CREATING ROUTINES WITH WEIGHT LOSS COLUMBUS

Most of us approach weight loss pretty ambitiously. We decide to clean out the pantry and resolve to hit the gym six days a week. Or maybe we resolved that a few months ago and our weight loss efforts have petered out. Sometimes, starting out slowly is really the way to success, and that’s certainly true when it comes to losing weight and establishing a healthy routine.

Our Bodies Love Routine – Use It To Increase Weight Loss Columbus

As humans, we develop habits because they make life easier. When you have a habit, you don’t have to think about that component of your life anymore—you just do your usual routine. For example, if you always go home, feed the cat, and turn on the television, you no longer have to think about what to do when you get home from work. But what happens when you change that routine? First, your body and mind may feel confused, and it’s easy to drift back into your regular routine. Change too many things at once, and your body can go into a total tailspin!

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Introduce Change Gradually

Rather than completely upending all your routines, opt to change one element at a time. This strategy will allow you to focus wholly on each change and really make it a part of your lifestyle.

  • Commit to two days a week at the gym. Two days a week is a reasonable place to start, and it’s enough activity to jump-start your weight loss Columbus.
  • Once that’s done, start making dietary changes. Again, introduce one change at a time to avoid shocking your system and undermining your own success.
  • As you get more comfortable with a healthy routine, up your days at the gym over time until you reach the desired number of workouts per week.
  • Eventually you’ll also get comfortable even with your fitness routine itself. When this happens, you’ll want to shake up your routine with new activities or a different approach to fitness.

We also offer personal training and some amazing bootcamps and contests as well. To stay up to date on those, please follow us on Facebook. 

WHO NEEDS THAT CORE WORKOUT, ANYWAY? YOU DO!

You do! Most of us aren’t so fond of core workouts: they’re really challenging, and we don’t usually see immediate benefits from them. But working your core is such an important part of your fitness routine! If you’re not already hitting your core when you visit the gym, here are a few reasons to start:

Your Core Workout Helps Flattens Your Belly

You can’t “spot treat” areas for weight loss…but you can tone the muscles to create more definition as you lose weight all over your body. As you get closer to your weight loss goals, you’ll notice a difference in the way your muscles look—not just the size of your body. Tight abdominal muscles also reduce that belly pooch that so many of us are looking to banish at the gym.

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Other Physical Activities Get Easier

Our core muscles do so much for our bodies, and most sports call on our core strength pretty consistently. As you strengthen the muscles of your core, these other activities will get easier. Who’d have thought that your gym workouts would make those recreational soccer games easier, right?

Posture Will Improve

You may be wondering why posture matters, but great posture helps keep our bodies healthy and happy. Most of us spend all day slouching forward, throwing off our alignment. Over time, our shoulders get stooped, and some of our core muscles may even atrophy. Core exercises can help reverse this, preserving and encouraging your body’s natural alignment, which prevents a wide variety of injuries.

Stability & Balance Will Improve Too

The muscles in your core are true workhorses, holding your body up all day long and enabling most of our movement. If they’re not all strong, they can’t work together as effectively. So incorporate exercises that target your hips, pelvis, back, and abs. Improved balance and stability means we’re less likely to hurt ourselves during a wide variety of physical activities, from simply walking down the street to doing a challenging weight lifting session.

Many core exercises don’t require special equipment. If you travel often or simply don’t always have the time to hit the gym, a core workout is the perfect solution. Your personal trainer can recommend moves that target different core muscle groups. Before you try flying solo, however, ask your trainer to watch you perform each exercise. Getting your form correct ensures that you get the most from your workout.

Not sure where to start? Your personal trainer is the best person to recommend a core workout that will help you reach your fitness goals. For the best results, you’ll want to integrate core training with strength building and cardio.

Give us a call and we will be able to set up a time for you come in for a free consultation!

HOW CAN A HEALTH CONSULTANT COLUMBUS HELP WITH WEIGHT LOSS?

We strive to offer the public what they need when it comes to working with a health consultant Columbus.

Our trainers work hard to help you with your weight loss in every aspect. The first step to our program starts by getting to know your personally.  First, we learn your time schedule, so we can set up the perfect time for you to start you gym routine.  We then look at your home environment (we don’t get too personal, we just need to know a few things) but a little knowledge of your stress level, physical condition  can help us better access your success rate.

