Before I get into any 'this time of year' stuff about thanks and gratitude and what not, let me just say that I strongly believe that feeling grateful for the things we have in our lives should be a year long endeavor. I don't like that we follow this idea that gratitude, family, love, support, community and all the rest is, or should be, emphasized around Thanksgiving and Christmas time. I believe those things should be practiced and valued all the time and it shouldn't be any different now or ever.
There, now that that's out of the way, let's talk about the things in life that we're grateful for. What are the things that you value in your life? As a fitness professional, I value my health overall. As an individual, I value the fact that I get to be in my clients' lives day in and day out. Yes, that may fall into the professional side of things, but it's more than that for me. My decision to begin my journey into fitness training and exercise is the best one I've made. Everyday I feel so lucky to be included in the lives of people that put their health at the top of the list and that I can help get them, and keep them healthy and strong.
I've learned so much in the last few years about myself, about us as humans and the human condition. Working with so many different people gives me a unique perspective, I think, on what health, fitness, exercise, and strength means. I think that the influence of media and society can very easily mar a person's idea of fitness but when you get down to it, all we really want is to be comfortable, to be happy, to be balanced. What that means is so different for each person. I'm constantly grateful to be able to help my clients find what that means for them. And, what they may not realize is that they are helping me to find what that means for me.
So, Thank You and let's keep moving into another healthy and happy year!
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Friday, July 5, 2013
Form and Function
If you know me, then you know that I'm very particular about learning, practicing and achieving proper form when strength training. I'm a bit obsessive about it, I know.
The more I learn about fitness and training and the human body, the more I realize and understand that my obsessiveness about using proper form is totally justified. While we may not always achieve perfection in our workouts, striving for it and working hard on it will only benefit our bodies for the long term.
One of my top priorities as a fitness trainer and coach is to help my clients learn how to use their bodies most effectively to maintain great physical health and strength for their lives. That will never happen if we train with dysfunctional movement patterns. Period.
It's so important to take all the time it may require to learn how to perform strength exercises correctly and to understand what you're doing. Our bodies are incredibly complex and truly amazing, we owe it to ourselves to respect them and do all we can to keep them moving well.
So, the next time you're at one of my classes, or I'm putting you through the ringer for one of your workouts and I remind you to keep your core engaged or keep your weight in your heels or lift your head up, pay attention. It's all for you!
The more I learn about fitness and training and the human body, the more I realize and understand that my obsessiveness about using proper form is totally justified. While we may not always achieve perfection in our workouts, striving for it and working hard on it will only benefit our bodies for the long term.
One of my top priorities as a fitness trainer and coach is to help my clients learn how to use their bodies most effectively to maintain great physical health and strength for their lives. That will never happen if we train with dysfunctional movement patterns. Period.
It's so important to take all the time it may require to learn how to perform strength exercises correctly and to understand what you're doing. Our bodies are incredibly complex and truly amazing, we owe it to ourselves to respect them and do all we can to keep them moving well.
So, the next time you're at one of my classes, or I'm putting you through the ringer for one of your workouts and I remind you to keep your core engaged or keep your weight in your heels or lift your head up, pay attention. It's all for you!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Training with Purpose!
For those of us that enjoy exercising and working out, it can often times be a challenge to know what to do when we get to the gym. Working with a trainer to get some tips and help is the best way to go. But, what happens if your trainer just runs you through some boring old routine, where's the fun in that? Lately there's a lot of talk about functional training, movement training, and dynamic training. And training with a purpose. Not necessarily a goal, but a purpose.
Ask your trainer 'what's the purpose of that exercise?' or 'what good will this do me 5 years from now?'. Hopefully the answer you get is better than 'you'll get big muscles' or 'you'll look really good'. The way I see it, the whole reason to exercise is to be able to get through life with ease and health. The bonuses are all the other things we get from exercise--strong bones, a healthy heart, joint flexibility, strong muscles, less stress and more energy. So, why wouldn't you train all aspects of your body? Not just to look good, but to actually BE good.
