Stability weight training with the MostFit™ SYN Rings promotes core stabilization, explosive muscle engagement, and athletic development, helping you to improve your overall fitness. This squat and lunge matrix is a great move for developing leg strength, glute strength, core strength, and explosiveness through the lower body. Coach Dimitri from Brood 9 Martial Arts leads Coach Anthony through this exercise. Start in the pre-squat position, olympic bar or EZ curl bar on your back. in this video Anthony is using 35 lbs Primalbells, from Onnit, attached securely to MostFit SYN Rings. Maintain bar position as best as possible as you lift your lower into a squat. After you raise from the squat, maintain your balance and step back into a lunge with the left leg. Repeat on other leg.
MostFit™ Strives to provide unique, effective, efficient and affordable fitness products to help you be the MostFit™ You Can Be.
Consult a physician before performing this or any exercise program. You as the user are responsible independently for use of any fitness programs or equipment and assume the risks of any resulting injury.
With the MostFit™ Core Hammer you no longer need a bulky tire and sledgehammer for this style of workout. Try the Core Hammer Paddle Lunge with Slam. This exercise is great for building core strength, aerobic endurance, grip strength, and lower body strength. With the MostFit™ Core Hammer you or your clients can perform this and a variety of other sledgehammer exercises anywhere, anytime.
Start in a staggered squat. Step back into a lunge with your left foot as you "paddle" the hammer outside of your right hip. This provides a great arm, core rotational, and glute workout. as you step back into your squat position slam the Core Hammer onto the ground. This provides more of a great core, lower body, and grip strength workout. Try to do short high intensity sets: 5 sets for :30 seconds each with :15 breaks in between.
Consult a physician before performing this or any exercise program. You as the user are responsible independently for use of any fitness programs or equipment and assume the risks of any resulting injury.
Repost and Win!
Enter to win a FREE MostFit Suspension Strap and a copy of Tom Holland's guide to fueling your triathlon, Swim, Bike, Run -- Eat.
Contest Rules:
1. Follow MostFit on Facebook, Instagram and/or Twitter
2. Repost this photo on any or all of those platforms and complete this sentence... "I workout because..."
Winner will be selected randomly on 8/30/15
Lauren Haas of Haas Holistic strikes again with these delicious, hearty quinoa cakes.
Cheesy Spinach and Roasted Bell Pepper Cakes
Prep Time: 25 mins
Cook Time: 20-25 mins
Makes: 10-12 cakes
Serves : 10-12
Ingredients:
1.5 Cups Quinoa
3 Cups Low sodium broth
3-4 Handfuls Spinach (kale, and chard work well, too)
1 Teaspoon Coconut oil
4 Eggs
1 Cup Roasted bell pepper (Trader Joe’s jarred peppers work well)
3 Tablespoons Parsley
2/3 Cup Almond or rice cheese, shredded
1 Teaspoon Garlic powder
½ Teaspoon Salt or to taste
½ Cup Almond flour/meal
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 400.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with coconut or avocado oil.
Rinse quinoa and place in a pot with broth. Bring to a boil over a high heat. Once boiling, cover with a lid and reduce heat to medium. Cook until water has evaporated, about 15-20 minutes. Turn off flame and let sit for 10 minutes. Keep covered with the lid. Then fluff with a fork.
While quinoa is cooling, sauté greens in a pan with coconut oil. Once cooked, set aside.
Whisk eggs in a bowl that is large enough to fit all ingredients.
Dice bell peppers and parsley. Add to large bowl and combine eggs. Once the spinach has cooled, add it to the bowl along with rest of the ingredients. Combine evenly. Your mixture will be moist. If the mixture feels dry, add a little water. If the mixture feels too wet and you cannot form patties, add a little extra almond flour.
Let mixture rest for 10 minutes, and then form 10-12 patties. Place on baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes or until bottom is golden brown, then flip and bake for 5 minutes.
If you have extra-uncooked quinoa mixture, place in the fridge. It will last for a few days.
How often in our daily lives are we multi-tasking and looking at our phones while having a conversation with someone, taking care of business while eating, or texting while driving? When we finish a meal, can we say that we took the time to chew each bite into a fine paste, and are we aware of the different tastes, textures and ingredients that were in our food? When we drive somewhere, are we aware of what's happening around us, or are we on auto-pilot solely relying on our GPS to tell us where to exit, then find that we still missed the exit? I'm pretty sure most of us can raise our hands in acceptance that we've experienced moments like these. At 10pm, reflecting on our day, do we even remember what we did?
