FITNESS TIP OF THE WEEK

Are Sleep and Fitness Linked?

By Christina | August 27, 2008

Sleep deprivation is no fun! Are you tired halfway through your day?  Do you wake up feeling unrested? Are you up by 330am? Sure, you get extra work done, a little extra house cleaning, maybe you mentally solve the problems of the world, but you may be doing you body some serious harm. Read full entry »

Tips to help you remain illness free

By Christina | September 7, 2008

We all know what to do to try and stave off illness but every once in a while a gentle reminder is a good idea.   The following is a short list of healthy habits to adopt:

The CDC (Center for Disease Control) recommends these simple steps as part of a healthy routine:

  1. Wash your hands often - this is the number one healthy habit in the fight to prevent the flu. Keep alcohol-based hand sanitizers in your purse, car, and backpack for use when soap and water aren’t available.
  2. Do not touch your eyes, nose, and mouth as much as possible.
  3. Keep a “healthy” distance away from sick people.
  4. Stay home when you’re sick.
  5. Stop the spread of germs by covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing.
  6. Exercise regularly, get enough rest, and eat healthy, balanced meals.

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My Favorite Quotes By Winston Churchill

By Christina | September 6, 2008

Each week I enjoy looking around for quotes that inspire or move me and here are two I really liked:

“Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”
“I am easily satisfied with the very best.”
Winston Churchill

I don’t think they require much explanation to understand. I do think they each offer a valuable bit of advice on life. Never quit and strive for the best!

 

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Workout 19.2008 Music Mix

By Christina | September 5, 2008

Lots of fast music here for a high intensity ride, run or whatever else you want to do to keep your heart rate thumping:

Have fun!

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Two Minute Drills- How hard can two minutes be?

By Christina | September 4, 2008

If you are a regular visitor to my blog then you know I love to search the web and various training libraries for great workouts to keep my training as well as group classes interesting, fun and challenging.  Here is a workout I found that focuses on doing each exercise for two minutes.  If you have never tried to do an exercise for 2 minutes, trust me, it’s NOT as easy you are thinking right now. This type of a workout will test your physical and mental strength - your mind and body will want to quit, will you give in?  Decide now because the body follows the mind!

Read full entry »

Topics: General, Exercise, Boot Camp, Personal Training | No Comments »

Can you please explain the heart rate training zones?

By Christina | September 3, 2008

Have you seen people running down the road with those black chest straps wrapped around them? Those are heart rate monitors and they serve to let you know exactly how fast your heart is beating with every step you take.  These monitors range from basic to wow!  You can purchase a heart rate monitor that only tells you your BPM, beats per minute, or you can purchase monitors that link to your computer and create graphs and charts which keep track of your workout, your intensity, your caloric burn and even compare the results to previous results. 

An exercise zone is a number range that measures the lower and upper heart rate limits. It is expressed in terms of beats per minute (bpm) or as percentages of your maximum heart rate (HRmax). Your heart rate maximum is the highest number of heartbeats per minute during maximum physical exertion. The following is a description of each zone: Read full entry »

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Mind Body Connection: Not Just an Illusion

By Christina | September 2, 2008

As a yoga instructor and all around believer that the body follows the mind, I was excited to hear about a study done by Alia Crum and Professor Ellen Langer of Harvard University involving the use of thoughts to create change in the body. Part of what I do in my professional life is teach how to focus the mind and filter out distractions so that you can experience that which you wish to create in your body and life. Read full entry »

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Can yoga really help my sex life?

By Christina | September 1, 2008

Yoga is well known for its ability to increase your flexibility, enhance your muscle tone, and assist in stress release but did you know it might also help with your sex life? That’s right, yoga offers a myriad of physical and emotional benefits that add up to a more fulfilling, meaningful sexual relationship with your partner.  I love yoga so whatever it takes to get people to practice, I am all for it! Read full entry »

Topics: General, Yoga, que-ans | No Comments »

Can I do hot yoga/ Bikram Yoga while I am pregnant?

By Christina | August 31, 2008

As a Personal Trainer and thrice pregnant exercise enthusiast, it is sometimes frustrating that there is not specific information on what we can and cannot do during pregnancy with regards to fitness.  The standard, “do what you normally do,” coupled with “watch the heart rate, type of activity and body temperature,” make for a scary cocktail of advise.  Read full entry »

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Quote for the week

By Christina | August 30, 2008

“We’re so busy watching out for what’s just ahead of us that we don’t take time to enjoy where we are.”
 MWhitner Calvin & Hobbes quotes
 
I teach yoga, focusing specifically on chakras and asanas.  One of the things I talk about in the higher brow and crown chakras is taking the time to be present where you are, not running down the road. It’s funny how we can speak what we cognitively know to be true and yet not really live it in the subconscious mind where we can easily live it.

I chose the quote for the week because it struck me as something I need to work on and I am sure there are others out there in cyber space who can use the same friendly reminder. I have an amazing opportunity right now with my third child to change how I perceived life with my first two.  I have a thirteen and an eleven year old who are amazing children and I have enjoyed every part of their lives, the good, the hard and the OMG how long is this phase.  Yet I have spent so much of their years waiting for the next milestone; when will they walk, talk, write, go to school, entertain themselves, cook, clean (still waiting on the clean) but you get the picture.  With my 9 month old, I have learned to stop and enjoy where she is now.

She didn’t roll over by the time the doctor said she would but it just didn’t matter. She isn’t walking at 9 months 10 days like my older daughter did, she isn’t showing a fanaticism for books and verbalizing at 9 months like my son did but she has a spirit that lifts me everytime I look at her and a peace and joy inside her that I would miss if I were looking for what’s coming instead of what is. Is there anything in your life that you are missing looking ahead instead of inside?

In my everyday life, I spend a lot of time asking, “where are am I going?” What I need to do is stop, breathe and realize where I am. Enjoy the relationships I have now, taking nothing for granted and expecting nothing more than what there is right now.  That’s my goal this week, live in the present moment and I would challenge you to do the same…

I live in the present moment and enjoy every experience without any fear or worry about tomorrow.  The past is over, the future a mystery, live today.

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Can anyone predict the future of fitness?

By Christina | August 29, 2008

As you may know, I spend a lot of my time in search of… (remember that tv program?) the latest, greatest, hippest, most likely to bring about results workout or fitness gear on the market to keep me, as a professional, up to date on what’s happening in my field.

The latest, greatest, self proclaimed future of fitness is called CrossFit. This program is based on constantly varied high intensity functional movements. The workouts incorporate a broad spectrum of exercises that include but are not limited to gymnastics and weight lifting. Gymnastics can be defined as actions that control your body weight. Exercises would include pushups, box jumps, pull-ups, squats and ring dips. Weight lifting would be any exercise that moves an external object. Add to the mix monostructural movements such as running, swimming and rowing and you have a CrossFit class. Read full entry »

Topics: General, Fitness Fads | No Comments »

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