If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it!

What exactly is range of motion? And why is it important? This is a topic that has been puzzling people for years. Every time I evaluate a person’s movement, and examine their range of motion, I usually have them tell me something along the lines of: “well I’m pretty flexible”, yet they can’t perform a proper squat. Well how is it that a person can be flexible and not be able to perform a squat correctly?

I bet a lot of people reading this, would probably say that they stretch multiple times a week. And I would be willing to bet that those people likely have less than ideal range of motion performing basic fundamental movements. The point being here, that there is a significant difference between static stretching, and active range of motion. I know from experience that many of you reading this know a lot of the benefits of stretching. Firstly, because I see a lot of people stretching, and secondly, I know most of you tell me you stretch semi-regularly (3-5x/week.) This leads to the conundrum of why I see such poor movement quality from most people in the gym.

Let’s start by digging in a little further here……..

Let’s first talk about static stretching. Static stretching is the temporary lengthening of a muscle. This is done by holding a muscle in a lengthened position for a period of time. This is the type of stretching that most people perform either before a workout, after a workout, or both. If you see people either laying on the floor or standing in an awkward looking position without moving for a period of time, more than likely, they are attempting their best version of a static stretch.

Next, let’s go over what exactly active range of motion is. Think of active range of motion as movement. When you wish to perform any physical movement, your muscles contract and act on bones which move about a joint which then produce mechanical movement and that’s what allows us to move.

Lastly, let’s quickly go over what fundamental movements are. Fundamental movements are movements that involve multiple body parts and are the basis of physical literacy. The example I will be using moving forward will be a squat.

So, if we think about those three concepts for a second; why is it that lots of people, in their own opinion, have great flexibility and yet can’t perform a squat correctly?

Essentially, these people have trained their body to not be able to perform a squat. Babies have some of the best squat form you’ll ever see. Go to Google and type in “Squatting baby” and look at images. Babies have picture perfect squat form. Just look at when they bend down to pick something off of the floor, the drop right into a perfect squat. They utilize a full range of motion in their hips, knees, and ankles to achieve the movement.

Obviously, many things change from infancy to adulthood in a human body. However, the fact remains that babies can squat perfectly, and adults, for the most part cannot. What happens is over time, we train our bodies into a restricted range of motion. Babies, when they’re first exploring the world, explore what’s closest to them first, the floor. As we get older and our bodies and brains develop, we become more efficient and don’t spend as much time on or near the floor. We begin sitting on couches, chairs, benches, and beds that don’t allow us to explore the end ranges of motion of our lower body joints.

Let’s take a hypothetical example that I know is accurate for a lot of people. Jill lives in Uxbridge and works in Downtown Toronto. She has a 90 minute commute to work and then spends 7 hours a day sitting at a desk. Conservatively, that’s 10 hours out of her day that she is sitting down. Presumably, she is sitting at about a 90 degree angle for those 10 hours. When Jill gets to the gym she does a few sets of back squats and can only squat to 90 degrees.

Now to look at this situation, let’s assume that Jill is not using a weight that is too heavy for her to lift, why is she not performing a full squat? The answer is simple; Jill has trained her body into a reduced range of motion from all the sitting she does. Unless Jill has suffered a lower body injury at some point in time, her body should be able to achieve a full squat, and yet, she appears as though she can’t.

By training your body into a reduced range of motion, you’re putting limitations on your body that may one day end in serious injury. If you’re body is trained to only be strong in a specific range of motion, instead of its full range, if there is ever a time when your body must tap into its full range to prevent you from falling, your body will not be strong enough to protect you from the fall. This could result in a torn muscle, torn tendon and/or ligament, or a broken bone.

Good quality movement with emphasis placed on full range of motion should always be the foundation of any training program.

If you wish to learn more about the benefits of good quality movement and how you can integrate it into your training, please join us this fall for a special presentation.  (Date TBA.)

About the Author:  Eric Noyes BHSc (Kin), CSEP-CPT

Eric is  Kinesiology Graduate from The University of Ontario and holds his Training Certification with the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.  He has been training general population and sport specific clients at Body Fit since 2013 and is currently the Lead Trainer.  He can be reached at eric@bodyfit.ca for advice and consultation.

A couple years ago we changed our minimum age for kids to come to the gym.  It was solely based on insurance and liability.  For years we could only permit youth aged 12 and 13 to use the gym while supervised by an adult.  Then when we lowered it to 9 it raised some eye brows.  I would field the same question over and over again, “Is it safe for kids to lift weight at such a young age?”  That was usually followed by the comment, “I heard it could stunt their growth.”

