I'm Pregnant and Deadlifting All the Way to the Delivery Room (Part 2)

11.     Alyssa, you were working hard at TFL almost right until you went to the hospital to deliver. Did you experience any complications, hypertension, excessive water retention, anemia which could have been impacted by working out so late into your pregnancy? What were your feelings during those last few weeks before you delivered?

Al: Honestly, I felt like a whale. It was an awful feeling. You know that you’re pregnant but you still struggle with the fact that this is the heaviest you’ve been, nothing fits right. Not that you’re expected to fit in clothes that you wore before you were pregnant. That was hard for me because I had worked so hard to lose weight and then all of the sudden her I am 30 pounds heavier than when I started and it was just frustrating.

An: Not wanting to go out because she didn’t feel good, didn’t feel comfortable. She was afraid people would think she didn’t look good, ya know, “I don’t feel like going”.

Al: One night I think I changed like 4 times before we left, because I was like this doesn’t fit.

Yeah, like which stretchy pants or jeans with rubber bands can I wear? I can still fit into these!

Al: I avoided buying maternity pants for a long time. I said “I’m really not that big,” but you are, you need those pants.

An: And of course I would tell her she looks beautiful and she wouldn’t believe me. She would say “We’re not going anywhere!”

Al: He would say “You look glowing” and I would say “I’m sweating, alright, I’m not glowing.”

Well that’s the thing, you can’t see it or appreciate it. You’re going through this physical transformation, your hormones are going crazy, you want to kill people, you want to lay in the corner in the fetal position. There’s all these little things going on. But in fairness, there is like a glow, a glow about a woman who’s in the worst pain and agony in her life.

Al: I see it on other pregnant women. I mean, I see it when I look back at pictures of me, especially the baby bump photo shoot we did, I can honestly say that I see it then. And I didn’t notice it when I was in that moment.

12.   Angel you have been pretty consistent right along as well, did you see anything changing in your own routines?

An: Other than the frequency, not really. I just kept going at it.

Al: He was so scared to get fat. [laughing]

An: Yup, I kept rocking those bootcamps and strongmans, ya know?

13.    It’s D-Day, and by that, I mean it’s delivery day and things are moving a mile a minute. Where were you and what were you doing when the time came? I know much of it was a blur for me, but what do you both remember about going into labor and then the delivery?

Al: It was a Tuesday morning. He woke up to get ready for work, I didn’t have to be in to be until 3 that afternoon, so of course I’m going to sleep as long as possible. And I rolled over in bed and my water broke. So I get up and I’m like “Something is wrong.” I didn’t realize that’s what it was when it happened. And I ran into the bathroom and he’s brushing his teeth. He said “Are you Ok? Why are you awake right now? It’s 6:30 in the morning.” I said “Ummm, I think my water broke.” He said “Seriously? So I don’t have to go to work today?” Like that was your first response.

An: I hated that job so every morning I’d get up and under my breath I’d piss and moan. So I checked the bed and I was like “That means no work today, this is awesome.” Like you said, our minds were running a mile a minute, we didn’t have our hospital bag set up, didn’t have anything set up. So we had to scramble around the house, grab everything, did like buck-thirty (130) down 91 to get to the hospital.

Al: I called my doctor and she said she guessed she would see us in an hour.

Truth be told, even when your water breaks, you usually have hours to go. So you could have had a nice little picnic, ya know.

Al: We didn’t even have the Lamaze class yet, they were scheduled for that following weekend.

An: Palms sweaty, dude I was nervous as hell.

Al: And we got there and he tells the nurse we hadn’t gone to the classes. She says “Sweetheart, it’s ok, we’re still gonna let you have the baby.” [laughing]

An: I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, what am I supposed to tell her, I know nothing. You gotta coach me through this.

To be fair, I went to LeMans class, Lamaze class, not LeMans like the race cars, and it was still a blur for me. There’s nothing you can do, she’s pushing out a baby and you’re like “What do I do? What do I do?” I’m standing there watching, “Breathe, breathe, I can’t breathe, how am I telling you how to do this?” So things get a little too crazy, you didn’t miss out on much. The classes weren’t that exciting. So, natural birth?

Al: That was my original intention and I made until 6cm and the girl told me I wasn’t breathing like I should be, so if I really want to do this the natural way like I wanted, I needed to control my breathing because I wasn’t going to be able to push when the time comes if you’re that stressed out. I said “What are my options?” She told me I could get my breathing under control and they’ll help me or I could get an epidural so I could have some time to relax and regain my energy. She told me I had 5 minutes to think about it before it was too late, so I was like “What do I do?” I’m looking at him, and he says “It’s obviously your choice. You do whatever you want but remember what your original goal was and if you don’t think it’s going to be possible, there’s no shame in getting an epidural.” I said, “Fine, we’ll do the epidural.” Complete 180. But I wanted to eat, I wanted to drink and of course they don’t let you drink anything. And this guy shows up with a buffalo chicken wrap and some Cheetos and I’m like “Really? What is wrong with you?” [all laughing] I couldn’t even have one Cheetoh because I’ll throw it up and so I get to watch this guy eating everything I want to eat right now.

14.     ESPN does a feature called inside the numbers and I like to recreate a similar run down if you don’t mind: How long was labor? Height/weight/APGAR?

