Life goes on...

Hey Everyone! This is Allie from the Front Desk, posting my first blog article. I'm here to let you know that a world of athletics, competition and fitness continues even after you graduate from high school or college- so don't be discouraged!

I can remember my last collegiate field hockey game as if it were yesterday. On the one hand, I was elated. I scored the goal in double overtime that ended the 2012 season on a win against SUNY Brockport. On the other hand, I was devastated. I scored the goal that ended my field hockey career. I scored the goal that ended my identity as an athlete- or so I thought.

Like most athletes, I knew my journey in athletics would peak in college. I was good- actually I was really good- but I wasn't that good. There would be no professional career in field hockey for me, and this was a reality I was always well aware of, but that didn't make the end of my field hockey career any easier.

The week after field hockey was over I probably stayed in my bed for a solid week. I ate a lot of junk food and skipped a few too many classes (sorry mom). Looking back, I think I was experiencing somewhat of an identity crisis. Growing up in a house where we had push-up competitions during commercial breaks, competing (and winning) were natural tendencies that I craved- how was I going to maintain my identity as an athlete without the help of competitive, organized sport?

Needless to say, I have come to realize the joys of competing are existent, even plentiful, outside of collegiate organized sport. It has been almost two years since I scored that amazing, career ending, identity-changing goal, yet I am still highly involved in the field of athletics. Actually, I am making a career out of it.

At 23 years old, I am the assistant field hockey coach at my Alma Mater, the University of Rochester and most recently, a member of the Downtown Fitness Club (DFC) staff. My life revolves around competition, and I love every second of it.

As an assistant coach, I get to play an active role in organized sport and remain a crucial part of a team’s success. As a DFC member, I am involved in a community where members enjoy the same things I do; competing, sweating, exercising, swimming, but most importantly, pushing ourselves to our limits.

So, instead of lying in bed and thinking your athletic days are over, know that a competitive, healthy and athletic life exists once your organized sport days are over. We can’t all be the next Lebron James; life does not work out that day. However we can get active, and stay active. As John H from the DFC likes to say; “Life’s Tough. Get Fit”- and I couldn't agree more.

Keep it Simple Stupid...

Hey everyone... Rob here, being a bit inspired by the many questions I have been recieving regarding fitness do's and dont's throughout the club and out on the town! My favorite is when I am out with friends, minding my own business and an individual stops me and goes "You must be a personal trainer! How do I (fill in the blank)?". I have a very easy solution to those seeking that "golden ticket" kind of advice that you're all absolutely dying for on your first few legs of your new fitness lifestyle... "Get active... Eat Healthy... Rest Consistently"... Plain and simple... 3 "easy" things (notice the quotations) that lead to overall improvement. Mind you this Blog is about the Fitness new comers planning to get ready for the next infamous season on our roster... SPRING!

Getting active is one of the biggest steps you can take. I’m sure you have all played some type of High School sport, or have done some kind of activity that would involve exercise at some point in your younger years. I remember running track and lifting with the football team like it was yesterday! I also remember being one of the 75% of freshman/sophomores that took the concept of Summer vacation so seriously it meant from our training as well! Remember that feeling when you started to get back into pre-season conditioning and season practices? That consistent “Yes, I feel great and I’m performing well! I’m seeing results!” It’s the same concept back then as it is now, even more than ever. An individual’s activity level can make or break someone’s exercise routine and hold them off from seeing the results they want.

There is one quote I live by, day by day… “You can’t out work a bad diet!” If there is anything a more fitness savvy individual can take out of reading this beginner directed blog post is just that. Your results will reflect your eating habits whether you are not eating enough, eating too much or eating pure junk. Proper eating yields very consistent results. Adjusting your eating, and making it work for your goals will allow you to healthfully accomplish whatever it may be you’re working for.

Rest is one thing that a good deal of Beginners and experienced Athletes both neglect. Some people can’t help their schedules but they can help how they respond to exercise through their recovery periods. Recovery doesn’t mean not being active entirely… It may mean you use what’s called “active recovery” and use the day to focus on a specific thing like core strength, low intensity cardio etc. This allows the rest of your body to rest and heal, but keeps you burning calories. Active Recovery is more applicable for individuals that get plenty of sleep, and does not mean they are entirely exempt from taking a whole day for recovery. For those of us in the performance realm of training, a day off or 2 may be important. Your nervous system can get just as burned out as your musculoskeletal system can. It’s important to accommodate both in order to keep your body seeing results and not becoming burnt out. For those of us fitness nit-picks it’s important to feel out and listen to your body.

