Blog - a healthy way to healthy

Summer is a busy season for almost everyone, for me it means spending an average of 5 nights a week on the diamond. I laced my first pair of cleats at the age of five and I haven't looked back. Softball is a sport predominately played by women; it's a popular summer past time and has many health and fitness benefits.

A guest blog by Callie Tweedie, Graphic Designer for the Flaman Group of Companies (the parent company to Flaman Fitness)

Guest blog by Mike Henschel, Flaman Fitness, Saskatoon . . . .

Summertime in Saskatoon is a wonderful opportunity to see the city's beauty with the river banks, gorgeous parks and bike trails all over. One outdoor activity I enjoy is hitting the diamond. There's nothing like tying up my ball shoes on the bench, look up and see the shale infield surrounded by the freshly trimmed emerald-green, grass outfields protected by a fence that acts like a goal for so many.

Being four now, literally everything he sees he does or mimics or wants to try. Which trust me can be frustrating at times since he literally had no fear. But it makes me excited when it comes to him seeing me workout.

Penn has been in lacrosse which just wrapped up on the weekend- and watching him out there made me so proud. Penn knows what it's like to run or workout, so out there he was always running, always participating, and just always giving it 100%. Truly can't tell you how special that is to see.

He also everytime I'm working out will come down and ask if he can workout with me or will tell me I'm sweaty and doing a good job.

And I instantly knew I had to share it with all you. Change is scary, and the idea of failing or making the wrong choice is even scarier. But what I can tell you is starting, and making the change as daunting as it seems, is always worth it.

As much as before actually starting the workout sucks or finding the motivation to just do it is hard... After I promise you no one ever thinks 'wow I really wish I didn't do that workout' No after you always feel way better, even if it's a sore better.

There are always millions of excuses to be inactive — don't let the sun be one of them! Yes, the sun can be an energy suck — not to mention dangerous — but that just means you have to find ingenious ways to be sun smart as well as active! As I always tell my clients, your health is an active process; we all have to actively look for solutions and opportunities to move more!

Here are some tips to survive the heat

I love summer, I love the beach, I love working out and most of all, I LOVE being on my paddleboard! It is the best possible way to work my body hard, clear my mind, and nourish my soul.

I have been an avid paddle boarder for at least 7 years, and I was asked to write a blog about it.

Here it is!

(Submitted by Gwen Spencer of Flaman Fitness, Vernon, BC)

Life is great until it sucks .. Or you could say Life isucks until its Great!

When life gets me down I look to turn it around as soon as I can the one way I know how is through fitness .... When people have trouble with life events it can send the body into a state of anxiety. You normally feel this way from lack of control, because if you could, you would have no fear or anxiety surrounding it!

One way to control your feelings surrounding a feeling of anxiety or disparage is to workout!

Summer months are the times we come out of hibernating, we change our winter clothes into shorts, we turn off our treadmills for walking outside. We settle down to patio drinks, late night BBQs and summer muffin tops? Heck no!

We have summer fun, while waging war against our waste lines.

Submitted by Sein Reid, Flaman Fitness, Edmonton - Yellowhead

When I started my journey into the triathlon world a year ago, I was already a seasoned full/half marathon runner one of the main lessons drummed into my head was the importance of consistency in training.

So, this off-season, I've decided to really make an attempt to run with this idea (pun intended) and up the regularity of training, regardless of whether the mileage increases as a result.

Submitted by Paul Clare, Flaman Fitness, Victoria

Too often when people tell me they are on a "low fat" diet it means they are eating tons of nutritionally vapid and processed foods such as muffins, puddings, cereals, and yogurts. Basically, they are eating foods labeled "low fat."

I know — the "low fat" label can be tempting! It is easy to believe that eating something labeled "low fat" will result in a svelte body. The problem is that so many foods labeled "low fat" are actually high in sugar and nutritionally empty. (Not to mention that most foods that are labeled are not that nutritious. I always encourage my clients to mainly fill their cart with fresh produce and lean proteins — to shop "the outside of the grocery store" — which for the most part will mean buying unlabeled foods. But I digress.)