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Set Specific, Measurable,
Achievable Goals
By Brian Cannone
Do you use a training log
for your progress?
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I never walked around the gym with one but I did write
everything down when I got home.
Especially my nutrition plan from day-to-day.
Using a training and nutrition log to record your
starting point and to print periodic reports showing your
progress.
Body weight - How many pounds you weigh.
Body composition - More important than knowing
your body weight is knowing your body composition, which
are your lean body mass in pounds and your body fat or fat
mass as a percent of your total weight.
Your lean body mass
determines your basal metabolism. Your body fat percentage
should be in a healthy range, as indicated on the chart
below.
Body Fat Male / Female |
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Very Low Under 11 / Under 19
Low 11-14 / 19-22
Average 15-17 / 23-27
Fair 18-22 / 28-35
Unhealthy 22+ / 35+
Girth measurements - Measure your neck, upper
arms, chest, waist, hips, thigh, and calves. Even if your
weight doesn't change maybe your proportions will.
Blood pressure -
Your blood pressure reading consists of two numbers
(i.e. 110 over 70). The first or the top one is the
systolic pressure. It measures how forcefully the
heart pumps blood. When it is too high, your heart is
working harder than it should. The second or bottom
number is the diastolic pressure. It gauges the force
of the blood flowing through fully relaxed arteries
between heartbeats. A high number here could mean
clogged or constricted blood vessels. A reading of
120/80 or lower is considered good. Repeated readings
of 140/90 or above mean high blood pressure for which
you should seek medical attention.
Cholesterol - High cholesterol is a hidden killer.
You won't know if you have a problem unless you have
yourself tested. Fortunately, these day's cholesterol
screens are readily available and inexpensive. If you
don't know your cholesterol find out. It should be below
220. If it is not you're hardly alone but you should make
a serious effort to bring it down through a combination
of exercise and dietary changes.
Resting heart range - Your resting heart range is
a reflection of your cardiac health. Usually, the lower
your heart rate the healthier your heart. Exercise,
proper nutrition, and avoidance of tobacco, caffeine and
alcohol will reduce your heart rate. By lowering your
heart rate 10 beats per minute your heart will save over
5,000,000 beats per year.
Recovery heart rate - This is the amount of time
it takes your heart to return to normal the better your
cardiac health.
Strength - Muscular strength is defined as the
amount of work a muscle can do in a single maximum
effort. Common measures of muscular strength include a
grip test, how many push-ups you can do, and how much you
can bench press a percent of your body weight.
Endurance - Aerobic endurance is defined as the
capacity of the heart-lung system to deliver sufficient
oxygen for sustained energy production while performing
exercises which utilize large muscle groups.
Flexibility - Poor
flexibility is associated with increased risk for lower
back injury, muscle strains, and poor orthopedic
injuries. A good, consistent program of stretching before
and after exercise will improve your flexibility. One of
the standard ways to measure flexibility is the sit and
reach test.
Forced vital capacity (FVC) - This measure of your
body's respiratory health measures the volume of air you
can inhale into your lungs and then exhale forcefully. It
is affected by your fitness level, your age, your gender,
your living environment and your smoking status. If you
smoke, major improvement to your FVC will occur if you
stop.
Daily caloric expenditure - The amount of calories
your body burns each day is known as your Daily Caloric
Expenditure and takes into account your body type, your
occupation and exercise program, and your digestive
activity. This must be calculated first in order to
design a meal plan consistent with your fitness goals.
Lot to consider huh?
All the little details...
Don't you just want to work out and not think about all
the math, nutrients, program adjustments?
Don't worry - got it covered.
Check out:
Stage Ready Nutrition and
Training
To your confusion free workout,
Brian Cannone
Stage Ready Nutrition and
Training
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