Setting SMART Goals

When working with new clients, I always stress the importance of setting realistic goals. Goals that are too lofty can ultimately lead to a feeling of failure if you can’t achieve them. Long term this can lead to a client losing motivation and becoming discouraged in their quest for fitness.

S – Specific

A SMART goal must be well-defined and focused, not vague or general. Setting a specific goal requires you to answer some, or all of the W questions including who, what, where, when, why, and which.

Example: A general goal would be “get in shape”, but a specific goal would be “go to the gym 3 days a week and workout for 1 hour”.

M – Measurable

Setting up a SMART goal requires that you give yourself some way of measuring your progress. If your goal is specific, it will also be measurable.

Example: In the specific goal “go to the gym 3 days a week and workout for 1 hour”, your measurable variable is built in. You can track your progress with the amount of times a week you are making it to the gym as well as with the amount of time you are spending working out.

A – Achievable

It’s important when setting goals, to make sure that you are challenging yourself, but beware of setting the bar too high. Failure to make sure your goals are achievable can lead to feelings of failure and may take your motivation away.

Example: Setting a goal to win a half marathon is pretty lofty, if not impossible, if you have never competed in one before, but setting a goal to complete a half marathon in a reasonable amount of time is a much more achievable goal for a beginner.

R – Realistic

Setting a realistic goal requires you to be honest with yourself about your discipline and expectations for yourself. Adding a phrase such as “I will try my hardest” makes it easier to give ourselves the wiggle room to mess up when we can’t be perfect.

Example: “I will do my best to limit my desserts to 3 days a week” is a much more realistic goal than “I will never eat a dessert again in my life”.

T – Time

Goals must have a time constraint on them. Failure to give yourself a timeline to follow will make it difficult to keep yourself motivated towards achieving your goals.

Example: “I will work out 3 days a week for one hour. I will do this for 2 months”

Remember these tips  in order to improve your chances of accomplishing your health and fitness goals. Get SMART today. 

Mastering the Basic Fitness Moves - Part Three - Rows

Hello all! It has been quite a while since the last post. Lifetime Fitness Solutions has been developing a new website and it has been taking all my time. Fear not however, I haven't forgot our recent post about the basic fitness moves. In part 3 we will discuss rows. First let me say that there many different types of rows that can be performed that target different areas of the back, posterior shoulder, traps, and rhomboids. In this post I will cover some of the more common variations to give you a foundation for this exercise.

Rows are an upper body exercise that work multiple muscles including the lats, rhomboids, traps, posterior deltoids, biceps, erector spinae, teres major, and infraspinatus. Depending on what version of rows you do you can target some of these more specifically. Rows are a vital movement to learn as they are the go-to exercise for building size and strength in the back muscles. In addition to building the back musculature, rows also help strengthen the back which can have a positive effect on other lifts such as the bench press, deadlifts, and cleans.

Picture courtesy of chunkfitness.com

Depending on your specific situation you may want to vary the type of rows you do. For example if you have a history of herniated disks or other low back conditions, bent over rows may not be appropriate for you due to the positioning of the exercise and the resultant stresses on the lumbar spine, but you can still perform cable rows as well as seated rows on machine to get a similar effect. Lets look at the different types of rows more in depth. 

Bent Over Barbell Rows

Start with your feet about hip width apart. Your butt should be back, and your back should be flat with the head and chest slightly up. The knees are bent slightly to assist a flat back posture. If you have tight hamstrings, attaining a fully flat back posture will be difficult. If you feel your back start to round, do not bend as deeply at the hips. You can utilize an overhand grip where the palms are facing back, or underhand grip where the palms face forward. Both grips are about shoulder width apart. It has long been believed that an underhand grip utilizes and works the biceps more, however the evidence based research does not seem to support this. A wider than shoulder width overhand grip involves overall back musculature while slightly emphasizing rear deltoid, infraspinatus and teres minor involvement.

A common theme among rows is that you should pull with your elbows, and not your hands. When pulling with the hands you will utilize too much bicep and end up in a more than normal elbow flexed position. By pulling with the elbows you ensure that the back muscles are the ones doing the majority of the work. Pull the bar up to the ribs and squeeze the contraction at the end range of motion. With bent-over rows be sure to maintain a good posture throughout the movement. If your back starts to round discontinue the exercise as you will increase your risk of a low back injury. 

One-Arm Rows
One-arm rows are performed one side at a time. These are a great tool to use for normalizing strength on one side if you notice a weakness. To start a one-arm row take a bent posture with the non-working hand resting on a bench or other firm object. I see people perform these with no  hand support and feel that this increases the pressure on the lumbar spine so I do not recommend doing them this way. As with a standing barbell row you want your back to be in a flat posture with the head/neck held in neutral or slightly upright. Your stance should be staggered slightly with the back leg being on the same side as the working hand. Knees should be slightly bent to help maintain a flat back posture. If this set up is still too stressful on your low back, you can try this alternate posture. 

