As fitness professionals or personal trainers, we are constantly looking for new ways to challenge our clients.  One method that has gained significant popularity in recent years is the kettlebell trend.  An ancient form of exercise, kettlebell training has become increasingly popular with athletes of all sports, specifically with martial artists.  This type of training was originally designed to be used to train armed forces for combat.

Kettlebell workouts are intended to increase strength, endurance, agility and balance, challenging both the muscular and cardiovascular system with dynamic, total-body movements.  Kettlebell  training also requires functional, whole body fitness. Kettlebells require an athlete to focus on whole-body conditioning because lifting and controlling a kettlebell forces the entire body, and specifically the core, to contract as a group, building both strength and stability at the same time.

Several personal training facilities are now starting to incorporate this style of training into their programs.  Personal trainers are realizing the complete, total body benefits of training with kettlebells.  Studio Element is proud to be making strides in providing this type of training in the near future.   Stay tuned for details!!

There is one excellent form of exercise that we simply do not have the facility for at Studio Element, but highly recommend it- SWIMMING!  Swimming is life long sport that taxes your entire musculature, your heart, and your lungs.  With much less impact on your bones and joints, swimming can equal or better the cardiovascular benefits.  Regular swimming builds endurance, muscle strength and cardio-vascular fitness. It can serve as a cross-training element to your regular workouts.

There are other psychological benefit to swimming.  It may be hard at first but attempt to relax and swim with a very low effort. Use swimming as a time to collect your thoughts,  focusing on nothing but the rhythm of your stroke. This form of meditation can help you gain a feeling of well-being, leaving your water session refreshed and ready to go on with the rest of your day.

There are several places to swim in the St. Louis area, even year round.  Start with your local YMCA or city recreational center.  Near Studio Element, you have the options of The Center of Clayton, The Heights, or Brentwood YMCA.

Most of us have heard about how good yoga is for you, but many probably don’t know the extent of the benefits from practicing yoga on a regular basis.  As a personal trainer, I believe that it is very complementary to several other forms of exercise including running, cycling, and resistance training.  It can also be a great secondary activity to our regular participants in personal training.

The following benefits are what one can expect from practicing yoga:

- Increased flexibility: Stretching in new ways will help it to become more flexible, bringing greater range of motion to muscles and joints.

- Increased strength: Yoga poses require you to hold and support positions in ways that you are not used to, resulting in a gain in strength

- Increased muscle tone: As a by-product of getting stronger, you can expect to see increased muscle tone. Yoga helps shape long, lean muscles.

- Pain Prevention: Increased flexibility and strength can help prevent the causes of some types of back pain.  Yoga can also improve your body alignment, resulting in the prevention of pain

- Better Breathing: Yoga helps clear the nasal passages and even calm the central nervous system, which has both physical and mental benefits.

- Mental Calmness: breathing and concentration help with this

- Stress Reduction: Any type of exercise can help with your stress level, but significantly in yoga due to the concentration level, stretching, and breathing.

- Body Awareness: Yoga can lead to improved posture and increased self confidence

Join us at Studio Element Personal Training for our NEW Vinyasa Yoga program on Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 6:00 p.m.  First class is FREE!  http://www.studio-element.net

1. Maintain a “Balanced” training program. This includes symmetry in your training from antagonist muscle groups and from side to side of your body.
2. Warm-up. Risk of injury is increased without a proper warm-up including calisthenics, stretching, and low-intensity simulations of movements specific to the activity you intend to perform.
3. Stretch. Injury risk is reduced, performance is enhanced, muscle soreness is decreased, circulation is increased.
4. Proper Hydration. Thirst is a bad indicator of being properly hydrated. If you are thirsty, you are already past the point of needing hydration.
5. Proper Nutrition. This includes pre-meal, fuel during, and post activity refueling.
6. Join a Group. A training group can do wonders for motivation and accountability. Exercise is also just a great way to spend quality time with friends.
7. Cross Train. Includes activities that “complement” the demands of cycling including resistance training, yoga, pilates, etc.
8. Proper Progression. Make sure to slowing increase the volume of your training program- intensity level, speed, distance, etc.
9. Cool Down. Includes stretching, low intensity activity, refueling of the body via food and water
10. Ride. This may seem like a given, but performing the activity which you are aiming to get better at requires you be consistently active with it.

At Studio Element Personal Training, we tend to focus our attention more on function and lifestyle, but do realize the popularity of just “looking good.”  We generally believe that this goes hand in hand with the appropriate style of exercise that we regularly implement, but there are a few tips that can specifically reduce and tone-up that midsection.

1. Increase the Cardio- use a high-calorie burning method and be consistent

2. Don’t try to spot reduce-  You can perform all of the crunches, sit-ups, leg lifts in the world, but you’ll never see the results without a more balanced program

3. Eat Better- Contemplate seeing a Registered Dietician.  Most people generally know what to eat and not eat, but a Dietician can give you valuable tips on dining out or snacking appropriately and can hold you accountable to your goals.

4. Get Balanced- Each muscle group has an antagonist.   The two muscle groups work synergistic ally during the eccentric and concentric phases of movement.  Weakness in one or the other can lead to injury.

5. Be Patient- Don’t expect to experience HUGE results over a period on 1 month.  Give yourself 4 months and then reassess.