My friend for about 20 years is a trainer in Daytona Beach, FL. He started in the athlete training field and moved to FL to work with a church (not for weight loss or health necessarily but it came around) and has been working with the 40+ population for many years.
Check him out here. He tries to answer how you can be YO only younger.
http://youngeryoufitness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=78&Itemid=468
I hope you enjoy the read and the watch of his video.
Check back here later for more on feeling your best at any age and any weight, regardless of current fitness level.
Best of Health,
Andy Nelson
917-226-527one
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
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 ;)
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 ;)
Friday, May 24, 2013
Look Where you want to Go
As a runner who likes to run on trails I know to look where I am going. One wrong step could result in a fall. I know this when I go out for a run and it slows me down enough to choose my steps well. In this way Trail Running is a mental game as well. You know you could get hurt but moving your body through nature like that is well worth the risk.
But What about the gym?
Yes, you need to look where you are going because people are moving heavy objects, sometimes very quickly. You also have to have a long view. Going to the gym is just something you need to do. It makes us more human since we are no longer hunting our food on foot and dragging it home. We move more and better when we are in the gym lifting weights. It makes us lose weight faster. It improves our brain function, blood function, insulin regulation and genetic pathways thus slowing aging.
When you begin to make exercise part of your lifestyle it may be difficult to keep these things in mind, especially if you are recovering from Bariatric Surgery. For those affected by Obesity the goals are very different than the goals of a life long athlete. Both people have to keep an eye on where their fitness goals are taking them; in the direction of health or the direction of a shorter life.
Many in the fitness industry still think Obesity is a simple issue; Simply solved with a "calories in, calories out" approach. Trust me, there are millions who have tried this method unsuccessfully. If that worked it would have already. We were all heading in that direction of fitness until a few innovators took the time to see what was working and what wasn't. You cannot always exercise you way through obesity or cancer or Crohn's Disease. Each individual is effected in their own way by their medical condition. There are many who are judgmental and say Obesity is self imposed. There are many cancers that were due to lifestyle but rarely are they judged so harshly. Some who have been ill come back to fight for others. Some give up and re-start their fight over and over. It is a fitness professionals job to meet each client where they are on the day and encourage fitness regardless of the starting point.
Keep your eyes focused forward! Where are we going to help those who are asking for help? Fitness professionals should be as professionals in allied health fields. Use the proper terms to address those with obesity. Do not give diet advice for someone under the care of an RD and or MD. Work toward a better functioning individual regardless of their weight. If someone comes for fitness training and education then address their issues from a strength and mobility standpoint first. The person who is 400lbs benefits just as much, or more, from being able to perform a squat as the 110lb person does.
Exercise should be fun and leaving you feeling challenged but not defeated. It will not be fun every day. Find the fun in an improved quality of life. Weight training works! It can help almost anyone feel better. Those who do not feel better are rare. A little muscle soreness aside your body will thank you for lifting weights and for exercise in general. Do not be discouraged at the pace of the scale or how your clothes fit. Fight for your life!
But What about the gym?
Yes, you need to look where you are going because people are moving heavy objects, sometimes very quickly. You also have to have a long view. Going to the gym is just something you need to do. It makes us more human since we are no longer hunting our food on foot and dragging it home. We move more and better when we are in the gym lifting weights. It makes us lose weight faster. It improves our brain function, blood function, insulin regulation and genetic pathways thus slowing aging.
When you begin to make exercise part of your lifestyle it may be difficult to keep these things in mind, especially if you are recovering from Bariatric Surgery. For those affected by Obesity the goals are very different than the goals of a life long athlete. Both people have to keep an eye on where their fitness goals are taking them; in the direction of health or the direction of a shorter life.
Many in the fitness industry still think Obesity is a simple issue; Simply solved with a "calories in, calories out" approach. Trust me, there are millions who have tried this method unsuccessfully. If that worked it would have already. We were all heading in that direction of fitness until a few innovators took the time to see what was working and what wasn't. You cannot always exercise you way through obesity or cancer or Crohn's Disease. Each individual is effected in their own way by their medical condition. There are many who are judgmental and say Obesity is self imposed. There are many cancers that were due to lifestyle but rarely are they judged so harshly. Some who have been ill come back to fight for others. Some give up and re-start their fight over and over. It is a fitness professionals job to meet each client where they are on the day and encourage fitness regardless of the starting point.
