Virtual Fitness Training - The New Trend in Fitness

We all know the deal - watch what you eat, follow a fitness routine, and, if it is within your budget, join a gym or hire a personal trainer and you will lose weight, look good, and feel great. Often this will work, at first. The problem is, most of us have a hard time sticking to this ideal. Busy lifestyles, lack of sleep or energy, or loss of motivation usually kick in at some point to throw us off our accomplished health routines. What does it take, most of us wonder, to achieve results that can last, and not break our budget?

Welcome to the world of virtual training. With today's ease of technology and mass of social networking sites, in addition to the need for budget-friendly options, the next step in fitness is virtual training. What is virtual training? Virtual training is doing a fitness routine with your fitness coach from the comfort of your own home, or anywhere you have a computer, without the burden of paying high fees for your trainer to come to you. 

One of the top fitness trends is cost-conscious workouts using limited equipment. 

How is that accomplished? 

 

Directly through your computer and Internet service! Simply set up convenient times to meet with your fitness coach, set up the free computer program Skype™, make sure you have a video camera and microphone with your computer (most new computers come already equipped with these features), grab your workout sneakers and you are ready to go! A full workout routine can be accomplished in a small space using your own body weight, or a set of dumbbells, for equipment.

Virtual training has all the benefits of in-person fitness training without the drawbacks of having to physically leave your home or office. Accountability is the most critical factor for maintaining an exercise routine and continually making progress towards your goals. 

Regular virtual appointments with your fitness coach keep you on track, pushing you with ongoing support and encouragement to achieve desired results, without ever having to leave your home! 

Safety is another key factor in exercise, and your credentialed fitness coach will ensure that you make safe exercise progressions based on your health and level of ability and that you use good form for each exercise. 

Motivation is yet another essential element to fitness success. A fitness coach trained in behavior change techniques will ensure you overcome your personal hurdles and set-backs along the way with strategies that work specifically for you.

Hiring a high quality fitness coach is essential.
Before making a commitment to working with a particular fitness coach, review his/her credentials.

Look for a fitness certification from a respectable organization in the fitness industry that has received accreditation from the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA). The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), and the American Council on Exercise (ACE) are a few that are accredited by the NCCA. Also look for a college degree in an exercise or health related field and for experience. Many experienced fitness coaches will provide references or testimonials. And, finally, many fitness coaches go through additional training in behavior change principles, which helps clients like you to move past personal barriers that may have been delaying progress. Wellcoaches® is a corporation, endorsed by the American College of Sports Medicine, that trains health and fitness professionals in coaching competencies.

Ask your Trainer / PT/ Coach what training he/she has had in behavior change or coaching.

As you work on your goals, remember to use all available resources to help you achieve desired results. Virtual fitness training is one convenient and affordable resource that can bring you to real success.

Source : Sonja Boggs| Ezine

Heart Disease

What Does Being Fit Really Teach Us?

We make choices in life. Each one of us is unique in our own ways. As individuals, our minds are in control of everything - those that we do, those that we want to do and those that we want to have. Our eagerness and determination to work hard in achieving the things that we think we can't do or the things that we think we can't have will determine our future.

Physical fitness as described in Wikipedia, is a general state of health and well-being or specifically the ability to perform aspects of sports or occupations. Physical fitness is generally achieved through correct nutrition, exercise, hygiene and rest. It is a set of attributes or characteristics that people have or achieve that relates to the ability to perform physical activity. Physical fitness means being healthy and free from illness and the ability to be involved in physical activities, such as running, jumping, swimming, weight lifting, etc. Since our first few years in school, we have been introduced to physical fitness and sports. Some of us discovered our talents and became athletes. Others would always try their best to excel in sports even if they believe that they don't have the said talent. They are those people who believe in the saying, "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard." Now, let's talk about those who are neither athletes nor enthusiasts. They are these type of people:

1) An average guy who wants to look better, have bigger arms, broader shoulders, thicker chest and finely carved abs.
2) A person who thinks he or she is fat and aims to have a smaller waistline or a flat tummy.
3) A skinny guy who wants to build more muscle.
4) A man or a woman who wants to become stronger and feel better.
5) An elderly who is fighting a disease and was advised by the doctor to start exercising. The main goal is to look better. Next is to feel better, stronger and healthier.

