Ahwatukee StrengthLab Personal Training 480-612-7726

Mental and physical toughness is an acquired skill won through rough experiences, a bit of suffering and constructive observations.  And although some people can be naturally tougher (mentally as well as physically)  it’s generally a direct result of personal choice and thoughtful initiative.  With sustained effort and motivation anyone can improve upon their mental and physical toughness.  Anyone!

The single most important quality for improvement in your personal fitness is consistency!  In fact, the single most important quality for improvement in any area of your life is consistency.  In your dedication to consistency… mistakes will be made, changes will be needed, but the goal grows closer.  Plan daily, execute daily and repeat!

Our bodies are extremely resilient… but in order to keep them this way for a life-time of vitality it’s important to minimize the accumulation of damage.  Damage brought on from the over exposure of chemicals, self-inflicted damage through excess and overuse, as well as damage wrought by our everyday stresses.  Thoughtful and balanced nutrition, adequate sleep and relaxation, varied and planned physical acivity all contribute to our well being… while exposure to anything beyond moderation for extended periods of time can open the dark door of disease by weakening our bodies defenses.  It’s an acummulation of good decisions and intelligent behavior while minimizing excess and over exposure that can bear us fruit in the long run.

A high level of fitness is something special indeed.  And when you don’t have it – you know it.  You wish for it – but that doesn’t make it so.  The steps to achieving fitness are quite simple – although many find a way to blur them.  And when reached… fitness becomes a multifaceted tool.  A tool that can be used anywhere and in all situations that you encounter in life.  But where to find the motivation to continue once the glory of fitness has been found?  That’s quite simple as well.  There’s motivation everywhere around you.  Fighting the aging process!  Staying strong for those who need you!  Doing the things you’ve always wanted to do!  And going to the places you’ve always wanted to go!  Renew your motivation everyday through focused thought and practice your fitness with the discipline of a child at play!

The slimmed down Garmin 110 is now available ($200-$250). 

It’s greatest feature is its small size! 

While it’s biggest detraction (to some) may be its inability to track your current pace in real time.  Instead, it tracks your average pace which I believe to be more important in a “slimmed down” version of a GPS watch anyway. 

If you want more features you should go with the bulkier Forerunner 205, 305 or 405 – but you’ll pay for the added features in added weight.

StrengthLab gives it two “Biceps” up!  Favorite Garmin GPS watch available.

Check it out at Sole Sports below:

http://www.solesportsrunning.com/Garmin-Forerunner-110-with-Heart-Rate-p816.html

Our mental health requires digging persistently into the sweaty trenches of exercise – we enjoy it and we look forward to it!  The daily anticipation of the very moment when we can break free and exercise that deep will-power required to move with such conviction brings us hope, enthusiasm and strength renewed.  There’s something about the physical challenge, the immediate high and the post exhaustion that makes the daily effort of fitness necessary and welcoming.

“The Fighter’s Mind – Inside the Mental Game”

In his acclaimed national best seller, A Fighter’s Heart, Sam Sheridan took readers with him as he stepped through the ropes into the dangerous world of professional fighting. From a muay Thai bout in Bangkok to Rio, where he trained with jiu-jitsu royalty, to Iowa, where he matched up against the toughest in MMA, Sheridan threw himself into a quest to understand how and why we fight. In The Fighter’s Mind, Sheridan does for the brain what his first book did for the body. To uncover the secrets of mental strength and success, Sheridan interviewed dozens of the world’s most fascinating and dangerous men, including celebrated trainers Freddie Roach and Greg Jackson; champion fighters Randy Couture, Frank Shamrock, and Marcelo Garcia; ultrarunner David Horton; legendary wrestler Dan Gable, and many more. What are their secrets? How do they stay committed through years of training, craft a game plan, and adjust to the realities of the ring? How do they project strength when weak, and remain mentally tough despite incredible physical pain? A fascinating book, bursting at the seams with incredible stories and insight, The Fighter’s Mind answers these questions and many more.

Fitness and exercise get more important, rather than less important, as we get older.

Therefore, we should take a long-term approach to exercise, an approach that’s designed to keep us training for a life-time.  Weight training is the first priority here, not only to increase personal fitness through enhanced muscular strength and muscular endurance but to maintain a dynamic balance between opposing muscle groups; which equates to a healthy range of motion throughout the body and its joints when practiced consistently.  This is how range of motion is maintained or re-acquired as we age – stretching is NOT the answer to maintaining or increasing flexibility!  

Consequently, consistent and intelligent weight training builds a robust foundation that aerobic exercise can be built upon.  Aerobic exercise persued habitually, without a strategic resistance training program, is a recipe for imbalance, future injury and burn-out.  Furthermore, as we age, imbalances occur naturally (as well as unnaturally) throughout our bodies due to work related repetitive motions, trauma from accidents and muscle tissue loss due to inactivity (which can occur as early as 25 years of age).  As we age time spent resistance training should increase! 