Al: Labor was 10 hours with an hour of pushing. He was 5 pounds, 8 ounces, 18 ½ inches, so he was little peanut but he was 4 weeks early so that was to be expected. He had the cord wrapped around his neck and they didn’t know until he came out. Of course, NICU gets called down and they want to see him right away. I didn’t really get to hold him at first, I got to hold him for maybe 10 seconds while he was all wrapped up. And then they took him off and said if I wanted to go see him, I’d need to be able to get up and go to the bathroom by myself. Well, I got up because I wanted to go see him. My legs were still tingly but at that point it didn’t matter because I just wanted to be near him.

If it makes you feel better, I came out with the umbilical cord around my neck and my face was purple and look how I turned out.

An: I saw that and inside I was freaking out and outside I was like ok, come on, everything is cool.

Al: He got an 8 on his APGAR the first time and then a 9 after 10 minutes. They were pretty impressed because he was early and most premature babies don’t score that high so I was happy.

We’re gonna get personal. Total weight gain?

Al: I was 130 before I found out I was pregnant, lost 6 pounds in the first trimester, and that day I was 165.

An: I gained none. [all laughing]

Except for when you ate that buffalo chicken wrap and the Cheetos. So total weight loss since?

Al: I’m now back down to 134 so I’ve got 4 pounds left a year later. So I can’t complain. I don’t really know where it is because I fit into jeans I couldn’t wear prior. Whatever, I don’t care, it’s just a number at the end of the day.

15.     Unless you are dealing with a newborn and all the changes that come along with that experience, it can be really difficult to understand just how demanding having a baby can be. What do you guys see as the biggest hurdle moving forward regarding motivation and consistency once you realized that Alexis is the primary focus?

An: The biggest hurdle for me is time. Especially with the job and overtime and callouts on top of the home stuff like keeping the house clean and food prep and taking care of this guy. Finding time for the gym is tough, actually finding time. And then if you do have time, you have a short window, so you have to get it in. We try to set things up and it falls through.

Al: We’ve noticed some of our friends who don’t have kids give us the hardest time about going out. I don’t have the time for that, they’ll figure it out when they get there.

An: And that’s the thing, we were always able to go out with friends or out to dinner. It’s like, yeah, I want to be able to do that but now I just want to get home and spend time with this guy.

Al: You just want to be able to relax with the family and hang out and make dinner. He’s never gonna be this age ever again. No offense but I’d rather be hanging out with him.

16.   Most recently, I have seen you guys switching off between consecutive classes, like the Alyssa at the 4:30 and Angel at the 6pm large group classes. Is this the most recent adjustment you’ve made to put in the work? What is the plan moving forward?

Al: Staying in shape is important to both of us, so if we don’t have a babysitter it’s still something that we want to be able to do. Instead of worrying about who is going to watch him and forget it, neither of us will go. We just figured, I’ll take one vehicle and you can meet me here with him, and we can swap off and I’ll see you after. It’s what works for now until he can entertain himself while we both work out.

An: I wish I had more time but it is what it is for now.

17.     We have a few expectant mothers and fathers at TFL right now and it’s something that always presents a unique challenge, but especially so when it’s your first. I also know that every experience is different. You guys are now a year into that experience. What is your advice to those people on or about to embark on a similar journey? How do you see exercise fitting in to your role as a parent? Do you think he would benefit from joining the community at TFL someday?

An: I see it as I want to be the best dad I can for this guy. So I hope that he sees us parents working out to get him into being active and not be that kid sitting in front of the t.v. playing video games all day and not being healthy. I want him to be active like us. I hope that hits home with him.

Al: Being healthy and active is invaluable. I think if you can teach that to them when they’re younger then they’ll just see it as something that they do every day, not something that they look at as a chore. It will be something that he hopefully enjoys like we do. It will just be second-nature.

An: When he gets older, I want to be able to beat him on the basketball court fair and square.

Well, that’s all the questions I have for you both. I’m glad that others at TFL can really benefit from hearing your thoughts and I really appreciate you taking the time to sit down and share some very personal experiences with me. 

I'm Pregnant and Deadlifting All the Way to the Delivery Room (Part 1)

As many of you have noticed over the past few months, we have had several new additions to the TFL family. Of course we’ve had many new members, but I’m referring to the babies some of our proud TFL parents are having and are preparing to have. We thought it would be a great idea to interview some couples because their experience is an important one. Our lives are very busy and the arrival of a baby can be especially challenging when trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The stories shared by two couples can hopefully inspire us to continue on a path to wellness, while introducing our children to vital healthy habits. The staff at Train For Life would like to thank these brave couples for their candidness in allowing us the opportunity and we hope you enjoy reading this intimate glimpse into their lives.

Alyssa and Angel

1.     Hi guys, great to sit with you both. First, why don’t you tell us a little about yourselves for everyone who doesn’t know you already….

My name is Alyssa, 24 years old. Originally from Holyoke, moved to Southampton when I was 6 and I’m back in Holyoke with my lovely fiancé and son. I’m attending Mt. Holyoke to complete my Master’s Degree in teaching and I’m student teaching in English at Holyoke High School.

