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Tag: strength training

Protein fuels muscle growth.

Just the other day, a client told me that her young grandson was getting too heavy for her to carry.  Looking ahead, she is concerned about her ability to keep up with him as he continues to grow.

She is like most people I train at 20 Minutes to Fitness. Most are here because they just want to be a little stronger or to get relief from some pain they are experiencing.

If you can relate, I have four words for you to remember:  PROTEIN FUELS MUSCLE GROWTH        .

Strength training is what we at 20 Minutes to Fitness are all about, and so that is what we focus on when we work with our clients. But to build muscle, protein is also a big deal. A huge deal, in fact. So are amino acids.

 What is protein?

Proteins are large, complex molecules made up of amino acids. These molecules play a crucial role in many biological processes, including building and repairing tissues. Yes, proteins are the building blocks of muscles, bones, skin, and other tissues. They help repair damaged cells and tissues, promoting their growth and maintenance.

What does that have to do with strength training?

It may sound counterintuitive, but you must break muscle down to build it back up stronger.  That’s what happens at 20 Minutes to Fitness. When a muscle gets physically worked, muscle fibers experience tiny injuries known as microtears.

In response to this stress, the body initiates a series of physiological processes that lead to muscle repair, growth, and adaptation. That includes sending good nutrition and blood to the area to heal. That is how you build muscle.

The process of repairing and adapting to microtears to increase muscle mass is called hypertrophy. It takes time to achieve hypertrophy.  That is why we recommend training only once, or perhaps twice a week at 20 Minutes to Fitness.  Ensuring adequate rest between workouts is critical to your body’s muscle repair process.

How can I change my eating habits to improve the results I get from my work out?

Your eating habits can have a direct impact on the success of your workout.  Here’s what you need to know:

  • Protein is essential. People who engage in strength training require more protein than those who are minimally active. Resistance training increases protein turnover, so it’s important to consume enough protein to provide a sufficient pool of amino acids for muscle repair and growth.
  • How much? Protein intake should account for 10 to 35% of daily calories, according to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. That’s 50 to 175 grams per day for someone who consumes 2000 calories daily.
  • What about amino acids? There are 20 different amino acids that combine to form proteins, nine of which your body cannot synthesize. You can only obtain these amino acids through your diet.
  • Can I take supplements? Amino acid supplements are rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream and can reduce the breakdown of muscle protein breakdown. However, they should be viewed as supplements to, not a replacement for, a healthy and well-rounded nutrition plan focused on whole foods. When choosing protein sources or supplements, the  bioavailability of amino acids, that is, how efficiently they are absorbed and utilized by the body, is an important consideration.
  • What to eat. A balanced diet that includes a variety of animal- and plant-based proteins, possibly supplemented with amino acids, can support strength training goals and promote lean muscle mass.

The bottom line

Protein supports muscle repair, growth and recovery. A balanced diet rich in protein is essential to improve physical strength and conditioning.

Protein fuels muscle growth.

Protein fuels muscle growth.

Contributed by:  Micah Fields, 20 Minutes to Fitness, Lakewood Ranch, FL

Resolve to stop exercising in 2024

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You read that headline right. I’m here to tell you that 2023 can be the year you resolve, once and for all, to stop exercising. That’s because “exercise” – or at least what most people think of when they hear the word “exercise” is a chore.

Let me explain. Exercise is something many people don’t enjoy. Exercise takes time – at least three to six hours a week. It is tedious. It requires you to put on work-out clothes and go to places where you are forced to sweat in front of people you don’t know – or worse, people you DO know. And when you’re exercising, you’re never sure if you’re doing it correctly or safely.

But because they know it’s “good for them,” many people resolve to exercise on January 1 each year. A month later, when they’re tired, or busy, or haven’t seen the results they hoped for, they quit.

The truth is, most of us don’t really want to exercise as much as we want the benefits that exercise delivers:  We want to be strong and physically fit. We want to slow the aging process and lower our risk of disease. We want a good self-image.

What we really want, in other words, is MUSCLE

Doctors now believe that, next to quitting smoking, the single most important thing an adult can do to live a longer, healthier, pain-free life is to build their strength.

