Fitness Article of the Week
Why Ask a Personal Trainer — and Not a Doctor — About Exercise?

You would never ask your hairstylist to diagnose a mechanical problem on your car, would you? Of course not — unless they were also a certified mechanic, on the side. Why, then, ask your doctor about exercise, when his or her line of work is the diagnosing and treating of illness and disease? To be sure, doctors are becoming more and more aware of the benefits of exercise in helping their patients improve their health outlook. But they must spend their very limited time between treating patients keeping abreast of new developments in medicines and treatments to help fight disease. In reality, they don’t have the time to invest in learning about the complete mechanics of exercise.

Therefore, does it not make more sense that the ideal specialist with whom to have an in-depth discussion on exercise and how it can benefit your health would be a aks a dr. or a personal trainer personal trainer?

A well-qualified personal trainer has spent an extensive amount of time learning all about exercise. How different exercises are done, how to target specific areas of the body with exercise, how to avoid injuries, the structures of the body and how they work together, how exercise can help the body work more efficiently, the body-mind connection for complete health, and more.

A good personal trainer carries certifications indicating their achievements and can demonstrate high-level understanding about the various aspects of exercise and what exercise can mean to a person’s overall health.

As a result, he or she has the expertise to guide you through the proper “mechanics” of various forms of exercise, to not only lessen your risk of becoming injured, but to increase the benefits to be gained from exercise done correctly. They also have insight, gained from working with different people with differing needs, from which to draw upon to help you get past any stumbling blocks that are keeping you from maximizing your health.

Personal trainers are also knowledgeable about the physical limitations of many conditions and can tailor exercises to those limitations, so that health gains are still possible. Despite the marine-toughness seen portrayed by some personal trainers on “reality” television shows, not all personal trainers bark commands to get you to exercise. Personal trainers can be quite empathetic to the plight of the overweight person who hasn’t exercised in a long while, but who has finally decided to get their weight under control and improve their health. A good personal trainer will work with you to reach higher levels of fitness without shaming you for the past that led you to becoming overweight.

Doctors keep themselves informed about the latest research and developments in the treating of disease and illness; personal trainers keep themselves informed about the latest trends in exercise and exercise equipment recommended for attaining fitness and health. A personal trainer can warn you about the newest fads appearing on the exercise scene with a lot of fanfare and empty promises, before you endanger your health by trying to follow them.

A personal trainer provides the one-on-one instruction and attention most of us need to take charge of the wheel as we drive toward excellent, permanent health. The expert knowledge and guidance a personal trainer can add to your workouts is invaluable. You can achieve more benefits from the time you spend exercising and working toward your health and fitness goals by consulting with a trainer than you can with just about anyone else.

If you have a bad case of the flu, a broken bone, or a medical concern, seek treatment from your doctor. If you have a question about the best exercise routines for maximizing your health and fitness, consult a personal trainer.

Jumping on a Trampoline

Everyone knows trampolines are fun, but not everyone knows that jumping on a trampoline is a great workout. It not only develops excellent proprioception (body awareness), but it also burns a ton of fat and calories. And did you know that the rhythmic bouncing has a powerful effect on the lymphatic system, which builds a stronger immune system? Both adults and children can benefit from regular exercise on a full size trampoline or a rebounder (a small trampoline).

A trampoline provides exercise that is easy on the joints, very low in stress, and great for the body.

It’s easy to start a trampoline regimen. Buy a mini-trampoline for your living room and jump while watching your favorite TV show, or bounce to a trampoline workout video. For tons of family fun, buy a large trampoline for the backyard. Start jumping on your trampoline for 30 minutes a day and bounce away your pounds.

Children and adults who regularly jump on a trampoline reap many benefits from the exercise, beyond weight loss. Studies have shown that trampoline jumping can:

Affect academic success — By helping a child learn to control his or her body movement, it can help a child learn. Because a trampoline teaches muscle control and coordination, many children see an improvement academically with the regular use of a trampoline.

Improve self-esteem — People gain confidence as they master new skills on the trampoline. This can translate into a better self-image that may help improve success in every area of life.

Teach persistence — It often takes many tries to master a skill on the trampoline, but because it is so much fun, people often persist. This reinforces the important lesson that doing something right is worth the effort.

The many benefits of jumping on a trampoline make it a fantastic activity for adults and children, but it is important to remember that children should always be supervised when on the trampoline. Netted “cages” can be purchased to keep you from bouncing off and becoming injured.

Ask Scott White | Personal Trainer

Question
If my main goal is to lose weight, which makes more sense . . . cardio first or lifting weights first? I've heard both sides, but never know who's right.

Scott Responds

Not all exercise is created equal. Cardio exercise, for example, is very good for the health and proper working condition of your heart — and of course there is a benefit to this form of exercise. A heart that isn’t fit and healthy will lead to a shortened lifespan. However, those in search of exercise to aid with fat-burning and weight loss are much better served by weight training.

Weight training a better choice for fat loss and weight reduction because it builds muscles, and strong muscle mass is needed to achieve lasting fat loss and weight reduction.

What do muscles have to do with fat loss? Do they “chew up” and “spit out” the fat? And doesn’t muscle-building actually cause you to weigh more and your body to appear even larger?

Muscles don’t do the chewing or getting rid of fat, but they do assist by providing the energy that your metabolism (your fat-chomping machine) needs to burn fat quickly. Muscles accelerate the fat-eliminating capacity of your metabolism, causing rapid fat loss, weight reduction, and improved health.

It is true that muscles “weigh” more than fat and so when you begin a weight-training routine, you may experience an initial weight gain. Fear not, as the more fat loss that occurs, the more quickly your body weight will readjust its weight. You can also afford to weigh more if that weight is muscle instead of fat. Weight from muscle does not lead to the disastrous medical conditions and diseases that having too much fat does.

Weight training is simply an amazing fat-loss tool for those who want to lose fat and gain health. Weight training is a complete workout for the body, for your complete health. It also helps your newly developing muscles obtain shape, definition, and tone, for the “chiseled and fit” physique you desire. If you’ve been searching for the best form of exercise to accelerate your fat loss, weight-training is the exercise that can get the job done!

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