I’m Angel Maldonado, born and raised in Holyoke, MA. I’m an apprentice lineman for Holyoke Gas & Electric, this is my first year so I’m attending school for that. I live with Alyssa and the little guy, the little terrorist [laughing].

2.     Ok, that’s kind of why we’re here, the little terrorist, huh? Well, I want to congratulate you on officially joining the ranks of the parents club and I guess I’ll start off by asking how is that going?Al: It’s insane…

2.     Ok, that’s kind of why we’re here, the little terrorist, huh? Well, I want to congratulate you on officially joining the ranks of the parents club and I guess I’ll start off by asking how is that going?

Al: It’s insane, but it’s a good insane.

An: It’s hectic. Every day is different, no set schedule, everything is up in the air basically. But it’s awesome, I wouldn’t change it for the world.

Al: I wouldn’t either. Not having a schedule drives me crazy sometimes but it is what is and you fit in what you want to fit in and go from there.

3.     As a member of the parents club myself for many years, it’s totally an honor to welcome people to the club, it’s a nice membership to belong to. I recall the last couple of years being a whirlwind for you guys. You went from pregnancy to labor in the blink of an eye it seemed, and then Alexis was here before we all knew it. Now he’s one! Do you remember what was going on until you discovered you guys were about to have a baby?

Al: Oh my God, well I had a job that I absolutely hated. I was actually told we weren’t going to have kids without help. So that was kind of a shock when all of the sudden I was like “Ok, we’re gonna have a child, we’re gonna do this!” I just remember coming out of the bathroom to show him and his dad was helping him set up the cable line in our bedroom. And obviously we don’t want to say anything yet and his face was just stunned. His dad comes around the corner and asked “what’s the matter?” We said “Nothing! We’re fine!” So it didn’t really set in until the first ultrasound and even then it was so surreal until I was 6 or 7 months along and I had this giant belly, bumping into stuff.

An: I couldn’t wrap my head around the whole idea, and all of the sudden, it’s happening, and it’s like “Oh my God, it’s really happening!”

4.     The big day comes when you realize “Wow, we’re having a baby!” Can you talk about what that moment was like?

Al: Even then, the day I went into labor, I thought “I’m not ready for this. Ok, we’re doing this today [laughing].

An: Like she was saying, they always told us we would need help. So I was thinking, hey if it happens, it happens. We’ll get through it. And then she came out of the bathroom and it was jaw-dropping.

So when did the conversation come when you said “Hey, Mom, Dad, so….”

Al: It was the night before we left to go to Myrtle Beach with his parents for 10 days. I was 5 weeks. My parents asked us out to dinner with my sister and I didn’t want to go because I couldn’t keep anything down. They wouldn’t understand so I said “You’re going to be an aunt and you’re going to be grandparents.” My mom was like “Excuse me? Am I even old enough for that? I don’t have enough grey hair for that!” And my dad, I thought he was going to cry he was so excited.

An: Yeah, he gave me a big hug and a kiss. It was like the most nerve-wracking ride just to tell them.

Al: I don’t think we said one word to each other the entire ride over there [laughing]. The conversation with his parents was very different.

An: Yeah, they didn’t believe me. From day 1, I was always joking and playing, telling them 20 times I was having a kid and they would be grandparents. So they didn’t believe me.

Al: His mom looked at me and was still unsure. A couple days later, she told me that she really didn’t believe us, and she was sorry for her reaction but she was really excited for us.

5.     So you start going through this mental checklist of all the things that will change and how you guys will deal those changes, and you get to the point in the list where TFL comes up. I’ll ask you first Alyssa, what were your thoughts in terms of how you saw exercise fitting in with your pregnancy?   

Al: I never thought that they didn’t belong together, only because that was probably the first thing I asked at my first appointment. They asked how long I had been training for and when I told them almost 2 years, they said to keep doing what you’re doing, just maybe go less on weights, tell your trainers you’re pregnant so they can adjust things. I knew I wanted to be at TFL at least twice a week so I would never get out of the habit of coming. It was something that I enjoyed and it was a stress-reliever for me. That was important.

An: I was always told when she gains weight, you gain weight with her. I said “no way! I’m changing that!” I made it a point to go to the gym all the time and not gain that weight. I didn’t want to be that guy, I wanted to be different. And I encouraged her to go because it was healthy and she enjoyed it and wasn’t going to hurt the baby.

6.     Did you guys talk to the obstetrician about exercise? What were your biggest concerns regarding the baby?  What did he/she say?   

Al: I was just more concerned with my heart rate and where I needed to keep that. If I’m stressed out, the baby is stressed out, so that was my main concern. Towards the end they had me wearing a heart rate monitor and a little watch. That was helpful but a little frustrating at the same time because I felt like I could push myself more and the watch was beeping at me and then I’d have to take a break. That made it frustrating towards the end. And then at 7 months, he tried to make an early appearance and I was told I couldn’t work out anymore. That was even worse, even more frustrating, having to come here and watch, not being able to participate. But obviously the most important thing at the end of the day was his health and making sure he takes as long as possible to come.

Angel, you heard these things from the obstetrician and did you have concerns? Were there things you were nervous about?

An: I think I was just nervous in general, but I didn’t really have any concerns. I knew she was taking care of herself so it wasn’t that big of a deal. But I was super nervous.