Keep your eyes focused forward! Where are we going to help those who are asking for help? Fitness professionals should be as professionals in allied health fields. Use the proper terms to address those with obesity. Do not give diet advice for someone under the care of an RD and or MD. Work toward a better functioning individual regardless of their weight. If someone comes for fitness training and education then address their issues from a strength and mobility standpoint first. The person who is 400lbs benefits just as much, or more, from being able to perform a squat as the 110lb person does.
Exercise should be fun and leaving you feeling challenged but not defeated. It will not be fun every day. Find the fun in an improved quality of life. Weight training works! It can help almost anyone feel better. Those who do not feel better are rare. A little muscle soreness aside your body will thank you for lifting weights and for exercise in general. Do not be discouraged at the pace of the scale or how your clothes fit. Fight for your life!
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Other Sports
So I competed in the CrossFit Games Open and have since had some time to reflect. It was competition! Pure and simple. They determined that fitness, when judged by the CrossFit parameters, should be judged based upon a particular set of exercises performed over a set time frame. It was scaled to everybody broken down by gender and even age group at some point. It was fitness in competition format!
For me It was FUN!
I enjoy competing. It is fun to test myself against an old me and against others. I am competitive I like seeing how I stack up against others and athletic events, which is part of the popularity of FlyWheel. CrossFit is its own sport just as running is its own support and football is its own sport. It takes a certain fitness to play football but it takes a different fitness to run as a sport regardless of distance. Most people who do CrossFit regularly can jump into a football game and fare pretty well. Those same people can probably jump into a half marathon and gut it out at least once without injury. There are cases of professional football players who did not fare well in a CrossFit work out. They are truly fit, at the peak of anyone's game and yet they suffer under a CrossFit work out.
But just as those same football players will adapt and improve their own football skills by doing CrossFit so too will a runner improve their running form and be a stronger runner for it by incorporating CrossFit. They call CrossFit "The Sport of Fitness" but you have to be pretty fit and pretty fearless to take it on for any length of time. CrossFit draws and maintains a certain type of person, the person who thrives on bettering their last performance. Just as Krank Nashville is great for getting you fit enough for their indoor cycling class and/or Strength Classes Krankers tend to do quite well at CrossFit when they go. However most Krankers prefer the comradeship found at Krank. It is Fitness and athletic ability, just slightly more specified to a different fitness.
We are all trying to become more fit and healthy. One type of exercise should not be looked down upon by any other fitness group. Yoga requires fitness. Pilates requires fitness they just don't have competitions. There are other sports besides baseball, football, basketball and hockey. It was not so long ago that Soccer was a rare sport in the US. After Pele and bunch of European guys wowed the US for a few years then Soccer basically vanished until the mid 80's. There are Other Sports out there. There is Roller Derby and Mountain Biking and Spartan Race or anything that requires mental and physical stamina to endure to the finish. I like running on trails. Lucky for me there is plenty of that activity to go race and test myself against others regularly. I like Spartan Racing as well as an occasional backyard football game. Our psyche wants to compete.
We compete in sports.
We put Gym Time to the test.
We challenge our comfort zone.
Most importantly we improve ourselves simply by seeing a thing through.
I encourage you to find your sport.
I encourage you to improve upon who you are through physical challenge.
I urge you to discover your true strength. The strength that is stronger than your greatest weakness. When you overcome your ability to quit in a physical endeavor then you send a signal to your subconscious mind that you can overcome more than you thought before.
Strive for physical fitness and your mental fitness will come along for the ride. Choose a sport to compete in. Any sport. Any One that scares you. Try to get good at it. It doesn't matter if you take up knitting for speed. At least you will find achievement and a more fit mind.
Compete with yourself or friends to see who can be most fit and healthy. Even the loser of that challenge will add years to their life.
