"My arms are seriously DEAD. I can barely lift up my water bottle." I told my trainer, Chris, this partway through our second session together and I wasn't exaggerating. Yet we were only halfway through the workout. Apparently he had seen me lifting in the gym before I started training with him, and so he wasn't going easy on me in any way. Great, wish he had seen me pumping 2lb weights.
Next I learn that I have been "cheating" on my chin-ups. Chris tells me that I have to extend fully ALL the way down to an absolute dead hang. This feels like my arms are about to pop out of my sockets, but the cheating reference has fired me up and so I'm all for the challenge. He also has me to a wide Y grip vs my close grip and that is infinitely harder. It works my lats more vs my biceps and it feels completely different. I don't do nearly as many reps on my own as I can do in my usual "cheating" style :) To help me complete the set he uses what looks like a gigantic rubber band that wraps around my feet and attaches up by the handlebars. I'm kind of an independent person, and so being dependent on this rubber band thing kind of bugs me. But I think that will motivate me to increase my reps sooner rather than later.
Learn from my mistake - drink some water before your workout, a good amount during (especially if you're sweating a lot), and drink some more after. I didn't drink very much this particular time and got one pounding headache later that day and all that night. At my next workout, Chris said I probably needed to be drinking more water. My massage therapist seconded that and told me about a large study in the New England Journal of Medicine on migraines & headaches that found out that as many as HALF of all headaches are due to dehydration. That is pretty profound. You may have heard before how as humans, our ability to sense our need for water is not very good. By the time you sense that you are a little thirsty, your body is oftentimes actually VERY thirsty.
Next I learn that I have been "cheating" on my chin-ups. Chris tells me that I have to extend fully ALL the way down to an absolute dead hang. This feels like my arms are about to pop out of my sockets, but the cheating reference has fired me up and so I'm all for the challenge. He also has me to a wide Y grip vs my close grip and that is infinitely harder. It works my lats more vs my biceps and it feels completely different. I don't do nearly as many reps on my own as I can do in my usual "cheating" style :) To help me complete the set he uses what looks like a gigantic rubber band that wraps around my feet and attaches up by the handlebars. I'm kind of an independent person, and so being dependent on this rubber band thing kind of bugs me. But I think that will motivate me to increase my reps sooner rather than later.
Learn from my mistake - drink some water before your workout, a good amount during (especially if you're sweating a lot), and drink some more after. I didn't drink very much this particular time and got one pounding headache later that day and all that night. At my next workout, Chris said I probably needed to be drinking more water. My massage therapist seconded that and told me about a large study in the New England Journal of Medicine on migraines & headaches that found out that as many as HALF of all headaches are due to dehydration. That is pretty profound. You may have heard before how as humans, our ability to sense our need for water is not very good. By the time you sense that you are a little thirsty, your body is oftentimes actually VERY thirsty.
TRAINER TIP
The specific amount of water recommended by the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) is-
Pre-Workout
Drink 2-3 cups (16-24oz) approximately 2hrs before exercise
During Workout
Drink 3-6 oz every 15 minutes
Post Workout
Drink 2 cups (16oz) for every pound lost during exercise
Even if you don't measure this out specifically, the takeaway is to drink a LOT more water- pre, post and during your workout!
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