Many of us have New Years resolutions. A common goal shared amongst New Years revolutionists is to run a marathon. Though it can be daunting and require lots of preparation, it is definitely an achievable task. A marathon has an official race distance of 42.2 kilometers and typically takes 4 hours and 30 minutes to complete. Luckily for you, there are several local marathons happening in and around Vancouver in 2019. If you are reading this, chances are you have done some sort of distance running in the past. Using the 4 month training guide provided below, you will be running your first marathon in no time!

How to Prepare / Things you will need

1. Proper running shoes – Should be snug around the middle of the foot and heel, lightweight and breathable
2. Breathable clothes
3. Water bottle
4. Timer or watch
5. Reflective bands or lights if running in the dark
6. Sweatband or hat (optional)
7. Earphones + music (optional)
8. Heart rate monitor (optional)

Running Tips

1. Warm up – the greatest athletes always start with a warm up 5-10 minute in duration. This can include dynamic movements or stretches.
2. Pace yourself – under pace yourself if necessary. Some of these runs can be quite lengthy, so start out slow and push at then end.
3. Bring snacks/gels or a hydration pack – to refuel/hydrate during your training.
4. Taper off the week before – we want your muscles to feel refreshed and have time to fully recover before your big race.

Post Run Tips

1. Stretch – important areas to stretch following an intense running session include: quadriceps, hip flexors, hamstrings, calves and the gluteus maximus
2. Foam roll – after each running session, roll out your legs and give yourself a massage. Foam rolling aids in healing and recovery by promoting blood flow to the area.
3. Post workout meal – eat a nutrient-dense meal after your session with carbohydrates and protein. Eating carbohydrates will help replenish the glycogen used during your run, while protein will aid in muscle recovery.
4. Ice bath or Compression – This can aid in recovery after an intense session. See my previous blog here for more information

Marathons in Vancouver

1. BMO Marathon – May 5th, 2019
2. Tynehead 5/8/12 Hour Marathon – July 6, 2019
3. RMHBC Boundary Bay – November 4, 2019

4 Month – Training Schedule

Kevin Kwok – Studio Coordinator

Kevin enrolled in numerous sports program as a child, which exposed him to an active lifestyle early in life. He played ultimate frisbee competitively at the junior level while in high school. Kevin now focuses his training exclusively on dragon boating. He has been paddling for the past 2 years and hopes to make the Canadian National Team in 2019. He hopes he can motivate others to accomplish their short and long term fitness goals.

The post Want to Run a Marathon in 2019? first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

January 2nd is National Personal Trainer Awareness Day, and it cannot come at a better time! New year, new you, new habits, and new goals, right? For fitness goals, a personal trainer is the best tool to achieve results in a healthy, fun, and long-term way. Personal trainers are not just glorified rep-counters, they offer something unexpected to clients who are serious about achieving their goals.

A Holistic Approach

Personal training is not simply about lifting weights and putting them back down. A good personal trainer will also train your mind when thinking about why you have your goals, how you can achieve them, and the things  that are holding you back. Health is not simply physical, it also has mental and social components that could play into why one feels ‘out of shape’ to begin with, or what stops someone from giving their full effort. Moving past barriers, whether physical or mental, is what will show the greatest results.

Motivation

Let’s be honest: motivation is at an all-time high every January! Sadly, by the time February comes around, most goals are forgotten or given up on. Seeing a personal trainer can keep your motivation to achieve your resolutions in a number of ways. Firstly: with training comes a financial investment. By purchasing a month or a year worth of training in advance, you can use this opportunity to hold yourself accountable and show up every session. You know someone is waiting for you, otherwise, why pay money to sit on the couch? Some clients work with trainers to overcome the mental cost of “feeling guilty” and losing confidence in their abilities to stick to this new habit.

Next, by the time your motivation plateaus or hits a low, your trainer can recharge your battery by showing you how far you have come! Often we don’t see our own progress as it can be incremental on a daily basis, and it takes someone else to help you see your improvement. For some people, they have “moving goalposts syndrome” – if their initial goal was to do 5 pushups with good technique, March rolls around, they’ve lost motivation and can now do 15 pushups, but because they moved their goal to 25 reps, they still feel like failures on the inside because they “didn’t reach their goal.” This is where a trainer can show clients the results they have achieved in all areas from a day 1, objective standpoint.

Some people have an “all or none” perspective when it comes to health goals. At the start of the year, we can feel unstoppable and create our own spectacular 4 day a week ultimate workout plan. But then life comes at you and going to the gym 3 times a week becomes unsustainable – this is where many people quit, all that work put into the ultimate 4 day plan gets pitched. A trainer can help you with effective workouts at 2 sessions a week, or even 1 with some short and sweet mini home routines. Either way, you are still going- once a week for a year is still 52 more times that you went to the gym than you otherwise would have!

