Fitness on the Road

You might be taking a break from it all, but ask yourself if your fitness program can afford to take a break when you on the road. Richard Thurmann from Fitcorp Asia has some advice for the business and leisure traveler in 2010.


So you have just set out on a one-week journey for business, three-day weekend getaway with the family, or a two-week beach holiday and the last thing you’re thinking about is exercise. You have two choices, one of which is to let all those gains you’ve achieved over the previous months go to waste. The other choice is to take steps to maintain your fitness, but the question is how? Well here are a few steps you can take the next time you go on vacation.

The first requirement for the Fit Traveler is that you maintain some level of activity. At Fitcorp Asia we usually prescribe a morning metabolic booster. This is a series of exercises designed to activate muscles throughout the body in just 15 to 20 minutes. Using a combination of exercises in series such as squats, pushups and jumping jacks a 20 minute fat burning workout can be achieved. In just a one hour session with one of our trainers at Fitcorp Asia you can learn how to maximize your 15 or 20 minutes in order to achieve maximum results. It’s quite convenient for the person who is short on time and just needs to get moving.

For the weekend getaway traveler, simply get active. If you’re at the beach go for a swim, go for a walk, and take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator. Go for a walk after meals. Be sure to give your stomach a little time to digest before you head out however. During our weekend beach boot camps we do various simple exercises that you can do on your own like walking lunges in the sand, which provide a different challenge to stabilizer muscles than the very same exercise done on solid ground. If lunges are a little tough try squats or squat jumps. A good old game of tag or Frisbee will do just fine if you’re hanging out with the family.

If you’re traveling for a couple of weeks, make sure you combine a few of the strategies previously mentioned. I personally like to take my TRX with me wherever I go. A TRX is a great tool, a bodyweight trainer that is no heavier than a yoga strap. It can be wedged in a doorway and provide you with numerous different exercises to help get you toned and increase core strength. Next time you’re on holiday or a business trip you should have one of these handy tools. Just a one-hour session with a trainer and a TRX is all it takes to give you a year supply of exercises to do when on the road.

Your nutrition is also going to be an essential component of remaining a Fit Traveler. Many people go on vacation and binge on foods that they wouldn’t normally consume. Many times it’s tough to find a place that serves quality, low fat meals. For the business traveler this can be a nightmare. Often you may find yourself sitting in meeting after meeting without food and if there is food, it’s usually some pastry or high fat food that is presented. So what do you do? Pack! That’s right, pack a healthy lunch or snack to hold you over. Bring raw, unsalted nuts, vegetables and or dried fruits to keep your tummy happy and your metabolism on fire. Think of it as brain fuel that will enhance your mind as well as your physical fitness.

For the weekend or vacation traveler, I often recommend that you find a grocer near the location in which you will reside. This way you can buy healthy items and store them. This not only helps you to eat right, maintain or even lose weight, but you will save loads of cash by not paying for overpriced, unhealthy dishes. There is no reason why traveling should equal eating out all the time. Indulge in the local cuisine, but remember your fitness goals and don’t let these take a vacation too. Trust me, you wont feel the better for it afterwards no matter how brief or long the lapse in fitness is, and you probably don’t deserve the ensuing guilt trip either. Flip it around and you will feel so much better for having kept to your goals and returning home feeling fit as well as relaxed.

So it all comes down to making small adjustments in our lifestyles that can give us major gains and help us maintain our goals and strive to be our best. For more information on healthy eating, diet and exercise, TRX trainers or general inquiries for fitness at home or away, contact Fitcorp Asia at info@fitcorpasia.com

By Richard Thurman, B.Sc, MA, CSCS, CPT

Rich is the Fitness Development Manager and a Fitness Coach at Fitcorp Asia. Thailand's leading personal training, sports performance and corporate wellness organization. With a Bachelors degree in Physiological Science from UCLA a Masters in Sports Management from The University of San Francisco, Rich has over 10 years of experience in Fitness, Sports Performance, Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation.

