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Dry air, uncomfortable seating, over salted, under nutritious snacks and a lack of quality rest. Travel is a lot of fun and experiences the world is a priority for me. But planes, they really do work against you. My most recent trip in the spring of 2015 was the longest time I have gone away and by far the most planes I have been on, in one vacation (9 planes, 17 days). It's not uncommon to catch some flu bug given the circumstances. Taking everything into consideration I really made the effort this time to find some strategies to keep me healthy and feeling good along the way. I figured this would allow me to continuously enjoy each day without catching a general cold or flu, and needing a “vacation from my vacation.” When traveling so much is out of your control. Luckily, there are some things that are in your control. I have drawn up some strategies that have kept me happy, and healthy throughout my travels. Check them out below: 1. Bring your own water bottle Bringing my own water with me, wherever I went (especially within the plane), has to have been by far my biggest saving grace. Staying hydrated is extremely important, and the amount of water you’re given on the plane isn’t much. So purchase your own bottle before you board or bring an empty bottle with you to fill up prior to boarding and be sure to sip it throughout your flight. 2. Carry your own snacks Pack your own snacks. One of my favorite snacks on the go are protein bars (Quest and Combat right now). A great thing about snacks you can actually purchase these outside the airport, allowing you a much larger (healthier) option, than what the airport will typically offer you. 3. Stand up every 60-90 minutes If your flight is more than 2 hours long, I recommend you stand up every 60-90 minutes. This allows your muscles to stretch out and get the blood flowing throughout the body. It sounds simple, but you’ll almost feel the benefits immediately upon doing so. 4. Stretch - Bring a lacrosse ball or a foam roller I mention this a lot to my personal training clients. I make a conscious effort to always travel with the a roller or stretching ball. I will carry a lacrosse ball in the carry on because you can’t exactly lie down on the plane to foam roll. The roller is beneficial throughout your trip to allow more range of motion in your joints and muscles. The lacrosse ball comes in handy for those long flights. You can use the lacrosse ball for trigger points on your hips, feet, and back while sitting in your seat. You even have the option to use this modality in the airport waiting to board. Sure, the person next to you might shoot you a weird look, or "um, are you okay?" a security guard might say, (I have had a few), but you will not regret releasing some tension when you’re feeling better. 5. Eat at restaurants (or food trucks) Food is tricky when it comes to traveling. If you have a longer layover, and need something to eat I strongly recommend finding a sit down establishment to have your meal. It might not be the greatest of food quality, or nutritious, but at least you have peace of mind knowing it was not sitting in the cooler or on the shelf for a few hours or days. A "mindful" tip is to focus on high protein foods and pair it with either a carb or fat. For example, an easy meal would be chicken fingers with a side salad or a chicken burger/sandwich with a side sandwich. Most recently, I actually ate a food truck for this reason, and because… well it was a food truck in an airport. That’s awesome.

It is easy to get caught up in the everyday chaos that life can bring and it can cause us to become frustrated or jaded. When this happens, we miss out on all the opportunities that the world is presenting us. The joys, the lessons, the laughter, and blessings. “The world does not owe you anything.” I had a mentor and friend, explain to me. When times are hard, or life presents us with road blocks, we so often think, “Why me? Why now?” The victim mindset is an easy scapegoat and slippery downward path into a lot of negativity YOU DON'T APPRECIATE SOMETHING, UNTIL IT'S GONE This phrase is often thrown around, but it’s true, isn’t it? We never truly appreciate the things in our lives until they are no longer there. Often the simplest of things. I never thought of myself as an ungrateful person, but it wasn’t until this past year when I became diligent in my practice of gratitude. Gratitude is the appreciation for what you have - to be mindful and enjoy the present. I touched on this before (see it here). I suffered hip/low back injuries that lead me to severe pain, leaving me borderline immobile. There was one point where I could barely get out of bed, stand, sit, lay – I couldn’t move without pain. Everyday up until that moment I took for granted the blessing of movement. The simple act of getting