Archive for the ‘Strength Training’ Category

Strengh Training to Reduce Pain? You Better Believe it!

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010

I have written before about the many benefits of regular strength training and a new study illustrates those perfectly. Many of our clients at GH came to us experiencing front knee pain. Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome is “a condition in which pain occurs at the front of the knee during or after exercise…women are more likely to be affected than men, and symptoms usually start during adolescence when participation in sporting activities is high,” ScienceDaily. Typical care for this syndrome involves avoiding activities that cause pain and to rest when pain is experienced. A study in the Netherlands compared two groups of people with Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome for 12 months, one engaging in typical care of rest and avoidance, the other engaging in supervised exercise therapy. The recovery rates were better for the exercising group, with the authors of the study asserting that “supervised exercise therapy for patellofemoral pain syndrome in general practice is more effective than usual care for pain at rest, pain on activity, and function.”

Here at GH we have helped many people with knee pain regain confidence in their body and movement. Remaining active is achievable for almost anyone, with the proper modifications and progression. As a GH Trainer, I spend a great deal of time planning and customizing workouts to modify for various conditions, including knee pain. Chronic aches and pains can easily be used as excuses not to exercise, when they should be interpreted as signals to do exactly the opposite! Regular strength training can help to lessen aches and pains, regain strength, improve coordination, restore confidence, and boost self-esteem. The next time your knee hurts, think of the pain as your body’s way of telling you it needs a GH workout!

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Are You Mentally Prepared for A Good Workout?

Sunday, June 13th, 2010

One of the benefits of strength training that is oftentimes ignored is mental toughness.  As people, we focus on the physical and physiological benefits of strength training as they relate to our appearance and general health or well-being.  It is true that strength training provides improves our health, well-being, and appearance, but it also has psychological benefits.  Clients at the GH School for Healthy Living know that results require focus and hard work.  It is very true that what you get out of your workout matches what you put in.  Working hard and concentrating on your experience ensures you get the best results from your training session.  Your session is also a chance to connect with yourself.  When those last three or four repetitions seem impossible, digging deep within yourself and finding both the physical and psychological strength to complete the set is very rewarding.  This brings us to the issue of exertion. 

Exercise requires exertion.  To ensure maximum results while preserving safety, it is important to regulate your level of exertion.  One of the best ways to do this is to use the Rate of Perceived Exertion scale, or RPE scale.  The RPE scale simply rates your perceived level of exertion from 1 – 10.  The number 1 represents how you feel when you are laying on the couch, while the number 10 represents the effort of an all-out 100 meter sprint.  Cardiovascular exercise, such as running or walking, should feel like a 6 – 8, depending on your goals and fitness level.  Ask your GH educator about what RPE number is right for you so that you can get the most out of your aerobic exercise.  Strength training rarely feels like an 8, but is a helpful tool in learning about your exertion level and a great way to communicate your experience to your trainer.

Before you start that first set at your next session, think about it as a chance to reconnect with yourself and the potential within.

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Pregnancy and Exercise a few basics!

Thursday, February 25th, 2010

A few reasons to exercise during your pregnancy:

No kankles for you! Exercise during pregnancy improves circulation which helps with constipation, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, leg cramps and ankle swelling. Exercise can alleviate back pain through strengthening the back.

 You’ll be able to tackle the day! Energy can be restored! Exercise can help some of the lethargy caused by pregnancy; baby-growing takes a lot of energy!

You better get some rest now before the baby comes! Exercise will tire you into a deeper more restful sleep.

Your husband will like you a little more! Mood swings no more! Exercise will help stabilize mood and self-image, helping you adjust to your new body!

You will thank yourself in the delivery room!  Shorter labor? Sign me up! Exercise will also give you more endurance for your labor, will decrease the time in delivery room, and the recovery will be much quicker!

Baby will thank you! Exercising during pregnancy will maintain your muscle strength and tone, making it a little easier to carry your baby in your arms post-pregnancy! And the weight will come off a little easier.

Om! Include relaxation and stretching before and after your exercise! Recovery is just as important as the workout itself!

Things to check after you find out you’re with child:

What’s up doc?  Make sure you are cleared to exercise. This shouldn’t be a problem if you are currently exercising, but its always good to check. If you are just starting an exercise program, start very slowly and try not to over exert yourself.

