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Relentlessly to Success or Injury?

It does not matter what your passion is. If you run, do martial arts, lift weights, it really does not matter. Some things will get you better and some things, well they will get you first hurt, then X (insert slow, weak, whatever is that you don’t want), consequently you will gain weight and be unhappy on the couch eating chips!

You might think I am kidding, hardly! Look at your history, that of your partner or friends. Now you can avoid that trap quite easily by training smarter not harder. Here is what you have to do!

  1. Vary the volume of your training. Don’t increase your training volume by more than 10% per week and use every 4th week as a week with lesser volume (not necessarily lesser intensity).
  2. Vary the intensity of your training. Your body appreciates a change in pace. If you are a runner change the goals for your runs, don’t always do the same distance, pace, etc. If you lift weights train in blocks. Train 4-6 weeks at a certain intensity (i.e. 5 reps w/ 2 min RI) then change it to something else, always depending on your goal.
  3. Change modalities by cross-training, changing exercises, etc.
  4. Don’t do trash training. You know what I mean, training to compensate for bad eating, “easy running days”, etc. Train with a purpose. Each workout should have your main goal in mind whatever that is. Ask yourself,  how will this training bring me closer to my goal.
  5. Be consistent, train when you said you would train and don’t double up when you missed a training. You are not stacking! It will lead into overtraining on the back-end.
  6. Injury – If you are injured don’t stop training unless it is medically required. You can keep training but you ALWAYS have to follow the paradigm: If it hurts don’t do it. Most of the time, ignoring pain and working through it does not make you harder, it just shows that you are not being smart. Your body gives you pain signals for a reason.
  7. Being smart and missing a training session because of injury or over-training does not give you the permission to eat crap. Sorry, because that is the time you really should eat well because your body needs it. You are what you eat, so if you eat junk….
  8. Have a plan in place. How do you know you are getting where you want to be, if you don’t even know what it is and what you need to do to get there? Yeah, I know you know what you need to do, blah, blah, blah. Stop making excuses, sit down and make a plan, lay out a strategy. Would you lend anyone money who cannot show you a good business plan? So why do you think you are going to achieve anything without planning for it?
  9. People don’t matter. If the dude next to you lifts more weight, good for him. If the gal runs 30s faster per min/mile good for her. Stick with your plan.
  10. Rest, rest, rest! Your body does not get stronger, faster, bigger, skilled without rest. Training is a catabolic process, rest is the anabolic process.
  11. 8 hours of sleep….I know you don’t have time for that. Then make time. What is important to you? Get off the couch, walk away from the TV and go to bed. Your family, you and your co-workers will thank you if you have more sleep.
  12. Be relentless, be relentlessly smart. Rework your training plan, review it. Have a professional help you. Most of the time it is the people who are persistent that succeed in our personal training and not the ones with the most talent.

 

Michael Anders

Head Trainer Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting

Get back on the wagon and have more training success than before!

You fell off the wagon with your nutrition and the wagon is nowhere to be seen?

How many of you have had that experience? I have personal training clients tell me: “Michael, I am just tired and don’t want to count calories, anymore. I don’t want to do this or that.”

What has happened? Just like a train can get off the track, so can you. Among the things that can get you off track are special occasions (weddings, birthdays, deaths, etc), events (your partner left you, stressful situation at work), sleep deprivation (changes your hormone levels) or maybe a partner that brings in bad foods that you would not have otherwise.

Now, the good news: You can change that. You can get back on track, stronger than ever. Do this and you will reach your true potential!

  • You have to recognize that you are responsible for yourself. That does not mean go out blame yourself, feel terrible and eat some chocolate to ease the pain. It is not about blame, but rather acknowledgement that you are in charge of everything in your life. If you don’t like it, then you can choose differently. If you don’t like the alternative, does not mean you don’t have it. You don’t have to eat bad foods, go to work, play with your kids, or do whatever. You are choosing to do so. This is a major paradigm shift for many of us. It empowers us, enables us to grow.
  • Get rid of blame. Like I said before, blame is crap and no one needs it. It won’t help you accomplish anything but feel bad and eat more junk food. Acknowledge that past decisions were as good as you were able to make them at the time and change them moving forward. Beating yourself up about it does not change the past. That is the concept of past, it is behind you, no change possible there, but the here and now, that is different.
  • Passion. Be passionate about who you are to become. You can see yourself as sporty and fit, as thin and athletic. Be like a child. Watching my son play taught me that he experiences excitement and passion for what he does. Imagine how you look like at your best. Did you notice I was not using future but present tense? Imagine it is in the here and now. Otherwise you are always “going to be” instead “being”.
  • The practical part. Make a ritual. Go to your personal trainer or your gym after planning everything out and workout hard. Give it your best. You will feel that if you work out this hard, then it is just not worth eating junk.
  • After you finished your workout go ahead and buy your groceries, tell your partner to leave the junk outside the door. Be firm. Remember how you felt after that workout? Imagine the transformation your body is going through.
  • Cook the most of your meals on your weekends. Cook several at the same time. Buy veggies that you can steam in a microwave at work. Voila, you have your lunch. Pack your snacks into little zip-lock bags. It really helps!
  • Make sure you have enough protein and fat in your diet. Both help you feeling more satisfied and full. Who in the world wants to be hungry all the time?
  • The spike of junk food. Do you remember the last time you had French fries you were craving? Do you remember how good they felt when you had them? How did you feel afterwards? How did you feel getting on the scale? Junk food might provide you with a short feeling of satisfaction but that is nothing compared to the great feeling of looking the way you want and being as fit as you want to be.

