Fitness Tips

• Uncategorized
• 1 Comment

When it comes to fitness tips, everyone seems to have an opinion. Best friends, next door neighbors, coworkers…ask any of them what you need to do to get in shape and stay in shape, and you’ll likely get any number of responses. Eat less meat, eat more spinach , run every day, purchase the latest fitness product on the market, or do whatever the latest fitness magazine tells you…and that’s just to name a few. You know my great uncle Leroy once told me that all I had to do to get in shape was to carry around a weed eater and push a garden tiller around all summer. Thinking back, I’m not quite sure that worked out as well as I had hoped it would; however, it did help improve my cultivating and lawn maintenance skills.

Anyway, with all of the opinions out there, where does one turn for good fitness information? Well, I’m a big fan of checking the literature, the empirical studies, yes the good ole’ scientific research. While I don’t think it’s necessarily the best idea to form an opinion based off of the results of one single study (after all not all research is good research, and one can usually find holes in just about any study ever done), analyzing research is ultimately the most effective way to separate the good information/advice from the bad. Or in this case, the good fitness tips vs. the bad fitness myths.

With that said, I browsed through some of the literature in the fitness field to see if I could find anything that sounded somewhat appealing. You can do it too. Simply google exercise research or something like that and scan through the results. Or, if you have a few minutes, browse through a research search engine such as pub med . Journals like the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research and Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise are great sources as well.

Here are just a few links to studies that address certain “fitness tips.”

1. Is it possible to lose weight by lifting weights? Check out this study published by researchers at Johns Hopkins University. (link)

2. Always take the elevator at work? This study may have you thinking again about the benefits of the infamous stairwell. (link)

3. Can’t remember what your spouse told you to buy from the grocery store? Maybe taking a walk will help you to remember. (link)

4. Having trouble achieving the fitness results that you desire? Sometimes all you need is a little extra motivation from someone special. (link)

Jamie Ives MA, CSCS, Master Trainer

Jamie has several years of experience in the fitness industry, working with clients of various ages, ability levels, and health conditions. He enjoys using his knowledge as well as his experience in exercise prescription and program design to help each of his clients reach their individual wellness goals and improve their quality of life.  For more information about Empower Personal Training, please call (919) 401-8024.

Surprise, Surprise

• Articles
• No Comments

Mom Hard at Work

Tell me if this sounds familiar (and exhausting)

1. Up at 5:30;
2. Shower for 15 minutes;
3. Dressing and grooming;
4. Get Kids up;
5. Dress kids;
6. Fix breakfast;
7. Make lunches;
8. Feed family;
9. Drop off kids
10. Grocery shopping;
11. Put away groceries
12. Gather laundry;
13. Rinse and put dishes in dishwasher;
14. Clothes to dryer;
15. Car to service – oil change;
16. Friend for lunch;
17. Pick up kids;
18. Take child 1 to soccer;
19. Child 2 to dance;
20. After dance back to pick up child 1;
21. Get kids snack;
22. Fold laundry;
23. Prepare dinner;
24. Eat;
25. Dishes (again);
26. Watch TV 1-hour;
27. Kids to bed;
28. Read 30 minutes;
29. Bed.

So whose day looks like this? Mom’s that’s who.

And amongst all this, moms also need to find the time to take care of themselves and exercise.

The next time you take your mom for granted. Think about this list.

Moms Rock.

Client Spotlight: George Livanos

• Uncategorized
• No Comments

George is a Financial Advisor who came to Empower Personal Training to establish habits in order to live a long and healthy life.  He trains three times per week with his trainer, Michael Whitehurst, and two or three times by himself.

We asked George how he achieved his training goals and he replied “It took me awhile to see the light, but once I realized that it is not just about what you do with your trainer, rather what you do in total, especially when not in the studio, did I realize my goals.  Diet is so important.  I’m not saying you have to deprive yourself of your favorite foods and drinks, just limit them.”

As far as results, George has seen a 15% decrease in body weight, decreased body fat, improved flexibility, lowered blood pressure, improved cardiovascular endurance, and improved core strength.  He says he definitely has more energy, feels young again, and when asked if he feels more confident he replied “sometimes too confident!”