To summarize… no health and fitness program is complete without both elements – weight training and cardiovascular training.  Unfortunately, both are typically not practiced consistently (or at all) and often when they’re executed they’re performed incorrectly by the majority of end users; the selected exercises, technique, frequency, intensity and duration are all keys to long-term progression and success.

Muscular strength, muscular endurance and cardiorespiratory endurance decline mostly because of a lack of exercise, not because of factors associated with biological aging.  Comprehensive research clearly shows that physical disuse accelerates the aging process and physical atrophy can begin at any age due to inactivity.

One of StrengthLab’s favorite events… see you there!

Ramadas 9 & 10 at Papago Park

455 N. Galvin Parkway

Phoenix

5K Run & Walk Handicapped by

Age and Gender

Saturday, May 29, 2010 at 7:30am!

http://arizonaroadracers.com/Calendar/ARR_SummerSeries1_entry_form.pdf

The New Balance 100 is a minimalist trail racing shoe.  Built low to the ground, the 100 transmits a great feel for the terrain and allows for nimble foot placement.  A Rockstop plate protects against stone bruising and also acts a propulsion device.  The upper is thin to help keep weight down (only 7.3 oz) so you can keep the pace up. A great option for minimalist runners.  I think it’s perfect for the road – even more so than the trail!   Check out Sole Sports in Tempe to see if it’s right for you!

If you live a sedentary lifestyle… by the age of 50 you will have lost approximately 25% of your physical capacity (that’s your independence we are talking about here).  That’s exactly 1% of lost physical capacity per year from the age of 25 to 50 years of age.  That’s pretty disturbing for independent minded people! 

Now contrast that lost 25% physical capacity with only 3.9% lost physical capacity of those who remained vigorously active until the age of 50.  Now that’s impressive!

To reiterate, sedentary individuals lose 25% of their abilities by the age of 50… while active individuals lose less than 4% of their abilities by the age of 50! 

That’s plenty of reason to push on…

The Wit, Wisdom and Insights of a Road Racing Icon Bart Yasso…

http://www.amazon.com/My-Life-Run-Wisdom-Insights/dp/B003D7JWTM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273599330&sr=8-1

The current average time for male and female marathon participants is approximately 4:15 minutes and 4:45 minutes respectively.  If you’re considering running a full marathon for the first time it’s advised that you run consistently for at least a full year before tackling the classic distance and if you’re considering participation in a half-marathon it’s best to have been running consistently for at least 6 months before engaging the distance.  Furthermore, first participating in 5K’s and 10k’s in your lead up to either distance is greatly advised for the experience they provide.  Breaking 3:30 minutes in a marathon is a great long-term goal for males and breaking 4 hours in a marathon is a great long-term goal for females.

Personally, I prefer to run on asphalt… it’s smooth, predictable, stable and fast!  But choosing to run on trails several times per week for specific workouts is a great way to increase your fitness while shaking up your fitness program.  Moreover, trail running is typically more difficult… requiring a higher level of fitness, a deeper overall exertion rate and a greater amount of mental stimulation in order to navigate the obstacles that confront you.  The path to running shouldn’t be just about covering the miles, but the journey itself… and the trail holds plenty of journey within it naturally.  In addition, changing things up by trail running decreases the likelihood of repetitive motion injuries due to trails requiring higher knee lifts, less consistent strides and a varied running gait throughout its duration.  If you love to run and you run often without incorporating trails into your program… shame on you for neglecting the trails.

For for more information concerning this book follow the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/Second-Wind-Rise-Ageless-Athlete/dp/0736074910

See you there!

http://www.arizonaroadracers.com/Calendar/luck-of-the-draw.php

Your physiological health consists of three macro elements: Sleep, Nutrition and Fitness. 

Sleep is 40% of the equation… if you aren’t getting enough sleep don’t bother exercising.  Rest is considerably more important than exercise.  For instance, go a week without sleep and then go a week without exercise and see which one proves to be more integral to you and your health. 

Nutrition is another 40% of the good health equation.  If you eat high fat and/or highly processed foods, it won’t really matter how often or intense you exercise, you’re not going to see the results or gain the benefits that you’re after.  Moreover… fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and grains with quality fiber should make up the bulk of your diet.  When it comes to solid nutrition, it comes down to good choices being more numerous than bad choices to win over the day! 

Fitness is the remaining 20% of the equation!  If you have your sleep under control and you’re working to improve your nutrition, it’s time for fitness to play its integral role in your health and well-being.  Fitness consists of two vital elements… Cardiovascular Training (10%) and Resistance Training (10%)!  Make no mistake about it – they’re both equally vital to your fitness!

Exercise, which ever mode you choose and when approached with a positive mindset – is the ultimate in healing.  Restoring belief in oneself when things haven’t gone right… and unlocking doors to all of the possibilites that still remain locked-up inside you – one workout at a time.  Exercise, when approached with an open mind is restorative, preventative and magical… it’s the ultimate healer!