No go be healthier than you ever thought possible.
For me It was FUN!
I enjoy competing. It is fun to test myself against an old me and against others. I am competitive I like seeing how I stack up against others and athletic events, which is part of the popularity of FlyWheel. CrossFit is its own sport just as running is its own support and football is its own sport. It takes a certain fitness to play football but it takes a different fitness to run as a sport regardless of distance. Most people who do CrossFit regularly can jump into a football game and fare pretty well. Those same people can probably jump into a half marathon and gut it out at least once without injury. There are cases of professional football players who did not fare well in a CrossFit work out. They are truly fit, at the peak of anyone's game and yet they suffer under a CrossFit work out.
But just as those same football players will adapt and improve their own football skills by doing CrossFit so too will a runner improve their running form and be a stronger runner for it by incorporating CrossFit. They call CrossFit "The Sport of Fitness" but you have to be pretty fit and pretty fearless to take it on for any length of time. CrossFit draws and maintains a certain type of person, the person who thrives on bettering their last performance. Just as Krank Nashville is great for getting you fit enough for their indoor cycling class and/or Strength Classes Krankers tend to do quite well at CrossFit when they go. However most Krankers prefer the comradeship found at Krank. It is Fitness and athletic ability, just slightly more specified to a different fitness.
We are all trying to become more fit and healthy. One type of exercise should not be looked down upon by any other fitness group. Yoga requires fitness. Pilates requires fitness they just don't have competitions. There are other sports besides baseball, football, basketball and hockey. It was not so long ago that Soccer was a rare sport in the US. After Pele and bunch of European guys wowed the US for a few years then Soccer basically vanished until the mid 80's. There are Other Sports out there. There is Roller Derby and Mountain Biking and Spartan Race or anything that requires mental and physical stamina to endure to the finish. I like running on trails. Lucky for me there is plenty of that activity to go race and test myself against others regularly. I like Spartan Racing as well as an occasional backyard football game. Our psyche wants to compete.
We compete in sports.
We put Gym Time to the test.
We challenge our comfort zone.
Most importantly we improve ourselves simply by seeing a thing through.
I encourage you to find your sport.
I encourage you to improve upon who you are through physical challenge.
I urge you to discover your true strength. The strength that is stronger than your greatest weakness. When you overcome your ability to quit in a physical endeavor then you send a signal to your subconscious mind that you can overcome more than you thought before.
Strive for physical fitness and your mental fitness will come along for the ride. Choose a sport to compete in. Any sport. Any One that scares you. Try to get good at it. It doesn't matter if you take up knitting for speed. At least you will find achievement and a more fit mind.
Compete with yourself or friends to see who can be most fit and healthy. Even the loser of that challenge will add years to their life.
No go be healthier than you ever thought possible.
Friday, April 19, 2013
15min video on Better Tri Performance
It is simple to me- Triathlon and the training necessary for it make you a healthier person. You cannot be so out of balanced from biking as to effect your run. You cannot be so out of balance from swimming to effect your biking. You cannot be so sore from time in the gym to destroy any one aspect of your tri workouts. So we must strike a balance in most aspects of our training, and in turn in our lives, to be a better and more efficient triathlete.
Here is I just a short video I did with my friend Jerry Yoo, a PT in New Jersey, about how I like to see the run trained for. I coach runners of all distances and fitness levels as well as triathletes. I love to see triathletes improve in all aspects but especially the run.
Give it watch. Comment and share.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xLgfXvHf_g
Stay healthy out there. Encourage each other to do better. Help other athletes who are in need.
Andy
Here is I just a short video I did with my friend Jerry Yoo, a PT in New Jersey, about how I like to see the run trained for. I coach runners of all distances and fitness levels as well as triathletes. I love to see triathletes improve in all aspects but especially the run.
Give it watch. Comment and share.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xLgfXvHf_g
Stay healthy out there. Encourage each other to do better. Help other athletes who are in need.
Andy
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
My Turkey (or grass fed beef) Chili recipe
I have made a few changes to this recipe but I have posted something similar before.
