Thursday, November 29, 2012

Why A Recovery Shake?


We are often asked what the one thing is that a client can do to improve their results. Assuming you are already working out 2-4 days per week, it would be to drink a Recovery Shake immediately following your workout. It's what you do outside of the workout that gets you results, and this is the first step of the process.

So what makes up a Recovery Shake?

A Recovery Shake needs to contain whey protein (preferably a whey isolate, not a whey concentrate) and a quick absorbing form of carbohydrate to replenish depleted glycogen stores. The best sources of carbohydrate are fruit and crushes fruit purees.

So just how will a Recovery Shake benefit you?

  1. Research has shown that individuals who drank a whey protein shake after a workout lost 9.2 pounds more than those who only dieted.
  2. Provides nutrients to the muscles after exercise to begin the repair process. And these nutrients do not just come from the whey protein, carbohydrates are also an important part of the Recovery Shake to help replenish glycogen stores in the muscles that have been depleted during the workout.
  3. Helps to build muscle tissue, which will increase metabolism and burn more calories.
Can you drink a Recovery Shake after your workout in place of a meal?

This a common mistake many people make. After your workout you want to drink your Recovery Shake and then follow that up with a meal. The Recovery Shake gives your body the nutrients it needs to start the recovery process, but a meal within and hour to an hour and a half later will give your body the fuel and calories it needs to function properly. The calories from your Recovery Shake go in and replenish nutrients lost during the workout, resulting in free calories.

What happens if you skip a Recovery Shake?

By skipping your Recovery Shake you put your body in a catabolic state, meaning muscle wasting. This catabolic state is the result of your body looking for nutrients to start the recovery process, but not having any available. So in order to get those nutrients your body breaks down muscle tissue to get what it needs. This is not a good thing as it results in your metabolism running slower which means less calories burned. And those less calories burned are not just during your workout it's less calories all day long. Research has shown that people who participate in strength training actually burn calories at an elevated rate for about 48 hours after their workout. The Recovery Shake maximizes this effect. 

So after your next workout reward yourself with a tasty Recovery Shake for working hard and sweating your hind end off for the past 45 minutes!

We Change Lives!


Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

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Starting December 1st we will be kicking off our "25 Days of Fitness Challenge". Each day leading up to Christmas we will have a different fitness related challenge for you to participate in. Each day you complete the challenge you will get your name entered into our fish bowl drawing for a cool prize at the end of the year, a DF staff member has to confirm that you completed each challenge. To compete all you have to do is complete the challenge for that day from our "25 Days of Fitness" Christmas Tree. Good luck!


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Christmas Gift Tree
We have teamed up again with Grieb Chiropractic to help change one family's lives by providing them with a nice Christmas. To participate simply take a gift ornament from our Christmas tree, let us know what you picked, go and buy the gift, and return it to Defined Fitness. Thanks in advance for all of your help on this.






Monday, November 26, 2012

Defined Fitness Tip of the Week - Tire Flips

This week we have three exciting NEW things for you!

First our video "Tip of the Week". This week we take a look at Tire Flips. They are definitely one of the more intimidating exercises, but it is all about technique, not strength. Most people try to lift the tire with their back, instead of keeping a flat back, lowering the hips and driving the hips forward and up by pushing their body weight into it. Watch here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkL7zadBlRk&feature=youtu.be

Number two, starting December 1st we will be kicking off our "25 Days of Fitness Challenge". Each day leading up to Christmas we will have a different fitness related challenge for you to participate in. Each day you complete the challenge you will get your name entered into our fish bowl drawing for a cool prize at the end of the year, a DF staff member has to confirm that you completed each challenge. To compete all you have to do is complete the challenge for that day from our "25 Days of Fitness" Christmas Tree. Good luck!

And #3, we will also be doing our Christmas Gift Tree again this year. We have teamed up again with Grieb Chiropractic to help change one family's lives by providing them with a nice Christmas. To participate simply take a gift ornament from our Christmas tree, let us know what you picked, go and buy the gift, and return it to Defined Fitness. Thanks in advance for all of your help on this.

www.definedfitnesswexford.com
We Change Lives!

Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

Thursday, November 22, 2012

7 Quick Workouts

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Today we have 7 quick workouts that you can do at home all you need is your own bodyweight or a kettle bell. Start with a short warm up (RAMP) and then choose one or two of the  workouts and this shouldn't take you more than 15 minutes. Do them all for a longer 30 minute workout.

RAMP
Knee Hugs x 5 ea.
Squat to Stand x 10
Toy Soldiers x 5 ea.
T Ext. Rotation x 10
Jumping Jacks x 10

Workout #1: Push Up/Squat Ladder
  -Start with 10 push ups followed by 10 squats, then 9 push ups followed by 9 squats, working your way down to 1 with no rest.

Workout #2: 100 KB Swings
  - These can be down two handed, single handed, or switching. Just get 100 reps.

