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How exercise resets your body clock and improves sleep patterns

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How exercise resets your body clock and improves sleep patterns

Exercise improves sleep quality and helps treat sleep disorders by regulating circadian rhythms, reducing stress, and enhancing physiological functions like melatonin production and autonomic balance.

Review: The impact of exercise on sleep and sleep disorders. Image Credit: Lysenko Andrii / Shutterstock

In a recent review article published in the journal npj Biological Timing and Sleep, researchers summarized the research on how exercise, or structured physical activity, improves sleep quality, both for those with sleep disorders and healthy individuals. They highlighted that the effects of exercise on sleep are influenced by factors such as an individual’s age, sex, fitness level, and the type, timing, and intensity of exercise.

Types of Exercise

Exercise is any form of repetitive, planned, and structured physical activity. Aerobic exercise involves activities that use the body’s large muscle groups, increasing the heart rate and the amount of oxygen a person uses. Swimming, cycling, and walking are forms of aerobic exercise.

While aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular health, anaerobic exercise, which includes sprinting and weight training, builds muscle strength and mass. Meanwhile, stretching exercises focus on improving an individual’s range of motion, but the evidence is mixed regarding whether or not they can prevent injuries.

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Dynamic exercise involves moving joints and appears to have health benefits in the long term, including improved blood flow and lower blood pressure. However, static exercise occurs when muscles are activated without movement and can increase blood pressure significantly but build strength over time. The journal article also noted that these different forms of exercise may have distinct effects on sleep, with aerobic exercise generally providing the most benefits for sleep quality.

Advantages of Exercise

Exercise is critical to regulating weight, as it prevents excessive gain and can support weight loss by burning calories and balancing calorie expenditure and intake. It decreases the risk of diabetes, hypertension, and depression. Regular exercise also improves cardiovascular health, improves heart recovery, and decreases the resting heart rate.

Beyond physical benefits, exercise also improves mood and energy. It increases energy levels by improving the delivery of nutrients and oxygen to the tissues. Meanwhile, exercise improves mood, reduces stress, and enhances relaxation, particularly if it takes the form of activities that a person enjoys. Research has shown that exercise can reduce levels of cortisol, a stress hormone linked to sleep disturbances, while increasing melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep cycles.

Not getting adequate amounts of exercise has been linked to chronic illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease, which have become leading causes of global mortality.

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How Exercise Improves Sleep

In healthy individuals, exercise improves sleep efficiency, which is defined as the ratio of time a person spends sleeping to the total time they spend in bed.

Specifically, exercise between four and eight hours before going to bed can reduce wakefulness during sleep and help people fall asleep faster. However, the review emphasized that exercising less than four hours before bedtime may delay melatonin release and increase body temperature, potentially making it harder to fall asleep. Regular exercise also improves overall sleep quality and helps people sleep longer.

Over time, exercise improves sleep hygiene, namely the habits that help people sleep well. This leads to stable sleep-wake cycles and improves the regulation of the body’s circadian rhythms. Because exercise acts as a “zeitgeber” (a factor that influences the body’s biological clock), it can help reset disrupted circadian rhythms, particularly in individuals who experience sleep disturbances due to shift work or jet lag.

Exercise can also indirectly improve sleep by reducing stress and enhancing mood. Regular and consistent exercise reduces stress, depression, and anxiety. By reducing the heart rate, exercise calms the body, facilitating sleep. It also regulates hormones like cortisol and melatonin, which are linked to sleep patterns.

Treating Sleep-Related Disorders

Researchers have studied the benefits of exercise for alleviating sleep disorders. Exercise has psychological benefits, reducing the emotional stress and anxiety associated with disordered sleep. It can also reduce sleep-disordered breathing and improve autonomic and hormonal imbalances that worsen sleep quality.

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Regarding specific sleep disorders, people experiencing insomnia can benefit from moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, which improves the onset of sleep, reduces the time spent awake, and enhances the overall sleep quality. The review also noted that exercise may be more effective when combined with sleep hygiene interventions, such as maintaining a consistent bedtime and avoiding stimulants before sleep.

