6 Exercises to Jump Start Your Fitness
6 Exercises to Jump Start Your Fitness ALTERNATE LIFT Hold for 2 seconds, then switch sides. Do 2 sets of 10 DUMBBELL HIGH-LOW CHOP (OR HEAVY CAN) Do 2 sets each side of 10-12 DUMBBELL SHRUGS (OR HEAVY CANS) Do 3 sets of 12 STANDING BENT OVER ROWS Do 2 sets of 10-12 PUSH UPS Do 2 sets of 12-15. PLANKS FROM TOES Do 3 planks, 15-45 seconds each OR: ...
9 Ways to Sneak Muscle Building Into Your Work Day
9 Ways to Sneak Muscle Building Into Your Work Day “I’m so tired at the end of the day, I could just collapse. “ “I have zero time for exercise.” “I don’t have any equipment to exercise with.” These are the top 3 reasons people find not to exercise – most of us think of exercise as something separate from our normal routines. But I’m going to tell you about the 9 best ways to sneak exercise into your workday without breaking into a big sweat, or breaking the bank. One of the most basic...
Bring Your Brain to Exercise Class
Bring Your Brain to Exercise Class My checklist of what to put in my workout bag is pretty standard and predictable: water, towel, workout shoes, sweatband, post-workout snack..... and my brain. Leave Your Baggage at Home By "bring your brain", I mean that we have to drop off all the baggage we are carrying around in our heads, so that we can focus on exactly what we are at the gym for. Lose the worries over the project that's overdue, the babysitter that's just quit on you,...
Cardio Training – What Kind Should I Do?
Cardio Training – What Kind Should I Do? This is a common concern, especially for those people who have been working out for a while, but aren’t seeing good enough results. The issue is really getting variety in your workouts, to constantly challenge your body to working harder. Fitness professionals often refer to the FITT factors; this means the Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type of exercise performed. In terms of cardiovascular work, there are several types of training you can do....
Cardiovascular Training
Cardiovascular Training Aerobic exercise is a vital part of any training program, and yet many of us aren’t sure of what type to do, for how long, or how often. As a personal trainer, I apply the FITT principles to any kind of physical activity – Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type. Most of us should aim to do aerobic activity between three and five times per week, for 30-45 minutes per session. This means getting your heart rate elevated for a sustained period of time, and you should...
Core Exercises- Which ones should I do?
Core Exercises- Which ones should I do? Bridging Often overlooked as a "basic" exercise by experienced exercisers, the bridge in its various forms is a powerful tool. This fires up the deep abdominals, and strengthens the hamstrings. Perhaps its most valuable benefit is that it works the gluteus maximus (biggest of the glute muscles) at its end range, where it is usually weaker. A classic bridge involves lying on your back on the floor, with bent knees, hip width apart. Keeping...
Exercising with Upper Crossed Syndrome
Exercising with Upper Crossed Syndrome Upper Crossed Syndrome (UCS) is a postural problem that starts with muscle imbalances between the muscles of the front and the back of the upper body. The shoulders round inward, the upper back starts to develop a rounded, hump-like appearance, and the head juts forward into Forward Head Posture. Tight muscles typically include the pectoralis major, the levator scapulae, the upper trapezius , latissimus dorsi, anterior deltoid, and...
Forward Head Posture
Forward Head Posture A normal head posture is when, from the side view, the centre of the person’s ear is lined up with the centre of the shoulder. Forward head posture (FHP) occurs when the head moves forward from normal posture, with the head drooped forward, and the shoulders rounded. Here’s an example of proper alignment on the left, a 2” forward head posture in the centre, and a 4” FHP on the right. This poor neck posture puts tremendous strain on the muscles of the back...
HIIT Training - What is It and How Will It Help Me Feel Better?
HIIT Training - What is It and How Will It Help Me Feel Better? HIIT stands for High Intensity Interval Training, and it's one of the hottest trends in fitness in the last several years. And with good reason - there are so many benefits to your physical and mental well being. Here are just a few: HIIT burns more calories and fat than most other types of exercise regimes. In fact, many hours after you're done sweating, your body is still giving you that great after burn. You will be...
How Did You Do That? 3 Secrets to Fixing Cranky Knees
How Did You Do That? 3 Secrets to Fixing Cranky Knees
How Do I Get My Cardio Done?
How Do I Get My Cardio Done? If you’ve committed to increasing your fitness level, that means that you need to add cardio to your exercise mix. But joining a gym and attending classes isn’t always the answer. Cost, location, and class times may not work with your life. So how can you get your cardio done without a lot of expense and working with your own schedule? Here are a few suggestions, with possible pros and cons for each choice. Check out your local community centres....
How To Avoid Overtraining
How To Avoid Overtraining The point of training is to better your body. However, more and more is not the answer in the long term. Overtraining refers to a combination of stresses such as too much training load, a heavy load at work, personal stresses and emotional burnout. Some signs of overtraining include weight loss with a lessened appetite, loss of motivation in physical activity, an increase in muscle soreness and exhaustion and increased anger and emotional outbursts, to name a...
