Parks N' Recreation

  If you've read my previously blog posts, then you know that people generally workout less in the summertime. This may seem quite contradictory as summer time is generally when people wear the least amount of clothing, but I don't make the rules: I merely find ways of moving around the rules- my teenage angst lives on!!! Take that Dr. Fisher!

A common excuse I hear from clients is "It's so nice out...Ya know? I don't want to be inside" ( I literally hear those exact words with little to no alteration EVERY time). 

There is a happy medium here, however, as Vancouver is blessed with beautiful and well kept parks that are actually here to be used! Many Vancouver parks even have fitness circuits, tracks, stairs or at the very least benches that are great for a summer routine. Added bonuses to a outdoor routine are vitamin D, renewed enthusiasm for your fitness and the added self-confidence which comes from taking your workout to a whole new playing field (ahaha..I kill me).

As I mentioned, some parks in Vancouver have their own circuits, such as Carnarvon Park. If you are keen on doing a park circuit, try this workout;

Warm-up:

-Lap around park perimeter ( 5 out of 10 exertion)

Workout:

-Complete circuit once through 

-1 minute rest

-Lap around park ( 7 out of 10 exertion)

-Complete circuit second time through

-1 minute rest

-Lap around park (8 out of 10 exertion)

Cool Down:

Walk around Park to cool down

The above should take you about a half hour to complete. 

If you aren't doing a pre-planned circuit, create your own using what you have and adding in laps around the park intervals style.

In the worst case scenario you'll only have a bench, so lets work with that:

Warm-up:

-Jog around perimeter of park ( 5 out of 10 exertion)

Workout:

-Step ups on bench, leading with left leg for 15, repeat with right

-Push-ups with feet on the bench, hands on ground

-Tricep dips off the edge of the bench

-Jump-ups onto bench ( Jumping onto bench from ground, landing with soft knees in a squat)

-Mountain Climbers 

Lap around park 7 out of 10 exertion, 

REPEAT TWICE!

Being a natural Vancouverite, I find myself getting the rainy day blues in a major way, or even the sunny day blues sometimes.

The energy resurgence and release that comes from a new outdoor workout is a great measure in self-care and overall self-awareness. Hopefully this suggestion will not only have you feeling great about yourself, but great about your city too!

Truly, madly, deeply,

Sasha

 

I'm With the BAND....

     Hello All!

     It appears here in ol' Vancouver, sporadic monsoon season is upon us ( lasting for the next 365 days), so that begs the question- what do you do when it's raining so heavily that leaving your home could cost you an eyeball? Well..you can workout at home of course! And that blog title isn't because I'm an ex-groupie ( or am I?), it's because the band is honestly, a kick-ass piece of equipment that you can tailor an entire 30-60 minute workout with.

Small, inexpensive ( $5-$15) and incredibly diverse, the band ( also known as the resistance band) is often seen being used by personal trainers and fitness professionals to get their clients long, lean, solid muscles-without adding bulk. The reason the band is so effective is because of its continous tension on the muscle(s). While performing an exercise with the band, your muscles are taken through their entire range of motion while struggling against its' opposing force. The difference between the bands' effectiveness and that of free weights, is that with free weights, you struggle against the weight during the exertion phase ( ie- dumbell raise, upward) and comply with gravity, relaxing the muscle on the downward phase.

To make things simple and lose the trainer jargon, let's  for example, say you are doing a tricep kickback with weights for 1 minute- you do your kick back ( 2 seconds) then you return to your starting position(2 seconds). At the end of the minute, you've worked your triceps for 30 seconds, using the rest of the time to return to starting position between repititions.

Now, lets say you are doing a tricep kickback using the band- both the kickback phase and the return phase are "time under tension" (engaging the muscle), so at the end your minute you have worked your triceps for the whole minute!

Now- the band has a plethora of exercises besides the Plain Jane bicep curl and tricep kickback examples I gave. As I mentioned before, you can devise a whole workout around the band, and because you wont have to trot between equipment, you can cut down your workout time! An efficient 30 minute workout with the band with have you saying      " The gym is thatta way.. Actually I lied, its over there... Actually, there is no gym here I just love my arms" in no time!

Here is a link to some amazing band exercises! Scroll down and there is a cartoon fella' doing the exercises, along with a guide to what band you should be using.

http://www.sport-fitness-advisor.com/resistance-band-exercises.html

Love love love and some almonds,

Sasha

Pump up the Volume ( err..Intensity!)!!

 Hi Everyone,

Like those purple jeans you bought when hipsterness was at its height-working out can lose its lackluster and appeal-even results that you were once seeing slow way way down.

A great way to start seeing results again or avoid the stall altogether, is to add cardio-bursts to your strength training. By adding these cardio intervals, you'll be doing a few things: getting your cardio throughout, cutting down your cardio time, participating in high intensity bursts that call for immediate muscle action ( and thus, more defined muscles) and burning as MANY CALORIES AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE.

For my clients (and myself) I always start a workout with a 7-10 minute warm-up. If I'm doing intervals I'll start with strength training for around 10 minutes followed by the treadmill/bike/ rowing machine for 3 minutes. In these interval bursts, I  alternate between 30 seconds of ' OMG this is really fast' and 30 seconds of rest for the three minutes.  What exactly is "OMG this is really fast"? Well if your exertion was expressed in a scale from 1-10 ( 1 being staring at a tree and ten being uprooting a tree with your bare hands) , this " OMG" 30 second burst would be an 8-9/10 and the "rest/recovery" 30 seconds would be about a 2-3/10. 