You have taken responsibility for your actions, you are working out and you understand the value of what you do. Now do it and kick some butt. Show naysayers that you can do it. Just because your family or friends think that you are an idiot for getting up early or not going to the After-Hour Party, does not mean that you are. YOU ARE WHO YOU WANT TO BE.

You will be healthier, fitter and more energetic. Who wants to be average in life? You? I doubt it; maybe you accepted it because you think you cannot be any other way. But by now, you know that you have a choice, you have the choice to be better, be more!

Sorry for going off on a rant here. But I think you guys can really do it.

If you need any help with it just call me or email me.

 

Michael Anders

 

http://charlottepersonaltrainer.org

Personal Training helps your brain!

Were you aware that exercise helps your brain? Yep, it sure does. There are several studies out there that describe this in detail.

Here is what you need to know:

  1. Exercise boosts brain power, studies show that exercise improves circulation to the brain. That little fact is important since the brain represents only roughly 2% of our weight but consumes 20% of the energy that we spend.
  2. Cardiovascular activities like walking are an integral to our brain development. Walking or running 3 days a week for 20-30 min seems to boost brain power and cuts back on the chance that you will get dementia and or Alzheimer’s by 50-60%
  3. Research shows that exercise improves thinking skills.
  4. The improved circulation caused by exercise helps remove free radicals from the brain, as well as stimulating the protein that keeps connecting neurons

So it would definitely help you if you moved more. Get a treadmill desk for work, run or walk 2-3 times a week and if you really want to do some good, go lift some weights on top of it. Our personal trainers are excellent at helping you with your training.

 

Give us a shout,

Michael Anders

www.charlottepersonaltrainer.org

Movement Preparation: How to Warm Up

Guest post by: Nick Outlaw

Nick is a CES, Corrective Exercise Specialist, who is the owner of OutlawFit LLC

Now is a great time to be alive!  We live in a moment when most, if not all legitimate, experts in Exercise Science agree on something.  They agree on a specific order of the process on how one should prepare for their workout.  Major Sports Medicine agencies such as NASM, along with world renowned coaches use the same order to prepare their athletes and clients before each session and NOW you can warm up like the pros!!

I am going to give you a basic overview of each step in this process.  If you would like more info or would like to learn from a local expert you can contact Michael Anders (Charlotte, NC) or myself (Raleigh, NC) and we would be happy to set up an appointment for one of us to go over this with you in person!

Movement Preparation Process

  1. Soft Tissue
  2. Stretching
  3. Activation
  4. Dynamic Warm Up
  5. Workout

Both Michael and I take each new client through an initial series of assessments to determine overly active and weak areas.  From the information we gather, we are able to prescribe specific overly active areas to foam roll (soft tissue), stretch, and inhibited/weak muscles to activate that are unique for every individual.  We create a customized program from start to finish, meaning we prepare every one of our clients for their unique needs.

  •   Step one, soft tissue work, can be done with several different tools such as a foam roller, lacrosse ball, and two tennis balls taped together to name a few.   Depending on the area that you are doing your soft tissue work will help determine which tool you will use to release your “trigger points” (overly active areas).   For example, a lacrosse ball works better on the bottoms of the feet than a foam roller.  Once you find the trigger point, usually a very tender point, you will press and hold the tool against the area for at least 30 seconds and up to 2 minutes until the area releases.  You will continue this process on the major areas of the body that negatively impact your quality of movement.
  •   Step two, static stretching, will be done on the same muscles and areas that you released during step one with specific stretches for those areas.  Each static stretch should be done for at least 30 seconds on the overly tight muscles to return them back to their proper length tension ratio.
  •   Step three, activation, will be done on the antagonist, opposing, muscles of the muscles that you foam rolled and stretched.   A very simplified example would be foam rolling and stretching your hamstring, then activating your quadriceps muscles with leg extensions.  We also use activation exercises to “turn on” the muscles that are “off” and are not firing like that are designed to.  One of my favorite activation exercises that I frequently use with clients is a lateral band walk to activate the gluteus medius.
  •   Step four, dynamic warm up, is a series of exercises that mimic the main exercises of your workout.  The goal of the warm up is to “warm up” your core temperature and to get you moving through your fullest range of motion of the exercises before you increase your intensity.  An example of a warm up for squats would be to start with a semi squat and gradually increase your range of motion each rep until you have reached your full range of motion or natural depth.  Also, it is common to complete a general warm up in this phase as well to ensure your core temperature is up, e.g. jump rope, jogging, biking for 5-10 minutes starting slow and gradually increasing your intensity.  A good rule of thumb is to warm up until you have broken a light sweat.
  •   Last, but not least is your workout routine.  If you have completed the previous 4 steps properly, you will move and feel your BEST!  We design each client’s movement preparation and programs based of their specific needs and abilities.  You will be surprised what a detailed analysis will uncover about your movements.