I would ask them, “where did you hear that?”  and nobody could recall the source.  But clearly, the myth has made parents really nervous about getting their kids involved with any kind of strength training that involved weights which is really unfortunate because the benefits of a supervised and well-designed program for kids are numerous.

A 2009 study by Dahab KS et Al entitled, “Strength Training in Children and Adolescents: Raising the Bar for Young Athletes?” reviewed recent published research and scholarly articles to clarify the myths and to outline recommendations when considering a strength training program for kids.  They concluded that after reviewing over 40 relevant studies, “children can improve strength by 30% to 50% after just 8 to 12 weeks of a well-designed strength training program. Youth need to continue to train at least 2 times per week to maintain strength. The case reports of injuries related to strength training, including epiphyseal plate fractures and lower back injuries, are primarily attributed to the misuse of equipment, inappropriate weight, improper technique, or lack of qualified adult supervision.”

Looking at the last sentence, I believe that the first three attributes to injury can be eliminated by addressing the last one… lack of qualified adult supervision.  Did you know that the Personal Training industry is not regulated?  Well, it’s not.  Anyone can take an online course and call themselves a trainer.  I have researched most of the more credible certifying bodies and there is only one that I would consider recommending that focuses on youth fitness.  Why is this important?

In the study “Strength training effects in prepubescent boys.” Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1990;22:605-614 by Ramsay JA, Blimkie CJ, Smith K, et al. they concluded that pre-pubescent children gain strength through neural adaptations, not muscle hypertrophy.  That means you can’t take an adult training program and water it down for kids.  Kids get stronger by learning to move more efficiently after being taught how to move properly and then you can start adding a load.  Most trainers and coaches that I have seen work with kids, either don’t know this or don’t understand it.  You don’t know what you don’t know so the word “qualified” should mean that the person working with kids should know how kids are different and the above-mentioned injuries would be avoided.

I know that there are a lot of kids that don’t play organized sports and most parents tend to look at the benefits of strength training as it pertains to either injury prevention or furthering their success in sports.  However, there is a whole world of benefit that is universal to every kid that is involved in regular physical activity even if it’s not a sport.  Think of strength training as a physical activity.  In addition to the recommended 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per day, the World Health Organization states that “vigorous-intensity activities should be incorporated, including those that strengthen muscle and bone, at least 3 times per week.”  This doesn’t mean that kids need to be lifting weights in some sort of circuit at a gym but rather incorporating exercises that build muscle and strengthen bones into games or activities that involve running, jumping and throwing.

It gets even better!  Physical benefits aside, there are a ton of other benefits that can be directly correlated to regular physical activity in children with cognitive performance and academic achievement being one of the most significant.  A 2011 study entitled, The Effects of Physical Activity and Physical Fitness on Children’s Achievement and Cognitive Outcomes by Fedewa and Ahn looked at 59 published papers between 1947 and 2009. Through a comprehensive analysis of the data the results indicated, “a significant and positive effect of physical activity on children’s achievement and cognitive outcomes, with aerobic exercise having the greatest effect.”  Moreover, this study revealed that the strongest relationships were found between aerobic fitness and achievement in mathematics, followed by IQ and reading performance.  The most significant gains in academic performance were found when the physical activity was performed in smaller groups of less than 10 children.  Interestingly, individualized activity interventions showed no impact on cognitive outcomes or academic achievement.

So, what’s the point of this post??  A few weeks ago this very discussion came up on talk radio (yes I listen to talk radio) when a new study around childhood obesity was released.  Despite the fact it was agreed by all involved in the conversation that kids could use more physical activity, it was apparent by callers that there are not a lot of programs for kids that aren’t organized sports.  Then the light bulb went on!

Small Group Boot Camp for Kids that is affordably priced and at convenient times. Taking kids to a gym is probably the last thing that comes to mind even if the parents happen to go to a gym. But if it’s to participate in a program organized specifically for kids, it makes perfect sense.   So, my trainers and I have put our collective heads together and starting on Tuesday July 10^th we will be starting a 4-week Boot Camp for Kids. The group size will be limited to 8 and there will be 2 groups; 9-11years and 12-13 years.  The 9-11yr group will start at 7:00pm and run for 30 min sessions and the 12-13 group will start at 7:45pm and run for 45-minute sessions.  All sessions will run on Tuesday evenings for 4 consecutive weeks.