Another condition that can hamper sleep quality is restless leg syndrome (RLS), a neurological condition that causes an uncontrollable urge to move the legs. Aerobic exercise can also reduce symptoms of RLS, including throbbing, aching, and itching in the legs. The study highlighted that the benefits of exercise for RLS may be due to improved blood circulation and neuromuscular function.

For people with sleep apnea, which causes breathing to stop and start repeatedly during sleep, researchers recommend combining weight loss with exercise to reduce the severity of the condition and improve functioning and wakefulness during the day. Importantly, the review found that even in the absence of significant weight loss, regular exercise can improve sleep apnea symptoms by enhancing autonomic nervous system regulation and reducing inflammation.

Conclusions

While existing studies on the relationship between exercise and sleep are promising, researchers identified ways to apply these findings and avenues for future investigations.

Long-term studies are needed to understand how different durations, intensities, and types of exercise impact sleep patterns. Diverse populations should be included to identify tailored and effective interventions for different demographic groups. The review also called for more research into the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of exercise on sleep, such as its impact on brain function and immune responses.

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There is still much that is not known about the physiological mechanisms that underpin exercise’s impacts on sleep quality and circadian rhythms, particularly among those with chronic sleep disorders. The systemic and molecular effects of exercise on sleep also need more exploration.

Current research can be applied to interventions to improve the health of athletes and the general public. For athletes, optimizing sleep is crucial for recovery and performance, and the review suggested integrating personalized sleep-monitoring protocols into training programs.

Physical activity should be promoted as a non-pharmacological intervention for the general public, but clear guidelines regarding intensity, frequency, and timing should be provided for different age groups. The researchers stressed the importance of personalized exercise prescriptions that account for an individual’s age, fitness level, and existing sleep disturbances to maximize benefits.

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Want Superhero-Sized Arms? The 8-Week Ultimate Workout Plan Will Be Your Origin Story.

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Want Superhero-Sized Arms? The 8-Week Ultimate Workout Plan Will Be Your Origin Story.

JUST BECAUSE YOUR arms are made up of smaller muscles—mainly your biceps and triceps—doesn’t mean you can coast through a few lazy sets tacked onto training days and expect serious growth. If you want sleeves that stretch, you need to hit arms with the same intensity you bring any other type of workout. You need a solid, comprehensive plan.

That’s exactly what Men’s Health fitness director Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S., had in mind when he built this program that can build superhero-sized arms while still considering for busy schedules. “This winds up being the perfect arm training program for the Men’s Health guy,” he says. This is the cornerstone of our Ultimate Arm Recomp plan, which will be your key to real muscle growth.

Samuel’s four-day program uses intensity techniques designed to push every set to the brink. Supersets, lengthened partials, pauses, drop sets—you’re going to feel every rep. You’ve never trained arms like this before. But give it six to eight weeks, and you just might see gains you’ve never had before, either.

preview for Arms | Ultimate Workout | Men's Health

What You Need to Do to Build Superhero Arms

Walk 8,000-10,000 Steps Per Day

AS YOU’RE LIVING an active lifestyle, you should kind of trip and fall your way to eight to 10 thousand steps per day,” says Samuel. “If not, just try to get a little bit of extra activity in.” Walking more is the most measurable way to increase your NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis). That is, how many calories you burn when not exercising. Increasing your NEAT can help you burn hundreds of additional calories per day without contributing to your fatigue.

Eat to Gain Muscle

“We want to make sure we’re not in a calorie deficit for this program,” Samuel explains. “We want to be in a slight surplus because you’re going to need those calories to grow muscle on your biceps and triceps.” For more information on how to eat, check out our guide here.

Lift Heavy and Focus On the Eccentric

“What this program is about is owning your form and owning the eccentric portion [or lowering phase] of every single contraction on your arm exercises,” Samuel says. “If you’re rocking and cheating your way through your form, then you’re not going to get those good squeezes and long eccentrics movements that can help grow arm muscle.”

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4 Key Arm Training Principles

Do Exercises With Multi-Joint Stimulus

“WHEN I’M BUILDING a general strength training program for you guys, I’m focusing on our big lifts,” Samuel says of exercises like rows, bench presses, and deadlifts. “We build our program around those multi-joint ideas because they’re good for calorie burn and they’re good for sending signals to our muscles to grow everything.”