Muscle, it turns out, is the body’s master switch, the gatekeeper for long-term health. The good news is, you can build muscle without exercising – at least in the traditional sense. A scientifically based strength-building method known as slow cadence weight training makes it possible to achieve in one 20-minute session what might otherwise require three hours or more in the gym a week.

The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness reports that slow cadence training results in a 50 percent greater strength gain than conventional weightlifting. It’s proven to build muscle better than aerobics, jogging, walking, biking and other traditional forms of exercise. In St. Louis, Sarasota and Tampa, this form of strength building is available at 20 Minutes to Fitness, a medically based center for people of all ages and fitness levels.

Build strength in just 20 minutes, just once a week

Depending on which studio you visit, you could train with a physical therapist or physical therapy assistant, an exercise physiologist or an experienced/certified personal coach. 20 Minutes to Fitness uses top-of-the-line MedX physical therapy equipment and safe, scientifically based training methods. There is no sweating, no workout clothes and no competition with the people who go to gyms to show off their physiques. And, again, all it takes is ONE 20-minute session a week. Your own trainer stays with you from start to finish.

When making your New Year’s Resolutions for 2024, don’t resolve to exercise. Resolve to get fit the smart way instead.

Contributed by Casey Schulte, P.T.  Casey is a physical therapist and general manager for 20 Minutes to Fitness in St. Louis.

20 years of 20 Minutes to Fitness!

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When Paul and Laura Miller first read in Newsweek about a 20-minute, once-a-week fitness regimen, they were skeptical.

The 2001 article, which described a safe way to lift weight in super-slow motion, seemed too good to be true.

But University of Florida Medical School research found the regimen improved strength, bone density and overall functionality in people of all ages and fitness levels. Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes was a fan. So was Barbara Walters. Both trained at InForm Fitness, a New York City studio founded by fitness guru Adam Zickerman.

“For 20 minutes, I can do anything”

“I hate to exercise,” Walters admitted on The View, after demonstrating the techniques to viewers in 2002. “But for 20 minutes, I can do anything.”

Intrigued, the Millers traveled to New York to experience the workout firsthand. Soon they were hooked.

Later that year, they opened 20 Minutes to Fitness in Clayton. It was the first studio of its kind in the St. Louis area. Staffed by physical therapists and other professionals, it offered a safe, efficient way to build muscle.

Because the workout takes just 20 minutes, it also freed clients to spend the remaining 10,060 minutes in their week doing anything OTHER than think about exercise.

Early converts included Dick Smothers and pro and amateur golfers

Betty Cuniberti, a former Post-Dispatch columnist and breast cancer-survivor, was an early convert. Writing about her experience, she effused over the workout’s many benefits, concluding, “I never dreamed at age 55, I’d hit a golf ball so far or wear a skirt so short.”

KMOX radio’s Charlie Brennan has trained at 20 Minutes to Fitness since 2006 because “20 minutes, once a week is something I can stick with. Plus, it has the added benefit of working great.” Pro golfer Jay Delsing credits the workout with helping him build the strength needed to rejoin the PGA Champions tour after back surgery.

20 Minutes to Fitness today has locations in Chesterfield and Clayton, along with Tampa and Sarasota, Florida, where Dick Smothers of Smothers Brothers-fame trained, claiming the workout helped him get in “THE BEST SHAPE OF (HIS) LIFE.”

Builds bone density, improves your golf game

Since its founding, 20 Minutes to Fitness has trained countless doctors. Other clients include a former Olympic ice dancer, high school football players, grandmothers seeking to build bone density, busy corporate executives, avid cyclists, father-daughter duos and thousands of ordinary people just trying to live their fittest and best lives.

All say they appreciate the one-on-one, by-appointment-only training. They like that it requires no memberships or long-term commitments. Most importantly, they love the results.

As 20 Minutes to Fitness celebrates its 20th year, the Millers, general manager Casey Breslin, PT, and their staff still meet people who are skeptical of a 20-minute, once-a-week workout. They understand. They suggest you do the same thing they did.  Try it.

Your first workout, along with a health screening and consultation, is free.


You can’t REALLY get fit by training just 20 minutes, once-a-week, can you?

