Sara’s Workout Rules

Before you start exercising with me, it's important you understand my exercise philosophy and adhere to "the rules".

Guard Your Metabolic Health!

Don’t risk metabolic damage. I strongly recommend you read my post, “Sara’s Exercise Philosophy“.

Having suffered and recovered from metabolic slowdown, I'm very protective of my metabolism. No one should ever have to endure this horrid metabolic nightmare. This is why I insist you read my policies. My goal is to keep your metabolism humming along full speed ahead.

Sara's Approach:

• Work out in the morning. I always train FASTED in the morning (note: I'm an Intermittent Faster). If I don’t, my motivation is non-existant after a long workday and I’ll talk myself out of training. Furthermore, you’ll reap the fat-burning benefits of your workout for the rest of the day! And your body will receive an entire day’s worth of nutrients to help it repair!
• Warm-up and cool-down (I do 5-10 minutes of light cardio activity (eg. incline walking, jogging on the spot, jump rope) immediately before and after my workout. Going from zero to hero is a surefire way to get injured.
• Stay hydrated with water.
  • I like to add BCAAs . Click here to read why.
• Minimize injury! Don’t go from “zero to hero”. If you are a beginner, then stick to the modification exercises I provide you. If you need to rest or grab a drink, then listen to your body. Never feel obliged to do exactly what I’m doing.
• Work smarter, not harder, by combining your strength training and cardio session into one short but intense muscle-building and fat-blasting workout.
  • Yes ladies, I said strength training. Why? Because you want to build muscle because muscle burns calories!
  • Lift the maximum amount of weight possible without sacrificing form. You do not want to risk injury because your ego made you pick up a heavier weight than you know you can manage. Start light and gradually work your way up to heavier weights over time.
• Jump rope as fast as you can without sacrificing your form. If you sacrifice your form, you put yourself at risk for injury. Between the tortoise and the hare, the tortoise always wins.
  • Before you pick up a jump rope, you must first learn:
    •  How to adjust your jump rope. Click here to learn how to determine your correct jump rope length.
    • How to jump with Buddy Lee’s correct jump rope technique: This is explained in my article published on Bodybuilding.com.
    • Practice is the key to developing endurance and proficiency, and will enable you to reap the most benefits from jump rope training.

Get My Jump Rope here

• LESS IS MORE! Do not think that exercising for hours will yield faster results. In fact, the opposite is true. Click here to learn why you should keep your workouts short, but intense.
• Pay attention to the manner in which you lift and lower your weights/equipment to and from the floor between exercises. Incorrect lifting/lowering technique can lead to back injury. Lift and lower using your knees. Keep your back straight. Watch my Video Demonstration.
• If you don’t have a plush carpet or interlocking cushioned floor mats, then use a mat under your tail bone, knees and back when exercising on the floor.
• Wrap up your session with stretching and foam rolling (for injury prevention!). This is the foam roller that I like to use (because it’s a travel size and it has “teeth” that help erode my trigger points).
  • Access my Foam Rolling Real Time Video here.
  • Access my Stretching Real Time Video here.
• Consult with your MD before embarking on any exercise/diet/supplementation program.
• If you want to see changes in your physique, then you will have to exercise at 95-100% of your maximum capacity (i.e. “go all out”, “go as fast as you can”, “lift as heavy as you safely can”). I think this is a fair compromise considering it’s only for 10 to 20-minutes out of your entire day.
• Resistance and interval training are only part of the fat-burning equation. Diet is number one.
  • Check out my healthy recipes to see what I eat.
  • Check out my Intermittent Fasting Protocols.

Drink your BCAAs!

Stay hydrated with water.

• I like to add BCAAs. This is especially crucial because I train FASTED. Click here to read why.
• Note that both of these are suitable for fasted training (They will not break your fast).

Foam Roll & Stretch:

Wrap up your session with stretching and foam rolling (for injury prevention!). This is the foam roller that I like to use (because it’s a travel size and it has “teeth” that help erode my trigger points).

• Access my Foam Rolling Real Time Video here.

• Access my Stretching Real Time Video here.

• Access my Injury Prevention Tips here.