Al: Especially after that early scare, I just remember he was white-faced the entire time we were there. At 7 months, he would have spent the last three months in NICU and that wouldn’t have been easy for any of us. But, luckily he stuck around.

7.     Did you end up making any immediate modifications to your exercise routine when you told Drew and Jordan? Were there things they told you not to do or different things to look out for? How did they help you adjust?

Al: I don’t think the first modification came until I went to do a burpee at 4 ½ months with my belly getting bigger and Drew stopped me because he was worried about me hitting my belly on the floor. After that, it was little things here and there. I wouldn’t do jumping jacks as vigorously because the bouncing was awful. I wasn’t doing front planks because my stomach was in the way, and pushups were elevated. Lots of side planks. Just changed the weights. My single leg deadlifts got better because I had to counteract the belly weight, I think even now it’s better than before because I still think about where I had to be then.

8.     Everyone has an opinion when it comes to pregnancy and I’m sure you guys weren’t immune. How was the reaction from others outside TFL? Any criticism about how exercise was dangerous or not safe?

Al: So many people thought I was nuts, as if I was just being selfish and wanting to do something I enjoy. Like it had no benefit to him, which I guess I took it with a grain of salt. But those were people had never worked out and so they have no idea what they’re talking about. They’re priorities are different. Eventually you just have to learn to shut it off because there’s no point in arguing with someone who doesn’t understand what you’re talking about.

An: They thought she was crazy. We’d hear things like “You should relax,” “You shouldn’t work out,” “It’s all about the baby now, not you and your body.” Definitely raised a lot of brows when we told people she was still going to work out.

Your response? Any doubts from either of you?

Al: Never. I always at the end of the day thought about how I felt. If I felt fine and I knew I wasn’t overexerting myself, then I wasn’t worried about what was going on.

9.     You often hear that every pregnancy is different when it comes to morning sickness or mood swings, what did you experience during the first trimester when it came to exercise and your body’s reaction?

Al: I was exhausted, all the time. It didn’t help that I couldn’t really eat. The only thing I could keep down was bagels and crackers. Even brushing my teeth made me want to throw up. You’re just tired and want to relax. It’s a huge switch from having all that energy and being able to do any exercise to all of the sudden having this little guy sucking the life out of you, literally.

An: I think that’s the thing that bothered me the most. Hearing her every morning, and I’m lying in bed like “that’s awful, poor girl.”

Al: I remember countless times going back to the bedroom and saying “this is all your fault” [laughing].

Any changes into the second trimester?

Al: The 2nd trimester was the best. I had my energy back. I figured out when to take a nap and that was really key. I could eat again and that was fabulous. And then also being able to eat whatever I wanted, not literally but I was a little more relaxed with myself then I was prior to be pregnant. If I wanted a burger, I would have a burger. Dairy Queen commercials were the death of me [laughing].

An: I would say, “I’m not going to eat that, I’m gonna eat that clean stuff.”

Al: So here I am eating a Dairy Queen burger, fries and Blizzard and loving every minute of it [laughing].

10.  Angel, as a daddy, we sometimes get lost in the shuffle and the assumption is that only women deal with weight gain or the emotional rollercoaster during this process. How has this experience surprised you? Did you find it difficult to control your eating or stay focused exercising during the pregnancy?

An: I wasn’t really surprised. It took me for a loop with her mood swings, they were crazy. One day she would be happy-go-lucky, the next day she wanted to kill me. Dealing with that was stressful enough.

Al: Not just him, just the general population. Road rage went from a 10 to a 1000, I had no patience for that. I’m much better now.

An: She would yell and she wasn’t even driving sometimes. Yelling from the passenger’s seat. But the worst part was the 3rd trimester because she kept getting the pains and couldn’t sleep. That bothered me, because of course she kept me up. You know, “Who cares, it’s just Angel.” She would say “I can’t sleep, I’m uncomfortable, this is ridiculous, I gotta get up in the morning, I gotta go to work.”

So she’s making Dairy Queen runs and keeping you up all night and you’re like “Uh-uh, I need sleep. You won’t break me.”

An: I was like “Oh my God, what did I sign up for?” That was trying. I guess it comes with the territory, right Joe?

Yeah, and there’s nothing we can do about it. [all laughing]

PART 2 Coming SOON...

Congratulations is in Order!

We would like to congratulate two of our own from Train for Life, Coach Joe Willis and Viondy Merisma!  This past weekend Joe completed his graduation from Villanova University with his Masters Degree in Human Resource Development.  We are extremely proud of his hard work and accomplishments!  Truly a depiction of striving to always be better as he accomplished while working his full time job and coaching with us!  In the same weekend, Viondy  signed a deal to play professional football with the Tennessee Titans.  Viondy placed his trust in us back in January during his preparation for his Pro Day at the University of Massachusetts.

 Please join us in congratulating these gentlemen!!!

Ain't NoBody Got Time for That…

Why do I need to rest?  Recovery week is boring…   Can’t I just foam roll at home more often?   These have been common statements and questions from our members at Train for Life.   Now, this article is written to the coaches and trainers, but our members will gain insight on what we hope to develop understanding of the why’s for what we do during recovery week.  Everyone needs rest before the body breaks down and can no longer work at a high level.  We focus this time to teach, correct and help improve our movement so at the start of the new month, we are ready to rock and roll! 