I hope that this helps and gives you a better idea of the proper way to get ready for your next performance!!  You can contact me personally at Nick@outlawfit.com

Weight loss without muscle loss

Hey guys, we have a people ask our personal trainers  over and over on how to lose weight without losing muscle mass. It does not matter if you are male or female. Strength training is an integral part of your program, if not the most important one. If you are a female, don’t worry, you are not going to bulk up but going to have nice defined muscles you can really show off.

 

I hope this video was informative. Just let us know if you have any questions. We would love to help you achieve your fitness goals.

 

Michael Anders

Head Trainer Shape Up Fitness & Wellness Consulting Inc.

 

Iron Mountain Ultra Marathon 2012 – Race Report

Good morning,

It is the end of the recovery week from the Iron Mountain Trail Run. My wife and I drove up there on Friday, August 31st. We wanted to check out the site and enjoy the race instead of driving in the middle of the night. As we drove deeper and deeper into the Appalachians, my sense of doom increased proportionally to the height of the mountains. I was not so sure all of  a sudden, if I had trained enough on hills. Charlotte is hilly but that is that. These were the mountains, different ball game altogether.

The race started at 7 am on Saturday and it was an awesome atmosphere. The runners were helping Kevin Townsend, the race director, carry his gear and put up the finish line gate prior to start.

We started in a small “mass start” since there were only around 200 runners doing the various options, 16 mile, 30 mile and 50 mile. The night before I had talked to a couple of runners who had mentioned that it was difficult to make the cut-offs for the 50 mile option and some of them had not made them the year before. Because of that, I started out faster than originally planned. After the first steep hike for 4.5 miles and a 1700 ft. climb starting after the first aid station I realized I had pushed too fast, out of fear of not making it. I had not trusted my race projections.

I found a couple of runners to run with until mile 16, the turnaround point for the 30 milers. Going forward from here I ran primarily alone. The scenery along the trail is just gorgeous but you cannot sit back and revel in it, since the terrain is tricky and challenging with plenty of rocks to stumble over or stub your toes. After 16 miles my feet in their vibrams were used to the rocky terrain and did not complain anymore. At mile 22 I realized I had not hydrated enough and the faster pace earlier had really taken a toll on me. Re-hydrating, I moved on to a long downhill section. Here is where my lack of mountaineous training showed me my limitations. I started cramping badly around mile 25, despite sufficient electrolytes and magnesium. My legs were shot and I had a 1200 ft. climb  for 2.8 miles ahead of me. It was well worth it. My feet loved running through the creek, and again, I was overtaken by the scenery and the lush mountain woods and small waterfalls. Having to give way to a couple of horses, did not bother me or my legs for that matter, they wanted the break.

At the aid station on mile 32 I was not so sure I was going to finish the race but my wife, who did an incredible job at crewing encouraged me and I trotted on. At this point uphill was walking only and even on flat or downhill parts I had to walk at times due to cramping. Back at Skulls Gap at mile 37, I had the cramps more or less under control by running about 160 steps and walking 40. There was no way I would give up now. The crews at the various aid stations did an impeccable job at helping runners. By now my stomach did not like GU anymore, but the recovery drink with some protein that my wife had given me worked well for a good while. At the aid station at mile 43 I had a potato, cooled my head off with some water. My pace at this point had dropped to about 13:30-14:50 min/miles. I really enjoyed the race but i was dreading the last couple of miles from 46-48. The descent was hard and grueling at this point and dangerous with tired legs. I slowed down a little bit to a 14:30 min mile pace not wanting to risk my left bruised heel or my right ball of the foot that got bruised along the way at some point. Once I hit the pavement back in Damascus I picked up the pace to a 7 to 7:30 min/mile and miraculously my legs did not cramp up anymore. I finished my first Ultra Marathon strong in 10 hours and 34 min and am excited about my results. If I had stuck to my race plan I might have been able to finish it in 10 or 10:15 hours. I definitely revamped my training plan and it is including more downhill and uphill sections than before. 

Overall I have to say this race was awesome. It was my first 50 mile Ultra Marathon and it did everything I wanted to get out of it. It pushed me to the limit physically, mentally and emotionally but all the while I would say I enjoyed it and I might come back next year.  I think I was the first runner to complete the 50 mile part in vibrams.

Thank you to my wife for an awesome crewing and to Kevin Townsend and his people for putting on a great race. These pictures and more were provided by

Antony Corriveau and his crew

Beth Minnick (awesome volunteer)

Michael Anders

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