By Meredith Shirk
NASM certified Fitness Nutrition Specialist
Over the years it's been my privilege to help hundreds of clients... athletes, celebrities, models, and people just like yourself, make their dreams become reality. You see, it's not just a profession for me... it's my passion.
When I first got started I learned everything I could about health, fitness, and weight loss. The reason for this was because I wanted to take care of myself... but I also wanted to show other people how they could transform their lives, too.
I fell in love with health and wellness, and I became a personal trainer.
People got really quick results after they started working with me. And I knew what I was doing.
Lots of my new clients reached their fitness goals for the first time with me even though they'd hired other personal trainers and used other workout systems that had completely failed them.
I knew I was really good as a personal trainer.
...that people should do shorter workouts that give a bigger payoff.
I'll explain more in a moment. First, let me tell you about Lisa, because working with her is the reason why you're even able to watch this video, today.
Working with Lisa was not easy from day one like I expected it to be.
And I realized that I had to find a way make sure I could guarantee people's results when they worked with me.
Because I didn't want to fail all the Lisa's who came my way.
When Lisa was originally referred to me, in our first meeting, she let me know that it had been impossible for her to lose weight.
She'd tried everything, and absolutely nothing was working. She was 56 years old. She came to me as a last resort.
And I knew right away that she was not going to be like any of my previous clients...
...because none of them were dealing with her specific issues.
Now, I do need to let you know that, by the time Lisa came to me, she had already changed her diet.
That was not helping her....which is really funny because...Lisa is a personal chef, and she's really concerned about cooking food that's both healthy and delicious.
Most of us already know that eating right is 80% of the battle when it comes to reaching your ideal weight.
But the problem for Lisa wasn't about food. Her problem was hormonal...
"And when you have hormone issues, you're totally going to have serious difficulty losing weight because your metabolism will be off..."
...and your body will be in a constant, chronic state of stress, which actually keeps you heavier than you want to be and makes you eat more than you intend.
It's a proven consequence of the stress hormone cortisol flooding through your body.
To be really frank with you, people like Lisa are the people that personal trainers usually stop working with because it's just too hard to help them get real, lasting results.
By the time I met her, Lisa had already went thru her feminine 'changes', she was putting on weight she couldn't lose for anything, she was staying home more often because she was embarrassed to be out socially with her friends because her clothes didn't fit right or look good on her body.
Longer workouts were stressing her out and making her feel like a failure. And at 57 years old, no one wants to work out for an hour or more 4 times a week.
So... we needed something that was quick and effective.
I started doing research and discovered that there are certain types of workouts that put your metabolism into overdrive.
All workouts don't have this effect.
I already knew that Lisa wasn't interested in running on a track or doing cardio exercises on a machine, so I took what I learned and created a specific program for her that didn't involve her doing anything I knew she hated doing.
And I created a series of movements done in a certain order... just for her.
She could work out in the comfort of her home, or if she had a favorite spot in her local gym, she could work out there, too if she wanted.
And if she was traveling, she could even exercise in her hotel room.
In just 7 minutes.
Now, let me be really clear. Lisa didn't have a lot of endurance. She couldn't run a mile on the treadmill. She was super busy with life and work and a family.
But...after just three weeks, she was able to do the exercises with ease.
"What's even better is that her body had finally turned on that fat-burning ‘switch' that kept her metabolism super high for up to 48 hours after her workouts had ended."
She lost 14 pounds right off the bat. I was blown away.
And Lisa was excited beyond words. That initial success made her keep on going. To the extent that she eventually was able to lose 36 pounds!
Now, I like to call that fat burning switch that go turned on in her body a... Metabolic Multiplier. And what that means is that doing these targeted exercises that I teach puts your body in a state where all it does is use food for fuel. It also uses excess fat for fuel.iiiii
In 2016 an article in the NY Times talked about research that was being done at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada...
...and what they found was that 1 minute...just ONE minute...of all-out exercise can give you the exact, same benefit as working out for 45 minutes.
And you never have to max out your heart rate - which is great news for people with heart disease.
You never place your body into a state of stress that's equal to what long distance runners go through after they've been running for a long time...
...and most of all, you're not spending hours in a gym, trying to reach your fitness goals.iv
And I don't know about you, but I would much rather work out for 1 minute than for 45 minutes.
