Geelong's Gym

At Geelong’s Gym we strongly encourage Personal Training, because we know for a fact that it gets the best results in the least amount of time.  But here’s a tip to help you get even more benefit out of your PT session: eat food which powers and repairs muscle!

Cherries help prevent muscle inflammation.

Here are three foods which will get you the most out of your session with your Personal Trainer:

• Cherries – it has been proven that anthocyanins eliminate muscle inflammation and pain.  Cherries are loaded with anthocyanins.  Have about two dozen on them, either fresh or dried, ready to eat after your PT session.
• Whey Protein – consuming the essential amino acids found in whey powders during your PT session suppresses cortisol, a stress hormone which can hinder muscle building.  Before your session, mix about half a scoop into your water bottle.
• Low Fat Ricotta Cheese – the protein in ricotta cheese comes mostly from whey and so is full of the best amino acids to pump you up and speed up your recovery.  It’s also the best for building lean muscle.

A tasty way to get all that good stuff inside you is to whip up a smoothie straight after your Personal Training session: put 1/2 cup ricotta cheese in a blender with 1/2 cup skim milk, 1 scoop of whey protein and a handful of pitted cherries.  Blend until smooth and enjoy!

One of the things we love best at Geelong’s Gym is giving our members the chance to learn more about their bodies and how they function.  Bearing this in mind, this year we decided to start a new informational area at the gym which we call the Glass of Knowledge.

Ann Cramp beside the Glass of Knowledge which looked at where men and women store fat

One of our Personal Trainer’s, Ann Cramp, has been heading up this particular area of the gym and she works really hard to find out interesting and informative facts about our bodies so we can learn to better utilise them in a healthy, safe way.

Afterall, the more we know about how our body works, the more we will get out of our workouts at the gym and the more motivated we will be  to strive for greater health and fitness in our life.

The information on this board changes regularly and has lots of different handouts alongside it which Ann has created for members to take away for free.

The current Glass of Knowledge focuses on how the knee works and functions.

The Glass of Knowledge which looks at the function of the Knee

Happy New Year to one and all.  Now that the celebrations are behind you, it’s time to remember those resolutions you made last night.  I’m willing to bet that the majority of you resolved to eat better, drink less and exercise more.  Right?

The best way to start putting those resolutions into practice is to kick off the New Year with a full body detox.

I know it sounds scary, but you won’t beleive how amazing your body will feel with after just a few days detoxing.

There are many detoxes out there that are so complicated you couldn’t possibly keep up with them.  So here are a few simple tips on how to have a successful detox:

• Drink plenty of liquid, between 2-3 litres of water daily.  Adding fresh lemon to your water will also make it alkaline and help push out all those toxins.  (To find out more about alkalinity, check out our blog on Alkaline vs Acid foods).
• Cut out coffee and black tea and replace them with green tea or peppermint tea.  These herbal substitutes are great for your digestion and your metabolism.
• For the hardcore, eat fresh fruit and vegetables only; for those who don’t think you can manage that, eat mostly fresh fruit and vegetables and add tuna, salmon or fresh fish and brown rice to bulk things up.
• Cut out all junk food – I know that one is pretty obvious.
• If you really can’t give up dessert completely, try having fresh fruit (berries are particularly good) with low fat Greek yogurt.  It’s yummy and healthy.

Asparagus is great for a detox and can be used in lots of different ways. Try making asparagus soup - beautiful!

If you do this for a minimum of 3 days and no more than 7 seven days you will feel fantastic and you’ll be surprised at just how much energy you’ll have.

Add in regular exercise to help lift your fitness and those extra Christmas kilos will disappear faster than you know it.

There are heaps of fantastic Detox Recipes out there to help you on your way to a healthier body, both inside and out.

Please note: if you have any exisiting medical conditions, always seek a medical practitioner’s advice before starting a detox.

Have you wanted to buy more organic foods but get put off by the price?

I’m sure you know it’s so much better for your body to eat foods which are produced without antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, irradiation or bioengineering.

Most of us would like to eat better than we do and we’d love to buy foods that actually taste the way they’re meant to, rather than loaded with chemicals and preservatives.  But the cost of organic food can be seriously off putting.

Organically grown carrots are easy to grow and taste great!

So here are a few tips on how to eat more organically without blowing the budget:

• Buy directly from the farmers – keep your food dollar in the community and cut out the extra costs of delivery etc. which Supermarkets add onto the price.  Try somewhere like Aussie Farmers Direct and they’ll even deliver directly to your door!
• Know which foods you should definitely buy organic (known as The Dirty Dozen) and which foods you don’t need to buy organic.
• Create a weekly menu before you go food shopping and use each organic vegetable in more than one meal, i.e. use broccoli in a stir fry one night and as a side on another night during the week.
• Cut down on the amount of meat you use in a dish (organic meat is very pricey) and replace it with more vegetables.  For example, add spinach and mushrooms to your lasagna and reduce the amount of meat.
• Grow your own veggies and herbs that you use the most – this is seasonal and space related.
• Buy those fruit and veggies which are in season – they have the best flavour anyway and tend to be cheaper than greenhouse grown produce.
• Where possible, buy in bulk – you can always cook up and freeze what you don’t use during the week.
• Pay in cash so you can only spend what you’ve got in your hand.

