Tips

It may seem counterintuitive but waking up at 5:15AM, being at camp at 5:30AM and gettin’ my workout done by 7AM actually gives me more energy for the day. I’ve started thinking of boot camp as the pre-party to the rest of my day. And fools don’t even bring that “you’re a morning person, I’m not” garbage to me because if you had told the JoJo of yesteryear that I would be getting up early for years she, nor her family, would have believed you. In fact, there’s a family story of me in grade 4 grumpily getting out of bed after my mom had been calling me to do so many times-my brother was already dressed and eating breakfast-and thinking she couldn’t see me I gave her the finger. Now the reason this is a family story is OF COURSE she saw me and I immediately locked myself in the bathroom with the fear of God in my little soul that I would never live to see another day. So no, I wouldn’t classify myself as having always been a morning lark. How did I go from a smarmy sailor mouthed little girl into the enthusiastic lady you see at 5:45AM? Experience.

After my first month of boot camp, I was all-in on the early rising. Getting my workout on early gets me focused for the day and makes me more patient. It’s like working out before the rest of my day starts sets my heartbeat to a slower pace allowing me to observe and take my time. I feel like everyone else is trying to catch up, but when you’ve started before they’ve gotten up you’re always ahead of the game. Plus, there’s science to back up the awesomeness of the early am workout. There’s no arguing science.

Also, the world is mine from 5-7AM. Really, every street is clear, all four way stops are one way-my way, baby. I get to witness the start of Atlanta’s day as the sun rises over our last stretches. It’s this precious little time that’s mine to wake up slow.

It wasn’t easy those first few weeks. When you’re just starting getting up early it’s a mind game and you kind of have to treat yourself like a 5 year old: ”I know you don’t feel tired yet, but it’s 10:00PM and you have to go to bed.” And you also have to suck it up a little and force it the first week. Set yourself up for success putting an index card with your goal next the the alarm clock or put your alarm away from your bed in your bathroom. Or if you really have a hard time use the Sleep if U Can app-it makes you take a picture of something in your house before it will stop ringing. Whatever it takes commit to it so you’ll have no reason not to get your workout in and stick to your fitness goals. After a while you’ll retract that middle finger and turn it into a high five.

Source: Decatur – Tips

If you have been dying to improve your twerking skills OR just want to learn how to “sweep the floor with it” you’ll need to have a good squat and y”all know I love a squat. Like, a lot. It’s so important that you’re doing them RIGHT! See the video below of me and Iron Man Instructor Raph Franze instructing you how to do a squat as well as how to correct some common errors.

as an aside, I like that this freeze frame looks like I’m grabbin’ Raph!
Set yo self up for success:

• Stance is shoulder width.
• Neutral Spine
• Head is Neutral, Gaze forward
• Toes slightly turned out – room for the hips to drop down

Points of Performance:

1. Lumbar Curve. This is where you have that tramp stamp I mentioned. This should be engaged (flexed) for the duration of the movement.

2. Weight in Heels. If you have challenges doing this do the wall trick towards the end of the video.

3. Below Parallel at the bottom of the squat.

4. Knees Track Over the Toes throughout the entire movement..

5. Line of Action- how you move; butt goes back first (pop it like you’re twerkin’) chest is up-raising the arms helps you do this.

Source: Decatur – Tips

Air squats are my go to exercise. I love them. Now, I don’t always love doing them but I love the results. If you know me you may just write it off as something to do with my love affair with my booty (which is still going strong and I say prayers of thanks to JLo on the regs for giving the boo-tay the mainstream acceptance and glorification it deserves). As much as I love how squats shape and sculpt the generous portion of love given to my backside (love=muscle + some fat to make it soft) it’s more than that.

Squats make my knees feel better. WHAT!??! You say? But JoJo, doing squats are bad for knees. You are wrong. But it’s not really your fault, you’ve probably been doing them wrong for a long time and perhaps some misguided professional has directed you to do them wrong and it’s caused issues in your punkin’ knees. Bad squats are bad for your knees. Good squats strengthen the tendons and muscles that balance and help your knees. To do a good squat you need to go deep enough that your hip crease goes below parallel to your knees. Yes, that deep. Here’s some science about it: Powerlifters squatting double their body weight, to depths of 130 degrees of knee flexion, have been shown in studies to have more stable knee joints than individuals who do not squat. In fact, separate studies have revealed that the knees of those who regularly squat deep are more stable than distance runners and basketball players. In one study of female volleyball players, researchers concluded that there was no statistically significant increase in peak forces at the knee when squatting to depths of 70, 90, and 110 degrees of knee flexion. And another study showed that forces on the ACL are reduced as the knee is flexed beyond 60 degrees, and forces on the PCL are reduced as the knee flexes past 120 degrees. Still further studies show that powerlifters who are squatting over twice their body weight experience shearing forces on the knee that approximate only 25% of the maximal tensile strength of the ACL, and 50% of the maximum strength of the PCL. When you go below parallel the force moves from being concentrated in your quads (front leg muscles) and your knee joint to sharing the load (ahem, you) with your hamstrings (muscles on back of legs) and glutes.

Squats strengthen and protect my hip joints or as I like to say “Squat for independence!” Squatting is something you do all the time. Every time you go to the bathroom you have to do a squat to get down. If you’ve been doing some good squatting you don’t need to put your hand on the sink to help you up. You’re strong enough to do it yourself. You’re able to go to the bathroom independently. Don’t take it for granted. A lot of people can’t and when it gets to that point you don’t get to live alone anymore, or with your fam. They love you but they ain’t willing to help with that. And, really, do you want them to have to? Hells no. You a grown ass person, you can take care of it but you have to stay strong to do it. Never stop squatting.

Finally, they make me bootylicious. Or more bootylicious. I’m lucky, my genetics have given me the advantage of being muscular and somehow these same genes have given me a great ass. Seriously, my family doesn’t know where it came from because most of them don’t have anything and lots of them are practically concave. Squats make your tuckus high and tight. Squats help make your booty round like it’s a pair of cupcakes stuck on top of your legs. Mmmmmm cupcakes.

And because I love this and you probably haven’t heard it:

The first 3 people who come up to me and sing “I wanna tap it like a phone” gets a prize.

Source: Decatur – Tips

I read a study a few years ago about how reading different types of magazine effects one’s self esteem. It got me thinking and brought my attention to what the underlying message was in what I was seeing & reading. Enjoy your Cosmo, Glamour, Women’s Health but watch this video for a helpful rating system to evaluate articles. Or you may want to watch just because it will make you chuckle.

Source: Decatur – Tips