This is good food! It is healthy. High protein. High fiber. And most importantly: High flavor!
Enjoy!
This makes a very big pot of chili:
1 box Pomi Chopped tomatoes (no spices) (or can of 24oz Chopped)
1 box Pomi Strained (or 24oz canned or bagged strained)
1 lb of Ground turkey or Grass Fed Beef
1 med Yellow Onion - Chopped large
1or 2 can Black beans - rinsed
1 can Kidney Beans - rinsed
1 can Pinto Beans - rinsed
1 each - Red, yellow, orange and/or green pepper - cut into large chunks
1tbps Chili Powder
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 tsp Fresh Black pepper (to taste)
1 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Cumin
2 tbsp Olive Oil
In
pot brown meat with Olive Oil and half of spices. (if you ise beef that is 85/15 then you may want to drain some of the fat before you move you on). After a few min add
chopped onions. When onions are brown add strained tomatoes, chopped
tomatoes. Once tomatoes begin to bubble add beans and remainder of
spices. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Mixture should be thick and hearty
looking. Stir regularly to prevent sticking and ensure spices blend
well. Taste and adjust spices to your liking.
I like to add tabasco or Trader Joe's Jalapeno Pepper Sauce to add some heat. Cut Jalapenos for greater flavor, remove seeds to keep heat down and flavor higher.Sometimes I like to add Green Chiles. They add a nce flavor without cranking up the heat. I like this with a warm corn tortilla or corn bread. If carbs make you gain then stay away from flour tortillas.
Enjoy your food!
Eat Clean. Be lean! Be strong! Race Fast!
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Answer to a question
Answer to Question
by Andrew Nelson for www.tricoachandy.com
andy@getfitnyc.com
I was recently presented with a situation from one of the athletes on a women’s triathlon team:
She is a cyclist and a runner who has pain in the knee. The MRI showed significant edema, inflammation, and bursitis. The bursitis was the result of a fall. Inflammation is often the result of trauma; edema is a fluid buildup in the tissues of the body usually the hands, legs and ankles and can be from injury or pregnancy).
As a longtime athlete, she has worked hard to overcome some injuries (Runner’s Knee, most recently) and is concerned about losing the fitness she has gained.
She asked which procedure would get her back racing sooner?
The doctor gave her 3 choices - 1) cortisone shots; 2) 4-6 weeks of immobilization and crutches; 3) PRP, physical therapy, and complete rest (not even swimming).
Here is my take from years of coaching, running, racing, and being an athlete:
1- If you can manage it financially, get the PRP and the PT. Complete rest may lead to a greater understanding of why you race to begin with.
2- If you gained fitness once, you will not go back to “zero” if you take the time to heal. It may seem like you are "losing ALL of your fitness," but the reality is that is just not the case. If you make things worse by not recovering fully then you will be out longer.
3- Treat fitness and exercise as an investment in your body; a long term investment. There will be ups and downs; as well as plateaus. Fitness and health are not just for this season or this training cycle. Athletes, especially highly competitive ones, do get injured (in her case it was another bike accident avoiding a car).
4- You can strength train without mobilizing the knee joint. Straight leg raise w/ankle weights, hip abduction w/cables, straight leg dead lift- all of these will strengthen the hips/legs without bending the knee.
5- Swimming can be done while still immobilizing the knee, ONLY IF THE DOCTOR CLEARS YOU. Swim with a pull buoy and a band around your ankles (and maybe even your knees). It feels strange at first but makes your upper body swim form and rotation come from the hips; where you’re stronger anyway.
6- Take it slow! If you were running 6-10 miles/session before the injury, start with a 1/2 mile easy jog. That’s right, 1/2 mile. Your body will need to reestablish neural pathways for optimal muscle ordering; an efficient gait. This will help the body to break the old injury cycle. If you try to come back too quickly and resume where you left off, you risk re-injuring yourself.
Even great doctors who are athletes often fail to see what great trainers and coaches are able to do to keep athletes moving. I once had a dentist who had been a teacher of Dentistry tell me: “Some dentists were A students and some dentists were C students. At the end of school they were all still dentists.” Coaches and trainers are not all the same; just like any professional.
