Push UUUUHPS!!!!

Dear Fitness Enthusiasts,

Push Ups, they look so easy and simple, but then, ouch! We butcher them and make them so brutally difficult! In my 11 years in the fitness industry, I can not begin to tell you the many incorrect and challenging variations I have seen done of this torturous no more exercise. Many of you avoid this guy like the plague! You think that you are too weak, the exercise is too hard, and you wouldn't dare do the 'girly' kind. Well, today I shall set you free to enter push up world!!!

Why can I not bend my elbows? Just bend!!! AHHHHH! NO PUSH UUUUHHHPS PLEAAAASE!!!!!

The biggest problems preventing your elbows from bending and being able to do a push up weather on your knees, using a wall or table/bench for support, or in the regular full push up position are:

Problem #1
DO NOT SINK YOUR HIPS! Your spine should not look like a sinking valley from your head to your bum. You do not want your toes and hips to be on one level and your shoulders on another.

Problem #2
DO NOT DROP YOUR HEAD DOWN TO THE FLOOR! You are not getting any further by reaching your forehead so far down to the floor. Pick your head up.

SOLUTION!!!!

Imagine:
There is a long ruler stuck to your back from head to toe and at all times, your head, back, bum and heels are all in contact with it!

BAD:

Hips sunk down/dropped
Spine curved and sloped
Head dropped down

GOOD:

CUTE!
Back is STRAIGHT
Head is in alignment with spine and hips
Hips up

VISUALIZE:

The red line is the ruler along your back. do not move any points off the ruler.

TADAAAAA:

THE PROPER PUSH UP LADIES AND GENTS!

Here you have it, the DO'S and DON'TS of Push Ups! Now, GO TRY THEM OUT!!!!

In Good Health,

Dani S.

Gym Science

Dear Fitness Enthusiasts,

Have you ever found yourself looking around the weight room for inspiration? Did you then find that one man/woman with a great physique you admire? Was your next step to then do whatever exact exercise that person was doing in the same way they were doing it?

That my friends is what is called gym science!!!!

Gym science can be educational assuming that the person you are learning from is executing proper form. You also have to know the risks of the exercise being copied as it pertains to you. For example, if you are inspired by a variation of a lunge that someone with great legs is doing, you have to make sure that they have correct functional alignment of the hip, knee and ankle joint. You have to be informed of the risks that exercise may have in the event that you have had previous injury to your knee. If you have a recent or old injury to your knee and it is vulnerable to repeat injury, you need to know if that is a wise exercise for you to be testing.

Ladies and gentleman, that is exactly the problem that gym science presents. Most people you are watching in the gym are not using proper form. Most people are working out in a fashion that they always have. For example, a football player who may no longer play football, is most likely still doing his old football gym workout. If you are a young professional who sits a desk 8 hours a day and does not play football and who has a vulnerable shoulder, it is not a wise decision at all for you to be copying the football guys chest press variation. This is exactly how many injuries are caused. Too many people feeling lost in the weight room are copying others who only APPEAR to know what they are doing.

So, can gym science be a good lesson? Sure it can. However, next time you are in the gym and seek inspiration from your fellow gym friends, make certain that you go and ask them what credibility they have for you to learn from them. Make sure that you learn the risks of that exercise to any sensitive/injured site that the exercise will involve. If this is not possible or accessible to you, go and ask a fitness professional for help instead.

The lesson to take away here is, copying "buff," strong, athletic looking people in your gym could very easily cause you harm and get you injured. So think again next time you are in the gym and looking for inspiration. Know your source and don't be shy to ask a professional for some tips instead.

Get Strong, Stay Healthy!

Dani S.

DO NOT FOLLOW THIS GUY! HE IS ONLY BREAKING HIS BACK AND RIPPING APART HIS SHOULDER!

Craving Chips?

Dear Health and Fitness Enthusiasts,

A dear friend of mine sent me a text message last night.

It stated, "Craving chips but don't want the guilt? These are amazing!"

She was right. I buy them all the time as a snack the whole family, even Jayden can enjoy! Kids love them, mom loves them, and dad loves them. They are crunchy, mildly salty, healthy, and delicious! They are indeed, amazing!

So, WHAT ARE THEY???

For only $1.49 and 130 calories a serving from Trader Joe's, these dried snap peas mack a great chip alternative snack your whole family will enjoy.

If you don't live near a Trader Joe's or do your shopping at other supermarkets, here is the same item by a different brand. 

   

These ones can be found at Vons, Ralphs, COSTCO, Albertsons, Walmart, and many other supermarkets for a very comparable price. AND they are Gluten free!