When we are preoccupied and trying to multi-task, are we really experiencing the moment? There's the saying, "Life is about the journey, not the destination." From the perspective of being in the fitness industry, often times we see people who are so focused on hitting a number that they don't even recognize the other changes like having more self-confidence, balanced hormones, better sleep, more endurance, less stress, and so on. Or have you ever cheated yourself to achieve a goal to find that you only felt empty handed in the end?
Observe. Whether you're in a yoga pose or doing a set at the gym, pause and observe. How do you feel? What is your breath doing? If you stop at a light, pause. Look at your surroundings. Feel your body. Are you gripping the steering wheel? When you're sitting at your desk, where are your shoulders? What's your posture doing?
For more mindfulness tips, check out the writings of Thich Nhat Hanh. His book, Peace is Every Step was a game changer in my life some 20 yrs ago.
The MostFit team had a blast at the Idea World Fitness Convention 2015 with the launch of the new 12lb Core Hammer. There was so much energy and enthusiasm packed into the LA Convention Center, with people trying out all the latest innovations the industry has to offer. We had a great time showing people 'How to Swing a Tireless Sledgehammer' while also demonstrating the other fun exercises you can do with the Core Hammer. As fun and exciting those 3 days were, we'd by lying if we didn't say that we were exhausted by Day 3. Trade shows are exhilarating, but can also be draining for the consumers, lecturers, presenters, and exhibitors, which is why we wanted to share this blog on finding balance at a fitness convention from Kelvin James Everitt.
From July 16th to July 19th, I was one of over 22,000 fitness professionals and enthusiasts who lunged, burpee’d, TRX’d and Zumba’d their way to the LA Convention Center for IDEA World Fitness Convention 2015.
For those who have not experienced this annual IDEA event, it is, in my humble opinion, a convention that all fitness professionals should have on their to-do list. The shear size of the event and the energy it creates is invigorating. The lectures and presentations are first class and address exactly the kinds of things that will elevate fitness professionals as practitioners and business people.
After three packed days of lectures, meetings, presentations and networking, I left LA with renewed energy and enthusiasm for the fitness industry and the work we do, In fact, this is one of the great effects of a good convention experience (and let’s be honest, even the most dedicated fitness professionals can get tired.)
Having been fortunate enough over the past 10 years to regularly attend fitness and related conventions, I have been able learn and apply some techniques that have elevated my experience and the value that each conference has provided, techniques I thought it might be fun to share. So, for the next 5 minutes, I invite you to delve into “5 Tips to Survive and Thrive at a Fitness Conference”
It can be tempting to fill your convention schedule with the things you are most passionate about, which can cause you to sacrifice some great opportunities to grow as a well rounded professional.
A good fitness convention will offer a solid line up of lectures, presentations and events, in fact the sign of a great convention can be the inner-turmoil of having to decide between equally appealing sessions, scheduled at the same time – “Do I listen to Dr. Len Kravitz hypnotize me with metabolic melodies, or do I sharpen my business edge with knowledge nuggets from Rachel Cosgrove….. decisions, decisions!!”
My recommendation is to create a list of 3 – 5 training skills and 3 – 5 business skills that you would like to enhance and look for sessions that will support these skills, for example:
Training Skills
Business Skills
This will require a little research – like reading the session descriptions and Googling the presenter (don’t forget to tap into your fitness network to get feedback from anyone who has seen the presenter in action)
Conventions provide some of the greatest opportunities for people to connect, but it won’t happen unless you are willing to extend a smile and a hand. Whether waiting for a session to start, lining up for a coffee (and there will be lines), or checking out a booth at the trade show, your mission is to engage strangers. I can’t tell you how many times I have started a convention flying solo, only to be adopted by a group and walk away with new industry friends and connections. Once you have connected with a handful of people, you will start to have the opportunity to provide introductions – make sure you capitalize on this. Connecting those who do not know each other not only feels great, it strengthens your relationship with each person and will encourage them to connect you with other people they know.
*Did you know that one of the most effective ice-breaker questions is “Where are you from?”
Connecting with new people will not only enhance your convention experience, but will give you some new resources, leading to new insight and ideas. Also, make sure you are well stocked with business cards so you can end any interaction with an exchange – this will be vital when you download everything after the conference.
