By DARLENE MARSHALL Ask 100 different people to define “purpose” and you’ll likely get as many different answers as possible. The purpose is often elusive, both in its definition and our personal sense of purpose. Yet there’s a strong connection between purpose,...
By DANA BENDER The postpartum time period is most often associated with physical recovery from fatigue and the strain of labour and delivery. It is typically defined as the first six weeks after a vaginal delivery or eight weeks after a cesarean one. In addition to...
By Nicole Golden The 30s are the decade of life that has its pros. Likely, you are beginning to feel established in a career, are looking at purchasing a home, and enjoy a more comfortable life. However, you have likely noticed that you may feel a little stiffer in...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY In a world of limitless fitness tech options and gadgets, is it still valid to judge the intensity of your workout based on how it feels? Short answer: Yes! The RPE scale is a simple, yet surprisingly accurate way to monitor the intensity of...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Muscles aren’t just for men! Women need muscle too… and ladies, while you may not want muscles as big as men (or maybe you do), I think most women can agree it seems like everything on the market is geared to helping men build muscle, not women!...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Powerlifting isn’t just “for the boys” anymore, and we couldn’t be more excited. Today, it’s more common to see women throwing around some serious weight in sports like CrossFit or in social media posts on the internet. As a result, many women are...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Back in 5th grade, I remember watching a classmate knock out 13 pull-ups during the President’s Fitness Test. She made it look so effortless that I thought, “This should be easy!” Right? Wrong. I was shocked when I couldn’t even do ONE pull-up. What...
By ANDREW MILLS Improving physical performance is as much about maximizing performance quality as balancing and mitigating injury risks and maximizing recovery to prevent maladaptation in response to accumulated and progressive training loads. There is a lot of...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Are you ever in the middle of a workout and then BOOM… it hits you? Your muscle is locked up, the pain sets in, and you need to take a bit of a breather to handle the discomfort. I think all of us at one point in time have experienced this...
By MARIA DIGIUSEPPE As we get older, our shapes and sizes can change and no matter how long you’re working out or how fit you are, it may be difficult to accept the change or maintain a positive body image. A positive body image can impact your life in many ways,...
By DARLENE MARSHALL Why is it that some people, regardless of the industry they work in, the challenges they face, or their stage in life seem to remain optimistic and solution-focused? They take feedback well, roll with challenges, and make great teammates.If it...
By CHRIS FREDERICK In a previous blog that compared static vs dynamic stretching, the NASM OPT model delineates what type of stretching is used at specific levels of training clients. This is especially important to know if you’re a Stretching and Flexibility...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Over the years we’ve seen our technology get more advanced in just about everything. Our phones, TVs, watches, and tablets have all become “smarter.” Even our fitness equipment is getting “smart” features. Yes, we’ve seen it in bikes, rowers,...
By RICK RICHEY, MS As seen in our weight loss specialization course, you can effectively utilize the OPT™ model for weight loss clients. Within this article from the Spring 2020 Issue of American Fitness Magazine, you will learn how! Consider a client named Jordan....
As a CPT, in order to develop a solid program for clients, you must first take them through a complete assessment battery. The information you collect from initial consulations, flexibility, strength, performance, postural and cardiovascular testing of clients will...
Teaching group exercise classes is one of the most challenging skills in the fitness industry. Whether teaching in a club, studio or outdoors, you need to be prepared for anything. The goal is to reduce the number of challenges in running classes and to provide a...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI When you’re not an expert in a particular subject, you often seek out someone who is. However, when it comes to food and nutrition it seems like EVERYONE is an expert. Between social media, various fad diet blogs, and the self-proclaimed “health...
By NICOLE GOLDEN Muscle damage and delayed onset muscle soreness can hamper performance in sports and training. Speeding up the rate of recovery can mean better performance and bigger gains in the long term. Good nutrition, rest, and optimal hydration are the staples...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were over 54 million adults aged 65 and older in the U.S. in 2021, and the number is projected to continue to rise over the next 30 years. Staying physically active is incredibly important for this...
By DARLENE MARSHALL Are you mentally tough? When life presents its inevitable challenges do you rise, seeing them as an opportunity to grow? Or do you find yourself ducking under the covers?One pandemic buzzword has been “resilience”, the ability to experience a...
by NICOLE GOLDEN As coaches and fitness enthusiasts, we often think of nutrition as a variable to manipulate to achieve weight loss, strength gain, a specific body composition, or to enhance performance in sports and recreational activities. However, the thought of...
By ANDRE ADAMS If you’re looking for an exercise program to help you effectively build mass, you may be looking for something to do with hypertrophy training. Similar to classic strength training, the goals of hypertrophy are different. One focuses on building...
