Skinny Fat is out! Get Lean and Toned at Cyclelates in 2013!

Longer, leaner muscles! A tighter looking and feeling stomach! Flexibility, control, stability, and good posture! You’ll be checking off all these To Do list items after a few sessions of Cyclelates and any of our exclusive Pilates reformer classes. We’re still in month one of 2013, so come by our Hollywood personal training studio to work out that New Year, new you mantra!


In our Cyclelates classes, the unique hybrid dedicates a workout on the Pilates reformer for just 35 minutes prior to another twenty minutes of cardio on the bike. Over a few weeks of class you will begin seeing and feeling all kinds of strengthening and elongating body changes for sculpting a slim, fit and sexy body!


Here are a few fun facts about Pilates Reformer classes.


1. Reformer training hard core works your abdominals -- from all angles. Taking the crunch to a whole other level, our Pilates reformer drills increase oblique and transversus abdominus activation.


2. Pilates reformer challenges not just your main muscles, but also your stabilizing muscles in a way that traditional weight training doesn’t.  Because we want our muscles looking longer and leaner vs. short and bulky, we choreograph different sequences of drills on the reformer each day. The variation also helps in the reshaping of your muscles while also building core strength, posture, agility, flexibility, and lean muscle tone.


3. Reformer vs. Mat: The Battle. Matwork Pilates rock a perfectly awesome workout, but Pilates Reformer, pants down, glutes-flexed is a truly energizing, physique-changing workout. This isn’t a meditative, relaxing practice. Reformer workouts are challenging and target your powerhouse muscles (abs, lower back, hips and buttocks) using pulleys and springs to create resistance. At our Hollywood personal training studio, we have 14 reformers. Our classes are almost always packed, so book online or come early!

My Pumpkin Cravings are out of control! This is an amazing option:)

Now that we are hitting Fall my body naturally craves Pumpkin. I dream of the pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks and my Mamaw's homemade pumpkin pie. Although it is ok to indulge every now and then I wanted to find a healthy option to help me through my Pumpkin cravings. Try this great option to keep you on track this month. I think they are great. The recipe is from Jamie Eason who has a lot of amazing recipes:)

 

Pumpkin Protein Bars Recipe

Pumpkin Protein Bars

Nutrition Facts:

Nutrition (without walnuts): 1 square = 47 calories, .7 g fat, 8 g carbs, 3.7 g protein
Nutrition (with walnuts): 1 square = 63 calories, 2.3 g fat, 8 g carbs, 4 g protein

Ingredients:

• ½ C Xylitol Brown Sugar Blend (Ideal)
• 1 - 4 oz. jar baby food applesauce
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 ½ tsp. ground ginger
• ½ tsp. ground clove
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 - 15 oz. can of raw pumpkin
• 2 C oat flour
• 2 scoops vanilla whey protein
• ½ cup almond milk
• ½ C chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350.
2. Spray a 9 X 13 Pyrex dish with non-stick spray.
3. Combine first 11 ingredients and mix well.
4. Add the final 3 ingredients (4, if adding walnuts), and mix until incorporated. Spread batter into the Pyrex dish and bake for 30 min.
5. Makes 24 squares.

Have a Jump Start Meal before your Cyclelates workout

Have a 150-calories jump-start meal an hour or two before your workout.

Ever force yourself through a workout, even though you were starving, simply because you thought you would tap into those fat stores faster? Next time, eat up. The latest research in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism found that exercisers who ate breakfast before the treadmill had a significantly higher fat-burning rate for as long as 24 hours compared with those who ate post workout, even though both groups consumed the same number of calories during the day. Plus, a recent report in the Strength and Conditioning Journal concluded that when you start off with a grumbly tummy, there's no fat burn advantage: You won't be able to go as intensely or burn as many calories, and you'll also lose more muscle. Preworkout, nosh on these easy eats: a banana and a 1/2 cup of plain low-fat yogurt, or a whole-wheat English muffin with a half tablespoon of peanut or almond butter.



Shaffer, Alyssa. "The New Rules of Fitness." Fitness October 2012: 91.

Work your Multifidus! Get to Pilates Class

The MULTIFIDUS muscles take pressure off the vertebral discs so the body's weight can be distributed along the spine. This muscle group keeps the spine straight & contributes to the stability of the spine. These muscles are recruited in most actions of daily living, including bending backward, sideways & even turning to the side. Studies show the multifidus muscles are activated before any action is carried out to protect the spine from injury. When a person carries an item, before moving the arm, the mutifidus muscles starts contracting prior to the actual movement of the body. The arm prepares the spine for movement to prevent it from harm. Pilates is well known to exercises the multifidus.

By: Drew Michael, Pilates instructor at Cyclelates

Free Parking Options Near Cyclelates - We provide 60 min Validation at Bed, Bath, & Beyond Garage

Hey guys!

A lot of clients have been asking so I hope this repost helps:) We provide 60 minute parking in the garage but if you are taking back to back classes and don't want to move your car, these options are for you!

So I scouted the streets today with Rico Sauve (Leader of all chihuahuas and owner of Spinlates) and we uncovered the following parking locations as alternates for those staying longer than one hour. All spots are no more that 2 blocks away from the studio:) Hope this helps!

2 Hour Parking -8am-6pm except Sunday Leland Way between Vine St/El Centro St (10am-1pm Monday Street Cleaning) TIP: No meters the closer you get to El Centro.

Free Street Parking - Delongpre Ave/Vine. Left side "Street cleaning 10am-1pm on Tuesday". Right Side" Street cleaning 10am-1pm on Monday".


2 Hour Parking with validation - Fedex/Kinkos and K&L Wine Store. Large lot. Make some copies or grab a bottle of wine after class. Validation is a stamp located at the desk inside each location.

Cyclelates - Why we do both to accelerate weight loss

Your body is composed of slow twitch and fast twitch cells. Aerobic activity (walking, less intense cardio. activates slow twitch cells while anaerobic activity (weight training, Pilate's, and cycling) activate fast twitch cells. If you exercise only aerobically you are not developing all of your muscle cells. Adding weight training in the form of Pilate's develops fast twitch muscle cells increasing your metabolism and helping you lose more weight.

Between the ages of 30-70 your fat free muscle mass declines about 40%. Muscle loss is thought to be the single most important reason you store more fat when you age. The loss of muscle and resulting metabolic slow down makes you gain fat. Remember each pound of muscle burns around 50 calories a day.

Fix your Cardio Workout

STATIONARY BIKE

Your Form
The mistake: The seat is too low or too high. A low seat fatigues the legs and stresses knees. Set it too high and your hips rock from side to side, which is inefficient.
The fix: Adjust the seat, people! Sit on the seat and place your heel in the middle of the pedal, where the ball of your foot would normally go. You want your leg fully extended, at the lowest point of the pedal rotation. By moving your foot to the correct position on the pedal, you'll have the right amount of bend.

Your Workout
The mistake: Cruising instead of charging.
The fix: Vary the intensity, with 2 to 3 minutes of high-cadence pedaling and a 3-minute recovery, then repeat for 15 minutes. Stand occasionally, which will add another dimension to your workout. Standing requires more muscle not only to push the pedals, but also to support and balance your body. Get to class and we will not allow you to make these mistakes:)

Source: Women's Health Magazine