Getting busy

I know, I haven't written in a while but that's a good thing.  I'm too busy.

The personal training thing has really taken off and I am loving every minute of it!  Here's why I love it: my clients are making progress.  I had one client who couldn't do a push up to save her life when we first met and now she can do 10.  Another wanted to lose weight and not only did that but lost 6% bodyfat!  Another no longer has pain in her back and can play with her son.  The list goes on and on.

I'm purely the catalyst in this.  These women came to me with goals and my job is to provide them with the tools to achieve those goals.  They're doing the work.  They're making the changes.  They're incorporating fitness into their lives.  It's pretty awesome to watch.

So today I have just a few links to share, all from the NY Times.  Enjoy and as always, be well.

Knee Exercises - all of these are wonderful

Crazy looking Samurai Class - I think I'll pass on this one!

Keeping your brain fit as you age.

Some foods are just not ok to eat.  Sorry.

Consistency and Change

The title of this post is pretty simple.  The idea is that you should be consistent with your fitness and wellness program while at the same time changing it up often.

Most of us crave routine.  And that is fine but, over time, your body becomes conditioned to both your exercises and diet, halting your progress.  Over and over again I hear from clients how they don't understand why they're not losing weight or getting stronger because "I exercise 3 or 4 times a week and eat pretty well." My answer is always the same: change it up.  Some changes can be simple, others drastic.  The point is to make your body adjust to the new program by using new muscles and jump starting your metabolism.  Below are a just few suggestions.

1. Add an interval cardio workout to your program.  For example, go at 90% of maximum heart rate (MHR) for one minute then recover to 60% of MHR for a minute.  Repeat for a total of 20 minutes. Be sure to warm up for 5-10 minutes and cool down for 5-10 minutes.  This can be done on any machine or jogging outside.

2. Instead of cardio 3 - 4 times a week for 30-40 minutes, try cardio 4-5 times a week for 25-35 minutes. The goal is to increase the frequency of your workouts.  Ideally you want to be moving your body almost everyday!

3. Swap free weights for medicine balls or exercise bands or body weight.

4. Try an exercise class.  Zumba, Spinning, Body Pump, Pilates, yoga, whatever - you don't have to love it and do it every week but it can be fun to do a group class every once in a while.

5. Hire a trainer.  Now, I know this sounds like tooting my own horn but I have reason to!  A good trainer will take into consideration what you have been doing (or not doing) and make a program that will introduce you to new equipment and exercises.  It's like getting a few more tools in your belt.  Always a good thing.

6. Eat lunch for breakfast and breakfast for lunch.  Again, the idea is just to change it up and increase your awareness of the food your put in your body.  

7.  Add one more serving of veggies and fruit to your daily intake.

8. Drink more water!

9. Meditate at least once per week.  Give yourself permission to rest, breathe and recover.  Acknowledge your accomplishments and be proud of the changes you have made.

10. Go for a walk after dinner at least 3 times per week.  It doesn't have to be an intense walk, maybe just a stroll.  Enjoy the fresh air.  Feel  your body moving.  Be grateful that your body moves when you ask it to.

Try one of the above, or try them all.  Ask your friends what they are doing.  Check out exercises on the Mayo Clinic Website or Spark People.  Have fun trying new things.  But be consistent - that is, make sure that you are doing something on most if not all days of the week.

Be well.  Change is good.

Core Workout

I am teaching a group class today on postnatal core exercises though really anyone can benefit from this workout.  The class is being offered to raise money for The Valerie Fund, whose mission is to provide support for the comprehensive health care of children with cancer and blood disorders.  


The definition of "core" varies from source to source but I like to think of it as your entire torso or spine area, basically the center of your body to which your head, arms and legs connect.  So, this includes the upper back muscles that insert into the spine, the lower back, the abdominals and the hip flexors.  


Here they are:


Wood chops/reverse wood chops
Standing crunches
Side to side rotation 
Mountain climbers
Quadruped
Prone Cobra
Pelvic Tilts
Bridge Press
Dead bugs
Leg drops
Hip crossover
Plank
Side plank/modified side plank
Kegels


For more exercises, check out this list.


Be well.

Some new workout ideas

I was scanning through facebook the other day and came across an awesome video on Chris Johnson's page.  This is functional training taken to the extreme. Enjoy.

Rewards

So, we'd all like to believe that the best reward for living a fit life is knowing that we're taking care of ourselves.  But really, don't we deserve a little something for all the hard work that goes into maintaining a healthy lifestyle?

I've struggled for the past few years to figure out ways to keep myself motivated and what exactly to reward myself with when I reach my goals.  Obviously, food is not the answer and neither is a "day off" from exercise or eating well.  So, what's a girl to do?

A client of mine set up a reward system involving products from Lush.  When she lost a certain amount of weight, she would schedule time for a bath and drop in one of their fizzy bath bombs!  I love this idea.  And, I was able to benefit from her inspiration.  When I recently broke through my weight plateau (yeah!), I hopped in a tub filled with warm water, dropped in a bath bomb that she had given me and relaxed, celebrating my recent success.