Whether it’s fat loss or toning, personal training or group exercise Fitcorp Asia, Thailand’s leading sports experts has something for everyone. If you are in Bangkok or traveling through, drop in for a training session or try our morning or evening bootcamp training in the park at these times:

MWF 6am
T Th 530pm

I Just Started Working Out; Why am I gaining weight?

So you’ve just signed up for a membership at your local gym, or you just began working with a trainer, but after the first two weeks you get on the scale and realize that you’re a kilo heavier. What’s going on? Well first of all, if you have a trainer I’m sure he or she has told you to stay off the scale. Time and time again as fitness professionals we find ourselves locked in battle with the treacherous scale as people obsess over weight instead of the stuff that really matters i.e., body fat, girth measurements and how your clothes fit. So first things first, throw that scale out the window. Whether you gain weight or not has a significant amount to do with many factors, including body type and nutrition.





At Fitcorp Asia the fitness trainers begin an assessment with a body stat test, which is used to measure body fat versus lean mass, resting metabolism (# of calories needed to sustain your current muscle mass without moving) and average metabolic rate (# of calories that should be consumed by your body on average during an active day. When you begin to lift weights, your body which is now stimulated by heavier loads establishes new links between your brain and muscle. Your body begins to recruit more muscle and this increases its demands for energy.

It is this increase in demand that makes you feel hungrier than normal and it represents a change in your metabolism. This is a very critical time for you as you must now make better choices on what to consume and when to consume it, in order to meet the demands of increased muscle activity. The problem that many personal trainers find is that their clients will begin to use this newly revved up metabolism as a sort of credit card which affords them the luxury of eating junk food. This is however counterproductive to your goals of fat and weight loss and most people will experience weight gain if this is not monitored carefully. This is a time where you have a chance to combine your training with low calorie, high nutritional value foods and get the most out of your metabolism. At Fitcorp Asia, we encourage our clients to eat often, but to make sure that you’re eating quality foods.

Not only is nutrition a key reason for why you may be gaining weight, but consider this:

• Muscle is about 70% water and when you work out more; your body’s response places a higher demand for consumption of more water. Also in response to weight training your body needs to prepare itself for heavier loads. One of the ways it does this is to increase surface area by hydrating the muscle fibers in order to increase surface area and provide higher power outputs.





• Your lean mass includes muscle, bone and organs. Weight bearing activity stimulates muscle growth and stimulates an increase in bone density. These two things can easily cause significant weight gain within the first couple of months. This is where it is important to have a look at girth measurements and body fat. Muscle is heavier and denser than fat and as more muscle is stimulated, the body’s ability to burn fat increases, which sometimes results in a loss of inches with an overall gain of weight.

Similar to the old saying, “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people”. Exercise doesn’t make you fat, the choices a person makes, makes that person fat.

At Fitcorp Asia we believe it’s about changing your lifestyle and by lifestyle we mean changing the way your body moves, the amount of movement that it does and changing the fuel that you run on.

The take home messages are clear. Throw out the scale and focus on getting stronger and increasing your metabolism by moving more and eating right. The rest will fall into place over time. Rome was not built in a day and your body took years to get this far; sometimes 10, 20 or 30+. The process of reprogramming your body is not an overnight miracle, but a life-long commitment to change.

From an excerpt of Maya Angelou, “If you don’t like something, change it.





If you can’t change it, change your attitude”. Realize that your trainer or fitness coach is there to assist you in reaching your goals, as well as support you along your journey to change. We give you the tools to succeed, but it just may be your attitude towards food, nutrition and exercise are the only thing holding you back from a better you.

