Blog - Nielsen Fitness In-Home Personal Training in Toronto

5 BENEFITS OF CORE STRENGTH

5/2/2019

A strong core is an absolutely essential part of a strong and healthy body.

Your abdominal muscles are critical to almost everything you do - and the benefits of building and maintaining their strength go far beyond appearances.

Below are five ways core strength is crucial to your health, mobility, strength and comfort.

Everyday acts - bending to put on shoes, bathing, dressing, any work around the house such as cleaning and gardening that involve lifting, twisting, carrying, reaching overhead or simply standing still all originate in – or pass through – the core.

On-the-job tasks - jobs that involve lifting, twisting, and standing all rely on core muscles. Even less obvious tasks like phone calls, typing, computer use and sitting at your desk for hours predispose us to poor posture and overuse injuries when our core is slacking off.
A healthy back - when core muscles lack strength and endurance, poor posture can increase wear and tear on the spine leading to degeneration and herniated discs. Lower back pain affects four out of five people at some point in their lives but most cases can be prevented and treated by doing exercises that promotes core strength and endurance. Chiropractors and physiotherapists alike are quick to prescribe a regiment of core exercises to their patients with back pain.
Sports and other recreational activities - Golfing, running, swimming, baseball, volleyball, kayaking, tennis, biking, rowing… there are very few sports and recreational activities that aren’t powered by a strong core. In fact, many sport injuries are a direct result of a weak core. When the core is not able to transfer or absorb the speed and power in full body athletic movements, stress is then absorbed by joints and structures not made to handle those loads by themselves.
Balance and stability - your core stabilizes your body, allowing you to move in any direction or stand in one spot without losing your balance, decreasing your risk of falling. In fact studies have found that core strength training can be used as an adjunct or even alternative to traditional balance and/or resistance training in elderly populations.

While it’s important to build a strong core, developing rippling abs shouldn’t be your primary goal. True core conditioning comes from addressing trunk stability and mobility from the front, side and back of the trunk along with the hips and shoulders.

To get started on your improved core strength and stability, contact us for your free first workout.

seven ways to add Exercise to A Busy Day

1/29/2019

Are you getting enough exercise each day? Statistics Canada reports that as little as 30 minutes of moderate intensity most days will reduce the risk of chronic diseases.

But we all know it can be hard to find time in our already busy schedules. So, if you absolutely can’t fit a workout in to a particular day, make it your goal to incorporate as much movement as possible into your normal routine. Over and above simple walking (which goes a long way!), here are six easy ways to do just that.

3 exercises to REVERSE BAD posture

6/6/2018

Over time, chronic hunching or slouching can lead to a ton of problems over and above tight muscles and a rounded back.

Chronic poor posture – which many of us are dealing with thanks to desk jobs and driving – can lead to structural changes in your spine, which cause abnormal wear and tear on the joint surfaces, which can lead to arthritis or degenerative disc disease.

If that slippery slope of despair isn’t enough to scare you, poor posture can also cause blood vessel constriction, digestive issues, headaches, and even depression.

Reversing poor posture starts with awareness, and correcting alignment when you notice slouching or hunching. Do this by pulling the shoulders down and back, followed by pulling the head back so it is in-line with the shoulders. We call this the chin tuck and it is the first of three easy, no-equipment exercises to improve your posture.

3 EASY EXERCISES FOR BETTER POSTURE:

1. Chin tuck. Sitting or standing, elongate your spine by imagining you are lifting the top of your skull to the sky. Tuck your chin back without tilting the head, until your head is in line with your shoulders. Tip: this exercise can be especially useful in the car while driving, use the headrest as a guide for optimal positioning.

2. The 'I-T-W'. Lying on your stomach, bring your arms straight out to an overhead position (or an “I” position) and lift them off the floor. From there float the arms straight out to the side (or a “T” position), followed by shifting the elbows back creating a “W” position with the arms. Return to the original “I” position and repeat. Tip: do this with palms facing the floor or with thumbs pointing up to the ceiling, make sure you are lifting the arms with the upper back and NOT the lower back.

3. Wall Slides. Stand tall with your upper back, glutes, and head contacting the wall. Bring your arms up on the wall starting in a “W” position. Slowly lift the arms up to an “I” position overhead, trying to keep elbows and wrists contacting the wall. Return to starting position and repeat. Tip: If this is too challenging, bring arms out to a “Y” position instead of an “I”.