It is great to be engaged in a session, and it is very likely the more engaged you are, the more you will have something you feel you want to contribute. I have, unfortunately sat through numerous sessions, where an individual or two have hijacked chunks of valuable session time to express themselves (I know that in my early convention attending days, I was definitely guilty of this). The three key culprits that can derail the session experience for everyone attending are:
In order to respect everyone’s time and experience, I recommend running any contribution you feel compelled to make, through this simple filter:
If you can confidently answer yes to all three questions, you are probably going to be making a good addition to the presentation, but, if you answer no, or even not-sure, I would refrain from contributing in the group setting, and maybe seek to have a one on one chat with the presenter after the session.
After enjoying a successful convention you need to quickly organize your takeaways. You will likely be feeling high levels of inspiration and empowerment, while also feeling over-stimulated. An effective way to organize your thoughts is to create a brief review that you can share with colleagues and peers. I say a brief review, as this will force you to cut to the meat of things. A simple paragraph for each session you attended will work well, for example:
Session: The future of personal training
The personal trainers of today will cease to have a business in the future unless they embrace more of a health-coaching role. Future professionals will need to have networks of specialists so that they can address multiple areas of a client’s health and wellness, with the personal trainer able to communicate fluently in each area and coordinate.
Make sure you review the new professional connections you made. Make a note of how you met , what they do, how you might be able to help them and how they might be a resource to you – and of course, send them a “great to meet you” email.
In my years of attending conferences, I can testify that each one takes on its own personality and provides its own unique experiences. Regardless of how you see the fitness industry, you will have the most enjoyable, productive convention if you approach it with as open a mind as possible. I guarantee that having an open mind will provide you with countless opportunities to enhance your experience, sometimes in the most unexpected places. The fitness industry is a people industry, and the more we can understand people, the better we can serve them – which sometimes means we need to make ourselves a little uncomfortable, and always means we need to keep developing our knowledge, assessing our opinions and challenging our views. Conventions provide the opportunity to do this like no other environment, you just need an open mind.
All good conferences have a social media hash-tag that you can follow and use – do it. The hash tag will allow you to share your experience with your network and other attendees. This can lead to interactions with fellow conferences goers as well as the presenters themselves, even after everything is over. Making a conscious effort to post on social media with the hash-tag is actually a fun component of the modern convention and you might be surprised how many new friends you can “collect”, how many likes you amass and how many times your comments get reposted, all of which make you feel even more engaged and connected.
Those are my 5 tips to survive and thrive at a fitness conference. At the end of the day, a good convention provides an engaging and stimulating environment that you can choose to experience at the level that you want. There is knowledge, inspiration and a new idea waiting to be discovered, there are amazing tools waiting to be introduced to your clients and new friends waiting to be met. There is so much to be gained by attending a good conference, even if you engage as little as possible, you will walk away with something, but for me, it is much more fun to thrive, rather than just survive!!
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Lauren Haas of Haas Holistic comes through again with another delicious recipe that you can put on ANYTHING!
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this Sweet and Spicy Coconut Sauce on everything.
Not only is it delicious, but it is full of anti-inflammatory spices. These spices are also great for digestion, skin, arthritis, cancer, blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, diabetes and your overall health and wellness.
I have used this sauce as a marinade for fish, chicken and shrimp. I have also poured it over grilled steaks.
You can even use it to dress salads or to make sautéed, roasted, steamed or raw veggies even more delicious.
It is so good, that you could even drink it as a soup. And, I am not kidding.
Enjoy this versatile sauce!
Ingredients:
1 Can Coconut Milk (full fat or light)
1Teaspoon Minced ginger
1Teaspoon Cinnamon
1Teaspoon Cumin
1Teaspoon Turmeric
¼ Teaspoon Cayenne pepper, optional or to taste
1 Teaspoon Coconut sugar
1 Tablespoon Coconut liquid aminos
Salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Add coconut milk, ginger, cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, cayenne, coconut sugar and coconut liquid aminos to a blender or Vitamix. Blend for 30 seconds. Taste for salt and pepper. Feel free to add more cayenne if you like heat.
Place in a small pot. Cook for 10-15 minutes on a medium-low flame. Watch to make sure it doesn’t boil over.
Once the sauce cools, you can also use it as a dressing for salad, marinade for chicken, fish and shrimp. It is also a great sauce to pour over vegetables or grain.