mobility

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Why torn glutes are uncommon

oh man, i tore my butt muscle (?) You rarely hear of someone who pulled their glute in training, or is "out with a glute strain".  But you DO hear of the common hamstring injury, "blowing a hammie", or "blowing a disc" in the lower back.   But, if you think about it, what's the common denominator?  What separates your lower back from your hamstrings ?  Your glutes of course!  The glutes have become the centre of attention here in the gym scene and…

Healthy Lifestyle Collaboration

keeping a healthy lifestyle can be challenging...  That's why this post is for you! I've collaborated with 9 other health and fitness enthusiasts to bring together a world of ideas on how you can stay fit and healthy, even through challenging times.   You can read back to my  previous post Top 3 Ways to De-Stress, and then read below for more ideas on a healthy diet and active living. Top Tips to have more energy   How to stay motivated…

Top 3 Ways to De-stress

Top 3 Ways to De-Stress: Physically & Mentally Following up from a previous post, Less is more part 2, we wanted to share with you our top 3 ways to help de-stress, relax, and refocus during hectic times in your world. Let's get straight into it.  I can get very overwhelmed, anxious, irritable, and emotional when I feel like I have too much to do and not enough time.   We all deal with stress differently, so by sharing what works for…

Creating Balance: Part 1

what does balance mean to you? I've been thinking a lot about "balance" and what it means to people these days, particularly my clients and all of you.  I've seen a lot of people get sick and run down because their lives have gotten so hectic they have forgotten to make sure they are taking care of themselves.  They've been going full steam ahead, with work, the gym, the kids, jam-packed weekends, weddings to attend, social events, work deadlines, and just TOO MANY THINGS!…

Less Is More: Part 2

One of my favourite things to repeat in the gym is: "you're only as strong as your weakest link"  This is so important to remember when you are pushing yourself to lift more weight, run faster, or add an extra training day into your routine.  Is adding more weight really going to make you stronger ? Is running faster really better for you ? (PS - if you've missed our intro post Less is More: Part 1, you can read it…

Strengthen Your Glutes for Hip Stability

Following up from our last post about releasing the quadriceps muscles, this post will focus on building glute strength.  I always recommend pairing these two concepts together because you can't have one without the other.  If you have really tight hip flexors and quadriceps, they will compromise the ability to contract and strengthen the glutes.  If you have weak glutes, they will promote you quadriceps and hip flexor muscles to be over worked.  So you can see a restrictive cycle…

“No Pain, No Gain” – said the spiky ball

SPiky ball releasesIf you don't own a spiky ball, get one!  One of the best investments you can make as they shouldn't cost more than about $15 for a decent one.  In the mean time, grab a tennis or lacrosse ball and keep reading.   I've recently started doing this particular spiky ball release down my quads and have had a great result for myself and my clients.  The quadricep muscles are sneaky little buggers.  They can tighten up and create…

Avoid the Holiday Bulge!

The silly season is upon us, and for those of us in the fitness industry, this means the "calm before the storm".  Personal trainers and fitness clubs can expect slower business during the last few weeks of the year before the busiest time of year directly after we ring in the new year.   Its unfortunate, but the fitness industry capitalizes on people getting fat over the holiday season and preys on their insecurities. Don't be a stat! Every year we are…

How everyday tasks are ruining your posture

I can't help but analyze most people's posture with the way they walk, their differing shoulder heights, and what compensation patterns they exhibit.  We often think that we can't get injured unless we are being careless and that overuse injuries are for people who spend hours each week playing a specific sport or doing something highly active and repetitive.  But what about the Average Joe just doing tasks of everyday living? Let's put this into perspective.  A few weeks ago I was vacuuming our…

Body Maintenance

I've become a big fan of body maintenance.  I truly believe that we need to constantly nurture and care for our bodies in order for them to function and operate at an optimal level.  The body is capable of many things, but even if its just our daily activities that we need to stay healthy for, then it's worth it.  I always say:You don't know what your health is worth, until it's gone. How true is this?!  We don't realize how…

Training In Better Posture – Upper Body Warm Up

Your muscles have an optimal position from which they can do their job best. While we all have different postural issues and imbalances to overcome, it is safe to say that we will all have bad posture after a day at the desk.  Even if you train first thing in the morning, your posture will not be ideal.  While "fixing" your posture will take time, effort, and consistent training, there are some things you can do to help improve the…

Have Wall, Will Train.

Wall Angels: Posture Exercise for the agesI've been prescribing this exercise for over 10 years ... it has many postural benefits and can help you feel muscles you never knew you had.  Leaning against the wall will help you get the correct position and ensure the right muscles are engaged.Quite often, the muscles along the back of your trunk and spine lie in a stretched, inactive position while your body is rounded forward over your desk/phone/tablet.  A common complaint from people…

Pain: What Your Posture is Telling You

Quite often, people come to me to help them with issues such as their knee pain, back pain, or on-going shoulder pain. Unfortunately, most pain is not a quick fix.  You can't rest an area and assume its going to get better.  You also shouldn't rely on medications to "cure" you.  Rest, meds, and ice are all good for helping to manage the initial phases of pain; however, they will not get rid of the problem.  They will simply mask it.  You need…

Why I Created Balanced Posture Online

WHY I CREATED BALANCED POSTURE ONLINE I believe there is a gap in the health and fitness industry linking a healthy body  to one that is injured.  Just because you are injured, doesn't mean you can't train and remain active.  And just because you don't have any current injuries or symptoms, doesn't mean you aren't at risk or that you are are invincible.   Everyone knows someone who has been injured by doing the simplest of tasks, such as stepping out of the…

4 Posture Exercises To Get You Started

 4 Posture Exercises To Get You StartedWhen it comes to posture, it is important to recognize how one area of the body can effect another.  A muscular strength discrepancy in the hips can effect your shoulders.  Poor ankle mobility can effect your knees.  Stiffness in the low back can change your gait patterns, which can manifest into shoulder or elbow issues and/or knee problems.  For this reason, I like to focus on a few simple musculoskeletal areas that are most likely affecting you.…