At various times, I sometimes will find myself watching Golf on TV.  Now, after having played a fair amount of golf at one time, I can appreciate the patience and skill that is involved in the game of golf.  If ever you wanted a lesson in humility, take up golf.  Just when you are starting to feel really good about how your game is progressing, this sport has a way of setting you back on your heels and dealing out a  small lesson in patience.

I know a lot of people don't consider golf a sport at all and I am sure there was a time when I really didn't think of it as a sport either; but more a game.  But knowing what I know now about exercise physiology, anatomy and the science of human movement, I realize that golf very much is a sport with a skill set that must be developed in order to compete and remain injury free.  It is no secret that Tiger Woods takes his game preparation very seriously.   Not only does he spend hundreds of hours practicing every facet of the game itself, but he also strength trains in order to develop proper movement patterns, correct muscle sequencing during movements,
increase core strength and remain injury free.  It is fairly obvious looking at him that he is “in shape”.  You just need to look at his biceps under his golf shirt to know that this golfer takes his conditioning very seriously.  In fact, I have heard that he bench presses over 400 pounds.  Not to shabby for a golfer, eh?

I think the professionals golfers have realized that it just isn't more time on the driving range or putting green that will improve their game, but time spent in the gym improving their bodies will have a direct impact on the performance of their sport as well.  This is something we can keep in mind for all aspects of life.  It  doesn't matter whether you enjoy the odd game of golf at a little Par 3 course or take on the full size professional courses, you will still benefit from the a well conditioned, strong physique.  Whether you hike the Grand Canyon or walk to your local grocery store, the stronger and more conditioned you are, the easier and more enjoyable these activities will be.

I am sure we all know personally or know of seniors who are vibrant and active well into their golden years.  We all also know of individuals much younger that struggle to enjoy even the basics of daily living.  The time you spend now to take care of your bodies, strengthening the muscles and bones and working hard to keep it healthy will pay off as you look toward your 5th, 6th, 7th decade and beyond.  I for one must strive to maintain a strong and healthy body.  After all, I want to make sure I will still be able to be instructing  someone how to do Bulgarians squats for sometime to come.

Till next time,
Narina
“Monitoring, Mentoring, Motivation”

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Last year I attended a Personal Training Business Summit.  Although it was a while ago, some recent press about personal trainers has prompted me to write this article.  One of the interesting discussions that cropped up at the conference in New Jersey is the subject of expertise in our field.  Then again this morning, I was on line talking with a group of trainers in the Eastern U.S.  This subject came up and the proliferation of fitness
material available not only on the Internet but also the T.V.  In fact, I find myself sometimes mesmerized by fitness gadgets and the latest exercise DVD on the Shopping Channel.  So, what constitutes an expert?  Good question.

At the conference, there was a lecture by Mike Boyle, strength coach from Boston.  Mike Boyle has been in the strength and conditioning field for many, many years coaching athletes at all levels.  One comment he made
came from the book Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell.  In his book he studies exceptional people (smart people, rich people  successful people).  In his book he talks about the 10,000 hour Rule.  Studies suggest that the key to success in any field has  nothing to do with talent. It's simply practice, 10,000 hours of it — 20 hours a week for 10 years.

I think that is so true in almost anything. Yes, an education is needed and it is important to have done the studies and learned the theory, but it is also necessary to get in the trenches and put in the time honing your craft.  What do you think?  So, naturally when this comment was made at the Conference I had to think about my own time spent training clients.  So, I had to calculate it out.  Over the past 9 years, I have approximately 23,760 hours put in “in the trenches”.   Does that make me an expert?  I don't believe so, but I think I am a bit more qualified than the trainer who trains a few clients for a couple of months and puts out a DVD or book.

So, if you are reading articles in magazines, newspapers or see something of interest on TV, consider the source first.  Is their  opinion based on science and research with years of practice, or are they spouting off the latest trend to hit the fitness world?

Also, in Mike Boyle's lecture he passed along some quotes from Bill Gates.  I thought they were so appropriate and wanted to share just a couple of them with you. 

1)  Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity.  Your grand parents had a different view of flipping – they called it opportunity.
2)  Life is not fair – get used to it.
3)  Life is not divided into semesters.  You won't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helping you find yourself.  Do that on your own time.
4)  Television is NOT real life.  In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.

So, that being said and with my coffee cup empty,  I'm off to find another little job to do.

Till next time,
Narina
“Monitoring, Mentoring, Motivation”

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For today's topic I wanted to talk about exercise and how working out will help your moods and mental state.  I came across this article from the American College of Sports Medicine.  The article talks about boosting your mood through exercise.  Please have a read.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/151571.php

A lot of us will arrive at the gym stressed or anxious about things going on outside the gym.  The gym is a perfect place to allow the stressors of life to flow away, at least for an hour.  The one aspect of a difficult workout is that it forces you to focus on your activity and what you are doing.  This allows your brain to take a rest and allow the physical part of you to take over.  I realize that we all have stressors in our lives.  Life, in general is very busy now.  And I am sure there are days when the last thing you want to do is come into the gym.  But, it is the best thing you could do.  No matter how you feel, you should make every attempt to get in your workout.  Free your mind and strengthen your body.  You will be so glad you did and feel so much better.