How To Build Your Walking Goals the Right Way
HOW TO BUILD YOUR WALKING GOALS THE RIGHT WAY As we edge into spring and nicer weather, lots of us want to get out there and just walk, and enjoy the sunshine. After a long winter and an even longer pandemic, we’ve gotten a bit sluggish and out of shape. Here’re a few ways to build your walking goals to get stronger and more fit. Get a good pair of walking shoes. This is an absolute must. Ditch the worn-out tennis sneaker lurking in the back...
Meditation and Fitness
Meditation and Fitness Meditation is often thought of as an activity best suited to people involved in yoga, tai chi and other forms of thoughtful movement - not as a benefit for an athlete or workout enthusiast. But studies have shown time and again that there are several benefits to the wider community. They include: Better Heart Health. Meditation can dramatically lower your risk of heart attack or stroke. More Efficient Immune System. Meditation can improve the electrical...
No/Low Equipment Exercises in 10 Easy Steps
No/Low Equipment Exercises in 10 Easy Steps – How to Pivot to Stripped Down Training Since the pandemic started, I’ve had to pivot and learn how to train clients and small groups online. It took a beat to understand the best ways to coach online. Turns out it’s a lot of verbal coaching and some demonstration by me, to get the best results for my clients. One of the most challenging situations was taking a small group to virtual training. We’d been doing HIIT training for several years,...
Protect Your Knees
Protect Your Knees One of the most common sites for injury is your knees. In fact, there are dozens of separate documented types of knee ailments and injuries. Chances are that you’ve fallen victim to at least one of them in the past. The knee is essential to walking, running, kicking, sitting, using the stairs and getting up from a chair. If the knee weren’t there to bend, none of these activities would be possible. However, the knee doesn’t think for itself! This hinge...
Punctuate Your Posture!
Punctuate Your Posture! Do you look like a comma when you look in the mirror? Do your neck, shoulders and head hurt? If this is you, you need to change your posture from a comma to an exclamation mark! Here are four tips to get you standing and sitting better. Practise sliding your shoulder blades downwards. Think "sliding them into your back pants pockets". This will allow you to extend through your thoracic spine - the part of your spine that runs between the base...
Push-Ups: Which Version is Best for You?
Push-Ups: Which Version is Best for You? Think “push-up” and the image of a buff bodybuilder sweating his way through a hundred reps comes to mind. We may think that this is the only option for this exercise, and then avoid doing them because it’s too difficult, or intimidating. However, there are several versions of this common exercise available, to benefit everyone from a deconditioned beginner, to a seasoned exerciser. Each version will work your pectorals (chest muscles) and triceps...
Stretches
STRETCHES and examples QUAD STRETCHLie on one side with your elbow directly below your shoulder and your hips stacked. Grasp the foot of your top leg and pull your heel towards your gluteals (your bottom). You will feel a stretch in the front of your upper leg. When the stretching sensations fades, pinch your gluteals and push your hips forward to deepen the stretch. Hold until the muscle is relaxed. HAMSTRING STRETCH Lying on your back, put one...
Super Setting for Better Results
Super Setting for Better Results Super setting is a technique we can use to maximize our workout time, building muscle in a very efficient way. We pair two exercises together, without much rest time between them. There are a few ways to do this. Agonist super sets. This means the exercise all target the same main muscle (group), and will involve other muscles as well. You need to do all exercises at a weight you can just finish your reps with. For instance, if you...
Tips for Fitness Success - Especially for Beginners
Tips for Fitness Success - Especially for Beginners So you've finally made the decision to change how you feel, and also how you feel about your relationship with your body. This is a great starting point! But many of us flounder when it comes to making the master plan - how, exactly, do you go about getting fit and healthy? We know that it will involve changes in diet, exercise, habits and attitudes. But what exactly should you do to get to our goals? The first thing to acknowledge...
Train Well After An Illness
Train Well After An Illness It seems as if everyone I meet has been the victim of some nasty virus this winter. Colds, the flu, sinus infections - you name it, someone's had it. But when you feel a bit better, you like to get back to your exercise routines right away - after all, you've wasted enough time lying in bed, right? But how much should you do? Should you push yourself to your pre-sick activity level, or take it really easy for a couple of weeks? First, determine if you are...
What do you want from your training program?
What do you want from your training program? It’s all about results. People often say that their goals include losing weight, toning muscle, getting rid of ab fat, feeling better and having more energy. However, most people are unsure of how to get fit or how to keep the gains they’ve made. Often a person goes to a gym, tries out a few cardio machines, watches other people’s workouts, and copies a few exercises without really understanding how to do them properly and...
When Your Comfort Zone Is Bad For You
When Your Comfort Zone Is Bad For You I just love it when I get everything in my house exactly the way I want it arranged. I enjoy my breakfast at a certain spot at my kitchen table; my two cups of tea always follow my breakfast. That’s my comfort zone. However, even though we all like our creature comforts and habits, there’s one place we shouldn’t be in the comfort zone – the gym. One of the most important principles of training is the Principle of Overload. This states...
Why You Need to Know About Progressive Overload
Why You Need to Know About Progressive Overload Let's start by talking about the concept of overload. When we add work, or load, to muscles, we ask them to perform at a level above what they normally deal with. This is how we address our goals of a better-looking physique, better endurance, fat loss, better performance, or whatever the particular goals are. So it's clear that in order to achieve our goals, we need to stress our bodies with resistance and cardiovascular work. We need to meet...