Ever wondered how the likes of Jessica Biel and Blake Lively attained their enviably toned, yet feminine bodies? The answer isn’t genetics, but circuit training. Celebrity trainer Bobby Strom said of Blake’s fit physique, “She had to train to be a supervillain in The Green Lantern so we focused on circuit workouts. She’d never done a regimented routine with a trainer before. Believe it or not her body began to change in only three weeks!” Circuit training workouts attack the entire body raising your heart rate more than running thus increasing your overall fitness and changing your shape faster. To find out more Style Style speaks to Marcus Smith, owner of InnerFight, to reveal all about the craze that’s shaping our hottest celebs.
WHAT IS CIRCUIT TRAINING?
The dictionary definition reads: A workout technique involving a series of exercises performed in rotation with minimal rest, often using different pieces of apparatus. Who am I to argue with that? It’s all about alternating between upper body and lower body, mixing high and low repetition exercises.
WHAT ARE BENEFITS?
The intensity you’re able to achieve coupled with the added physical and mental strain that training using a circuit delivers is phenomenal. A circuit will contain between three to eight exercises, it keeps the body guessing, with its variety of exercises, and removes any kind of comfort zone that we often fall into.
HOW DOES IT CHANGE THE BODY?
More traditional exercise routines endorse a section of cardio training – some resistance exercises, a touch of ab work and a nice cool down. We’re expected to carry out this monotony two or three times a week to ‘reach our perfect shape’. At best what this can do is get your body into a routine, an inane one at that. You achieve faster results by mixing things up so there’s no muscle memory and your whole body’s challenged.
HOW LONG BEFORE YOU SEE RESULTS?
Train at a high intensity for 30 minutes a day, five days a week and you’ve completed part of the jigsaw. Combine with good nutrition and a good mental attitude and you’ll notice an impact on your life within four weeks. The key for this type of high intensity training is just that, the high intensity part, coast through your circuit for the 35 minutes and you’ll get average results. Input always relates to output.
About InnerFight
Marcus Smith is a Dubai based fitness expert, and former Arabian Gulf player, InnerFight is his online company which provides users with free daily physical training systems and solutions. It boasts over 100 training sessions all of which last no longer that 40 minutes, and are free to download. Want results? Log onto www.innerfight.com for more circuit options.
Fresh Air: The Full Body Circuit
• Start with an 800 metre run to get the blood moving nicely around the body.
• Then go into six nonstop circuits involving:
50 lunges 30 press ups 10 burpees
• When you’re done, try and run the same 800 metres at the same pace. Run don’t walk, you want to smash it!
Legless: The Lower Body Circuit
• 10 deep squats
• 20 box jumps
Have two mins rest,
repeat three rounds.
• Eight squats
• Eight leg extensions
Have two mins rest,
repeat three rounds.
• 50 double unders
• 12 lateral squats
Have two mins rest,
repeat three rounds.
Chest Pup: The Upper Body Circuit
• 10 decline bench presses
• 10 cable cross-overs
• 10 clap press ups
• 10 bench presses
• 10 dumbbell pull overs
• 30 second plank
This is round one. Repeat four times with a two minute rest period in between
Info: visit www.innerfight.com
