FAQ's - building muscle

The type of Strength Training we use is referred to as HIT (High Intensity Training), Super Slow, Slow Burn, or Weight Resistance Training). Raises HDL (good cholesterol), builds muscle, improves cardiovascular health, burns fat, builds bone density & safer than typical weight training. Strength Training is the best way to avoid or improve Osteopenia and Osteoporosis by building and improving bone density.
 

1.  Can anyone benefit from a Strength Training program?At Body By Berle, members range in age from 12 to 90. Muscles add stability to the joints, increase protection against pain & injury; increase bone density, and add shape & flexibility to the body. 
2.  Can I lose fat from a specific area?This is impossible. When we lose weight we lose it all over. The only way to spot reduce is thru Liposuction. Aerobic classes specifically geared to work out body areas cannot spot reduce fat from these areas. The combination of proper diet and strength training is the only sure way to reduce body fat.
3.  If a woman does strength training will she build big muscles? Even with strength training, it is almost impossible for women to develop large muscles. Women do not have enough of the male hormone Testosterone for large muscles to develop. Women bodybuilders with large muscles usually take male hormones. 
4.  Does this Strength Training program improve Cardiovascular Fitness? Most would assume only aerobic exercise could achieve this. At Body By Berle, strength training done in a circuit (minimal rest between exercises) performed properly elevates the heart rate.
5.  Is aerobic exercise safer than strength training? Aerobics can cause a 75% chance of damage to connective tissues in the feet, ankles and knees. Strength training especially when performed with a trainer lessens the possibility of injury. 
6.  How much exercise do we need? We only need to work out two times a week for 30 minutes. Just like food, one should only exercise as much as the body requires.
7.  Why can't I work out 2 days in a row? The most important factor in achieving results from workouts is recovery. During an intense workout, muscles are weakened due to damage to the tissues. The rest period allows for the tissues to repair itself. Resting for 48 hours between workouts allows muscles to get larger and stronger. 
8.  How can a man have terrific abs? Aside from exercise, the only way to have definition in the abdominal region is to have 8% to 12% body fat.
9.  How can women have the hips, thighs and buttocks they crave? Their body fat needs to be 18% to 22%. The only way to achieve this is to combine strength training with a low calorie diet.  Berle prefers The Paleo Diet.
10. How can exercise relieve stress? It provides an emotional and physical escape. Exercise allows one to channel stress in a healthy direction. It gives one a sense of accomplishment. Since sessions at Body By Berle are by appointment, no one has to wait for equipment. Competition between members is eliminated, since goals are set individually.   
    
     

1.  Body By Berle has been practicing the method of SuperSlow for over 25 years. SuperSlow was originally invented in 1982 by Ken Hutchins, an exercise researcher and his wife Brenda while conducting an osteoporosis study for Nautilus and the University of Florida. During this study Hutchins wanted his elderly subjects to lift significant amounts of weight on Nautilus machines without getting hurt. In order to do this, Hutchins decreased the force as well as the speed to eliminate the acceleration. The exercise is not only safer- because there is no jerking or pulling when lifting and lowering weights without acceleration – it becomes harder. Instead of throwing, starting or stopping weights (which acts as a rest/relief for muscles) SuperSlow intentionally keeps every muscle fiber under a constant load. 
2.  SuperSlow  or HIT: Technically SuperSlow resistance training is “creating more tension in a muscle for a given workload,” or “slow muscle action leads to a maximum amount of tension,” noted by Jeff Nelson, M.Ed and Len Kravitz, Ph.D. There is no cheating when lifting weights SuperSlow. 

• The basic principle of SuperSlow is to work out with a trainer on Nautilus equipment and to painstakingly repeat a particular exercise very slowly until you reach temporary muscle fatigue. Since, there is very little rest between exercises one gets cardiovascular and musculoskeletal benefits. SuperSlow involves the combination of very slow speeds of lifting and lowering the weight along with the general principles of the High intensity training approach promoted by Arthur Jones. Recommended workouts are twice weekly for most trainees. Super Slow is the generic term for exercise methods using slow repetition speeds, also known as Slow Burn. SuperSlow is a high intensity, low-force exercise strengthening method – which best fits the definition of complete exercise. It is beneficial for rehabilitation, bodybuilding, weight loss and general exercise. SuperSlow can build 50% more muscle in 10 weeks than regular weightlifting.
• The objective of SuperSlow is to bring the muscles to exhaustion by keeping them bearing weight – keeping them loaded though out the movement. “Basically we train your muscles by putting a weight load on them so that the muscle goes from the fresh strength that you start with to where, after several reps, it it is reduced to the point where you can’t move the weight. Somewhere on the inroad process the muscle gets progressively more fatigued and we cross a threshold, which turns on a signal to the body to produce greater strength and to grow muscle,” says Hutchins.
• The SuperSlow method targets the body’s major muscles, called skeletal muscles – which are the body’s engine. They produce more heat, consume more calories and receive more blood flow than any of the bodys' other muscles. This is why SuperSlow or High Intensity Training (HIT), purports to give you triple the benefits of traditional strength training in a fraction of the time. It is particularly beneficial to help reduce age-related muscle loss. This system of training is truly cost effective for those who really want to benefit. It involves quality over quantity for the amount of exercise you require.  
  
   

Call (718) 264-8787 for a FREE trial Workout.