The multi-joint movements (also called compound exercises) are, in this instance, programmed to help you preserve the muscle you already have so you can expend your energy growing your arms. Too many heavy lifts, he says, will leave you too physically and mentally fatigued to attack your arms with the intensity you need to make gains. For that reason, Samuel says you’ll pull back on these compound movements while on this specific program to make room for more arm exercises.

“What we still want to make sure to do is enough of those big lifts, so that we’re still sending signals to our larger muscle groups that we want to preserve the size we have,” Samuel says.

Split Workouts Into Push and Pull Motions

“I’ve had you do splits that were two upper days and two lower days, really crushing our legs and big lifts, but this split is a little different,” says Samuel, who is switching it up for this program.

This time around, you’ll stick with four training days: a push day, a pull day, a leg day, and an arm day. This set-up lets you accumulate more arm work into your week by pairing triceps with chest and biceps with back, in addition to a standalone arm workout. Your legs, chest, back, and shoulders will take a backseat during this program, with enough volume to maintain the muscle you already have in those areas.

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Utilize Techniques to Fight Through Fatigue

Your sets and reps for multi-joint lifts like deadlifts and bench presses will be straightforward: three sets for anywhere from six to 12 reps. Push those sets but remember that the goal of this program is to size-up your arms.

With that in mind, Samuel includes a series of intensity techniques to help you lift more weight for more reps to eke out as much muscle-building stimulus as possible.

Direct Arm Work Three Times Per Week

As mentioned above, Samuel set up this workout split to include three arm training days, with your triceps and biceps each getting two sessions per week.

“You can train arms often if you train them smart because, overall, you are working lighter loads,” Samuel says. “We’re going to push through and make sure we get as much direct arm work as we can over the course of this program.”


Your Superhero Arm Workout Plan

Warmup

KEEP YOUR WARMUP quick to get you in and out of the gym in about an hour. Do a one-minute-long set of jumping jacks, planks, and reverse lunges, “something to get your heart rate moving,” as Samuel puts it. Not included in the workouts below are the one to two “feeler sets” that you should do for your heavier lifts. For example, if you can dumbbell press 80 pounds, it’s wise to do a set of, say, six reps with 40 pounds and then another set of four reps with 60 pounds before hitting your working sets.

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How to Progress

Each week, you want to do more reps or more weight for pretty much every exercise, week to week. For example, say you do dumbbell skull crushers with 25 pounds for 10 reps during week 1. Next week, you’ll try for 11 reps, then 12 reps the week after, and so on. If you run this program for longer than four weeks, you’ll add five to 10 pounds to your lifts and repeat that weekly rep progression. If you make it to the top end of each prescribed rep range quickly, add more weight during next week’s session and try again.

Rest

A good general rule of thumb is to rest for 90 seconds to two minutes between sets of heavy compound movements, like the trap-bar deadlift and Bulgarian split squats, and 60 seconds between isolation movements.


DAY 1:

Back & Biceps

EZ-Bar Incline Row

SAMUEL SAYS: “I love starting with some sort of horizontal pull because it’s going to teach our shoulder blades to move correctly. Let’s say you have some sort of office job or you’re driving a lot, it’s going to offset that forward position and start to train our shoulder blades to come back.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Sit on an incline bench facing forward, so you can rest your chest against the pad.
  • Use a supinated (or underhand) grip to grab the EZ bar. Engage your glutes and abs, then squeeze your shoulder blades to create tension.
  • Pull the weight up to the bench. Think about driving the EZ bar straight through the bench as quickly and explosively as possible.
  • Return the bar to the ground without allowing it to slam on the floor.
  • Pause between each rep to reset your position.

Chinup

SAMUEL SAYS: “Whether this is five reps or 10 reps, [the chin-up gets] that vertical pull in, and, two, the chin-up by itself is a really good way to start warming up our biceps and triceps. I want you to do three sets of max reps, and that last set should be so hard you can barely pull yourself up.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of max reps

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HOW TO DO IT:

  • Get into a good hanging position with an underhand grip, squeezing your shoulders, abs, and glutes to maintain tension.
  • Drive your elbows into your hips to pull yourself up to the bar. Continue until your head is above the bar, pausing briefly at the top.
  • Lower back down until your elbows are extended, maintaining control of the position and keeping tension.

