Shape Up Your Abs

There are three things to remember when giving your abdominals a workout: protect your neck and lower back; work all three sets of abs for symmetry; and, work slowly to get noticeable results.

Many ab exercises put unnecessary strain on the lower back. In every ab exercise, engage the muscles by contracting towards the spine. In a traditional crunch, the temptation is to pull on the neck and use momentum to lift the chest rather than use the lower belly muscles. Flatten the chest and lift from the core abdominal muscles. You will feel your core working.

Most people focus on the “six pack” muscles of the middle of the midsection of rectus abdominals. It is important to equally develop all three major ab muscle groups to not create an imbalance. Only developing the six pack group can create a posture that slouches forward. Work on crunches, but also side to side actions and curl ups to develop all the abs equally.

Fast movements in ab exercises do not work effectively to shape the muscles. Rushing through sit ups, for example, uses the hip flexor muscles and not the abs. If you rush through the exercises, the work is no longer muscle dependent and you will not get the desired muscle development or visible shaping. Doing three sets of ten repetitions slowly is better than doing thirty reps quickly.

Michael Kasprenski, Wellness Coach, Steel Fitness

Do You Know Your Trainer?

Do you know your trainer? Fitness professionals get a bad rap at times, and most of the time they’ve earned it. There are many trainers out there that are more interested in their self gratification rather than taking care what is most important, the client.

As I have observed trainers with their clients, I’ve noticed that there are two types of trainers. There is the one who stands there looking disinterested and distracted. They may have their arms crossed and are not engaging the client in conversation, and even more important they are not correcting the form of their client.



Then there is a 2ndtype of trainer, the fitness professional. One that looks the part, and is engaging with the client to be sure that each step of the way the client is using proper form. This trainer is standing a sports stance ready to help the client focused on their client and having a conversation.

I sometimes ask why some trainers got into this profession. You should ask yourself the same thing if your trainer is like the 1st type of trainer, or if they are more like the 2nd type of trainer that I described. If so, then they are well worth the money you invested in your health and fitness. You will have a great workout and experience the results you desire.

Post Written by Michael Massafra, Fitness Director, FACTS Fitness

How Goal Setting Can Improve Your Results

Are you working out just to workout, or do you have a specific reason?  Have you been doing the same workout for years?  You know it’s good for you, but do you wonder what exactly exercise can do for you?

Goal setting is possibly the most important part of exercise.  Without stating what you’d like to accomplish, there’s no way to achieve it.  So what can exercise do for you?  With proper direction and motivation, exercise can affect many positive changes, including the following:

· Improvement in a specific sport

· Decrease the risk for diseases (arthritis, Alzheimer’s, various forms of cancer)

· Increase flexibility

· Better balance and coordination

· Avoid or get rid of joint pain

Setting goals takes several steps, but is easy.  You must begin by questioning yourself. “What do I want to accomplish?” “What is my current health status?” “Is this goal a credible goal?” “What are the steps I need to take in order to get to my goal?”  You must follow these questions by establishing a way to measure the movement towards your goal; for example, a valid fitness assessment.  Track your workouts. Write  down your activities and their difficulty levels.  Lastly, you must be prepared to do a full re-assessment after three months and make any modifications to keep you on course.

Some examples of valid goals are; “Improve my tennis game” “Get rid of my knee pain” “Walk down the street and not be afraid of falling” “Be able to bend over and touch my toes” “Climb stairs without getting winded.”

Goal setting gives your workouts a focus.  Rather than just going through the motions, pick a direction and work hard to achieve what you want!

Written by Micah Josephson, Personal Trainer for FACTS Fitness

Exercise: Be Consistent

Create a consistent exercise routine.  Be realistic. Set small, achievable goals at first.  If you are new to exercise, plan to work out three times a week.  Then move to every other day.  As you progress you may build up to a 5-day weekly routine.

Have a specific plan before you start. You’ll want to build in a variety of workouts to keep things fresh (for example, strength one day, cardio the next) but the trick is planning ahead. Every Sunday night, map out your week of workouts and stick with it like it is a doctor’s prescription.  Your plan can be as simple as a walk on Monday, strength training on Wednesday at the gym, and push-ups on Friday. 

Find someone to keep you accountable.  This can be a workout buddy or a personal trainer.  Either way, pair up with someone who is inspiring and reliable.

