise.  The good news is that the growth hormone surge lasts up to 90 minutes.  Growth hormone, in a nutshell, it stimulates growth, cell reproduction and regeneration.  It stimulates the building of muscle and the burning of fat.  Burst training is also good at regulating blood sugar and insulin levels

In a nutshell, research has shown that 30 seconds of maximum intensity exercise increases growth hormone and decreases insulin as effectively as 30 minutes of aerobics. An added benefit is that growth hormone stays elevated for 90 minutes.

The TIMER SYSTEM FOR EXERCISE

I set a timer to go off every hour to remind me to do 1 minute of exercise. The first 15 seconds is warm up, the next 30-40 seconds are all out full intensity that leaves me panting and then a cool down of 10 – 15 seconds.

My favorite bursts are my small stair climber and running up and down the stairs with a 10 pound medicine ball. My video will show you how I do it.

The other day I also decided I would like to be able to do 100 push-ups without stopping. Right now I can get to 29.

SO what I do is as many push-ups as I can several times throughout the day. For the past three days, while on a green cleanse, I’ve done between 100 and 110 push-ups each day.

Start with doing as many as you can. Decide what your goal is and do that many throughout the day. Your strength will increase the more you keep it up. Each exercise session is short and sweet. You can fit it into even the busiest schedule.

Another resource for getting started on an exercise program is a new virtual event called  “Women Getting Fit”

I’ve been invited to be part of this unique series, organized by my friend Michelle Melendez, a personal trainer and fitness instructor.

I met Michelle at a holistic practitioners seminar and was impressed by how fit she looks as well as her passion to get people moving.

The event is free and runs from March 8 through April 14. There are 2 calls a week, so you can easily fit it into your busy schedule.  My talk is scheduled for March 17.

Michelle Melendez, the founder of  the “Women Getting Fit” Wellness Teleseries, starts off the event with “Three Big MistakesYou Make When Starting An Exercise Program.

Love, health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie

P.S. The best way to start an exercise program is to just DO IT.

Start with 5 minutes a day and increase at your own pace.

Get motivated, educated and inspired so you can start an exercise program you love!

Today’s Question:

What’s your favorite form of movement?