Hope you enjoy this delicious snack!

In Good Health,

Dani S. 

No Gym, No Equipment, No Time, No Problem!

Dear Fitness Enthusiasts,

Life gets busy! Sometimes as much as we would love to fit in a workout, time and energy excuses can add up. Wether you are a hard working man/woman who is too tired to wake up early, and work too late to fit it in, or are a new mom with no help, we all know circumstances can leave us feeling defeated. As a full time mom with no help myself, I can relate. We have to make an extra effort to make a plan. If you have no equipment at home, and no time to get to the gym, look no further than right here. There is so much you can do at home in a small space with no big fancy machines.

As I was hanging out with a fellow mom friend who is busy with twin babies, the topic came up as it often does, "What can I do at home?" She was the inspiration of this post, and this is what I responded with.

Below is a quick foolproof effective, efficient and powerful little circuit that you can do with just your bodies and a little space. Some energetic music could help! It looks like a lot as I have included descriptions of what the exercises are. Don't be scared!

The Warm Up:

• 10 arm circles each direction
• 10 arm swings across your chest (open close your arms)
• 10 alternating arm reaches (one arm up, one down, lift and lower alternating left and right)
• 1 min jumping jacks
• 1 minute of standing single leg kicks (30sec each leg)

The Circuit: 
DO AS MANY OF EACH AS YOU CAN IN 1 MINUTE, WITH PLANK AIM TO HOLD FOR 1 MINUTE, AND REPEAT THE CIRCUIT 3 TIMES.

• Squats 
• Push Ups 
• Lunges
• Plank (forearms on the ground, elbows bent at 90* angle, back straight with torso and hips off the floor)
• Superman back extensions (lay on your stomach with your arms straight in front of you, keeping arms and legs straight, lift arms and legs up off the floor)
• Burpees (starting in a push up position, jump your feet to your hands, jump up to standing position, repeat)

Note:

~ NO BREAK BETWEEN EACH EXERCISE, ONLY BETWEEN SETS.

~ IF TOO DIFFICULT, START WITH 30 SECOND INTERVALS FOR 3 SETS OR DO 1 MINUTE INTERVALS BUT ONLY 2 SETS.

~ IF TOO EASY, INCREASE TIME TO 1 MINUTE 30 SEC OR ADD A 4TH SET.

The Cool Down:

Repeat warm up BUT at a SLOWER rate.

Stretch:

• Standing hamstring stretch (bend forward, reaching toward your toes)
• Standing quadriceps stretch (IF balance is issue, hold on to a chair or wall with free hand. Bend your knee pointing knee down to floor lifting foot up, hold your foot behind you with your hand)
• Doorway chest stretch (Stand in a door way with feet together, with your arms bent at 90* hold the door frame on each side, keeping back and head straight, step one foot forward, hold, switch feet.)

Just a few to get you started. I look forward to your feedback! Give it a try TODAY!

In Good Health,

Dani S.

Be sure not to sink your hips and stomach to the floor
Be sure not to raise your hips higher thank your shoulders
***Your body should be a straight line from head to toe, no peaks or valleys!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Dear Fellow Fitness & Health Enthusiasts,

Happy New Year! I wish you all a year filled with excellent health, love, laughter, adventure, inner peace, and happiness.

As it has been almost exactly 2 years to date since I last posted on my blog, I should start by catching you up.

Well, I fell pregnant in February 2012 and gave birth to a beautiful baby boy named Jayden Noah Sher on September 26th 2012. I had a healthy and easy pregnancy and was working and exercising until the day he was born. I remained active by walking, swimming, weight training and mostly doing power yoga. In fact, I am pretty sure it was my yoga class that day, which put me into labor 10 days early!

Since the day he was born, my little eager beaver has needless to say kept me busy as a stay at home Mom. I have been, like all of you moms out there,  consumed with loving and taking care of this precious little gem. Watching him grow and develop from a sleeping, eating, burping little new born to a walking talking active little boy, I have loved and cherished every delicious moment of it!

I don't plan to return to work yet, but as a new year begins, I find myself inspired and ready to begin my blogger journey again.

So here I am, 2 years older, 2 years wiser, a Mommy of a 15 month walking talking edible little toddler.

I look forward to my new journey with you, my readers and fitness and health followers. Stay tuned as I am excited to share everything fitness and health for all my mommies, soon to be mommies, one day mommies, husbands, fathers, and one day fathers.

Keep Fit, Stay Healthy. Love.