Finally we asked George if he has any advice to others that are interested in attaining specific health and fitness goals and here is his response: “Sure do.  Throw the idea of losing weight out the door with the crazy diets.  Slowly build a solid foundation of proper diet and exercise.  The rest will follow as you improve on your results.”

Great job George and keep up the good work!

Infomercials for exercise products: Do they work?

• Uncategorized
• No Comments

“Oh, you’re a personal trainer?  What do you think about (insert product here)?  Does it work?”

A lot of times when I meet someone for the first time and they find out what I do for a living they ask me what I think about a certain product they saw on television.  Some of the products look downright silly while others look like they’ll put you on the floor because you’re working so hard.  All of these infomercials, however, seem to have a common format:

Cue the up-beat music with a funky twang and imagine an enthusiastic, tan, buff trainer talking at a louder-than-appropriate voice.

“Have you tried everything to lose weight and get in shape?  Tired of having those aching muscles and joints from doing hundreds of crunches without seeing any results?  Are you ready for our revolutionary new program, backed by research from a university, which will make you lose weight and get in the best shape of your life while allowing you to eat whatever you want?”  Sound familiar?

The Neck Slimmer - the last fitness product you'll ever need!

If you’re thinking about purchasing one of these programs I would caution you to think about a few things beforehand.  First of all, take a critical look at the product.  Are the workouts targeting more than one muscle group?  There are many pieces of exercise equipment for sale that would have you believe you can “tone” certain areas of your body.  This is simply not true; you cannot remove stomach fat by doing abdominal exercises alone and you cannot get rid of that funny jiggle in your arms by only doing bicep curls and triceps extensions.

Next, consider the “actual testimonials from real people.”  Many times these are actual fitness models that get their pictures taken for the after photos then get paid to gain 10 to 15 pounds of fat for the before shots.  Also notice in these “after” pictures the people are tan, cleanly shaven, and have their hair done professionally.

My final word of advice would be to understand that you won’t get results from any program if you don’t use it.  As ridiculous as the Giselle may look I guarantee you someone doing it two hours a day will have better results than someone who buys P-90X and lets the DVDs sit in their case.

If you’re thinking of purchasing an exercise product from an infomercial find one that looks challenging that works many different muscles.  Ask your friends, family, or co-workers if they’ve tried it and get their opinions on it.  Surf the internet to see if there are any reviews.  Finally when you have a program make sure you actually use it!

Thanks for reading- I’m off to go get a spray tan!

Paul Piracci, CSCS Professional Trainer

Paul brings a background of athletics and education to the Empower team.  He believes that wellness should be viewed as a blended lifestyle that balances nutrition, a healthy mind, and fitness which incorporates fun recreational activities.  For more information about Empower Personal Training please call (919) 401-8024.

Spotlight (Dennis Wallace)

• News
• No Comments

Dennis is a warrior.

I’ve been training him for close to a year and a half now. Not once has he ever questioned what we do, he does it. He works hard. He puts himself, and all of himself, in every workout that we do. Some succeed, some don’t. Sometimes he’s got more than enough, sometimes he doesn’t. But through it all, Dennis never stops moving forward.

In June of 08 Dennis was doing modified deadlifts. Today he can pull 240# for a 1RM. In Aug 08 Dennis was doing modified pushups on the squat rack (at #3 for those who know what that means.) Today Dennis can bust out sets of 20 or 25 full pushups, depending on the call of the workout. In March of 09 Dennis rowed 1k in 4:39 seconds. On 7/20/09 Dennis rowed 1k in 4:10. 0:29 second improvement, but the real testament to how good that time is comes from the workout after the warmup row.

Dennis’s body composition has dropped approximately 5% in this year. He’s leaner, he’s more toned and folks who knew him a year ago see it.

Dennis is someone I love to train. He’s all heart. He knows that the only way to achieve is through hard work. There are no shortcuts. There are no workarounds. Bust your butt, rest and then do it again.

Dennis Wallace is a warrior.

Posted by:

Mike Babbitt, M.F.A, M.A., CSCS, ACSM-HFI
USA Triathlon Level 1 Coach, Master Trainer
Mike is a Master Level trainer at Empower Personal Training.  He has a unique approach to fitness that combines his scientific foundation of research and applied exercise physiology with his artistic experience as a professional stage actor.  For more information about Empower Personal Training please call (919) 401-8024