This article was posted a week ago and I was interested to see the response.  Many supported the article and others were very offended.

I read it and although I agree with some aspects, it does not account for genetic factors and individual differences. It is definitely true that some people have it a lot easier than others. They were born with better genetics, stronger metabolism, less fat cells etc.

Before setting any type of weight loss goal, it’s very important for you to examine your genetics and to understand that fat loss is dependent on your genetic breakdown. 

Many researchers believe that approximately 50% of fatness is genetically determined.  You can’t change this!    Here are some stats to help you understand this relationship.

• If one of your parents is obese, you are 2x more likely to be overfat.
• If both of your parents are obese, you are 4x more likely to be overfat.
• One study also makes this relationship very clear.  Overfat identical twins were fed 1000 extra calories per day for 7 weeks.  You would expect that each pair of twins should gain the exact same amount of weight but in fact, the weight gain ranged from 9.5 to 29.3 pounds.  It’s most interesting to note that although the actual range of weight gain between twins was very high, the twins in each pair gained exactly the same amount of weight demonstrating that genetics will play a large factor in your ability to achieve a certain body type.

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It doesn’t mean you have to settle, you just have to understand that you may have to work harder than someone else and still may not be able to achieve a certain physique that someone else can easily achieve.

When someone really fit with a super toned physique looks down on someone who is overweight and judges them they are clearly negating the influence of genetics. It is all relative and I could turn it right back on these folks. For example, I could ask them why they are not in the Olympics or playing on a national level team or winning marathons or triathlons. I could suggest they are lazy and not training correctly and not eating the right foods. But clearly that is not the case. High level professional athletes often have a higher genetic potential that most of us could never aspire to. No matter how hard I trained, I’m never winning a marathon!! So we have to do our best to be OUR best and reach our own genetic potential.

You know in your heart whether you are at your best!! And we probably all could do a little better, myself included. I could be leaner and more cut but that would require me to be more disciplined with nutrition, but I like to drink wine a few times a week and indulge every once in a while. The sacrifice is not worth the reward to me and I love that I am fit enough to do whatever I want whenever I want and even though my body isn’t perfect, whatever that is, I’m very happy with it and what I can do and happy that I don’t have to be so OCD about my nutrition. So my belief is to follow the 80/20 rule and live life to the fullest!

So, here’s the bottom-line message.  You have a choice.  You can be in shape or out of shape.  You can look YOUR best or look YOUR worst.  Remember, 50% is out of your control–genetics-and 50% is in your control- exercise and healthy eating.

I prefer to focus on the doing…exercise, eat well, and things will take care of themselves. And I also agree that there is beauty in all sizes – just keep taking care of yourself!

But the problem is that people often have very unrealistic expectations of the type of body they would like to achieve.  They often refer to popular magazines to determine their ideal body.  But they may not realize that many of the models are 23% underweight to begin with, have been made-up for hours, camera tricks are used, and still, once the photos are developed, the pictures are cropped, airbrushed and manipulated by computer to produce a very unrealistic, unhealthy, so-called “perfect” image.

What is sad are the people who get caught in the “Geez, if I could just lose this extra 10 pounds, then I’d be happy” syndrome, yet when they do lose the weight, they’re still not satisfied.  If you believe that you’ll be happy once you lose the weight, you’ll never be skinny enough to be happy.  It’s a vicious cycle and it never ends unless we learn to love ourselves right now, not tomorrow or next month or next year.  It’s ok to want to make health improvements but you can’t hate and despise yourself.  Making these lifestyle changes is about believing you deserve to be healthier!  You deserve to take the time out to exercise and eat well.   It’s not about making the changes so you can look like someone else.  If you make changes with this as you ultimate goal, you will not succeed and you’ll be miserable for life!  Take our word for it.  We’ve seen it happen time and time again!  Body hatred and dissatisfaction are hardly reserved for only the morbidly obese.  In fact, many women who clearly have very little body fat to lose are not happy with their body proportions.

Learning to love your body: Complete the following steps to help improve your body image and your health and fitness.

Step One:  What’s realistic for you?

• Is there a history of excess fat in your family?
• Which parts of your body or your physical attributes are you satisfied with?
• What is the lowest weight you have maintained as an adult for at least one year?
• Based on your genetic predisposition, your age and the amount of time you want to spend exercising, what type of “ideal” physique is achievable for you?

Step Two:  I need a little help from my friends!!

