THE GAME PLAN
Welcome. It’s on.
So what do we have planned for you this month? I’ll sum it up in one word for ya babe, GAINZ. And lots of them.
Constantly varied programming means you will never do the same workout twice. It means you will focus on all areas of fitness - speed, endurance, strength, coordination, agility, power.
This is fitness. This is health. This is how we achieve maximal results and look and feel amazing.
With the next 8 weeks we will shift a significant amount of focus into your core strength work. The basic lifts that allow you to move with power and purpose. Squatting, pressing, and deadlifting.
It’s time to kick it up a notch. Shit is about to get serious.
We are going to be testing your strength in this programming in a far more aggressive manner. You are ready.
On the metcon side of things - you will definitely notice an increase in the amount of endurance required. The metcons are demanding and require you to push faster and harder. You are ready.
And skills! Some new skills are waiting for you. With all the progressions and drills you need to be successful.
You. Are. Ready.
Time to level up. You are going to have to get dirty. You are going to push your limits and come out victorious. Or dead in a pool of sweat, either way. So get your big girl panties on and let's do this.
Because, would you want it any other way?
HEAVIER WEIGHTS? BUT WON’T I GET...BULKY??
Oh no you just didn’t. You just did not use the “b” word.
Real talk - if I had a dollar for every time I heard a woman embarking on her journey in health and fitness open with “I’m really just wanting to tone, I don’t want to get too bulky or masculine” - I would be one rich B. And these are well meaning, smart, beautiful women. They want to work hard and change their lives. But they are very, very misinformed.
So let's crush this stupid phrase once and for all. And once we do - spread it like wildfire. Don’t let one single other well meaning, smart, beautiful woman stay away from the weights while you have knowledge of something she doesn’t.
First - TONING ISN’T A THING. Stay with me here. I know I just blew years and years of false advertising of a major buzzword in the world of women’s fitness. But the fact is, it just doesn’t exist.
You cannot “tone” a muscle. Not in the way marketers of shakes and bullshit products are telling you you can.
There are only two things that can happen to muscles in the human body. They can either grow (strengthen) or shrink (weaken). There is no such thing as “toning” a muscle.
To spare you all the science behind this, let’s just make it very simple here. When thinking of a “tone” body - what is it that you are actually seeing? What makes one person’s muscles appear more tone and while others do not? They are the exact same muscles supporting the exact same skeletal system. There is only one difference. The “tone” muscles you are seeing have less body fat covering them.
Whoa.
Ok so wait, the girl with the shapely quads and 6 pack abs didn’t do 4 million reps with 3 pound weights to create that look? OH HELL NO SHE DIDN’T. How can you see all the tone in her muscles? Well, because it isn’t covered up by anything.
You can have the most gorgeous eyes of all time, but if your glasses are covered up with 5 layers of smutz, you won’t be able to see them.
That’s right. We all have a six pack. We all have beautifully shaped quads and biceps. And the less body fat we carry on top of them, the more visible they will be.
So then the key really isn’t about how light or heavy your weights are. It’s not a matter of should you do 4 gazillion reps at a light weight or 4 at a heavy weight.
The key is this: in order to show the full shape and definition of your muscles - don’t cover them with 5 layers of smutz.
Ready for the best news? Remember when we said the only two changes a muscle can see is shrink or growth?
Guess which muscle demands more calories? The tiny, underdeveloped one that doesn’t touch weights for fear of getting “bulky”? NO. Not that one, dear.
The stronger and more developed a muscle is, the more calories it demands to function. So instead of storing those calories, they are used up IN DROVES to keep large, healthy muscles fed and functioning properly.
Holy shit.
So the myth that lifting weights doesn’t allow you to lose weight and slim down is actually COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY WRONG?! In fact, it actually causes your body to use calories more effectively rather than storing them as fat because your growing muscles need them? GAHD DAMN!!
Why has no one told you this?!
So should you lift heavy for low reps? Yes. Should you lift lighter for high reps? Yes. Should you lift moderate loads, and swing heavy and light kettlebells, and jump on a box, and run and row and do handstand pushups and a whole bunch of other fun shit? Of course you should.
Because constantly varied keeps muscles growing. Growing muscles demand more calories. Less calories stored means less body fat percentage. Less body fat percentage means more visible muscles.
Ta dah.
But let’s not lose full perspective here in the pursuit of a six pack. Ultimately - every woman has a different idea of what she would like her body to “look like”. And that’s fantastic. It’s a great feeling to walk by the mirror and be proud of what stares back at you. But girl, that isn’t ever going to be determined by how many visible abs you have.
Being proud of the woman looking back at you in the mirror comes from a much deeper place. A place where body fat percentage and definition can never touch.
When the woman looking back at you has given all she had to any task she was given; when she has experienced triumphs and heartaches but came back swinging anyways; when she has decided being healthy and well for her family and friends trumps netflix and excuses; when she has fought for seemingly unachievable goals; when she has decided that easy will no longer suffice - THAT’S the moment when you know why you do it. That’s when you feel proud of the body that stares back at you.
Because strength comes from within. It is a character, not a number.
So lift heavy. Be strong. And be proud.
Welcome to TTSL Daily.
