Kathleen Trotter
Kathleen Trotter (KathleenTrotter.com), author of Finding Your Fit. A Compassionate Trainer’s Guide to Making Fitness a Lifelong Habit, writes for the Globe and Mail and Huffington Post, blogs for Flaman Fitness, and makes regular TV appearances. Kathleen holds an M.Sc. from the University of Toronto, is a Level 1 Life Coach and holds a nutrition diploma from the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition. She lives in Toronto.
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If you do static stretches before you train, STOP! Static stretches downgrade the nervous system and cool the body down. Save them for after your workout.
Instead, use dynamic mobility exercises to warm up your body pre workout. Dynamic mobility exercises "turn on" the nervous system and prime the body for movement.
Variations on the crunch are often "go to" abdominal exercises. I get the attraction: crunches are convenient and relatively simple. Plus, they provide a good abdominal "burn," which always feels rewarding!
Clients often tell me that they can't work out at home because they don't have the storage or floor space. I think they associate home gyms with rogue stability balls and weight machines doubling as a TV table.
Set yourself up for health success by adopting what I call the 2 "Cs" of training: convenience and consistency.
The body is highly adaptive; if you always do the same workout it will stop responding. Eventually, you will hit a fitness plateau. Plus, who wants to repeat the same routine day in and day out? I know I don't. The standard "three sets of twelve to fifteen reps" is fantastic if you have been training for less than six months, you have an injury or if you are prone to injuries. If you are healthy and have a training base of six months or more, you need to mix things up if you want to continue to get stronger and see further results. Try "pyramid sets" – they are an effective yet simple way to add variety to a workout.
If your goal is fat loss, don't get enticed by the 'fat burning' programs on cardio machines, or the myth of the "fat burning zone."
Prioritize getting at least seven hours of sleep a night. That might sound like obvious advice, but in my experience, too many of us are way too willing to give up a few hours of sleep in favour of watching TV, working or socializing. Sleeping should be a non-negotiable; sleeping will help you feel better, have more energy and regulate your weight.
Push-ups are one of those exercises with name recognition - like crunches and squats - even people who don't exercise know what they are. As a trainer I love push-ups because they provide a fantastic upper body and core workout, but since they don't require equipment they can literally be done anywhere.
I encourage all my clients - from my competitive athletes to my clients who simply want to be strong enough to play with their grandchildren - to train their balance! Balance training is hugely functional. The better your balance, the easier you will be able to do everything - from stabilizing yourself on the subway, to picking up heavy objects, to negotiating uneven terrain to weaving around another athlete on the field.
When I need extra motivation to train, I sign up for a race. I love working towards an athletic goal, and I can't justify skipping a workout when I have already registered and paid. Plus, nothing compares to the feeling of crossing a finish line!