Remember “ A 28-Day Challenge For A Great Body” article posted on August 7, 2017? Well, this is a follow-up; sort of.
Before getting into the details, some important points.
Sarcopenia
Sarcopenia is the term used to describe the loss of skeletal muscle mass. It starts happening at the rate of 0.5-1.0 % every year after age 50.
Why?
Because the body is such an efficient machine, it discards “expensive”, calorie consuming, muscle tissue, in order to keep you alive during the next famine.
So, “use it, or lose it.” If you don’t use it (activity/exercise) the body gets rid of it, so that your fat stores will not be diminished, and you have a chance of surviving when you can’t feed yourself.
You’re probably saying, “what famine, in this day and age?” Remember that our genetic programming was fixed, during the days of our “hunter-gatherer” ancestors and hasn’t changed much since then.
Given this ancient genetic programming that we are stuck with (at lest 70,000 years old), maybe now you can understand why I keep saying, “don’t eat grains”. Agriculture was “invented” a mere 12,000 years ago.
Getting back to sarcopenia, if you don’t maintain your muscle mass by being active and exercising you keep “wasting away”. Dr. Arthur de Vany, claims that when you lose 40 % of your muscle mass, YOU DIE.
Altough his Ph.D. is in economics, like mine, he is very knowledgeable in health issues. I suggest that you read his book: The New Evolutionary Diet.
What is the biggest muscle in your body?
No, it’s not your tongue (I don’t know how that fallacy came about); it’s your Gluteus Maximus.
That is a perfect example of one’s gluts; butt muscles.
Since it is the biggest muscle in our body, it makes sense to prioritize exercising it, and why we suggest the following 30 day squat challenge.
The 30-day squat challenge
How to squat properly:
- Don’t curl or arch your back. Keep a flat back that is straight, to keep the weight in your legs and not in your spine. A curled back could lead to a slipped disk or a knee injury.
- Always aim to squat as low as possible; the best is below knee height.
- Don’t buckle your knees. It is very easy to overlook the position of your knees and put the pressure on the smaller muscles around your knees instead of your larger leg muscles. Push your knees outwards when squatting.
- Keep your weight in your heels, not in your toes, because weight on your heels pressures the larger muscles of the leg.
- Perform each exercise in a slow and controlled manner. Squeeze the muscles you are working; particularly your butt.
1st day: 10 squats
2nd day: 10 squats
3rd day: 12 squats
4th day: Rest
5th day: 15 squats
6th day: 15 squats
7th day: 17 squats
8th day: Rest
9th day: 20 squats
10th day: 20 squats
11th day: 22 squats
12th day: Rest
13th day: 25 squats
14th day: 25 squats
15th day: 27 squats
16th day: Rest
17th Day: 30 squats
18th day: 30 squats
19th day: 32 squats
20th day: Rest
21st day: 35 squats
22nd day: 40 squats
23rd day: 40 squats
24th day: Rest
25th day: 45 squats
26th day: 45 squats
27th day: 50 squats
28th day: 60 squats
29th day: 70 squats
30th day: 100 squats
Happy squatting my friends. See you next time