Special Introductory Pricing:

9-11 year group – 4 sessions $52 tax included

12-13 year group – 4 sessions $60 tax include

To register, please download and complete the attached Informed Consent and bring it in to the gym.  Download the Consent form here:  Guardian and Informed Consent

Balance training is something a lot of people overlook while they’re at the gym. It is a skill we take for granted until we realize that we’ve lost it. It isn’t until then that we actually appreciate how important balance is to activities of daily living.

As we get older, our balance diminishes. It’s not just you, it’s everybody. That’s just the way the body works. Balance can be viewed through the lens of – use it or lose it. Generally, as we get older, our need to work on balance activities becomes increasingly important.

As children, adolescents, and even young adults, we are training our balance fairly regularly because generally speaking, people are more active when they’re younger. Climbing trees, running through sand, swinging and playing sports are activities we perform early in our lives and generally stop doing them as we get older. From my experience, it seems to be the golden age of 25 years when humans start becoming less active. At that age, people are finishing school, working full time, holding a relationship, having children, owning a home and while doing all of that, usually they stop being active.

It’s at this point we begin to see a decline in a person’s balance. Tasks become just a bit trickier than what they once were. As we age, our balance continues to decline in a linear fashion.

Getting into older age (over 65 years), our ability to remain living on our own without assistance is partially determined by how well we can or cannot navigate our surroundings. If a person is at risk of injury while living in their home because they have less than acceptable balance, that person may have to live in an assisted living facility far sooner than an individual with markedly better balance.

Young people often ask about the importance of balance training. Think of it as an investment in your future. Investing the time to improve your balance when you’re younger, will yield a return on that investment as you age.

Balance Exercise Recommendations

The take-home point here is to make sure you work on your balance because it doesn’t just hang around forever for when you do need it. Use it now and use it often.

About the Author:  Eric Noyes BHSc (Kin), CSEP-CPT

Eric is  Kinesiology Graduate from The University of Ontario and holds his Training Certification with the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology.  He has been training general population and sport specific clients at Body Fit since 2013 and is currently the Lead Trainer.  He can be reached at eric@bodyfit.ca for advice and consultation.

Doing crunches will help me lose belly fat….

This myth is really easy to believe. It sounds great whichever way you look at it. Do crunches and you’ll lose fat around your stomach. Obviously, if the muscles of the stomach are burning, that must be the fat melting away…… In most cases, that could not be further from the truth.

I’m a firm believer in science. If something can be scientifically proven, it intrigues me. And the bare bones fact of the matter when it comes to this topic is the science does not support it whatsoever. I hate to break it to you, but if you think that crunches and sit-ups are going to get rid of your belly fat, you have sadly fallen victim to one of the greatest illusions since David Copperfield made the statue of liberty disappear. It simply isn’t supported by science.

What I have provided here, are two research articles that both disprove the myth that belly fat can be reduced simply by doing abdominal exercise.

Study #1, conducted by Vispute et al in 2011 examined the effect of performing abdominal exercise and the effect it had on abdominal fat reduction.

This study examined the effect of performing abdominal exercise to reduce subcutaneous fat around the abdomen. 14 men and 10 women, healthy/sedentary adults between the ages of 18 and 40 years were included in this study. They were randomly assigned to one of two groups, either (1) the control group or (2) the intervention group. The intervention group performed 7 abdominal exercises, 5 times per week for 6 weeks. The control group performed no additional exercise or physical activity other than their usual day to day activity. An isocaloric diet was maintained through the duration of the 6 weeks for both groups. “In conclusion, abdominal exercise training was effective to increase abdominal strength but was not effective to decrease various measures of abdominal fat. Some individuals attempt to reduce their waistline by solely performing abdominal exercises possibly because of claims made by various abdominal equipment advertisements. The information obtained from this study can help people to understand that abdominal exercise alone is not sufficient to reduce waistline or subcutaneous abdominal fat. It is likely necessary to include aerobic exercise along with reducing energy intake to have more favorable changes in body fat percentage.”

Study #2, conducted by Ramirez-Campillo et al in 2013 examined regional fat changes induced by localized muscle endurance resistance training. In other words, performing abdominal exercises.