out of bed in the morning. Walking to meet friends for a coffee, being able to exercise or demonstrate movements for clients – the ability to actually execute my job. It was not until I no longer had pain free movement that I was grateful to get out of bed everyday. I became grateful that I could show an exercise for my clients or sit at a table and enjoy coffee with friends. Gratitude extends far past the ability to move, to exercise, and to treat your body with care. Gratitude transcends into the appreciation of the company we keep. Your loved ones. These are the people who support, challenge, and engage with you. Again, I have never thought of myself as an ungrateful person. I have always cherished and loved those in my inner circle – my Scooby Gang or my Breakfast Club. It wasn’t until the loss of my mother, where I truly realized I wasn’t grateful for the people I have in my life. THE WORLD DOESN'T OWE YOU ANYTHING After I got the news of my moms passing, I remember this: A July afternoon. Sitting at a wooden picnic table, staring blankly to the shrubs in front of me. Shocked and quite frankly, pissed off. How could this happen to me? I thought.  Really, Shane? How could this happen to you? You didn’t lose your life – your mom did. Yes. You lost your mom but this doesn’t affect only you. Someone else lost a wife, a mother, a sister, a friend, and a colleague. You are not an isolated case; to some degree or another, people experience loss every day. Everything you hold in life is a gift – everything. The bed you sleep in, the people you laugh with, the body you have, the day you’re given. You’re not entitled to it. This type of mindset is something I could not have had at the time. When you’re in the middle of an angry mob, all you can see is the chaos around you. You can’t see that the crowd will dwindle and peace will eventually come. You have to live it, experience it, and learn it. You can even appreciate everything you have. But as time goes on, it slips your mind and you become to lose touch with gratitude. This happened to me. When I was younger I had went through a hernia, an appendix eruption, and a blood disorder – all before I was eighteen. You can bet that the moment the chaos cleared I was thankful for every day that was given to me. As the doctor appointments became seldom and the tests were almost non-existent, I began to take for granted the days I never had to go for routine check-ups. Not because I was ungrateful, but because my normal life never consisted of them anymore. I had no reminder to be thankful. NOTHING IN THIS LIFE IS CERTAIN The statement sounds a bit grim I know, but in a way it is also liberating. It opens your mind to all the little joys you hold. Cherish and be grateful for its presence in your life. We have our tough days of course, but the next time you don’t feel like working out – be grateful you have the ability to. Having breakfast, lunch or dinner – be grateful you have this available to you. You’re with loved ones – be grateful you have them laughing with you. “I didn’t realize how much I took my body for granted before I experienced pain. Today, I am truly grateful to just walk without my knees aching, elbow flaring up, or even get up off the floor on my own.” I had a client express to me earlier this week. It’s normal to let appreciation slip to the back of your mind now and then, but remind yourself to be appreciative of everything you hold in this life, in this moment. Gratitude; it makes life fulfilling.

If you are pre/post natal, have had surgery, in a relationship, suffer from a diastase, hold neck tightness, have a ‘six pack’, spinal issues, core instability, own a pet, or basically a human being, these next two exercises about to be dropped on you will change your life. What are these life changing, fascinating core exercises I speak of? Ladies and gentlemen, I give you… * Cue Drum roll *…. two exercises working your core stabilizers – the transverse abdominis, multifidis, and internal/external oblique.. Ms. Pallof Press and Sir. Suitcase Carry! More about the two stars, later. Here I will tell you what they are working and why we need to perform them. Below are 3 diagrams (Google images graciously donated) to help illustrate: Beautiful, aren’t they, but why? Why are these so important to you? Well, with conventional ‘ab training’ we often don’t work the entire core, leaving out some very important partygoers. Not cool, we want everyone invited to the party. We don’t exclude here. Excluding = bad. Often with our conventional ab workouts, the go-to’s are sits-ups, crunches, bicycle crunches, etc., etc. often working the most popular ab muscle - the rectus abdominis or ’the jock’, or “cheerleader” if you will. They are more famously know as, “the six pack”. However, even the popular kids have their group of followers, they’re “supporters” or “stabilizers”. With any group or team you need all members active and working together in order to be successful. No man left behind. Your core is no different. Allow me to go into a little more detail, on exactly how these two partiers are to be performed: PALLOF PRESS Standing with feet shoulder width apart, chest out, keep shoulders back and squeeze your butt. Control the movement – do not be a spazzz here. This is about stabilization and yes, control. You will want to extend your arms fully (locked elbow) and pause for a 2 second count as you’re exhaling, then return back to the starting position with an inhalation (generally the sternum or middle of your chest). That’s 1 rep. SUITCASE CARRIES Choose a heavy weight. Just one. This can be a dumbbell, kettlebell, a milk jug, or even an actual suitcase. You will want to stand upright, core braced (rib cage tucked or not poking outward). Grip the handle of the object as hard as you can. Grip Tip: in the beginning the main grip should come from your ring finger, and pinky finger. Why? Well because they are the cutest. Kidding, kind of. But these fingers are typically the weakest of the hand, so using the first bit of energy expenditure on these little guys will be easier once strength dwindles and the main squeezers (thumb, pointer, and middle) can take over from there for the rest of the duration. This adds a little more focus on strengthening your grip strength. Once said object is gripped, keeping upright posture, eyes gazing forward, shoulders back, proceed to walk in a controlled manner. It is important to maintain your core contraction, while maintaining proper inhale/exhale breathing patterns. Maintaining the core contraction is important to prevent the torso from teetering from side to side. Again, please do not hold your breath. This is a great exercise to build total core strength, grip strength, and shoulder strength, and applies largely into daily life. Big strength changes noticed from clients are; groceries are easier to carry, suitcases are not as heavy, jars now ‘pop open’. Also form while performing heavy carries seems to now feel “strong’ without ‘hunching”. Where and when do you perform these core gems in a workout? Particularly you can add them in where ever you see fit. Occasionally I’ve put them between circuits as a little “core break”, clients tend to enjoy that “active rest”. More often I add them into the end of the workout given that you have the least amount of energy and these two typically don't dispense a whole lot. If you have any questions regarding this article, you’re core, or health/fitness in general feel free to send me a message. PS: given my recent viewing of an Edmonton Fringe play, my childhood love of Mortal Kombat has been rekindled. So I am open to that discussion as well.

Every week I accompany my Great Aunt for a trip to the grocery store. This has been a regular schedule for the past five years or so. Though it requires a few hours out of a day, I have come to quite enjoy running these errands with my aunt. Even when the trips last two hours. It's during these long trips I have learned a few things I thought are important to share: 1. Patience It is something I could always work on in general, but continue to practice patience. It makes life more enjoyable, and you (yes you) more enjoyable. 2. Selflessness Life isn’t always about you. Do I want to spend 30 minutes picking up and putting down produce? Not necessarily.  Or spend 10 minutes analyzing what type of beans would blend well together in a bean salad? Not particularly. Would my aunt like to have the option to drive to the grocery store and shop alone sometimes? Most definitely. 3. Do what you can, but don't push it Challenge yourself, but listen to your body. My aunt has some conditions many seniors get when you're in your eighties. She is also recovering from a stroke a few years ago. My aunt could have easily phoned it in and decided not challenge herself physically or mentally. She pushes herself, but also knows when she needs to rest. She has shown me you don’t want to take injuries or setbacks as an excuse to coast through the rest of your days. You’re a human being and you’re a fighter, so keep going. But listen to what your body says. If you feel good, then move. If you are tired, then rest. 4 Stay moving Recovering from a stroke, and still not 100% back to her pre-stroke condition, she refuses to just have me pick up her groceries from a list she gives me. She wants to get out, move and use her brain because she knows the importance of maintaining her strength and mind. 5. There is always an opportunity to learn something You can get frustrated in almost any situation, but if you don’t keep an open mind, ear or eye, you could miss out on the opportunity to learn something. There are many positives, in what would seem to be a less than positive situation.