BY JACQUELINE KAMINSKI If you’ve ever done any type of strenuous exercise, I’m sure you have felt the effects of it the next day. Can’t move. Stiff. Aching… what most of us allude to as muscle soreness. Anyone who’s never experienced muscle soreness is most definitely...
By DARLENE MARSHALL When you think about employer-provided wellness programs what comes to mind? Many people think of tech companies in the 2010s with meditation rooms, napping pods, flexible workspaces, and kitchenettes full of snacks. Since then, meaningful wellness...
By When I was a student-athlete, wall sits were frequently used as a “character-building” exercise for the whole team. Character-building exercises were typically exercises that required perseverance and grit to push through to the end, thus building our character. As...
by Shelley Dawson When you arrive at your next group fitness class and see your favourite instructor standing at the front of the room with a bright smile and inviting eyes, do you ever think to yourself, “I could never do that?! They are made for this! They are...
By NICOLE GOLDEN Flexibility refers to the range of motion of the muscles and connective tissues at a joint (Page, 2012). Flexibility can differ from joint to joint and often decreases with advancing age. Many of us (and our clients) think the purpose of training is...
By DARLENE MARSHALL There is a wide array of human emotions and experiences. Each of us inevitably feels a mixture of pleasant, challenging, positive, and difficult emotions, and feeling the range of reactions is natural and healthy. When life gets challenging of...
By MARIA DIGIUSEPPE I take for granted that I get up daily and know I’m going to do exercise. It’s the way I think, but it’s NOT the way everyone thinks. It’s my routine because I’m a personal trainer. Most people think it’s easy...
By DANA BENDER Adaptation was a key theme while navigating the impacts of the pandemic. This adaptation was a necessity related to various aspects of daily life such as how we grocery shopped, spent time with family and friends, and even worked out to stay fit and...
By BRAD DIETER Low carbohydrate diets have become a very popular tool for weight loss over the last several decades. While much of the scientific rationale behind why they are utilized for weight loss, such as the carbohydrate-insulin hypothesis, has largely been...
By LEE MURPHY Diet and exercise are the primary pillars of a healthy lifestyle plan. But can coordinating eating and workout schedules improve our fitness results? And if so, how should our eating patterns differ before, during, and after activities? Melding a...
By NICOLE GOLDEN Many of us (and our clients) have a fixation on the weight scale. We judge our fitness, progress, and unfortunately, at times, self-worth, based on that number that appears on the scale when we step on it first thing in the morning. While the bathroom...
By DANA BENDER “Why do I have no self-control with unhealthy foods?” is a common question a person might ask themselves after he or she makes the impulsive choice to eat junk food. This is especially true if there is an established goal related to eating healthier,...
By NICOLE GOLDEN Chronic pain is defined as any pain from an injury or condition lasting more than 12 weeks. Many potential clients seeking a certified personal trainer, yoga class, or corrective exercise specialist do so in hopes of using exercise to mitigate chronic...
by DANA BENDER Adaptation was a key theme while navigating the impacts of the pandemic. This adaptation was a necessity related to various aspects of daily life such as how we grocery shopped, spent time with family and friends, and even worked out to stay fit and...
By DANA BENDER There is a multitude of reasons why individuals commit to a regular exercise routine. Engaging in a regular exercise routine is not only a tool used to improve the physical dimension of wellness but also its emotional one. Often the choice to engage in...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Most lifters are familiar with calculating percentages of their 1 Rep Max (aka, 1RM, the maximum amount of weight that you can lift for 1 repetition of an exercise) to choose the appropriate weight for an exercise based on their desired intensity...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY You’ve looked up different fitness routines for stronger legs, but every single one includes squats. Maybe you’re feeling a little burned out on squats, or you just want to add some variety to your workout routine. What leg exercises can you do to...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI If you go to the gym regularly, you want every workout to count right? You don’t spend all that time exercising to just waste your time and energy! So, to get the most out of your workouts and maximize your muscle growth, we’ve compiled a list...
By Dana Bender Self-care is a word that keeps emerging in news articles and company-wide employee emails during the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the unprecedented stress many individuals face, some companies are re-establishing their Employee Assistance Program (EAP)...
By Christine Woods So you are a group fitness instructor who wants to create your own group fitness programming? Great! It sounds like you are already headed in the right direction. You have a vision for the type of class you want to teach. You understand the outcome...
ByKERIDON MCMAHON Online personal training is now more relevant than ever. With the vast array of technological options and virtual training applications available, you can pivot to an online personal training business in a few relatively easy steps. This guide will...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI If you’re an avid gym user, friends with a bodybuilder, or sat in on a novice nutrition course I’m sure you’ve heard of the term “macros” or “counting macros.” But what is the significance? Do you need to count macros to be healthy? Have no...
By DR. ALLISON BRAGER According to the Center for Disease Control, the National Sleep Foundation, and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, our nation’s sleep debt is an increasingly pervasive problem. The industry of sleep medications, supplements, mattresses, and...
