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BOSU® Balance Trainer Warm-Ups

By adding a new piece of equipment like the BOSU Balance Trainer to your warm-up, you can turn an old warm-up into a fresh challenge for participants. You also expose students to equipment they might not have used before, which helps promote other classes on your schedule that utilize the same tool.

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Training Focus: Maximize Muscle Activation for Strength Gains

Do slight changes in body position affect muscle activation during strength exercises? The only way to truly know which muscles are used during an exercise is to measure their electrical activity with an electromyogram (EMG), the skeletal muscle equivalent of an electrocardiogram for your heart. Well, guess what? Scientists have done just that. Let’s take a look at how different body positions affect muscle activity during some common weight training exercises.

Leg Extensions

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Sample Class: Pilates 50/50

Pilates 50/50 is a combination class that fuses lower-body standing moves with mat exercises for a balanced mind-body experience that emphasizes Pilates principles. By moving Pilates into a vertical position, you bring a more functional experience to participants while continuing to offer the key elements of core control and optimal spinal alignment. The standing work is also a great way to warm the entire body for more effective spinal movement during the mat exercises.

Pilates 50/50 Details [subhead]

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The Philippine Perspective

2009 will see a big boom for the Philippine fitness industry, says Cynthia L. Carrion, personal trainer to the country’s president, and undersecretary for the sports and wellness industry in the Philippine Department of Tourism. Why?

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Make the Most Out of a Limited Group Exercise Budget

In the January 2009 issue, this column uncovered ways for you to research new programs and products and use the information to make your C.A.S.E. (Consider, Analyze, Strategize and Evaluate) for adding a session or piece of equipment to your group exercise offerings. Now that you’ve built a case that will convince the “big boss” to say yes to your idea, it’s time to check that you understand the basics of budgeting, so that you can be sure the money is available.

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Feedback From the Field: Proper Pilates Regression

In a previous issue of Inner IDEA Body-Mind-Spirit Review, we asked: How do you suggest a regression to a Pilates student who is performing beyond her ability? “When I see that my classes and/or clients are working too hard and losing the proper form then I know it is time for a change.

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Navigating Natural Food Markets

Natural and organic food markets have sprouted up everywhere, offering shoppers an alternative to conventional supermarkets. Health-conscious consumers now have a nearby source for “natural” foods, such as organic produce and other foods that are free of antibiotics, preservatives, growth hormones and trans fats.

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Dealing with Body-Conscious Clients

Take a generally anxious person and raise him/her in a complicated family and confidence-quashing peer/school environment. Immerse her in a media-driven, perfectionist and competitive culture. Ten years later …

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Double the Challenge With Partner Yoga

Partner yoga offers an innovative twist on classic yoga postures. Adding one or two partner poses into your regular yoga classes or adding a full partner class to your schedule gives your students an invigorating challenge.

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Electric Exercises

Washington Athletic Club in Seattle offers members a triple threat with Buff, Bike & Balance. This “express workout” combines 4-minute intervals of cycling, weights and core balance practice “for an intense fat-burning, cardio and sculpting workout.” The Jewish Community Center of San Francisco (JCCSF) gives participants a range of options with its Dance Potluck. Each…

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Sample Class:Roll With It, Baby!

Classes that use the foam roller have evolved over the past few years. With a little creativity, this piece of equipment—which comes in several varieties, from cylindrical to flat-bottomed—offers functional programming opportunities. Workout possibilities include self myofascial release, stretching, balance work, strengthening, posture improvement and cardiovascular exercise. The following drill-based workout focuses on expanding the…

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Roasted Carrot Soup

Teamed with a healthy sandwich or salad, this colorful soup can be a light dinner on a stormy winter night—and the kids won’t notice the veggies under the sweetened topping! Roasting the carrots brings out their natural sugars and enhances the flavor of this root vegetable. If the dollop of crème fraîche topping is too…

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recipe rescuers

How often have you slaved over a recipe, only to emerge with a product that does not meet up to your expectations and effort? Whether your concoction is too salty, too sweet or too bland, there are some things you can do to fix the disaster. All you need is a little imagination and a few seasonings!
Sickeningly Sweet? Cut down on the cloying flavor by mixing in a little vinegar, lemon juice or salt.

Too Tart? Add a dash of sugar, molasses or honey to any mouth-puckering mix.

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Tricks of the Trade

At Method Fitness we find that boot camp classes are a great way to bring in clients who otherwise might be turned off by the expense of one-on-one personal training. In some cases, these same people decide that personal training is a worthy investment, and they become regular clients while still attending the boot camps…

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Vigorous Exercise Helps Older Adults Avoid Disability

Need more kindling to help keep your older clients’ passions for fitness burning bright? Researchers have recently discovered what many professionals already knew: exercise helps older adults avoid disability. The Stanford University Department of Medicine study was published in the American Journal of Public Health (July 2008; 98 [7], 1294–99), and examined 805 adults aged…

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