True Body Fitness of Detroit

How I Learned To Tolerate Group Fitness

tbf — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:58:37 +0000

One of a million great things about the TBF Challenge is the access to the
classes at TBF.  Except if you hate group fitness. Which I kind of do.  One
of my earliest group fitness memories - besides god awful calisthenics in
high school gym class - was a hip hop dance class at the Y about 6 years
ago.

Have you ever seen me dance? No. You have not. Because I have no rhythm,
coordination or grace. So you can imagine my super-star performance in hip
hop dance. I think I might h.ave even walked out of the class. After that,
I stayed away from group classes, with the exception of some yoga. Because
part of that class is laying down. I like to lay down.

But a few years ago, some friends suggested that I go to a spin class. It
was a hell of a workout. But I can ride a bike. I spent a lot of time on a
bike as a kid and you know what they say about riding a bike. So I felt
pretty comfortable in spin. And in spin, you know what? No one knows if you
are going slower than them. It's great.

I was pretty excited when Kimo got the spin bikes, as I knew this was a TBF
class I would enjoy.  I like it.  The class is an hour to an hour and 15
minutes, and often I hit the Beyonce Wall, as my TBF competitor Joe Posch
calls it. But as long as I keep peddling, just keep peddling, I can get
through the class. It helps to have friends in the class, it helps even
more to have my friend teach the class. Thanks TBF for showing me group
fitness can be better than tolerable.

Liz

Why Take A Spin Certification Class

tbf — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:21:51 +0000

This Saturday I plan to take a spin certification class. On my day off. At 9 a.m. in Flint. If you care to join me, click here http://www.spinning.com/en/facilities_events/event_details/2799

I do not know if I want to teach spinning. There are days that I cannot make it through a class taught by someone else, much less get other people to do it for an hour. . But one day I hope to be able to teach spinning. Why? I figure if I teach a class, people will come to it. If I am the instructor, then the students are kind of like my customers, and I would never let a customer down. So maybe if I commit to teaching spin 2 times a week I’ll actually go 2 times a week.

I’m also pretty excited to learn how how my heart rate should get (170? too high? it feels too high), how to position the seat/handlebars and how to stay motivated through the end.

I really enjoy the teaching styles of both Peter Van Dyke and Denise Mann at True Body Fitness, so I hope to continue to learn from them both.

I’ll let you know how it goes.
Liz

Meet with a health coach, Serene Arena

tbf — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:58:02 +0000

One of the benefits of being in the TBF Challenge is that we have the
opportunity to meet with a health coach, Serene Arena.  A health coach, in
a nutshell, is someone who helps you sort out the nutritional and lifestyle
decisions that will work best for you as an individual as you work toward
living a healthy life.  It sounds simple, but for me sorting through all
the contradictory information out there has always been a challenge and
having a health coach to periodically touch base with has been a
game-changer.

We've only met a couple times, but Serene has already given me some great
advice that has helped jump-start my metabolism each day, treat and prevent
the intermittent heartburn I get, and make some serious dietary changes
that have sustained my energy level throughout the day.  More importantly,
I pay a lot more attention not to just what I eat, but how the food I eat
makes me feel.  It's a radically different approach for me and I have to
say, it's made a big difference.

There are some challenges for me in working with a health coach – I'm not a
regular grocery shopper, and right now my schedule varies greatly from day
to day.  But in the three or four sessions we've had I've not only received
some great solutions for diet issues, but have a lot of things to explore
and think about.  In conjunction with the food tracking I've been doing as
part of the TBF challenge, it's turned out to be very helpful.
And I won't lie, at first I thought it was all a little new-agey.  But now
I would definitely recommend a couple sessions with a health coach if
you're interested in taking a critical look at your diet.  She didn't make
me go vegan and she didn't make me stop drinking, but she really did help
me make some fundamental shifts in the way I think about the food I eat.
And that's a pretty big deal for me.

Oh, and be sure to check out Serene's website at serenehealthandwellness.org

Joe Posch

Fox 2, Get Fit

tbf — Thu, 03 May 2012 20:02:34 +0000

Get Fit with True Body Fitness of Detroit: MyFoxDETROIT.com

Fox 2, Get Fit

tbf — Thu, 03 May 2012 19:58:55 +0000

Get Fit with True Body Fitness of Detroit: MyFoxDETROIT.com

This time around

tbf — Thu, 03 May 2012 19:57:24 +0000

There was no big epiphany I had that prompted me to start working out.  I
didn't hit a wall and decide I was going to make a big lifestyle change.  I
just kind of started with the resistance training with Kimo during the
winter, and kept my diet the same and really had no way to add in cardio
outside of TBF.  I figured the rest would follow if it was going to
follow.  This is probably the first time I've jumped into “working out”
without some big resolution and I have to say, it might have made all the
difference.

