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If you missed the first post, let's bring you up to date: (Otherwise, scroll down:) ) This post is part of a series on breaking down exercises so you can be SAFER and MORE EFFICIENT in your movements. I think it is safe to say that the majority of us begin our fitness journey, not by taking a course on the muscles and functions of the joints and so on, but by joining a fun class or copying what we see in a magazine here and there...yes? I know that was the start for me! I was in a Spin class not knowing anything about form, safety, hydration, or resistance. Just brought a water bottle with me and trusted the instructor when he said "turn the resistance up" and hoped I did it right. Really, though, I did not learn how I should check that my knees are vertical to my heel when setting up the bike nor the proper way to be up out of the saddle...I just copied the instructor best I could. Pilates, too. Why did my neck hurt during class? The instructor says take it your own pace, so that must mean faster is better? Well no one told me otherwise until I was in a course to become an instructor! From then on, I have focused on SAFETY and EFFICIENCY over everything else in my classes. Very challenging classes? Oh yes. But safe, and maximizing every minute. We don't have time to waste as I take forever to show the next exercise, nor do you want to hear me show six variations before you can finally begin. I need to explain quickly, concisely, and clearly to get you started, and then add an array of digestible tips along the way. That is a huge part of my responsibility as an instructor and trainer! But, I know that many times this doesn't happen in classes we find. Or we are on our own, no class or trainer, and trying to copy what we have seen, not necessarily knowing the components. This can lead to slowing us down by creating poor habits and leading to INJURY. Talk about NOT being efficient OR safe! So in this series of posts, I will do my best to break down common exercises, as well as show a number of variations for you to modify, progress, or simply change it up to find the appropriate challenge for you! Please feel free to comment or send me an email with questions. Happy to discuss anything further. Squats: What, How, WhyA basic squat is shown in the beginning of the video below. To simplify, a squat can be thought of as 'sit in a chair and stand back up'. (Properly. of course...I'll get there in a sec.) In the video, you see that my feet are about hip or shoulder width apart, I sit back, sending the hips and butt back towards the wall behind me, while making sure that my knees stay behind my toes while doing this (yes there is a variation where the knees can be forward more, but that is an advanced variation to utilize only sometimes, and I won't get into all that here, not needed!). I think to myself, 'butt back' and 'weight in my heels'. A good test is, at the bottom of the motion (the lowest point), see if you can lift your toes. If you can, chances are strong you have your weight in the proper place from the hips down. The upper body: you want to engage your core while doing this exercise, so think about contracting through the abs and keeping your back long (aka straight back not rounded back). Neck also in alignment, aka no chins lifting toward the ceiling. NB: This post keeps the exercises to bodyweight only, but there are plenty of variations utilizing weights, too! As you stand back up, give a squeeze to your glutes (butt muscles) while moving. The glutes want to get a workout here, so make sure they do! The quads aren't the only ones that should be working, ensure the back of the legs and glutes are as well, and a very helpful way, in addition to making sure your form is on point with each rep, is to engage the glutes as you go to stand back up. Now after all these details, are you breathing? Mhmm, we MUST breathe. No holding your breath allowed around me (virtual or otherwise)! We do squats to work our quads (thighs), hips, glutes (butt), hamstrings, calves, and core. If you are just starting out, stick with this motion. If you are struggling to get the sense of getting your hips back far enough for the knees to stay behind the toes, work on sitting back onto an actual chair. Then when you go to stand up, do not push your knees forward as you do-- Instead, squeeze the butt, hinge forward slightly (straight back as you move the chest a bit forward), and stand. ^If you have been working out for some time but are finding your knees aggravate you or you aren't sure of form, do this version, too! The first video continues to show variations, the second one adding in advanced variations. Many work the same muscles, they are just of varying difficulties-- or in some, the same difficulty, just keeping things interesting for you. Standing wider vs standing narrower will have the muscles working in slightly different ways, so it is important to play with different widths (not TOO wide or narrow-- hips to just outside the shoulders). The one that is quite a bit different: In the plie (plee-ae) or sumo squat, my feet are turned out, and my back is completely vertical. As I bend at the knees, I make sure my knees press back to stay over the heels. So nice hinging forward or sticking the butt back. But, we do squeeze the butt as we stand up. In addition to the muscles worked in a 'regular' squat, you'll be giving extra emphasis to inner thighs and the hip region here. If you are very tight in the hips and inner thighs, this may be especially challenging. If you are unable to keep a strong form, skip this variation. There are other ways to work the lower body! Keeping these explanations in as much a vernacular as possible, but it is a lot of info! Again, holler with questions or send me videos of you practicing your squats with a big smile of pride! Have a great day, Kate Everything at your own risk. Not all exercises are suitable for everyone. Exercise can be dangerous and can result in personal injury. Any injury sustained from this video or others is solely the responsibility of the exerciser. Kate Cherichello disclaims any liability from injury sustained from the use of posted videos and exercises. It is recommended to consult a physician before beginning any training program.