Tone down the intensity not your muscles! Keep exercise controlled, stay within your recommended heart rate level to ensure the baby is getting the oxygen needed. Do not exercise to exhaustion or breathlessness. When you exercise, the blood flow shifts away from your internal organs (including your uterus) to give your muscles, lungs and heart more oxygen. During the second and third, avoid exercises where you need to lie down on your back, this causes discomfort for you, and lack of blood for baby.

Watch your step! As the center of balance shifts forward, falls are much more likely! Joints also have more give during this time, as well. When exercising where comfortable clothing and footwear, make sure that your sneakers have good support in the ankle and arch! Avoid activities that put you at additional risk for slips and falls. And avoid contact sports! And stay within your comfort zone.

Don’t overheat! Avoid exercising in hot weather. Hot or not, take frequent breaks and HYDRATE!

Don’t over do it! Listen to your body; it will let you know when to reduce level of exercise. If you experience any of the following stop! And contact your doctor immediately! -unusual pain or shortness of breath, dizziness or lightheadness, racing heartbeat or chest pain, fluid or blood leaking from vagina, uterine contractions, muscle cramps

All this and more can be found at http://www.americanpregnancy.org/pregnancyhealth/

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Build more life tissue!

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

What is life tissue? Muscles. More muscles mean more blood, more blood means more circulation and …you get the idea. Muscles are important. The more life in our muscles, i.e. size, strength, density, stamina, the better we feel about ourselves.

Building muscles is very important to every aspect of life, for everything you do you need muscles. For everything you don’t do you need muscles too. Think about it, wouldn’t you like to burn more calories reading, or watching a movie? Having more muscle mass means you are burning more calories at rest! Having more lean muscle mass will increase your metabolism, and you will burn more calories at rest as well as daily activities.

Going for a walk with a friend, playing with the kids, taking the stairs, even putting the groceries away is easier with more muscle mass!  With age our metabolism slows and we lose muscle mass, you can reverse these affects by including more weight bearing exercise into your routine.

Building and maintaining muscles is important for various reasons, more muscle tissue increases the production and need for more blood, with more white blood cells you have a more antibodies and you will have a larger defense system and more resistance to viruses and bacteria.

Your kinesthetic awareness will also heighten. You will move more smoothly through your daily routine, your balance and coordination will improve drastically! By raising this awareness you will also be challenging your mind in ways it hasn’t been challenged recently or ever! Moving your body through the different exercises not only pushes your brain to think about and focus on the muscles but strengthens your mind to also think of where it should be in space, a concept often forgot when thinking of the importance of exercise. Yoga is a great example of this concept, and strength training will help you develop the muscles necessary!

Having more muscle mass will also help reduce the risk of injury, the muscles will do a better job of supporting the joints and the exercises that build the muscle, weight bearing, will also help increase bone density.  If you do unfortunately get injured, you will have a faster recovery time.

Your energy will increase with more lean muscle mass. You will be more productive at work, you will have less sick days, you can turn them into well days!  Your confidence will skyrocket, clothes will fit better, and posture will improve. Who wouldn’t want to build muscle mass and life tissue in their body? Want to workout? :)

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A New Year, a New You, a New Way

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

Reflecting over the past year of diet fads and thinking about the New Year’s resolution season here and almost past, I think that it would be nice to address some of these fads. Here at GH Personal Training we like to remind our clients to focus on something to improve that’s achievable. Talk to your personal trainer about what you have in mind. Your personal trainer will be able to find and develop a program for you to reach that goal. Now should be the time to start your resolution, all holiday stress should be out of the way, holiday bills almost paid, family back on schedule and holiday snacks out of the house!

Being a personal trainer in Chicago and only have swimsuit season for a few months we want to deter those seeking that sleek body this swim SEASON, but encourage those trying for the YEAR!  If you want to improve your body you should start by improving your health first, the body will follow, by making simple healthier decisions. You have a choice with each decision you make, life is about choices. Your personal trainer will to direct your attention the right way. If you chose to make a commitment this New Year’s to better your health, make sure you are making the little choices that will lead you to the goal. Let’s try a new way with the resolution this year.