Do you know whats stressful? All the in's and out's of a getaway. Or if you’re flying US Airways. That in itself is a whole other kind of pain. But what else is stressful? Trying to stay "regimented" on vacation. Looking at the number of days I was away and the activities planned, I wasn't going to see much the gym (I saw the colour of the gym walls once). What were the activities? A 3 day Music Festival called, “Life is Beautiful”, held in Vegas. The Sin City. Followed by some time Los Angeles. To top off the fun sundae supreme - my birthday! What didn't I do? Stress about what I would be eating and how much I would be working out. I set the standard for myself not to be perfect, but to be manageable. To do my best each day and each day my best may look different. I ate more treats than normal. I'm assuming I didn't eat the amount of protein I wanted to and some days I ate more carbs and fats. Some days I did a lot of sitting. Some days I did a lot of walking (including a 5km hike in Runyon Canyon - great time, beautiful view, tough workout). Some days I drank a lot of water, while some days I drank a lot of wine. The last night of vacation was my birthday. I went to try on my dress pants. Yep, more snug than what they would normally be. But that's okay. I am out of my routine and my environment. Guess what? Bodies are malleable and change. Some times I am carrying a little more fat, some times I am a little more lean. But either way, it doesn't make me any better or worse of a person. My self-worth doesn't shift with my body. To be honest, if this was 5 or 6 years ago, I probably wouldn’t have been able to look in the mirror and shrug it off. I would have been upset that my clothes didn't fit. It took some time to shift my relationship with the perception of my body. It took a lot of mindset work, self-reflections and internal dialogue. And if I am going to be completely honest, some days are still challenging. But these days are far less frequent than they have ever been. What changed? I stopped tying my self-worth into my body. Realizing my body looking a particular way doesn’t make me any more or less of a person. Acknowledging that my body is malleable – it changes. It has some dimples, a few wrinkles, some muscle and some fat. When I sit, my stomach will fold over my pants. And that is normal. It is totally okay. And if your stomach doesn’t fold over your pants upon sitting, if your muscle/fat ratio stays consistent, that is also totally okay. Because bodies can change and bodies can stay the same. Either way it doesn’t change who you are. It doesn’t make you a mean person. It doesn’t make you a nice person. But I understand associating these outcomes into how you show up in the world, because I have been there. If you’re struggling with tying your body into your self-worth, I encourage you to really have some conversations with yourself (or share with trusted loved ones) and acknowledge why, how and when this all started. This can be as early as childhood. Your why, how and when is going to be different from any one else’s because we all have completely different experiences that will affect these outcomes. I also encourage you to check out Nasty Woman Radio Podcast with Erin Brown and Neghar Fonooni discussing “Body Love”. It’s a very enlightening 60 minutes. And to end with, on the trip I enjoyed myself, while not over indulging (okay, maybe 1 night - oh well). I know that when I get back to my routine, everything will come back into my balance .But, all this is okay. Its not perfect, you know what is - nothing. What is this - manageable. What's manageable? A low stress regime. Diet and exercise should be enjoyable, don't let it make you feel chained or ashamed.

“As defined by the dictionary, 'diet', are the kinds of foods that a person, animal, or community habitually eats. Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean that anymore, at least not to most people. We’ve now bastardized the term to mean deprivation, starvation and suffering.” Vinnie Tortorich & Dean Lorey, pretty much hit the nail on the head here in their book, Fitness Confidential. When you hear someone say, “oh I am on X diet” or “you have got to try Y diet!” Your mind goes to a dark place where you feel chained in a basement. You then ponder taking away energy packed carbs, tasty filling fats or wonderful muscle repairing proteins. I don’t enjoy the word, “diet”. Or at least today’s version of it. My "diet", consists of a balance of the 3 macronutrients – proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. Maybe, the odd dozen chocolate almonds or two. Even some nice white wine every now and then. You know what? I’m happy. I’m in good physical shape (granted I am not ready for a fitness competitor’s stage – but hey that’s not my goal). I’m not stressed about what I can and cannot have. We have enough stress in our lives, why add food as one of them by constantly trying to test our willpower. Adam Bornstein, “Don’t rely on willpower… you have much less control over your behavior than you’d want to believe. That’s because stress and anxiety—emotions that are inevitable—can wreck havoc on even the strongest intent, and make it difficult for you stay focused and push yourself to stay consistent with new behaviors.” As strong willed and determined as we think we are we unfortunately only have so much willpower available to us. You can think of willpower as money. Say within a given day or week you can only spend so much money, every time you make a purchase you give up some money. Now on a day-to-day basis you surpass a craving or “test” your willpower, you lose a little bit of it. ​​ This is why after a long stressful day at work our willpower is often at it’s lowest. We have been testing our willpower then coming to the end of the day we’re spent. This is when we make most of our poor nutrition choices. We rebel against what the current “diet”, is telling us what to do. Or we dive into that bottle of wine, piece of cake, or bag of chocolate almonds. Later we often feel defeated, and guilty. Guilt is a crappy feeling, which often plagues you for years in your life. Why let something such as food make you feel guilty? Why let some person who you don’t know stick you with guilt because you wanted to have a glass of wine at dinner? If you want that glass of wine, do it. And enjoy it. Unless there is a particular goal itself, such as stepping onto a fitness stage, as opposed to maintaining a healthy daily lifestyle, you don’t need to “diet”. As stated by Precision Nutrition, “don’t take your nutrition to extremes – unless you have extreme goals. Strategic moderation, as unsexy as that sounds, is the only sustainable method.” The thing about “diets”, is that they come to an end. You literally outlive your diet. They’re not sustainable. You cannot restrict yourself of a vital nutrient for a long duration of time. You need it. Your body needs it. A person will reach their goal with Y diet, and then gain back whatever they had lost before. “I need to lose 15lbs by summer!” Okay cool, but what happens after summer? Lead an active lifestyle. Eat healthy 80% of the time, and enjoy those chocolate almonds, cake or wine the other 20% of the time. Strive for 100% - 80% of the time. It’s trying to be perfect, setting yourself up for failure. You can’t maintain perfection ALL THE TIME. So, strive for perfection 80% of the time. Life is too short to be stressed. You already have enough on your plate as is. I finished my workout today, and now I cheers to you with my glass of white!