Surround yourself with positive, supportive, empowering people who will challenge you to be your best.  Keep people around who are part of the solution not part of the problem.

Step Three:  Be active everyday and make healthy food choices at least 80% of the time!

Step Four:  Manage your thoughts: 

One aspect of gaining control is understanding the role of negative and irrational thinking.  We are often our own worst critics and can be so hard on ourselves.  Here are some examples of things you may have said to yourself which can sabotage your efforts:

• I missed my workout.  I’m a total loser!
• If I don’t starve myself I’ll get fat!
• Since I pigged out at lunch, the whole day is ruined.  I might as well stuff myself today and start all over again tomorrow!
• Things always go wrong!  I’m such a failure!
• It’s not the diet program that’s wrong, it’s me!
• I might have lost 10 pounds but I can’t go to the beach until I’m a perfect size 6!
• I’ll be happy once I lose the weight!
• My thighs are the fattest I’ve ever seen!
• If I lose weight, then my boyfriend will pay more attention to me.
• Why do I have such bad will-power?
• Why couldn’t I just have been born with a perfect body?
• I’ve got to lose 20 pounds within a month to get ready for my vacation or my holidays will be ruined!
• I’ll always be like this!
• I can’t seem to do anything right!
• Why would anybody love me?

When you find yourself saying things to yourself that you would never say to another human being, try the following:

• Listen to your thoughts at the times when you feel worst and listen for irrational/negative thinking.
• Dispute these thoughts by asking “Why is this so?”, “Where is this negativity coming from?” and “Could there be another possible explanation or interpretation?”
• Imagine repeating what you’ve said to a close friend or child?  We could never imagine talking to others as we talk to ourselves.  The next time you catch yourself thinking irrationally or negatively, ask yourself if you’d ever speak this way to another human being.  You deserve the same type of respect you’d give anybody else!  Remind yourself that if you continually practice negative self-talk, eventually, you may actually start to believe your own words.  Your self-esteem can end up taking a real beating.
• Displace continuing irrational beliefs by techniques of
  • Thought stopping (when worrying, think of a stop sign and then pleasant thoughts)
  • Stress management (when worrying, participate in your favorite relaxation techniques like massage, deep breathing, reading, baths, journal writing etc.)
• Learn to live in the moment and to experience true joy in your life.  Stop worrying about the past or the future.
• Each night before you fall asleep, make a mental note of what was the best part of your day or of something that you experienced that you really appreciated or enjoyed.
• Live today!  Self-hatred takes a lot of time and energy.  Obsessing about your body weight, nutrition plan and exercise program leaves you tired and depressed.  Deciding to not enjoy the here-and-now because you’ve decided to wait until you lose the weight will leave you feeling deprived and will often lead to more negative feelings and behaviors.  Remember that thin thighs, a small butt and a 6-pack set of abdominals is not the ticket to a meaningful existence.  Fill your life with interesting experiences and people and you’ll enjoy a much higher quality of life.

Ps. We are hosting the Summer Solstice Amazing Race event to benefit the Clark County Foodbank….a great opportunity to improve your speed, put purpose to your workouts and take your fitness to a whole new level!

Pps.  We are offering a Speed Training Clinic starting in July.  Training with a group makes it a lot easier to do these faster track workouts for sure!    

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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And although most participants are just happy to get to the finish line of these events, but there is a number of people that really want to run faster!

If you want to get fast, you have to train fast.

Makes sense right?  The good news is though, not every workout needs to be a hard, speed workout.  If you incorporate a faster run/walk just 1-2 times per week, you will start to notice you are running (or walking) faster in no time! You just need to improve your leg turnover speed and get your muscles accustomed to contracting more quickly.

So here are a few workouts to help you become speedier for any upcoming events.

First, always warm-up first (1/2 – 1 mile warm-up) or 5-10 minutes of walking first then progressing into light jogging.
And always cool down afterwards (1/2 – 1 mile easy cool down)
Typically, if you are going to go hard, you don’t have to go as long.  So you can get away with 3-4 miles of speed training focusing on quality.

