A personal trainer’s things to consider making new year’s resolutions Part 4

A personal trainer in Toronto loves the feedback

Thank you so much for all the feedback on this series. There is a lot of info out there about best practices and I appreciate that this appears to be helping some people prioritize positive change. That’s awesome. I had said before that this would be the last one but I’ve actually got ONE MORE in me (for now at least) and so let’s get going on the second to last entry in A personal trainer’s things to consider making new year’s resolutions.

A personal trainer in Toronto takes a moment to recap

Let’s take a couple of seconds here and just remember what got us here. So far, we have talked about moving more frequently, moving with improved awareness and skill, choosing exercises with the greatest functionality, a morning and evening practice, staying away from trans fats and eating more real food. On top of all of that we’ve talked about getting out of the house and into the light of day first thing in the morning. In the last post I mentioned that if a person were to do just two of these suggestions I would heavily weight moving more frequently and eating way more real food as my top two game changers. Especially when combined, these two are a powerhouse.

And now, onto this week’s suggestions!

A personal trainer in Toronto suggests movement snacks

Who doesn’t like a snack? With most of us working at our desks, sitting for a living - little bites of movement throughout the day can take a great deal of the strain out of our bodies. Sitting all day is brutally hard on our systems -we really weren’t built for it - and little bits of movement can help.

What kind of movement should you do? Pretty much anything that changes your position and that you can take a deep breath in is up for grabs. More specifically, anything that counteracts the sitting position is a good go to. Think anything that stretches out the chest and engages the muscles of the back. Locust in asana is a great one if you have the space. Even a standing or sitting version (without going into a back bend) are great options. If you do the whole version, laying on the ground, remember to squeeze your glutes!

Another way to utilize this idea is by taking ten minutes a day and dedicating it to mobility work. This can dramatically improve our capacities and crucial ranges of motion in the gym. Just ten minutes a day can down-regulate us, counteract constant sitting and open us up and prep us for the gym, as well as aiding in our recovery journeys! Ten minutes. Well worth it.

I work on this about three days a week right now. As I do not sit for a living I don’t need to get up and stretch as much and so I utilize the ten minutes a day approach. I find it goes a long way. There was a time where this was definitely an everyday thing for me, but I have weighted my warm-ups more heavily recently so that I do a decent amount of rehab and prep work right before my workout instead. it seems to be working for me.

Also if you ever want to train with me be prepared: homework is almost always a part of the deal. Most of us need increased ranges of motion in order to effectively hit the technique acumen and positioning that we’re going for. Movement snacks are the way we do it.

A personal trainer in Toronto suggests bone broth

So if you are a vegan or vegetarian, please disregard the bone broth bit. What I will say is try and get as much collagen as you can into your diet and try to avoid supplementation. Keep it real. Otherwise, whether you make it on your own or grab it from a reputable butcher, seek out grass finished or pastured bones (yes it matters) and drink a reasonable amount of it. It helps a great deal with joint issues in my experience. Generally speaking - that feeling of “getting old” has a lot to do with collagan depletion. Keeping your collagan up can help you feel more spry and ready for the world. A cup or two a week is amazing if you have joint issues, otherwise a cup every couple of weeks is great. You can heat it up and drink it on it’s own or put it into anything that calls for a broth. The good stuff isn’t cheap. But it’s worth it (also great for your skin:)

As a corollary I would also recommend using good quality chicken and beef broth if you can afford it. Also super nutrient and collagen dense.

I attribute a significant uptick in my collagen intake to be a big factor in my overall feeling of well-being and definitely a big difference maker for me in terms of inflammation and pain. I would give it a go for a bit and see if it is helpful to you too!

A personal trainer (still) in Toronto, signs off again

That’s it for this week! Hope this continued to be helpful and please keep the feedback coming! I’ll be taking a break from these blogs in the new year but you can always get in contact with me through the links provided. Happy holidays and may the new year bring you everything you need.