Fitness Friday

Ever think to yourself, "Why am I foam rolling? It hurts like hell."  Well the idea of foam rolling and myofascial release is relatively new.  Research is quickly catching up to what we have been recommending you do on an almost daily basis.  Foam rolling has been shown to have immediate and long term affects on the body.  In short, there a many benefits to doing it.  If you want to read the research, check it out here!!

Kettlebell!! Not kettleball!! :-)
If you haven't given the kettleBELL a try, you really should.  It can be an intense workout, and even just doing swings as part of an interval/"cardio" workout can replace your usual boring "cardio."

Weight loss is often the goal one has when they start working out, however eventually that weight loss comes to a stop and hits a plateau.  There are several factors that could be involved that stunted your fat loss.  In this 3 part series, it breaks down possible changes you could make to your current plan including cutting back on certain exercises/not focusing solely on burning more calories, make small changes to your nutrition, and focus on recovery!!

There are so many reasons to exercise, not just focusing solely on weight loss.  Being healthy and getting off of certain medications is a great reason to exercise.  New research is showing that exercise can be just as beneficial as some pills, even surpassing some stroke medications.  Now, this article doesn't suggest going off of medications, only that maybe we should think about being more active to diminish the need for them.  Hopefully in the future, doctors will be more willing to prescribe exercise over pills. 

Another great reason to exercise is that it can make you happy; and it should make you happy.  Exercise and movement is a gift that far too many take for granted.  Do yourself a favor and move more!!   We are always talking about maintain a positive attitude.  Positivity breeds positive results.  Give this checklist a go, and go to sleep happy.  I have the extreme benefit of working with positive people every day and setting a positive vibe in the gym every day. It does spread.  There are days when the music is cranking and people are grinding and working hard and I look around and smile.  I love those days. 
One thing that makes me happy is the success of other people.  My friend has a blog that I've mentioned before called The Unattainable Life, and if you're not following do it NOW, that has been completely inspirational since its inception.  His latest is 6 ways to really live a happy life and I have to agree with pretty much every thing he says. 

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Have a great, happy, positive weekend!!!




Weekend Workout
Its all about kettlebells this weekend!! It gets your heart pumping pretty quickly, making it an "easy" quick workout.
*Disclaimer: If you've never worked with bells before, find a QUALIFIED trainer to teach you (No, YouTube does not count)
oh and get a quality warm-up in too

Goblet Squat 12 reps
Push-ups 15 reps
Kettlebell Row 12 reps
KB Clean & Press 8 per side
Windmills 5 per side  or side plank for 30 seconds
Russian Twists 20 reps
3-4 sets

Swings 30 seconds
Plank 30-60 seconds
Jump Rope 30-60 seconds
6 sets