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This is the start of a series on breaking down exercises so you can be SAFER and MORE EFFICIENT in your movements. I think it is safe to say that the majority of us begin our fitness journey, not by taking a course on the muscles and functions of the joints and so on, but by joining a fun class or copying what we see in a magazine here and there...yes? I know that was the start for me! I was in a Spin class not knowing anything about form, safety, hydration, or resistance. Just brought a water bottle with me and trusted the instructor when he said "turn the resistance up" and hoped I did it right. Really, though, I did not learn how I should check that my knees are vertical to my heel when setting up the bike nor the proper way to be up out of the saddle...I just copied the instructor best I could. Pilates, too. Why did my neck hurt during class? The instructor says take it your own pace, so that must mean faster is better? Well no one told me otherwise until I was in a course to become an instructor! From then on, I have focused on SAFETY and EFFICIENCY over everything else in my classes. Very challenging classes? Oh yes. But safe, and maximizing every minute. We don't have time to waste as I take forever to show the next exercise, nor do you want to hear me show six variations before you can finally begin. I need to explain quickly, concisely, and clearly to get you started, and then add an array of digestible tips along the way. That is a huge part of my responsibility as an instructor and trainer! But, I know that many times this doesn't happen in classes we find. Or we are on our own, no class or trainer, and trying to copy what we have seen, not necessarily knowing the components. This can lead to slowing us down by creating poor habits and leading to INJURY. Talk about NOT being efficient OR safe! So in this series of posts, I will do my best to break down common exercises, as well as show a number of variations for you to modify, progress, or simply change it up to find the appropriate challenge for you! Please feel free to comment or send me an email with questions. Happy to discuss anything further. Starting here with LUNGES. Before I go further, though, I must state-- One, I am going through the most common forms and most common instructions. There are indeed variations on these, and advanced athletes may do versions that may not look 'normal' that are still safe. For our purposes, though, there is no need to try a version that could result in injury, especially without a proper trainer at your side. Two, the standard disclaimer: I am not a doctor, and anything you try from these posts are at your own risk. I am sharing my experiences, but each person is recommended to consult with someone in person when they can. If something doesn't feel right, figure out why. Okay, here we go: What do lunges work? See the image below. I love this one, as it shows both the ACTIVE MUSCLES as well as the muscles that are the STABILIZERS. The active muscles are the ones normally pointed out when summarizing the benefits of the lunge-- in vernacular, the quads (this includes what we refer to as the hip flexors as well), the hamstrings, the core.  From: The Body Shop Gym What is the proper form for a basic lunge? -vertical spine -big step back with Right leg, keep Right foot from turning in or out as you dig the ball of the foot into the ground, heel high (be gentle when you step the foot back, no slamming into those toes!) -lower Right knee toward the ground, Keeping Left knee BEHIND Left toes -squeeze in the glutes and a tuck of the abs as you straighten the Right leg -repeat, lowering down and lifting up like an elevator (down and up, not forward and back) (NB: there is a version where the spine if hinged forward slightly, but the above is what I want you to focus on for 99 out of 100 times you'd be presented with a lunge variation.) In the video, I explain the LUNGE and give variations-- and no, I don't sound that sweet when leading a HIIT class, so enjoy it now ;-) Again, holler with questions or send me videos of you practicing lunges with a bit smile of pride! Have a great day, Kate Everything at your own risk. Not all exercises are suitable for everyone. Exercise can be dangerous and can result in personal injury. Any injury sustained from this video or others is solely the responsibility of the exerciser. Kate Cherichello disclaims any liability from injury sustained from the use of posted videos and exercises. It is recommended to consult a physician before beginning any training program.  Not my usual post, but, like this one on virtual classes, felt it an important one.