For many of my clients who are just starting to exercise I suggest that they reward themselves with new workout clothes.  Even a new pair of socks can be fun.  And really, who doesn't want to look cute while sweating it out on the elliptical or when working with their trainer?  Burpees are evil but a cute outfit makes them a tiny bit more tolerable.

Be well and reward yourself for all you've achieved on your path to personal fitness.

Exercuses - Overcoming Obstacles to Exercise

I have volunteered to speak at a local weight loss group about how to overcome obstacles to exercise.  I'm really excited about this topic since this is what I have been personally working on for over two years!  When thinking about my own "exercuses" I came up with the following list:

Lack of time
Tired
Exercise was boring
Muscle injury
General laziness
Bad weather
Embarrassed
Traveling

Fortunately the government already came up with a wonderful list of obstacles and ways to tackle them! (Our tax dollars at work.)  You can find the link to the CDC recommendations here.

For me incorporating exercise into my life has evolved over time.  In the beginning I exercised out of pure fear of the triathlon I had signed up for!  But once that goal had been achieved I needed to come up with more new ways to overcome my own exercuses.  I did so by using the following tools:

1. Scheduling.  In the beginning I literally scheduled exercise into my daily routine by making it an appointment in my blackberry.  If a friend wanted to meet for lunch or if I needed to get to the grocery store, those activities had to be planned around my exercise appointment.

2. Creativity. You've seen my posts on snow days and sick days.  I now have a list of exercises I can do anywhere anytime.  If it's nice outside, I go out with Lucy and jump rope, jog around the block or do burpees on the sidewalk.  When my daughter is at her gymnastic class, I jog around the parking lot for 30 minutes before going in to watch her. It doesn't really matter what I'm doing as long as I'm moving.

3. Equipment.  I invested in a simple set of bands and have slowly added more pieces of equipment over time.  When traveling, even on a short trip, I pack my bands so that I can get in a nice strength training workout particularly if where I'm staying doesn't have a gym or an area to run around outside.

4. Supportive Friends.  I cannot emphasize this enough.  When I don't want to go the the gym or I'm feeling low, I have friends to call who will join me for a walk or meet at the gym.  Making it a social experience helps keep my motivation and is personally rewarding as well.

5. Liking It.  I don't think my commitment to exercise would have been possible without having a great personal trainer who exposed me to different exercise modalities and routines.  I never got bored and I still don't.  The process of exercising may have become routine for me but the actual exercises certainly aren't.  I'm constantly reading about different movements I can do and trying them out at home and the gym.  My other source of inspiration: my daughter.  She does all sorts of fun things on the playground and outside.  I often just play with her and find that I'm getting a great workout!

6. Education.  Learning how to avoid injury and what to do in the event of an injury has been crucial.  Just because my IT Band hurts is no reason to stop exercising.  I can swim, do the ellipitical, yoga, strength training.  And of course stretching has become a really critical part of my daily routine.

These are just a few of the ways that I combat my own excuses.  What do you do to combat "exercuses?"

Be well.

Killer Kettlebells

I still meet with my trainer, Tom, from time to time.  Mostly for some sort of tortuous kettle bell workout.  Three weeks ago it was a mix of Kettlebells and TRX.  I couldn't squat for 3 days.  Last Friday the session was just hardcore Kettlebells.  I think he increased the weight I'm swinging around plus the other woman in the class is incredibly fit making me push myself to keep up with her.  That afternoon I went home and curled up in the fetal position.  Later I was writing a check and couldn't remember the YEAR (is it 2010 or have we moved onto 2012?) much less the day.  I knew then that something serious had to be done.

The obvious and easy answer would be to stop doing Kettlebells.  But that's not an option.

No, I decided it was time to work harder, longer and more often.  (That sounds kinda dirty)

Focus.

Ok, so this is what I'm doing: More intervals, more sprints, more Kettlebells, more core, more creative movements.  And more often.

Is it working?  Yes.  To be honest I'm a bit afraid to go back to Kettlebell Fridays but I am feeling better and am seeing benefits in my clothes.  And at the end of the day, I'm tired and sleep through the night.  The next morning I wake up spontaneously ready to attack the day.  And I look forward to my next workout.

So, as for the workouts, they've become more organic.  I set a time limit and a heart rate goal and I know I've got to work my lower and upper body incorporating core along the way.  Here's a sample:

10 Kettlebell swings each arm
Jog/run one minute (85% MHR)
Repeat above for a total of 4 sets

15 Kettlebell deep squats with overhead press
Jog/run one minute
Repeat above for a total of 4 sets

15 incline pushups (I did these on my car bumper)
15 tricep dips with one leg extended (again on bumper)
Repeat above for a total of 3 sets

10 burpees

Core circuit:
15 Bridge Press
10 Straight leg drops
20 Dead Bugs
20 Quadrupeds
Repeat above for 2-3 sets

End with:
Prone Cobra - hold 15 secs x 4
Plank - 1 minute - or 2 if you're feeling up to it!

Be well!