You might not have noticed, but… it’s December and Christmas is almost here!

Which means that it’s time for my annual fitness year in review.

Sadly, as a nation, America keeps getting fatter. The epidemic of overweight and obesity is rising at an alarming rate. In fact, one of the fastest growing sectors of the obesity crisis is our youth.

Yes, our children are getting fatter and sicker each and every year. Adult diseases, such as Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, are now found in children in large numbers. In fact, half of all new cases of Type 2 Diabetes are children.

However, on a positive note, I feel that 2009 will be host to several growing fitness trends that will provide the long-term answers to solve this ever-growing problem:

Fitness Trend#1- Semi-Private Training &Fitness Boot Camps Will Rise, One-On-One Personal Training Will Fall

If you listen to the news, you’ll know that our economy is struggling right now. Because of this, the average American does not have the disposable income for typical personal training rates that run about $50-$100 per session.

However, with every problem emerges a solution; Group training is the answer. Semi-Private training, such as my Body Sculpt Rapid Fat Loss classes, are probably the hottest thing in fitness right now. The group training business model creates the ultimate win-win for trainers and clients making the one-on-one alternative obsolete. Fitness trainers get to better leverage their time and maximize profits by working with an unlimited number of clients per hour. Fitness clients are able to better access personal training services in a unique and dynamic team environment that provides better social support and accountability for only a third of the cost of typical one-on-one training rates.

If you are trying to lose weight & feel great in 2009, do yourself a favor by saving your hard-earned money and get better results by joining a local Semi-private training class.

Fitness Trend#2- Interval Training Trumps Aerobic Training For Improved Fat Loss And Fitness Success

High-Intensity Interval Training is rapidly gaining popularity as the best form of improving both fitness and fat loss. Thankfully, 2009 will see more people doing sprints and less people doing marathons to lose weight. However, make no mistake about it, lots of people are still going to do hours of snail-paced cardio to try and burn fat.

Aerobic or endurance training is essentially going at a slow, low intensity pace for a long period of time (typically at least 30-60 minutes). In other words, the focus of endurance training is on the total volume of exercise (not quality). Think about all those cardio bunnies you see every New Year running for hours pounding the pavement or treadmill to get rid of that winter blubber. Sadly, this results in minimal fat loss and lots of overtraining injuries.

With interval training, the focus is on the intensity of exercise (quality). Intervals consist of alternating between shorts bouts of all out high-intensity effort and active recovery periods for a much quicker and focused amount of time (typically 10-20 minutes of intervals works best). This approach is scientifically proven to burn nine times more fat AND leads to faster improvements in fitness than the aerobic alternative.

Two landmark scientific studies come to mind here:

The Tabata study compared the effects of four minutes of high-intensity interval training with 45-60 minutes of low to moderate intensity cardio. The interval training group burned just as much fat as the endurance group and also had greater improvement in both anaerobic (think sprinters) and aerobic (think distance runners) fitness… in only four minutes!

The Gibala study compared the effects of 20 minutes of interval training (30 second sprint followed by four minutes of rest) with 90-120 minutes of endurance training in the “heartrate zone.” The conclusions of the study were that both methods of training lead to the same improvements in oxygen utilization (or aerobic fitness). In other words, intervals accomplished what endurance training did from a fitness standpoint in only a sixth of the time!

The time is now to jump on the interval training bandwagon. Come 2009, do yourself and your body a favor and start sprinting to look better naked.

Fitness Trend#3- Fruits, Veggies, And Fiber Are The Carbohydrate Addict’s Answer For Improved Health, Performance, and Body Composition

Americans are carb addicts. We simply can’t get enough starches and sugars in our diet, and we have the bulging midsections to prove it. One of the biggest misconceptions about diet today is that eliminated starches and sugars from your diet automatically means low carb. Better said, eliminating grains (even whole grains) and refined sugars still allows for consumption of the other carbohydrates: fruits and veggies. These nutrient-dense carbs are loaded with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber and create more stable blood sugar levels to keep your body burning fat all day long. All of my clients who have lost the most fat have followed my guidelines of unlimited veggies all day long. In other words, eat lots of veggies and very little of the other stuff if you want to see your abs!

Fiber (ideally obtained from fruits and vegetables, specifically green vegetables) helps slow digestion for a more steady supply of nutrients and sustained energy, it prevents overeating at each meal, and it helps keep you full between meals.