I'd rather know how to boost my metabolism on purpose than do 30 minutes of exercise hoping for the best.
You've probably heard of high intensity workouts, right... Not all high intensity workouts are the same.
See...some of them require you to work out as hard as you can for one minute and then rest for a minute.
Others make you run on a track as fast as you can for a certain distance and then walk to recover.
There is a way you can do high intensity exercises without gym equipment, without having to buy an expensive gym membership or spending money on a personal trainer who isn't educated to help you...
...and you don't have to go get weights or go somewhere and run on a track. You can actually workout in your home and turn on the fire in your metabolism for good.v vi
And let me be really clear: high intensity exercises have never been the problem. In fact, high intensity exercises are probably the best form of exercise people can do.
The problem is...people do it the wrong way.
So let me tell you the right way and break down for you why high intensity exercising works so well.
What I teach my clients is a system called S.I.T. Sprint Interval Training. There's no running involved. 20" Best effort. 2' Active rest. And repeat.
When I use the word "sprint," what I mean is you're going to give your very best effort at exercising for 20 seconds and then you're going to do what's called an active rest period for just one minute.
And then you're going to do it again. And you keep alternating your workout until your total workout time is 7 minutes including your warm-up and your cool-down.
And this thing really, really works.
“
My name is Lisa, I'm 57. I've been on a weight loss journey for 6 years. Due to health issues I was gaining weight... hormones, perimenopause, hysterectomy, and continually gained weight over 10-15 pounds.
I had put on close to 50 pounds and I was unable to get rid of any of that weight, really, no matter what I did. I worked out constantly. Sometimes up to 2 hours a day. Thought I was eating properly and eating enough. But I really didn't know for sure. So I started doing a lot of research online.
I found some other programs before I found Mere. And with those other programs I only lost 10 pounds. And really still felt like crap and looked like crap. Still had a little belly hang. Still having health issues… migraines, heart issues, as well as blood pressure issues. I was really concerned and needed to get that weight off of me.
I started Meredith's program and I lost 14 pounds. I was completely stunned. I followed her program to the letter. One of the things she offers that other programs don't is personal coaching. And that really helped me to be successful in my weight loss goals.
I lost a total of 37 pounds and 9 inches with Mere. I gained muscle mass. I lost 30% of my body fat, which was awesome… HUGE. No longer have health issues. I no longer have heart issues. My blood pressure is normal. I'm no longer having migraines every day. No hot flashes, night sweats.
Meredith really helped me see what I was doing was wrong for my body and my metabolism. And I was just hanging on to fat. Meredith's personal touch really helped me understand how my body is working at this age.
I was told I was never going to get rid of body fat at my age, or have tight skin, which was really depressing. And I proved them all wrong through Meredith's program. I now have muscle structure, something I'd never thought I'd have. And I have a tight tummy. It's amazing. My self-esteem has gone through the roof. I feel wonderful every day.
(Note from Meredith: This is an actual story from Lisa, the client my article is about. This statement may not reflect the typical user's experience and is not intended to represent or guarantee that anyone will achieve the same or similar results. This story should not be taken as the result a typical user will get. Individual results may vary.)
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About the Author:
Meredith Shirk is CEO of Svelte Fitness and creator of oneanddoneworkouts.com. She's helped thousands of people around the world get healthy, fit and lean without spending hours in a gym and without unrealistic diets. If you're interested on transforming your body from the inside, out… quickly, naturally, and safely – no matter what your age or fitness level – find out more in this free video.
i. https://www.getinshapeforwomen.com/blog/hiit-boosts-your-metabolic-rate-for-hours-after-the-workout/
ii. https://www.getinshapeforwomen.com/blog/hiit-boosts-your-metabolic-rate-for-hours-after-the-workout/
iii. https://greatist.com/fitness/afterburn-effect-keep-burning-calories-after-workout#1
iv. https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/04/27/1-minute-of-all-out-exercise-may-equal-45-minutes-of-moderate-exertion/?mtrref=www.google.com&gwh=C320BA71C5D347C2D850283DA3D9D1D0&gwt=pay&assetType=REGIWALL
v. https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a19994259/metabolism-boosting-exercises/
vi. https://foreverfitscience.com/sprinting/boost-your-metabolism-with-sprint-intervals/