Personal Trainer Secrets Issue Mar 26 2007

Fitness Article of the Week
The Benefits of Holistic Healthcare

Holistic health includes modalities like massage, acupuncture, meditation, and chiropractic Holistic health is gaining momentum in the United States, but its definition is a bit ambiguous. For some people holistic health means turning away from traditional or allopathic medicine and seeking wellness exclusively through alternative therapies. Others define holistic health as the act of treating a person as a whole, as opposed to simply treating the individual symptoms of a disease. Someone who suffers from chronic ear infections, then, might be prescribed an antibiotic and also asked to perform another action that treats whatever is found to be the underlying cause. Perhaps acupuncture will relieve the infection, or a massage, or possibly better posture will straighten things out.

In the simplest terms, holistic health means identifying the problem behind the disease, viewing the disease as only an underlying symptom of a larger problem. Holistic choices include things like eating well, proper exercise, acupuncture, massage, sleeping well, meditation, herbal treatments, and more. Holistic health also means examining every aspect of a person, treating the mind, body, and soul, regardless of the presented problem. The best part is that the benefits can be seen and appreciated in all areas.

While there are times when allopathic medicine must be utilized for the safety of the patient (a life-saving surgery or treatment for a highly threatening illness), the goal of a holistic lifestyle is to prevent the need for these life-saving procedures in the first place. If you eat well and exercise over the course of your entire life, for example, you probably will never need bypass surgery. If you meditate and self-calm, you will likely not require medication to treat your high blood pressure.

Holistic health means treating a person through all avenues to make them as healthy a whole person as they can be. It is the creation of the “ideal” lifestyle, healthwise, because it is not only a modality that treats poor health, but a lifestyle designed to preserve good health overall and keep you feeling your best long into your golden years.

Many people take holistic approaches to their healthcare without applying a fully holistic lifestyle. These people engage in holistic health for short periods of time or only in portions of their lives. These are the folks who will grab McDonald’s on their way to yoga, or who use massage to treat stress. This is not true holistic health, since they are not treating the underlying causes of their problems, nor are they engaged in preventative measures like eating properly or learning to live more serenely. These people participate in activities employed by devotees of the holistic lifestyle, but are not members of that lifestyle themselves.

More people than ever are beginning to realize the benefits of increasing their overall health, and avoiding things or situations that cause their physical and mental health to deteriorate. An executive might scale back his job so that he can spend more time on healthier choices, increasing his peace of mind by reducing his stress. A mother might choose to take herbal supplements for her diet and to cook for her family instead of going out to eat. These are the kind of people who count to 10, rather than exploding, and they enjoy living well.

As much as you may admire this lifestyle choice, you cannot force yourself onto a holistic path. If it is not what you want to commit to, then you will stray from it. If you are willing to do the work, though, a holistic lifestyle can have many wonderful benefits. Holistic health is the health of your body, your mind, and your soul. Take care of yourself inside and out, and you will feel the benefits for your whole your life. And the nicest part is that you’ll have a good, long time to appreciate those benefits.

For more information on this or other health-related subjects contact Scott White at swhite@personalpowertraining.net.

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Featured Exercise
Implementing a Circuit Training Regimen

Circuit training, involving pull-ups for upper body strength Circuit training is a training format that consists of 6 to 10 strength exercises which the participant completes one by one, with each exercise performed for a specific number of reps or for a stipulated duration of time before moving to the next exercise. It is an excellent way to improve one's strength, mobility, and stamina. The exercises within each circuit are interspersed with short rest intervals, while each individual circuit is separated by longer rest periods. The total number of circuits in a training session depends upon the fitness and training level of a the individual (beginner, intermediary, or advanced), the duration of this particular training session, and the objective of the training regimen.

Designing a circuit for one's own fitness regimen is fairly simple. Anyone can plan a circuit with some thought and some common sense. The theory is simple – identify the exercises you can do with the available equipment and group 6 to 10 of them together so that each exercise stresses a different muscle group or part of the body. In other words, never group together two exercises that work the same muscle group. For example, you can't follow press-ups with pull-ups. The circuit must be planned so that it works the total body: upper body, lower body, core, and trunk. Finally, plan at least 3 to 4 circuits so that you won't feel bored by the monotony of the exercises, which could happen if you always hang onto one circuit exclusively.