Written by Nick English Labelled as “The Birthplace of Intermittent Fasting,” we know that such titles are often exaggerated on the internet, but Lean gains have a claim to the throne. This is where the popular 16/8 fasting method started for strength athletes....
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI When you’re on the way to the gym, what’s the best snack to grab? A granola bar? An apple? What about a sandwich? So many possibilities to choose from, but what’s the best option? Well, much of that will largely depend on the...
By Nicole Golden Shoulder pain, prior injury, or overall dysfunction is a very common problem in both the athletic and general populations in a personal training practice. A complaint of shoulder pain occurs in 16 to 26 per cent of adults and is the third most common...
By Dana Bender Consistently exercising over time has an array of health benefits. It’s easy for individuals to emphasize the physical benefits of exercise more, but there are a variety of mental health benefits that are just as important to note. According to the...
By DARLENE MARSHALL Most people know what they “should” do to foster a life of wellness. Eat a balanced diet and avoid processed foods, get regular movement, prioritize sleep, reduce stress, and cultivate a positive outlook on life that includes purpose, meaning, and...
By Nicole Golden Many adults, especially those between the ages of 20 and 50, report high levels of psychological stress. Many of us are constantly over-scheduled, over-committed, overworked, and fail to spend adequate time on self-care. Stone et al. (2017) found...
By Chris Ecklund Power is the ability to produce large amounts of force quickly. Are there any athletes that would not want to improve their ability to generate power? Or who want to increase their explosive strength? What about clients seeking to improve general...
By Nicole Golden There is nothing quite like the disappointment of excitedly starting an exercise program, preparing for a new season of your favourite sport, or attempting a personal record (PR) only to find yourself injured and on the sidelines. It can also be very...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Whether you’re competing against others, or just competing against yourself, increasing your bench press max (the maximum weight that you can bench press in a single repetition) takes intentional effort. This article provides practical advice to...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI So, you want to make gains? Well, when we are strolling the aisles of any supplement shop, the whole point is to find a magic powder or pill that will give us an extra leg up on our performance right? Let me introduce you to L-arginine! What is...
By Dr Alison Brager Remember those days of staying up well past midnight in college? Weekend or weekdays, hanging with friends or no friends, we all may think in our thirties and forties, how did we do that? The answer lies in tiny molecular clocks present in every...
By Nicole Golden Do you or your clients complain of bothersome pain in the shoulder, knee, hip, or foot? Perhaps you or your client do not remember any sudden injury leading to the pain? It may be described as a pain that moves around and waxes and wanes. Overuse...
By Brad Dieter There is a phenomenon most of us experience in life. We maintain very similar body weight and body shape for years on end and then suddenly it feels like our body’s changed overnight and then we have a new body that we were not expecting. Then we find...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY You’ve looked up different fitness routines for stronger legs, but every single one includes squats. Maybe you’re feeling a little burned out on squats, or you just want to add some variety to your workout routine. What leg exercises can you do to...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY If you’ve ever suffered from lower back pain, you know that it can be, well, a pain! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services conducted a National Health Interview survey of 31,997 adults in 2019. Their reports showed that 39% of respondents...
By Nicole Golden Metabolic syndrome, hair loss, insomnia, frequent colds and flu, missed menstrual periods, ulcers, and orthopaedic pain are just some of the health problems blamed on excessive stress. Yet, stress is an elusive term. Is it a mental sequela related to...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Ever wonder about the various fields you could work in if you were to pursue a nutrition degree or certification? The extent of your options is much larger than you imagined. You could apply to work in hospitals or home care settings, work...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Ever wonder about the various fields you could work in if you were to pursue a nutrition degree or certification? The extent of your options is much larger than you imagined. You could apply to work in hospitals or home care settings, work...
By DR. ALLISON BRAGER This subject is of huge importance within the NASM Performance Enhancement Specialization. It’s near impossible to ignore the importance of sports psychology during an Olympic year. For the most recent Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the...
By Dana Bender Whether you are a NASM Nutrition Certified Coach or a nutrition professional looking to expand your coaching business, it is important to know how to attract more clients and build a successful coaching business. Regardless of your nutritional niche, it...
by KINSEY MAHAFFEY From wearable fitness trackers to group fitness classes that use heart rate monitors, it’s not uncommon to be incentivized to train in specific heart rate zones to see the results that you want. Does heart rate training work? In this article, we’ll...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI As you prepare yourself a nice dinner, you may think to pair the meal with a nice wine. Or perhaps the weekend rolls around and you plan social outings with friends or relatives, in which you think to indulge in a few drinks. However, if...
By KAT BAREFIELD MS, RDN, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, ACSM-HFS In this post, we’re going to explore the health effects of getting insufficient micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). This article will also cover: The critical functions of various micronutrients The most...