Make sure you eat your healthy filling breakfast, oatmeal with fruit or egg whites with veggies, instead of grabbing that donut! You will reap the benefits of that choice all day! You will crave more nutrient dense food throughout the rest of the day; you wouldn’t want to ruin the progress you started out with. You’ll choose that apple and unsalted nuts you brought to work instead of the candy in the machine, and you’ll feel amazing after having that healthy snack instead of the crash from the high sugar content of the candy. As a personal trainer in Chicago, these winter weather months really try to entice you into more starchy carbs, and comfort foods, but instead stick with your nutrition plan and when the workout comes along you can focus on building muscle to do the work instead of working off those extra carbs to maintain your physique.

Some fads insist on all liquids or all grapefruit as a way to diet, this is great if you want to lose two pounds this week and gain 10 next week and starve and be irritable! A better decision is to increase water intake and increase the amount of meals and decrease the portion size. This not only helps you make healthier choices but boosts your metabolism. If you are regularly feeding your body in small nutrient dense meals, small salad packed with vegetables, your body will love that it is getting fed more often and will not store the food as it would if you skipped a meal. Skipping a meal is much more harmful than you can imagine.

Some people may eat a less healthy meal and then decide to compensate by skipping the next. Your body will create starvation hormones which will hold that meal, instead of taking the nutrients and letting it pass. By eating small healthy meals 5-6 times per day will help the body take what it needs and let the rest pass, not holding on to more than necessary. When making this decision to better your health and eating smaller healthier meals more often you will notice that your body will truly enjoy the good you are providing. And will start to shift, and this change will become easier and easier.

Exercise is a great compliment to changing your diet. By eating healthy and exercising your body’s metabolism will increase in great amounts. Building muscle will increase the amount of calories burned at rest and you will doubly benefit, fueling your body with great nutrients and healthy calories as opposed to empty calories, those you get with out any gain in nutrients.

This year you if you are thinking of changing something you should choose something with long term benefits and let it change your lifestyle. It may be an absolute shift in your life or just a small change. But remember that you have a choice each time you walk past the cookie jar. Put the bowl of grapes, or fruit bowl right next to it, it will be harder to reach for that cookie! This will make your personal trainer proud and shift their focus from your nutrition plan to increasing your muscle size.

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The Importance of Strength Training

Friday, January 15th, 2010

Did you know that the more muscle mass you have the higher your metabolic rate is at rest? With strength training it is possible to increase your metabolic rate by 15%. That means you will burn more calories while sleeping!

According to the CDC and Tufts University, exercises have been shown to increase the strength of your muscles, maintain the integrity of your bones, and improve your balance, coordination, and mobility. In addition, strength training can help reduce the signs and symptoms of many chronic diseases, including arthritis. Here are some interesting facts to get you motivated today:

- Did you know that with reduction in muscle from lack of use, bone reduces too? Strength training can and will help maintain or improve your bone density.

- Did you know that muscle is more dense than fat? 5 pounds of fat is more than 3 times the size of 5 pounds of muscle. You may weigh the same, but you will definitely lose inches, fitting into your skinny jeans!

-Did you know that exercise can help improve your mood and self esteem? During exercise endorphins are released. Endorphins are chemicals, released during exercise that act as a natural pain killer and give a sense of euphoria. This not only helps your mood but makes you feel better about your self.

-Did you know that exerting energy can actually bring you more energy? Through exercise you can increase your stamina, reducing fatigue.

-Did you know that putting physical stress on your body can help you get a more restful sleep? Exercising reduces insomnia, and restlessness.

-Did you know that back pain can be reduced or diminished without pain medication? Working out and strengthening your back muscles through proper technique can build the muscle and reduce the pain caused by stress placed on the muscle.

-Did you know that by working your muscles you can work your heart muscle? It is very important to work your heart, this will make it stronger. Strength training will reduce your risk of heart disease.

-Did you know that exercise can reduce the signs of aging? Weight gain and muscle loss are great signs of aging. Strength training will increase muscle and help you’ll lose weight. The typical adult loses one-half pound of muscle per year after 20, that’s 5 pounds by the age 30! 20 pounds by age 60! When you lose muscle, fat often takes its place in the skin, 20 pounds of fat could result in a gain of 6-8 sizes! Yikes!

The best way to start a strength training program, is to identify achievable short term and long term goals, consult with your doctor, celebrate achievements but not with food! Take a vacation, go for a hike!
Starting a fitness program may be the best gift you can give yourself. It will help in the long run, as well as, in your daily routine.

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