In 1997, I lost my first husband to brain cancer.  For two years prior to that he fought a valiant battle through surgery, radiation and eventual recovery, only to have the cancer return.   No one goes through this battle alone, and there were so many times when the last thing I wanted to do was go workout.  But, I needed a physical release. It was vital that I maintained my own health throughout his ordeal so I would be able to take care of him.
So, I rarely missed workouts during that time.  Not all workouts were great; some were downright pathetic but at least I got in there.  It was the best thing I could have done.  That 60 minutes of workout time allowed me to rest my thoughts, workout as hard as I could that day and leave feeling re-energized and more able to handle the stressors that life throws at us.

So, the next time you are feeling that you just can't bring yourself to workout, do it.  You will be so glad that you did.

Till next time,

Narina

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It is that time again.  The time for another season of American Idol.  The one thing that I am always reminded about when I watch young performers, is their determination to "make it".  For each of them I think their idea of success may differ.  Some want to be a star, some just want to be able to write and perform their music and be able to support themselves.  But, the one common thread that flows through every successful person whether it be the music industry, business or fitting into a bathing suit for summer, is the relentless determination and focus that they put forth. 

These people have a goal in mind.  They know what they want to achieve.  They may not always know exactly how to get there.  And, they do not achieve their goals alone.  There may be derailments along the way, obstacles in their path and they may lose sight of their vision at times.  No one who has succeeded in their chosen field has done it without sacrifice and pain.  But, the difference between achieving your goal and not, is
the ability to pick yourself up, brush off the dirt and start again. 

For everything we do in life, there are ups and downs.  There are always new challenges to face when trying to achieve a goal.  It is how you face these challenges that will make the difference.  I have certainly had my challenges the last 9 years.  Walking away from a secure Nursing job to follow my dream of opening my own business was at times terrifying.  I had many challenges along the way and I made a lot of mistakes.  But, I never looked at mistakes as something bad.  I looked at each mistake as a learning experience.  I know, it sounds corny.  But, most mistakes are what you make them.  I have always tried to turn each error in judgment, each mistake into something positive.  What can I learn from this?  How can I prevent from repeating this?  Instead of creating negativity, I try to turn lapses, errors in judgement into a positive lesson.  And, I think this can be carried over into almost every aspect of your life.

Success or failure, and life in general is what we want it to be.   Turn negatives into positives.  Don't let anyone or anything derail you from your path.  You are in control so make it happen.

Till next time,
Narina
"Monitoring, Mentoring, Motivation"

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Today's topic came about as I was reading some articles/blogs from other trainers/coaches.  It seems the same questions come up over and over, and fitness professionals all over are answering the same questions.  I thought I would address some of them here.  We have certainly talked about a lot of these items in past newsletters, so it may be a reminder to some of you.

1) Women Will Not Get Bulky Lifting Weights:

It amazes me people still believe this old myth.  I would think with all the literature out now and how common strength training has become for women, this fallacy would have disappeared.   Let me reiterate one more time – women will not get big and bulky from lifting weights unless that is what they specifically want to do.  It takes hours and hours of very heavy weights with lots and lots of volume to pack any muscular weight on a female frame.  It just is not physiologically possible with general fitness programs.   With general fitness populations and even most sport specific training, there is simply not the workload necessary to create that physique.  If I see one more woman in the public gym doing squats while holding a 3-5 lb dumbbell, I won't be responsible for my action.  So, let's put that myth to bed once and for all.  If you are weight training three times per week with emphasis on total body movements, you will not get bulky.  End of story!

2) Low Calorie Diets Don't Work:

Human beings require a certain amount of kilocalories daily just to keep our bodies functioning.  All our cells require nutrients to survive.  Drastically cutting calories to under 1000 calories  a day, not only will stall any weight loss attempts but is dangerous to your health over the long term.  There are certain weight loss clinics that advocate very low (700-800 calorie) diets.  Along with the very low calories, they advocate vitamin shots and no exercise while you are on their program – does it make you wonder just how healthy the program can be?  As a minimum, take your weight in pounds, multiply by 10, and that is the minimum calories you should consume per day. Example, a 150 pound person would eat 1500 calories/day minimum.

3) Let's forget the "Fat Burning Zone"

On most cardio machines today, you will still see the graphs depicting heart rate training zones.  This is another example of  old technology and outdated science.  It is amazing how many trainers are still coaching aerobic sessions to be in the 60-70% heart training zone.    It is not that the "FBZ" doesn't have a place.  It most certainly does.  It is a great start for those that are new exercise and especially if you are new to aerobic style
workouts and not accustomed to interval training.  Low training thresholds can also be beneficial for recovery workouts.  But, if you have an exercise history and are accustomed to working out, then the FBZ is not the most beneficial form of aerobic training.  For fat/weight loss, aerobic workouts should be high intensity and short.  Heart rates should be in the 85-95% of MHR and done in an interval style with a very short, high intense portion followed immediately by a lower intensity recovery portion.  For example, 30 sec to 1 minute high intensity followed by 2 minutes recovery, repeated for 20 -30 minutes. – Workout done!  Please remember also that aerobic training or cardio work (more correct phrase would be "conditioning work") does not have to entail a treadmill, elliptical or any other typical cardio machine.  Some examples of conditioning workouts could encompass kettlebell swings, jump squats, skipping rope, mountain climbers.  There is a endless variety of exercises that could be strung together to make up a conditioning workout.  Conditioning workouts are all about the intensity and getting your heart rate elevated. 

To recap today's newsletter:  Don't be afraid of lifting weights.   Eat a healthy diet with adequate calories.  High Intense Cardio Conditioning = mean, lean body built for summer shorts and t-shirts.

Till next time,
Narina

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