Once you read into these details they aren’t too horribly simple, and yet once they are implemented and part of your lifestyle they become just as easy as putting on a shirt before work! For more information about scheduling, healthy eating and recovery… backtrack through my blog posts and read up on some of the information I have shared regarding just these subjects!

Scheduling Chaos!

     Hey everyone! Rob here, in the process of working on some little progress reports for a handful of my DFC Athlete members! You see one thing we try to do within the program is to come up with progress reports much like a follow-up consultation that I would do with a client. Stating from start to finish what has been accomplished, highlights, goals achieved, establishing new goals and how we are going to accomplish them! One big thing that I run into whether it is talking with a client, member, friend or family member about their progress with their fitness goals is schedule conflicts. It happens to everyone from the fitness savvy to the first timers! Life gets in the way, work consumes our days or we are subject to an event(s) that scramble up a period of time. Whether it’s been a week or a year, here are a few easy steps you can take to get your schedule back on track!

First of all, Figure out what exactly it is that you want to accomplish and how long it will take! Goals can be as simple as doing a pull up, but can take weeks or months to achieve! Set a time period at which you plan to work on your goal and as that time period goes on, see how you are progressing and see how realistic your time period was. Obviously keep your goals simple, and not horribly over the top like 50lbs in 6 weeks… we don’t want you getting sick! Not all goals can be accomplished within the time period you program, but focus on what you’ve achieved through that time and figure out how much longer it may take to get to your goal!

Once you have gotten that established, get your personal schedule set in stone. Those of us with variable careers need to make time at the beginning, middle or end of our days to get their training in. If that’s the case, set boundaries and time periods you know you can get a workout in whether its 6 times a week or 3! For my style of training, I perform 2 simple portions of work at separate times of the day during the slowest and least demanding parts of my day. I have been doing this for a while, so I can easily get a good workout in 2 20 minute sessions and not cause chaos in my day (it helps that I work 10 feet away from a squat rack, but let me tell you… it’s just as hard finding time to train while working in a gym as it is outside one!). Take into account travel time, meals and everything else to make sure you don’t overwhelm yourself!

So your schedule is set in stone… you know what you need to accomplish… the next step is to find, program, or consult a program to help you achieve those goals within the available time you have! Whether its 3 days or 6 days a week, with just the right programming and proper lifestyle changes you can accomplish just about anything (mind you I emphasize just about, remember.. let’s be realistic!)!

Lastly when it comes down to training, tweaks always have to be made! It’s rare a program is perfect from the get-go and even the savviest trainers need to sit down and get to know how their clients’ bodies react to different styles of training in order to better establish the right programming, the right way. Be wary of crash diets, “quick ab” routines, diet pills that promise the perfect physique and trainers that claim they can get you in the best shape ever in just a few weeks. Your body is everything, not just a social statement! You can lose 30 lbs in less than a month, but that doesn’t mean it’s right or healthy for you! Be safe and do things right, and if you don’t know how… help is always around if you know where to look! OR you can always shoot me an email and I can point you in the right direction… robdfc@rochester.rr.com (shameless plug! Haha)

