BY MARTY MILLER, ATC, DHSC, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, MASTER INSTRUCTOR The use of motorized treadmills has become commonplace since their origination in the early 1950s. Originally designed to diagnose heart and lung disease, treadmills quickly became a standard in fitness…
By JOSH GONZALEZ When it comes to worldwide popularity soccer is at the top of the fan and participant lists. Soccer is a sport that requires all the physical attributes; strength, speed, endurance, agility and mental fortitude. Fitness training for…
By Wayne David Clark As fitness professionals we sometimes tend to neglect our own bodies in favour of helping others achieve their goals. We become so focussed on the needs of others, that our own needs tend to be…
By MARTY MILLER, ATC, DHSC, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, MASTER INSTRUCTOR Human movement is an amazing orchestra of muscle contractions controlled by the central nervous system to create joint actions to accomplish specific tasks. The motor tasks can be as simple…
RICK RICHEY, MS. When I was young and thought about flexibility, it would conjure up images in my mind of Jean-Claude Van Damme doing center splits between two chairs. I was obsessed with that, so I practiced that version of…
By GEOFF LECOVIN Moderately elevating a client’s heart rate during physical activity is a goal of most exercise programs, but what about when a client has AFib? Here’s some information on what you should know. WHAT IS ATRIAL FIBRILLATION…
By: Brian Sutton, MS, MA, PES, CES, NASM CPT Introduction Over the last 10-plus years, there probably has not been a supplement more popular or one researched more often than creatine monohydrate. Creatine has found its place among bodybuilders, fitness…
By John Berardi, Ph.D. If you’re new to health, fitness, or nutrition coaching you’ve probably worried — at least a little — about how you’re going to get clients. Especially in this age of paid search, Facebook ads, and more…
I’m just waiting for the perfect time. By Krista Scott-Dixon any of us wait for the “perfect time” with our health, nutrition, and fitness. But this all-or-nothing thinking — as in, “If I don’t do this perfectly then it’s awful!”…
By STACEY PENNEY, MS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, FNS Foam rolling is a self-myofascial release (SMR) stretching technique that has been embraced throughout the fitness industry. This effective and simple to do technique delivers positive, feel-good results. Foam rollers have become…
By JOSH ELSESSER Why do you do what you do? Who are you trying to help? What specifically are you going to do to help them? These are some of the questions that you’ll need to answer to have a clear…
By Ken Miller MS, NASM MASTER INSTRUCTOR, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, GFS It’s time to take a turn for the better with rotational training plans. These 3 steps will show you how to apply this directional change with all of your clients…
By INGRID OWEN As fitness professionals, we know that members join our facilities for various reasons, with the primary reason to improve their fitness and health. Clearly, the simplicity of that motivation does not mean it’s easy to meet or exceed…
BY KYLE STULL Odds are high that you’ll have a training client with an artificial hip at some point in your career. Having a client with hip replacements may seem like a daunting prospect, but in most cases the new…
By Lindsay Kellnermbg Sr. Wellness & Beauty Editor It’s officially August and high time for soaking up the best of what summer has to offer, including vacation, beach trips, and lazy summer days. The last thing many of us want…
By JOSH ELSESSER As a personal trainer or fitness business owner, the need to continually bring in new clients or members is a constant. Ask any business coach, and you will hear a number of tried-and-true methods: “Focus on branding.”…
By JEROD LANGNESS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, WLS, MASTER TRAINER As fitness professionals, it is easy to keep our focus on the great things that occur from having a healthy and active lifestyle. We know so much about the benefits of…
By Kyle Stull Everyone is quick to talk about “tightness.” The calves are tight; the hip flexors are tight; the low-back is tight; the shoulders and the neck are tight. It’s true that many people are tight and restricted, but…
By Amanda Vogel MA Fitness instructors and trainers are always looking for new exercise ideas to bring to their fitness classes, and there have never been more options at our fingertips, thanks to social media. Picking up new ideas is…
BY Andrew Mills For many of us, working with individuals with tight/overactive hip flexors is a common occurrence. Learning to properly assess and address overactive hip flexors is a powerful skill in helping today’s client move more efficiently. Spending long…