Buy In 

Our philosophies are the backbone of our programming and everything we do has a purpose.  It’s a constantly evolving system and it hasn’t always been this way, but we continue to strive for an optimal system to challenge our community to move well, be strong and in turn, enjoy life.  You must have a system and a reason behind what you are doing.  In order to achieve greatness in anything, a proper foundation must be laid.  No one can squat heavy until they achieve the appropriate mobility to earn that position. 

We are constantly reminding our members of the importance of mastery.  These keys principles of adaptation and mastery shape our programming and each month stem from some of the lessons taught during ‘recovery week’.   We need to teach you how to move well and provide you with the strategies to continue doing so.  We need to get you to understand the why behind what we do and hopefully it will make the process easier.  Recovery work isn’t the sexiest stuff, but in order to do the sexy exercises everyone wants to do, you’ve got to earn in! 

It’s a Program

We don’t sell workouts, we sell programs.  Each month is based on a four or five week schedule, the last week of each month being our recovery week.  Every strength and conditioning program out there has a deload phase.  You get stronger by recovering from exercise.  This concept forms the basis of exercise physiology.  Hans Selye first described in in 1936.  The theory is basically described as:

  1. Provide a stimulus to an organism (in this case, exercise)
  2. Remove the stimulus (rest)
  3. The organism adapts to better handle the stimulus, ie. DO more WORK next time!  This is called supercompensation. 

If you skip this last step, you’re digging yourself into a deeper hole and what happens when the hole gets too deep, you’re fucked and can’t get out.  Also known as overtraining which can lead to chronic fatigue and soreness and possibly injury.

So from now till the end of time or until someone discovers a better way, our PROGRAM will always include a recovery week. 

Education

So by now, hopefully you have bought into why we implement these strategies into our programming.  Hopefully you are beginning to accept the fact that we will slow things down at the end of every month.  If so, you are ready to learn and in turn, during every recovery week you can expect to improve your level of mastery on some type of foundational movements required in the upcoming month.  I’ve heard over and over again that you can’t teach things like Turkish get ups or breathing or advanced Ultimate Sandbag movements like the Rotational Lunge in groups of 30.  Why not?  Because you aren’t taking the time to create a foundation!  If you set the expectation that in these weeks, you will be teaching or revisiting certain movement skills, it will be expected to attend and work on mastery.  Here’s an example from earlier this year that we used at Train for Life.  

Let’s talk about one of our favorites the Turkish Get Up and how we introduce it:   

1.     Our typical week is broken up into 2-4 full body workouts depending on the training frequency of the given member so ideally each person will see these drills at least twice and be given time to practice before placing the new skill into a workout the following week.    

2.     Workout A – Introduce the Half Get Up (Roll to Elbow, Elbow to Hand and High Bridge) and include break out sections and drills to teach each position of the movement.  Some of the drills we favor are the partner shoulder packing drill and wall drill to teach external rotation at the hip.  New members will perform a naked get up (no kettlebell) while more advanced users can use this time to hone their movement or increase their weight from previous months. 

3.     Workout B – Introduce the Full Movement and again, incorporate drills to help build understanding of each step.  All of these movements are done unweighted except for those individuals who have earned the right to do these movements previously. 

4.     Workout C – Review the Full Turkish Get Up and Troubleshoot.  Walk your members through each and every step from bottom to top and back down.  Do this on both sides and then provide time to practice.  Whenever the coach sees a common issue, stop the group and use this time to explain how to fix this issue.

 

Make It Fun

One of my favorite phrases when it comes to group training and fitness in general is, “Give them what they want WHILE giving them what they need…”  While it is extremely important to do the stuff you as an educated coach knows, it is also important to kick ass!  People want to feel like they are working and WORK we shall!  We typically will split our time between the important stuff that needs to be slowed down and coached and a term we borrowed from BJ Gaddour, Sweat and Stretch.  For example, we will hammer some bodyweight conditioning for 4 minute work sets of :20/:10 paired with soft tissue work or static stretching.  Or perhaps, we would do a workout focused on sleds and carries with recovery work between sets.  We may incorporate some new mobility drills into these sections, but everything in this portion is quick to be taught and can be performed by all members, ie. high knees in place, jumping jacks, mountain climbers, etc.  This keeps the hour challenging and exciting while allowing us to cover the important stuff, the recovery strategies and leave enough time for our lessons. 

Remember, this isn’t a week off, so the next time you think about skipping it, rethink your decision and you might just GET BETTER!

Spring Cleaning!

Springtime is time is the arrival of warm weather, sunshine, and new life.  Synonymous with it is typically spring-cleaning!  After a long winter, spring provides us with an opportunity to clean up, declutter, organize and start fresh.  It is time to thoroughly clean up all areas of our life and come out of our winter slumber.  Some of these tasks may not be fun during the process (no one really likes smelling like bleach), but the reward after the fact is tremendous.  Here’s a few easy suggestions to get started:

Clean It Up

Cleaning can be applied in many areas of our lives.  Obviously it can start by scrubbing your house, car and other areas around you and often times, especially for me, a clean environment can spark a new attitude towards other aspects of your life.  It can be applied to your diet!  Spring brings us new opportunity to add more fruits and vegetables into our diet as much more variety comes back into season.  As we start to shed our winter layers and show some skin (SUNS OUT, GUNS OUT!), this can reinvigorate your motivation to hit the gym again or start to hit it HARDER!  Dust off the areas of your life that need some work and start pushing yourself towards the healthiest, sexiest (who doesn’t want to feel SEXY!) summer of your life.