Kimo would tell me, after I sat gasping for breath after some intense
series of lunges, that if I started doing cardio these wouldn't be so
difficult.  When he asked if I had lost any weight and I said not really,
he'd gently remind me that diet is 90% of weight loss.  But I already knew
these things, and honestly, at that point, I didn't care.

In the past diet was always my first option for losing weight, used
successfully a multitude of times.  Cardio was also easy for me to get
into, because there is nothing I love more than popping in my earbuds and
zoning out for 45 minutes on the elliptical.  But weight training has
always been the thing I feared the most and understood the least, so I view
it as a pretty huge accomplishment that I've been able to start into it,
keep it going, show improvement and start to enjoy it.

In the beginning I was a paranoid maniac about it, though.  I couldn't even
tell you how my muscles felt after doing an exercise because I was so
focused on doing the exercise correctly.  As I started to figure it out, I
could work through a set without having to deeply concentrate.  That's when
some space in my brain opened up and let me start thinking about adding in
cardio.

I figured out a cardio outlet and made a vow to try to do it every day,
with mixed success.  But getting over that hurdle and actually getting my
cardio on allowed me to start thinking about making diet changes, which
surprisingly ended up being pretty easy once I had the physical activity to
build on.

This time around it's been really helpful to approach all these things
gradually, with an eye on lifestyle change and long-term results.  No, I
won't lose weight as fast as I'd like, but I also won't frustrate myself by
over-reaching.  I know some people like to make a big change, but for
someone like me this slower process seems to be a good approach.  There is
something to be said for not overwhelming yourself!  See you at spinning!

Joe Posch

The Elephant in the Room

tbf — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 14:32:08 +0000

I like to play the bewildered card sometimes; bewildered that despite running marathons, weight training, cycling, etc. and my best attempts at leading a healthy lifestyle – I still don’t exactly exemplify the vision of physical fitness. The truth is…anyone who knows me REALLY well (i.e. has had a sit down meal with me more than a few times in my life) knows that I don’t actually live all that healthy of a lifestyle. I’m indulgent; extremely indulgent. Blame it on my Polish upbringing – grandma’s dinners with carbs, carbs and a side of carbs. Blame it on the fact that an affinity to cooking skipped a couple generations (my parents and I to be exact) and dinners in our family consisted of preservative packed meals like frozen pizza, hot dogs or t.v. dinners. Blame it on the fact that attempts at teenage vegetarianism really just consisted of tater tots or crackers for lunch (with a side of cookies) and picking the meat out of whatever my parents were having for dinner i.e a hotdog bun with some ketchup and mustard. Suffice to say – by the time I started college – I wasn’t exactly well prepared for healthy food success! One can only use their upbringing as a crutch for so long, however, and then the excuses run out. I’ve often looked at celebrities in mainstream media and thought, “well, I would have a killer body too if I had the funds for a personal trainer, nutritionist and someone to cook for me!” Well, guess what? A little fairy godfather named Kimo came along and granted all my wishes and I’m STILL making excuses. Excuses like people in my field eat for a living and it’s so hard to make good choices when I’m eating out. I need to cut the excuses. I now have personal training 3 days a week, a fabulous health coach to give me good health tips and a significant other who does most of the evening cooking. Now, the only excuse getting in the way is: ME. Me and my indulgences – my rational that oh, these king size snickers bars and girl scout cookies won’t hurt. I’m tired and stressed and I deserve it. Your menu features a grilled chicken salad or fettucine alfredo? Sure, I’ll have the alfredo! A few things our health coach, Serene, has taught me in just the first couple of weeks – my desires to eat what I think I deserve and actually treat my body how it deserves are 2 different things. In our first session I recall her using the phrase “why would I put that in my body?” That really stumped me. “My body doesn’t like candy bars? My taste buds sure seem to!” This is all going to be a process because it will require me to completely re-wire my brain. But, I appreciate she has already gotten me on a track to think about my choices differently during the day and perhaps begin with just incorporating a few more whole grains. Initial health coach goals:

Switch from the crappy wonder bread to a whole grain bread and use it for my breakfast and/or lunch
Drink a whole glass of water before each meal
Cut back my water intake just before bed so I’m not getting up so frequently during the night
Re-think my sweets – would I rather indulge on something like a candy bar or something homemade (that’s presumably less preservative packed) like a friend’s homemade cookies?
Try replacing sweets with “sweet” vegetables like carrots
Add some additional grains into my diet like quinoa
Take time to stretch and breathe during the day
Pack healthy snacks like almonds so I don’t let myself get too hungry before a meal

Regina F.

