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Why are we so ashamed of our bodies?

A few months ago I sent out an email to my subscribers asking them what topics they wanted to learn more about. I gave them a variety of options, such as sports conditioning, injury prevention, things they can do at home, fat loss, healthy lifestyle tips ... but 85% of the replies were "I want to lose weight" or "I want to get rid of my belly". Insert HUGE eye roll here. Why are we so conditioned to put so…

Focus on what you CAN do

It's time we change our mindset. Rather than thinking of all the things you CAN'T do, focus on the things you CAN do. I see this all the time in the gym.  I get a new client in for a consultation and they list through all the things they can't do.  All the things they've been told repeatedly for the past few weeks, months, and sometimes years that they can't do, they shouldn't do, and they will never be able…

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…

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…

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…

What is Posture?

What is Posture?When we talk about posture, most of us think of sitting up straight, pulling our shoulders back, and walking with a book on top of our heads. Is this really what posture is? Well, ya … sort of. We’ve been taught from a young age to sit up tall.  Why? Because sitting up tall shows others that we are alert, attentive, and listening to what they have to say. It also makes us look leaner and physically fit.…

How does poor posture effect your training? 2 common examples

If you train with poor posture, you will enforce poor posture.Here are 2 EXAMPLES THAT I SEE ALL-TOO-OFTEN....AND IT MAKES ME CRINGE!The first one is rounded shoulders.  You may have been told that to improve your upper body posture, you need to train your back muscles and stretch your chest.  Sounds simple enough, right? The only problem is that you can still do both of these things with poor posture.  Just because you are doing a row movement in the gym, one of…