Author: Kristy Donathan Bryant

Vitamins and minerals are the two substances known as micronutrients which come from macronutrients which include proteins, carbohydrates and fats. We get these essential nutrients from fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, dairy foods and meats-the basic food groups that comprise our diet. There has been a misconception to obtaining all the vitamins and nutrients that your body needs solely through diet. You don’t need to obtain all your vitamins and nutrients just through supplements but they compliment each other well. Below is a table to list the vitamins and minerals and it explains its functions and sources. VITAMINS…

Your metabolism can be affected by genetics and age but for the most part it is affected by what we do to it. Did you know you can slow down or speed up your metabolism? Before I get into that I would like to explain what metabolism is. Metabolism is the process in which your body breaks down food and uses it as energy. This gives you the ability to function and do all the things that your body is meant to do. If you have a fast metabolism your body stores less body fat. In return if you have…

Many people are confused about how many sets and repetitions you are supposed to do. Most people do 3 sets x 10 repetitions. This is okay if you have the weight and rest in between the repetitions correct. The load and repetition assignments are based on your specific training goals. For Muscular Endurance (toning up muscle) you would want lighter weight. This would be 67% of Max and your repetitions would be 12. For Hypertrophy (Building muscle) you would want a little heavier weight. This would be 67-85% of Max and your repetitions would be 6-12. For Strength you would…

Drop sets are a great tool to incorporate into your strength training routine. For one it is a great way to change up an existing exercise routine that has hit a plateau. But mainly it is a great way to work on muscle endurance and strength. Starting with heavier weight with less reps and going to lighter weight to more reps all in one set is the basics of a drop set. This also gives you a good cardiovascular workout throughout all the reps because it gets your heart rate up. So you are basically getting an interval cardiovascular workout…

If you took a poll of why most people workout on cardio equipment, 90% or more will tell you they want to lose weight or tone up (which you have to lose fat to tone up). So out of those people how many to you think heart rate train? Not many, some know what their heart rate is, but don’t know where it should really be. So that is not helping them achieve their fat loss goal in the most efficient way possible. If I asked you if you wanted to lose 400 fat calories out of 600 calories burned…

Kristy Donathan Bryant has been a fitness professional for over 12 years. She has been an athlete all her life from gymnastics to playing college basketball. Kristy and her husband currently own their own fitness boot camp company that offers boot camp classes and 3 day fitness retreats for men and women of all fitness levels. Their company is Fitness Boot Camp LLC. The boot camp classes are a minimum of 8 weeks and the fitness retreats are all inclusive. A percentage of their profits go to charity (inner city kids of Nashville, TN). Also they are hosting a first…