We care about your nutrition and we will take a look at the foods you bring in the house, advise you on what to dispose of and what to keep to make it easier to learn good eating habits.  We will ask you to give us an example of what kinds of foods you eat for breakfast, lunch and supper. We will also need to know if you are a junk food eater and if so, what do you snack on.

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Do you like fruits and vegetables? If so, which ones do you prefer.  These questions are important to determine how we can help modify your diet.

We will also ask you things like whether or not you are a nighttime eater.  If so, we will help you choose a lighter, healthier snack that will digest easier during the night.

Once we get all of this information, we can then start creating what is the best and easiest way for you to work out and diet.  With a Columbus health consultant, you will feel like you are the only person in the whole gym they are focused on; you become number one once the routine gets underway.

The health consultant will start you off with some cardio to loosen your muscles and to get your heart rate a little higher then usual.  We will gradually work you into a full work out routing which will keep you on track.

After the first three or four weeks, you will start to notice the benefits that comes with having a trainer, you will start to sleep better, feel better and look better. So when asked if a health consultant from Columbus can help you with weight loss all we can say is seeing is believing.

What are you waiting for? Join us now.

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PERSONAL TRAINING: HYPERTENSION

High blood pressure is a scary medical condition, but there are ways to lower your blood pressure without medication. Personal training is one the best ways to learn how to safely exercise and improve your health. Hypertensive clients can benefit from the one-on-one training, as well as the other perks of personal training. There are three specific ways that exercise can help lower your blood pressure, and diet is the last tip for making a difference. Personal training can help you maximize all four tips.

4 Ways Personal Training Helps Manage Hypertension

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  1. Stretching. Stretching is important for increasing your range of motion and flexibility. Personal training teaches you how to stretch properly and safely. You should always stretch before a workout since it starts to warm up your muscles. Stretching after a workout is just as important, and is one of the best ways to keep from being too sore the day after a hard workout. The calming, repetitive nature of stretching can be a good match for hypertensive clients. Yoga stretches can be especially helpful.
  2. Cardio or aerobic exercise. Aerobic exercise is also known as cardio because it helps the cardiovascular system. This is especially helpful for clients with hypertension. Personal training will help hypertensive clients learn to exercise in their target heart rate range for safe cardio. Proper cardio exercise is performed at 60-70 percent of your maximum heart rate. Personal training Columbus can help you become aware of when you have reached your target, and how to keep your heart rate there. Good examples of cardio exercise are swimming, jogging, skating, and biking. Gradually, cardio exercise can improve your blood pressure, and breathing.
  3. Strengthening Exercises. These exercises are repeated movements that slowly strengthen your muscles. Just like stretching, these exercises can be beneficial for hypertensive clients. Personal training gives you the tools you need to properly perform strengthening exercises. Safety in exercise is always important, and personal training can teach you how to safely exercise while lowering your blood pressure.
  4. Diet. A big part of lowering your blood pressure comes through your diet. While exercise is important, diet can make an even bigger difference. Personal training gives you time to discuss and plan with your trainer what diet changes to make. Planning ahead is going to be one of the best ways to help lower your blood pressure by diet. Meeting with a personal trainer can give you time to plan ahead and make healthy choices. Lowering your sodium intake is a good place to start, so begin by reading labels and opting for lower sodium options.

Hypertension is a serious issue, but personal training can help you take control before resorting to medication. Call a local health club and meet with a trainer to discuss how personal training can help you lower your blood pressure. Begin changing your lifestyle with a healthy diet and safe exercise. You will soon be on your way to a healthier, happier you!

TOP TIPS FOR PREVENTING BACK PAIN WITH EXERCISE

Your back is quite the workhorse! It holds you up all day long, so back pain can really put a damper on your daily activities. And back pain is one of the leading medical problems in the US; four out of five people will miss work or other important activities due to back pain or injury.

Most back pain isn’t caused by serious injuries. It’s  just living our everyday lives: slouching over our desks, skipping our gym trips and forgetting to stretch when we do workout. Note that two of those habits are related to our physical fitness! Your workout routine can reduce your risk of back injury and eliminate back pain.