Persistence

tbf — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:57:53 +0000

My first couple sessions with Kimo, I thought I was pretty hopeless. He
never said anything to discourage me – quite the opposite really, he’s
always been very encouraging – but I felt ridiculous, and not entirely
confident I was going be able to get any results. Part of this is due to
the fact that I’ve worked with personal trainers in the past and was always
so focused on rapid changes in my body (that never materialized) I never
got a chance to realize the smaller, incremental steps I was making.

Maybe it’s because I’m a little older now, with a better perspective on
things than I had ten years ago, and maybe it’s because working out in the
fitness studio at TBF is not a regular gym circuit-type machine workout,
but the experience was a lot more nuanced this time around. It involved a
lot more steps and, for me, improvement started to be measured in being
able to maintain my balance better, or getting through the misery of a few
sets of walk-outs, or having a new exercise added to the mix. I guess I
just started to change my expectations.

Before I knew it, I’d forgotten about the anxiety that each session would
bring and started looking forward to them – and trust me when I tell you
this is a new phenomenon! No, I didn’t start dropping weight right away,
and I didn’t all of a sudden have a bigger chest or arms. But I started
feeling pretty good after leaving my workouts, and I started noticing tiny
changes in my body. No one else could notice them, but they start to be
enough that you think hey, I’m getting somewhere!

I also realized that for me, just sticking to something involving my
personal fitness was also a huge accomplishment. Those of you who have
struggled with this in your life will know what I mean. I’ve been training
with Kimo for several months now, and for once in my life I feel like this
is something I WANT to do, and not just something I NEED to do. If you’d
told me I’d feel this way six months ago, I’d have made fun of you on
Facebook, but there you have it. Persistence pays off.

Joe Posch

Zumba love at TBF

tbf — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 23:20:57 +0000

Regina’s goals for the Challenge!

tbf — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 23:18:14 +0000

A Little Wrench in the plans…

So my first blog entry was predominately focused on reminiscing about all of my fun attempts throughout the years at producing a more fit me. I believe I referenced something to the effect of: maybe this time will be different! Maybe I’ll be less focused on weight loss and more focused on positive results; quality over quantity, letting go of all of those grossly unrealistic expectations. Well, here’s where honesty comes in. I TOTALLY still had unrealistic expectations. 3 days per week of personal training, unlimited fitness classes combined with my already reasonably regimented running and cycling schedule. I was THRILLED. Kimo had told me that I had WON THE JACKPOT!! How could I not be the epitome of physical health, a superhuman woman if you will, after this fantastic 12 week challenge?!

The little wrench…

Day 1 of fitness challenge 8 a.m. – Dr. says to me: “you should probably stay off of that ankle for a few weeks.” Gasp. What is that you say, doctor? For some reason explaining that her request was unreasonable because I was starting a 12 week fitness challenge that day didn’t quite resonate with her. Instead, she seemed a bit more concerned about my obsessive weekly exercise regime and thought I needed to ahem, tone it down for awhile. Unrealistic expectations round 163 = deflated. L A deflated Regina (metaphorically of course, because a little deflation otherwise might not be such a bad thing).

Pity parties never last too long in my book, however. On to the next! The next goal, that is. It won’t be how many miles I log in the running shoes over the next few weeks, how many fitness classes I pack in (sorry Kimo), or how many long walks and bike rides around Downtown (although hopefully those can return soon). It’s all about improving muscle definition, flexibility and making some healthier choices. As part of our challenge we’re required to identify 2 short term and 1 long term goals. Of course, as a lovable Type A over-achiever, I thought I’d throw in an extra one for good measure. Although note to my trainer, Regina, let’s just forget about that conversation we had about my giving up sweets for 12 weeks. It hasn’t been working for Lent and apparently doesn’t work when I proclaim it to you either. I may or may not have had a shamrock shake about 3 hours after that conversation took place…

Goodbye little wrench, hello new goals…

Short term goal 1: Bench press on lateral pully weight machine thingy at a 5 (not 5 lbs, I can bench press more than that – just to clarify) J

Short term goal 2: Hold plank for 2 minutes and 30 seconds

Short term goal 3: Work out every muscle group every week and track all of my workouts to build a fitness workout guide

Long term goal: Track calories everyday (even on those days when I know I’ve fallen waaay off the wagon, it’s like telling on myself)