If you want to lose body fat, gain confidence, increase bone density, and overall, look amazing, you have to lift weights. I don’t care if you are a man or woman. When I first got into the fitness industry, were trying to get “toned” in group fitness class with pink light weight dumbbells or cardio queens spending endless hours on the elliptical machine. We have come a long way since then but not far enough.  Crossfit and Olympic lifting has helped change the thoughts around heavy lifting ladies for the better. Endless memes and quotes on social media have empowered women across the world ..read more

There is a great debate on what works best in the strength-training world.  The simple answer is it depends on your goal and your experience level. There are many ways to construct a weekly strength-training program.  Sometimes you can use a periodization model to include multiple workouts splits in a given year. Let’s take a look at some different factors, pros, and cons for each type of strength training model. Full-Body Strength training  If I had to pick one method, I would choose full-body strength training. Implementing a well-designed full-body strength training routine 3 ..read more

Building muscle is a process that takes time and proper training. There is more to it than just showing up at the gym, lifting some weight and expecting results. You must push your muscles to the limit during time in the gym and then let them recover and grow with while not in the gym.  With so many variables affecting muscle growth it’s always a debate as to what works best.  The simple answer is it depends on your goal and your experience level. There are many ways to construct a strength-training program and many variables that will determine your success.   Here are 6 t ..read more

Strength training is the foundation of any well-rounded fitness program. It doesn’t matter if you run, bike, swim, do yoga, or any other sport there is out there to participate in. Strength training has to be in your fitness routine somewhere. A solid strength-training program will provide an array of benefits in as little as twice a week, 30 minutes for each workout. Now, if you really want to put on some muscle and burn body fat to gain the physique you REALLY want, I suggest a little more, but I realize that people simply like to be involved in other areas of fitness. In this case, the mini ..read more

Plateauing or plateau – a state of little or no change following a period of activity or progress. During my time as a trainer, I have heard the word “plateau” used all too often. Oftentimes it is simply because someone does not feel that there are getting anywhere with their health and fitness goals. They are pounding the pavement with their workouts and staying away from junk food. So, the natural thing to think when you are making no progress yet seem to feel and think that you are working hard is that your body is plateauing. Sometimes it is true and sometimes it just means that you need t ..read more

  In a training session, do you ever wonder “why do we do that?” Every part of a strength program is important for different reasons.  Understanding the “why?” can be all the motivation or reason we need to make sure we aren’t skimping on any given portion of our workout. Foam Roll/tissue prep Warming up and preparing our muscles for exercise is important not only for your safety during the session, but it will also aid in the longevity and recovery of your future training sessions.  Think of our muscles and tissue as a jar of play dough. When you first pull it out of the conta ..read more

Power training is a vital piece of the functional training puzzle for both competitive athletes & general population clients. Progressive exposure to high-velocity movements trains the nervous system to recruit high-threshold motor units, reflexively stabilize joints and develop the local tissue resiliency necessary to withstand the demands of high-velocity sports, making it a valuable tool for both performance enhancement and injury reduction. Throwing low/moderate weight medicine balls with intent and at high-velocity promotes the high-threshold motor unit recruitment necessary to develo ..read more

Magnesium is a critical mineral that is responsible for over 300 enzyme reactions and is found in your tissues, bones, muscles, and brain. You can also think of magnesium as the relaxation mineral. It is an antidote to stress, the most powerful relaxation mineral available, and it can help improve your sleep. You must have magnesium for your cells to make energy, for many different chemical pumps to work, to stabilize membranes, and to help muscles relax (think recovery). The reason many of us are found deficient in what I like to call, a “macro-mineral”. In fully disclose I did not come up w ..read more

There are many ways to improve your cardiovascular fitness. While there is a great debate amongst fitness professionals on which method works best, the simple answer is they all work. It really comes down to each person’s individual goals. When training for a certain sport, there will be specific ways that you should perform certain cardiovascular conditioning routines. For instance, if you are a soccer player, you will need an ample amount of endurance to stay strong during the entire match. So, it makes sense that you would primarily train for endurance. However, soccer players will also be ..read more

Supplementing vitamin D has gotten a lot of press lately. There is a good reason for this. In areas the world that have less sunlight, like Michigan, doctors are finding that their patients are becoming deficient in vitamin D. I would say 9 out of 10 of my clients have been prescribed vitamin D by their doctor. Now for my disclaimer! Make sure to check with your doctor before you take a vitamin D supplement. I don’t play a doctor on the internet. I simply share the research and information that I find.   COVID-19 And Vitamin D Your vitamin D levels will not determine if you get COVID ..read more