The best way is to realize that it didn’t take you a matter of weeks or even months to get to where you are now. What does this mean? It means that it will take you more then a matter of weeks or even months to get back into health and fitness.

Once you come to terms with the fact that it isn’t a quick fix, you can take it a step at a time to ensure that you will stick with the new changes. Instead of trying to fix everything at once, burning out, quitting and going back to your old ways, I want you to pick 1 thing to change. Stick with that for 2 weeks until it becomes a habit, then change one more, then another… If all you did at first was drop all the sugar out of your diet (and by this I mean white refined sugar, HFCS, candy, etc…) and get onto even a basic exercise program. Just cut the sugar and get moving. After a couple weeks when that is now a habit try to work in more vegetables and ramp up the workouts. Before you know it you will be eating a very clean diet of real food (fruit, vegetables, meat, dairy) and working out regularly and intensely.

That is the real secret to making it work. Taking it a step at a time and making them habits and that takes about 2 weeks of 100% effort and commitment. No cheating. Once you are in the habit of eating clean and exercising, you can allow yourself the odd cheat. If one day you really want a chocolate bar, and you just can’t shake it, then go ahead and have 1. If you only have 1 a week or 1 every couple weeks, it won’t kill you. After all, you’re making these changes so that you are healthier and enjoy life more. Does denying any and all treats fit into that? But this stage only comes once these are the exceptions to the rule, once the healthy lifestyle is the normal and habitual way to be.

Odds are you won’t want that junk anyway because once you are off the crack (sugar) you just don’t want it anymore. That and if you do have some it makes you feel like garbage.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the newly opened Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

These people do this thinking that just by doing the volume they will increase their fitness. This is not true. Once you get to the point where your workout isn’t hard to do anymore you need to adjust the workload. I don’t know if Id even wait until it was to the point of “easy” before I ramp it up.

Without intensity volume will only take you so far. If you always do 25 pushups in the morning, it’s time to do them faster, or with a weight vest/backpack on. Anything to make them harder and challenge yourself again. Or just increase the number. Do 50 now. If you go for a 3km walk, change it to a jog, then a run. Same for the swimming, swim faster, use a more challenging stroke, jump out of the pool every so often and do some pushup, situps, burpees…

Your body adapts to the stress you put on it. If you don’t increase the stress it won’t continue to adapt. That is what people don’t realize. They see the results they got by doing X so they continue to do X and expect results to continue. Think of it like sun tanning. If you lay out in the sun for 20 minutes every day and get a bit of a tan, would you expect your tan to keep getting darker by laying the sun for 20 minutes? No, it won’t… you’ll need to lay out there for 30 minutes, an hour… It is the very same thing with exercise. You need to continually increase the intensity to continue to make gains (or losses in terms of inches and body fat…)

Intensity also goes for weight lifting, only here it’s not necessarily doing your workout faster, it’s adding more weight. If you bench press 3 sets of x at 185lbs every bench workout you can’t expect your bench press to get stronger. You need to add weight every workout (or at least strive to).

Always increase the intensity, always challenge yourself. Volume alone will only get you so far.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the newly opened Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

At CrossFit we stress proper form, range of motion, posture in every movement we do. We drill you on squats, deadlifts, cleans, jerks, kettlebell swings, hell even throwing a medicine ball at the wall has a right way and wrong way. But when it comes to running we just open the door and remind you that the clock is running so don’t doddle.

I’ve recently been turned onto POSE running. It is a running style that utilizes gravity, muscle elasticity, and the natural efficiency of proper body mechanics. Not only is it more efficient allowing you to run farther, faster and with less effort, but it will also help prevent common overuse injuries.

Here is the typical running style of someone today. They will use a huge drive off the back leg, basically leaping forward, and land on the heel of their other foot, planting it well ahead of their centre of mass. That should already be pointing out the inefficiency of this style of running; you are leaping into the air, and putting the brakes on when you land.