Preacher Curl

SAMUEL SAYS: “If you have access to a preacher bench, we can do this with an EZ-bar, which is the ideal way to do this. After you hit your eight to 10 reps, then we’re going to try and bang out two to three more reps of [lengthened partials]. When we’re in that stretched-out position, it’s a great way to grow muscle.” If you don’t have an exercise-specific bench, you can swap in an adjustable bench and dumbbells.

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps (plus partial reps)

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Begin by adjusting your seat to a position in which your chest is flush against the preacher pad with your armpits firmly wedged in, leaving little to no gap.
  • Grab the EZ bar. Another benefit of using the machine preacher curl is that it allows you the option of either using a tight grip or light contact with relaxed palms. Either style works.
  • Squeezing your shoulder blades and driving your lower body into the ground, begin curling the bar. Focus on rotating both pinkies toward the ceiling as you work toward a solid squeeze at the top of the rep.
  • Lower back to start position. That’s one rep.

Hammer Curl Rack Run

SAMUEL SAYS: “I want you to choose a relatively heavy weight, something you can curl for four to six reps. After you hit those four to six reps, you’re going to pick up something five pounds later and do as many reps as you can. Repeat that process all the way down until you’re down to, like, 10 pounds. If you’re starting with 40-pound dumbbells, only do four drops. If you’re starting with 25-pound dumbbells, try to go all the way down to 10 pounds.”

SETS AND REPS: 2 sets; 2 minutes rest between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

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  • Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a pair of dumbbells in a neutral grip (palms facing each other). Squeeze your shoulder blades, abs, and glutes to create full-body tension.
  • Curl the dumbbell up, moving only at the elbow joint. Keep your upper arms still and perpendicular to the floor. Squeeze your biceps at the top of the movement.
  • Avoid shifting your elbow forward to keep your shoulders out of the movement.
  • Lower the weight back down to the starting position under control.

DAY 2:

Chest & Triceps

Incline Dumbbell Press

SAMUEL SAYS: “This gives you a chance to go heavy, and we’re going to hit a large amount of our chest on this—our pec major, our upper pecs, our lower pecs.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Set a bench to a 30- to 45-degree incline and sit back with a dumbbell in each hand.
  • Press the weights above your chest, keeping your wrists stacked over your elbows.
  • Lower until your elbows are just below bench level, then drive the dumbbells back up.

Super-Set: Cable Fly + Paused Pushup

SAMUEL SAYS: “We’re going to lead with the cable fly, ideally with your back supported. As soon as you get done with those cable flys, you’re dropping into pause push-ups to technical failure. I want a two-second pause in the bottom position of those push-ups, and I don’t care how many reps you get.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps + 3 sets to failure; rest 90 seconds between sets

HOW TO DO THE CABLE FLY:

  • Adjust the pulleys to chest height and attach D-handles.
  • Grab the handles with your elbows slightly bent and palms facing forward. Walk them around so you’re in front of the bench, and then plant your back firmly against the pad.
  • Press the handles forward until they meet in front of your chest
  • Slowly open your arms, allowing a deep stretch in your chest. Let your arms travel as far back as is comfortable for your shoulders.
  • Squeeze your chest and bring the handles back together.

HOW TO DO THE PUSHUP:

  • Drop to the floor immediately after your last rep with your palms flat, stacked directly below your shoulders.
  • Squeeze your shoulders, glutes, and core to create full-body tension. Your spine should form a straight line, keeping your eyes on the floor to maintain a neutral spine.
  • Bend your elbows to descend to the floor, stopping with your chest just above the ground. Your elbows should be at a 45 degree angle relative to the torso.
  • Press back up off the floor, raising up to the top position with your elbows fully extended.

Cable Overhead Extension

SAMUEL SAYS: “This is an exercise that’s going to give you a stretch at both the shoulder and elbow joint. The triceps has two main functions: it extends the elbow…it also brings our upper arm downward. We get to train both of those.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps + dropset to paused reps

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HOW TO DO IT:

  • Set up a bench to a 75-degree incline (likely the highest without the back support being fully vertical), and place it directly in front of a cable machine with a rope attachment. The cable should be anchored as close to the ground as possible.
  • Lie with your back against the bench, abs and glutes tight, arms perpendicular to the ground, and have a friend hand you the rope attachment with your hands directly over your shoulders. Grasp both its ends.
  • Slowly bend at the elbows, lowering the rope toward your shoulders. Bend your elbows as much as you possibly can, stretching your triceps. Don’t allow your elbows to flare as you do this.
  • Then straighten your arms (don’t flare your elbows here either!), squeezing your triceps.