The goal of any postural exercise is to strengthen your back while lengthening your chest. Therefore, to get the most bang for your buck, do these exercises in combination with stretches for the chest.

Looking for a personalized exercise program? Contact us today for a free assessment, anywhere in Toronto!

What does success look like? Take a look...

3/10/2016

If you search Instagram (or just about anywhere else) for "fitness", you'll be bombarded with chiseled bodies, videos of people lifting huge heavy weights, and (far too many) toned-ab selfies.

It suggests that fitness is an extreme, all-or-nothing thing. Which it isn't. And that's why you won't find any greasy posed muscles in our feed. We believe that success looks different for each of us, and is about more than what you see on the outside.

One of our favourite 'traditions' at Nielsen Fitness is to capture - and celebrate - our clients' goals as they achieve them. Here are some recent ones that our clients gave us their blessing to share with you.

We think they're a great reminder that fitness is for everyone and success can take so many different forms.

Want to join these healthy folks? Click here to learn more about our process, and here to read about how we're different. When you're ready, give us a shout and we'll come to you for a free, no-obligation consultation and mini workout.

The invisible benefits of exercise

3/3/2016

What's YOUR motivation for working out? Whether we like to admit it or not, for most of us, it's to look good.

This is just fine, but I always advise new and potential clients to think more broadly and deeply than that and see their exercise efforts as an investment in long-term health, and the benefits you can't see on the surface.

In my experience, it tends to be a more powerful, long-term motivator - and for good reason. Almost immediately, your health will begin to improve as a result of exercise - even if the scale or measuring tape are taking their time. Some key benefits:

Prevention. More exercise = less disease and illness.
Reverse muscle aging. (Read more here.)
Maintain and increase bone density, which your 80-year-old self will thank you for down the road. (More on that here.)
Stronger and healthier joints. Your body is a machine that works better the more it's used. This article summarizes a study that showed ..."resistance exercise for people 65 and older can actually reverse important aging effects on skeletal muscles, to the point where they work genetically like those found in people four decades younger".
A reduced risk of Type 2 diabetes (and the 137 other diseases that are associated with it).
You'll be less prone to injury (a benefit of being strong, healthy, and flexible).

...and the fantastic bonus is, while you're focused on all the good you're doing for your body, you'll be losing the fat and building the muscles necessary to produce the physical appearance you're going for.

So, as much as you may want to fit into that dress or bulk up your muscles for the beach, remember that each work out is doing wonderful things for your body that just might not be quite as visible. Plug away at it and, before long, you'll start to be able to see the benefits on the outside too.

This is Colin (and me). Colin is 85 years old and has been working out with us for a decade. He's as healthy as most men half his age - largely due to his commitment to exercise. Hands up if you want to be like Colin when you're 80! (I sure do.)

What does success look like?

2/26/2015

As we always say, personal training isn't just for fitness models and bodybuilders. The vast majority of our clients are normal people looking to live their best and healthiest life. Recently, we've started capturing and sharing our clients' little (and some not-so-little) victories. We find it hugely motivating to track and celebrate these changes - and we hope you do too :)

Are you making these workout mistakes?

11/27/2014

Proper form is so important when exercising - not only to ensure you're maximizing the benefit of your workout but also to prevent injury.

In this short (2.5 minute) video, Nielsen Fitness owner Poul Nielsen outlines three of the most common workout mistakes, why they're harmful, and how to avoid them.

Beyond the six-pack: why core strength is crucial

8/14/2014

Not only is core strength crucial to trunk movements, but the force it generates also ripples upward and downward to adjoining links within the chain of your limbs, so to speak.

This is how weak or inflexible core muscles can impair arm and leg function, putting our joints in susceptible positions or draining power from athletic movements. Mundane daily activities and advanced athletic activities both rely on your core – a fact that most individuals might not appreciate until it’s too late and an injury has occurred.

Want to live longer? Get moving!

3/4/2014

Not too long ago, a group of researchers in Brazil discovered a simple fitness test that may help predict your longevity by measuring how easily you can sit and rise from the floor.
Other related tests have looked at how many steps it takes, and how long it takes to stand up from lying (supine) of the floor.

Click here for an interesting article that summarizes the link between mobility and longevity.

The bottom line, though, is this: a person who isn’t fit enough to get up from the floor quickly is likely to die sooner than someone who can. This is because as we age our bones lose their density, our muscles shrink and our tendons lose their elasticity – unless we actively work to remain strong and vital.

So what can you do about it?