With the POSE method the first thing is the posture. You’re standing up straight, arms bent greater then 90 degrees and kept close to the body. While POSE running you land on the ball of your foot (not your toes), with your foot landing under your centre of mass (not braking your forward momentum at all) and instead of driving off the back leg, leaping your weight into the air against gravity, you let yourself fall forward and just pull your foot off the ground with your hamstrings making a figure 4 with your legs. This method uses a much faster cycle rate of the feet, and at first, a shorter stride, but as you get into it and start running faster your stride length could actually get longer. You don’t ever wind up with a straight locked knee. You’re kept relaxed and bouncy, taking advantage of the elastic energy in your muscles instead of the brute “oomph” in them.

Obviously there is much more to it then that but if you start with that you will soon notice a difference. A few things you can try. Try running on the spot. Are you landing on your heels? No? Now try to do it as softly as you can. Feeling comfortable? Now just lean forward the tiniest bit and off you go.

For more information on POSE running check out this video and demonstration.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

You can get strong and build your entire body with 5 simple barbell lifts. Back squat, standing overhead press, bench press, power clean and deadlift. That gives you 2 pulls, 2 pushes and a squat. Every workout you squat, push then pull. 3 sets of 5 and increase the load every time. Simple. Yes it will take a while because when you’re lifting near maximal loads you need to rest several minutes between work sets.

If getting strong isn’t for you, you can build up your cardiovascular and pulmonary systems while maintaining strength by working in the anaerobic pathway. This means shorter, really high intensity workouts where you are primarily working your muscles without oxygen.  Think 400m sprints. These take about a minute to 1.5 minutes, do 4 of these with 2 minutes rest in between.

Not only does working your anaerobic pathway allow you to do more work in those shorter time frames, but you will also increase your aerobic capacity. The reverse is not true, working your aerobic pathway will not increase your anaerobic capacity.

Want a workout that is short and sweet? You could do that 400m sprint repeat I mentioned earlier, or this little doozy is shockingly brutal.

400m Walking Lunge. A walking lunge is where you take a long step forward, dropping your back leg’s knee to the ground. You don’t want to let your front knee get too far ahead of your toes so that you can still drive thru your heel.

If you are new to lunges and/or this high intensity stuff, scale this distance. Try it for 100m, or 200m. But if you want the full dose, try 400m. See if you can do it in 10 minutes.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

Is it ok to train muscles that are sore? Don’t I need to give that muscle group a full day in between workouts to recover? Yes you can train muscles that are sore. However, if the soreness doesn’t start letting up or go away completely during your warm-up, then odds are you need a bit more rest time.

As for needing a full day in between workouts? Well… what are you training for? Personally I am training for life, and what life throws at me might not be so considerate as to give me a full day to get over something before I have to tackle something similar again. Know what I’m saying?

Now, what can we do to mitigate DOMS? Well diet-wise it’s a good idea to be well hydrated, and get plenty of meat and fat (those building blocks remember?) Ibuprofen is a lifesaver so hopefully you’re able to take it. Fish oil is probably the only supplement I would recommend taking to get your Omega’s in balance, thus cutting down on inflammation.

Massage is also a great way to get rid of the soreness, working out the lactic acid and breaking up knots and minute scars. Now I’m not talking about hot rocks and incense here, I’m talking the therapeutic soft tissue work that is probably more painful then the DOMS itself, but really feels better in the long run.

If you can’t afford your own personal masseuse, then the next best thing would be a foam roller, which can be purchased for about 25 bucks. It’s a dense solid foam tube about 4 inches in diameter. What you do with this beauty is lay on it and slowly roll yourself around until you find a spot that hurts like crazy (odds are you will giggle when you find one) Once you find a spot, just stay on it, relax your muscle into the foam, and hold it for a minute or 2. The pain will intensify, but then will start to get better. Hold it there until the pain is less then it was originally, or gone entirely. You can use these things on any muscle that you can make solid contact with. You want to avoid contact on the spine proper if you’re rolling your back.

If you want to find out what DOMS is exactly here is a simple workout you can do. First I will explain Tabatas to you. It is a work interval of 20 seconds, followed by 10 seconds of rest. We will do this 8 times, making it 4 minutes straight.

