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Many people leave out two very important parts of a training session: the warm up and the cool down. I'm not just talking about stretching. There are many types of warm ups and cool downs, which I will discuss.
I always recommend to my clients that they do a 5-10 minute warm up before engaging in their resistance training. I suggest doing steady cardio on their favorite piece of cardio equipment or something as simple as jogging or walking. Warming up has a variety of benefits including:
We have all been there. For some of us it is our daily reality. If we are planning on living a healthy life, there comes a time when we finally have to succumb to the fact that not everyone else has the same healthy ambitions that we do. That is when the struggle begins. It is so easy to stay on track when your family or friends are following a similar program as you. The true test is whether or not you can stay on track when everyone else is off track. This does not have to be a test that you fail. Here are my top tips to help you stay on track with a healthy diet, when you are surrounded by people and food who aren't that healthy.
Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet is good, right? Beginning an exercise program that improves your overall well-being is a great idea, isn’t it? Losing weight, feeling energized and happy, and looking better than ever should make you feel that you are on top of the world, shouldn’t it? You’d think so, but for some turning their life around and heading in that direction actually causes them a little pain along the way. I’m not talking about the pain of exercising. No, I’m talking about the emotional pain that some endure on their journey of becoming a better version of themselves physically.
When people set a goal to lose weight, the first thing they aim to change is their diet. They set out to eat as few calories as they can and rid their house of all carbohydrates. That is a recipe for disaster! Neither of those plans will make for long-term weight loss and maintenance.
I overheard a gentleman at my gym say, “If you want to get a tiny waist you don’t take a pill. There’s only one thing you can do: not eat. Or, you can stop eating carbs.” I had to bite my tongue to the point of pain to keep from correcting him. When preparing for my last figure competition, I ate at least 2,000 calories per day – including a ton of carbs.
Remember when I decided to get into shape and start crossfit? Well it’s been almost two months since my epiphany and let me tell you, crossfit is hard. And exhilarating. And tiring. And exciting. Did I mention hard?
Each time I leave class and am drinking my protein shake, I’m amazed at what my body can do. Last week I flipped a 225 lb. tire multiple times, did dozens and dozens of pull-ups and hundreds of squats (with weights!) and tons of other equally intense exercises. How is this even possible?! It’s crazy to me what our class will do in just an hour! And during each class, I get glimpses of the feats my future self will accomplish and I’m so motivated to push myself.
As I sit here writing this blog at my four-year-old’s dance class listening to the clack clack clack of a room full of tap shoes, I can’t help but think about how the Lord has blessed me. I have a loving husband, beautiful children, and my health. To top it off, I get to be a fitness ambassador for 1st Step. I am so proud of this opportunity that I donned my 1st Step ball cap at the dance class.