NIGHT TIME EATING... The Do's and Dont's

    
     Afternoon Everyone! Rob here, taking a few minutes from being Mr. Popular over here at the DFC to answer one of my favorite questions I was recently emailed (robdfc@rochester.rr.com if you have any subjects you would like information and criticism on)... Night Time Eating! There are many theories touching everything from storing calories to decreased hunger the following day. Here is where my infamous "science over logic" thought process takes hold...
     Theories suggest a lot of things and one of the biggest stereotypes of late night eating, is that all of those calories get stored away immediately. Logic suggests that this is in fact a true statement because you are not physically active during your rest time; however I cannot stress how incorrect this theory is. Your body, whether involuntary or voluntarily active, is constantly working to maintain it awake or asleep. Your body is constantly burning calories at rest and while being active. Yes... we do burn more calories while we are being active or exercising, but we still have to burn calories to function while resting. Whether it is heartbeat, temperature regulation, breathing, digestion or another one of the body's "automated" functions... You are burning calories in order to perform these actions. You are not storing much more than you would normally store while sitting at your desk at work.
     Night eating does have its drawbacks; however, in some cases disrupting sleep and causing gastrointestinal discomfort. In some studies, researchers believe eating before sleep can also affect your body's ability to heal due to your insulin levels blunting your body's ability to release growth hormone (which is a natural action during sleep). Agitating your sleep patterns can be very detrimental to your body's ability to recover from your daily activities. Stuffing your face with dinner immediately before bed is definitely not something I would personally suggest, but if you decide you want a glass of milk and a handful of nuts... You should be in the clear!
     The key theory that I truly believe in, and this applies not only to pre-bed snacks but to your entire day... Watch what you eat, and eat in moderation! We tend to make very poor choices before bed solely because that is what we are used to. People eat desert after dinner, junk food during movies, poor snacks during their favorite TV shows and much more. We associate these foods and actions with the evenings. It’s rare you will find an active, career driven individual sitting on the couch on a Monday afternoon watching Fight Club while snacking on handfuls of chips. You might around 9pm that evening once they have gotten the chance to destress and sit down after a long day though!
     "Calories in, Calories out" is the key factor you should always have in mind when it comes to your day to day eating. The more you eat, whether they are from poor or good sources, equates to having a calorie surplus resulting in storage... Plain and simple… Night eating is not entirely the issue even though you may not eat the best before bed. It is your over all eating habits, plus the "icing on the cake" that night eating tends to represent. If you watch your food consumption, your sources and quantities... you will be in the clear if you decide to have an apple after dinner tonight!
    

New Club Additions and Programs!

Afternoon everyone! Rob here, after a little blip of business I want to take a few minutes and let you all in on a few new additions to our club over here at the DFC as well as my new program over here which is making some waves... The DFC Athlete Program and our up and coming Run DFC program.

DFC Athlete is an all around athletic training program focused around using a range of different techniques, modalities, and periodization in order to develop our members into well rounded athletes comfortable in various styles of training. Our skill work ranges from conventional strength/powerlifting, olympic lifting, strongman, marathon/triathalon endurance training to various styles of functional athletic training applying to various skills and necessary mobility movements. Our key goal is to help our members grow not only in physical prowess but mental toughness, build strong self-esteem and discipline; all the while helping them get in the best physical and cosmetic shape possible! By periodizing the year, but maintaining our specific format, we allow our athletes to grow into each skill set and become well beyond familiar with technique, safety, and usefullness; while maintaining a high level of athletic endurance and strength! The program consists of a scheduled week starting with "Daily Athlete Training" classes on Mondays and Thursdays at 12(noon) and 630pm; as well as 10am Saturday, Recovery Tuesday, Weights Wednesday, and Focus Friday. From there we offer benchmark testing to mark progression in various modalities, Weigh Ins to track body fat and muscle mass, and Meets to allow our athletes to apply their newly developed skills in a competitive and fun manner.

 

Along with access to our new spin bikes, Rowers, Pool, Variety of Treadmills and Copious amounts of street routes in the downtown area... we are taking our formatting for DFC Athlete and applying it to Run DFC! A program revolving around a city-wide sport, including but not limited to 5k, 10k, half/Full Marathon, Triathalon and Obstacle Course style event training!

If you're looking to get in competitive shape, involve yourself in a new sport, or just get in the best shape possible... Come down and try a class with us! I would be happy for you to drop in and take advantage of our facilities and see what we mean by...

Normal People work out... Athletes Train!

Down with the sickness... Up with your Immune System!

Afternoon, readers! Rob here, after needing to go home yesterday due to some nasty little 24 hour stomach bug. That "norovirus" is a tough one I'll tell you what... I woke up feeling awful yesterday and stayed that way the remainder of the day... I woke up today and felt like nothing happened. I definitely feel like I had the best abdominal workout ever though! This brings me to a pretty important subject given the time of year that I always urge my clients to keep control of. That's your physical wellness during the winter months! Your nervous system needs a lot of support from different bodily functions including your sleep pattern, nutrition, and day-to-day environments; and it is incredibly important to get the best balance of all 3 if possible given your lifestyle!

