I come up with exercises that I can’t do properly but I keep working on them until I master the movements and can teach them. Get started!

Are you feeling fit and looking better than ever? Christmas parties are here and New Years resolutions are right around the corner. Do you make resolutions every year? Do you keep them?

I don’t make resolutions each year. I keep a journal and write down goals and aspirations regularly. Also as a personal trainer I have been living the lifestyle since I was about eleven. Though I do continue to make fitness goals for myself on a daily basis. Sometimes it is just getting two more reps in an upcoming set, sometimes it is working a new exercise into my routine for a few weeks.

Calling all GEMs (Glen Ellyn Moms). It is time to look and feel even better. Try training with Stanimal the personal trainer right in Glen Ellyn. Lose those last few pounds and get in shape. You won’t regret it! Send your questions to my email on the right.

Your close-up is calling you..

Here we see Karen working legs. First up is one of the great leg exercises you can do. LADIES! This exercise works the quads and glutes in a functional running position. So balance, stabilization and core strength are all challenged during this exercise. When you do a machine leg press, most do not require balance, just a little stabilization and not much core.

This particular lunge is using one of my home-made balance tools, the water pipe. It is partially filled with water and Karen is showing an advanced version of the exercise with the tool held overhead. This requires a great deal of core strength in addition to the great leg benefits it provides.

Stanimal is training clients in Glen Ellyn. If you have fitness or training questions email or leave a comment. Thanks.

1) Train with Stanimal. If you did train with stanimal you would have increased strength and vitality, improved joint stability, reduced body fat and better cardiovascular performance. Unfortunately I can only train a few folks.
But you need to exercise. We all know this. 30 minutes every day break a sweat from exercising. The end.
No gym membership required, no equipment needed, just 30 minutes and a new attitude. Stop back soon I will give you a killer body weight circuit to do.

2) Eat better! Does this seem to make sense to anyone? If you are eating Twinkies or donuts or worse yet skipping breakfast totally. You’re not trying very hard. Eat smaller portions more often. Five or six “meals” per day, control the portion size. Eat veggies and fruits. Done.

3) Think. Think about the consequences of your actions. A six pack and a pizza once in a while won’t kill you. It will kill brain cells and make you feel bad physically. Watching TV and never exercising will make you depressed, uninteresting and unattractive to the opposite sex. Cool.

4) Challenge yourself. Get out of you comfort zone and try something new. Stop looking for the closest parking spot. Jog it in. Take the stairs. Run the stairs on lunch or go to the high school and run the stairs at the football field. Ride a bike, skateboard, sprint. Take a walk in the fresh air. Increase your activity level with something fun.

Haley is pregnant. Who would’ve guessed. She is exercising just like always. She feels better when she works out. She and the baby will be healthier because of it. And she will recover faster after the baby is born.

Please no excuses about not working out. They just don’t hold water.

Ouch, bad pun.

Birthday today so I’m thinking about age just a little. This is me tossing the sandbag.Check out this woman Beatriz Maullins. She is bench pressing at 87. See her story here.

Just got back from vacation, a little recharge of the batteries. Colorado is very pretty. Besides all the hiking and walking I only managed one workout. I went to a place called Planet Fitness. It was an interesting step back in time, late 80’s early 90’s maybe. There were a good selection of equipment, new cardio gear and Free Motion machines as well as free weights and plate loaded machines. All very good.

The step back in time was by the patrons. I should mention there were no balls, bosu, disks, bands or any equipment for training balance, stability or flexibility. There were guys with very oversized mid-sections working set after set of arms even though they are racing toward heart problems or diabetes. There were only single joint exercises.

I don’t want to belabor the point but my expectations were different. This gym is within a few miles of our Olympic training facilities yet a lifetime away from the types of exercise people need to be functional, healthy and fit. There was a personal trainer working but he was only leading two clients through some rows of machines.

We need to work on the whole body by training movement patterns and developing overall fitness and agility.

I built some new plyo boxes. Aren’t they beautiful and functional. Get it. Functional training. Eh..

Yes, I am finally adding some plyometrics back into my workouts. Skaters side to side over the small box, or power step ups. These are great additions to a circuit or interval routine. Depth jumps and power chins are all coming back.

If you have any questions about what these exercises are and would like to add them. Comment or email and I’ll explain further.

Trainer drinking red fluid from a plastic bottle. I think it was some sort of energy drink.

His client asks, “How much sugar is in that?”

Trainer, “Only about 15 grams, oh wait there are 2 and a half servings in here.”

So this corporation is calling 20 ounces 2 and a half servings. Is there anyone in America who would buy this from a vending machine and not drink it all. No.

Try to lose weight in this country. It is difficult.