In my own opinion, physical fitness is a complex state. It is a definition of how a person lives his or her life. It is an enigmatic evidence of feeling great from inside out. It is a result of discipline, hard work, humility, curiosity, and perseverance.

These characteristics, for me, are the main ingredients in becoming successful in your fitness goals.

DISCIPLINE

Not eating your favorite comfort food or not drinking your favorite soda, getting yourself tired three, four or five times a week, spending your time running outside instead of just lying in bed - these are not a good idea to many. When you have discipline, you know that you have to do what you don't want to.

HARD WORK

Focusing on your goal, looking forward to achieving your desired body or physical ability and pushing yourself hard are not really hard to do at all. Always tell yourself to strive more for better results. Hard work pays off at the end of the day.

HUMILITY

Always keep in mind that you don't need to be better than someone else. There will always be that person who looks better than you or is stronger than you. Sometimes you will be that person too. There is no competition with anyone but yourself. Bragging about what you have will get you nowhere.

CURIOSITY

There are a lot of fitness experts and magazines online nowadays. Social media is one of the best ways to get advice and tips from. You only need to take the time to read those advice and tips and try applying them. Having a friend who is experienced in physical fitness will also be a bonus. But also limit yourself to hearsay.

PERSEVERANCE

There will be times that you get frustrated, unmotivated, hopeless and unprogressive. Don't just quit right away. Remember the first day of your workout until the next weeks, months and years that you feel a lot stronger than ever before. Never think of giving up and put to waste what you have already started. You will notice the changes in your body as you take pictures every now and then, either monthly or bimonthly, or anytime you want to take note of your progress.

As you take the journey to achieving your goals and having the physique that you always wanted, you will eventually learn and practice the qualities mentioned above. You will also get used to eating healthier foods and limit or exclude those unhealthy ones in your everyday meal. You will start to add and love more protein, green and leafy vegetables, healthy fats and fiber to your diet. But remember, there is no perfect diet, a very good advice or an excellent trainer to help you with your goal if your mind is not set to work with keen interest. In addition, you'll be more successful if you keep an open mind and be teachable all the time.

Although there will be times that you feel like your expectations are not met. You will feel like there are no changes in your body as how you want it to be. You'll be in the stage of reaching the so-called plateau and you notice that there is no progress anymore, you're not getting any bigger, leaner or stronger. Your only competition here is yourself. Every time you look in the mirror, you will see that person in front of you. You would always want to look better than that one there. Every time you feel like quitting, every time you feel tired and losing the drive, just think of what you will achieve when you keep going. You need to decide where you want to be. Are you contented with what you just have? Would you just accept the fact that you can't achieve something new for yourself? Or would you want to experience the triumph of conquering your limitations? As the great Arnold Schwarzenegger said, make your mind work for you, not against you. You just have to be patient, continue doing what you have started, keep an open mind because everyday is a learning process, enjoy yourself until the day you realize that you have already reached your goal. By then, you will know exactly what I'm talking about right now.

Source: Art Forrosuelo  http://EzineArticles.com/8747921

Trackers - How technology is helping us monitor and improve our health

Self-tracking is the practice of measuring and monitoring your health, activities or diet through technologies such as smartphone apps, wearables and personal genomics, empowering you to take control of your day to day health. Richard MacManus explains the benefits and risks of self-tracking and looks at:

• What exactly is being tracked
• The tools and techniques being used
• The best practices of early adopters
• How self-tracking is revolutionizing the health and wellness industries
• How the medical establishment is adapting to these new trends

 The book will be available 1st January 2015, $29.99... Already available as a Kindle eBook as below

Apple's iWatch and HealthKit: What They Mean for Health and Fitness Pros and Their Clients

