So, here’s the quick background on dad, he’s 68, newly retired and to my knowledge never actually worked out. Sure, he’s done yard work, construction, moved furniture, wall papered, painted, laid tile, I mean just about everything and done it well, but has never been inclined to actually strength train.
I really impressed that at 68 he has the awareness that his strength and muscle mass are on the decline and that he’s displaying the open mindedness to take some direction ( dad, I know you think you know everything )
Anyway in this first installment I wanted to impress upon him the importance of the internalization of movement by incorporating simple postures to immediately strengthen and lengthen. Also of importance is to incorporate proper technique early to decrease the risk of injury.
Dad, I will be checking your progress-there will be a test
I was lucky enough to spend a full week at a yoga retreat in costa rica, it was beautiful, ate vegetarian, did yoga each day, took surfing lessons and was in bed by 9:30 every night. Know this was certainly the way to live! “When I get back I’m gonna make some changes” I thought, but reality, patterns and ingrained behaviors smacked me in the face like the cold wind at Newark airport.
I’ve been feeling depressed, stuck in the same old routine, frustrated and thinking that I’m unable to change.
While in costa rica there was ample opportunity to meditate and relax and at the beginning of each day , Mary, one of the owners would haphazardly toss a deck of cards on the table face down. They were called the ‘power deck’ and had little messages, inspirations, meditations on them that I would try to keep with me throughout the day. I wrote one down and it certainly applies. One morning I chose COURAGE, here is what it said:
Action takes courage, we often feel like fish out of water, seperate and different from the world around us. Fish out of water can learn to swim in a new air of consciousness with a new purpose in life. Perhaps it is identification with objects and clinging to addictions that keeps you feeling seperate and keeps you from finding the source of your power: not only dependence on drugs, sex or alcohol, but also addictions like fear of failure, the need for approval, or fear of desertion. Discover your own power and meaning by having the courage to give up your addictions, the live your power with courage.
My business Fixed gear Fitness - NYC Personal trainer was born of my love for my fixed wheel track bike. Eleven years ago when I made a decision to change how I was living my life I bought a bike as part of my transformation and began to ride 7 days a week in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park where I was living at the time. It was slow going at first, I was in terrible shape, but soon progressed to about a 20 mile per ride a day.
Some time after this I began wanting to weight train which was something I had always wanted to do but just couldn’t. I found an awesome bare bones gym in Brooklyn called the 5th ave. gym - blood and guts. It was amazing. I saw the same guys every day at the same time, it was part of the structure that I needed and was a great atmosphere to get a great work out.
I’m recalling these memories now because I’ve found myself like a hamster on a wheel in a way too hot gym, with with terrible pop music (not where I train, an outside facility, of course) pumping away on a crosstrainer for 20 minutes and the convincing myself that, that’s good enough.
I had enough, grabbed my bike and got out and rode, in traffic, perdestrians, potholes, all of it, like I like it. F..k the bike paths, it puts my mind to sleep. I love the challenge of having swerve to avoid, stop, start, uphill into the wind and controlling the fixed wheel back down. After this I hit Tompkins Square park in the E Village near where I live for a push up, dip, pull up work out of about 25 minutes. I couldn’t ask for more. I’m not saying this is for every body and if it were I’d be out of business, but this weather is the best time to get out and challenge yourself, feel the cold, the wind, everything, challenge yourself and feel alive.
I chose that title because over the last couple of months I’ve been feeling that using the word core is far too limiting to what I’m looking for my clients to possess, which is a mastery of their movements under duress. Of the many definitions of the word chi, I find that defining it as a general term for ‘a vital energy that exists everywhere’ is appropriate enough for a simple NYC personal trainer such as myself.
The word core has come to mean your trunk, abs, lower back and glutes, but I’ve noticed that if my clients continually lock their knees or shrug their shoulders while training it is near impossible to engage these ares effectively to gain strength and balance. For me to use the word core is selling my clients short of valuable information, but it’s also much harder for me to teach. One of the best ways for me to teach this harnessing technique is through a simple hip thrust forward during standing exercises. One must be relaxed at the joints in order to allow your energy to flow effectively. Some might call the method I use cheating or using momentum, but it’s much more. It’s learning to balance the intense energy required during exercise with a relaxed state in order to complete the task at hand. When I train myself and my clients I train their whole bodies, not just their chest or biceps. I’m going to include a video for this technique within the next few weeks. Until then TRAIN HARD, relax, NAMASTE!!!!!!
One of my friends always says, “I can’t think my way into right acting, I have to act my way into right thinking”. This statement pertains to my whole life, not just working out. I’ve strayed from my personal spiritual path as of late which causes turmoil in all areas, just like a rock being thrown into a calm lake, those rings of discourse flow outward. What do I mean by my spiritual path? Real simple, doing the right things for the right reason, paying attention to an uneasiness in my gut when I make certain decisions, paying my bills on time is part of my individual spiritual practice.
So, what does this have to do with working out and my job as a trainer? Everything. When I go to these places of confusion and inner turmoil my ability to help others ceases, my own isolation draws me away from people and in turn away from myself. I don’t want to continue to grow as a trainer because I begin to question the ability of others to teach me anything (you can’t graft new ideas on to a closed mind). So, today I made a decision to start my day right, I went to the gym, where the attention to my physical self sets me on the right path to tend to my emotional and spiritual one. I can begin to find gratitude in my ability to show up and for all the things that I have and for the things I’m capable of achieving. I’m not speaking of monetary or career things, although those things are nice, they don’t give me peace and serenity which is most important to me.
this is all i can right today as there’s certainly no little bow to tie this altogether as the process is on-going and lifelong. Hal Miller - NYC Personal Trainer