By Rich Thurman, B.Sc., MA, CSCS, CPT.
Rich is the Fitness Development Manager and a Fitness Coach at Fitcorp Asia. Thailand's leading personal training, sports performance and corporate wellness organization. With a Bachelors degree in Physiological Science from UCLA a Masters in Sports Management from The University of San Francisco, Rich has over 10 years of experience in Fitness, Sports Performance, Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation. Whether it’s fat loss or toning, personal training or group exercise Fitcorp Asia, Thailand’s leading sports experts has something for everyone. For more information check out our website at www.fitcorpasia.com or drop Rich a line at Richard@fitcorpasia.com

Meet Jacob, Fitcorps latest addition

We are proud to welcome Jacob Campbell to the Fitcorp Asia team. Jacob is originally from Denmark and is certified as a Fitness Instructor and Personal Trainer by the Federation of International Sports, Aerobics and Fitness (F.I.S.A.F). Jacob joins the personal trainers in Bangkok at the Fitcorp Studio.

Jacob has a strong background in training. In his home country of Denmark, he worked for the Danish fitness chain, Fitness DK. It was here that he worked with various age groups ranging from children from the age of 15 to adults 70+. His experience ranges from sports performance training to weight loss and he has proved to be successful at helping people exceed their goals and expectations.

Ever since a young age physical activity, health, nutrition and coaching have been of great interest to Jacob. He has participated in several types of sports including martial arts, which he has especially enjoyed for many years now due to its high demands on coordination, power and strict technique. Those three things sum up his training style as he pays close attention to the demands of exercise on the body.

Jacob states:
” Body, mind and diet are all three important components in sports and a healthy life. Without the right nutrition, the body decomposes. Without the right stimulant, making impressive progress and achievements are hard to come by. Whenever you have a question or obstacle regarding your work-outs you should feel comfortable consulting you trainer. Remember nothing becomes a failure, before you give up”

You can now book Jacob for personal training in Bangkok by calling the studio at 02 661 7900 and take advantage of 5 complimentary sessions with a 3 months personal training program at Fitcorp Asia.

Thailand's leading Personal Trainers in Bangkok
www.fitcorpasia.com
www.fitnessbangkok.com

Fitcorp Asia's Kettlebell Training Featured in the Bangkok Post Today!

Kettlebell Training in Bangkok!!

Featured in GURU Magazine (Bangkok Post), Friday Feb 27th, 2009.

NEW ACSM Recommendations for Exercise - Is this a load of Rubbish???

the ACSM has finally changed their recomendations for exercises duration... But is this a load of rubbish??? It sure is...

We all know that its not how MUCH you exercise, its HOW you exercise... Exercising for longer is not going to guarantee result no matter which way you take it...

More is not better, better is better. In this day and age, we have even less time to exercise, so what makes the ACSM think that we will now spend MORE time exercising, just becuse they say so?

We MUST focus on the process, HOW we train and WHAT permanent LIFESTYLE changes we implement into our lives fr long term success...

At least this makes people think that 3 x is not enough.. so we are getting somewhere and the ACSM's new statement is certainly welcomed...

Anyway, leave your thoughts, and reflect on what type of training has given you the results....

You know our philosophy, you know what works! So keep at it folks!

Here is the article for your interest....

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Greater amounts of physical activity than currently recommended may be necessary to prevent people from gaining weight, and to help them lose weight and keep it off, according to updated guidelines issued by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

"In the midst of a genuine crisis in Americans' health related to what we eat and how little we move, these guidelines are meant to provide an understanding and clarification of the role of physical activity and its relationship to weight," Dr. Joseph E. Donnelly of the University of Kansas in Lawrence and chair of the advisory committee noted in a statement.

"Now that we have the latest information on how much physical activity is part of the equation, we can continue the educational process to help people who struggle with their weight," Donnelly added.

In a 2001 position paper, the ACSM recommended a minimum of 150 minutes per week (roughly 30 minutes per day 5 times per week) of moderate-intensity physical activity for overweight and obese adults to improve health; however, 200 to 300 minutes per week was recommended for long-term weight loss."More recent evidence has supported this recommendation and has indicated that more physical activity may be necessary to prevent weight regain after weight loss," reads the ACSM's position paper published in the latest issue of the College's journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

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