Drive the weight up by focusing on pulling with the elbow, not the hand. When pulling with the elbow, the weight will end up on next to the lower part of your ribs. If you pull with the hand there is too much bicep incorporated and the weight will end up more towards your chest or shoulder. Once the upper arm is about parallel to the ground, give a squeeze of the shoulder blade to increase the contraction. DO NOT let the trunk rotate during this movement. It should maintain a neutral position throughout the exercise. 

Cable Rows
Cable rows are a good option for people with low back pain issues. Because you are standing there is less pressure on the lumbar spine, but you still get the benefit of core activation by having to keep yourself in a stable and upright stance. 

Cable rows can be performed in a countless number of ways with various attachments and grips to influence certain muscles. The pictured example for instance, a cable low row with a v-attachment, will focus more of the exercise on the middle trapezius and rhomboids. 

To perform a cable row in standing, place the feet about hip width apart. Bend the knees slightly and keep the head and chest up with the core pulled in. Again, as with all row movements, pull with the elbows vs. the hands and bring the attachment to the rib cage/stomach area. Squeeze the shoulder blades together at the end range of the movement. 

Machine Rows

Machine rows are another good exercise for people with back issues. Machine rows are done in sitting and the chest is usually supported by a pad. This feature will keep pressure off of the lumbar spine. It's important to note that while the seated variation of the row is good for people without low back pathology, its use among healthy adults should be limited to being a supplemental training exercise, and not one of the main exercises used. People without low back pathology should instead focus on performing the bent over versions with good form in order to improve the stresses on the body and increase the functionality of the movement. 

The pictured exercise is just one type of seated row machine, but many versions exist. The setups of each machine will be similar however and this tutorial should be used as a loose guide when setting up your machine. 

Seat yourself firmly on the machine with the height of the seat such that the handles of the machine are slightly below shoulder level. The chest pad should contact you mid sternum. Notice in the pictures you can utilize a close grip (Pic 1) or a wide grip (Pic 2). The close grip variation will stimulate the lower lats to a greater degree and utilizes more bicep where as the wide grip will incorporate more trapezius, rhomboid, and posterior shoulder activation. There is not a better or worse than variation, and I often advise client to switch up their grips to develop the entire back overall. Your feet should be placed firmly on the floor and you should maintain a fully upright position. While the seat pads are there for support, DO NOT simply let your body slump into them. Hold yourself as upright as you can throughout the movement. 

Just like with all of the row movements we have covered here, the movement will be done with a pulling of the elbows, not the hands, and again we want to squeeze the shoulder blades at the end range of the motion. With the close grip version, keep the elbows tight to your side, whereas with the wide version the elbows will be flared out, ideally being parallel with the floor and perpendicular to your body. 

Narrow Grip Variation

Wide Grip Variation

Lat Pulldown

Lat pulldowns are not a type of row per se, however since we covered most of the back muscles here I would be remiss if I didn't cover them. The lat pulldown is used to focus primarily on the latissimus dorsi, the muscle that gives the back a V-shape. Lat pulldowns can be performed on machines or, if you do not have one available, you can perform them as pictured using a bench, lat bar, and cable machine. 

Grasp the bar with a wider than shoulder width grip. Sit fully upright, feet firmly on the floor. As with the back row movements, you want to pull the bar with the elbows, not the hands. Pull the bar to the top of the chest and squeeze the shoulder blades down and in at the bottom. 

We have covered many varieties of row in this installment, however this is NOT a comprehensive guide. Row are extremly versatile and there are countless ways to modify them for specifics goals. If you are new to weight training, the variations covered here should be your primary focus until you can perform them with proper form and cadence. Remember that you will get waht you put in when it comes to weight training. Keep checking back for part 4 of this series where we will cover bench presses. - Aaron

Mastering the Basic Fitness Moves - Part Two - Lunges

In part two of Mastering the Basics we are going to discuss another great lower body exercise; lunges. Lunges can be varied in so many ways to target so many lower body areas that if you are not doing them in your workout, you are doing yourself a great disservice.

Lunges are a lower body exercise that primarily works the glutes, hamstrings, and quadriceps. As I said, there are a number of variations that can be performed and depending on the type performed these muscles will be worked to varying degrees and some secondary muscles including the hip adductors and abductors will contribute as stabilizers. Adding to their versatility, lunges can be performed with almost every piece of resistance equipment in the gym including dumbbells, barbells, elastic bands, and kettle bells.

When doing lunges for the first time with a novice client, I always start with static lunges.  I also do not use weight initially as lunges require good balance and performing them with weight before you can master the core movement pattern can lead to people flinging dumbbells around as they struggle to stay upright.