Reducing Your Back Pain

  • Incorporate stretching: When muscles are tight, they’re more prone to getting pulled. Most of us are good about stretching our legs and arms because it’s easy to feel when we’ve pulled a hamstring or calf muscle. But pulling a back muscle may feel more dull so you might not realize that the pain is due to a pull. The lesson: even if you don’t really “feel” it, take some time to stretch every day.
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  • Work that core: Often we focus on strengthening one specific set of muscles when we want to prevent injury to that area. But we also need to remember how our muscles work: different groups oppose each other, so they work together as complements. For example, your abdominal muscles oppose your back muscles, so these two muscle groups actually both help support your spine. That means you need to work your entire core not just your back muscles.
  • Don’t forget your hips: While your back and ab muscles support your spine, your hips and pelvis provide a different kind of support, stabilizing your torso. Talk to your personal trainer about including exercises and stretches that focus on your hips and pelvis. These moves will help correct imbalances in the body that can lead to back pain.
  • Use proper form: One of the leading causes of workout injuries is failure to use the right form. Every workout move has a proper form, not only to protect you from injuries, but also to ensure that you get the full benefits from the exercise.  Take some time to learn the mechanics of your muscles and skeleton, so that you can better understand the purpose and mechanics of individual fitness moves.
  • Avoid overexertion: The other leading cause of workout injuries, including back problems, is overexertion. It’s often tempting to step up our workouts when we get bored or feel like giving ourselves a bigger challenge. But starting an aggressive workout routine or being to ambitious when you increase your workout intensity leaves you primed for back aches and pains.
  • Talk to one of our personal trainers about putting together a workout routine that will help you combat back pain. The right exercises will protect your back from minor and major injuries over time.

    You can also follow us on Facebook to get workout tips and motivation!

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    5 FITNESS MOVES TO DITCH AT THE GYM

    If you watch people at the gym, it seems like there’s an endless variety of moves and exercises. That’s certainly true, but not all fitness moves are created equal. Some workout moves are tricky to perform because they require precision form. Without that, your workout is less effective and you even increase your risk for injury.  If you’re a fan of these moves, you’ll want to rethink your routine and talk to a personal trainer about correcting your form or finding alternative exercises.

    Five-Fitness-Moves-to-Ditch-at-the-Gym

    • Lazy leg presses: Leg presses are actually a fantastic exercise. That is, when they’re performed correctly. Most people put their feet too far apart and bend their knees too deeply. Both of these mistakes throw off your alignment, placing more stress on your knees and back. During a leg press, your knees should never bend deeper than 90 degrees, and keep your feet about shoulder-width apart or slightly less. Ask your personal trainer to watch you do some leg presses and correct your form if necessary.
    • Any and all upright rows: This move requires you to pull something up close to your chin. Anytime you perform that action, you compress the nerves of your shoulder. Instead of this move, try front lateral shoulder raises. For these, you bring the weights either out to the side of your body, or out in front of you. If you start with the weights at your sides, never lift them above your shoulders. Your personal trainer can also recommend other effective moves to replace upright rows.
    • The treadmill slouch: The handlebars and console of the treadmill and other cardio machines simply beg us to lean over them—especially at the end of a long workout. But once you slouch, you reduce the effectiveness of your walk or run because your body no longer has to support its own weight. You also pull your spine out of proper alignment, placing undue stress on your vertebrae. So do like your mother said, and stand up straight!
    • Lat pull-downs behind your head: Most of us don’t have the shoulder mobility to perform this move correctly. As a result, we end up compromising our stance and our spines to do the exercise. Meanwhile, we also increase our risk for shoulder impingement and torn rotator cuffs. You can still do lat pull-downs, but bring the bar down in front of you, no lower than your breastbone. Keep your grip wider than your shoulders. You can similarly adapt military behind-the-head presses.
    • Squats on the machine: Many people use the Smith machine for their squats. But the bar doesn’t have any give, which often forces our bodies out of alignment. And chances are, your stance is also too wide on this move. Squats are just as effective without the weights, so learn proper form without the machine. Start with your feet shoulder-width apart and your back straight. Sit down and move your hips back as if you’re sitting down in a chair. Keep your weight directly above your feet throughout the exercise.

    For answers to your questions about these and other fitness moves, talk to your personal trainer. Before you start any workout routine, or even if you’ve been working out solo for a while, it’s a great idea to get insight and guidance from a trainer.