Effective Warm-up for Balance

Tip of the Day:
Incorporate some plank exercises into your warm-up routine before athletic competition or performing complex exercises. A recently published study found that subjects who performed core stabilization exercises prior to balance tests performed significantly better than those who did not.
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Beautiful Day

Tip of the Day:
It's a beautiful day today in Maryland. Feeling sluggish? Research shows that outdoor exercise can boost your energy levels even more than indoor exercise. So get outside, move around and enjoy the sun!

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Time vs. Distance

Tip of the Day:
If you're concerned about moving faster to burn more calories but struggle to do so, don't sweat it too much. You will burn roughly the same number of calories for a given distance regardless of how long it takes you. So if you have the time and prefer the long slow distance approach, you're not missing out in the calorie burning department.

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Have you all seen these guys? They're hilarious! Very creative stuff. Honestly, I think these guys have actually found the best use for autotune!

http://www.youtube.com/autotunethenews

Enjoy!

Speed Work

Tip of the Day:
Struggling to improve your run time? Whether you're training for 1 mile, 5 miles, or 26.2, if you are training consistently and are not seeing any improvements then your aerobic endurance may not be what's holding you back. For 4 weeks try incorporating sprint intervals along with leg power exercises in your workouts 1-2 x/week on nonconsecutive days to give you the boost you need.

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Sorry but I don't have much to write about here today. Perhaps inspiration will strike soon. And speaking of which, if you have any questions or suggestions for the Tip of the Day or just anything, please feel to contact me and I'd be happy to talk about it!

Anyway, here's a picture of a beach.

Muscle Recovery

Tip of the Day:
As a general rule of thumb give yourself about 48 hours between high intensity workouts of the same muscle groups. For example, if you do heavy squats or lower body plyometrics on Monday wait until at least Wednesday to do them again. With that said, it is still a good idea to do some lighter activities in between. Even if your legs are still really sore, stretching and light walking, biking, or jogging will help with your recovery. By avoiding activity altogether, your muscles may actually remain stiff and sore for a longer period of time. However, muscle soreness lasting longer than four days is not normal and you may be dealing with a more significant injury.

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Back to School

Tip of the Day:
For college students, school will start very soon and life is probably going to get a whole lot busier. When it comes to staying in shape for most students the problem isn't inactivity but just the overabundance of junk food and late night snacking. Obviously there are tons of factors that attribute to college weight gain but here are 5 tips to keep the extra pounds away!

1. Plan ahead: The best way to avoid bad food decisions is to plan your meals ahead of time. If you live on campus, scout out the dining halls and keep in mind their open hours. If you live off campus, do all of your shopping and preparation beforehand.
2. Don't skip breakfast: Breakfast literally sets the pace for the day. It will give you the energy you need and will rev up your metabolism so that you burn more calories throughout the day.
3. Eat often: If you are a one-meal-a-day kind of person, you are not doing yourself any favors. You're forcing your body to conserve energy (calories), making you less active, less focused, and less likely to burn extra calories. Instead, don't let yourself get hungry by eating healthy smaller meals and snacks often throughout the day.
4. Stay hydrated: Remember to drink lots of water. The average person requires at least 2.5L of water a day. That number is significantly higher for those who are more active. By staying properly hydrated you will have more energy, put less strain on your body, and will keep your metabolism up and your hunger down.
5. Enjoy yourself: Don't forget to have fun! Students that are more socially active also tend to be more physically active and gain less weight. On the flip side, students that report higher stress levels also tend to gain more weight. Stay active, be sensible about your food (and drink) choices, and don't forget to get some sleep too!

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I just have to say, I can't wait for football season!

Bridge Jumping

Tip of the Day: If you're having a hard time making a major change in your life, try starting smaller. Small changes are much less daunting and you'll find that they are easier to accomplish. These small successes will lead to having more drive and confidence to tackle the bigger issues.


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Yesterday, "Amy" asked me if everyone else jumped off a bridge, would I do it too? I joked that I'd write about it in my blog. Actually, it's interesting to reflect on that question because I've been fortunate enough to have never encountered that situation. I don't even mean in the literal sense, but in that kind of profound example of peer pressure. Of course I've been in countless minor situations of "come do this" or "drink that", and I am pleased to say that I can be pretty headstrong when it comes to that sort of thing, but I can't say I've ever had to choose to "jump off a bridge" or make a life-changing decision brought about by the will of others.
I'm sure that's just me being young and not yet corrupted by the influence of the real world, but it makes me wonder, what would I do?

Live Today

Tip of the Day: Build a solid foundation. If you think about it, your core (abs, lower back, hips...) has the primary function of stability. It's more about resisting movement than it is about creating it. So before you go and attack your next ab workout, keep in mind that just about every exercise should be an exercise for the core too. During any exercise pull your abs in tight, control that neutral curve in your spine and you'll not only feel stronger, you'll protect yourself from injury. Just don't forget to breathe!

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I'm sure you've heard the expression, "Live today like there's no tomorrow." To me it just brings a funny image to mind. It's like "carpe diem" in a sort of anarchist, chaotic sense. But I wake up today and instead I like to think that in a way today is a special day. It's Thursday. But unlike any other. It'll never be the same as before and will only happen once. Hopefully I'll make the most of it!

Rainy Day

Tip of the Day: Don't let the rain stop you from getting your cardio workout for the day. By incorporating a few simple body-weight exercises into a circuit training workout, you get a combination cardiorespiratory and muscular strength and endurance workout in the comfort of your home. 

Try this basic workout!

Perform each exercise without rest for 1 minute each. After you complete one set of all 6 exercises, rest for 2 minutes. Complete 3 sets.

1. Squats
2. Push-ups
3. Suitcase crunches
4. Reverse lunges
5. Bird-Dog
6. Bicycle crunches

Note: All exercises can be modified to be made easier or more difficult.

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It's another rainy day, but luckily I get to work from home today. It's just me and the dogs. By the way, meet Zoey and Max!

I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who feel sluggish when it rains. You should see these two. Lazy bums.

On another note, it's crazy how fast the summer has gone by. Everyone's talking about going back to school in the next couple weeks. That means it's going to get busier around the gym soon with families coming home from vacation and free time for parents with kids off to school. It also means Gymkana practices will be starting up soon. My free time is going to disappear REAL quick. It's been nice while it lasted. I kind of wish I were going back to school... forget this working for living thing.

Gotta Drink Water

I need to make sure that I'm drinking enough water. This morning I had to get up early for work and felt much more sluggish than usual. It could be that I stayed up later than I had hoped to but from personal experience I've noticed that I have a whole lot more energy when I'm more hydrated. Duh, right?

Whoa... I'm a blogger?

Hey!

So I'll admit, I've always been a little skeptical about blogging. I've never considered myself a writer but maybe that's why I created this blog. I need an alternative to writing the occasional "formal" article to get the info that I want to share out there.... out there to you if you care to listen.

Anyway... more to come later.