Workout Inspiration: Incline Training

By Susie Crossland-Dwyer

Or watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYo1-vJ61-8

Incline Treadmill Workout:
-Warm-up 10:00 minutes or 1 mile at a slower than your normal pace.
-Keep as much of that slower pace as you are able while you test out each "automatic" incline on the treadmill. My treadmill organizes them in increments of three. So, if you don't have auto buttons on your treadmill, go up three % at a time.
-Let the legs get used to each incline for about 30 seconds. This is you telling the legs and the heart rate they are about to WORK (or what I like to call "priming the pump").
-Come back to a flat and recover the heart rate to about 70% of your Max HR (or until you can easily breathe and talk).
-Take off again up the incline. Complete 5-10 rounds of taking the incline from 0% grade to maximum % grade.
-At maximum incline, sustain for as long as you can--even if it's only a few seconds. For me it was 1:00 at same pace. Sometimes I even had to grab the handles for a few seconds at the end of the 1:00. For the last few rounds I had to drop my original pace even more to complete the full incline--THIS IS OKAY!
- Each round on the way back down, I just let the treadmill ramp down to zero and as soon as I felt it level out I pushed the "30" button again.
-After you've completed 5-10 rounds, cool down by bringing the incline ramp back down completely and walk on the flat for 1-2:00 minutes.
-Stretch and drink water!

I was able to complete EIGHT rounds of 0% to 30% grade incline before I ran out of time. My total calories burned=505 for 45 minutes (not bad for a time-crunched workout). More importantly, I did an activity that my body wasn't used to which means I will have more strength benefits on the adaptation end. 

Using the Pilates Reformer to stretch out my hips and legs post-workout.  Stretching is always a must no matter how little time I have in the day. 

What a 30% grade ramp looks like on the treadmill.

One more fun one for the hips on the Pilates Reformer machine.

Recruiting the Subconscious

What once seemed like a BIG CHANGE--giving up TV--now, a few years later, seems like a way of life that filters out certain messages my subconscious doesn't need.
96% of whether or not you achieve the goals you set is determined by the subconscious.
Do the influences in your life (purposeful or not) and the way you spend your time match up with your goals?

http://youtu.be/xj2JqjTZpm0