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Showing posts from November, 2011

There is only 1 way to train clients.

If there was only one way to dress, we would all look the same. If there was only one way to speak, we'd all sound the same If there was only one religion, we'd all believe the same thing If there was only one way to write music, it would all sound the same If there was only one way to build, all cities would look the same.  If there was only one way to walk, one way to stand, one way to laugh, one way to act, one way to think, one way to paint, one way to love, one way to live.  If there was only one way to train, I would not be a trainer!                              Life  = Diversity  If you're not prepared to be wrong you will never come up with anything original  -Ken Robinson 

Part 1 of our story of FLO.

'You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.' I know this is a saying that has been used over and over again  but is it so true that i must say it again.  You need to take action! Chill does not pay the bills. You will never achieve anything if you do not go out and get it.   I will tell you a quick personal story that demonstrates this.  Back in 2008 I had the idea of a place called FLO Fitness. At the time I was working at Ballys and didn't like it. I wanted to freedom to be creative and not be forced to sell, sell, sell.  So I started the process of getting my business name.  Once I got the name, I had no idea with to do with it. I didnt have money, I didn't have a place, I didn't know what to do for a business. I began to research what my next step should be. I wrote a business plan and started shopping to get a loan so I could open a place. The business plan was terrible and no bank would lend me any money.  I he

Quality Care

 I have this special client; she is 60 has a benign heart condition and works like the rest of the population at 8am. However she shows me something that they don't; dedication to her life, without the excuse of not enough time. Working out for her is almost like medicine. My father once told me she should pay you more for getting up that early! I said why? And punish her for her amazing discipline? I should pay her!  For that reason the night before I try to go to bed at 930 so I can be eager and fresh to give her what she needs. Do as my 430 alarm; (which is a harp sound amazingly soft and not traumatizing at that hour) chimes, I force myself to immediately get up and put on the clothes I laid out the night before. Because I only have less than 30 mins to cook a nutritious breakfast brush my teeth and get out the door for her 530 appointment. Some mornings it's tough but what she doesn't know, is she actually motivates me.  Such discipline, dedication should be rewarded

Amazing Poem by Rudyard Kipling

If you can keep your head when all about you       Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,   If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,     But make allowance for their doubting too;   If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,     Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,     And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;       If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;   If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster     And treat those two impostors just the same;   If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken     Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,     And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools: If you can make one heap of all your winnings     And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings     And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force y

Share, Care, Be There

Stop judging younger trainers by your level of experience One issue I see to often in this industry is trainers making fun of younger trainers for not knowing as much as them.  Lord knows it took me 12 years to learn the little bit that I know about this industry. I can't imagine what it must be like for these younger trainers coming into the industry. Their heads are spinning with all the information out there. It is difficult to say who is right and who is wrong. Blogs, websites, books, dvd's, seminars, etc.... Its almost like an information overload to some of them.   So how can we help? My belief is simple, SHARE,CARE, BE THERE. If you care about the industry, you would want it the thrive. So share your information with the younger trainers. Instead of picking on them for not knowing, you can take them under your wing and teach them. This will help you better understand the information and at the same time you will be helping out the industry because this kid will o

The Importance of Sleep

    So we live in a society of "Go, Go, Go", but what about the slow down, rest and recover? There is only so much we can do in one day. I know I can stand by that statement because I try and cram everything in one day. I would teach spin in Livingston, have clients in Westfield, then drive into Hoboken to train more clients. Oh, not to mention the fact I also do Bikram Yoga right in the middle of all that. I would get home around 9:30/10pm, just to pretty much do the same thing over the next day. Your body will only let you do this for so long. I started to burn out. I always denied the fact that I would never, but you start to actually feel it coming on. I thought 5/6 hours a night of sleep was ideal, but the amount of stress I put on my body, being up at early hours (5am), then training, workouts, etc takes a toll on you. I needed to slow down and recover. I changed my schedule around so it was more convenient and less of a run around, I get about 7-8 hours of sleep a nigh

What is "proper form" for exercises?

  What is "Proper Form"? I recently had someone comment on one of my youtube videos. He was complaining about how bad my form was for a certain exercise.  At first I was a little upset by this but then I watched the video and realized he was right. I didn't have "proper form".  This got me to thinking about exercises and how we always correct people on form. I also began to think, what is "proper from" anyway? Who are we to say that the way another person moves is right or wrong? How can we judge the mechanics of someone else? Everyone is different, so maybe what is right for one person is wrong for another.  I do believe that when someone is in pain and you see a bad movement pattern causing it, then you should try and correct it.  Also if someone does an exercise and they feel pain, then we should correct it.  I also feel that maybe what someone does could just be a variation of the workout. For example, I am sure the first person to do close