Workout #3: KB Clean & Press Ladder
  - Start with 5 reps on the right followed by 5 reps on the left, then 4 and 4, 3 and 3, and so on. Once you get to 1 rep work back up to 5.

Workout #4: Leg Matrix
   - 24 squats, 24 alternating lunges, 24 alternating lunge jumps, 24 squat jumps, no rest.

Workout #5: 180 Degree Plank
   - 30 seconds on your right elbow in a side plank, 30 seconds in a front plank, 30 seconds on your left elbow in a side plank. Turn it up a notch and go for 60 seconds each position.

Workout #6: KB Complex Ladder 
   - KB Clean, Squat, Overhead Press 5 reps right, then 5 reps left, followed by 4 and 4, 3 and 3, and so on down to 1.

Workout #7: KB Stair Climbs
   - KB Single Arm Overhead Carry up and down the stairs one time on each side.
   - KB Single Arm Rack Carry up and down the stairs one time on each side.
   - KB Single Arm Farmers Walk up and down the stairs one time each side.

And here are a few exercises you can be thankful for us not including:)
 - burpees, frog thrusts, squat matrix, plank walk ups, and turkish get ups.

Have a great Thanksgiving and enjoy some turkey.

www.definedfitnesswexford.com
We Change Lives!

Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

Monday, November 19, 2012

2012 "Rock Your Jeans" Challenge Finale

Congratulations to all our this years 2012 "Rock Your Jeans" Challenge participants for working hard and fitting into their. This year was our largest and best challenge yet. Check out this years participants in their jeans at our finale on Saturday, November 17th.




www.definedfitnesswexford.com
We Change Lives!

Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

Friday, November 16, 2012

Holiday Fitness Survival Tips

It's has been said that the average American gains 10 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's, whether or not this is true I don't know. But, I think we can all agree that this time of year is much more challenging to eat the right things and keep up with our workout routine. So here are a couple of tips to help survive the holidays and make sure that you don't ring in the new year 10 pounds heavier.


  1. Set a Workout Goal. Over the next 5 weeks if you can set a goal of getting in 10 workouts, that's only 2 per week, between Thanksgiving and New Year's. Yes, there is going to be multiple Christmas parties and trips to the mall in this next month. But, if you can set aside two hours each week to focus on yourself and your fitness you will be able to maintain all of your progress. Is your schedule jam packed and can't make it to the gym? Try this quick 20 minute workout that will work every muscle in your body. Watch here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YTmvmn3BW4&list=UU7neZwgZRH6pVikuP7zTg7w&index=1&feature=plcp
  2. Start the day with a good breakfast. You may not be able to control the rest of your meals for the day, but you usually have control over what you eat at breakfast. This will also help to make all the donuts, pastries and other goodies that tend to show up in the break room this time of the year less appetizing. Start your day of with a couple of eggs with salsa, some nitrate free bacon and a piece of fruit and you will be good. Not to mention that you won't be hungry for a long time afterwards and will tend to eat less at each meal.
  3. Treat Yourself. Do not deprive yourself of your favorite holiday foods. If you like pumpkin pie have a slice, if you like egg nog have a glass, and who doesn't like stuffing with gravy. Indulging in these treats a few times over the next month is fine. It's what you eat in between that will get you trouble. 
  4. Maintenance is Progress. As many of you know we are finishing up our 3rd Annual Rock Your Jeans Challenge and many of the participants have lost 2 jean sizes over the last 8 weeks. Now the goal for them is to maintain that progress. Yes, some want to make more, but this time of the year is not always the best time to focus on making progress, realistically anyhow. So change your focus for the next month to maintaining all of the hard work you've put in over the past months and welcome the new year at the same place you entered December in a month ago. Then in January change your focus back to pushing forward and making progress. 

Pre-Black Friday Special - between November 16th and the 28th if you put $50 down on your Defined Fitness Club Bucks account you will receive 1 FREE shake on us! Put $75 down and receive 2 FREE shakes on us!!

www.definedfitnesswexford.com
We Change Lives!

Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

Monday, November 12, 2012

Defined Fitness Tip of the Week - DB Combinations

This week we look at two combination exercises that will work your entire body in only a few minutes. If you are running short on time and need a quick workout, or travel on the road and only have a set of dumbbells available this workout will get the job done.

Watch here:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YTmvmn3BW4&list=UU7neZwgZRH6pVikuP7zTg7w&index=1&feature=plcp

This workout will take about 20 minutes with the RAMP included. Do 3 sets of 8-10 reps rest 30 seconds between each workout. Give it a try and let us know what you think.

www.definedfitnesswexford.com
We Change Lives!

Try Us for 30-Days of Personal Training for $49. Click here to get started today!

