PEERtrainer Fitness

Can You Really Use The Total Gym As A Pilates Machine?

According to a Pilates teacher who is a member of the PEERtrainer community, not only is the Total Gym great for pilates, but in many ways is actually is a pilates machine!

Here is the email that we were sent this morning in response to the interview we did with the good folks who run Total Gym.

"I am loving your program and have gotten such great information and assistance, PEERtrainer is well organized and overflowing with helpful articles and inspiration.

I wanted to address the Total Gym recommendation because I am a Pilates teacher and I know that there is a lot of misinformation out there about Pilates, what it is and what it can do for you.

Pilates is a system of exercise as well as a way to live and move, it is meant to be applied to everything you do throughout your day, weight lifting, dancing, sports etc... whatever you do in your daily life you can do with "spontaneous zest and pleasure" in Joseph Pilates words, if you apply the Principles of Pilates.

So I just wanted to add my two cents after watching the Total Gym video. The Total Gym is really a brilliant reworking of the Pilates Reformer designed by Joseph Pilates in the 30's and updated with new materials and put on an angle. The exercises that you do on the Total Gym are basically Pilates exercises. (our emphasis)

The apparatus is meant to assist you in doing the exercises with proper alignment, breath and connection to your center/core or what Pilates called your "Powerhouse". This will keep your musculature balanced and keep you from overworking your external muscles without the support of your deep spinal muscles.

I imagine the instructions that come with the Total Gym encourage you to connect to your center but in my experience many people have very little idea how to locate and engage those muscles if they have not been using them, especially if they are just beginning a fitness regimen as many of your clients may be. This can lead to injury and frustration.

I would recommend that anyone beginning a workout program on the Total Gym make an appointment with a certified Pilates instructor so they can figure out how to work from their core. Even one session could make a huge difference and hopefully lead to a lifetime of safe and correct healthy movement. Thanks for listening, it is my passion so it's hard not to share."

Very interesting email, and it is great to hear this perspective. Overall the response and feedback has been very positive. One person wrote this in the comments section of our interview with Total Gym:

"I can absolutely and unconditionally recommend the Total Gym. The advertisements are accurate. I use it for 30-45 minutes a day, 5-6 days a week and it gives me a terrific strength and aerobic workout. I'm 54 years old, stand 6'-4" and have maintained my weight at around 195 lbs for the past several years because of this piece of equipment. It's definitely worth the investment."

We actually looked up the email address of the person who made this comment and can confirm that he has been a member of the PEERtrainer community for a while.

How To Build and Workout Your Biceps and Forearm Muscles

Biceps forearms

Just about everybody who works out, regardless if you’re a man or a woman, has at least some desire for nice looking bicep muscles.  Whether you’re a guy wanting great looking “guns”, “pythons”, or “pipes” on the beach, or a woman who wants some nicely defined arms in your summer dress, nice looking biceps are perhaps the most widely sought after muscle. 

There are of course tons of ways to build your biceps ranging from free weights to resistance bands such as Bodylastics to bodyweight exercises like chin-ups to an exercise machine like Total Gym.

In this video, we demonstrate how you can build your biceps, as well as your forearms) using a Total Gym XLS system.  While this is by no means the only way to get some nice looking guns it is certainly one good way that has other advantages.  If you’re in the market for a nice, compact home gym system Total Gym is excellent because of the sheer number of exercises it allows you to do in one small space.  You can work so many different muscle groups and transition from working one body part to the next very quickly and easily.  In 20 minutes you can get a pretty kick-butt full body workout, including a good dose of cardio (you may want to add other cardio to your workout depending on what you’re into and what level of conditioning you’re starting from, but you will definitely get your heart going using the Total Gym.

Here are some of the bicep and forearm exercises you can perform using Total Gym:

Seated Biceps Curl- The basic bicep curl, only with a Total Gym you’re using your own bodyweight on the glideboard rather than barbells, dumbbells, etc. 

Inverted Biceps Curl- A variation where you lie back on the glideboard and work a fuller range of motion.  This is a killer that REALLY works out the biceps!

Preacher Curl- Another standard bicep exercise only instead of using a preacher curl stand you stabilize your elbow with your opposite hand.

Lateral Biceps Curl- To do this exercise on a Total Gym XLS, you sit with you legs hanging off one side of the glideboard and perform the curl exercise using just one arm at a time.  This notches up the intensity of the exercise nicely. 

Forearm Curl- By bringing your feet up onto the glideboard and bending at the knees, you create the position necessary to work your forearms.  You work both sides of the forearms for nice definition and muscle tone. 

