October 14, 2010

30 Days of Fat Loss–Day #4: Lean Legs Circuit

Now that we have a few fat loss eating techniques under our belt, time to get into the exercise component!  A lot of women ask me how to get “lean legs” or how to tighten up their thighs and butt–Mother Nature loves storing fat on the hips, thighs and glutes of women, doesn’t she?  Ugh!  Ok, well the Metabolic Effect Team uses some great techniques to shed fat, each of which should be incorporated into every workout to boost fat loss.  They are Metabolic Effect’s signature “The B’s and the H’s”, a great guide to monitor intensity and gage if you are generating a sufficient fat-burning, muscle-toning effect in your workout.  Here they are:

B – Breathless – You have got to get out of breath at times during your workout, to the point that you cannot talk–this indicates that you are hitting the point of becoming anaerobic, which can exponentiate calorie burn after the workout is over
B – Burning – Generating a burn in the legs when training the lower body is a good sign that you are doing something right–the increase of lactic acid helps generate the release of growth hormone and testosterone, which aid in fat loss, so don’t shy away from the burn
H – Heavy – Sorry ladies, but you have got to lift heavy enough weights to elicit a strong hormonal response to impact fat burning…2 lb pink dumbbells done for hundreds of reps is essentially the same thing as walking down the street–it does nothing to tone, tighten or build lean muscle
H – Heat – Getting hot and sweaty is a physiological indication that your metabolic rate is increasing, you are burning calories and you have generated enough epinephrine release to liberate fat and sugar stores for energy use–turn up the heat and don’t be afraid of a nice shirt-drenching :)

In this video, I take figure competitor Tara Ballard (also a JillFit Coach) through a leg circuit in preparation for her show, which is 2 weeks away.  The focus is on generating breathlessness at times, burning at times, heaviness at times and bump up the sweat factor.  The circuit lasts 1 minute, then Tara rests for 20 seconds and then repeats it again, completing a total of 4 rounds.  Tara’s short workout is made up almost exclusively from short circuits, with quick transitions from exercise to exercise to maximize fat burning.  Too much rest will build too much bulk, so keep it quick! Enjoy! ox Jill

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