I understand the head game of an injury (I once took 13 weeks off immediately after being trained for a marathon to recover from an accident). The “career” of an athlete can be cut short, and lead to a lifetime of pain, by not taking the proper down time or doing too, much too soon after an injury. Take time to recover fully from an injury. Sometimes a longer time recovering can mean a stronger next season and a longer athletic career.
Stay Healthy and use a great coach to help you achieve better results for next season.
by Andrew Nelson for www.tricoachandy.com
andy@getfitnyc.com
I was recently presented with a situation from one of the athletes on a women’s triathlon team:
She is a cyclist and a runner who has pain in the knee. The MRI showed significant edema, inflammation, and bursitis. The bursitis was the result of a fall. Inflammation is often the result of trauma; edema is a fluid buildup in the tissues of the body usually the hands, legs and ankles and can be from injury or pregnancy).
As a longtime athlete, she has worked hard to overcome some injuries (Runner’s Knee, most recently) and is concerned about losing the fitness she has gained.
She asked which procedure would get her back racing sooner?
The doctor gave her 3 choices - 1) cortisone shots; 2) 4-6 weeks of immobilization and crutches; 3) PRP, physical therapy, and complete rest (not even swimming).
Here is my take from years of coaching, running, racing, and being an athlete:
1- If you can manage it financially, get the PRP and the PT. Complete rest may lead to a greater understanding of why you race to begin with.
2- If you gained fitness once, you will not go back to “zero” if you take the time to heal. It may seem like you are "losing ALL of your fitness," but the reality is that is just not the case. If you make things worse by not recovering fully then you will be out longer.
3- Treat fitness and exercise as an investment in your body; a long term investment. There will be ups and downs; as well as plateaus. Fitness and health are not just for this season or this training cycle. Athletes, especially highly competitive ones, do get injured (in her case it was another bike accident avoiding a car).
4- You can strength train without mobilizing the knee joint. Straight leg raise w/ankle weights, hip abduction w/cables, straight leg dead lift- all of these will strengthen the hips/legs without bending the knee.
5- Swimming can be done while still immobilizing the knee, ONLY IF THE DOCTOR CLEARS YOU. Swim with a pull buoy and a band around your ankles (and maybe even your knees). It feels strange at first but makes your upper body swim form and rotation come from the hips; where you’re stronger anyway.
6- Take it slow! If you were running 6-10 miles/session before the injury, start with a 1/2 mile easy jog. That’s right, 1/2 mile. Your body will need to reestablish neural pathways for optimal muscle ordering; an efficient gait. This will help the body to break the old injury cycle. If you try to come back too quickly and resume where you left off, you risk re-injuring yourself.
Even great doctors who are athletes often fail to see what great trainers and coaches are able to do to keep athletes moving. I once had a dentist who had been a teacher of Dentistry tell me: “Some dentists were A students and some dentists were C students. At the end of school they were all still dentists.” Coaches and trainers are not all the same; just like any professional.
I understand the head game of an injury (I once took 13 weeks off immediately after being trained for a marathon to recover from an accident). The “career” of an athlete can be cut short, and lead to a lifetime of pain, by not taking the proper down time or doing too, much too soon after an injury. Take time to recover fully from an injury. Sometimes a longer time recovering can mean a stronger next season and a longer athletic career.
Stay Healthy and use a great coach to help you achieve better results for next season.
Monday, February 4, 2013
The Effects ARE Real
Strength training improves your Marathon running. Strength training improves your bike sprint performance. Strength training makes your swim stroke stronger. I know that is hard for most runners to imagine and even harder for cyclists to see how more muscle can lead to FASTER times. I like to run! I am a running coach! I am a triathlon coach! But giving up 1 or 2 runs a week in exchange for focused Strength training can improve your run and or bike regardless of distance. Throw in some speed work and you just might drop that marathon time/century time/mile swim time.
The science is clear and unwavering that strength training improves your running economy and helps to better vascularize your muscles, improving blood flow during exercise. So why don't more people who call themselves athletes strength train? It makes you more lean. It makes you stronger. It reduces injury. And if done properly, improves your balance and function in everyday activities. It even makes you look better.