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Safe & Effective Core Training


Unless you've been living a secluded life under a rock, you probably know by now that you need to train and strengthen your core. The question becomes, "what is the most effective way to train the core?" Recently, I was having a conversation with a guy who had injured his back. His doctor's told him he needed to strengthen his core to keep his back healthy, but did give him any specifics. So following his doctor's advise he went to his gym and began to do crunches and oblique twists on a machine, after a couple of workouts his back was killing him. What happened? After all he was strengthening his "core" muscles,at least according to conventional wisdom and the diagram on the machine.

Your core is designed to resist spinal extension and rotation.
This is a common scenario. While many of the traditional core or shall I say "ab exercises", like the sit-up and crunch, focus on flexing the spine this is not how the core muscles are designed to work. One of their functions is to resist extension of the spine, rather than flex it. When you flex the spine in a crunch or sit up the shear forces placed on the lower back are above a safe level of force and over time will result in injuring the back. The second function of the core is to resist rotation of the spine. The joints of the low back do not allow for much movement when rotation and/or twisting due to their structural design. In order, for us to rotate and twist we need to get this movement through the hips and t-spine (upper back), not the lower back which is what the oblique twist machine does. Additionally, research has shown that planks create higher muscular activation and recruitment that sit-ups and crunches.

Sit Up Straight!
Remember your mother and grade school teacher telling you that? Well, like it or not they were right. Most people have weak core muscles due to poor posture, primarily sitting all day. When we sit for extended periods of time we tend to slouch and our pelvis rolls under and our shoulders roll forward. As a result we create tight muscles on the front side of our body and weak muscles on the back side. When we do crunches all we are doing is reinforcing the position that we are in all day long and is part of the problem as to why our core is weak to begin with. We need to strengthen the muscles of the upper back and glutes and stretch the front side of the hips and shoulders (hip flexors and pectoralis muscles) that are tight. This will result in better posture and improved core strength.

Perform activities that resemble everyday activities.
How many times have you heard the story of someone who bent down to put on a sock and their back went out? I'm sure more than once. It wasn't the sock that caused them to throw out their back, it was all the things they do each day with bad form and poor or improper movement. The sock was just, "the straw that broke the camels back," as the saying goes.

When we say to perform activities that resemble everyday activities we are not talking about exercise machines that isolate muscle groups, this will actually lead to the same problems. Rather, we are talking about exercises that require multiple muscle groups to work in unison with each, such as picking things up from the ground, carrying weight, squatting, and lifting something overhead. These are movements that everyone does everyday in life.

So what exercises should you be doing?
The list could be endless with variations, but a good place to start with is: Planks, Side Planks, Push Ups, TRX Rows, Kettle Bell Deadlifts, Goblet Squats, and Farmers Walk. All of these exercises will improve your core strength.

Exercise won't give you a six pack, that's nutrition.
Oh and one more thing. If you think all you have to do is exercise to get a six-pack think again. All the exercise in the world will not give you abs if your nutrition in not spot on.

We Change Lives!


Monday, November 5, 2012

Defined Fitness Tip of the Week - Correcting the Squat


The squat is one of the fundamental movements that everyone should be able to perform. This week we look at a few of the common trouble areas that people have with the squat and how to correct them and achieve perfect form.

Watch Here:

We Change Lives!

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To Better Serve Our Members...
We ask that if you schedule for any session (group, small group, or customized) please make sure you can attend. If for any reason you are unable to attend please cancel as soon as you know you will not be able to attend as to not block out other members who want to attend. And if you are planning on attending a session (group, small group, or customized) please make sure to schedule in advance so that we are able to have a coach ready for you and space in the session.

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Holiday Hours

It's hard to imagine that the holiday season is almost here, but it is. So we wanted to give you all a heads up on our hours for the upcoming holidays.

Thanksgiving
Thursday, November 22nd - Closed
Friday, November 23rd - Closed
Saturday, November 24th - Closed

Continuing Education - Tammy and Josh will be heading down to Atlanta the first weekend of December to spend some time learning from Rick Mayo of North Point Fitness.
We will be open:

  • Thursday, December 6th: 5:30 a.m. - 10 a.m., 4 p.m.- 8 p.m.
  • Friday, December 7th: 5:30 a.m. -11 a.m., 4 p.m. - 6 p.m.
  • Saturday, December 8th: 8 a.m. - 11 a.m.
      • *All Customized sessions must be schedule either Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of this week.


Christmas & New Year's
We will be open:

  • Monday, December 24th: 5:30 a.m. - Noon
  • Tuesday, December 25th: Closed all day
  • Wednesday, December 26th: Closed all day
  • Thursday, December 27th: 5:30 a.m. - 10 a.m.
  • Friday, December 28th: Noon - 6 p.m.
  • Saturday, December 29th: 8 a.m. - 11 a.m.
  • Monday, December 31st: 5:30 a.m. - Noon
  • Tuesday, January 1st: Closed all day
We hope you all have a happy and safe holiday season!