The fusion of technology and the fitness industry continues at warp speed. This brings both excitement and concern, with users around the world waiting for the release of the new iPhone 6, new iOS 8 and the closely guarded Apple iWatch. Rumors suggest the devices will be both fashionable and practical.
Wall Street has also been watching the buzz around the new Apple products, as this is the most significant event for Apple under the leadership of Tim Cook (and not Steve Jobs). With the introduction of HealthKit, it is also Apple’s attempt to make the iPhone not only the center of the user’s digital world, but also of his or her physical world as well.
The HealthKit framework within iOS 8 will offer more health and fitness functionality by linking devices with a user’s health information, using the iPhone as the central hub. Now users will be able to capture and monitor health and fitness information such as pulse, steps, blood pressure and sleep habits. These health measures offer a clear and current overview of a person’s overall well-being. While it is true that individual apps have been doing this for years, the new HealthKit will allow these health and fitness apps to sync data about the user’s health and fitness across a variety of wearables and apps, organizing them all into one dashboard application—the iPhone.
Within the fitness industry, excitement started a year ago when Apple hired fitness-industry expert and ACE Pro Jay Blahnik as one of the first of many hires specific to health and fitness. After years spent consulting with Gatorade, Nautilus, Schwinn and Nike, Blahnik was all in with Apple. In December 2013, Apple met with the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. governing arm of the federal government for all things medical, to discuss mobile medical applications, likely to ensure that HealthKit would not cross a regulatory line.
This is exciting news for our industry, so how can personal trainers and health coaches benefit from such technology? Here are three things I will be watching for in the weeks and months that follow the announcement:
Being Connected. Our world continues to become even more connected. It is through being connected that trainers and health coaches can engage with their clients, keeping them on the path to wellness. Through the new iPhone platform, clients will be able to share with you integrated insights into their daily lives (activity, sleep, steps, food, pulse rate, etc.) that wasn’t previously possible. No longer will you need to guess what your clients did outside of training or if they took your advice—it will all be there with a click of a button. How’s that for accountability? New business models for training and coaching will be developed to take advantage of this technology and the job of a trainer or coach will no longer be limited to inside the four physical walls of a gym, opening up new markets not only down the street but around the world.
Deeper Collaboration. We’ve seen that it takes a team to make a real difference in the lives of our clients. From trainer to physician, coach to nutritionist, the power of collaboration, being in sync and in real time, is one highlight of the new HealthKit. It will take time for each team member to understand his or her place in the overall HealthKit matrix, but what is exciting is the possibility of overall health for our collective clients. More teamwork between practitioners allows trainers and coaches to stay within their scope of practice and seek partnerships with others in the healthcare industry.
Proceed with Caution. Apple is late to the game with regards to fitness tracking, but many expect it to succeed where others have not. While Jawbone and FitBit do a good job of tracking activity, many consumers still see wearables as “unstylish” and the buzz of the wearable soon wears off with a sharp decline in use after just six months. A device has yet to emerge with enough authority to encourage mass adoption (not good if you are relying on this data). Apple could change that perception with their historic strengths in design and new hires in fashion, which means more people will be more inclined to wear a device and thus more health data will be collected.
As we share more personal and confidential information across the cloud, there will be more debate surrounding security and privacy with this type of information. Apple has taken steps to ensure our privacy, with requirements that apps using HealthKit not store information on the cloud and not share information without user consent. Of course, there will always be a risk when sharing data through the cloud, but does the benefit of sharing outweigh the concern over privacy? Or vice versa?
Remember, Apple is not the only kid on the block using smartphones for health. In the US, there are nearly 170 million cellphone users, 70 percent of whom use smartphones. Within the smartphone category, the iPhone is by far the most popular, with 42 percent of users, followed by Samsung at 28 percent, 7 percent for LG, 6 percent Motorola and 5 percent for HTC. However, when looking at the operating systems of these smartphones, Android takes the lead with 52 percent, Apple at 42 percent, and Microsoft, BlackBerry and others making up the remaining 8 percent (ComScore, 2014). The takeaway? If you only work with Apple, you will be missing out on 58 percent of the population that uses a smartphone other than an iPhone.
I am a believer in effective uses of technology and am excited about the Apple announcement, as well as the upcoming announcements from Microsoft and Google within the health and fitness space. New technologies and innovations like the iPhone, the Apple iWatch and HealthKit are not a magic bullet, but they can be a very powerful tool that, when properly implemented into trainers’ and coaches’ businesses, can lead to new clients, new revenue streams and new partnerships. These technologies will never replace a qualified and certified personal trainer or health coach. After all, clients hire us for our knowledge and accountability, but they keep us for our personality and ability to connect with them.

Source : By Ted Vickey Ted Vickey Ted Vickey, M.S., is the Senior Consultant - Fitness Technology for ACE. He’s been an ACE Certified Personal Trainer since 1992