Dumbbell Skull Crusher

SAMUEL SAYS: “What you’re going to do is 25 reps, but I want you doing this with a weight you think you can hit reasonably for 10 to 12 reps. Bang out as many reps as you can with good form. Once your form fails, sit up, rest for five deep breaths, and then lie back down and do as many reps as you can until you get 25 reps.”

SETS AND REPS: 2 sets of 25 reps; rest 2 minutes between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Start by lying back on the bench. Don’t arch your back—drive your shoulder blades into the bench, squeeze your abs and glutes, and keep your feet flat on the floor.
  • Press the weight straight up above your chest, holding the dumbbells in a neutral position (palms facing each other). Your upper arms should be just past 90 degrees, at a 91 or 92 degree angle. Keep your wrists strong and a tight grip on the weight.
  • Lower the weights slowly down to an inch above your forehead, moving only at the elbows. Don’t allow your shoulders to shift forward; keep your upper arms still.
  • Drive the weight back up (again moving only at the elbows), squeezing your triceps at the top.

DAY 3:

Legs

Trap Bar Deadlift

SAMUEL SAYS: “Point blank: in any routine, the trap-bar deadlift is critical because it’s going to ensure we’re moving a heavy weight. You don’t need to think about setting PRs [personal records] in this block, but you do want to train this move heavy because it’s your one chance in this program to move heavy weight.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps; rest 90 seconds between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

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  • Position yourself inside the trap bar, with your shins aligned with (or just in front of) the center of the bar.
  • Push your butt back as far as possible, bend your knees, and reach down to grip the handles. Grip as tightly as possible.
  • Keep your head neutral, keeping your gaze fixed on something in front of you. Squeeze your shoulder blades to create tension, and turn the pits of your elbows forward, facing out.
  • Make sure your hips are lower than your shoulders, then prepare to initiate the lift.
  • Push your feet through the floor to stand straight up, squeezing your glutes at the top.
  • To finish the rep, push your butt back as far as you can, then bend your knees to set the weight down.

Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat

SAMUEL SAYS: “On these split squats, you don’t need to go crazy heavy, but I want you to challenge yourself. The last two reps should be relatively hard.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Start on the floor in front of the bench (or whatever stable platform you have on hand).
  • Place one foot up onto the bench, then get into a position where your front foot is planted on the floor with a vertical shin (in relation to the ground). Your thigh should be parallel to the ground, forming a 90 degree angle at the knee.
  • Grab the weights off the floor.
  • Tighten your core and drive your ribcage in. Keep your neck neutral, looking straight ahead. Squeeze your shoulder blades to create tension.
  • Stand up, hinging forward slightly to avoid overextending your back.
  • Lower yourself down, working to keep your shin in that vertical position. Don’t allow your back knee to hit the ground; stop an inch from the floor if you can.
  • Squeeze your glutes hard to keep your knee in the proper position, then press your front foot off the floor to drive up.

Leg Press

SAMUEL SAYS: “You can do one set of this or two sets of this. This is as much about getting a little bit more calorie burn, and, again, moving a little bit of heavy weight. It’s about another thing, too: When it comes to training arms, one of the things we need to understand is how to push through fatigue. The leg press is a really good and safe way to understand, from a mental standpoint, how to push our limits.”

SETS AND REPS: 1 to 2 sets of 15 to 20 reps; rest 90 seconds between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Get into a comfortable working position on the machine, with your shoulders and glutes squeezed and feet placed hip-width on the sled.
  • Press through the sled with your feet, maintaining tension in your torso. Release the sled from the safety lock, then control the weight down.
  • Watch your knees as you lower the weight, making sure you don’t allow them to cave in or track excessively outward.
  • Lower down as far as you can, maintaining upper body tension with your back flush against the pad. Don’t allow your butt to raise off the seat; if you shift you’ve gone too deep.
  • Press through the pad with both feet to raise the wait back up, extending your knees.

