Find YOUR way to be physically active

In my opinion, one huge problem with where the fitness industry has been going, is that it is too focused on forcing fitness onto the individual.  Simply put, trying to get someone to dedicate precious time out of their day for something that feels forced upon them is NOT going to work.  

Watch little kids during the day?  They will literally run up and down stairs, for fun...  Then they grow up and play sports where they are told to run stairs for conditioning.  Since running up and down the stairs is no longer being done "for fun," it gets programmed into their minds that running up and down stairs is no longer something you should willingly do.  This is only one of several examples of how we are being programmed to associate physical activity with something that cannot be done for fun, and that is truly sad...

An "Almost Equipment-less" Workout for You

Here is a great workout for you to try that requires no equipment besides a jump rope.

Half Marathon Training Tips

I had a reader ask me for some tips on preparing for a half marathon.  These are my favorite blog posts to write because I know that at least one person really wants to read it :-D  So for those of you who have a question about health or fitness, please feel free to email me and I would be happy to answer it!

To start, for those of you who are interested in training for a half marathon (or any race for that matter), I promise you will be extremely happy if you go for it.  YES, their will be training days where you say to yourself, "Why the hell am I doing this," but I guarantee that the feeling of accomplishment will be worth it!

Here are 5 quick tips to help you in your half marathon training:

My Hero! And the 1st Principle of Strength Training

My hero:

• Has saved a life
• Led fellow citizens to military triumph
• Was a six time Olympic Victor
• Carried his own bronze statue to its place
• Had a daily diet that consisted of 20 lb of meat, 20 lb of bread, and 18 pints of wine
• Carried a 4-year old bull on his shoulders before slaughtering, roasting, and devouring it in one day.
• Died while attempting to rend a tree asunder when his hands became trapped in the cleft of its trunk, and a pack of wolves surprised and devoured him...

I know what your thinking. Charlie Sheen obviously...  Although Charlie has several "winning" accomplishments himself, I am actually thinking of someone else.  Who could it be? Read on!

Why Lifting Weights Doesn't Mean you will get "BULKY"

Strength.  It's never a bad thing!  Who wouldn't want it?...
Muscular strength, simply put, is a measure of how much force you can produce.  Your level of muscular strength allows or prevents you from being able to perform many of your actions of daily living.

However, a common misconception of strength training is that in gaining muscular strength you WILL get "bulky."  I regularly hear this from female clients and anyone who just wants to "get toned."  I believe that this misconception is a large part of why so many individuals will spend all their time on the treadmill rather than including resistance training (i.e., lift weights) into their workout.

Self-Efficacy Theory: Its influence on exercise and physical activity behavior

Answer these questions:

1. Do you believe that being physically active can reduce your risk for heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis?
2. Do you believe that a sedentary lifestyle is linked to obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure?
3. Do you believe that only ~45% of US adults get the recommended level of physical activity? (VA is at 47%!)

Fitness Phone App Review: The Introduction

At first, the idea of bringing technology into fitness seems almost counterintuitive.  I mean isn't it the video games, TV's and, Facebooking/Twittering that is taking up all of the free time where people could be exercising...

Well, I guess it goes back to the saying where if you can't beat them, you might as well join them.  The Y-generation, loves technology and the capabilities it gives us (I'm completely in this category!).  The improved portability and processing power along with the ever expanding ability to search, interact, and connect over the internet with our phones has given developers and fitness trainers a new method/tool in the attempt to improve the health of our country.

Using Quality and Timing of Dietary Protein to Your Advantage

Many people are aware that there is more than one kind of carbohydrate or one kind of fat. This is actually very easy to realize if you have ever looked at a food label before. First, with fats you will notice there is a column for “Total Fat” which is then broken down into multiple other columns including: saturated fats, unsaturated fats (which is broken down into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated), and trans fats. With a little research, often from right on the food package, you would quickly realize that you should try to get your dietary recommended intakes (DRIs) of dietary fat from unsaturated fat sources, while keeping saturated fats very low, and trans fats as close to zero as possible. Very simple! Moving on to carbohydrates you will see a similar situation. There is a bolded column for “Total Carbohydrates” which, just like “Total Fat," is broken down into the subcategories fiber (broken down further to soluble and insoluble fiber) and sugars. But what about protein? There is only one category listed on the food label. So protein must be simple to understand, right? Unfortunately it is quite a bit more complicated than that.

Please Note:

This post is advanced and intended more for the fitness professional.   A simplified version is in the works!