By Brad Dieter Over the last several decades, we have seen a rise in the popularity of low-carbohydrate diets. These diets have ranged from just low-carb diets to ketogenic diets to even zero carb diets (e.g., The Carnivore Diet). These dietary approaches have become...
YBell was named the Most Versatile Free Weights by Men’s Health. YBell Fitness Earns Men’s Health 2022 Home Gym Award Cue the drumroll, please! We’re excited to announce that the YBell has earned yet another impressive accolade – this one from the Men’s Health...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Strength training research points to the importance of training to muscle failure to maximize exercise-induced muscle hypertrophy (Willardson 2007). Many gym-goers use a standard horizontal load system, also known as a straight-set, to reach this...
By Brian Sutton Of the various components that comprise a client’s total physical fitness program, cardiorespiratory endurance is probably the most misunderstood and underrated. In order to understand how to perform cardiorespiratory training in the most effective and...
By The National Academy of Sports Science (NASM) We know that weight loss or body fat reduction is largely based on a numbers game. And “working out” is a way of controlling the numbers (fewer calories in, more calories out and weight loss can be achieved). This is...
By Nicole Golden “The gym is mostly for grandma; she belongs there more than the rest of us do. We are doing this for recreation, she is doing this to sustain her independent way of life.” (Isratel, 2021) Regular exercise and strength training is critical...
By Nicole Golden It is somewhat shocking to look at statistics on death and chronic illnesses in the United States only to realize that many of these diseases are entirely preventable by lifestyle choices. Metabolic disorders (i.e., dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes),...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI Protein, Protein, Protein. By this point, most of us are aware of protein’s muscle-enhancing benefits — especially regarding exercise. But does attaining the highest levels of fitness require the addition of protein powders to your diet?...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY There are endless tech options available when it comes to tracking intensity levels during a workout, but technology sometimes requires a learning curve, and it can be expensive. While these products do provide tons of helpful information for...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI First things first: food gives you energy. Without energy, you can’t perform. As in any sport, food powers your workouts and helps you recover afterwards. Without proper nourishment, you will fail to improve any aspect of your training...
Core stability and strength, while an important component of any person’s fitness profile, is critical for the health and well-being of older adults. Conditions such as balance and coordination deficits, back pain, poor muscle endurance overall can be...
By KINSEY MAHAFFEY Whether you’re preparing for an athletic competition or a weekend pick-up game, the way that you prepare your body for training or competition can make or break your performance. While it’s tempting to just jump into play after a couple...
by Stacey Penney Before we can begin to answer the question of how much activity is enough, we need to consider what fitness means. Fitness is synonymous with health, our physical condition and even our ability to complete the tasks required for our ongoing survival...
By TRX Workouts Designed With Everyone In Mind Whether you’re a Navy SEAL, a septuagenarian with bad knees, or anywhere in between, you can use the TRX Suspension Trainer. Suspension Training® is accessible: anyone, at any fitness level—including people with mobility...
By Stacey Penney The mere mention of sweet potatoes brings memories of a Thanksgiving table to mind. These nutritional tuberous all-stars have found their way onto everyday menus and, in some cases, have even bumped the traditional white potato out of our kitchens....
By Dana Bender With the multitude of workouts available on the internet, it can feel overwhelming to get started. Also, beginner exercisers, or those just getting back into it after a break, might not know the best place to start. During the first stages, it is...
By ANDREW PAYNE Do you have trouble losing body fat, yet seem to gain it after even the smallest slip up with your diet? Or does it feel like you can eat for days without gaining an ounce? It could have something to do with your current body type. But is it really...
By CHRIS ECKLUND, MA, NASM-PES, CSCS, USAW, TPI WHAT IS PLYOMETRICS? We define plyometric training as a quick, powerful movement involving a system of reactive exercises and an eccentric contraction, followed immediately by an explosive concentric contraction. (1, 2)...
By Nicole Golden Spare tire, breadbasket, muffin top, Jello pudding pack, and love handles are all terms synonymous with abdominal (belly) fat. “What should I eat to get rid of this muffin top?” “I heard that XYZ workout program will melt away all of my gut, is that...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI As times change, so do new ways of thinking. With that, many new philosophies surrounding food and diet culture emerge. One of those beliefs use to be that a high-fat diet was the cause of many diet-related diseases such as heart disease....
By Nicole Golden Blood flow restriction (BFR) training was initially developed in Japan in the 1960s and is also referred to as Kaatsu training. At first glance, BFR may appear to be an experimental and perhaps fringe training practice, yet it has received a lot of...
By JACQUELINE KAMINSKI It’s easy to become a victim to misinformation on the internet when thousands of hits populate every time you type a question into google. Unfortunately, when it comes to nutrition everyone thinks they are an expert — especially if they...