So I ask again: Why don't more runners strength train? I mean pick up something that weighs more than they do. Simple answer: Runners like only running. To that end they should build muscle so they have the stable, strong base to continue to run without injury. My father is a lifelong runner and, at 67, he JUST got what I have been telling him for 10 years. Cyclist fear having more weight to carry up hills but the strength:weight ratio improves more than the weight stays on. Swimmers do not float as well, though but somehow finish faster.
Now I will make the argument that lifting heavy improves endurance performance. Yes, at the professional level running more, faster helps you to run a marathon faster. However, most people who run do not spend 2-3hrs/day working out and 21 hours only recovering like the pros do. Most people spend the day sitting down at a desk letting their hip muscles get short and junky. Strength training and the preparatory work necessary to lift are great at making a runner, cyclist, swimmer or triathlete stronger and more flexible, allowing a powerful run stride/pedal stroke/swim stroke that is more efficient.
I would also make the argument that preparing your body to strength training helps to make you better at the other sports. If you are a triathlete you need to be very flexible, very strong, and have tremendous endurance. Strength training combined with swimming, biking and running can make you a very balanced strong and focused person. More muscle allows you to finish stronger, recover faster and prepare better.
Don't just watch a video on YouTube of how to do the following lifts, get some professional coaching or at least take a small strength training class.
My recommended lifts for endurance athletes are as follows:
Dead Lift (build to fewer than 6 reps. GO HEAVY)
Dumbbell snatch
Kettlebell swings (initiate from the hips)
Thrusters (Front Squat to Jerk press)
Pull Ups
Push Ups
Squats (build to fewer than 6 reps with great knees placement)
Med Ball Chop or slam/ Med Ball Cross Body lift
Box Jump
Now go have some fun being strong. The hills will look and feel easier.
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Easy Healthy Delicious Recipe
I LOVE to Eat. I love to eat well. I love the way I feel after a meal that I put love in to creating and has the most flavor for the nutrition content. Food should taste good! Period! The thing is to open up what tastes good to you.
Try new vegetables.
Try new ways to prepare meats and vegeatables.
Eat Healthy fats like avocados, olive oil and nuts.
Learn to cook. Learn a NEW way to cook.
Discover new flavors. Be prepared to taste something you don't like.
Be adventurous about healthy food. Have some courage!
Enough of my rant. Here we go. This calls for Grass Fed Beef. If you cannot find Grass Fed, local organic beef then AT THE VERY LEAST get Chorizo with NO NITRATES/NITRITES. If their beef is good enough to eat then should not have to put nitrates in it.
Ingredients:
12oz. Grass Fed Organic Beef Chorizo or Smoked Turkey Kielbasa (nitrate/nitrite free please)- Sliced
1lb Kale - Red Russian is best - clean and stems removed
1 Cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries- chopped
1/2 cup Pistachios (sunflower seeds or slivered almonds)
3tbsp Olive oil
Place 2cups of water and 1 grind of Himalayan Rock Salt in a large Sauce pan. Remove stems from kale, rinse, cut into ribbons and place in boiling water. Lower to a simmer for 25 min. (its actually healthier with Kale)
Place sausage in a medium ceramic sauce pan and heat on low. Stir occasionally to keep from burning. Cook until done. Use a thermometer if necessary.
Rinse Quinoa well in a mesh strainer and add to 2cups of boiling water w/1tbsp of olive oil. Simmer on Low for 10-15min.
If you are on a High Protein diet, Paleo or just trying to eat healthier then this recipe is great. I love the spice from the Chorizo with the flavor of the kale. The texture of the Quinoa, cranberries and pistachios makes for a very satisfying dish that is easy on your calories and has a very low glycemic impact.
Stay healthy and eat well!
Subscribe, comment and follow. Your best health is just a few bites away!
Try new vegetables.
Try new ways to prepare meats and vegeatables.
Eat Healthy fats like avocados, olive oil and nuts.
Learn to cook. Learn a NEW way to cook.