So here’s to greater health and well-being without breaking the bank!!!

Did you know that training with friends can heighten your tolerance for pain, allowing you to potentially train longer and harder?

Why is this so?

Well, according to The Economist, when endorphins are released into our brain they make us feel good and more endorphins are released into our brain when we train with someone else.

Two friends training together have a chat in between sets

Dr Cohen from Oxford University conducted a test to prove this. She got 12 members of Oxford’s heavyweight rowing squad to row on machines in four 45 minute sessions over two weeks.

In two of the sessions they rowed in complete isolation. In the other two sessions they rowed in groups of six, perfectly synchronized. After each session their endorphin levels were tested.

Dr Cohen discovered that the rowers’ pain thresholds were significantly higher following group sessions.

So the next time you head off to the gym to do some exercise, how about taking a friend along with you. You might just find that you’ll have a more rewarding workout, that is more effective but also easier, and that you’ll get fitter and healthier faster than if you continue to train alone.

According to this new study, Rocky Balboa may have endured less pain and done even better if he’d trained with a friend!

To give it a go, quote BAF101 to Reception to bring a friend along for FREE to your next workout.

We are delighted to announce the arrival of TWO AMT Precor Machines into the Cardio Theatre at Geelong’s Gym.

Most of you are probably asking right now, what’s an AMT machine?

Put simply, it’s a machine that is as versatile as the human body. It will move the way you want to move. Sounds pretty cool, huh?!

It’s a low-impact cardio trainer that actually adapts to your movements. Which means you can completely change the motion and path of your steps without even having to touch a button. So you can go from short to long strides, walking to running and even into deep lunges without pressing a single button! Every workout you have can be as challenging and unique as you want it to be.

So you will never get bored!

Do you want to know more about how the muscles in your body respond to different movements?

Now is your chance. You’ll learn how to use short strides to work the calves and quads, mid-length strides to hit the hamstrings and glutes, and long strides for full engagement. Can anybody see a taut, toned and amazing looking lower body evolving right before your eyes?

The more you learn the more you’ll be able to customize your workouts to target specific muscle groups. Not only will your workouts be so much more interesting, but they will also be that much more rewarding.

I don’t know about you, but the AMT actually makes exercise sound like fun!

So why not come in and have a try of this fantastic new cardio machine. The AMT is ready and waiting for you to let your

I changed classes and time today.  I simply decided to go to the gym for a workout at a totally different time and participated in a different Instructor’s Spinning class. The Instructor, Karen Henry, was fabulous, but her class had predominantly hill climbing and some sprint sessions – quite different to the other sessions I attend regularly.  Wow, what a lactic session it was.

A shaky start

Lactic acid has a bad reputation. Many people blame it for fatigue, sore muscles, and cramps. They think of it as a waste product that should be avoided at all cost. Guess what? Scientists have discovered that lactic acid plays a critical role in generating energy during exercise. Far from being the bad boy of metabolism, lactic acid provides fuels for many tissues, helps use dietary carbohydrates, and serves as fuel for liver production of glucose and glycogen. In fact, lactic acid is nature’s way of helping you survive stressful situations.

But what is Lactic Acid?

Technically, lactic acid is a chemical compound produced from pyruvate, an organic acid in animals. Pyruvate becomes lactic acid during normal metabolism, but also through exercise. (Lactic acid also can be found in some sour milk products, such as yogurt, kefir, and some types of cottage cheese.)

When you exercise, your body burns sugar, fat or protein along with oxygen. This produces the energy needed to continue exercising. When you exercise so intensely your muscles can’t get enough oxygen, Continue reading ‘Wow, what a Lactic Session!’

Why don’t I use my equipment at home?  I’ve spent hundreds of dollars on free weights and a cross trainer.

Do you have some unused equipment sitting idly at your house?

Lots of participants in the STRONG study have this same dilemma. At some point, a little voice inside their head spoke to them and said… “You need to do something!”

So off to purchase some gym equipment they went.

And tried to do some exercises.

And pulled up very sore.

And questioned if it was the right sort of exercise?

And wondered what on earth they were doing?

And challenged whether it was a good thing?  The right thing?

Every participant echoes these words… “I’m so glad I have you to guide me.”

The STRONG study is about educating the participants on exercise.

It’s about building confidence.  It’s focused on progressively increasing weights and a range of exercises so that the workouts are manageable.

The STRONG study is about commitment to improving quality of life.

www.GeelongsGym.com.au