The workout will be a modified “Tabata something else”. You will do all 8 rounds of Tabatas on air squats, then rest 1 minute. Then you will do 8 rounds of Tabata push ups, rest 1 minute, then Tabata situps, rest 1 minute and lastly (if you have a bar and are able) do Tabata pull-ups.

For this variation we will add up your reps from every round, not just scoring it by the least amount of reps done in any given round. Your score is the total amount of all reps done in all the exercises.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre. For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

It all comes down to amino acids. Amino acids play central roles both as building blocks of proteins and intermediates in metabolism. Of the 20 amino acids found in protein, the human body can produce only 10. The remaining 10 amino acids must come from the food we eat. Unlike carbohydrates and fat, the human body does not store excess amino acids for later use; this means we need to get these amino acids every day, at every meal.

Protein is made up of a chain of amino acids. Not all protein is the same due to the fact that it can be made of different chains of amino acids.  This means that you need to eat a variety of protein sources, or at least, more complete sources of protein. I am a strong advocate of real food and I myself eat meat. Vegetarians have a hard time getting the complete array of amino acids from their limited protein sources.

Now if you’re a vegetarian that eats fish then you’re not a vegetarian, you’re a hypocrite. If you have a detailed list of things you will or won’t eat don’t try to sell yourself as a noble ethical eater, you’re picky. Straight up. If we weren’t supposed to eat animals they wouldn’t be made of meat ok?

With that in mind, there are good sources of meat and less good sources. I would suggest going grass-fed for your meat, free-range for chickens, and wild for fish. Your run of the mill grain fed mass produced beef is unnaturally high in omega-6 and it’s normal amino acid content is out of whack as it is an unnatural diet for a cow to live on. Also, being grass fed means that it roams a pasture to find the grass and is a healthier beast. Free-range chickens will not only be a healthier bird, but it will have a complete array of amino acids and a richer flavour. Farmed fish is just bad news; they are sickly and destroy natural fish populations. Oh I almost forgot about eggs. Eat eggs, real whole eggs. Getting the Omega-3 eggs is better but at the very least eat the whole eggs.

What about organic meat? I thought you’d ask. Organic doesn’t mean the same thing for meat as it does for vegetables. Organic beef can still be fed grains and be unhealthy, it’s just fed organic grains. Same goes for chickens. Remember you are looking for grass fed/free-range meat.

What about soy? Well… soy is ok in some preparations but not in the ones typically seen as meat substitutes. To give you an idea as to why the soy based “meat substitutes” are bad news, just take a look at this description of soy processing via The Guardian

“Soya veggie burgers and sausages generally use the same chemically extracted fraction of the bean. This meal is the product of the industrial crushing process the vast majority of the world’s soya beans go through. The raw beans are broken down to thin flakes, which are then percolated with a petroleum-based hexane solvent to extract the soya oil. The remains of the flakes are toasted and ground to a protein meal, most of which goes into animal feed. Soya flour is made in a similar way. The oil then goes through a process of cleaning, bleaching, degumming and deodorising to remove the solvent and the oil’s characteristic “off” smells and flavours. The lecithin that forms a heavy sludge in the oil during storage used to be regarded as a waste product, but now it has been turned into a valuable market in its own right as an emulsifier.”

Yum… sounds delicious and healthful! Not only that, but while getting the required amount of protein from vegetarian sources you get a lot more carbohydrates then you do with meat. However, if you eat less processed soy, you know, real food and not food products, you will be ok. Things like edamame, tempeh, and traditional miso, things that are much closer to the original source.

So to sum up, we need so many amino acids to completely function and rebuild and repair out bodies. Our bodies produce half of what we need and the rest needs to be consumed via food all day every day. Meat is complete; soy is not, and in some cases down right wrong! Eat real food, from clean sources and you will be healthy. Try to force unnatural types of nutrients and you’re asking for less then ideal body function.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

In fact, fat is the variable element in your diet you use to control the amount of energy you consume. This is because your carb and protein requirements are set based on your current or desired lean body mass. Your body can only make use of so much protein, used to support existing lean mass, create more or even shed mass. Once you have that figured out, you balance that with your fruits and vegetables. If you keep those 2 things in balance, your hormonal reaction to food will be balanced and you will be happy and healthy. The problem is that is rarely enough calories to sustain yourself, especially if you are training hard.