Continue Reading The PEERtrainer Review of Total Gym

Continue Reading How Resistance Bands Build Muscle

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Will I Lose Weight With The Total Gym Or Will I Bulk Up?

 

"The Total Gym is an ideal weight loss tool because it is easy and enjoyable to use. In the course of even a few minutes you can engage your muscles in a way that leads to long term fat burn vs short term sugar burn. For women, the muscle built will create long term fat burning engines."

A lot of people want to know if they can lose weight using Total Gym. The answer is yes. Total Gym simultaneously builds muscle while giving you a cardiovascular workout. Both of these activities will help you lose weight.

The more muscle you have on your body, the more you will burn fat. It’s pretty straightforward math. Many women are very concerned about adding muscle to their bodies for fear it will cause them to gain weight. While this is a legitimate concern, we recommend you don’t preoccupy about this too much. Using Total Gym will not make you bulky. It’s much more likely to give you a slim, toned look.

Pete Sisco, an internationally renowned weight lifting and fitness expert says in his-book "Static Contraction":

“Many women have a latent fear of building muscle. They worry they will get “bulky” or “muscle bound” if they do workouts engineered to gain muscle. Most people, men and women, who visit a gym say they just want to lose fat and tone up. Those are the two terms I hear most often.

The fact is, adding a little more muscle to your frame accomplishes both objectives of fat loss and “toning up”! And gaining muscle has long term benefits that aerobic training can’t match.

Muscle is considered “active tissue” because it requires energy to sustain itself. That’s great news...because that energy comes from burning calories 24 hours a day, 365 days a year! Every pound of muscle you add burns up to 60 calories per day. Every day! “

As a cardio tool, Total Gym also contributes to overall weight loss by simply getting your heart rate up- especially if you do lots of consistent exercises without long rest periods in between. Think Elliptical Machine or Stairmaster, only you’re working out your entire body at the same time.

Will The Total Gym Help Me Burn Fat?

It is obvious to most people that if you work your muscles or just move you will burn calories. What is less obvious to most people that different modes of exercise really do effect how much fat you will burn during an exercise. 

When you exercise you are either in Fat Burning or Sugar Burning mode. You get into fat burning mode through slow steady exercise. You burn sugar when you engage in intense exercise. Our bodies developed this way because "back in the day" humans walked a ton. Our stores of fat helped fuel these walks, as well as get us through lean times. Our sugar stores were available when we needed to run from danger. This is commonly known as the "fight or flight" mechanism.

This is a critically important concept because our bodies only store about 2500 sugar calories. Yet we store well over 100,000 fat calories. How does relate to the Total Gym? Well, the Total Gym is an ideal tool to help you exercise in fat burning mode.

It is capable of very gentle, easy to do exercise. If you set the incline low, and do some gentle exercise, you'll get your body into the mode where you start to access the energy available in your fat stores. 

What is interesting is that one can also get a very intense workout using the Total Gym.

It is very easy to raise the incline. And you don't always want to exercise in fat burning mode. Sometimes you do definitely want to crank things up and engage the muscle. We have used the Total Gym for 2 years now, and find it a very useful tool to have in the house.

Total Gym Is Ideal For Exercising The Shoulder Muscles and Upper Body Muscles

Another very interesting thing we have learned is that ones shoulder muscles are small, and hard to exercise. Yet when you do exercise them, it can really help to bring your overall body into balance. We tend to exercise our core and lower body just by walking. Very few of us use our upper bodies in any meaningful way on a regular basis.

Yet when the time comes to use our upper bodies, often the strength is not there. Some simple incline exercises 

on the Total Gym can very effectively isolate your shoulder muscles.

How To Get The Best Price On The Total Gym?

If you click on the coupon link below before you go to their site, you'll get that discount on top of whatever discount they are currently offering. The top of the line Total Gym XLS has a list price of around $1800. If see the price near $1000 on their site, you are getting a good deal. If you are getting 10% discount on top of this, you are getting an even better deal.

We strongly recommend this product- you will be using it for years and years if you place it somewhere that you'll see it. If you see it, you'll use it.

If lasting weight loss is a major priority for you, then you may also want to check out the free PEERtrainer Tip Of The Day Program that is helping people lose weight and keep it off- often for the first time in many years. The program offers a great range of not just diet and exercise strategies, but also powerful psychological insights that help many people ‘get over the hump’ and get on the road to real, lasting weight loss. 

Click here to view the latest discounts on the Total Gym Website. You can also click on the following banner to get an additional 10% off if you came to this page while evaluating Total Gym for purchase:

How To Do A Preacher Curl

Video showing you how to do a preacher curl using resistance bands. You get a very good workout isolating your muscle using this method.