We’ve been asked that questions hundreds of times over the years — 15 to be exact. And our answer is always the same.  Yes, it IS possible to build strength and get fit by training at 20 Minutes to Fitness  just 20 minutes a week. Study after study has demonstrated the effectiveness of our medically based training method, which involves taking each major muscle group to failure while  using safe MedX physical therapy equipment.

But, if you STILL don’t believe us, here is yet another study that backs us up.  You can find it in the New York Times, or read it here:

From the article:

Here’s some good news for anyone who does not have the time or inclination to linger in the gym and grunt through repeated, hourslong sets of various weight-training exercises in order to build muscular strength.

An inspiring new study of how much — or little — weight training is needed to improve muscles’ strength and size finds that we may be able to gain almost the same muscular benefits with a single, brief set of each exercise.

The catch is, that set has to be draining.

Read the rest here.

Track your progress with our Styku Body Scanner

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St. Louis area clients:  have you tried  the Styku Body Scanner in our Clayton studio yet? It’s a great, reliable way to pinpoint exactly where you’re losing inches and replacing body fat with lean muscle mass, and more.

How the Styku Body Scanner Works

A powerful camera creates a 3D image of your body that can be rotated and viewed from any angle.

Completing a body scan is quick and easy. You’ll be asked to stand on an automatic turntable in front of the scanner. The turntable will rotate 360 degrees while the scanner’s powerful 3D camera  creates an accurate 3D model of your body. The entirely non-invasive process takes less than a minute to complete.

Working with a trained 20 Minutes to Fitness professional, you will immediately review a 3D model of your body on a computer screen. A virtual measuring tape will show your measurements anywhere on the body. Body fat composition and other metrics will also be visually displayed.

Your first scan sets your benchmark. Subsequent scans allow you to monitor the changes in your shape and dimensions as your body responds to your fitness and nutritional regimen. You’ll be able to track your loss of inches over time; by comparing overlapping sections of your body from scan to scan, you can see for yourself exactly how and where your body is changing.

Try it! 20 Minutes to Fitness clients who purchase fitness packages can exchange individual fitness sessions for 30-minute body scan sessions. Individual and bundled pricing is also available.

To learn more or schedule a Styku session, call us in Clayton at 314-863-7836.

St. Louis Magazine reporter Jeannette Cooperman visited 20 Minutes to Fitness’ studio in Clayton and tried about our 20-minute, once-a-week strength training workout herself.  Then she wrote an article about what she experienced.

You can read it all here. Or here. Or here.  It’s all the same. We just don’t want you to miss it!

Worried about osteoporosis? Then you should read what 20 Minutes to Fitness client Dorothy Menetre has to say!

I came to 20 Minutes to Fitness because I was bored with the routine of a “regular” gym. It had become monotonous, and I was totally “burned out.”

I enjoy the fact that I can now do 20 minutes, once a week, and I am finished. The benefit I was not expecting is that a recent bone density scan showed a slight improvement in my bone density over the past two years. That is really exciting for me, and it will keep me returning for my 20 minutes.

Thanks very much, 20 Minutes to Fitness!

Dorothy Menetre
St. Louis, Missouri

New Tampa Studio Now Open!

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Please join us in welcoming  the newest member of the 20 Minutes to Fitness family: our shiny, brand new studio in Tampa!

Located in Carrollwood, Florida — just north of Tampa — our newest studio offers the same great workout and services available to you in our Sarasota and St. Louis locations.  Once you see it, you’ll never guess that our studio once housed a restaurant.

Whether you’re interested in trying our workout for the first time or just happen to be in the neighborhood, please stop in and say hello! Tell them the Blog sent you!

You’ll find the studio at  11610 N. Dale Mabry Hwy.  You can make an appointment by contacting the studio at Carrollwood@20minutestofitness.com or 813.664.8888.

“I’ve been training with Darrell at 20 Minutes to Fitness for almost a year and a half, and I love it.  He tracks my progress and adjust my workouts to keep me safe and challenged.  He encourages me and helps me push myself to work harder.  I know I’m getting fitter by the things (outside of my workouts!) that I’m able to do with a lot less effort.  Also my clothes fit better!! Working out at 20 Minutes to Fitness has really helped me to stay motivated with my other activities too.”

Connie Palmer
Trains at 20 Minutes to Fitness Clayton, MO