Set goals and keep track of your progress.  Maybe your goal is to lose weight or run a 5K.  It can also be as simple as “exercise every other day for a month.”  Seeing progress will keep you motivated and consistent.

Find inspiration or distraction.  If exercise goals don’t engage you, pick a favorite diversion and build that into your exercise routine.  Listen to music, watch TV or read a magazine while you exercise.

Michael Kasprenski, Personal Trainer at Steel Fitness in Bethlehem, PA (a FACTS Fitness facililty)

The Secret To Lasting Fitness Success

With new year's just around the corner and resolutions in the air, people constantly ask me about what they should do to effectively lose weight and get in shape once and for all starting January. Most of the time, their question centers around what kind of foods are ok to eat, what exercises are best, what kind of cardio burns the most calories, and other similar questions. My reply, however, is often not what they are expecting:

The right plan is the one that you can stick to for the long term!

The truth about fitness and nutrition is that there is no special secret or magic recipe for success. There are tons of different ways of achieving a given goal and its likely that you could use multiple methods to reach the same outcome. However, the method that will give you the longest term results, guaranteed, is the one to which you adhere the longest!

So the take away point is pick plan that you can stick with! Fad diets might help you lose weight quickly but you cannot do them long term. The same is true with extreme exercise regimens. Pick something that fits your personality and that you like, and then do it relentlessly. That's the way success is made.

Written by: Yudi Kerbel, FACTS Fitness Personal Trainer

Health and Fitness Expert Kimberly Garrison Joins FACTS Fitness

FACTS Fitness is proud to announce that health and wellness expert Kimberly Garrison, is joining our team as Director of Fitness and Wellness.

Kimberly is one of the nation's most sought-after fitness, health, and wellness experts. She has over 20 years expertise in the fitness, health and wellness industry and is the owner of One on One Ultimate Fitness, LLC. She is a Certified Personal Trainer, a health and wellness columnist, and a spokes model for national brands. As Director of Fitness and Wellness for Motivation Fitness, Kimberly will be focusing on the growth of our wellness coaching and corporate fitness services.

Kimberly is the legendary fitness columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News, hosted the “Girlfriends’ Locker Room” web site, and hosted the Philly Fitness & Health pod cast. She can be seen regularly on NBC's 10! Show, Fox 29, CN8's Your Morning, CBS 3 News, 48 Update, WYBE’s Shades of Opinion. Her articles have also appeared in Philadelphia Metro Newspaper, Global Fit Magazine, Club Life Magazine, Premier Brides, PhillyFit Magazine, Real Health Magazine and she is quoted often in Black America Web, Philly Style Magazine, PhillyFit Magazine, Cosmo Girl, Pink Magazine, and Heart & Soul Magazine. “I am delighted to join Motivation Fitness with its outstanding reputation for excellence, vision, and exciting brand innovation. I look forward to working closely with Tom Fenstermacher, Ian Savitz and the entire Facts Fitness team and to continue the company’s tradition of innovation and excellence, said Kimberly.”

Getting Your Employess to Engage in a Wellness Program

The first step in creating a successful wellness program is the support of management. Once you have strong management support for the corporate wellness program, you will have to plan how to engage employees in the program. As you plan your wellness program, it is important to keep in mind that you need a variety of options to offer the workforce. Below are a few suggestions to encourage employee engagement. You may also come up with an original idea that will speak specifically to your workforce:
Education: By educating your employees, especially the sedentary or non-wellness population, you can draw them into the program. This is a vital part of any successful health and wellness program. The sedentary population of your workforce needs to know and understand the many benefits of living a healthy lifestyle and how to make those changes. This will be the most challenging group to reach, but once you do it will be the most rewarding.
Incentives: Depending upon the culture of your company this can be a fundamental method to engage your employees in a wellness program, especially when the incentive is monetary. But keep in mind that this can also provide a temporary motivation when the goal is to create long term positive behavioral changes.
On-site fitness professional: Whether you have a fitness center within your company or not, you can hire someone to perform fitness assessments, personal training or to teach classes. This shows each employee that you are serious about the wellness programming. Having a fitness professional on-site also gives your employees a resource for health and fitness information, support and motivation.

Once an employee engages in wellness and fitness programming, he or she will feel better about life and work. The employee will exhibit a more positive outlook regarding work product and the work environment. There is a two-way benefit for the employee and the company. A win-win, if you will.