Kettlebell Swing

SAMUEL SAYS: “The kettlebell swing is doing one thing for us in this entire program. It’s the only time in this program where I’m asking you to be explosive, and just for longevity, we want to make sure we preserve a little bit of explosiveness in our program.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 rounds of 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off

HOW TO DO IT:

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  • Start standing with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, with the kettlebell on the ground in front of you.
  • Push you butt back, then lean over to grip the bell’s handle. Hold on tightly.
  • Squeeze your shoulder blades, then shift your arms to turn the pits of your elbows outward. Squeeze your abs to create tension. Keep your eyes on the floor to maintain a neutral spine.
  • “Hike” the weight back between your legs, keeping your knees slightly bent. Keep your arms straight.
  • Stand straight up, locking your knees, and aggressively squeeze your glutes to perform the swing. Keep your arms loose, like ropes connecting yourself to the kettlebell. Don’t aim for a certain point; allow the momentum to determine how high the bell goes.
  • Allow the weight to fall back down, back through your legs.

DAY 4:

Arms

Barbell Curl

SAMUEL SAYS: “Why do we like barbell curls? Because we’re going to be able to go very heavy on barbell curls compared to our other biceps exercise, and two, it’s making sure it hits both functions of our biceps [elbow flexion and supination]. Choose a weight that you can do for 10 to 12 reps. Bang out as many reps as you can. Put the bar down and rest for five deep breaths, and then you’re going to pick it up again and keep doing that until you’ve done 20 total reps.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 20 reps (rest-pause style); rest for 90 seconds between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, holding the bar with a shoulder-width grip.
  • Squeeze your glutes, abs, and shoulder blades. Keep your torso tight.
  • Curl the weight up, moving only at the elbows.
  • Squeeze your biceps at the top for a split second, then lower the weight back down.

Cable Curl

SAMUEL SAYS: “There is one other function that does not get hit with the barbell curl: shoulder flexion. Our biceps play a small role in pulling our shoulder forward, and that role gets challenged in the cable curl.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps (plus partial reps)

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Grab the handle with one hand and take a step and a half away from the machine (or as far as you need to feel tension on the muscle).
  • Squeeze the abs and glutes for a solid base.
  • Create a slight angle with the elbow to where the cable feels like it’s pulling you back.
  • Ensure that your hips and shoulders are facing square in front—don’t allow the tension from the cable to twist your torso backwards.
  • Moving only at the elbow, curl your hand towards your shoulder.
  • As you lower back down, make sure the cable doesn’t pull your shoulder from its position. Think about keeping the upper arm in line with your torso.

Hammer Curl

SAMUEL SAYS: “Choose a weight that lets you get anywhere from eight to 12 reps, and then we’re going to do as many reps as you can. Then we’re going to put the dumbbells down, rest for a three-count, and then pick the dumbbells up again and do as many reps as you can. Keep repeating this until you can no longer complete two to three reps.” (If you want to see this technique in action, check out our Building Blocks video in which Samuel performs Myo Reps.)

SETS AND REPS: 1 set of myo reps

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HOW TO DO IT:

  • Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a pair of dumbbells in a neutral grip (palms facing each other). Squeeze your shoulder blades, abs, and glutes to create full-body tension.
  • Curl the dumbbell up, moving only at the elbow joint. Keep your upper arms still and perpendicular to the floor. Squeeze your biceps at the top of the movement.
  • Avoid shifting your elbow forward to keep your shoulders out of the movement.
  • Lower the weight back down to the starting position under control.

JM Press

SAMUEL SAYS: “The beauty of the JM press [which you can do with a barbell or dumbbells] is that it’s going to give us a really good loaded stretch on our triceps when we lower into the bottom position. Think about resting in that bottom position, feeling that stretch, and then pressing up.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps;

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Start by lying back on the bench. Drive your shoulder blades into the bench, squeeze your abs and glutes, and keep your feet flat on the floor.
  • Press the weight straight up above your chest, holding the dumbbells in a neutral position (palms facing each other). Your upper arms should be just past 90 degrees, at a 91 or 92 degree angle. Keep your wrists strong and a tight grip on the weights.
  • Lower the points of your elbows down to your ribcage so the top of each dumbbell touches your shoulders. Fight to prevent your elbows from flaring out.
  • Press back up to the starting position.