Discover new flavors. Be prepared to taste something you don't like.
Be adventurous about healthy food. Have some courage!
Enough of my rant. Here we go. This calls for Grass Fed Beef. If you cannot find Grass Fed, local organic beef then AT THE VERY LEAST get Chorizo with NO NITRATES/NITRITES. If their beef is good enough to eat then should not have to put nitrates in it.
Ingredients:
12oz. Grass Fed Organic Beef Chorizo or Smoked Turkey Kielbasa (nitrate/nitrite free please)- Sliced
1lb Kale - Red Russian is best - clean and stems removed
1 Cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries- chopped
1/2 cup Pistachios (sunflower seeds or slivered almonds)
3tbsp Olive oil
Place 2cups of water and 1 grind of Himalayan Rock Salt in a large Sauce pan. Remove stems from kale, rinse, cut into ribbons and place in boiling water. Lower to a simmer for 25 min. (its actually healthier with Kale)
Place sausage in a medium ceramic sauce pan and heat on low. Stir occasionally to keep from burning. Cook until done. Use a thermometer if necessary.
Rinse Quinoa well in a mesh strainer and add to 2cups of boiling water w/1tbsp of olive oil. Simmer on Low for 10-15min.
If you are on a High Protein diet, Paleo or just trying to eat healthier then this recipe is great. I love the spice from the Chorizo with the flavor of the kale. The texture of the Quinoa, cranberries and pistachios makes for a very satisfying dish that is easy on your calories and has a very low glycemic impact.
Stay healthy and eat well!
Subscribe, comment and follow. Your best health is just a few bites away!
Monday, January 14, 2013
Well Its the 2 week mark
So we have been in 2013 for 2 weeks now. How are your resolutions going? Did you vow to change your diet? Get more exercise? Lose weight? Go to the gym every day?
And how are you doing? You are probably already letting the little things slip.
Did you write down your resolutions and post them where you can see them every day? Writing down your resolutions makes them more real. More real than just saying it.
I will talk mainly about diet goals since exercise info is everywhere.
98% of diets fail. If you change 1 small but effective daily habit, just 1, you can have a 95% success rate. Once that thing is part of your daily routine then we can add 1 more. If you try to do both small changes at the same time your fail rate will skyrocket to 80%.
So lets just start with 1 thing, for the next 2 weeks. Take a fish oil supplement and a multi-vitamin. That may sound like 2 things but only if you look at each supplement as an individual behavioral change. Take a quality multi and a quality fish oil. Take 1g for every 1% body fat. If you are obese then start with 25g over the course of the day. This 1 little thing shows dramatic results in a week or 2. Take a multi-vitamin so your body operates well. You really do need all of those vitamins for your body to be efficient at eating, moving and living.
For the next 2 weeks just make that small change, it is the best bang for your lifestyle change buck. Now go do it.
if you need further diet and exercise needs feel free to email me.
Andy@getfitnyc.com.
Stay healthy!
And how are you doing? You are probably already letting the little things slip.
Did you write down your resolutions and post them where you can see them every day? Writing down your resolutions makes them more real. More real than just saying it.
I will talk mainly about diet goals since exercise info is everywhere.
98% of diets fail. If you change 1 small but effective daily habit, just 1, you can have a 95% success rate. Once that thing is part of your daily routine then we can add 1 more. If you try to do both small changes at the same time your fail rate will skyrocket to 80%.
So lets just start with 1 thing, for the next 2 weeks. Take a fish oil supplement and a multi-vitamin. That may sound like 2 things but only if you look at each supplement as an individual behavioral change. Take a quality multi and a quality fish oil. Take 1g for every 1% body fat. If you are obese then start with 25g over the course of the day. This 1 little thing shows dramatic results in a week or 2. Take a multi-vitamin so your body operates well. You really do need all of those vitamins for your body to be efficient at eating, moving and living.
For the next 2 weeks just make that small change, it is the best bang for your lifestyle change buck. Now go do it.
if you need further diet and exercise needs feel free to email me.
Andy@getfitnyc.com.
Stay healthy!
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