I Can’t Do It All- A Trainer’s Personal Challenge

I have to admit I’ve been slacking on my job lately. My personal life has been full with some unusual circumstances that have me doing many extra things and taking my precious work time away from me. I’ve felt challenged, sad but mostly just angry becaue I haven’t been doing my optimal job as a fitness pro.

I always spend extra time checking in on people, writing articles, coming up with blogposts based on my observations or just taking a moment to appreciate the awesome people I work with, train and teach. You all mean so much to me and make my job fun, challenging and ever-changing.  Thank you!

My sharing is an effort to show everyone that even those that appear healthy on the outside can be suffering from some major emotional stress and drama that will affect their inside. That, I’m afraid, is where I’ve been the past month. Sorting out my time to take care of granny and her needs, handling my business professionally (already covered how that hasn’t been going too well), managing my family and let’s not forget my own personal health and workouts.

Yeah, they’ve been hard to get to. BUT- I make them a priority because if I don’t I will be a wreck. The physical movement and exercise helps me let off steam, feel better and allows me time to think alone and sort things out. I know for a fact, if I didn’t have it, I would be just like the person who’s been giving me the most drama over the past month.

So, I admit it. I can’t do it all, but I want to. I’ve learned some valuable lessons this past month and have listened to my own advice many times. It’s easy to give up and not prioritize your health when life gets full of unexpected challenges. This should never even cross your mind. Also, learning to prioritize and let go of things you know you just simply don’t have the time to do. There is no need to stress over getting the laundry done or dusting…it will still be there.

Although my life has been a challenge, my efforts not to my standards and my house is a mess I still love my family, friends, work and outside interests. I’m hoping things will settle in the next few weeks and all the energy I’ve been putting toward personal will be back to professional.

Look out when this happens. Usually challenge breeds creativity and deep thoughts from me. Hope you are all ready for it!

Stay balanced and focus on your health!

Amy

PS- Did I mention my eating habits are pathetic..don’t forget good food breeds good brain and body activity. Coffee, candy and bread do not make a balanced diet.

5 Common Mistakes Men Make in The Gym

Continuing on my path of observations I have to include the male presence in the fitness facility. The last blog post was about the girls, but this one is geared toward the men who are regular exercisers in the gym. Although there are some similar things that both the male and female do, there are definitely some unique traits many men possess when they workout.

I should also mention, that there are some very well-rounded exercisers (both male and female) that have excellent workout programs and continue to make progress, change things up and are still seeing success with their goals. These blogposts are more just my keen observation on the more common reasons gym sessions are less than optimal for both sexes.

If you are a male who regularly exercises (3 or more times per week) do you take part in any of the following mistake activities when you workout at the gym or elsewhere?

1. Doing too much too soon- jumping into a two hour workout session that includes high intensity activities and large volumes of weight training is going to leave you sore as hell! While some delayed muscle soreness is expected it is important that men understand gradual progression by slowly adding more to the mix. Going from no exercise in 6 months to 2 hours of exercise in the first session is extreme and beyond most high end guidelines. Tone it down a bit!

2. Using less than optimal form or movement speed- more often than not too much weight is the cause of poor exercise performance. There tends to be a hang-up on “how much weight” one can lift, rather than how well the performance is. Injury risk is dramatically increased when poor technique or too fast of speed is executed. Ask a certified pro to help you gauge a proper starting weight and use correct form ALWAYS.

3. Not warming-up properly or at all- a proper warm-up is crucial to preparing the body for more vigorous activity, for lubrication of joints, for gradually increasing heart rate and improving the body’s ability to neurologically connect to muscles and movements. Jumping in at full speed or lifting heavy without warming up is also an excellent way to pull and/or strain a muscle, plus decrease activity potential as the body has not gradually worked into the higher intensity levels.

4. Ignoring the lower half and the trunk- Similar to how women will do tons of exercises for their problem areas in hopes to dissolve away fat, men seem to spend more time and energy building their upper body, arms and shoulders, but barely touching those highly important lower body muscles and their core. Neglecting any of the major muscles groups leads to imbalance, potential for injury and disproportion of the muscles in the body. Besides, you don’t want to be called “chicken legs” now do you?

5. Practically running away from the stretching area- very rarely do I see men finishing their workouts with appropriate stretching. Over the years this will take a toll and decrease joint range of motion, may lead to back pain, stiffness and a decreased ability to perform day to day functions like taking off your T-shirt. All the major muscle groups should be stretched at the end of the workouts and held for 15-30 seconds each.

Of course all of these mistakes have proper guidelines, activities and opportunities for repair. Seeking the advice a certified fitness professional or just making a conscious effort to heed some of the tidbits of advice I have offered will be beneficial.  Do your best to make adjustments, work efficiently and enjoy your workouts mistake free!

I’ll be watching!

In health and fitness- Amy