Finally, by making workouts fun, personal trainers make working out something to look forward to. Instead of dragging yourself to the gym and counting down the time until you can go home, personal training can help bring life and energy into workouts. By learning how to properly complete exercises, confidence in the gym goes up. A strong relationship with your trainer can be formed, and a session with them can help you relax after a long day of work or help you with a problem you’ve been struggling with.

Skills

Personal trainers are trained to help you bridge the gap between where you are now and where you want to be. Experienced and educated trainers like Kinesiologists have extensive knowledge, training, and education, to provide you with strategies and techniques that can help you to reach your goal faster, in a safe way. Watching a workout video on YouTube or Instagram can give you some solid information, but it won’t be able to tell you if your technique is spot on, without the assistance of a professional’s eye on your knee alignment from the back, especially as you fatigue. Will your downward dog look like the instructors? Maybe, maybe not. Or with a little back pain, will this hyperextension move be right for you? How should you change it or should you even do it at all? Working under the safety of a professional that can help you set up the appropriate weights or getting the right corrections will reduce the risk of injuries, which are very common for new gym-goers. A good instructional video has it’s limits.

We trainers are here to serve you, no matter what your goals are. Whether it’s a few training sessions to check up on your program or technique, or consistent and ongoing training, personal trainers are an invaluable resource for all of your health and fitness goals.

Mika Fogelman- Client Care Manager

Mika is passionate about helping others in any way she can. Having danced since she was five years old, she discovered excitement for fitness through teaching Zumba dance fitness classes, and loves to help others develop their confidence through exercise.

The post New Year’s Resolutions? How a Personal Trainer Can Help first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

Anxiety? Try Bikram Yoga

It has been shown that Bikram yoga reduces cortisol levels and therefore decreases the body’s stress response. A special breathing portion unique to Bikram yoga called pranayama has calming effects. Done at the very beginning of class, pranayama forces the participant to slow down and deepen the breath, resulting in a relaxing state.

Heart Disease? Try Ashtanga Yoga

Ashtanga yoga, with its fast pace and aerobic poses, can help improve many factors related to heart disease. Ashtanga can improve cardiovascular health by boosting blood circulation, increasing lung capacity, and improving heart rate. Yoga also reduces stress, which plays a factor in blood pressure.

Injured? Try Iyengar Yoga

Iyengar yoga focuses on body posture alignment and strength. Each pose is held for a long period of time, but the use of props helps alleviate pressure on joints. This reduces pain and fatigue of the body by keeping the poses within the body’s boundaries yet builds strength, stability, and flexibility. By focusing on precision, Iyengar is less likely to cause further injury, as an instructor keeps a careful eye on every pose.

Premenstrual Syndrome? Try Vinyasa Yoga

Bloated, sore, cramped, or cranky? Vinyasa yoga just may be your solution! Although instinct may be to curl up in bed and eat a chocolate bar while you are on your cycle, getting active will help relieve PMS symptoms. As Vinyasa flows through a variety of poses, blood flow through your body increases, helping oxygenated blood reach the reproductive organs. Yoga has been shown to release endorphins, elevating your mood decreasing stress, further helping relieve those time-of-the-month symptoms.

Have you tried yoga for any of these conditions? Share in the comments!

Mika Fogelman – Client Care Manager

Mika is passionate about helping others in any way she can. Having danced since she was five years old, she discovered excitement for fitness through teaching Zumba dance fitness classes, and loves to help others develop their confidence through exercise.

The post Which Yoga is Right for You? Pt. 2 first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

You can ask any avid yogi, yoga is not just a stretching class. Some serious strength and flexibility can be developed by regular yoga sessions, but which class is right for your abilities and goals?

Stressed? Try Yin Yoga

If you’re looking for a workout that will clear your mind yet make those muscles burn, try Yin yoga. Yin yoga poses are held for several minutes at a time allowing you to go deeper into the pose, fully releasing your muscles and improving flexibility. Yin is a meditative practice that clears the mind through slow movements so you won’t have to worry about keeping up in class.

Like a Routine? Try Bikram Yoga

Bikram yoga is for those who like to see what’s coming! This practice consists of 26 poses in a set series performed in a room precisely set to 40.5°C and 40% humidity. Considered a type of hot yoga, the hot class environment can help limber up the limbs but can also lead to over-stretching, so take it easy for your first few times and make sure to hydrate before class. Since every Bikram instructor uses the same poses in the same order, this class won’t keep you guessing.

HIIT Lover? Try Vinyasa Yoga

Quite opposite to Yin, Vinyasa goes with the flow and never stays in one position for long. This fast-paced class will increase your heart rate and connect your breath to every move. Moving through different postural positions Vinyasa is a great way to build flexibility and strength quite quickly.

