Four easy actions to improve your diet and lose weight in four weeks

By Kim Munson

Four practical ways you can improve your diet in just four weeks

Are you not seeing the results you want when it comes to weight loss? Are you exercising regularly but still having a hard time with your diet? Most people struggle with eating healthier for weight loss; it’s not uncommon for people to make the mistake of beginning a regular exercise program with the goal to lose weight, but then not trying to change their eating habits. If weight loss is your goal, not only do you need a regular fitness regime, but you need to adapt a way of eating that is conducive to that weight loss.

“Abs are made in the kitchen not in the gym”

Bodyweight Blaster – Upper Body Core Routine with Leg Finisher

by Kim Munson

Bodyweight routines are fantastic ways to get strong and lean. They are also super convenient because they are easy to do anywhere or when you are short on time. Here is one I created as an easy way to get in quality core and strength work, especially when you are short on time or don’t have access to equipment. Remember, for best results keep the intensity high and the reps quality. 

Set SMART Goals

By Kim Munson

Goal setting can be an extremely effective way to stay motivated and improve your fitness. Effective goal setting works by first specifically identifying what you want to achieve and then strategizing how to get there in a realistic and timely manner.

10 Tips to Take your Summer Workout Outside

By Kim Munson

Summer is officially here. The sun is out, the days are long, and the temperatures are high. As someone who loves being active outside, there is nothing better! This is the time to explore the outdoors, try new outside activities, and take your workouts outside.

Mobility and Flexibility

Part five: Components of an effective workout – Mobility and Flexibility Work

Kim Munson

Components of an effective workout

• Active and Dynamic Warm up
• Strength training
• Metabolic and cardiovascular
• Mobility and stretching

 

Mobility

Being able to move your body through its full range of motion is essential for making life’s daily tasks easy. Movement is also fundamental to fitness. As our mobility improves, our bodies can perform better and with less effort. Having unrestricted mobility is the foundation for fitness, strength and power. In order to get the most out of your fitness routine, you have to be capable of putting your body through the movement required by the exercises. This means being able to put joints and muscles through their full range of motion. Mobility is also essential to work on and maintain for ease of daily living. It is an often overlooked component in fitness that benefits everyone from elite athletes, to those just starting out in fitness, or rehabbing an injury.

Metabolic and Cardiovascular Training

Part four: Components of an effective workout – Metabolic and Cardiovascular Training

Kim Munson

Components of an effective workout

• Active and Dynamic Warm up
• Strength Training
• Metabolic and Cardiovascular Training
• Mobility and Flexibility Work

Metabolic training can be thought of as performing exercises at a high intensity with little to no rest, with the goals of increasing heart rate (cardiovascular training), and metabolism (the rate at which your body burns calories after exercise, even at rest).  By keeping the quality of the work periods high and the rest periods short, you get both the benefits of strength training and cardio, in a routine that takes little time, torches calories and melts fat. In fact, this type of metabolic training has been shown to be more effective than steady state cardio for both fat loss and cardio conditioning.

Strength Training

Part three: Components of an effective workout – Strength Training

By Kim Munson

Components of an effective workout

• Active and Dynamic Warm up
• Strength training
• Metabolic and cardiovascular
• Mobility and stretching

If you want to lose weight, gain strength, increase metabolism, improve endurance, and improve your overall health and fitness, then strength training is the answer.

Unfortunately, there is a widespread belief, especially among those new to fitness, that by being “active” during the day, like doing house work, moving around at work, or just doing long steady state cardio, like walking, jogging, etc., is enough of a workout to increase fitness, drop weight and tone up. While any activity is beneficial, it is not enough to get your body stronger or improve your body composition is any drastic ways. In addition to your daily activity, you need strength training to fire up your metabolism and sculpt your body.

Active and Dynamic Warm Up

Part two: Components of an effective workout – Active and Dynamic Warm Up

by Kim Munson

Components of an effective workout

• Active and Dynamic Warm up
• Strength training
• Metabolic and cardiovascular
• Mobility and stretching

An active and dynamic (moving) warm up is extremely important to include at the beginning of your workout in order to prevent and reduce injuries.  This is the stage when your body adjusts from being stationary to being primed for movement. The warm-up should be done at a pace that gradually increases your heart rate and joint range of motion, so that your body is ready for the more specific movements of the upcoming workout.

Components of an Effective Workout – Part one

Exhaustion doesn’t equal results

by Kim Munson

Too often, people buy into the popular misconception that because their workout makes them tired, they are doing what they need to do to see results. This thinking is misleading.  Granted, most of the time doing something is better than doing nothing, but is what you’re doing the best way to get the specific results you want?

A wise coach (named Ron Capurso at Get Athletic) taught me that the easiest thing for a trainer to do is to get their clients tired. The skill in being a good trainer is figuring out the smartest way to do that; how to strategically program a fitness regimen that yields specifically desired results in the smartest way possible.

Setting Resolutions that Stick

5 Ways to Make your New Year’s Resolution Stick

By Kim Munson

With the start of the new year, many of us reflect upon ourselves and take note of things we’d like to improve upon. Often this leads to setting resolutions, and too often these resolutions fall by the wayside without a strategy to achieve them. So how can we turn those good intentions from New Year’s into accomplishments we work on year-round?