August Exercise Classes
July 28, 2010 by Jenny Neighbour · 1 Comment
CrossTrain Fitness continues to offer a great summer line up of fitness classes for all fitness levels!
Join us in the month of August for a variety of classes that are sure to help you take your fitness routine to a whole new level!
We are very excited to offer our MAX class for FREE to our members in the month of August – see our Class Descriptions for more details!
Click here to download the August Class Schedule
Click here to download the August Class Descriptions
Within You
July 26, 2010 by Deb · 1 Comment
Within You
by Author Unknown
A man planted a rose and watered it faithfully and before it blossomed, he examined it.
He saw the bud that would soon blossom, but noticed thorns upon the stem and he thought, How can any beautiful flower come from a plant burdened with so many sharp thorns? Saddened by this thought, he neglected to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom, it died.
So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The qualities planted in us at birth, grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects.
We despair, thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and eventually it dies. We never realize our potential.
Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can possess is to be able to reach past the thorns of another, and find the rose within them.
When we make mistakes or feel we have failed, always remember that within you there is a rose. Learn from your mistakes and from your failures, and move forward. Mary Kay Ash once said, “Most people live and die with their music still unplayed. They never dare to try.” Always remember that within you there is a rose, live to your potential – dream, set goals, take action, and achieve all that is possible.
Deb:)
The One Flaw in Women
July 17, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
Today I’d like to pass on a very special gift that I
passed on to my mother to show my appreciation to her.
This gift is for you and all of the woman in your life that
YOU care about the most.
It’s a short movie called “The One Flaw in Women” and
has been produced as a tribute to women all around
the world.
It’s extremely inspiring and uplifting. It only goes for
a few minutes but boy those few minutes are powerful. It’s
got an incredible message.
So go ahead and enjoy this gift and feel free to pass it on
to all the important women in your life. I’m sure they’ll
love it as much as I did.
http://www.TheOneFlawInWomen.com/mindmovies
Have a wonderful day,
Deb 
Exercising in the Heat
July 17, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
I have received a few questions about this over the last couple of days and thought it was important to give advice on exercising in the heat!
I suggest that you try to workout in the morning or late evening during the hot summer months. I can speak from personal experience about how heat affects you during workouts. Your heart rate can be elevated by 5 to 15 beats versus exercising in normal temperatures. You also sweat a lot more and can cramp up easily as you also lose more sodium due to the high sweat levels. You will also see that it is more difficult to hit target heart rates or target perceived exertion levels in the heat as you can feel exhausted and drained.
I suggest that you avoid exercising outside in temperatures above 90 degrees (maybe even 85 degrees). Your health is too important to risk by trying to fit in a hard interval workout on a very hot day. Of course, your doctor is the best source of information on what is too hot a temperature for your workouts.
One last point, regardless of whether you are working out in the heat or on a 70 degree day, you should always have a water bottle with you and keep hydrated during your workout. If you feel thirsty while working out, then you are too late as you are already dehydrated. Being proactive about this will keep you safe and performing well.
The #1 thing to focus on while trying to fit in your summer outside workouts is to be safe. So do some smart planning, avoid making excuses and get your workouts done early in the morning or late in the evening if you absolutely can’t do the mornings.
When it’s just too HOT outside, hit the GYM!
GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN!
IMPORTANT NOTE: IF YOU EVER FEEL SICK OR THE SLIGHTEST BIT DIZZY WHILE WORKOUT (IN THE HEAT OR OTHERWISE), STOP WORKING OUT IMMEDIATELY. YOU ARE PROBABLY DEHYDRATED, LOW ON CALORIES AND/OR PUSHED TOO HARD. IF YOU TAKE IN SOME FLUIDS AND FOOD AND DON’T FEEL BETTER, I SUGGEST YOU CALL YOUR DOCTOR RIGHT AWAY. REMEMBER, BEING SAFE IS THE #1 PRIORITY ON YOUR FITNESS AND/OR WEIGHT LOSS JOURNEY.
Stay Cool!
Deb
How much exercise do you need daily?
