Success Needs to be Trained

Success has many forms. For some success looks like a big bank account while another may see it as spending a Sunday with family and friends. Recently I was able to be a facilitator of 4 very different success stories. 1 person lost 60lbs, 1 person ran her first race, 1 raced an IronMan triathlon faster than she had before and another is now able to climb the stairs without holding the hand rail.

I see things in terms of how we live in the physical world, not as much about the financial world. If your fitness and wellness is not invested in then your financial investments will dwindle quickly. Just like your financial health, your physical health should be invested in and the earlier you begin the better off you will be.

On to the successes:
DH is a member of my studio in Cool Springs, TN. He was an athlete in college, works a very stressful job and had let himself get up to about 100 lbs overweight. He came up playing baseball at a time when training and fitness were only for the field and never mind whether you could walk when your college career was over. The results are some serious knee pains that limit his exercise capacity. His program needed modifications and he was not able to do many of the most effective weight loss exercises, like running sprints. Through consistency in his exercise program he has been able to drop 60 lbs. We are working on his diet for the last 40. His company is involved in a major merger with another large company so his stress level is still very high yet he makes exercise part of his daily schedule. DH feels like there is still more to lose but he has gained so much more by feeling more energetic.

Jes B has scoliosis, a surgically implanted rod in her back and 6 fused vertebrae. She also has about 30 years of doctors and relatives telling her that she should not run because it could hurt her back. Many times they would be right. I watch HOW she runs instead of just making sure "that" she runs. (A quality run is far better than just running large volume) I watched to see that she was running with her back in mind and using a safe run stride with short, soft steps. She had not run since before her surgery 30 years ago, when she was a child. She had stayed fit mainly focusing on yoga and Pilate's but even that had been sporadic in the last year. She wanted to run and so run she did. She completed a 6k run this weekend in a time of 43:29. Despite the warnings she did not break anything and actually finished pain free. She decided to run for herself, because she wanted to feel that freedom and accomplish what others said she could not. She possesses a champions heart.

When Esther came to me in late March she wanted to race her second IronMan (a 2.4 mi swim followed by a 112mi Bike then finished with a 26.2 mi run) in Wales in about 5 months. Normally I will not train anyone for IronMan who does not have at least 6 months to train for it. She had back pain that was preventing her from both running and biking. Although the swim can be the most daunting part of the race for some, it is only about 10% of the entire race. Now would be a good time to mention that Esther lives in Ethiopia and has some VERY tough training conditions- no lane lines in the pool, bad roads with people who yell things like "foreigner" and throw things and oddball lengths to run on the track as well as people who will just randomly pretend to run with you. I was able to Skype with her and her boyfriend, who is a trainer, to get her strong enough to bike and run. She was diligent in her efforts, I was the coach who kept her focused on her goal when she the training got difficult and she wanted to quit and she was able to enjoy her race on race day. She finished in a time of 12:37:05, 84 min faster than her last race. She learned how to focus and stay with it even when things got challenging. She trusted that her body could do what she wanted it to do on race day. She even had a good time doing it.

AA is business professional who has not made exercise a part of her life. She is 65 years old and noticed that she was too young to have such difficulty with climbing stairs. She is a business coach and has many clients who are pulling at her for time. She does not have much time to work out but makes 30min a week to see me and does 2 or 3 more workouts on her own. By staying dedicated to her own workout and seeing me she has improved her strength and feels better during the day. Her energy level is higher and her ability to work longer with more focus is greater. She looks forward to our meetings every week and incorporates more exercise than she used to.

Success comes in many shades. From beginner to seasoned athlete, from former college players to seniors who have never exercised we can all gain from being consistent in our fitness plan. Fitness is personal. Success is a muscle that can be made stronger and more fit. I use the gym to represent life success. The ability to overcome what limits you in the strength and fitness realm is not very unlike what is faced in business. You set your own goals and work daily to achieve them. Strive daily to be more fit, more lean and more healthy. Seek the stronger you, the faster you and the more healthy you. Your business and your body should both run lean, fast and strong.
Find your own success.
Just make fitness part of it.