This study was conducted to examine the effect of localized muscular endurance training on total body and regional tissue composition. 7 men and 4 women, of an average age of 23 years participated in this study which was conducted over 12 weeks. All participants worked out 3 times per week. The workout included 1 set of 960 – 1,200 repetitions of Single leg presses at 10-30% 1RM. The non-dominant leg served as the intervention (performing the exercise) while the dominant leg performed no leg presses and served as the control. “A significant decrease in fat mass was observed in the upper extremities and trunk. The reduction of fat mass in the upper extremities and trunk was significantly greater than the fat mass change observed in the trained leg but not in the control leg. In conclusion, the training program applied effectively reduced fat mass, but this reduction was not achieved in the trained body segment. Our results show that when a muscle group is trained, changes in fat mass may take place in body areas not necessarily adjacent to the trained muscle group. Therefore, trunk body fat may be modified by training arm or leg muscles.”

So what does this mean? It’s one thing to have the research, but knowing how to apply it is a much different animal.

The take-home message

Based on the results of these two studies, a few different observations can be made. Firstly, stop performing abdominal exercises with the hopes of reducing your belly fat. The body does not work like that, as outlined above. Abdominal exercises should be performed to enhance strength endurance and not fat reduction.

The second take home point here is you must monitor your energy intake. In other words, monitor what you’re putting in your mouth. If energy intake exceeds energy output, then you will never lose weight.

The last take-home point here is to monitor your energy output and perform appropriate exercises that will aid in weight loss. When we look at the mechanism of caloric expenditure, more oxygen consumption yields a greater expenditure of calories. Take for example, an abdominal crunch versus a deadlift. Not only are crunches incredibly harmful to the spine, they are also an incredibly inefficient use of time if you want to reduce belly fat. Simply put, larger muscles burn more calories. The muscles used during a deadlift utilize far more energy than the muscles used during an abdominal crunch. What am I saying? Do more deadlifts and full body compound movements…… They burn more calories. Therefore, performing deadlifts are a far more effective use of your time if you wish to lose weight compared to an abdominal crunch.

3 Keys to Success.

Have you ever wondered why it is that the million crunches you do just don’t seem to give you the six-pack you’ve been looking for? Why does it feel like your nutrition is constantly taking 2 steps forward and 1 step back?  Do you ever think that if it hasn’t worked by now, that perhaps maybe the problem might actually be yourself? It’s a tough concept to come to grips with when you really think about it. Often times, we as people are our own worst enemy. However, we have a terrible time actually admitting it to ourselves.

It may be something you don’t care to hear about; however, if you’re serious about seeing a real return on the investment you’ve made or are currently making in this whole “healthy living” thing, then you may want to continue reading. As hard as some of the things I’m going to talk about may be, it’s time we own up to our behaviors that are hindering our success. You must own up to the fact that the blame can only be put on yourself for not seeing results you want out of the gym.

If you’ve made it this far, you’ve probably realized that this post might be a tough pill to swallow. If you wish to keep reading, you will find outlined below, three keys to help ensure that your investment in your health will see a big return.

1.Effort

All results and success are relative to expectations. Meaning, if your goal is simply to come to the gym three times a week, and you successfully achieve that goal, then congratulations, you’ve achieved your goal. However, is that really your goal? Generally speaking, if you’re coming to the gym, you’ve identified that there is something about yourself that you wish to change. You’ve determined that there is a problem and you would like to fix it.

Think of it in these terms, if I wish to eat healthier, I can go to the grocery store three times in a week, but does that mean I’m eating healthier? Did you notice, I didn’t actually tell you what/if I bought anything at the store? But I feel great because I actually physically travelled to the grocery store. When someone says they’re going to the gym three times a week, that doesn’t mean they’re doing anything productive while they’re at the gym. Saying I wish to eat healthier, going to store three times in a week, and not purchasing any “healthy” food items, I successfully expended time and energy and simultaneously not moved any closer to achieving my goal. Rounding back to my point, if you wish to lose weight, going to the gym three times a week, and not doing exercises that aid in weight loss, then you’ve expended time, energy, money and have not lost any weight.

Simply going to the gym is not going to get the results you’re looking for. You have to look at the gym the same way you look at going to your job; you’re there for a very specific reason. You give maximum effort while you’re there, and then you go home and relax.  I’ve seen people using dumbbells while reading a book. No one will ever be able to convince me that that person was working out with maximum effort. 100% effort must be given if you want 100% of the results.

2.Plan

As a fitness professional, it amazes me that despite not seeing concrete and measurable results; people day in and day out will continue to plug away at the same old “workout program” they’ve been on for years expecting different results to magically happen. Unfortunately, there is one glaring error with this way of thinking, and that is; if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got. It really makes loads of sense doesn’t it? Continuing the same behaviour and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity. You’re probably thinking – “well of course that makes sense, who in their right mind would expect something different to happen?” I can honestly say that I’ve seen way too many people over the years do the same thing for months, until they get frustrated and give-up.