Lunges can be performed statically or dynamically (AKA walking). A static lunge is one that is performed by stepping and then returning back to the starting position after each rep. Static lunges can be done forwards, backwards, or laterally (sideways). A walking lunge is one in which the person, rather than stepping back to the original starting position, propels themselves in the desired direction. Walking lunges can also be performed forwards, backwards, and laterally.  

FORWARD LUNGES

If this is the first time you are performing a lunge feel free to use a chair or some other stable surface to place your hand on. This will allow you to maintain balance and safety and also allow you to focus on the core movement pattern itself. To perform a static lunge you will start with your feet together. Take a LARGE step forward with one leg placing it firmly onto the ground. Poor step length is a common area where people mess up. Oftentimes the step is too short causing the knee to travel over the toes and placing too much stress on the patella which can be painful and possibly cause injury if performed like this consistently.

With the foot planted firmly, bend the front knee to lower the body to the ground. The back leg can be bent as you lower to the ground, but I instruct my clients to keep it as straight as possible in order to get a stretch on the hip flexor muscle group. Both head and chest should be as upright as possible though the entire movement; DO NOT allow your trunk to lean forward. This is another common mistake. The descent of the lunge should be controlled, do not go down so fast or so far that the back knee strikes the ground. This is dangerous and can cause injury.

After you have lowered yourself until the front thigh is parallel with the ground, push forcefully off of the front leg to propel yourself backward to the starting position. You can repeat another rep with the same leg, or you can alternate legs. I choose to have my clients alternate when performing the movement as it gives each leg a mini rest before it has to perform the next rep and allows more quality movements to be performed.  

BACKWARD LUNGES

A backward lunge, in my opinion, is much easier to perform statically versus its forward counterpart.  The upper body mechanics of the backward lunge remain the same, keeping the head and chest upright without leaning forward at the waist. Take a LARGE step backwards, large enough to ensure that the front knee remains behind the toes. In a backwards lunge as you step back, only the toes will make contact with the ground, after they do you will want to bend the front knee, again until the thigh is parallel with the ground. Once the front thigh reaches parallel you will use the front leg to force yourself forward and up to the starting position. Again you can perform one leg at a time, or alternate.

LATERAL LUNGES

Lateral lunges are mechanically different from both the forward and backward variations. You still want to keep the head and chest as upright as you can, but there will be some bend at the waist as this will be needed to keep weight balanced and perform the movement correctly.  Starting with the feet together you will begin with a LARGE side step landing with the foot placed firmly on the floor (Some people feel that you should turn the front foot out slightly as you step, however I feel that it is more effective for the intended targeted muscles to leave the from toes facing forwards). Once stable you are going to bend the forward knee and push your butt back, it will somewhat resemble a hybrid between a lunge and a squat, again keep the knee behind the toes on the working side. Once you have bent the knee so that the working side thigh is parallel to the ground, push off forcefully with the working side leg to return back to the starting position. As with the other two variations, you may do all on one leg first or alternate.

WALKING LUNGES

Walking lunges, no matter what direction they are performed in, are mechanically the same to begin with as their static counterparts. They only differ in that instead of returning to the starting position after each rep, you will propel yourself in the desired direction prior to the next rep. It is interesting to note that although forward lunges are more difficult statically, backward lunges are more difficult dynamically. Lateral lunges become increasingly difficult when performing the walking variation. When doing walking lunges you may need to take what I call a stopping step in between each rep, meaning that when you return to upright position you will place both feet on the floor to maintain balance. Once your balance in improved you can opt to perform one rep progressing directly into the next one without a stop step at full upright.

Lunges are so versatile and can be performed in so many different ways it would be impossible to write a fully comprehensive manual, but I did try to touch on the three most common variations. Lunges are a great way to build the quads and buttock muscles and to give the lower body a nice lean look. They also are effective at helping to normalize strength between legs if you have a noticeably weak side. Start easy with lunges and work your way up. Also be honest about whether or not you are ready to try more complex or weighted versions. Do not try to progress until you have mastered the basic movement pattern. Until next time. - Aaron

Mastering the Basic Fitness Moves - Part One - Squats

When I begin training a new client, one of the first things I teach them is how to perform the basic movements of exercise with safe and effective technique. These movements are the basis of most exercises in the gym and once mastered a client can be progressed to more complex and strenuous exercises that will help them continue to progress with minimal risk of injuring themselves. 

In this series of posts I will introduce what I believe to be 6 of the most basic and important exercises to master and build your weight training program around. Squats, Lunges, Deadlifts, Bench Presses, Rows, and Planks. We will discuss what muscles these movements work, proper technique of each, and how to modify them if needed.  