Obesity and the Gym

     I have a little problem with the location of my studio. As a personal training studio in Brentwood, TN we are located right next to a Sonic and a Mexican restaurant. I joke with people that "I can open the door and order from Sonic... but I don't." Some days I feel like the "Fitness Confession Booth" when people tell me they "have been meaning to get more exercise." Is the fear of what you may find in the gym what is keeping you away?
   
      It is easy to get frustrated by the lack of care that others take for their bodies with bad food, inactivity and stress. I use the outside world as a mirror for how I can be a better trainer and coach others to have a healthier life. I am like most people who struggle with their weight or their fitness. I let the stress of business and life get to me, I don't sleep as much as I should, I can go too long between meals when I am working on a project and I can be a little obsessive about the food I eat (until I am not).
    
       I go to the gym every day because it is my job. I chose being a weight loss coach and a fitness trainer because I think it is my way of helping to keep more people healthy and to keep my family around me longer. I started running with my father at age 6 and have struggled to get my mother to exercise for 25 years. Exercise has been part of his life for his whole life while she has never really seen it as important as other things. Even more challenging for her was the stigma she felt about exercising as her weight went up and then she was in a car accident making everything hurt.

     So what do you do when everything hurts seems to hurt and you feel so self conscious about your weight that you will not go to the gym because all you see is skinny women in small clothes?
Keep in mind that exercise can be uncomfortable at first but you will begin to feel and move better with just a little consistency.
You hire a professional to get you started.
You get some emotional help from a psychiatrist, your preacher or a friend who can keep you motivated.
You find 3 friends and start a weight loss journey together.
You decide that you are now at your most unhealthy and you will spend the rest of your life striving for improved health and well being.
Reach out to family and ask for support. Get healthy as a family, all of your lives depend on it!

     You SHOULD NEVER QUIT! You should never give up on your health.

     I made the commitment almost 30 years ago to seek better health (at around 10 years old). That journey has not been a straight line. I have strayed. I have eaten food that is just awful for me. I have tried to exercise away my bad eating habits. I have tried to drink away problems. I have let myself become unhealthy, sometimes by exercising too much, sometimes by eating too much and sometimes by exercising too little. I have never kept being healthier out of my sights even when that vision became blurred. I have chosen to pursue the path helping YOU become healthier instead of being an electrician, banker or actor. Helping others become healthy is my passion regardless of what you THINK the gym is about. Reality is that most in the fitness business just want you healthy starting from where you are today.
Go to the gym.
Fight the Obesity trend.
Make the world a more fit place beginning with you.
Comment or message me if you want a little more hands on help.
I am here for those who fear exercise. I am here for those who only dream of getting healthier. Most importantly I am here because your health and fitness is my passion.


    

Inactivity is a Cause of Heart Disease- So lighten up and move!

I was reading some material recently about Baby Boomers. My dad was born in that first year, 1945, and he has always seemed to take pretty good care of himself. My mom was born a few years later into a different set of circumstances and has taken care of herself quite differently. They are both "Boomers" and neither of them show many signs of cardiovascular disease. They both have only 1 major risk factor: being overweight. Their "co-morbid" risk factors are High blood pressure and hyperlipidemia, high cholesterol.

As you may have read in "Ode to Dad of Fitness" my family has always done a better job than most of the country (at least statistically) at maintaining our health. We have been eating salads and trying low fat recipes for 30 years or so. However my dad has a bowl of ice cream from a cereal/soup size bowl more nights a week than he should. Exercise has been a part of our life and sitting in front of a screen, computer or TV, was always pretty limited. If it was daylight we were moving!

Now onto my "Soap Box": Inactivity is a lifestyle choice that leads to a host of problems! A study as far back as 1996 equated inactivity with smoking more than a pack of cigarettes a day. Many times inactivity can be diet related- if you don't have the energy to move around then you probably will not move as extra exercise or enjoyment. If you have inflammation in your body due to a high sugar or alcohol or tobacco laced diet then moving around is uncomfortable and you probably will not do it then either. Even if you smoke, drink and eat too much sugar you need to move more. Better still, you need to move smarter. Smart exercise takes less time and achieves a greater result to your fitness and sense of well being. The diet changes will happen when you make them happen.

You don't slow down because you move less, you move less because you slowed down.
Find a reason, like enjoying an active life, to keep you moving.
Find life in your days or your days will end sooner. It is that simple!