Incline Bench Skull Crusher

SAMUEL SAYS: “Why are we going for the incline skull crusher this time? One, so we get a slightly different angle than the exercises we’ve already hit. And two, in general…we’re going to get a little bit more stretch overall when we’re doing these skull crushers.”

SETS AND REPS: 3 sets of 8 to 10 paused reps;

HOW TO DO IT:

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  • Start by setting an adjustable bench to about a 15-degree angle.
  • Sit on the bench, driving your shoulder blades into the back pad, squeezing your abs and glutes, and keeping your feet flat on the floor.
  • Press the weight straight up above your chest, holding the dumbbells in a neutral position (palms facing each other). Your upper arms should be just past 90 degrees, at a 91 or 92 degree angle. Keep your wrists strong and a tight grip on the weight.
  • Lower the weights slowly down to an inch above your forehead, moving only at the elbows. Don’t allow your shoulders to shift forward; keep your upper arms still.
  • Drive the weight back up (again moving only at the elbows), squeezing your triceps at the top.

X Pressdown

SAMUEL SAYS: “The beauty of the X pressdown is that it’s a vertical triceps kickback that we can load more exclusively. I have this down for one set, but if you’re feeling like you want a little bit more triceps work…you can do this in two sets.”

SETS AND REPS: 1 to 2 sets of myo reps; rest 90 seconds between sets

HOW TO DO IT:

  • Stand in the center of a cable crossover machine, chest facing the machine. Reach across your body and grab the right handle with your left hand. Grab your left handle with the right hand (you can grab D-handles to do this move, but you may find it more comfortable to instead detach the handles and grab the ball at the end of the cable. You can also attach wrist straps and loop your wrists through those. Do what feels most comfortable).
  • Pull the cables down and toward your torso, keeping your elbows bent as you do. Pull down until your upper arms are in line with your torso, and squeeze your shoulder blades. This is the start.
  • Now straighten your arms, flexing your triceps hard and bringing your wrists in line with your elbows and shoulders. Slowly lower the weight back to the start, never letting your elbows drift forward.

Check out all of our arm-building videos in our Ultimate Arm Recomp Video Training Guide, available exclusively for MH MVP subscribers, here.

Lettermark

Andrew Gutman, NASM-CPT is a journalist with a decade of experience covering fitness and nutrition. His work has been published in Men’s Health, Men’s Journal, Muscle & Fitness, and Gear Patrol. Outside of writing, Andrew trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, helps coach his gym’s kickboxing team, and enjoys reading and cooking. 

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When Walking for Weight Loss, Should You Keep the Same Pace or Mix It Up? A Trainer Explains

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When Walking for Weight Loss, Should You Keep the Same Pace or Mix It Up? A Trainer Explains

Movement is beneficial for both the mind and the body. Walking, a free and low-impact exercise, is one of the easiest and most rewarding ways to reap the benefits. Just 11 minutes of walking per day can reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease and premature death, research found.

That’s why we launched our Start TODAY app with walking as its core feature. Regardless of whether your goal is to improve mobility, build strength or lose weight, every workout program incorporates walking podcasts to help you get your steps in.

Walking can also improve mood, reduce stress, boosting creativity and encouraging socialization. Now that you’ve found the motivation to get your steps in, it’s time to consider your pace. How quickly you walk can be as important as the amount of time you spend hitting the pavement (or treadmill).

Stephanie Mansour, Start TODAY Fitness Trainer, says the best way to up the ante on your walks is by interval walking.

By regularly increasing and reducing the pace of your walks you’ll “burn even more calories, boost your metabolism and get an even better cardiovascular workout — plus, reap these benefits in less time than doing steady-state cardio,” she said. Learn exactly how to make the most of your walks while picking up the pace.

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Trainer Tip of the Day: Mix Up Your Walking Speed

Walking at various speeds is a form of high intensity interval training, or HIIT. This type of exercise requires you to switch between low-intensity exercise and high-intensity moves that will continue to burn calories long after the workout is complete, Mansour said. HIIT has been shown to reduce body fat, benefit your heart and boost metabolism.