Squats

We will begin with squats because as many seasoned weightlifters will tell you, the squat is the "king of exercises". Squats are an almost complete body exercise that works the gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings, abdomen, back, leg adductors and abductors. 

Picture courtesy of nobrainermuscle.com

Some may say that squats can be bad for your back or knees, but in my experience I find that if performed correctly, squats can be an effective strengthener of these areas and actually be used as a tool to limit injury to these areas. The key however is to make sure you are performing squats correctly. All too often I see people, mostly men, performing squats in the gym with improper technique and way too much weight, in which case you will greatly increase your risk of knee, hip, and back injuries.

When teaching a client squats for the first time, I often use the Smith machine. A Smith machine is a piece of equipment at the gym that consists of a barbell that travels on a fixed path that will only allow vertical movements. My rationale for using this equipment to begin with is simple: a free weight barbell squat requires a lot of stabilization from the body and many new, and even some experienced exercisers, are not sufficiently strong or balanced to begin this way. By using the smith machine I limit the extraneous stabilization needs of the squat which will allow my client to focus on the core movement pattern and utilize proper form. 

Picture courtesy of beaucoupfit.com

Once a client is able to perform the primary movement consistently with proper form, only then do I move them to a free weight version of the exercise. It is important to note that some people are able to perform consistent safe form with only a minimal amount of time on the smith machine, others, may require more time performing this variation. All that matters before progressing is that proper form is achieved. Do not rush into a free weight version of squats before you are ready as the risk of injury will be greatly increased.

Once the movement pattern has been mastered and you are ready to begin free weight squats you will want to do so inside of a weight rack. Weight racks vary greatly (see examples below), but the main purpose of them is to allow you to step under the barbell, set your feet and body safely, accept the weight onto your body, back away from the rack, and then perform the squat. When you are finished you step forward to the rack and set the weight back down safely. 

  

Before performing free weight squats there are a few safety concerns we need to address. If it is your first time performing a free weight squat I urge you to have a qualified professional with you. They can ensure proper form, help spot you if things get out of control, and give you instruction on how to improve. Also when performing a free weight squat for the first time keep your weights low and focus on your form. Only progress your weight when you can do the movement with perfect form and light weight.

You are now ready to squat! Step under the weight and place it across the top portion of your back, NEVER across the neck. Some people find it uncomfortable to have a bar sitting across their back. Many gyms provide padding that you can put on the bar for comfort. Others opt for just a towel rolled around the bar. Whatever you choose, if anything, be aware that it can give the bar a slight unbalanced feeling and this will affect your lift. Place your hands wider than the width of your shoulders and grip the bar firmly. With the weight properly seated on your upper back/shoulders and a tight grip, push upwards to lift the weight off the rack. Be sure to keep your core contracted. To do this you want to suck your stomach in as though you are trying to pull your bellybutton in towards your spine. This will help stabilize your back and reduce risk of injury.

Back away from the rack just enough to allow you to descend unobstructed. Place you feet shoulder width apart and slightly toed outwards to about 45 degrees. When you descend into a squat you want to push your butt backwards as though you are trying to sit in a chair that is not there. You never want to go straight down as this will cause too much forward lean and stress on the back. Keep your head and torso upright, make sure your weight is focused into your heels, and that your knees sit equal to or just behind your toes. They should never travel forward of the toes as this can cause knee pain and injury. Be sure to breathe in as you descend into the squat.  

The ideal squat should go low enough that your thighs reach parallel with the floor meaning your butt will be just below parallel. There are many other variations that call for deeper squatting technique but these should be reserved only for experienced lifters who know how to perform them safely. Most people will be able to descend to parallel, however if you have a history of knee problems, or feel that you cannot get to parallel safely, go to just above parallel. 

Once you reach parallel position, or just above, begin to stand immediately as you exhale through pursed lips. DO NOT sit in the bottom position, nor should you bounce the weight at the bottom. When standing you want to drive the weight upwards, with most of the pressure through your heels. As you ascend you want to push your hips forward and back under you to attain a fully upright position. DO NOT lock out your knees at the top. Once at the top check that you contract your core again before beginning the next rep.  

Squats are an important move to master and the form is a basis of many other variation of the exercise that will allow you to work more specific parts of the body. Spend the time and effort in the gym to master them and you won’t be sorry. Stay tuned for the next exercise we will explore in this series: LUNGES. Until next time – Aaron

**Disclaimer: This guide is not meant to be a comprehensive review of squatting, nor is it meant to substitute for the real life guidance of a qualified personal trainer. It is for educational purposes only.  People vary greatly and so do their needs. There may be extenuating circumstances of your health that have not been accounted for in this article and only a qualified trainer can assist you with this in a one-on-one situation. Please exercise caution and safety and consult with your physician before undertaking any type of weight training regimen**