By Fabio Comana High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is all the rage in the fitness world. No doubt you’ve seen various benefits touted just about everywhere, but what is the actual science behind this training design? Would a high-volume interval training…
By STACEY PENNEY, MS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, FNS Age is more than a number- it’s an opportunity to serve a growing population. Every day we are bombarded with statistics on seniors and baby boomers, and the customer potential they can…
By KATHY ZETTERBERG Static stretching is a highly debated and controversial topic within the fitness and sports performance communities and is focused around the concept that sustained static stretching could impair subsequent performance (Rossi et al. 2010; Shrier 2004; Behm…
By TATUM REBELLE Maintaining a strong pelvic floor is vital during pregnancy, yet it remains a commonly overlooked and misunderstood component of most pre- and postnatal training programs. (It’s also something many of us shy away from talking about.) A strong…
BY NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SPORTS SCIENCE Use these tools to give firefighters a training edge. “Strength and endurance must go hand-in-hand on the fire ground,” says Kenneth Shuttleworth, a 24-year firefighter, and seven-year NASM-CPT, CES, PES, FNS. Here, his advice…
By PRENTISS RHODES If you or any of your clients have chosen martial arts training as your hobby- congratulations! This is a very rewarding path, both physically and mentally. It gives you all the components of fitness wrapped up into an…
By TYLER READ Video marketing is kind of a big deal right now. In fact, there has been a big hype around it for the last couple of years and everybody’s trying to get in on it. From thirteen-year-olds to start-ups…
BY BRIAN SUTTON, MA, MS, CSCS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES Muscles don’t work alone to create movement. They work together in synergies to create coordinated movements. Here we’ll identify the four muscle subsystems, discover how these synergies work together, and how…
By Kyle Stull Most clients, and fitness professionals alike, use the term “tight” to indicate that a muscle or other form of contractile tissue is shorter than it should be. After being in the fitness industry for more than 15…
By Josh Gonzalez On the ropes about battle ropes? See how to incorporate battle ropes into your personal training programs using the NASM OPT model. Fitness has definitely changed over recent years, becoming smarter with the application of human movement…
By Kyle Stull If you were to research IT band problems every day for the next year, there is a good chance you will accumulate over 365 different articles on causes, approaches to treatment, and quick fixes. Many of these articles would…
By Dr David Tiberio Category: Applied Functional Science Share As the gait cycle progresses, the lead leg becomes the trail leg. But there may be an advantage to consider what is happening to the trail leg at the same time…
Ahhhh…. The trials and tribulations of back pain – perhaps the most elusive member of the “aches and pains” family. How it feels and where it comes from can vary drastically from person to person. It can be attributed to…
By MICHAEL YAREMKO Minimize Injury Potential – Maximize Performance! When someone says that you have potential, they are really saying, “You could be great, but you aren’t right now.” Athletes typically don’t ever want to hear these words, especially goalies, but it…
Think you need a full weight rack for a serious arm day? Not so fast. There are lots of bicep exercises you can master using just your bodyweight and your TRX Suspension Trainer. Below, we’ve outlined five moves to help…
By MICHAEL YAREMKO Avoiding non-contact injuries with corrective exercise can help keep your hockey team on the ice and in the game. Anytime I mention that I am a hockey player, the first question I get is, “How come you…
By Kyle Stull You’ve probably heard the term biceps tendonitis as gym members highlight an ache or pain at the front of their shoulder. But what is biceps tendonitis and what can be done to avoid it? WHAT IS BICEPS…
February 06, 2018 by Dr. David Tiberio Category: Applied Functional Science Shoulder joint motion (glenohumeral articulation) occurs when there is relative movement between the head of the humerus and the glenoid fossa of the scapula. Like all joints, real motion…
By Fabio Comana The Nordic combined, a combination of cross-country skiing and jumping was one of the original five sports at the first-ever Winter Olympics held in France in 1924. To this day, endurance sports like the biathlon, cross-country skiing…