So where do you get the balance of your calories? FAT. Don’t get me wrong, there are some fats out there that deserve the vilification they receive, including but not limited to trans fats. But there are many other fats that are good little guys and should not only be included in your diet, but also celebrated.

So, what is fat? Fats are compounds of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen assembled in various lengths, shapes and orders. They are a vital nutrient required for energy and the construction and maintenance of structural elements in the body, such as cell membranes.

Lets discuss the different types of fats shall we?

Monounsaturated Fats:
The “mono” prefix means these fatty acids have a single double bond in their fatty acid chain. (The more double bonds they have, the more fluid it is.) They are generally liquid at room temperature. Monounsaturated fats are found in many oils, including olive, flax seed, sesame, sunflower, safflower, corn and peanut oil. Keep in mind however they are found in these oils, they do not comprise them completely. They contain varying levels of monounsaturated fats; the rest is a blend of polyunsaturated and saturated fats. Olive oil for example is 75% monounsaturated and canola oil is 60%.  Monounsaturated fats are also found in avocados and nuts. These are typically understood to be “healthy” fats.

Polyunsaturated Fats:
You guessed it, the “poly” prefix means these fats have more then 1 double bond in their chain and will be liquid even when refrigerated. They also go rancid easily, particularly when heated. Heating them leads to oxidization that opens up the free radicals. Polyunsaturated fats are found in grain products, soybeans, peanuts and fish oil.

Essential Fatty Acids
They’re called essential because the body can’t produce them by itself and must get them from foods. We’re talking omegas 3 and 6.

Omega-6 is found in corn and other grains, as well as grain-fed livestock. Omega-6 plays a crucial role in dermal integrity and renal function among other things, but if left unchecked can run amok and spur inflammation.

Omega-3 is what keeps the Omega-6 in check. These are found primarily in fish, algae, flax and nuts. You can also find it in eggs and chicken that are fed fish or flax meal. There are 3 types of Omega-3s, ALA (flax), EPA and DHA (fish oil). Omega-3 helps circulation by thinning the blood, fights inflammation, supports brain function and eases depression, anxiety and even ADHD.

Now, how much Omega-3 do we need to keep the Omega-6 in check? What is the ratio of 6 to 3? It’s a 1:1 ratio, although you will see many in the establishment say that 4:1 is good enough. (currently western diet is anywhere between 10-30 parts Omega-6 to Omega-3…)

Saturated Fats:
Saturated fats are much more stable due to their chemical makeup. They don’t have the tendency for rancidness as the polyunsaturated, even when heated. This is good.

Saturated fats make up ½ of cell membrane structure and enhance calcium absorption and immune function. They aid the body’s synthesis of essential fatty acids and provide a rich source of fat soluble vitamins.

You get saturated fats from meat, and the cleaner your meat source the better. When it comes to meat, organic isn’t good enough. We’re looking for grass-fed and grass-finished meats. Organic can simply mean organic grains, and grains still aren’t a natural food source for cows.

Trans Fats:
These are chemically modified for stability. However, the modification also makes them go unprocessed in the body because it doesn’t recognize it as fat.  Therefore instead of being eliminated from the body, it is absorbed through the cell membranes where they screw up cell metabolism. They are associated with inflammation, atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity and immune system dysfunction. High levels of trans fats in your diet also cause a redistribution of fat tissues into the abdomen, even when dietary calories are controlled. So trans fats are bad for your profile.

Interesterified Fats
Basically the new trans fats created to avoid the trans fat label. Hydrogenated for shelf stability and amounts to the same level of unnatural poison-like qualities of trans fats, perhaps even worse.

Basically what it all comes down to is natural sources of fat is good. Use it to control your caloric intake after you’ve taken care of your body’s building block requirements (protein/carbs). Keep your Omegas in check and you’re good to go.