July 8, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
I get asked daily from clients, “how much do I need to exercise?” Here is what I tell them:
You may have heard the U.S. Surgeon Generals recommendation of 30 minutes of physical activity a day. This is intended for people who want to maintain the most basic level of fitness — but not for people who want to lose weight. If you want to lose, you’re going to have to be prepared for a bit more work, or more intensity during that 30 minutes. It comes down to quality vs. quantity!
The World Health Organization’s recommendation of 60 minutes at a time as a starting point for weight loss is probably more ideal especially when people are just starting an exercise program. Once you can do more intense or high intensity interval workouts then doing 30 minutes can still be enough. It’s not so much about the time it’s more about the intensity of your workouts. I would much rather spend 30 minutes working out but make it worth a 60 minute workout because of intensity. Most people say they don’t have time to work out so if you can block out 30 minutes most days of the week you will be more likely to stick with it! It will be the consistency that really makes you achieve your goals in the long run!!
Bottom line is we need to be moving our bodies almost every day! Once you achieve your weight loss goals you still need to be moving almost every day for at least that 30 minutes, but now your intensity can go down some and simply moving your body for 30 minutes on most days will help you maintain your efforts!
Remember that any exercise is good exercise….if you only have 10 minutes to move your body, then move it for 10 minutes. These figures are simply telling you what to do for optimal results. You can still get benefits from shorter workout times….again it’s the consistency of moving your body over time that will get you the results you want and then allow you to keep it! Don’t make the excuse that since you can’t get the 30 or 60 minutes in that you shouldn’t do any exercise! It all adds up…move it whenever you can and you will see results!
Train Hard & Expect Results,
Deb
10 Minute Total Body Fat Burning Circuit
July 5, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
I know lots of people who consumed an excess of calories this weekend celebrating the 4th of July – hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, chips and dip, brownies, beer and probably a lot more.
Who can resist?
Or that may be some people’s normal weekend eating anyway. Ha Ha!!
Well here’s a great 5th of July workout to help you burn off those excess calories.
And best of all, it only takes 10 minutes and you won’t even have to go to the gym. CrossTrain was open this am 7-11. I did see a few of you but many of you were NOT there so this is something you can do!!
This great 10 minute total body fat burning circuit will work your upper body, lower body, abs and heart rate. All you need is a jump rope and you can do this workout anywhere.
10 minute total body fat burning circuit:
Jump Rope x 100
Jumping Lunges x 10 each leg
Push Ups x 10
Perform as many rounds as you can in 10 minutes. See if you can get 4-5 rounds. Write down how many rounds you get through and the next time you do it simply try to get through more rounds!!
Let me know how many rounds you did! New circuit starts tomorrow….hope to see you soon!
Deb
How to Stay Fit this 4th of July Weekend
July 2, 2010 by Deb · Leave a Comment
If you have plans to celebrate the festivities this 4th of July weekend, I wanted to share some of my personal quick tips with you to ensure you enjoy without falling off track.
First…while there are thousands of holiday weekend survival tips being shared right now, the best advice I can give you is that it is never just one weekend that sabotages your results.
Rather – it is how you spend your time BEFORE and AFTER that matters most.
3 questions for you to Help You Stay On Track:
1. When does your holiday weekend start?
Knowing this will allow you to make good choices up to this point. No need to grab a handful of m&ms at work when you know you will be enjoying a picnic tomorrow.
* My holiday weekend starts Saturday afternoon during our cookout.
2. What will you watch out for?
Are there certain foods or drinks that you consider to be a weakness? How will you manage them?
Put a limit, make a healthier version or avoid altogether?
* I LOVE Potato Salad & Chips I will make a healthier version of
potato salad and limit my serving of chips to one measured portion vs.
eating handfuls out of the bag! I also found chips made out of veggies that will help too!
3. When does your holiday weekend end?
This is the most important question to answer. Knowing when it is time to get
back on track is what will prevent your choices from completely sabotaging your results.
* My Holiday Weekend Ends on Sunday at 5:00 pm. I will get rid of any tempting leftovers and go for a nice evening walk with Lucky (my doggy).
Do something to signify you are done celebrating and ready to get Back on Track and you will stay on the path to fast fat loss results!
I wish you a super fun and safe 4th of July weekend! We will be open Saturday and Monday 7-11 am so start those days with a great workout! Remember we Ankeny folks have Summerfest festivities next weekend!!
Deb
