Cary Raffle Certified Personal Trainer - NYC

Weight loss from exercise during the summer can be a sign of dehydration. It may seem like a good thing to lose weight after a workout, but it is actually one of the early warning signs of dehydration.  Every pound you lose working out is a sign that you've lost about a pint of water. Replace lost fluids to return to your pre workout weight, to avoid fatigue, cramping and potentially health threatening side effects.

Beware the sound byte, like this recent New York Times headline Turning to Kettlebells to Ease Back Pain. The actual study  compares Danish workers who did 2-3 [PROFESSIONALLY SUPERVISED, PROGRESSIVE INTERVAL TRAINING] sessions with kettlebells a week to those who were "encouraged to exercise" and concludes that kettlebells reduced neck, shoulder and low back pain. The same effect from strength training is well known, and the Times article links to a large scale study that shows resistance training helps reduce musculoskeletal pain . Mentioned in the article, but missing from the headline: "kettlebells can be difficult to control, it's important to learn proper form from a certified instructor."  Kettlebells may be an effective part of a fitness program for some people, but done incorrectly there is a high risk of injury, especially to lower back and other gym members. That's why many gyms don't allow members to use kettlebells without supervision...

We're all trying to sell something and all having something sold to us. As a fitness consumer - OR trainer - the easiest thing can be to hitch onto the latest fad .  One year it was boot camps, now it is kettlebells, suspension training and crossfit.  There's a place for these approaches, the question is what do you need and why are they right (or wrong) for you? Speaking of hype, another trend on the horizon is development of branded personal training programs. Right now, I can get certified as a trainer by PX90 or become a Biggest Loser Pro and have access to a huge marketing platform.To a large extent, these types of progams replace personalization with standardization. It is smart marketing for these brands to generate more sales by selling trainer certifications. But buyer beware: Do these certifications guarantee quality and results to the consumer and trainer, or are they just a money making substitute for real knowledge and experience? Will personal training become...

When you walk into a gym like NYSC's Wall Street location, you've got over 5,000 pieces of exercise equipment (really!) and more than 50 classes a week. How do you know which are right for you? And which may be wrong.   Whether you train on your own, with a friend or group or with a professional trainer, personalized training is about getting the right program for you. This article will share the "secret process" a personal trainer uses to personalize your training.  Try it on your own, or let me know if you need some help. IT IS NOT WHAT YOU SEE ON TELEVISION What's with the frightening picture of personal training presented on television?  Trainers behave like screaming drill sergeants who push and whip their clients through extreme workout programs that produce amazing results. It's like some secret dark art practiced by a cult of Adonises. It usually doesn't work that way. Most of us in the real world of personal training follow a different approa...

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This special report was prompted by your questions since January 5, when The New York Times Magazine featured this article: " How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body ." Before answering the question, here are a couple of analogies, corny or useful? You decide. Exercise is a like a power tool. Learn how to use it and you can make something beautiful, use it improperly and you can cause damage. Learning to use the gym is like learning a new language. It goes better and faster with repetition and as much professional help as you can get to master the basics. Yoga isn't much different from any sort of group exercise class or exercise program, which I wrote about last February . If you carefully select the right exercises for you, do them properly, get rest in between workouts and don't overdo it, you've probably got very little to worry about and will see great results. Make wrong choices and you could be headed for trouble. The idea that anyone can walk into a class...

Every year I'm encouraged to see hundreds of people who succeed in making fitness a part of their lives, and end up better for it. They enjoy a healthier lifestyle, feel better and look better, and hopefully live longer too.   The two biggest barriers I see people encountering are unrealistic expectations and maintaining consistency. It is easy to be discouraged when you don't instantly pick up new things, struggle with the effort, don't see results quickly enough, or find it difficult to work exercise into your schedule. But is there any question that if you do stick with it you will be better off?   Keep these facts in mind to keep you going:   Burn 3500 calories (or eat 3500 fewer) to lose a pound of fat. Exercise at least 150 minutes per week to maintain health and body composition, preferably 30 minutes per day for at least 5 days according to the American College of Sports Medicine. It takes about 16 exercise sessions over several weeks to increase the siz...