Fat does not make you fat. (sugar does!)

*Thanks to www.marksdailyapple.com for the info, highly recommended reading if this has piqued your interest.
Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

Lets take a look at fitness classes first. These are great to meet new people, being motivated by other member’s fitness levels, and some friendly competition to push you to that next level. There are a variety of these classes to choose from: spin class, aerobics, pilates, yoga, bosu ball, CrossFit, etc, etc… An endless variations and types of classes for almost all fitness levels and goals.

Which one is right for you? Start by write down a list of your fitness goals and then see which classes line up with them. Also, go take a look at one of the classes running. What do the members look like? What does the instructor look like? If you’re goal is to take a fitness class to lose weight, and the instructor (who teaches it three times a day every day) is overweight, do you think it is going to help you achieve that toned body? Are the members that have been at it for a while seeing the results you hope to achieve by taking the class? Ask them.

Instead of blindly believing that a certain type of class will get you the results you want, check the data and come up with an actual conclusion as to whether or not it is effective.

Now lets think about what to look for when finding a coach or personal trainer. Does your coach have a background in sports and fitness? Is it a background in something you are interested in? Is his experience valid? Does your trainer have the fitness you want to achieve? Does he himself train in the same manner that he is training you?

I believe a coach should be just that… a coach. He should be on you about proper form, and making sure you’re driving the proper intensity. He should be looking out for your best interest; namely, you achieve your goals and get the results you’re after. No compromising.

Does he spend more time on his cell phone then he does checking your form? Maybe this trainer likes working out side by side with you, rather than standing by demonstrating, spotting and critiqueing. If that’s the case, you’ve just hired yourself an expensive workout buddy.

Ultimately it comes down to a couple of things. Are you comfortable with your coach? Do you trust his abilities, knowledge and advice? And lastly, are you happy with the results? Because you can’t argue with those…
Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

Have you heard anyone say this? Have you yourself been wont to say it? A few people have told me this. The unfortunate thing is, the ones who say this are the ones who need it the most.

There are a number of benefits to training in the CrossFit way, but a few are of particular benefit to anyone wanting to stay self sufficient late in the game of life. I don’t know about you but I want to be able to walk around, get out of bed, go to the bathroom, take a shower all by myself until the bitter end. In order to make that happen I have to prepare for it, just like you would prepare a retirement portfolio to make sure you can afford to live until the end. Make sense?

Here are a couple things that people don’t do, that they should do, especially as they get older.

Lift weights. Lift heavy weights. There are a number of reasons for this. One of them is that heavy resistance training increases bone density. That’s right, it will make your bones stronger and denser. This means that women should lift heavy weights, because their risk of osteoporosis is higher then men. Another reason to lift heavy (namely in squats and deadlifts) is that it will keep your back and your posterior chain nice and strong. This will allow you to stand up straight, get out of bed, pick up your grand kids, anything you want, all by yourself. Not to mention that lifting increases your lean body mass, thus decreasing your fat body mass, and a lean body is a healthy one. (Notice I said lean and not skinny! Perhaps a topic for another day.)

So that covers why everyone should lift heavy. Now why should we get all riled up and sweaty? Simple. Increasing your cardiovascular and cardiopulmonary capacity is a useful thing for all people in all situations. I would rather sweat now a couple hours a week, then lug around an oxygen tank later. Not only that, it keeps the heart strong and efficient. The stronger and more efficient you make your heart and lungs, the less they have to work. It’s not uncommon for advanced CrossFitters to have resting heart rates that are half that of “normal” people. Think of that in terms of say, an automobile. If you and a buddy each bought the same model car on the same day with the same starting mileage, and you drove yours have the distance buddy does, whose car will last longer? Probably the one whose engine has half the miles on it…

Now you’re probably thinking that these are all great arguments for why young people should start training to get fit, and you’d be right. These are all great reasons for young people to get on this ASAP. However, as of right now you have 100% of your life left, how do you want to live it.