Sleep is everything everyone! The whole concept "you'll sleep when you're dead" is probably the most naive and frustrating statement I hear on a regular basis. It doesn't help that I'm at the age where a majority of individuals have a "work to play" mentality. It’s rough especially when having a social life means typically within your free time, which just consists of Friday and Saturday evenings. Your body does some healing and repairs throughout the day but a majority of its main growth functions are conducted while you sleep! Muscle growth, metabolics, injury repair... everything! Your body's conducts lots of processes which involve oxidization, and when unchecked with proper rest can run rampant and create an "inflamed" state in the body. Losing out on this key part of your health can lead to one thing and one thing only... A lack of zest and wellness! What do I mean by zest? Have you ever slept very well for a handful of days? If so, do you remember how it felt those days following? You felt fantastic right?! I know when I'm consistent with my sleep patterns I feel like I can take on the world. One little slip and I feel like someone threw a 40lb weight vest on me for the rest of the day. It’s because your body did not have enough consistent rest to help repair and recover from its previous endeavors! If this happens often enough, this will bog down your immune system leading to a higher likelihood of illness!

Nutrition plays another key role in maintaining a healthy body (duh right?)! Conducting any type of bodily function requires nutrients and calories, from cell manufacturing to your metabolism, proper nutrition is needed to maintain and conduct these important processes. I'm sure you can look back to your days in grade school or high school, and remember the idea of white blood cells and anti-bodies. Let me ask you something though... What does your body need to produce such things in your system? Nutrients! Anti-oxidants play another large role in maintaining a healthy Immune System. The effects of anti-oxidants helps keep a balance to that "inflamed" state I referred to before. Keep your nutrition well balanced and plentiful, and your immune system will flourish.

Your environment plays a large role in your physical condition just as much as the internal environment you create for yourself. I'm sure you have stressed yourself sick at some point in time. I know I have more times than not, and that's usually the main cause of a cold for me. Your environment from at home to your work place, takes a toll on the body whether it’s a good environment or not. A positive environment is uplifting, and allows for the person to have a present state of being. A stressful environment is very normal but can be toxic to the way the body functions by increasing cortisol levels and causing significant amounts of bodily inflammation. There are many ways to reduce these effects, and one of which I am very fond of... Exercise! Physical activity is a great way to release stress and put the mind to a neutral point allowing it to relax and in turn lower its release of cortisol. Free Radicals (oxidative agents) run rampant in the system while the body is stressed, so keeping yourself in a sound state of mind through daily means such as exercise or meditation can help prevent it from taking a large toll on your immune system.

A great balance between these 3 aspects is important because they all support one another. A sound environment allows for frequent and healthy eating, and relaxing sleep. Relaxing sleep compliments the eating with great repair and reduces inflammation and stress; while your nutrition helps support both by providing the means for your body to keep the others in check even if they are lacking. Work on these aspects, maintain and control them the best you can and you will avoid a good quantity of these hefty little bugs floating around in these cold winter months!

Our Annual Spring Fling Sale

Morning everyone, Rob here! Not gonna lie I'm pretty excited about our big sale up here at the club... Every year on Ground Hog's Day, we conduct a big sale called the "Spring Fling" sale cutting down prices on everything from merchandise, supplements and services. This gives people the opportunity to really take advantage of things such as personal training, at an unbelievably great price!

Let me tell you a little about what I do, so you have an idea why I'm so excited about the sale and what it means to me. I have been personal training for just about 6 years this month... 2 years here at the Downtown Fitness Club. I got into this industry looking to give people the results they want in tbe best way possible, all the while educating them on the details and the "why" for everything I do. Whether you are training to compete in an up and coming power lifting meet, conditioning for one of these ever so popular adventure runs; or just improve your fitness for cosmetic or health/medical purposes... Its what I do and I love every minute of it (if I didn't it probably wouldn't be my career). I program, I teach, I learn, I poke, I prod, I push... I am your friend, your barber, your relationship consultant, your sound board, your motivation, and most likely your more obvious love/hate relationship.  To give people the opportunity to purchase a large chunk of time so I can give them the results they want and get those big smiles brimming with confidencee... why the heck wouldn't I be excited?!

Our Spring Fling Sale includes:

$350 for 12 personal training sessions

$650 for 24 personal training sessions

Unlimited Tanning for just $49 with the purchase of a personal training package

Unlimited Tanning for $10/month for as many months as you like (maxiumum of 12)

All Prepaid Protein Shake Packages (11 for the price of 10) are 15% off

All Supplements and Protein Powder are 25% off

Pre-order DFC and DFC Athlete Hoodies!

For one day and one day only... Saturday Feb. 2nd!!!

I hope this gives you the opportunity to get involved in some great sales here at the club and let me help you not only get ready for spring... but get in the best shape possible!