Sample Speed Workouts that you can do on the road or treadmill:

1. 30 seconds hard / 1.5 minutes moderate x 10-15 repeats for a 20-30 minute workout
2. 1 minute hard / 4 minute moderate x 4-6 repeats for a 20-30 minute workout
3. 1 minute hard / 3 minute moderate x 5-8 repeats for a 20-32 minute workout
4. 1 minute hard / 2 minute moderate x 7-10 repeats for a 21-30 minute workout
5. 1 minute hard / 1 minute moderate x 10-15 repeats for a 20-30 minute workout
6. 1.5 minute hard / 1.5 minute moderate x 7-10 repeats for a 21-30 minute workout
7. 2 minute hard / 2 minute moderate x 5-8 repeats for a 20-32 minute workout

At the Track (4 laps = 1 mile):

1. Run hard on Straight, easy on Curves x 4 laps one way, 4 the other way (8 laps total with a short rest in between each mile)
2. Run 200 E / 200 H x 4 laps one way, 4laps the other way (8 total laps with a short rest in between each mile)
3. Run 400 H / 400 E x 4  laps total, repeat the other way (8 laps total with a short rest in between each mile)
4. Run 800 H / 800 E for 4 laps total, repeat the other way (8 laps total with a short rest in between each mile)
5. Run with a buddy.  Start running easy in opposite directions. When you pass each other, go hard until you pass each other again and then recover.  Go hard when you pass again.  Continue for 1 mile one way. Take a short break and repeat running opposite directions.

If you are more advanced, complete 3-4 miles total (or 12-16 laps of speed internals).
Finish your track workouts with 100 meter fast strides x 5-10 repeats with a walking rest in between.  Cool down to finish.

Ps. We are hosting the Summer Solstice Amazing Race event to benefit the Clark County Foodbank….a great opportunity to improve your speed, put purpose to your workouts and take your fitness to a whole new level!

Pps.  We are offering a Speed Training Clinic starting in July.  Training with a group makes it a lot easier to do these faster track workouts for sure!    

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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You see, this type of localized fat reduction is not possible.  In fact, infomercials or advertisements promising localized fat reduction infuriate fitness professionals who know what is being promised is impossible.  You see, what happens during say, an abdominal crunch, is that as soon as you start crunching, your muscles cry out for energy to perform the movement.  But there is no direct line from the abdominal muscle cells to the abdominal fat cells surrounding them.  So your liver sends some energy, in the form of sugar or fat, to the abdominal muscles.  But that fat could have been sent from your arm, butt or back.  When fat is mobilized from a particular area, it is first sent to the liver to be routed towards its final destination for usage.

So doing abdominal crunches does not mean you are burning stomach fat.  If your abdominal fat is very resistant to mobilization then it will be stubborn and probably will be the last fat to be mobilized and utilized.  So you will likely notice great changes to your arms and other areas and start to wonder when the fat around your stomach will start cooperating.  Be patient, it is just going to take longer!  Doing specific body part exercises will definitely help to tone muscle in that area but unfortunately, you cannot “spot reduce” fat.

And as far as one best exercise for your stomach…there is no such thing for any muscle.  A program that includes a variety of abdominal exercises is always the best plan.  So include the old favorites like crunches and sit-ups but also make sure you include some of the more progressive stabilization exercises you may be seeing lately around your gym like planks, v-sits and bridging.  Incorporate tools like medicine balls, pulleys, kettlebells, BOSU Trainers, TRX straps, VIPRs and stability balls to challenge the muscles in a variety of different ways and angles.

And remember, if you want to see a reduction in fat in a particular area, you are going to have to do a combination of cardio exercise and muscle-conditioning exercise and eat a healthy, clean diet.  And of course, you’ll need patience for those stubborn areas!

Ps.  We are offering a number of Team Trainings starting this week and many focus on the core!  Team Training programs allow you to train with a trainer for only $25/hour.  

Pps. We are hosting the Summer Solstice Amazing Race event to benefit the Clark County Foodbank….a great opportunity to put purpose to your workouts and take your fitness to a whole new level!

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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Have you ever noticed that as most people age they begin to move more and more slowly?  It seems to take them forever to get out of a chair, walk across the room or bend down to pick something up.  This is because as we age we lose about 7 pounds of muscle each decade.  And this loss is dominated by a loss in the number and size of fast twitch muscle fibers.  These muscle fibers are the ones responsible for allowing an individual to move quickly, and to maintain agility, reaction time, strength and power.  As these fibers atrophy, we find ourselves moving very slowly.  However, the good news is that this loss can be slowed down and some cases, prevented by training your fast twitch muscles.  The rule is “If you don’t use it, you lose it”.  So it’s important to do whatever you can to keep these muscle fibers working so they don’t perceive that they are no longer needed.

