Inspired Journey Fitness

If you’ve been watching The Biggest Loser on NBC, you might have seen this week’s episode. The contestants had to compete to get a key to their gym so they could work out indoors. The whining and complaining about having to work out outdoors was incredible!

Give me a choice between indoor and outdoor and I’ll take the fresh air anytime.

No treadmill? Walk outside. Take a run. Add even more fun and hike on a trail. You might find something fun in your city that you never knew existed.

• Did you know there’s an abandoned putt-putt golf course hidden in the woods less than 4 miles from the Lifestyles Fitness Center?
• Whalon Lake offers several miles of paved trails around a peaceful lake just a few miles from your home
• Camp Sagwau offers a naturally formed rock canyon, and it’s in Lemont!
• Where can you see Bolingbrook, Naperville, Woodridge, Lisle, at the same time?
• There’s a naturally occuring waterfall just 20 minutes from Bolingbrook? Have you been there? If you’re lucky, you might even see the white deer herd.

We’ve got miles of bike trails, hiking trails, rivers, golf courses, and more right in our backyard. Think it’s too cold outside? Give it a try and you’ll be surpised how quickly you’ll warm up and won’t even notice the low temps.

It’s Mother Nature’s equivalent of the treadmill, Stairmaster, elliptical machine, rowing machine, and exercise bike. Pretty cool if you ask me!

Do you know a fun and interesting place nearby? Let’s hear about it.

Three weeks. That’s when we usually quit.

Think about it. You’re ready to go. All fired up. Three weeks in to it and the excitement is gone. It doesn’t matter what it is. It’s three weeks.

• New car? Three weeks later, the new car smell is gone, it’s just your car.
• New furniture? Three weeks later, it all blends in to the house and the kids are climbing all over it.
• Learning a new language? Three weeks of listening to those CDs and you’re ready to move on. Can’t I just buy one of those electronic translators instead? Surely someone there will speak English, right?
• Starting your exercise program? Three weeks later and you’re not ripped yet? Where’s the six pack? How come I haven’t lost all the weight like the infomercial promised?

Sound familiar? Fitness is progressive. It takes time, but you’ve got to stick with it longer than three weeks. Break through the three week barrier and make it a habit, part of your everyday routine and the results will follow.

Need help staying on track? Remember your long term goal. Think about that hike. That better golf game. Playing with your kids. Running a 5k and setting your personal record. Enjoying the excitement of the Breast Cancer Walk. Not feeling tired all the time.

Need a jump start? Call a friend and work out together. Put on a few layers and walk outside in the sunshine. Take a group exercise class (remember, you’ve got two free class passes!)

What are you doing to keep going and bust through the three week barrier?

Michigan State University researchers completed a study of athletes, asking what motivates them to work out. They discovered that responsibility to and encouragement from others was even stronger than measurable improvements and competitive demands.

Schedule your workouts with a friend. Hold eachother accountable to make and keep the appointment.

Looking for a workout partner? You’ve got 15 other friends in this group. It’s time to make a connection!

What’s your goal?

Lose 10 pounds? Work out 5 days a week? Drop a dress size?

Great. So what

That’s right, so what.

Why do you want to lose 10 pounds? Why do you want to work out five days a week? Why do you want to drop a dress size? There’s a reason for those things, but those aren’t the goals. They’re something that helps you accomplish the goal.

Work out five days a week so I can lose 10 pounds by April 1, the day of my high school reunion, so I can wear my favorite dress.

Develop better functional strength so I can hike to Yellowstone Falls (and back safely) on our family vacation in July.

Those are goals! What’s yours?

This is the first post of my new training blog. How’s that for a hard hitting opener, huh!

Who should read this blog and why?

I’m a personal trainer at Lifestyles Fitness Center, part of the Bolingbrook Park District. I’ll be using this blog to post thoughts and ideas to help my clients get the most from their training programs. As a lifelong recreational athlete, I’d like to use this as a way to communicate some of my experiences and help you use them to your own benefit.

Who am I?

You can read about me in my profile to the right. Go ahead and read, I’ll wait….So, what’s that all means and why do you care? The certification means that I’ve gone through a thorough program to help develop my knowledge of the human body and how it adapts to exercise. I’m also CPR and AED trained through the American Heart Association. The life experience means that I can help make sure that even with work, family, kids, and all those things you really enjoy doing, that you can still work out. The life experience and adventures will hopefully lead me to inspire you to get outdoors and try something different.

That’s enough about me for now, I’ll add more as the experience applies to helping and keeping you fit and strong.

Thanks for taking the time to read and I hope you’ll be back!