Here is some testimonial excerpted from the following CrossFit journal (#26, October 2004)

“About 3 1/2 years ago, at the age of 69, I was fretting because I couldn’t pick up my 13-pound granddaughter. I figured that in order to get her into my lap, I would have to wait until she could climb there! … I developed a bond with the Gravitron (with lots of help) and could squat only with poor form, and only to the highest plyometric box. Sit-ups followed the squats, and by the time I had done five sit-ups, I knew that one of the components of my quads had given up… actually failed! My first workout was over! … In the days, weeks, and years that followed, my reps and weights increased… I can now pick up my granddaughter and, now at 4 years old, she weighs a whole lot more! … Other things, such as a simple common cold, or a bout with the flu or the dastardly “shingles,” will set an elderly person back more than it would a young person. But one needs to not get discouraged, keep the lungs moving through it all, pick it up, and get back at it … The elderly obviously don’t have the potential reflexes, balance, or strength of a young person. However, CrossFit workouts do improve every one of those functions. I feel strong and, if I concentrate, can even achieve a little straighter posture. My bone density reads “Normal Young” now, and, in a world where few people notice an old lady, I enjoy the genuine acceptance, youthful camaraderie, encouragement, celebration, and love that permeate the CrossFit world.”

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com

The gym is the one place where personal responsibility still reigns. Your maximum amount of pull-ups isn’t decided for you by a higher power, or because your cat hated you growing up, it’s determined by how strong and determined you are, how hard you train at it and how bad you want it. Sure others can help in your success, thru coaching, encouragement and cheering on but they don’t get you over the bar, that’s all you. I don’t want to imagine a day where I start blaming others for missing a lift and putting an asterisk in my workout log because I missed a new personal record and “it was Steve’s fault”.

There is one area in the gym that responsibility takes a turn to the cosmos and that’s in the weight loss area. A lot of people seem to think that it’s impossible for them to lose weight, they’ve tried and failed, it just doesn’t work. Well… it may be true that they tried and failed, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. It is hard work; it requires a lifestyle change and paradigm shift for it to be successful. I don’t just mean hard work physically to shed the pounds, but also hard work in sticking to better food choices, dedication to getting the workouts done. It really is as “easy” as diet and exercise, but the shift that has to happen in your life for those to work is immensely hard and takes time.

So many people expect the world in weeks, or they will compare their results to another person and get discouraged and quit. This is normal and completely pointless. You are not that other person so your results will be personal, and the fact that it simply wasn’t working fast enough was enough to make you quit and revert to the old ways is ludicrous! Think about it, it was working! How many decades of inactivity and poor food choices got you in the shape you are today, why would you expect that to be reversed in any less time?

Wait! I do make good choices, and I work hard, but it still doesn’t work. It’s genetics. Bull crap! That just means you aren’t working hard enough or you aren’t making as good of choices as you think. You can’t keep comparing how hard you’re working to your friends and think, “well this program worked for them but it doesn’t work for me, it must be genetics.” You’re an individual, you might need to work harder then they do to see the same result.

Listen up and listen good, there is no one to drop the blame on here, there is no one forcing you to make the choices you make. Time to step up and take responsibility for what you do to yourself.

I will leave you with this workout or task. If that sounds like you, or you’ve given those or similar excuses it’s time to step up and take responsibility. Go to your kitchen and look thru your food, how much is in the cupboards in the form of snacks and how much is in the crisper? If the fridge is not full of fresh fruit, meat, vegetables and dairy and the cupboard is full of snacks (“healthy” or other) then you know who’s to blame. Sorry. Time to take charge of your life and clean that crap out.

If you look in there and you do have all the nice fresh real food, and no crap in the cupboards then kudos! You just won a burpee sandwich. (That’s where you sandwich 50 burpees between mile runs) You lucky dog you. 3, 2, 1… Go! And as always this is timed and done as fast ‘as you can’.

*a burpee is where you squat down, put your hands on the floor near your feet, kick your feet back and land in the bottom of a pushup (chest on the deck), push up, kick your feet back under you and jump up with your hands in the air.

Chris Walls is a Personal Trainer at the Crossfit Kelowna training centre.  For more information on Crossfit, please visit http://www.crossfitkelowna.com