Here are some ideas to help you maintain your agility and mobility as you age.
Try to perform one agility drill a few times per week.

Lateral Agility Drill

Position 2 cones, chairs or props a few feet apart.  Now quickly step laterally to the outside of one cone and back to the outside of the other touching down towards the floor or cone on each end.  Try to go as fast as you possibly can.  Continue for 30-60 seconds.

Sprint Drills

Place 3 cones in a straight line each about 25-50 feet apart so that the furthest cone is about 100 feet away from you.  Start the exercise by sprinting or walking fast to the first cone, then shuffle backwards to the starting point.  Then sprint to the second cone, then shuffle backwards to the starting point.  Then sprint all the way to the third cone, then shuffle backwards to the starting point.  Take a short break and then repeat this 3-5x.

“Rectangle Drill“

Place 4 cones in the shape of a rectangle or square with each cone about 30 feet apart from each other.  Start at one corner and sprint to the top of the square.  Then shuffle across the top of the square.  Then back-shuffle.  Then laterally shuffle back to the start.  Do this 3-5x one way.  Take a break and go the other way.

An easy way to incorporate agility training into your training program without even knowing it is by participating in sports like skiing, ice skating, inline skating, squash, tennis, soccer, racquetball, squash, basketball, or volleyball which all involve a high level of agility and speed.  You could also consider enrolling in dance programs like Zumba, Salsa or Ballroom dancing or choreography-based fitness classes like Funk and Hip Hop.  These types of activities will keep you agile and mobile into your later years – and it’s a fun way to achieve these benefits.

Ps. We are hosting the Summer Solstice Amazing Race event to benefit the Clark County Foodbank….a great opportunity to work on your speed!

PS. We are hosting a Triathlon Training Clinic every weekend.  Triathlons are another way to work your entire body, especially your arms!  We will help get you to the finish line.

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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Now that the weather is warmer and we’re wearing a lot less clothing, you may be noticing a little less tone than you’d like in your upper body.  No worries – I’ve got a plan that will get tight, toned and sculpted right in time for summer.  Plus Michelle Obama and various other celebrities have shown us that muscle is the next sexy!

Try the following four exercises, three times per week on alternating days for the next four weeks and you’ll be impressed with the changes to your muscle conditioning.  Say good-bye to flabby arms

Chin Ups:

The chin-up is one of the best upper body exercises and is definitely one of my favorite compound upper body movements.  The problem is most people can’t perform a full chin-up without assistance.

Fortunately, most gyms offer a Gravitron or other Assisted Chin-up machines enabling most people to incorporate chinups into their workout routine because the machines offer assistance.  The model at your gym may be either a stand-up or kneel model and it may either be computerized or involve only a weight stack.  The instructions on the front of the machine will clearly demonstrate how to complete the set-up process.

You will also notice that the chin-up exercise allows you to choose between 3-4 different grips – a wide grip, a mid-grip, a narrow grip and a reverse mid-grip.  We recommend to our clients that they use all the various grips to challenge their muscles with a slightly different stimulus with each set. 

Once you have decided upon the grip, technique is pretty simple.  As you pull with your arms, your body will lift upwards.  Stop once your chin has cleared the bar.  Slowly return to the starting position.  Attempt to achieve full range of motion without locking out on your elbows.  Try to focus on pulling with the muscles in your back rather than your arms.  Perform a set of 8-12 rep.

To perform this exercise at home, you can purchase a chin-up bar at most department stores or fitness equipment retailers for a very low cost (or head to your local park and use the monkey bars).  Since a regular chin-up bar doesn’t offer the assistance most people need, we suggest you either use a small bench or just use your legs to jump up to the bar and then control the release on the way down.  If your strength isn’t up to the point of lifting or lowering your body weight at all then you can just keep your feet on the bench/ground and lift and lower as much of your body weight as you can handle.  With time and consistency, you will be able to lift and lower more of your weight soon!

Push-Ups:

Lie on your stomach.  Position your hands on the floor a few inches beside your shoulder.  Make sure that your elbows are directly over top or to the inside of your wrists.  Keep your abdominals contracted and your back in its neutral position.  Now slowly push up and slowly lower down to the starting position.  Relax for a few seconds.  Do it again.  Perform 8-15 repetitions. (Placing your hands on an incline like a bench, step or wall, will provide a more gentle entry level option also).  Advanced – Perform the same exercise as above but now from your toes.

