Personal Training: Program Design Articles

Instead of visiting the gym alone, Joe Duffy and his wife exercise twice a week with a group of seven to nine people and a personal trainer. Though it sounds like an oxymoron — personal training in a group? — it is a growing trend at large health clubs and small gyms. A survey by the IDEA Health and Fitness Association, an organization for fitness professionals, showed that 71 percent ...

I advise every client to exercise in some form most days of the week. Diabetes and obesity are prevalent in this country in epidemic proportions because of lack of exercise. Additionally, most clients seem to carry high stress levels every day, indicating the need for daily exercise. I urge clients to get in a minimum of 30 minutes daily, preferably 45 minutes or more, of cardiovascula...

When Indiana University (IU) lecturer Carol Kennedy-Armbruster, MS, asked her personal training client Martin Siegel to speak during her “Methods of Personal Fitness Instruction” course, she thought it would be a great way to inform her students about special populations. At 60, Siegel was overweight, had prediabetes and suffered from hypertension and high cholesterol. But when Sie...

Which is better for reducing fat: long bouts of exercise, or breaking physical activity into smaller sessions with an added rest period? According to a stud in the Journal of Applied Physiology (2007; 102, 2158–64), taking a break in the middle of a workout may metabolize more fat than exercising without stopping. Seven healthy men (average age 25) pa...

Like many 13-year-olds, Adam Hillen likes sports. As a seventh grader in Mason, Ohio, he plays on his junior high school's football and wrestling teams. But his father became concerned when Adam began working out with his friends. “He would go to the weight room with a bunch of kids, and I just thought that invited injury,” Doug Hillen says. So he took Adam to meet D...

SAN DIEGO-Personal training still is the most successful program for retaining newcomers, according to a survey by IDEA Health & Fitness Association.The survey showed a growing trend toward putting people first before choosing the mode of exercise, which is reinforced by the variety of programs now available to meet a wide range of consumer needs regardless of age or physical condition, say...

&The Press-Enterprise Brenda Maston knocked herself out sculpting her butt, abs and thighs after she signed on several months ago with a personal trainer. "She put me on a diet and targeted trouble spots between my waist and knees," says Maston. "The results were absolutely amazing." Just one thing was missing: her instructor, Angie Lustrick. ...

With childhood obesity on the rise, personal training and group classes for kids are expanding. Good. But think first.The international IDEA Health & Fitness Association offers suggestions parents should ask prospective personal trainers before hiring. A ''yes'' answer is what you're looking for:• Is the trainer certified...

Diving headfirst into your fitness resolutions for the year, you might have told your friends you really just want to improve your overall health.But let's be honest. Women want a tight rear and lean, muscular legs.Men want a barrel chest and arms like a rolled roast.Both men and women want six-pack abs.We've put together a few ways to attack those areas - chest, ar...

Older-adult fitness is booming. Once considered a specialty niche, older adults are entering fitness facilities in throngs, looking to regain function, prevent injury and improve quality of life. The fitness industry has also begun to widen its gaze to include persons living in active-retirement communities or assisted-living facilities. Professionals interested in ...