Jul
29
2015
Camp and Cottage Essentials
Going up north leads to fewer opportunities for tissue rehab, exercise, and healthy eating. Here's what I bring to camp to get the job done....
Personal Training
Mar
02
2015
You’ve Changed But Your Body Hasn’t
Three things I see people doing wrong, when making an effort to change their body composition. Free advice!...
How to Heal an Injury ASAP
The physical, nutritional, and mental stuff you need to know to get back in the game as soon as possible!...
I’m on a Boat! (and how my fitness played out)
Before the trip, I had two things on my mind: the exhilaration of the inland seas we call Great Lakes, and my above-average body composition (and how would it stay that way, on such a long vacation, accompanied by drunken sailors)....
How Heavy Do I Lift?
The weight should be so heavy that you can only move it 10 times in a row. (10 "reps" in gym-speak). If you can lift it for more than ten reps, it's not lifting weights any more; it's cardio. Cardio is good for you but we're talking about lifting for now. That said, technically, there are many set and rep ranges. 5 sets of 5 reps 4 sets of 15 reps 3 sets of 8 reps But you can get great results with three sets of 10 reps and it's easy to...
Kb Jumps Around, Gets Fitter
They say the older you get, things get taken from you. Unless, that is, you learn new modalities like soft tissue release and joint distraction. Then you can get older and be better at the same time. I found this out at Fuel Training Club, and I want to pass along the cool stuff I've learned. In January 2014 I started training there 4-5x a week. Full disclosure of affiliation: we promote each other, so technically I am bias. But everything I'm writing here is true. It's intense lifting and cardio. Here...
Mar
10
2014
Running Ramp-Up
Running is great. Running too much too soon, will hurt you. Literally everyone in the health and fitness industry agrees on this concept, which rarely happens! If you didn’t run much this winter, here's a safe way to get back into it: Try running for a 30-60 seconds, and then walk 30-60 seconds. Repeat for 10-20 minutes and reassess how you feel over the next two days. If you didn't injury yourself, then run again a bit further or with shorter walking sets. The app "Couch to 5 k" might help you. Obviously the idea is to...
What I Learned About Fitness by Painting a Wall
To be a great coach, I have to relate to my clients. I don't struggle (much) with my fitness or nutrition anymore, so it's good to humbled in another arenas. It allows me to feel the frustration of learning, change, and set backs -- since that's part of transforming our health and bodies. What better way to dish up some humble pie than getting my ass handed to me in a DIY project. "What could be so difficult?" I thought. Well, a lot apparently. Here is what happened and why I think it was...
Jan
23
2014
The Other Benefits of Exercise (not fat loss)
I have a fairly-new client who always talks about how great it feels to exercise. I've heard this before (and of course felt it) but this ENTIRE SESSION was spent me listening to him go on and on about how amazing he feels. I couldn't get a word in! At the end I quickly gave him some new homework, but he had already got what he needed out of me -- someone to say, "I know, I've felt that, keep doing what you're doing." Because in his world, no one is supporting...
What’s a Tough Mudder?
A 16 Km trail run with about 20 obstacles; such as crawling under barbed wire, swimming, and dodging electrical shocks. The Toronto version is held at Mt. St. Louis, which one must traverse six times. It is not a race, but you can approach it that way if you wish. You are encouraged to help those around you (there was plenty of that going on). [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] One of the Obstacles[/caption] How Did I end up here? [caption id="" align="alignright" width="319"] Starting "Pen"[/caption] I was hired to train a team, and they...