Declutter

Often times, clutter builds up around us and we simply need to throw things away.  Again, clutter can be anywhere.  Maybe you have a toxic relationship with a friend, girlfriend, etc. and it’s time to reevaluate how that’s making you feel.  Remember, they say, you are the sum of the 5 people you spend the most time with, so if you’re not reaching your potential look at how your circle is influencing you.  Get rid of the toxic foods in your life.  Throw them away!  Don’t keep things in your house or workplace that are going to tempt you.  You are only going to set yourself up for failure.  Be sure to replace them with better choices.  In the spirit of April 15th, it’s tax time.  Evaluate your financial situation over the last 12 months and see how you can improve.  I would bet there are at least 1-2 areas where you are wasting money and you can remove the clutter and end up better off.  So, once all the trash has been taking out, it’s time to create a plan for the upcoming spring and summer months!

Organize

Now that you’ve cleaned up and thrown away all the ‘garbage’, how are you going to move forward?  Get all your ducks in a row and decide how you want to spend the rest of 2014.  Do you have specific goals you’d like to achieve?  Write them down.  Organize your thoughts on paper and create strategies to support them.  Organize a plan for your health and fitness goals, maybe there’s a local 5K coming up that you’d like to run or maybe you just want to get out and enjoy the great outdoors this summer; the fitter and better prepared you are, the more likely you will be able to achieve them! 



It Begins with One Step

My elbow hurts. Sometimes just picking up a coffee causes me to immediately rethink how I can use my left instead of my right hand, just to avoid the pain. Alright, that may be a bit of an exaggeration but the likelihood of tendonitis is very real and it’s a nuisance every single time I walk into Train For Life. For the past couple of weeks, I have been battling the inner voices that tell me to work through the pain and the others that are telling me to take some time off. Fortunately, this week is recovery week. I went to class Tuesday night with the idea in my head that this reprieve would give me everything I need to resume killing myself by next week. And that’s where it hit me: I didn’t get to this point overnight and this will not heal overnight!

Let me back up a step and explain how I got to this point. Right before the holidays, I became intrigued with a guy named Frank Medrano. If you’re not familiar with him, check out the amazing strength and body control here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFPsvF3UOdo

Whether you watch the clip or not, this guy is in awesome shape and he is a beast on a chin-up bar. I decided I needed to do a million chin-ups and pull-ups to even get to being able to do my first muscle up. And I did a million chin-ups and pull-ups, sometimes using the weight belt to add to my insanity. Well, not a million but pretty close. Then I discovered that not only could I do a muscle up, but I could do multiple after only 3 weeks! Great news, right? Not really. I have some shoulder mobility issues and the way my desk was set up at my “other” job for the past six months or so, my right shoulder slowly began to shift forward. Now this may not seem like a huge deal, but as that happened, I continued to do weighted chin-ups along with other exercises as heavy as possible. When combined with mobility issues, it started to put more and more stress on, you guessed it: my right elbow!

First, let me say that I will be going to a massage therapist to properly treat the injury. Many times, the pain we feel in one area may be the direct result of the lack of mobility or stability in another joint. We should always remember the difference between pain and discomfort. Pain is the point when your movement is actually limited by the nervous system’s reaction to injury. This reaction is often sudden and powerful. If you pick up a weight or begin an exercise and feel that jolt through a joint or radiating down a limb, that’s pain and you should stop whatever it is that you are doing immediately. One of the biggest reasons we utilize regressions and progressions to every single type of movement at TFL is to help minimize the incidence injury while offering the most productive movement for each individual. Sometimes, hopefully not too often, a less complex version of the exercise may not be enough to stop pain. In those instances where the pain isn’t reduced by modifying the range of motion, STOP!

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I’m not yelling at you, I’m actually telling myself because that’s how this pain has affected me. Many of us think that “playing through the pain” and resisting the urge to listen to our own bodies is better than quitting. But just the opposite of quitting is happening when we don’t take the time to deal with an injury. If pain becomes so severe that we can’t exercise, then we just put ourselves in a position where we no longer have a choice to quit or keep going. There’s no better way to defeat the purpose of going to TFL than hurting ourselves so badly that we can’t go to TFL.

When Drew posted on Facebook about recovery week and the value of making sure that remains part of our regular routine, I expected a full house at every class. I shouldn’t be surprised when I walk in and that’s not the case but I challenge every member at TFL to look at how mobility, flexibility and stability impact your workouts. Recovery week is the opportunity EVERY SINGLE MONTH to work on those areas that need attention, whether you see it or not. It may not be the same level of intensity as the normal workouts but recovery week is by no means easy. More importantly, improved mobility and flexibility allows the muscles to operate how they’re intended and your regular workouts will get better if you consistently focus on this.