After the three minutes is up, give yourself 1 minute ( having a wrist watch helps) to breathe and recollect yourself, then go back to weights for 5-10 minutes-repeating the cardio bursts 2-4 times throughout your workout.

Just a tip: stay in close distance of the machine and strength training equipment you are using- trust me- the back and forth can be discouraging!

Have a great weekend everyone!!

Love and more love

Sasha

7 Day abdominal challenge!

  Contrary to popular belief, personal trainers are also human. It's really easy to mentally make a note to 'start doing 500 situps like Britney did when she was hot', but, to actually do it is another thing. What I find helps me and my clients is to set small goals, and when you are setting a goal for the fast acting muscles in your core- you'll notice results... quickly.

What I'm challenging all of you to do, starting now- is make a commitment to yourself for the next week. Set aside a time of day where you'll do abs, or, even just that you'll do them-just for the next 7 days. Perhaps you have a favorite TV show, or even just some nightly channel surfing that you engage in-perfect! When the commercials hit- you hit the floor. This or some other trigger to remind you ( because come on, life is hella busy) will be the porthole to your 4-d abs.

After you've decided that you'll be partaking in this, get right to thinking about which exercises you are going to commit to-just for this week. This plan will help eliminate excuses, and will just leave your brain out of the equation ( sans the counting part) when its 'crunch' time ( pun)!

I would suggest doing 1 upper ab exercise, an oblique exercise and a lower abdominal exercise. Wrap it all up with a plank ( 30 seconds to a minute) and you are set. Here is a link to a variety of ab exercises, that also points out what arena of the abs you are working ( ignore the advertisements!);

http://www.sixpacknow.com/preview3.html

In a week- you'll be looking AND feeling radical, partially because your abs are leaner and also, because you committed yourself to this. I'll commit myself as well- let me know how it goes!

  Good digestion to all,

Sasha

Summer Running tips

In honor of the recent Vancouver Sun Run ( which opens the gates for a slew of summer set distance runs), I'd like to address the daunting task of running.

Running is an amazing all over toning exercise and cardiovascular workout; it uses the legs ( largest muscle group and calorie burner) while engaging our abs and arms to keep us upright and finessing our lungs- the result is a lean body and a hip-hip horray attitude.

Like ants on a log, running doesn't get the credit it deserves. I have a clue as to why this is; we try to tackle running like it ain't no thang- hitting the streets in our kicks' only to be disapponted in ourselves 5 minutes down the road when we are gasping for breath and purple faced. Like anything in life, running needs to be approached realistically. 

Firstly, a slow, steady pace is needed. Though this isn't glamourous, you need to concentrate on a pace you can keep for 4 minutes at a time. Second, set small goals within your time frame to accomplish, ie- 4 minutes jog, 1 minute walk, 2 blocks on, 1 block off. You can even break these frames down further if you are just getting back into a routine, like 1 block on, 1 block off.

Though these sound like ultra mini baby steps, you WILL be able to keep moving for the half hour or so designated to your work-out... and that kicks ass.

Happy Monday,

Sasha

Fitness Schedule- Make yourself a weekly commitment!

Hi everyone,

I hope you are enjoying this fabulous weather! In Vancouver, the weather can be so sporadic that its hard to predict what we will be doing from day to day in terms of exercise. Though this is great as it keeps us on our toes, sometimes the rain or leisure of the sun can help shove our fitness into the back of our minds. Because exercise increases all of those feel-good nuero-transmitters we have in our brains, it's important to be consistent with it for an overall healthy lifestyle.  A great strategy to help with consistency, is keeping a fitness schedule in either your day-timer, or from a website printout which you can hang on your fridge. 

You can make a journal at the beginning of the week and follow through until the end. This eliminates the excuse making and also can contribute to a more balanced program. Because we are able to see how often we plan to do cardio, or say weights, we can get a sense of whether our program is balanced or not. If you are doing more cross-training than usual, perhaps you can squeeze in a yoga class instead one day-to help stretch out those tired muscles.

Here is a link for beginners who are just trying to make a commitment to themselves ( and good on you!)http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/lifehacker/2009/01/workout-log.png

Here is another link to a more advanced strength training log for moderate-advanced individuals: http://www.vertex42.com/ExcelTemplates/Images/weight-lifting-chart.gif

GOOD GLUTES TO ALL!

Welcome to the blog!

Hi everyone- First and foremost I want to thank you for taking time to look at my blog- it's actually here just to benefit you! At Discover Your Best Self, you'll find daily tips to keep your workout interesting and most importantly, challenging to your body. We've all been in that fitness rut which can sneak up on us just when we are hitting our stride. Before you know it, all your hard earned muscle and endurance has disappeared and you are left wondering how its happened again. Just like my business, Creative Custom Athletic Strategies, this blog focuses on lifestyle techniques which help you not only reach fitness goals- but make them stick for life. Just check out this blog before you hit the gym for daily enhancers and ideas. For those of you who are just beginning, there is lots of stuff here for you aswell! For every exercise or workout idea I give- I'll have a beginner suggestion and a moderate to advanced suggestion. I hope you all will enjoy this as much as I do.

In good health,

Sasha