Without a doubt, people will be consuming more fruits and veggies next year, and their bodies will reap the rewards of this.

Well, those are the top fitness trends for 2009 according to my crystal ball. I hope the information in this article gives you the push you need to be the trendsetter for your own body and the bodies of those whom you care most about in the New Year!

And if you haven’t done so already, be sure to opt-in for your free My Fit Life Fitness updates… I’ll also send you a Free 34 page ebook that shows how to get more results in less time by using fitness tips and tricks of top personal trainers.

Be sure to leave a comment. I’d love to hear what you have to say.

Alexander Morentin
Author/Success Coach
Fullerton, CA

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Traditional Exercise vs. Circuit Training
Most resistance training routines are developed using the “straight set” principle. Using the straight set principle, you perform one exercise at a time for a specific number of sets and reps before moving to the next exercise. You will usually rest for a predetermined amount of time between each set. Shorter rest periods are used to build lean muscle and burn fat. Longer rest periods are used to develop maximum strength and power.

Exercise routines using the straight set principle are beneficial if you are a beginner because they allow you to perform one exercise at a time in a repetitive fashion. This gives you a chance to completely concentrate on the form and technique of one exercise before moving on to the next.

For example, if your workout consists of 3 sets of 10 reps on the leg press, you would perform your first set of leg press for 10 reps and rest for 45 seconds; then you will perform your second set of leg press for 10 reps and rest for 45 seconds; then you will perform your last set of leg press and move to your next exercise. Each exercise would be performed in this fashion until your workout is complete.

This format is great for learning form and technique, but it is extremely inefficient for getting maximum fat loss results in the minimum amount of time possible.

If you’ve been to a traditional gym in the past, you’ve probably seen the following scenario:
Joe decides to perform 3 sets of 10 reps on the leg press. He completes his first set of 10 reps on the leg press talks with his buddies, gets a drink of water, and casually sits down to perform his second set of leg press. Joe will go through this same ritual before completing his third set.

Done in this fashion, most people wait about 3 – 5 minutes between each set. This means that 3 sets of 10 reps of an exercise can take as long as 15 minutes to complete. At this rate, it could take you 1 hour to complete four exercises! This is not very efficient use of your time.

Circuit Training For Rapid Fat Loss
The circuit training format is a much more effective and efficient format of resistance training.
Utilizing this format, you will perform one exercise, rest for a very short time, and then perform a different non-competing exercise. When you have completed that exercise, rest for a short period of time and perform the next non-competing exercise. You will continue in this fashion until all of the exercises are completed. This is considered a full circuit.

Alternating sets in a continuous “circuit” allows you to work different parts of your body when you would usually be resting using the straight set method. This method allows for maximum fat loss results with minimum use of your time.

Circuit Training in Action:
The following is an example of one of my favorite circuit routine formats:
The 50-10 Five Exercise Circuit: You will alternate between 50 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest for all five exercises in the following 5-minute circuit:

Exercise#1- Squats

Exercise#2- Push-ups

Exercise#3- Single-Leg Hip Extensions

Exercise#4- Dumbbell Rows (Heavy Pants)

Exercise#5- Mountain climbers

Perform this circuit up to four times for a 20-minute total body fat burning workout.

In the same 15 minutes that it takes to perform 3 sets of bench press in the big box gyms you can perform 3 circuits of 5 different exercises for a whopping total of 15 work sets! And, the intensity of each exercise is just as high as in the straight set format because in this 5 phase circuit you will have a full four minutes of recovery before you return to any given exercise- just as you did with the straight set format that was previously described.

The key to creating the optimal environment for rapid fat loss is to perform each exercise with maximal intensity while separated by brief periods of rest in order to accumulate a high volume of total body work in the shortest amount of time possible. Circuit training provides for the best of both worlds and is thus unmatched for simultaneously maximizing fat loss and lean muscle gain. Use the following template I use with my many BodySculpting clients for some simple, yet highly effective rapid fat loss circuits:

Exercise#1- Double-Leg

Exercise#2- Push

Exercise#3- Single-Leg

Exercise#4- Pull

Exercise#5- Core

I’ll be sharing some more great BodySculpting workouts in the weeks to come

Committed to your success,

Alexander Morentin
Author/Success Coach
My Fit Life

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