We are all busy. Overworked, overwhelmed, all the things. Getting your health goals on track can add to the stressors. But isn’t getting healthier supposed to coincide with less stress?? Yes. It is. So why does it sometimes not feel that way? Without getting into the part we all already know-- our own self battling as though there were an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other just trying to convince us of whether or not we should get off the couch-- there are stressors in not feeling like you are maximizing the time you are giving yourself to workout, stressors in not seeing results, stressors in feeling like you are hurting rather than helping your body, stressors in trying to figure out just what the heck you should do to begin with… It doesn’t have to be like that, and that is a huge benefit of utilizing a personal trainer. With a trainer, you have a coach in your corner helping you along the way. Do pro athletes dive into games on their own? No way. There are coaches and medical staff there to guide them along every step of the journey. Top executives in corporations hire coaches to help them better utilize time and decrease stress. Broadway dancers are amazing, but they have choreographers, dance captains, and physical therapists helping them fine tune, keeping a watch on their health, and making sure they are doing everything ‘right’. See where I am going with this? We don’t have to do this on our own, and in all sorts of industries and subject matters people have coaches and trainers, no matter their level. So instead of trying to figure out everything regarding your health and fitness on your own, you have an opportunity to ‘team up’ with a certified personal trainer whose purpose is to guide, educate, and motivate you, while keeping your overall health and goals in mind every moment. (NB: I am focusing on personal training here, but sometimes what a person needs most is a nutritionist, a therapist, or other medical professional.) Now take a deep breath, really deep....and let it out. Feel a bit better with the thought that you don’t have to try to become an expert on working out in your nonexistent spare time? Good :) Personal training is an investment, I know. But I would like you to think about the big picture: If you have a reputable, dedicated trainer, he or she will work with you to build a strong fitness foundation (or to build upon former knowledge), educate you on how to maximum your time efficiency while prioritizing safety over everything else, and set you on a course of success-- not just for this year, but with fundamentals that you can put into practice for your whole life. Who doesn’t want to be able to go out dancing when they are 85?? The best investment you can make is in yourself. You have a plethora of options in front of you for exercise at any given time: from classes to YouTube videos to whatever you recall from that one time you took an aerobics class in 1999. What makes having a personal trainer such a stronger option, however, is one, having your whole fitness program in mind at all times, two, safety, and three, meeting you where YOU are and going from there. A personal trainer notes if you have been working a muscle group too hard and may be breaking down the muscle too much. He or she will identify if you are missing a muscle group. In a class, an instructor may not know what you are doing outside that class nor notice if you are doing something wrong because either there are too many people in class to catch it or the instructor is not certified to pick out these details (the certifications for personal training and group fitness are both great, provided the program is indeed reputable, but they are different). While he or she is probably giving an awesome class, if you are not very sure of your own form and background, a lot can get missed in a class. A personal trainer will be focused just on you, and one worth their salt will ensure that every part of your body is working in the most healthful way possible. While classes may be cheaper, and some videos may be free, not having someone caring about your overall program and not having someone watching for safety and efficiency, you end up spending more in the long-term and seeing less results (wasting time, feeling confused at what to do when, potential short- or long-term injury, not having consistency...) I love classes and absolutely believe they are a great addition to a fitness program-- but it is important to have a base first, as well as noting how the class plays into your overarching health goals. Also, read this before taking virtual classes. Doing what you know or what you read in a magazine can also be beneficial, but not if your form is not keeping you safe and/or you are not keeping an eye on how each additional exercise plays into your overall goals. “Do rows to tone your back.” Well that is all you are doing, you will be unbalanced and without noting cardio and nutrition may lose no weight to then let those back muscles show through. See what I mean with honing in on only one or two things you read? A personal trainer with a strong background of both experience and credentials will shape your overall health. You want to be your best self, right? Don’t waste time, keep yourself safe, and reach your goals working with someone reputable in your corner. There are reputable out there, and it is your job to vet them. If you want to talk more about this in any way, reach out. Walking clears my mind and brings an element of calm. So let's have a walking episode this week as I take you through my hometown, sharing good news along the way! Where are my readers from? Do you get to visit your hometowns? What do you like most about where you grew up?
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