Reverse Flies: 

Lie  on your stomach over a bench or step, grab a light set of handweights (or soup cans) and position both arms straight to the side beside shoulders. Use your back muscles to slightly extend your spine so you are not collapsed and flexed over the step.  Arms are perpendicular to your body with elbows just slightly bent.  Now slowly lift both arms upwards while pulling shoulder blades together.  Keep your neck in a neutral position, abdominals contracted and back stable.  Perform 8-20 reps.

Chest Press:

Lie on your back on a step/bench holding free weights (soup cans) with legs suspended in the air and knees bent at 90 degrees.  Start with arms positioned straight up over your shoulders.  Slowly lower the weights to the side until your elbows are bent at the side at shoulder height and hands positioned over elbows.  Slowly press the hand-weights back upwards.  Contract chest muscles as you press up and in.  Perform 8-12 reps with enough resistance that fatigues you.

PS. We are hosting a Triathlon Training Clinic every weekend.  Triathlons are another way to work your entire body, especially your arms!  We will help get you to the finish line.

PPS.  At least half of the battle of creating the physique you want is your nutrition.  Fortunately, one of our trainers at Northwest Personal Training is hosting a FREE workshop “Octane Nutrition” which will help you lose weight and increase your energy and improve your health. Join us Tuesday May 28^th.

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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Going hand in hand with the hotter days of summer are the shorter shorts and minis, and so naturally at this time of year, we get lots of questions from clients, specifically women, about which exercise is the best one to tone their legs.

Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a best exercise for any body part.  You see, the best program for sculpting any area is to incorporate a variety of exercises that challenge the muscles in a number of different ways.  And on top of that, you’ll need to regularly change and modify those exercises every 4-8 weeks to ensure regular progress.

Specifically, you should incorporate exercises like lunges, squats, step ups, bridging etc.  And there are a ton of variations within each of these exercises so the key is to mix it up!

Squats, lunges and step ups are really great choices because they challenge all the major muscle groups in the lower body so they are efficient and effective.  So if you have time for only one exercise, pick a variation of either of these.  If you can’t do deep lunges or squats, start with just small bends at the knees or ‘mini-squats’ or ‘mini-lunges’ and progress as you get stronger.

And of course, you’re going to have to perform some cardio exercise and ensure you’re diet is healthy.  This will help to burn off any fat overlying your muscles so the definition of the muscles will surface. 

Here’s 3 of my favorite lower body exercises:

Lunge:

Start by holding a set of hand weights at your side.  Stand with one leg positioned in front of the other leg.  Keep the front knee over top of the ankle.  Keep the back knee underneath or slightly behind your hips.  Slowly lower the back knee towards the ground keeping the front knee over top the ankle the entire time. Only lower as low as you feel comfortable – the lowest point should be when your knee is at a 90-degree angle or your upper thigh is parallel to the ground (again, remember that it’s better to only lower a few degrees with perfect form than try to lunge lower with sloppy technique; increase the depth of your lunge as you get stronger).  Keep your body weight positioned over the front leg – this is your working leg.  Maintain proper posture and keep your abdominals contracted.

Complete 8-12 reps to fatigue for each leg.
As you get stronger, you can progress to dynamic or walking lunges as you lunge from one leg right into the next leg.

Step Up:                         

Holding a set of hand weights, position yourself in front of a bench with one foot on the bench.  The bench should be at a height that puts your knee at a 90 degree angle.  Keep your kneecap facing forward and your weight distributed on all four corners of your foot.  Now slowly step up extending the supporting knee into a fully upright, balanced position.  Now slowly lower yourself down to the starting position.  Perform one set of 8-12 reps to fatigue for each leg.  Keep the height shorter if this bothers your knees at all.

Bridging:

Lay on your back with your legs bent and your feet positioned on the floor.  With your arms at your side, slowly lift your hips and buttocks up towards the ceiling while contracting your glutes (buttocks) and hamstrings (back of thigh) until your body weight is resting comfortably on your shoulder blades.  Throughout the entire exercise, be sure to keep your hips square to the ceiling and your abdominals contracted.  Slowly lift up and down 8-20x.  As you develop strength in your legs, you can do this exercise on just one leg – just be sure not to tilt to one side while doing these 1-leg lifts.  Or try with your legs on a stability ball.

