Train like Jennifer Aniston

Featuring my #1 training tip every one should be doing .

Last month, I wrote a blog about a different Jennifer’s choice concerning her training as she prepped for a movie role. Do you recall? The JLo 10 day challenge! Click here to read my take on it.

While I’m not on board with the JLo quick fix method, I am totally on board with Jennifer Aniston’s training method, shared recently by her trainer, Leyon Azubike.

I was so happy to hear Leyon Azubike talk about his celebrity client, Jen Aniston’s training program and how he uses periodization to organize her fitness schedule.  Boxing, strength training, jump roping, yoga. And yes, with her schedule she may hit a few 3 am workouts. That falls under HARDCORE and dedicated. The media made such a fuss about the 3 am workouts.

Celebrities get lots of attention when they seem to be aging well. Everyone wants to have what they’re having. It takes work to look that good, people! Even with a few visits to the plastic surgeon, you need to be fit to go through any elective surgery. Cher is fit for 72, any way you look at it.

I get it, but more than that, I’m loving how Jennifer Aniston’s trainer uses periodization to get it done.

What is this magical formula that is working wonders and making 50 look so fit and fabulous? Periodization. It’s been around since 1950 and was the work of a Russian physiologist, Leo Matveyev.

Periodization is an organized approach to fitness training.

Think of it as the trending Marie Kondo Japanese Method: organization for your training program. Working out should give you results that bring joy.

Basically, it’s taking your health and fitness to the next level. It’s an action plan or blueprint to achieve your health and fitness aspirations. The energy and physique you dream of are within reach, you just need a method and a scientific approach to your long and short term goals. And like the Marie Kondo followers rave, this method will change, declutter, and transform your training, your health, your life.

Periodization involves progressive cycling of various aspects of a training program during a specific period of time. Take marathon runners. They train for months, peak, run the race, and then take a month off. A month full of active rest activities before starting another cycle. Other examples include cyclists, pro football players, hockey players, and competitive bodybuilders. All train to peak for the season or day of a chosen event or competition.

SOOO many times a client will start a training program with a goal in mind. Goals like: an up and coming wedding, a class reunion, a beach vacation. Or perhaps they got their labs back from a recent physical and need to lower some of the risk factors to improve health and decrease the occurrence of age-related diseases. And need a routine sooner than later.

There will always be carrots to dangle, but looking past the immediate is always encouraged when planning your fitness routine.

Train for a better quality of life. Make it a lifestyle choice based on discipline and habit. Life is a marathon, a journey of highs and lows, and we never stop living in this body until we leave this life.

A science-based trainer uses periodization with clients. Whether you are heading off on vacation, competition, or planned surgery, the trainer who is using periodization in the creation of your program, is giving you the best method to results. Life happens, so plan for it. I can guarantee you ALL MY CLIENTS are familiar with periodization. My 90 Day PowerFIT Program has produced amazing results. And there is an 100% continuation after the 90 Days. It turned into 365 days or more for most.

There are times when a  break in the routine is abrupt and unplanned. Even at those times, we use the periodization blocks. Build your health “bank account” and make “deposits” daily as you never know when you will need your good health. Thinking of my clients at the moment. Jenn, Stacy, and Pam just took a taper week. A work trip, vacation, surgery, and no matter what, we train hard and intense right up to the break. I guarantee you will enjoy your vacation, break, or recovery more when you are in peak condition.

Whether you are an athlete, actress, in public service, or a busy mom, you need organization. No more wondering mindless and randomly through the gym, taking random classes, hit and miss weight training and sporadic running on the weekends. Stop overdoing yoga and underdoing cardio. A reckless diet on top of that and it gets messy and frustrating. Burnout is surely on the horizon. You may have all the stuff like getting to the gym on a regular basis, eating well most of the time. All you need is organization along with a clear roadmap and plan to optimize your exercise “space” or time.

For the cost of a few lunches out you can hire a COACH to keep you on track, no matter how life happens. Start with a consultation.

Let’s break it down.

Periodization

Consists of 3 cycles or blocks of different types of stress correlating to particular goals. The three cycles are Macrocycles, Mesocycles, and Microcycles.

Microcycle

The introduction to training with preparatory work. It is the shortest training cycle, typically lasting a week or more. Exercise selection, sets, reps, loads, pre-existing conditions, fatigue measurement, improve key physiological abilities and lactate threshold are compiled.

Mesocycle

This cycle can last two weeks to a few months but is typically three or four weeks in length. It is classified into preparation, competition, peaking, and transition phases. Three or four microcycles are tied together to form a mesocycle.

Macrocycle

Includes all stages of the periodization training program. Endurance, intensity, competition, and recovery. It is the longest of the 3 cycles and recommended to last a minimum of 90 days, or preferably one year when starting with new clients. Long term planning produces lasting lifestyle habits and joy.

WHY:

13 out of 15 studies show how periodization improves results.

When you use a form of periodization the benefits include:

• A rapid increase in both strength and muscle mass
• A clear outline or blueprint of what you should be doing every day, every week and every month with your fitness
• Increased recovery potential and energy levels
• Maximized muscle gains in minimum time
• Prevents under and overtraining and burnout
• Combines goals of strength, endurance, and hypotrophy all-in-one
• Training both fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscle fibers
• Weight training with any form of periodization slows aging

The art of training is to know when and how to vary your routine. Remember: too little and/or too much will kill your results and stop your body from progressing setting you up for weight gain and accelerated aging. Modeling your fitness liken to a sport with seasons and variables will bring out the athlete mindset and soon you will be eating and training like an athlete.  The next time you are at that long-awaited wedding celebration enjoying cocktails and cake, you will feel great knowing you are in offseason and will start a new block soon. Because you planned for it.

So take a minute and ask yourself: What are my goals?

What’s my main goal?

• Fat loss, strength, energy, and/or function.

• A preventive program for aging, disease, and degeneration of the body and brain.

What type of training program is best for this goal?

What type of nutrition plan supports this type of training?

Your training and diet should reflect your goals. Your nutrition choices and your workouts choices need to work synergistically. Use periodization to help you reach your goals. Many people are lacking the tools to make it happen. Fill your space with the tools and keep your space organized.

Conclusion:

When you look at your health and fitness WHAT SPARKS JOY?

How do I get organized and start a program to include periodization?

#1 Start small. Take a step. What is the one thing with your health and fitness that stands out as a first priority? Is it just doing it on a regular basis? Start there. Show up.

#2 Respect where you are and where you are starting from, get real. Thank your body, mind, and spirit for getting you this far.

Hey, listen if you made it through getting a college degree, raising kids, building a business, you can apply that same commitment to your fitness goals.

#3 Get rid of the old and in with the new. Let go of the nostalgia of your past exercise history. What worked in your 20’s won’t work in your 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s. What worked in the past needs to be updated. You are not the same body you were in your 20’s. You are not the same person nor do you have the same life as you did back then. Embrace whatever decade you are in. Stop using the excuse of not having time. Make time.

Periodization training will give you maximum results in minimum time. Start using a proven progressive method of training. Stop under training. Stop overtraining. And keep training even when your motivation is low. Showing up is half the work. Start a notebook today. And fill the notebook with only what you need to succeed. Give it your best and forget the rest.