Now back to the difference between pain and discomfort. When a muscle becomes fatigued and starts to “burn,” that is usually where we begin to experience discomfort. Our bodies get tired under the strenuous conditions of exercise and this is not a bad thing. Discomfort is normal. That is the point where we often must push ourselves mentally to overcome the physical exhaustion and finish a workout with the best form possible. Listen to your body and understand the difference between pain and discomfort. Grab a lower weight, regress an exercise, take a break, but try to will yourself to FINISH STRONG and break through! These breakthrough moments are powerful but also fleeting. Most of us have overcome significant challenges to get on the path to wellness and we are all at various points along that journey. Whether it was signing up at TFL or completing the 21-Day Sugar Detox or being recognized for your performance during one of the many challenges over the past couple years, there is ALWAYS a first step and it’s often the most difficult. The key to remember: it is ONLY ONE STEP.  There are going to be more challenges and more steps, so let’s give ourselves the best opportunity to move towards bigger and better goals, to always strive for improvement.

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- Joe Willis

Happiness is a Habit

Every morning you wake up and deal with different relationships. I wake up and say good morning to my husband, cuddle with my dog, call my mom, check countless emails, and work with members… And this is all before 8:00AM. In your pursuit to enjoy life, you need to create a variety of healthy relationships. Open, honest, well-balanced relationships.

When a relationship stops being open and honest, it often times damages existing ones. It’s a chain reaction. They’re fragile, and when broken, can take a long time to repair. It’s important to remember this when dealing with nutrition, and the rocky relationship that most people have with it. It needs to be slowly transformed.

Teaching your clients to create a healthy relationship with food is one of the most important jobs as a coach, and can also be one of the most challenging. Anyone can give out a Paleo cookbook with every rule and pantry list known to man. Anyone can say cut carbs, and raise protein. But, can anyone get their members to understand the why behind what they are doing? Do they understand the reward outside of the six-pack or are they still chasing record low body fat percentage?

It’s our job to show the importance of high-energy levels, peaceful nights sleep, and beautiful skin.  It’s our job to share in the pure joy felt when once tight jeans now button with ease.  Breaking years of bad nutrition habits is a huge challenge, and we need to remember that.  Everybody wants what they can’t have.  Setting them up for success is more important than immediate results.  In my experience, immediate results are often temporary.  I would much rather long-term success for my members, and long-term success doesn’t happen without habit change.

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I lost 60 pounds before getting into the fitness industry. Truth is, it’s what made me want in.  I remember what it felt like, thinking you’re alone, feeling helpless, and unsure if I would ever be satisfied with my body. I get it, and it sucks. Now I get to be on the other side. I have the opportunity to take what I learned throughout my journey, and share it with others. It’s our job to instill motivation outside of the workouts, and to impact the decisions made by our members the other 166 hours in the week.

It takes a great coach to understand that you are trying to repair years of damage.  It takes a great coach to be empathetic and real.  So next time you look at a food journal be real.  Be open. Be honest.  Put yourself in their shoes. When they know you care, and they know you’re proud of their progress, they will want to continue to better the most important relationship of all...  The one with themselves.

Jordan McConaha

Gearing Up for the Diaper Bag - How the DVRT System Helps Us Keep Moms Fit

There’s definitely something in the water at our facility, and my wife better not drink it.  Currently, seven expectant mothers are training here with us.  Yes, you read that correctly, these clients are pregnant and continuing with strength training, metabolic conditioning and even core work!  In the past, doctors’ orders were cautious at best and completely restrictive at worst: “Don’t lift anything over 25 lbs,” was commonly heard.  As times are changing and we continue to learn more, the benefits of exercise during pregnancy continue to become more prominent.  Want your child to be smarter than the average bear? My suggestion, continue lifting weights!  Check out this study... 

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2013/11/11/exercise-during-pregnancy-can-boost-your-babys-brain/

One of the great things about the DVRT system is that in order to provide progressive overload, you don’t have to focus solely on load.  You can continue to progress the load during pregnancy, but there are various ways to challenge your expectant mothers to improve their fitness and more importantly, assist them through a healthy pregnancy.  According to longstanding evidence published in the Journal of Perinatal Education from as far back as 2000, evidence shows that women who continue to exercise during pregnancy experience a myriad of benefits including possible easing of labor with fewer complications of delivery and faster postnatal recovery, prevention and treatment of problems associated with gestational diabetes and hypertension and preeclampsia, decreased musculoskeletal complaints, such as back pain, etc. in addition to the psychological benefits. New evidence is coming to light on the benefits of strength training. It’s important to remember that exercise guidelines during pregnancy, such as those set up by ACOG (the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology) form a basis from which to start and plan. If you are fit, you can continue. If you aren’t you can begin.

Now that you know the evidence is on your side, and other women are still training, how do we go about it during the next nine months?*

Our Train for Life ladies will help show you some of the most effective Ultimate Sandbag (USB) exercises that we discuss in this post, that will keep you healthy and strong for the next nine months and beyond!

 

*Disclaimer:  Before you continue, be sure you have your physician’s permission before beginning any exercise program, or any change in health status, such as pregnancy.  All of the women we’ve worked with through pregnancy were training with us prior and have a solid foundation, including experience with the Ultimate Sandbag.  Complications can arise and your doctor may contraindicate exercise.  It’s also important to listen to your body throughout the entire process. 