Before designing the circuits, here is the list of exercises that fall into each categories – from total body to core and trunk.

Total body workouts include treadmills, squat thrusts, and skipping.
Upper body exercises include press-ups, pull-ups, bench dips, bench lifts, medicine ball chest passes, and inclined press-ups.
Lower body workouts include squat jumps, stride jumps, compass jumps, shuttle runs, step-ups, hopping shuttles, and bench squats.
Core and trunk exercises include sit-ups (lower abdominals), stomach crunches (upper abdominals), and back extension chest raises.

By combining these exercises judiciously, one could easily design 4 to 5 different circuits. An example of a balanced circuit is noted below.

Six-Exercise Circuit: treadmills, press-ups, squat jumps, sit-ups (bent knees with feet on the floor), squat thrusts, and bench dips.
Eight-Exercise Circuit: the same as the six-exercise circuit; however, after bench dips, continue with shuttle runs and back extension chest raises.

Each exercise must be performed for 20 to 30 seconds, with a 30-second recovery time separating the workouts. A daily session must ideally include 3 to 5 circuits, with each circuit separated by a 3-minute interval.

Like any other exercise regimen, circuit training has its pros and cons. On a positive note, circuit training increases strength and endurance for the person performing it; the exercise regimen is customizable for any age or health requirement; the training, as a whole, is quite simple to follow; and there are a wide array of exercises to choose from so workout will not become monotonous. On the flip side, most of the exercises in circuit training require specialized equipment; ample space is a necessity to set up circuit training workouts; and you really need an expert with you to monitor your progress and keep you on schedule. If you really want to utilize a circuit training program, your best bet is to check into a gym or hire a personal trainer to monitor your progress.

Real-Life Success Story

PERSONAL TRAINING:
A Short-Term Investment; a Long-Term Benefit

by Christie McMurdie

In my early 40s, I was not happy with what was happening to my body. Things were getting flabby and I just didn’t have the shape I used to. I was working out at the local YMCA and using one of their free trainers, but there was little personalized follow up, and I just wasn’t getting the results I wanted.

Then something devastating happened. My house was burned in a fire. During my home’s rebuild, I lived temporarily at a Residence Inn the staff of which provided all the maintenance and cleaning. With more time on my hands, I decided to share a personal trainer with a friend for the period I was living in that motel.

Four months later, my trainer enticed me with the goal of a fitness contest. I am a business and life coach, and knew the importance of having a short-term and long-term goals, in terms of staying on a meaningful fitness routine.

As the weeks went by, I learned all kinds of new exercises using free weights. I learned how to bathe my sore muscles and eat a low-fat diet with new supplements. I got comfortable in Gold’s Gym, using their weights and doing pull-ups for the first time in my life. I enjoyed my newfound strength and energy.

I felt my body changing in ways that were totally new to me, at the age of 44. I really could not believe my results – and it was fun. One thing is for sure, I could not have gotten there by myself. This is when I realized that my investment in the training had given me a new way of life, with the confidence to use nearly everything piece of equipment available in the gym.

I also began to train in yoga, but retained the body-building regimen until the contest. Meanwhile, during all that training, my new desire for yoga led to an interest in giving cycling (spinning) classes a try at the neighborhood gym. By this time, I was able to move back home.

Armed with confidence from training, I began to study other forms of yoga and hired a new trainer who was current on using exercise balls for core development. What had been a chore a couple of years ago – makign time to get that workout in – had become a fun hobby, because my knowledge base had increased because of my trainer's knowledge.

In the end, I grew more intuitive about my body’s needs. With the buffet of fitness choices now at my disposal, working out has become one of the daily luxuries I give myself. My short-term investment has become a long-term benefit and a way of life I truly love.

Cristi McMurdie is a professional business and life coach with Breakthrough to Your Dreams Coaching. You can reach her at (602) 284-5528 or visit her on the Web at www.breakthroughcoach.net.

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