USE IT:TECHNICAL TRAINING
- QUALITY OVER QUANTITY:have a
clear goal and orientate your training
toward achieving it. Is it to build
muscle or just maintain muscle? To
lose fat or to build a particular body
part? The training protocols will differ
depending. Overtraining can lead to
both injury and excess stress hormone
cortisol, which can be detrimental to
fat loss. - PLAN TO SUCCEED:the best
trainers ask their clients a host of
questions for a reason – they need
to understand how to fit the copious
amounts of training into their lifestyle,
especially when bikini modelling is a
hobby rather than a job. Work out how
and where you can fit your training in,
write it down and stick to it. - TRAIN WITH INTENSITY:on
your planned ‘hard’ days, train hard.
Whether it be your weights or high-
intensity cardio sessions, it should be
difficult to finish those last two reps or
final sprint.
4. PRACTISE GOOD FORM: the pros
rely on good form to avoid injury and
create all-important symmetry in their
physique. If you are slouching in your
squat, drop the load slightly and up
the reps. “Teaching or re-teaching your
body the correct movements takes
lots of reps, but soon you’ll be looking
great and bringing the weights back
up,” says Tramontana. “Hitting PBs
should never sacrifice form. Although a
little form cheat can be accepted in the
later stages of a set, as it’s this stimulus
that may lead to an increase in ability
next workout.”
5. TRY FASTED CARDIO:depending
on your body type and goals,
experiment with empty-stomach
low-intensity cardio, such as walking,
for added fat burn. One small study
published in the British Journal of
Nutrition found that individuals who
performed a fasted moderate treadmill
slog burnt 20 per cent more fat than
their breakfast-fed counterparts.
working at sub-par. By the end of the eight weeks,
these walks became my therapy – a time to think
about the day to come and to connect with nature.
Given my muscle percentages were already
relatively high, my weight sessions were cut back
to just two half-hour sessions per week – not to say
I didn’t work hard! I was pushed to my absolute
limits, often failing on the last two reps of the set.
I also learnt the importance of good technique in
creating muscles that look good and to correct any
imbalances. For example, by turning my foot slightly
outward during static lunges, Tramontana was able
to start targeting my vastus medialis quadriceps
(VMO), helping to stabilise my knee and balance out
the movement being dominated by my already well-
developed quad. It’s the little things.