Note: 

We are hosting a Running Clinic every Wednesday night at 5:30pm. Running is great exercise for your lower body so here’s your chance to tighten those legs!

We are also hosting a Triathlon Training clinic that you can still join! Triathlons are another way to work your entire body, especially your legs!  We will help get you to the finish line and tighten and tone through the process.

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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As the weather warms, it reminds us that beach season is on its way.  Thoughts of swimming suits and bikinis can either excite or frighten you depending on how well you’ve taken care of yourself all winter.  For most women, the area that causes most concern is the fat that seems to deposit around our hips.  For whatever reason, many believe for child bearing and breastfeeding purposes, the fat cells in this area don’t seem to want to give up the fat.  The enzymes that mobilize fat from the fat cells around the hips and send it off to the muscles to be used for energy seem to be dormant.  So what’s a girl to do?

Well, we’ve heard it all before.  Cardio exercise will burn the fat directly and building muscle by lifting weights will tone the muscles in the area and help make you a ‘fat-burning’ machine.  So we’ve gotta be running, walking, cycling, or taking fitness classes 3-5x/week and on top of this, we’ve got to hit the weights 2-3x/week.  But what if you have a life outside of exercise?! Adherence to this kind of an aggressive program may seem challenging.  Luckily, there is a way you can burn body fat and tone the buttock muscles simultaneously.  There are certain cardio activities that target the gluteal (butt) muscles very well.  A program that includes these butt-busting activities will develop tone in this problem area like you’ve only imagined.

Get outside and enjoy the fresh air.

Hiking:

If you analyze the body’s movements during hiking (especially a steep hike), you’ll notice that you’re basically performing non-stop, repetitive step-ups.  And we know how much our butts love step-ups!  To further involve the glutes on your hikes, be sure to fully extend at the knee and hip with each step, and push off from the entire surface of the front foot.  Fortunately, there are plenty of hiking opportunities here in the Northwest including Forest Park, Mt. St. Helens and Mount Hood!

Inline Skating:

Have you ever checked out a hockey player’s glutes?  Well, I admit, I have!  They’ve got such strong looking rears because their sport effectively targets the gluteal muscles.  Get the same benefit by strapping on a pair of inline skates and get ready for an excellent workout for your hip region.  To target different regions of the hip, try this workout:

• For 45 seconds, skate fully upright and with each skate, push your leg directly to the side.
• For 45 seconds, skate in a tuck position and with each skate, push your leg directly to the side.
• For 45 seconds, skate in a fully upright position and with each skate, push your leg backwards on a diagonal angle.
• For 45 seconds, skate in a tuck position and with each skate, push your leg backwards on a diagonal angle.

Complete this 3 minute circuit, 7-10 times for a twenty to thirty minute workout.

Swimming:

Most think swimming is just a great upper body workout – think again.  Grab a flutter board and do back-to-back lengths of flutter and butterfly kicks.  You wanna make it even more intense? Put on some flippers.  Your butt muscles will be screaming.

Power Walking:

Yep, just going for a walk will force your glutes to work.  But to get more ‘bang for your buck’, with each step focus on pushing and propelling forward and squeezing your glute muscles rather than just falling into each step.

Running:

Check out the tight little butts on those Kenyan runners.  If you want a better overall workout for the hip, incorporate different hilly terrains and various speeds.

Old-fashioned Stair-climbing:

Head to your local stadium and climb up and down the bleachers.  Not only will you experience an amazing cardio workout, but your glutes will be humming.  Remember to focus on fully extending and contracting your glute muscles on each step.

Note: 

We are hosting a Running Clinic every Wednesday night at 5:30pm starting today May 8th. Here’s your chance to get those butts in great shape!

We are also hosting a Triathlon Training clinic and it is never too late to join us!
Triathlons are another way to work your entire body, especially your glutes!  We will help get you to the finish line!

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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Time is of essence! In a one-hour workout, it’s difficult to achieve a proper warmup, an adequate cardio workout, a challenging strength training segment, some postural exercises and an appropriate cool-down and stretch.  How do we fit it all in?  Most people want results in the shortest period of time.  Who wants to spend 2+ hours in the gym?

Combination Training is the answer to your prayers. 

Combination Training is an integrated form of training that combines lower body, upper body, trunk musculature and balance training all into one exercise, accomplishing three times as much training in the same amount of time.

