Labrada’s Lean Body 12 Week Trainer

If you read my previous post, I just came off a 21 day partial fast. While I enjoyed a much more relaxed pace of life, I was excited last week to set some new fitness goals. I found an awesome gym routine on bodybuilding.com:

It’s Lee Labrada’s Lean Body 12 Week Daily Trainer.

 What I love about the Lean Body 12 Week Trainer:

1. The workouts don’t take long (okay, they don’t take long compared to what I was doing at the gym before my partial fast). This morning I was in and out of the gym in less than 1.5 hours. That may seem like a long time, but that included dropping my son off and picking him up at the gym daycare, getting ready in the locker room, bathroom breaks, warm-up, workout, and static stretching at the end of my workout… oh, and running into a friend I haven’t seen in ages and chatting while I stretched (that added like 10 minutes). Phew! Normally I am rushed to get everything in under 2 hours. Today was a relaxed day with plenty of time for breaks in between exercises, and not rushing through my stretching just to make sure I got it in. The lifting alone takes only about 30-45 minutes.

2. There is something to do every day! I know, I know, I just got done saying I wanted to workout less…BUT, I am! I tweaked the program so I have Sunday off (I never work out on a Sunday). I can also take another day off during the week if I want, by combining my workout days. The workouts are short enough to combine days. I know the idea of Labrada’s plan is to do something every day, but I enjoy life too much to spend each and every day in the gym.

3. It calls for cardio intervals. I love intervals when doing cardio. Doing intervals burns more fat than other cardio at a steady pace. Intervals stimulate your metabolism and burn more fat in a shorter period of time than doing lower intensity cardio for a longer time period. I find intervals to be less boring as well.

4. It only calls for 4 days of cardio a week. While cardio is important, weight training increases your metabolic rate in a way cardio alone can not.

5. I can do a lot of the workouts at home or outside. There are days that are just cardio (so I can use my elliptical, or treadmill in the basement, or go for a run outside-okay, that last option probably wont happen this winter, but I like that it’s an option). Also, some of the lifting can be done with my free weights in the basement as well.

6. Lee Labrada has video which walks you through the workout each and every day! You get to see exactly how to do each exercise. This is great for the newbie, and a nice reminder even for the experts (reminder of correct form and speed).

What I don’t love about the Program:

1. All the supplements Labrada suggests using. I know many bodybuilders rely on a vast array of supplements to get the physique they want, but I am just not into loading up on supplements. Fat burners? They just aren’t for me. I don’t even love the idea of having powder shakes all the time. I much rather eat my nutrition when I can. While food isn’t the same today as it once was (it has lost a lot of the nutritional content through modern day agricultural practices), I still try to get the majority of my nutrients from food. I do take some supplements (which you can read more about here). I just don’t personally like the idea of ingesting tons of synthetically made pills or mixing drinks as meal replacements. But that’s just me. I know that not everyone has the time to make mini meals throughout the day, or make prep meals for the week. Heck, I don’t always have the time. I just chose to ignore the supplement advice Labrada gives.

2. The meal plan and recipes. Labrada is pretty flexable with what you can eat on the plan so the way I eat “fits” but I am not a fan of some of the recommendations he gives. This has more to do with my love for “clean” food and full fat foods. Some of his recommendations just don’t mesh with my current ideal eating. BUT, like I said before the plan is flexible so this is hardly a complaint.

Just one example of this: The recipe he suggests for Yam Muffins calls for lots of egg whites. I understand the idea behind this (more egg whites means more protein with lower calorie/fat intake) but I personally would much rather enjoy the whole egg and get the full nutrients from such a great protein source. It also calls for Molasses (which is fine but I prefer sweeteners such as honey or dates and on occasion some Stevia). The recipe also calls for vegetable oil which I avoid. I would just replace this with coconut oil. So, you see, they are minor differences in food preferences which I can easily tweak.

Oh, AND he approves diet soda. aaahhh!

Here is an article with some reasons I avoid diet soda and haven’t touched the stuff since college (when I had quite the diet soda addiction). I understand that this is something some people enjoy in moderation so I’m not judging here… just thought it was crazy for a bodybuilder to suggest it as part of a workout diet.

So there you have it! I am doing my own thing nutritionally but this is the lifting plan I am following currently, and I love it so far.

Getting great results with less time in the gym means more time with the ones I love!

What are you all doing these days to stay fit? Do you follow a plan at home or when you hit the gym or do you just play it by ear? What works for you?

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