Looking for Strength? Try Ashtanga Yoga

A more challenging class that is typically approached by more advanced yogis, Ashtanga has a set routine like Bikram but with more challenging poses. Ashtanga yoga consists of six series of yoga poses, performed in the same order in every single class. Without needing to worry about figuring out new moves every class, you can get into the routine and work on perfecting these demanding moves. With regular practice, these moves can improve your strength significantly in almost every part of the body. However, if you have sensitive muscles or joints, this may not be the best practice for you.

Stepping Out of the Yoga Box? Try AcroYoga

A wonderful mixture of acrobatics and yoga, AcroYoga is one impressive practice. In this practice, you are either lifting up a person or you are being lifted. Don’t let it intimidate you- with the right teacher, AcroYoga can definitely be for beginners. AcroYoga classes for beginners can teach you the basics, no extreme flexibility or strength necessary!

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Mika is passionate about helping others in any way she can. Having danced since she was five years old, she discovered excitement for fitness through teaching Zumba dance fitness classes, and loves to help others develop their confidence through exercise.

The post Which Yoga is Right for You? first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

5 Hiking Tips

1) Before conquering “Mother Nature’s Stairmaster,” hop on a gym’s Stairmaster, or hit some stairs outside! The Stairmaster can mimic the climbs seen on most steep trails while minimizing the impact on your joints. Once you are used to the machine, try increasing the intensity of the exercise by letting go of the rails!

2) Step up your cardiovascular fitness with some interval training! Either on the treadmill or outside, alternate between high-intensity (run) and lower intensity speeds (slow jog). If you’re on a treadmill, try to bump up the incline starting at level 1 to better mimic running outside.

3) When shifting weight from rock to rock, stability is a must! By increasing core strength, balance is improved! The major player in core strength is the transverse abdominis muscle. This muscle plays a key role in spinal stability and by working it, the risk of lower back pain can be decreased. Try planks, glute bridges, and dead bugs to work the transverse abdominis, and make sure the muscle is engaged by pulling your belly button in toward your spine! 

4) One may not think that flexibility is important for a hike, but with steep stairs, some stretches beforehand could go a long way. Try some dynamic stretches (those that involve moving instead of standing still) before you hit the trail to warm up your muscles like toe touches, butt kicks, high knees, and arm circles.

5) Often the biggest thing holding people back from physical challenges like a hike they haven’t done before is a lack of confidence in their abilities. If you’re feeling nervous, mental exercises to get you motivated and feeling ready to take on whatever this hike throws at you. Try repeating an inspiring message in your head like to get you going or keep you going when you get tired, challenge your inner critic!

What do you do to feel prepared for hike? Let us know in the comments!

Written by Mika Fogelman– Client Care Manager

Mika is passionate about helping others in any way she can. Having danced since she was five years old, she discovered excitement for fitness through teaching Zumba dance fitness classes, and loves to help others develop their confidence through exercise.

The post 5 Tips Before Hitting a Hiking Trail first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

Photo original source via Wikimedia

Two things that separate Vancouver from the rest of Canada are the diverse trails you can explore and how accessible it is from the city! From the popular nature stair master, Grouse Mountain located in North Vancouver to the alpine blue Joffre Lakes in Pemberton, there are countless trails of various difficulty. Many of which where you get a rewarding view at the end!

This article gives you a couple squat variations to help you strengthen the muscles around the knees and ankles. Strengthening those muscles are beneficial for hiking on inclines, uneven terrain and the eccentric loading when going downhill.

Single-Leg Stability Ball Squat

The exercise ball in this squat helps with stability when squatting down. Using an exercise ball is a good introduction to single leg squats. This exercise targets the legs, especially your quadriceps and glutes. It also works on knee and ankle stability by standing on one leg.

Reps: 12-15

Sets: 2-3

1. Position the ball so that it rests in the small of your back.
2. Place hands on the hip and push your back against the ball
3. Have one leg bent in the knee and extended towards the back
4. Slowly lower the body down bending in the hips and knees as far down as you can, or until your working thigh is parallel to the ground. Inhale during this movement.
5. It’s very important to note that your knee should stay behind your toe during your squat movement. If your knee it is too far forward, try positioning your foot further away from the ball to allow for a longer stride.
6. Also make sure your knee does not “cave in” during your squat. Keep your ankle, knee and hip in line.
7. Exhale while standing back up to to the starting position

Squat on a Balance Board

To challenge your balance a little bit more, here is another variation standing on a balance board with both feet. This exercise also helps strengthen those muscles that surround the ankle and knee joint.