Combination Training is also a more natural and functional way of training.  Can you imagine any daily task that you complete regularly that involves only one joint or muscle group.  Our bodies just don’t function in an isolation fashion.  When you get out of a chair, bend down to pick something up or lift something to put it on a shelf, your entire body functions as a team.  And all sports require your muscles to work together.  And yet when we train in the gym, most people generally train their muscles separately focusing on only one body part at a time.  It would be like a football coach taking each of his starting line players and training them individually before their first game.  Even though each player may be in optimal physical conditioning, if the coach hasn’t pulled them together and scrimmage in order to learn to work together, their first game is going to be a disaster.  For example, a Leg extension exercise works the quads independently but it doesn’t mean the quads will be able to work together well with the hamstrings or the trunk muscles.  Combination training teaches your muscles to work together as a team as they do in real life situations.  During sports or recreational activities, your muscles have to learn to react, support and oppose each other effectively.

Combination training is an effective form of training both from a time efficiency and a functional perspective.  Keep in mind, however, that it may take you a while before you can work up to combination training exercises.  First you have to learn how to execute each individual movement correctly and then you can start combining.

Some examples of combination training exercises would be to combine lunges with an overhead press or squats with rows.  What about performing bench step-ups with bicep curls?  Try balancing on one leg when performing any upper body movement or lying over a stability ball when performing chest presses.  When designing your program, analyze how you can take any exercise skill to the next level by combining two or three movements into one complex, compound movement.  Not only will you be more efficient with your time but also you will be training your body in a way that mimics real-life movements.

Note:  We are hosting a Running Clinic every Wednesday night at 5:30pm starting May 8^th.  Running is another activity that will keep you strong and agile. 

We are also hosting a Triathlon Training Clinic that starts May 4^th. Triathlons are another way to work your entire body.  We will help get you to the finish line!

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 Consider these statistics:

• One in three adults over the age of 65 will fall at least once a year.
• Twenty percent of persons 75 years or older require medical treatment due to falls and over 50% of those hospitalized from a fall will die within one year of the fall due to secondary complications. 

Falls and impaired mobility are a serious problem for our aging population. The good news is that much of the decline in balance can be reversed through a program of balance training.  One study found that healthy people as old as 90 years can reduce the tendency to fall by 50 per cent through balance training.  It’s easy to see that this can help keep people independent and mobile far longer not to mention, reducing their risk for injury.

But listen up – if you’re younger, don’t write today’s column off.  Balance training is also an integral component of almost all sports, and yet so many athletes neglect this aspect of their training.

An athlete, older or not, who pays particular attention to balance conditioning will notice an improvement in their coordination, and their ability to transfer strength to their sport movements.  Studies also indicate that athletes who have suffered from an injury are more likely to experience re-injury.  This re-occurrence can be linked to the athlete failing to incorporate balance training into their rehab program.  Today, injury rehabilitation almost always includes a number of different balance exercises to ensure the patient develops kinesthetic body awareness.  This helps restore their previous level of coordination, agility, strength and endurance.  Balance training is absolutely critical for restoring normal functioning of joints and muscles.  Without balance training, the healing joints and muscles are not as proficient at staying in their neutral, safe positions and may function inappropriately under unforeseen conditions, thus causing re-injury.

You don’t need a tightrope to train your balance system!

Here are a variety of basic exercises to help you implement this type of training into your workouts anywhere with minimal equipment.

One legged stance:

Begin by standing on one foot.  Slowly bend your knee lowering your body a few inches and then back up again.  Make sure your knee points straight ahead and maintain proper, upright posture throughout the entire exercise.  If your balance isn’t very good to begin with, you may want to have something sturdy close by to hang onto in case you lose your balance.  Perform 20 reps each leg.  Do this exercise while brushing your teeth, talking on the phone or making dinner – that way you’ll easily fit it into your day.  As you get better, try this exercise with your eyes closed, which would display a more advanced level of balance (not while cooking though  )

Upper body + One legged stance:

It’s also easy to implement balance training while doing traditional upper body exercises.  Replace any exercise that you would generally do standing on both legs with standing on one leg.  For example, bicep curls or shoulder presses on 1 leg.

2 x 4 training:

Head down to your local hardware store and pick up a long piece of wood.  You can walk across the board like you are on a tight-rope, then do it up on your toes and then try it walking backwards.  You can shuffle side-to-side across the board.  You can catch and throw a ball to a partner while maintaining balance on the 2 x 4.  Your options are endless.  You can also do this along a curb or a log at the beach or park.