That's where functional training comes into play. You can get the looks and all the rest without getting too repetitive or bored in the weight room. These days there are lots of tools and equipment that aide, assist or add resistance to movement based training. Tools like BOSU balls that add the element of instability to help with joint stabilization and balance control.
ups, triceps dips, shoulder presses, lunges, core and abs exercises. The versatility of these tools add a dimension to training unlike traditional weights. Elements of unpredictable loads (Sandbags) or instability (TRX, BOSU) make us have to react in order to control the movements.
Ask your trainer 'what's the purpose of that exercise?' or 'what good will this do me 5 years from now?'. Hopefully the answer you get is better than 'you'll get big muscles' or 'you'll look really good'. The way I see it, the whole reason to exercise is to be able to get through life with ease and health. The bonuses are all the other things we get from exercise--strong bones, a healthy heart, joint flexibility, strong muscles, less stress and more energy. So, why wouldn't you train all aspects of your body? Not just to look good, but to actually BE good.
That's where functional training comes into play. You can get the looks and all the rest without getting too repetitive or bored in the weight room. These days there are lots of tools and equipment that aide, assist or add resistance to movement based training. Tools like BOSU balls that add the element of instability to help with joint stabilization and balance control.
Or Equalizer bars, that can be used for just about anything from stretching to strength exercises like push
ups, triceps dips, shoulder presses, lunges, core and abs exercises. The versatility of these tools add a dimension to training unlike traditional weights. Elements of unpredictable loads (Sandbags) or instability (TRX, BOSU) make us have to react in order to control the movements.
Along with other tools like the TRX suspension trainer, ViPR, and Ultimate Sandbags there is really no limit to the variety of exercises that can be done to achieve maximum results in all areas of fitness.
And though there are all these fun tools to play with while working out, the best tool overall is the most basic, your own body. Body weight training is really the best way to achieve function. Taking the time to work with your trainer to build the foundations like core strength, joint stability, control, balance, and coordination is key to being able to add on loads using these tools. Training dynamically by adding in running, jumping, agility drills and deceleration will also get you there and will help to increase your stamina and endurance.
When we add functional and movement based exercises into our workouts, we're teaching our bodies to act, react and respond correctly to all the things we encounter in our lives. A strong, well functioning body means an easier time picking up your kids or those bags of groceries. It means less knee or back pain from walking or sitting at your desk. So, train with a purpose and let that purpose be a long, healthy, active, youthful life!
Movement. Mindset. Mastery
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Healthy Living.........what does that mean?
Seriously? What does it mean to be healthy, to be fit, to eat right?
We hear these catch phrases all the time from seemingly everywhere, but what does it really mean to live and be healthy? The fact is, that it means many, many different things and manifests in many, many different ways. So, what's right? What trainer, author, doctor, coach, or nutritionist has the right solutions?
Actually, none of them do and all of them do.
There is no one thing, and I promise you if you go ahead and try to live by just one thing, you'll most likely end up less healthy in the end.
We just aren't that simple.
What I've discovered in myself and in my clients is that for the best long term health, which includes a good healthy well rounded diet, regular exercise and sufficient sleep, the right formula is not easy to figure out. It may take some mistakes and trying lots of different things before you figure out what works best for you. All the while trying not to forget that we are all very different and even the so-called professionals may not be handing down the best information for you and your body. So, what do you actually do?
Honestly, my answer to that is 'I don't know'. Lame, right? Maybe, but figuring out our own formulas has to be done by each one of us individually. So, we try to sift through all the information that's bombed on us daily and try to make sense of it. And, at the end of the day what really matters most is how you feel. If you eat and then feel gassy or bloated or overly tired, you're probably eating the wrong foods for you. If you don't get enough sleep or don't drink enough water and have to load up on caffeine during the day, well there's something wrong there too. If you live a sedentary life and wonder why your knees or back hurt or you have no energy to go out for a walk, your health will undoubtedly fail. The answers to these issues are not in a pill or in surgery or whatever other quick fix may be presented, the answers are in proper nutrition, exercise and proper rest and recovery.
For me, it's an on going experiment. I haven't found out my formula yet, but I have found a few answers.