They key is following a plan. But what plan should you be following? This is always the million dollar question. Often times, people will grasp at whatever fad “workout program” they find online, or they do what their friend does. The problem with this is….. “workouts” people put online were not designed for YOU. Nor is your friends workout designed for YOU. The key here is the plan has to be specific to YOUR goals and YOUR body. Did Joe Fitness online assess you? Did you get to tell Mr. Fitness that you have knee pain while squatting? Does Mr. Fitness program guy/girl online know that you have chronic low back pain? Chances are Mr. Fitness online program person doesn’t know any of this information about you. My question is then, why would you follow an exercise program that wasn’t built for you?

Think of it this way, would you take someone else’s medication and expect it to work for you? Well of course not; is what everyone reading this should say. If you wouldn’t take another person’s medication, why would you use their exercise program? I know some of you may be thinking, “well following someone else’s program can’t harm like taking another person’s medication.” That may not be as correct as you would think. If you have a chronic low back problem, and begin performing exercises that will make the pain worse, that’s not good. You are now harming yourself.

The take home point here is if you’ve begun an exercise program without the person who made the program evaluating you, I would suggest stopping what you’re doing. That person has not taken into consideration your physical limitations and performing inappropriate exercise can be potentially harmful.

3.Consistency

So now that you’re giving 100% effort and have gotten yourself on the best personalized plan imaginable…… how do you get results? The answer here is consistency.

We’ve all been there. It’s Saturday night, we’ve just eaten 4 slices of pizza, garlic bread, half a bottle of wine, and some ice cream for dessert and we whisper to ourselves; “I’m starting again on Monday.” You can’t give 100% effort for one week and expect miracles to happen. You have to link those weeks of constant effort together, and that is where the hard work will pay off. Having a great week at the gym to throw it all away on the weekend is the equivalent of two steps forward and one step back. If you’re always setting yourself back, how can you possibly expect to make any progress?

Think if it this way. A little riddle for you….. Let’s say you leave your house in your car intending to make it to the grocery store for all those healthy foods you promised to eat. Take a left turn out of your driveway, take the first left turn you come to, and then take the subsequent 3 left turns….where do you end up? Now unless you’ve driven onto a one-way street, you more than likely have returned to your home where you began. Did you make it to your intended destination? This is exactly what it’s like when you go wild on the weekend and eat everything in your fridge. You make that great progress towards your goal until you take those last two left turns, and before you know it, BAM you’re right back where you began.

The take home point here is you can’t expect to make it to your goal if you’re just driving in a circle, or in this case, a square.

So now that you have the 3 keys to success, it’s simply a matter of putting them into action. I know that if you cut out all of the excuses, and begin consistently following a proper plan, and execute it with maximum effort, you will be more that pleased with the results you see.

At the beginning of 2018 we made a commitment to focus on current members and do things to make them happy.  Since then we have introduced the 365 Days of Christmas daily give-away and now we are launching our Cash for Referrals Program.

Earning cash for referrals is as simple as 1, 2, 3 for current members! 

Step 1 – Grab a Buddy Pass from the front desk.  Put your name on the back and give it to a friend, family member or co-worker.

Step 2 – Bring your Buddy into the gym!  We will set them up with a 2 Week No-Obligation Membership.  They can come as often as they wish with or without you.

Step 3 – If you Buddy thinks we are a good fit and joins for 4 months or more, then we reward your efforts with CASH! 

There is no limit to the number of people that members can refer!

Check out these Happy members!

Here are the program details:

1. Must start with giving a Buddy Pass to a friend – Buddy Pass must be completed
2. Current member must bring the Buddy in with them for the first visit.
3. Applicable to Couples and Family memberships.
4. Rewards are for referring NEW clients or clients who have not had a current membership for a minimum of 2 years.
5. If a membership is purchased on a discount (4 month summer) the Rewards will be adjusted accordingly.
6. Does NOT apply to those that have claimed a free week.
7. The referring member must be willing to have their picture taken for the purpose of advertising and promoting the program.  Picture must be taken of the client receiving the Cash Bonus from Staff.
8. Referral Cash will be paid out 30 days from the date that the Buddy becomes a paying member.

Rewards:

4 month m/s – Member receives $50

6 month m/s – Member receives $75

12 month m/s – Member receives $100/annual m/s