By Nino MAGADDINO With increasing healthcare costs for businesses across the United States, the need for fitness and wellness professionals continues to grow. Fortunately, many businesses have decided to approve corporate fitness and wellness programs to lower healthcare premiums, reduce worksite…
By BRIAN SUTTON, MA, MS, CSCS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES Hockey is arguably the quintessential competitive sport of the cold weather season. Here we’ll discuss the unique demands of ice hockey and how sports performance professionals can safely and effectively implement conditioning…
By BRIAN SUTTON, MA, MS, CSCS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES · Olympic lifts and their variations have long been used as a strengthening technique to enhance sports performance. Olympic lifts and their variations have long been used as a strengthening technique…
By STACEY PENNEY, MS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES, FNS Foam rolling is a self-myofascial release (SMR) stretching technique that has been embraced throughout the fitness industry. This effective and simple to do technique delivers positive, feel good results. Foam rollers have…
By Kyle Stull With weight loss being one of the common goals for clients, will recommending a daily visit to the scale improve their results? See what this study found. Journal Article: Steinberg, D.M., Bennett, G.G., Askew, S., & Tate,…
BY TONY AMBLER-WRIGHT January is a good time to check in with clients and find out if they identify more with Mr. Heat Miser or Mr. Snow Miser. Those who “never want to know a day that’s over 40 degrees”…
By SCOTT KEPPEL Here we go, again. “It’s a new year and this is my year! I know I said that last year, and years in the past, but this time I mean it. No more yo-yo dieting, no more…
By CHRIS ECKLUND, MA, NASM-PES, CSCS, USAW, TP A high school athlete walks through our doors and we can see their strength, stability and biomechanical control deficits from their gait pattern. We’ve also had collegiate and professional athletes come to…
By John Berardi, Ph.D. It’s a hot debate: Can personal trainers, health coaches, and other non-RD professionals give nutrition advice to their clients? You’ll be surprised (and relieved) to hear: Yes, to a degree. Here’s exactly what you’re allowed to…
By Kyle Stull Foot pain can be one of the most debilitating types of pain and discomfort for both the average individual and the athlete alike. To put it simply, when your feet hurt, everything hurts. The foot is essentially the…
By Fabio Comana Drinking a protein shake after resistance-training is a popular nutritional strategy adopted by many fitness enthusiasts and athletes to boost muscle protein synthesis (MPS), but does evidence support this practice, and if so, then what type of…
By NASM We know that weight loss or body fat reduction is largely based on a numbers game. And “working out” is a way of controlling the numbers (less calories in, more calories out and weight loss change can be…
By Fabio Comana Neuroplasticity was a relatively unknown term until the 1970s when scientists began accepting the notion that our brain is a not a physiologically static organ, becoming fixed shortly after birth with approximately 100 billion neurons (nerve cells)…
By Joshua Stone: Injuries in golf occur as they do during participation in any athletic orientated activity. Research indicates injuries in golf relate to functions of age, skill level, and frequency of play. According to Gosheger et al., over 80%…
By Chris Korfist Growing up in the ’70s and ’80s, a big part of my week was getting up early on Saturday morning to watch cartoons. One of my favourites was “Super Friends” (my second favourite was “Land of the…
By THOMAS F. WEST, PHD, LAT, ATC Our upper extremity is designed around our hands, our primary tool for manipulating objects in our environment. To this end, the shoulder complex provides the upper extremity with a wide range of motion,…
by Kyle Stull Personal trainers have the difficult task of not only managing themselves but also the hundreds of clients they will see throughout their careers. This includes managing their workouts, re-assessments, and their emotions – yes, their emotions. Emotional…
By RICH FAHMY, MS, NASM-CPT, CES, PES Cueing is a vital skill that every fitness professional should master. It is essential for coaching proper technique and it creates a connection between you and your client, conveying how in-tune you are with…
By Kyle Stull Wrist injuries are very common. This is especially true for those on the ice and snow, and also in wheeled sports and activities such as skating and skateboarding in more recent years. In fact, wrist injuries are…
By Fabio Comana Despite growing popularity and adoption of programs incorporating heart rate (HR) zone methodology, the fitness industry in general appears to lack a solid understanding of the scientific facts and limitations to this programming concept. The goal therefore…