As the government has instituted a new Health Care law we are all responsible for the health of our fellow citizens, like it or not. The government is not trying to control your health or "Tell you" what to eat or how much to exercise, that still falls to you. Be responsible with the freedom.

Your insurance company tells you what it will pay for but your health, not your sickness, is in your hands. Exercise, Especially Strength Training, is the Single Best Way to Maintain and (possibly even) IMPROVE Your Health!!! The side effects of exercise are mostly feeling and looking better, having greater self confidence and improved brain and muscle health. What side effects does your medication have? Go on. Go read that 4 page flyer your (P)Harmacist gave you with you with your meds. I will wait. 1 side effect of Statins is Muscle Wasting. All that time in the gym almost countered by a medication. Right exercise can lower your cholesterol and improve your golf game or time with your loved ones. Statins, not so much.

So here is what to do:
1) Get cleared by your doctor to exercise.
2) Find a Fitness professional to teach you how to exercise for your size, age and current limitations.
3) Follow the prescription from your Trainer or other fitness pro. Get regular updates so you keep getting stronger.
4) Go enjoy a healthier life with less pain.

Some exercises I like:
The Squat- Sit down on something low then stand up. Repeat 10-15x. Once you are good at that then take away what is below you and stop on your own.

The Lift - Imagine you have to lift a rock or a bag of mulch off the ground. Get yourself flexible and strong enough to be able to do it yourself. Now go do it yourself!

The Twist - Not the dance but it is good for you. Imagine pulling a garden hose from behind you to in front of you or lifting your groceries up and over the side of the cart and into your car. You have just "twisted" 180 degrees. Do this as exercise and then you are less likely to throw your back out doing it in the parking lot of the grocery store.

The Lunge - You have to do a short lunge whenever you climb stairs, a place where many falls occur in the Boomer population. If you can lunge forward and keep yourself under control then you will have the ability to get out of the way of that cyclist you didn't see coming while you were reading that email and walking down the street.

The Push/Pull - If you don't have a gym to go to you can always go to Target and open and close the Non Automatic doors all day. that way you work your pushing muscles and your pulling muscles. I like to see more pulling since we spend too much time closing off the front of our bodies while we drive, text, email and flex in the bathroom mirror.

If all else fails you can get down on the floor and stand up as quickly as possible 20x in a row. It uses most major muscle groups and helps to maintain your flexibility. If you do it fast enough you can also get your heart rate up.
Now go have fun with fitness. Be active! Stay younger by tomorrow.

If you're in Brentwood then come by the studio and I an show you to improve your health by lifting more than you ever thought possible. It slows down the aging process but don't tell the drug makers.
In health,
Andy Nelson

Ode to Dad of Fitness

As today is Father's Day it is only fitting that I give a little Background as to why I do what I do. My father was a Runner. I started running with him when I was 6 years old. When I say "with" believe it was an exaggeration. He always seemed so fast and he was always bigger than life.

Active in his church, an officer in the Army, dad to 5 kids from the same wife he is still married to, a husband, baseball/basketball/track coach, a design engineer for a business airplane company and a backyard mechanic. He somehow managed to partner with my mother and grandmother to get all us kids to one sport practice or another, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, church events and friends' houses and still find time to cook (though cleaning was not his strong point except for his tools). He managed to plow and plant a garden every year with some big help from Grandma Wedincamp. This gave me a love for fresh vegetables and an appreciation for growing the food yourself.

It has come out in the last few years that Frank Shorter, our last Olympic Gold medal winner in the marathon in 1976, ran to escape his home life. My dad may have done the same thing to start his running career. He did not have the most stable home environment when he was growing up so he did his best to provide a stable home for his kids. He took us on runs whenever he could even if that meant going slower than he would on his own. He would wake us up on race days and put toast together so we could have something to run on and let Mom sleep when he could (she would usually be at the finish line anyway). He even coached the church RA (Royal Ambassadors) track team for the couple meets we had regionally every year. He ran a couple marathons in his time and called me to run the NYC Marathon "with" him the year he turned 60. He has asked for my help in training for his next one at 70.