Get Your Bodylastics Set Now, Make Sure To Use "peertrainer" as the coupon code to get 5% off

P90X Causing Weight Gain, Using Bodylastics Resistance Bands With P90X To Build More Muscle

People gain muscle with P90X because Tony Horton does such a great job with the workout. Muscle weighs more than fat, so if you have been experiencing weight gain on P90X that is the reason. 

If you are P90X fanatic (there are many of you out there btw and we year nothing but good things about this program) you definitely get a set of Bodylastics to upgrade your overall workout experience. Blake Kassel explains why, and there is a link to a Bodylastics coupon code at the end of this post:

Click here to learn more about the Bodylastics product.

How To Get A Great Abs and Oblique Workout Using Resistance Bands

This video shows you how to use Bodylastic resistance bands to get a great ab workout. This video shows you 4 different exercises to isolate the obliques, abdominal muscles and your overall core. These muscles are great for golf, tennis, martial arts, baseball -- and are especially good for getting young athletes the strength, speed and stamina they will need to compete effectively:

learn more about Bodylastics, click here to visit their site at www.bodylastics.com

How To Do A Preacher Curl Using Bodylastics Home Gym Resistance Bands

This is a video that shows how to do a preacher curl using the Bodylastics resistance band system:

Click Here To Learn More About Bodylastics

Using Bodylastic Resistance Bands To Lose Weight And Tone Up

There has been a ton of discussion in the PEERtrainer community about different exercise and workout options. There are basically two categories of good inexpensive products out there.

The first is your basic workout DVD's, where it is all cardio. Turbo Jam and Hip Hop abs are popular ones and there are others. And these are really popular. Big companies like Beachbody also have programs like P90X which are popular with PEERtrainer members, that combine DVD workouts with exercise bands for resistance training and other forms of strength training.

Maybe you have started to run and plan for your first 5k. Maybe you are looking to jumpstart your weight loss and don't feel like stepping foot in the gym. Focusing on engaging your muscles will definitely help start to burn off the fat.

But these programs can get pretty expensive, and after getting all the accessories for something like P90X you have spent a couple hundred dollars. The product is great, no question. But there is one product out there, Bodylastics, that combines a very robust and high quality resistance band product, with a 36 minute circuit training workout DVD. And the product package that includes the DVD is only about $50, for the version suitable for women. 

Guys who want to build muscle or improve their overall strength and speed can get a version that is a little more expensive and includes more resistance than you could ever use. But this version for guys, women can still use because the set comes with many bands (7) of different resistance levels. They also send you a simple guide that shows you how to do any exercise at the gym with this system. So basically a couple or a family can get a very good home gym system for less than $100. 

Watch Our Review Of Bodylastics Now:

Link To Get Your Bodylastics, (and please make sure to use "peertrainer" to save an extra 5% on your order- this is the best deal you can get on this product anywhere and it is not sold on Amazon.)

"If I Only Have 5-10 Pounds To Lose, Will Resistance Band Training Cause Me To Gain Weight?"

We hear this question or a variation on this question often. People are hesitant to add strength training into their workout because they fear gaining weight. So we sent the founder of Bodylastics, Blake Kassel, this question. Here is his answer:

"The video that can be ordered with the set is designed for slimming down and toning up. All the user has to do is pop it in and follow along.  It incorporates cardio moves to burn tons of calories, and toning moves to enhance all of the curves that women desire.  The toning moves use high reps so that they are meant to firm but not bulk up the body.  It is really amazing.  Tests have shown that resistance training is actually better for weight loss than cardio."

Many of you know we have raved about Dr. Fuhrman for a few years now. We know him, he contributes to PEERtrainer. And we have all benefited. The founder of Bodylastics, Blake Kassel is the same kind of guy. A real person who has brought a great product to market, and someone we have gotten to know. Blake sent us some kits to use, and we just love the product.

If you are looking for good, cheap home gym product, check out the Bodylastics website. Lots of information on that first page, and it is important to note that this is simply a better overall resistance band package than others out there.

P90X Review: Why Burst Training Is A Better Option For Most

People in the PEERtrainer community seem to be very positive about the P90X workout program. They have started support groups around following the program. Generally it is hard to generate enthusiasm about a product. We went to the P90X website and found this interesting description of what it is:

"The secret behind the P90X system is an advanced training technique called "Muscle Confusion," which accelerates the results process by constantly introducing new moves and routines so your body never plateaus, and you never get bored!"

There is no question that the marketing behind P90X has been masterful. Additionally, the program itself makes a lot of sense in terms of targeting different muscles in different ways.

