30-Day Challenge

Recently, a close friend of my texted me regarding her health and fitness challenges. A full time working mother of three, she desperately sought me out for fitness motivation to push her through her first month of dieting and getting back into the gym. In addition to her motivation, she also needed practical advice to fit into her already hectic schedule. A health and fitness enthusiast, I happily accepted. In her honor, I will be calling this "Tristin's Challenge."

DAY ONE

Good morning and happy "Workout Wednesday" fit chick! Today is the start of the new you! Workout Wednesday, is a no excuse day in the fitness world. This means, there are no excuses. This might mean fitting in exercise time at home, with a 30-minute at home workout. Simple jumping jacks, sit ups, push ups (burn outs)---you must do! Worried about looking silly around you're kids and family? Get the kids involved and challenge one another with each exercise! In home group fitness can be your best support as a busy working mom. Remember, you don't need a gym to get fit. The world is your gym. Your personal challenge for today will be to cut HALF of your bread/candy/chip products. Stay motivated! Remember, your body is beautiful; you are just looking for a renewed perspective on how to feed it and love it.

Kicking Some Cardio!

The word "cardio" is comes from the Greek word 'kardia', which translated means: heart. It's short for "cardiovascular" or "cardiology" and refers to anything related to the heart and circulatory system. Therefore, any exercise that increases the heart rate above its resting stage is referred to as 'cardio'.

It's no secret that many dread fitting cardio exercises into their routine. Over the years, I've heard of many variations to 'when' they chose to do their cardio. After working out, breaking it up to  1/2 before and 1/2 after, or just doing reserving it for a completely separate day all together. I've heard it all. Here are some ideas of when/how you can creatively fit cardio into your workout routine.

Start with cardio
You're having a day from hell, whether its 5:00 am and you just stepped out of bed, or 5:00 pm and you just finished a work day from hell, start with cardio.  Why? The days that you go into the gym, unmotivated or even unsure of what workout lies ahead for you, start with cardio! It serves several great purposes.

1. Its a great mental reprieve. It give you the time to not only sort your thoughts but also...
2. It gives you the time to think through your workout ahead. Often times it can even give you the burst of energy needed to follow through with your commitment to completing the workout.
3. It's a great warm up for all muscle groups.
4. Cardio is key to any great workout routine, whether it be done before the work out of even on a separate day all together.

Remember to mix it up.
'Cardio' does not simply mean running or using the elliptical or stair mill, it can be any number of exercises--even grouped together. When this is the case; Think: Intervals, Intervals, Intervals! Intervals, of any calisthenic value are a great way to mix things up. This is a key component to burning fat and gaining muscle.
Beginner? 
Try beginning with 45 seconds on/ 30 rest.
You could use any of the following during this time, including combinations:

• Jumping Jacks
• Jump Rope
• Mountain Climbers
• Jump Squats
• Box-Jump Squats
• Push-ups
• Tricep Dips
• Burpees
• (Weighted) Box-knee raises

While doing many of these exercises alone won't constitute a cardiovascular workout, it is the combination fast paced and continuous movement that forces your heart rate to rise above its resting point. When you step into those gym shoes later today, or if you've already worked out for the day; tomorrow, remember keep cardio creative, and let it motivate you! Never let it defeat you or your workout!

@kohlerkatie 

Lastest Happenings

I am so excited to share with you all my great news! For those of you who follow me on Facebook, the word is out. But I wanted to take the time to connect with my blog crowd and pass along some great things I have going so far this year (& its only January!!)

First,
MY 2014 FIT GOAL
My biggest "fit" goal for this year was to obtain a staffed position as a personal trainer. Fitness, as you all know is a big part of my life. But there is a story behind it. While I've always enjoyed participating in sports, even as a kid, I always held  overwhelming fear because of tremendous performance anxiety. When game days came, I would become so overwhelmed by my fears of failing or messing up in front of an audience, that I know, even to this day, I never performed to my fullest potential. I eventually got over this fear, when at 15 years old, I accepted my first job working at a local gym behind the desk. It took me quite some time as an awkward 15 year old to get comfortable with my way around the gym, but eventually I thought found it a home. It was a place where I worked, I worked out, I improved who I was physically, mentally and tested my strength; even within a setting of having a relative audience of complete strangers. I grew confident in my abilities to train in the gym. At 15, I couldn't know everything, I still ate like a typical 15 year old, and trained like a beast. In my last year of high school, I took a job working at another gym Northeast Health & Fitness ; where I worked until the end of my freshman year in college when I decided to pursue travel opportunities. Over the years I still remained close with all the people I worked with at NHF. They became a second family to me after working with them for so long.

On December 28, 2013, ten years later, I accepted a position back at Northeast Health & Fitness working as a staffed persona trainer. I couldn't be happier to
1. Have met my "2014" goal by the start of the year and
2. Be surrounded by such a great group of people; whom yes, I call colleagues, but throughout the years have become more like an extension of my family.
        They've seen my transformation from a young teen, to a grown adult. They've also seen me
        through a number personal challenges that I faced over the years while training.


Now on to the next…
I am juggling a pretty full plate as of recently, while I am not one for excuses, I just want to keep you all posted, so that you don't become disappointed when a post isn't up as routinely as I'd like. What is a full plate you as?

Mondaya:    Client Training 6:00a-noon
                    Teaching 12:30-2:30
                     Management meeting 3:00-4:30
                     Gym: 5:00-6:00
                     Client Training 6:00-6:30
Tuesdays:     Gym: 5:00am-6:00a
                     Teaching 7:30a-2:30
                     Managing 5:00pm-2:00a
Wednesdays: Teaching 7:30a-2:30p
                     Gym: 3:00-4:30
                     Client Training: 6:00p-7:00
Thursdays:   Gym: 5:00am-6:00a
                     Teaching 7:30a-2:30
                     Managers Meeting: 4:00-5:00
Fridays:         Rest day- no gym
                      Teaching: 7:30-2:30
                      Managing: 5:00-2:30a
Saturdays:      Managing 7:30-2:30a
Sundays:        REST!!!!


Needless to say, there are no excuses.
                   

               

Final Respects to Sgt. Vasselian

 Remembering Sgt. Vasselian
I took the time to pay my last respects to Sgt. Danny Vasselian this afternoon. Sgt. Vasselian is local Marine from Abington, Massachusetts, who served with Bravo Company, 1st Marine Regiment 9th Battalion, based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. 
While serving his third deployment in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan, Sgt. Vasselian was tragically killed in action just two days before Christmas and only weeks after his fourth wedding anniversary with wife, Erin Vasselian.

Arriving an hour early, on New Year's day, I waited outside for more than three hours in the bitter cold. Well worth the time when considering the sacrifice that he and his family have made for our country.

Many people over the past few days have asked "did you know Danny personally?" While I never knew him or his wife Erin personally , anyone within the military community knows, we are small and tight knit family. We stick together, when the deployments are done, the enlistment orders are up, the resignation papers are handed in; and well beyond the the days of war tragedies and untimely deaths: we always stick together. It is a life long bond that creates a family well beyond the years of service.

Being a member of military community means that not everyone will always be available to attend important life events like birthdays, weddings, holidays or in this case: final arrivals. We come together as a community not for ourselves; but as a show of support as a collective military community, in whole. That's what make us, MilitaryStrong

Boston Fire and Police officers line an expressway overpass in the Back Bay
to render a final salute to fallen Marine Sgt. Danny Vasselian.
© Greg Derr/ The Patriot Leger