He kept me out of football because I was too small until High School and then was encouraging when I started lifting weights to put on size for it, even when it meant not running track. When I tried to do too many activities he pulled form the wrestling team even though I didn't want to quit and my grades were good enough for the school. He taught me that setting your own standard and sticking to it is more important than just meeting the minimum standard set by an arbitrary governing body. I am sure that was a difficult decision for a man who wanted to give his kids everything.

My father was concerned about the health of the family. He was trying recipes from Runner's World magazine since the mid 80's. We have been incorporating salads into our meals since the information came out that we need to. He was adventurous with his food choices especially when you consider the South Georgia traditional cooking we were surrounded by. This cooking did not always work out well and our family gets a ripe laugh whenever we bring up the "Eggplant Parmesan Incident".

I cannot thank my dad enough for his contribution to who I am today. I am an endurance athlete, a running coach, a great cook, a father and business man. I moved 1000 miles from where I had lived for 18 years when my ex-wife moved to a new state with my son. It is what any real father would do. It is what MY father would have done.

Thanks to Milo Gene Nelson, I
Lt. Col, US Army (ret)
Designer Engineer, Gulfstream Aerospace Corp
Father
Grandfather
Friend
Mentor
Guide

Are You Fit Enough For Retirement?

I had a great conversation last weekend with the father of a friend who had developed a great retirement plan on a flight from Osaka to Beijing. The plan had been drawn up several years ago and his wife told him then that he should have retired 3 years before so he could live out the whole plan. His name was Perry* and he has been, and continues to be, a quite successful business man. His wife is a hospice nurse and a runner. They are close in age and she is in great shape but he is at least 25lbs heavier than he should be but eats a clean diet. Some of his plan involves a bit of physical activity that I wonder if he will be fit enough for.

With all the focus on our monetary ability to retire do we ever stop to ask, far enough in advance, if we will be physically prepared for retirement?

When do we begin to lay the ground work for being able to play with our grandchildren? When do we get strong enough to handle the recovery process when need a hip replacement? When do we realize that we may be too frail to enjoy the money we have earned in a life of successful business pursuits? When do we stop saving for retirement and start living our retirement?

Will you be Fit enough to enjoy your retirement?

Perry's* plan involves living in several different locations for 6 months each. Each location had lots to offer from art, to culture, wine and food, and hiking or outdoor activity. He would be required to live in a new environment, adapt to the climate, stay healthy and active and be physically fit enough to battle crowds, climb stairs, sleep in a bed that is not his usual bed, travel by train, plane or bus and not get sick or injured while under such stress all while aging.

 While a clean diet and healthy lifestyle are very important as we age, strength training and stress mitigation are are of just as high priority. Yoga/flexibility training, weight lifting, meditation/prayer and cardiovascular fitness all play roles in keeping us healthy and slow the aging process. Just as important as slowing the aging process, using these activities in your weekly fitness routine will help you to add quality to your years and, barring disease and illness, quantity as well.

A simple weekly formula to help add years to your life and life to your years:
Mon- Weight Lifting- Focus on basic movement patterns like squats w/weights, moving weights from the ground to over your head, twisting while bending or squatting and pushing or pulling weights.
Tues - Cardio fitness or Flexibility/Yoga
Wed - Meditation/Church/Spiritual Health/Social Activities
Thu - Weight training- Pushing and Pulling, Standing and sitting w/weights, Single leg balancing, flexibility work/stretching
Fri - Swimming or other cardio - I prefer you run. When you lose the ability to walk you increase your risk of death.
Sat - Weights and/or Cardio (Yes. Again) - short and challenging session, make it social if you can.
Sun - Church/Spiritual Health/Meditation/Social Play

These things are all part of making your life complete and whole and healthy. You will add quality of life to your years and years onto your life. You will have elevated mood from lifting weights, more confidence in your ability to complete physical tasks and a more clear mind. You don't have to be retired or in your last years of work to benefit from this formula.

If you want to see improvement in your health without prescription drugs then lifting weights has been shown to be a panacea. It improves insulin clearing, good cholesterol and body mass index. Add it to improving your diet to change the course of your retirement health.

Now go get healthier!
Ask a fitness professional how. Ask your doctor if you are healthy enough for exercise. If they say "No" then ask them how sick you need to be?

*name and minor details changed for protection ;)