 

One of the most important aspects of fitness to focus on during pregnancy is stability.  Relaxin, a hormone produced during pregnancy in ten times its normal concentration, compromises stability. Its function is to relax the joints in the pelvis so the baby has room to pass through the birth canal. Unfortunately, relaxin also causes abnormal motion in other joints of the body causing inflammation and pain.  (Preventing back Bain During Pregnancy Spiro Antoniades, MD Discovery Fit and Health Online.)

A properly designed strength training program will be balanced to include all major movements including the hinge, squat, push, pull and core exercises.  During pregnancy, emphasis will be placed on strengthening the posterior chain, overall core strength and hip mobility in order to help reduce back pain and other common aches associated during this time. 

From the ground up, there are four main patterns using the USB that benefit expecting fit moms: Bridging, Tall Kneeling and Half Kneeling Stance, Unilateral Lower Body Exercises and Carries.  

Bridging (and its different variations) is vital to increase strength in the posterior chain and helps combat the natural change in pelvic alignment that pregnancy causes. (Few complain about the added cosmetic benefit.)  Here’s a great bridging variation using the USB:  Mitch Hauschildt taught the master instructors this progression this past September.  Lying prone, arms overhead, hold the USB and lift it a few inches from the ground to engage the core. This teaches proper pelvic tilt and maintains correct rib positioning.  Additionally this benefits individuals who experience lower back pain during bridge variations. 

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The Tall Kneeling and Half Kneeling Stance both effectively address core stability without placing the individual in the prone position.  As pregnancy advances, exercises that place additional stress on the anterior core should be avoided for the following reason: as the fetus grows and presses into the abdominal wall, separation can occur known, which is known as diastasis recti.  After the first trimester, these variations provide solutions to those that place your expecting mom prone, or belly down.  Incorporate the Tall Kneeling and Half Kneeling exercises with your USB to include Press Outs, Arc Presses and more. These will not only offer challenges in more planes of movement, they’re also great substitutions for Plank variations.  One of our favorite Tall Kneeling exercises is the Tall Kneeling Around the World.  This challenges all planes with the extra benefit of improving anterior hip flexibility.  Using a core bag, cue the user to ‘get tall’ and contract the glutes to maintain good posture throughout the movement. 

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Unilateral lower body exercises are the framework of training during pregnancy because they place demands on stability and require less load as compared to bilateral movements.  During pregnancy, these offer increases in strength and stability safely while offering a challenging program.  Split squats, lunges, single leg deadlift, etc. are great choices and simply changing the holding position in any of these can substantially increase the challenge.  Additionally, using the front hold and shoulder positions also allows for additional core training. 

Lastly, Carries are an integral core and total body exercise- (my previous blog post explains in depth why we enthusiastically make them such a large part of our programs).  Using different variations of this exercise including the Farmer’s, Overhead, and Front Hold Rotational, etc. can be effective functional choices throughout pregnancy because they can be progressed throughout utilizing different positions.  (Check out the video shared here for a few variations to try out.)  However, we recommend avoiding the “bear hug” position to avoid applying pressure directly to the abdomen. 

These 9 months are some of the most physically demanding months of a woman’s life. By allowing them the opportunity to continue with a well-designed, specific training program specific to their needs, they will gain both strength and stability, which will assist them on the road to a healthy pregnancy. You can be an integral part of their continued health and well-being. Encourage them to be strong, move well and enjoy the process! 

New Year, New Beginnings

            As we move forward into the New Year, our mission is to provide each and every member with an experience that enables them to truly take on every challenge that life throws at us. We are constantly striving to add value to your commitment to the TFL community. As much as we can push our bodies to achieve our personal fitness goals, we also want to push our minds to better understand how a holistic approach to health and wellness can support those short and long term goals. Whether it is injury or a lapse in consistency, there are always going to be hazards that threaten to derail all the hard work that we’ve put in during our time at TFL. But this is a long road with many milestones along it. That road does not end after losing the first 10 pounds or trimming 3 minutes off our 10K time or doing our first unassisted chin-up. Those are simply the first of, hopefully many milestones, that each one of us will pass by on this journey. Make no mistake: THIS IS A LIFELONG JOURNEY! You have control over how that road will look and it can also be as smooth or as rough as we make it, it is up to you.

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To help with this journey, we are reinventing our OFFICIAL TRAIN FOR LIFE BLOG. This blog will provide inspiration, motivation, and most importantly, information.  We will include posts from our coaches, recommended articles from other strength coaches in our network, nutritional resources, and more.  We live in an age where tremendous amounts of information can be reached with the push of a button. But that also should come with a disclaimer that not ALL information is GOOD information. As with most things, there are different schools of thought and varying opinions, especially when it comes to our health. We encourage you to read the blog, comment on it, post suggestions on topics you may be interested in. We also encourage you to look for further resources on a subject that you may want to know more about. So many times, the coaches hear “Why are we doing this?” Rest assured, there is a reason and we will do our best to answer as many of those “Whys” as we can. If we want to continue to get better and keep that “life” road as smooth as possible, then KNOWLEDGE IS POWER! We want to share that power with you!

Be Well

- Joe Willis