Just because walking is often seen as a low-effort exercise doesn’t mean it can’t count as a HIIT workout. You just have to know how.

Luckily, Mansour has done the work for you! She created indoor walking workouts with Al Roker in the Start TODAY app that utilize the interval-style training method. Plus, she recorded guided audio HIIT walks you can follow to incorporate interval training when walking outdoors.

Why It Matters

Walking at any speed has its perks, but when you aim to raise your heart rate during a walk, research has noted greater advantages when compared to walks done at a slower pace.

A brisk walk can improve memory, decision making and bone density. Studies show that walking 80 steps or more per minute reduces the risk of serious illness at a higher percentage than walking 40 steps per minute.

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How to Get Started

First, familiarize yourself with what a brisk walk is. A brisk pace typically ranges between 3 to 4 miles per hour, but it’s not one size fits all. To help you determine what it looks like for you, check in with your body. You should still be able to speak while walking without having to catch your breath. If you find yourself breathing heavily or unable to speak, you’re going faster than you need to.

Next, be sure to adequately stretch and warm up. Once that’s done, you’re ready to get going. Incorporating speed work into your walks can be as simple as alternating between a steady pace and a power walk.

You can try to mix up your pace every two minutes, or if you don’t want to time yourself, use your surroundings to track your intervals, Mansour recommended. Walk first at a steady pace, then, once you pass a stop sign, walk briskly until you reach the next stop sign. Continue this way throughout your workout.

If you want to take all the guesswork out of your walk, press play and zone out with guided audio HIIT walks on the Start TODAY app, where Mansour cues your speed changes and shares form tips. Or interval walk right in the comfort of your living room and get your steps (and laughs) in with Start TODAY’s Chief Motivation Officer, Al Roker.

TODAY’s Expert Tip of the Day series is all about simple strategies to make life a little easier. Every Monday through Friday, different qualified experts share their best advice on diet, fitness, heart health, mental wellness and more.

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Fitness

Want to get into strength training? Experts explain the top four options

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Want to get into strength training? Experts explain the top four options

Stone says that you don’t need to use much weight. Just a pound, or a kilo or two, will do it. Start slowly and increase the weight gradually.

“I would also strongly suggest that if you’ve never lifted weights before, go find somebody who knows something about it,” Stone adds.

Free weights and barbells are a good choice is you’re relatively healthy.Credit: iStock

Weight machines

This is probably the least intimidating option for the beginner. The machines offer stability and a fixed pattern of movement and they give beginners a chance to get familiar with the movements involved in strength training.

“Machines are a good way to start,” Escamilla says. “They’re safe and easy and you don’t need a lot of technique or skill to do them.”

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Escamilla points out they also reduce the risk of injury, isolate muscles and help build confidence as you’re starting out. The machines also are more time effective.

“Start here and then you can gravitate to free weight and other options,” Escamilla said.

Resistance bands and tubes

These are the most portable options. They can help to build muscle, improve flexibility and balance, and don’t require signing up for a gym membership. The bands or tubes are made of elastic and come in a variety of sizes and resistance levels.

Bands also come in fabric models.

“They take up no room to pack and they’re super-cheap,” Escamilla said. “You can take them with you as you travel – just throw them in your suitcase.”

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You can use them to work your legs, arms, back, chest and shoulders and other muscle groups. They can be used in many configurations and may be less intimidating than dumbbells or barbells.

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“The bands won’t cut it for a 300-pound (140kg) football player,” Escamilla says. “But they’re good for your average person — your average adult.”

Body weight resistance

The idea with every weight-resistance exercise is to overload the muscles. Your own body weight can be used to do this.

Exercises such as push-ups, pull-ups, squats, lunges and planks and others fall into this category.

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“Your body weight can be used as a form of resistance,” Escamilla said. “You can get a good workout doing these and you need almost no equipment.”

No matter the option, Stone emphasises the need to vary your exercises — both the types and the number of repetitions. You can also vary locations, perhaps choosing an outdoor gym for your workouts.

Outdoor gyms are often found on beaches such as the one at the popular Barceloneta beach in Barcelona, Spain.

“You can’t do the same number of sets and repetitions all the time and expect to get better results,” Stone said. “You get stale and monotony can set in.”

AP

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