My problem, with my body, has always been inflammation. A nagging ache in joints from overuse mostly and not enough time taken to let my body repair. And, with my diet, always wanting and going for sugary treats. The catch of course for me is that sugar is a big culprit for inflammation in the body among many other not so great things. So, I've been researching foods and trying to find foods that will naturally help my body fight the inflammation, keep me full and satisfied and soothe my sweet tooth. So far, the results are OK, but my will power against sweets is still lacking.
Besides experimenting with all kinds of things to find your own formula, there are a few things that will and can set the scene that are actually good for everyone no matter what. And, they're totally doable and won't inconvenience you at all. These are those things:
1. Drink water. It's recommended to try for half your body weight in ounces every day.
2. Get sleep. Sleep time is when our body's repair and it's vital for a healthy life.
3. Exercise regularly. This can be as casual as a walk or as intense as a boot camp workout. As long as you get moving, you're good.
4. Eat food that makes you feel good. Your meals should be well balanced and should always include protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats.
There is a long list of items that we should avoid or should consume and I'm not going to get into all that now, those are the choices you'll need to make for yourself as you try to figure out your own formula. The journey is ongoing and things will constantly change as we do, but whether you're wanting to drop pounds or feel less stressed, making simple changes like the four listed above can help get you there.
Oh, and don't forget to have some fun. We may get older but that in no way means we have to stop playing.
We hear these catch phrases all the time from seemingly everywhere, but what does it really mean to live and be healthy? The fact is, that it means many, many different things and manifests in many, many different ways. So, what's right? What trainer, author, doctor, coach, or nutritionist has the right solutions?
Actually, none of them do and all of them do.
There is no one thing, and I promise you if you go ahead and try to live by just one thing, you'll most likely end up less healthy in the end.
We just aren't that simple.
What I've discovered in myself and in my clients is that for the best long term health, which includes a good healthy well rounded diet, regular exercise and sufficient sleep, the right formula is not easy to figure out. It may take some mistakes and trying lots of different things before you figure out what works best for you. All the while trying not to forget that we are all very different and even the so-called professionals may not be handing down the best information for you and your body. So, what do you actually do?
Honestly, my answer to that is 'I don't know'. Lame, right? Maybe, but figuring out our own formulas has to be done by each one of us individually. So, we try to sift through all the information that's bombed on us daily and try to make sense of it. And, at the end of the day what really matters most is how you feel. If you eat and then feel gassy or bloated or overly tired, you're probably eating the wrong foods for you. If you don't get enough sleep or don't drink enough water and have to load up on caffeine during the day, well there's something wrong there too. If you live a sedentary life and wonder why your knees or back hurt or you have no energy to go out for a walk, your health will undoubtedly fail. The answers to these issues are not in a pill or in surgery or whatever other quick fix may be presented, the answers are in proper nutrition, exercise and proper rest and recovery.
For me, it's an on going experiment. I haven't found out my formula yet, but I have found a few answers.
My problem, with my body, has always been inflammation. A nagging ache in joints from overuse mostly and not enough time taken to let my body repair. And, with my diet, always wanting and going for sugary treats. The catch of course for me is that sugar is a big culprit for inflammation in the body among many other not so great things. So, I've been researching foods and trying to find foods that will naturally help my body fight the inflammation, keep me full and satisfied and soothe my sweet tooth. So far, the results are OK, but my will power against sweets is still lacking.
Besides experimenting with all kinds of things to find your own formula, there are a few things that will and can set the scene that are actually good for everyone no matter what. And, they're totally doable and won't inconvenience you at all. These are those things:
1. Drink water. It's recommended to try for half your body weight in ounces every day.
2. Get sleep. Sleep time is when our body's repair and it's vital for a healthy life.
3. Exercise regularly. This can be as casual as a walk or as intense as a boot camp workout. As long as you get moving, you're good.
4. Eat food that makes you feel good. Your meals should be well balanced and should always include protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats.
There is a long list of items that we should avoid or should consume and I'm not going to get into all that now, those are the choices you'll need to make for yourself as you try to figure out your own formula. The journey is ongoing and things will constantly change as we do, but whether you're wanting to drop pounds or feel less stressed, making simple changes like the four listed above can help get you there.
Oh, and don't forget to have some fun. We may get older but that in no way means we have to stop playing.
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