However, the big issue here is the intensity and time commitment. If you did any exercise for an hour or more per day, every day, it is likely you'd be getting some results? Of course you would.

It is also likely that your level of commitment to this level of workout intensity would fade after time. This does not mean that one cannot get great results and motivation from a program like P90X. It's just that you have to put it into the proper context.

If you are the kind of person who can follow instructions and likes new things, the odds are that P90X will help you. 

But if you are looking for a longer term solution to getting fit, you are going to have to find things that are sustainable. A great alternative to something like P90X is burst training. Burst training is simply when you do short bursts of exercise several times a week.

Burst training mimics the natural sports and activities that we do normally in our lives. Sports like tennis and skiing are classic examples of burst training. Short spurts of activity, followed by periods of rest.

These sports are also much more enjoyable for most of us, which will result in a higher likelihood of us doing them for the long haul.

If you are thinking about P90X, you have to realize that the central issue here is to figure out how you get the motivation to exercise. Different people respond to different methods. In our view, one of the biggest factors in getting motivated is to first address any physical pain that you may be in.

If you are out of balance and have muscle and joint pain, there is no chance you are going to do P90X or any other exercise, no matter how good it is for you. At PEERtrainer we have put together a short guide to help you get out of pain. We call it PEERtrainer Fitness Fusion, and you don't have to download anything or enter your email. It will help give you some simple exercises that will help you feel a lot better over time.

Related PEERtrainer Articles:

What Is Right Protein Shake To Use?

Why Juice Cleanses Make You Feel Bad

 

Here is what people are saying about this in the PEERtrainer Community:

What Is P90X?

 

"This is a complete exercise and nutrition program designed to get you in shape and lose weight. In order to do so however, you have to follow a very, very regimented program. I got the dvd’s to supplement my exercise program and while I am in pretty good shape, some of them are pretty tough. If you can’t pass the fitness test, I would not bother spending your money since you will quickly give up on them. The DVDs are hard, but doable. Also, you can just pause or rest during them if you need to."

What Should I Know Before I Start P90X?

"I have P90x and I love it, that being said there are a few things that you should know before you go out and spend the money (and it is expensive).

1. You need to already be a good shape to start there is a fitness test in the book that you get to make sure that you are even ready to start. (yes its that hard)

2. You will need weights or bands and keep in mind that the stronger you get the more you will need, a chinup bar, a yoga mat and yoga blocks if you aren't good at yoga

3. You will need to be able to work out 7 days a week some days more than an hour.

4. You will need plenty of space

5. You will need lots of motivation (it is as hardcore as it looks)

If these things sound doable to you than by all means try P90x because its awesome and you will see results and feel so much stronger. "

P90X Success Stories:

"i am currently in the second month of p90x. the first month i lost 19 lbs. checkout beachbody.com for more info. i assure you this video workout is great for those who want to achieve overall fitness and durability.

there are 3 workout plans to follow, they all consist of 90 days. obviously changing my diet has also helped me drop 19lbs. "

How Much Is P90X and Who Makes It?

P90x is made by a company called Beachbody. They have an excellent reputation for creating products that people love. They have a long track record creating things that catch people's attention, but also that they actually do.

The list price is $140, but if you go to the Beachbody.com website, you can see if they have any deals.

The P90X Nutrition Program:

"The nutrition program is fine if you know little about it, but its pretty basic. It does however tell you what to eat if you want to lose weight. . . veg, fruit, chick, salmon, duh. . . it does lay it out for you so like I said its good if you are new to this game. If you follow the program, you create a pretty hefty calorie deficit while working out probably a lot more than you are used to . . if you are stressed or busy, this may or may not be and additional burden in your life"

How Do I Get The Best Deal On P90X?

With a company like Beachbody, they have a very high marketing budget, and like any company, they have to get the word out. Which means their margins aren't as high as you might think, which limits their ability to offer deals.

That said, take a look at their website and see if they are offering any sort of deal. We will reach out to the company and see if there is anything they can offer PEERtrainer members.

Is P90X Anything Like Turbo Jam or Hip Hop Abs?

All the products are made by the same company, Beachbody. Turbo Jam has been out for a while and has been very popular on PEERtrainer. Hip Hop abs is newer. Both products are focused more on cardio. P90X will help you build muscle and lose some weight, while Turbo Jam and Hip Hop abs will focus more on weight loss. In fact, some people complain about having a hard time losing weight on P90X. The following links can help you find Turbo Jam and Hip Hop Abs for the best price and are better than any coupon:

 

PEERtrainer Team: P90X Workout