Exercise Balls:

Any exercise you would do sitting or laying on a bench can be advanced by incorporating a stability ball (they look like a big beach ball only much more sturdy).  By sitting on an exercise ball and performing say, an overhead shoulder press, your stabilizing muscles have to work much harder because you are positioned on an unstable piece of apparatus.  The same goes for laying over the exercise ball and performing say, a chest press.  By laying on the ball instead of a bench your stabilizing muscles are challenged to a greater degree.

Sports: 

There are some sports that will condition your balance without you even having to think about it.  For example, ice-skating, inline skating, alpine skiing, snowboarding, and water-skiing are sports that will maintain high levels of balance as you age.

Perform the above exercises 3 or more times per week and you’ll notice a substantial difference in your balance.

Note:  We are hosting a Running Clinic every Wednesday night at 5:30pm starting May 8^th.  Running is another activity that will keep you strong and agile. 

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Running’s “Terrible Toos” are often the leading culprit and cause of most running injuries.

Too much

Too soon

Too hard

Too fast

Too long

It’s easy to imagine how this can happen.  You wake up and decide today is the day you’re going to start your new training program.  You lace up your Nikes and head out the door.  Your ego dictates that a run-walk is for wimps and if you’re gonna go out for just 10 minutes, why even go at all?  So 30-40 minutes later, you’re finished and feeling proud.  Tomorrow you do the same.  Maybe you follow this program a few more times.  And then a week or two later, you start to experience those nagging aches and pains common to many new runners.  You decide the pain is not worth it and your short-lived running career is over.

Consider this:

With each running stride, your body is forced to absorb impact forces as great as 3x your body weight.  So if you weigh 150 pounds, imagine 450 pounds of force pounding through your body with each foot strike. You can imagine that over the course of a four-mile run, the amount of force the body absorbs is tremendous.  Even if you’ve been taking fitness classes or using indoor equipment all winter, pounding the pavement is different.  If you’re fit, your heart would be able to handle the effort involved with running, but your bones, ligaments and tendons are still not sufficiently prepared for the impact of running.  Due to the nature of the sport, specific imbalances and areas of weakness can result.  For these reasons…

……proper progression is critical if you expect to continue running on a long-term basis.

A program should gradually introduce running into your exercise routine:

Start with short bursts of running (30-60 seconds is ideal) interspersed with walking breaks.  It’ll certainly take some weeks before you’re marathon-ready, but this time allows your body to adapt and increases your chances of being able to continue running for the long-term.

Here’s a sample program to try:

At this point, you can attempt continuous running (Start with 15 minutes and increase 5-10% every 1-2 weeks) or continue with the Run 10 minutes, walk 1 minute approach as you increase your mileage.  If you start to experience any aches and pains, back off on your volume and/or return to a run/walk approach.

Here are a few additional tips to keep you running strong and injury-free:

• Try not to run 2 days in a row if possible.  And definitely avoid 3 consecutive runs.
• Allow for one full recovery day per week.
• Take time to do a 6 to 10 minute walking-only warmup and cool down
• Stretch all your running muscles for at least 30 seconds after each run
• Purchase a good pair of running shoes after consulting an expert at a sport footwear specialist store
• Cross train – avoid becoming just a runner.  I’d rather see an exerciser run 3x/week and compliment their program with swimming, cycling, weight training and fitness classes rather than run 6x/week.  Cross training will maintain a greater balance to your program and your body and keep your program exciting.
• If possible, run on packed, level dirt, trails, or grass, which are a lot easier on your body.  If running through the city, paved roads (asphalt) are easier on your legs than concrete sidewalks (cement).  Just watch for traffic.

May all your miles be filled with smiles and may the wind always be at your back!

Note:

We are hosting a Running Clinic every Wednesday night at 5:30pm starting May 8^th.  The group approach will get you into awesome shape! 

We are also starting our Spring Makeover Challenge soon.  It’s a fun and friendly competition to help inspire you to take the actions necessary to lose weight and get in great shape for summer. Sometimes losing a few pounds, makes running so much easier! Sign up now before teams fill up!

Like us on Facebook and get FREE instant access to my “Achieving your Personal Best” eVideo – Learn the critical steps to help you lose weight, feel great and live your best life.

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