Reps: 10-12

Sets: 2-3

1. Start by placing feet on the board
2. Put arms out in front to create more stability
3. Squat as far down as you can without the edges of the board hitting the ground and inhaling during this movement
4. Again, make sure your knees stay behind your toes and your knees do not “cave in” throughout the motion.
5. Stand back up while exhaling to starting position

For a more challenging variation, you can also try doing this exercise on a Bosu ball.

How did these exercises work for you and what’s your favorite squat variation? Let us know in the comments below!

Blog post written by Mika Pelaez – Client Care Manager
Mika became involved in sports at a young age, eventually settling to practice martial arts like kickboxing and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. She also enjoys hiking and kayaking in the summer and snowboarding in the winter. Mika has a passion for sports, health, fitness and education and she hopes to influence others in pursuing a healthy, active lifestyle.

The post Best Squat Variations to Train for Hiking first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.

I bet you’ve seen it on the internet, in the news and may have even been nominated…for the ALS Bucket Challenge. The trend of filming yourself while completing a challenge, then nominating your friends and colleagues to do the same is a relatively new trend, but extremely effective in today’s viral video world, and now applied to a charitable organization. Brilliant! However, before jumping on any crazy bandwagon and participating in any faddish shenanigan for the sake of vanity, I took it upon myself to research why on earth I would let anyone ice bucket me first thing in the morning.

What is ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge originated in order to raise awareness and funding for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Through the power of social media, the challenge has raised over $41.8 million and has included celebrity participants from Lebron James to Justin Bieber.

ALS; often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Our body carries out our brain’s commands for movement through impulses sent through motor nerves. Individuals with ALS lose the ability to control and initiate movement, as their motor nerves progressively degenerate. In the later stages of ALS they may become completely paralyzed, as muscles no longer receive messages through the motor neruons, and muscle begin to atrophy. Early symptoms of ALS include increased muscles weakness especially in the arms and legs, speech, swallowing and breathing.

Facts about ALS

• ALS is not contagious.
• Approximately 5600 in the US are diagnosed with ALS each year.
• Life expectancy of an ALS patient averages about 2-5 years from the time of diagnosis, but the disease is variable in different individuals.
• ALS occurs around the world with no racial, ethnic or socioeconomic boundaries.
• ALS can strike anyone.
• Riluzole the first treatment to alter the course of ALS, was approved by the FDA in late 1995.

Symptoms of ALS

At the onset of ALS the symptoms are often overlooked because they are so slight. This is a progressive disease, but the following are symptoms:
• Muscle weakness in one or more of the following: hands, arms, legs or the muscles of speech, swallowing or breathing.
• Impairment of the use of the arms and legs.
• Twitching and cramping of muscles, especially those in the hands and feet.
• “Thick speech” and difficulty with projecting voice.

In more advances stages, as mentioned above the individual may become completely paralyzed as they are unable to voluntarily move. Individuals may also experience shortness of breath and difficulty swallowing. Since ALS only attacks the motor neurons, the sense of sight, touch, hearing, taste and smell are not affected.

If you chose to participate, here are the Ice Bucket Challenge Rules

The nominated individual has 24 hours to complete the challenge. They must film themselves with continuous footage. First, they have to announce who challenged them, followed by pouring the bucket to the participant’s head; they can then announce their own nominees.

People can choose to donate or do the challenge. The person doing the challenge has to donate $10.00 and a person that chose not to do the challenge has to donate a total of $100.00. The donation goes towards researching the ALS disorder. Likewise all of the social media helps to promote awareness on the disease.

Reception of the Ice Bucket Challenge

While this event has been an incredible windfall for the ALS society, reaching approximately 50 million in recent donations, the challenge has not gone without criticism. Some bloggers and writers cry foul, that this is merely a form of slacktivism or a self serving “wet t-shirt contest”, to others claiming the cannibalization of funds that would otherwise go to organizations of greater need. Many people have their reasons for participating, and many have their reasons to not participate, and we respect all parties for their perspectives.  The Le Physique team felt that this was one of the many great causes that we could get behind and as such, because of Diana Doan’s nomination (thanks, Diana), we would like to share our Ice Bucket Challenges with you (even one of our clients got sucked into a video…by luck of proximity and association). Enjoy!

Melissa, Mat and Mohamud
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1srM0FmlbI&list=UUSS8qx7qp48sBGV3MzA_zaw

Nicole and Amelia
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psQyARFbzVs&list=UUay25ES7xnf0daA4L1PAiBw

Diana and Gillian
https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152676813534617&set=vb.508694616&type=2&theater

If you do get nominated and do the challenge, just make sure your video doesn’t turn out like any of these (ouch)!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBdi0qc1TNU

The post ALS Ice Bucket Challenge first appeared on Le Physique | Vancouver Personal Training.