Alexandra Williams, MA
Alexandra Williams, MA
Article Archive
From small studios to nationwide club chains, fitness companies are finding ways to help clients get better at navigating their nutritional challenges. They’re doing things like
building smoothie bars,
convening healthy supper clubs with candlelight dinners,
bringing in chefs to provide cooking demonstrations, and
offering seminars with registered dietitians.
They are hard-working professionals who care deeply about the fitness industry, exemplifying the values and attributes that make it so rewarding for all of us: professionalism,
education, balance, health, social interaction, fun.
Many fitness professionals owe their careers to a desire to help a family member recover from a debilitating disease or injury. Others were determined to share the joy of movement. Some simply stepped forward when a leader was needed, enjoyed it, and decided to pursue further training and education.
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In setting after setting, from Europe to Southern California, from online videos to on-campus fitness rooms, in adversity and in action, the finalists for the 2017 IDEA World Fitness Awards exemplify all the diversity and excellence that exist in the world of fitness and health. Join us in recognizing the achievements of these nine personal trainers, fitness instructors and program directors.
2017 IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year
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Fitness professionals like their equipment—from "tried-and-true" to "oh, so new." And equipment companies like to fill convention halls with fresh gear to help trainers and clients hit their goals. Of course, fitness pros also enjoy new gadgets for the pure thrill of them—and will sometimes go for equipment that targets a fun goal over a hypertrophy goal, for example.
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Have you ever counted the numerous brands and flavors of protein bars in well–stocked grocery store aisles? Probably not, as there are so many, and it would take a while. How times have changed! In the late 1980s, when a number of aerobic champions were asked what snacks they ate on competition days, almost all of them named the only protein bar then in existence. Now the rows next to all those protein bars are filled with other healthy foods that are also easy to toss in a gym bag and eat on the go.
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Have you tried chips made from cricket flour yet? Yes, those crickets. Insects. Perhaps you’ve sipped a smoothie made with macadamia milk or eaten Grainful® oatmeal-based jambalaya at dinner. Was your postworkout snack maple-flavored seaweed, or did you reach for Tiger Nuts (which aren’t actually nuts at all, but a tuber)?
These and many other foods are finding their way into our shopping carts and tummies. We are spending billions of dollars on so-called “out-there” foods as we expand our horizons—and palates—with an eye to improving our health.
You've been hearing a lot about podcasts lately, but maybe you're not sure what they're all about. Should you start one? If yes, where do you begin? Read on for a look at podcasts, including advice, practical tips and experiences from podcast veterans.
What Is a Podcast?
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Whether you were around for the first generation of "aerobic apparel" or you've just entered the fitness industry, now is the perfect time to get excited about the evolution in fitness apparel. Read on to discover 16 trends for 2016 in men's and women's gear.
1. Yogawear
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Whether they’re leading one client or 3,000 students at a time, fitness professionals give their all every single day, keeping in mind how important it is to reach, inspire, and gain the respect, attention and, above all, consistent attendance of their students. These pros know how to look at fitness and a fit lifestyle from the client’s point of view, and can program, train and teach accordingly.
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Whether they’re operating in the limelight or behind the scenes, fitness professionals share a similar goal—to help people get healthier and more fit. Some professionals design programs, some manage them, some implement them—and some do all three. The nine 2016 IDEA World Fitness Award finalists have hundreds of years’ experience among them, which translates into millions of lives changed by their deeds and efforts. In serving diverse clients—from moms to military members, from disease survivors to sedentary beginners—these professionals have made fitness their mission.
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Our grandmothers would be so proud. We are circling back to eating foods similar to the ones they grew and prepared themselves. Not only are we eating more frequently at home rather than going out; we’re also spending more of our budgets on healthy options, and we’re reading labels and nutrition facts (USDA 2014). In 2010, American adults were consuming 78 fewer calories per day than they were 5 years earlier, mostly attributable to lower intakes of total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol, as well as an increase in fiber (USDA 2014).
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Adults over 50 who are caring for aging parents are not like other fitness clients of similar age.
For starters, caregivers tend to be less healthy. A study by the insurance company MetLife noted that “adult children 50+ who work and provide care to a parent are more likely to have fair or poor health than those who do not provide care to their parents” (MetLife 2011). Another study showed that 17% of caregivers felt their health had gotten worse as a result of their caregiving responsibilities (Feinberg et al. 2011).
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An Objective Eye
It can be difficult to take a step back and be objective when it comes to your own health. Katy Bowman, MS, director of the Restorative Exercise Institute in Ventura, California, and author
of Move Your DNA: Restore Your Health Through Natural Movement (Propriometrics Press 2014), suggests you write down
the following:
Whether you’ve been in the fitness industry since the ’70s or you’ve done ’70s-style workouts with borrowed outfits from your mom’s closet, you know that the trends in fitness footwear and fashions are always exciting and evolving.
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Adults over 50 who are caring for aging parents are not like other fitness clients of similar age.
For starters, caregivers tend to be less healthy. A study by the insurance company MetLife noted that “adult children 50+ who work and provide care to a parent are more likely to have fair or poor health than those who do not provide care to their parents” (MetLife 2011). Another study showed that 17% of caregivers felt their health had gotten worse as a result of their caregiving responsibilities (Feinberg et al. 2011).
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Chef and poet Annelies Zijderveld
became inspired to write her cookbook Steeped: Recipes Infused
With Tea (2015 Andrews McMeel) after
working at a number of food festivals and chatting with chefs who took her seriously about cooking with tea.
“My take on cooking with tea is plant-based and mostly healthy, with an emphasis on flavor. It’s vegetarian because that’s the way we eat at home, as do so many tea-drinking cultures.
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With excess body fat linked to about one-third of cancers, it makes sense to trim down if necessary. A new study released by New York University suggests that the most protective steps against obesity-related cancers are eating a plant-based diet and limiting alcohol intake.
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History. From Russia to Romania, and Iran to India, the word chai
is the generic word for “tea.” For most of the English-speaking world, however, chai is synonymous with masala chai, a milky black tea that is spiced and sweetened.
When Britain ruled India, the British East India Company encouraged black tea consumption, mainly as a way to wrest control from the Chinese, who held a monopoly on the tea trade. Black tea leaves were not inexpensive, so Indian chai wallahs added spices, milk and sugar to cut costs.
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Here’s a taste of what’s cooking in the nutrition world:
New research out of Spain shows that a vitamin D
deficiency is more closely associated with glucose metabolism disorders than with obesity, clarifying the connection among vitamin D, obesity and diabetes. Mostly produced by the skin after sunlight exposure, but also absorbed through fortified foods, vitamin D is important for calcium absorption and for muscle and bone health. This study shows a direct correla- tion between vitamin D levels and glucose levels, but not body mass index.
A study led by the Yale School of Public Health has found that middle-school students who drink heavily sweetened energy drinks have a 66% higher risk for hyperactivity and inattention symptoms.
From 12 out of 27 randomly selected district schools, 1,649 students in Connecticut completed health behavior surveys that included a five-item hyperactivity/inattention subscale.
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