“Awesome, I crushed that workout. I'm feeling strong and full of energy! Can I touch my toes -- perfect! Nice chest stretch against the wall -- ahh! Okay cool, good to go.” ​​If you are anything like me, you have  followed this procedure after your workout. Whether it be a time constraint, you feel you’re flexible enough or like me, you just get kind of lazy. However, not following up your workout with a proper cool down, may not only hinder your progress, but it can increase injury risk and muscle tightness. All setting the foundation of poor body mechanics and inevitable pain. Just like our warm-ups (mentioned in a previous post), cool downs apply to everyone. It  doesn't matter if you’re a teenager or a senior, proper cool downs apply to you. You can be Beyonce or Michael Jordan, cool downs will still apply to you. What is a cool down? A cool down is the activity following a workout just performed. They're performed essentially to do simply that, 'cool-you-down'. More importantly however, they are meant to bring the heart rate back to it's average resting rate, which assists to bring the body back into homeostatsis (body’s state of balance or its 'happy place'). Why do we need to cool down? We perform a cool down because during the workout muscles are becoming shortened causing tightness and we want to lengthen these short muscles to give them some more elasticity and “happiness” - don’t deprive your muscles of happiness. Not only are muscles shortened, but the muscle tissue has also been broken down and damaged, which may cause soreness. This soreness is known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS). You know this feeling. Not that lingering tiredness a little while post workout, but that moment 36-48hrs afterward. That moment when you come across a flight of stairs and your only thought is, "yep... well shit." This soreness is sometimes inevitiable, but the extent of the pain may be diminished with the execution of a proper cool down. Calming the nervous system is also a priority in partaking in the cool down. I won't into a lot of detail, but the nervous system consists of the brain, spinal cord, sensory organs and nerves that work to connect those organs to the rest of the body. The nervous system gathers information/stimulus to then analyzes it, where it is then turned into movement. Following a workout the nervous system is essentially me in my 4th grade math class about to start his division mad minute - sweating, freaking out, and stressing. We will want to bring the body out of this state of stress and back in the calm enviroment. Taking into consideration all of the above mentioned the main reason to perform a cool down coincides with the reason of the warm up - injury prevention. Injuries aren’t fun, so let's take the few minutes required following your workout to help keep our body happy. Don’t deprive the two of you from this happiness. Happiness is out there and sometimes it’s in the form of stretching. “Alright, I get it! I’ll perform the cool down - I want happiness. But how exactly does one perform a cool down?” Listed below is a cool down that can be performed by the general population. It should’nt take longer than 5-8 minutes: 1. Foam Roll (self-myofacial release) - 5-8 minutes The bad guys to hit on the roller are the main muscles that were used during activity. For more on this particular method refer to my other article here. 2. Active Straight Leg Raise - 45 seconds/leg Lying flat on your back with your leg against a beam (or wall) with the knee straight. If you cannot lock the knee or fully straighten out, lower yourself back until the knee can do so. You will then bring your toes towards you, giving you more of a stretch in the calves and hamstrings, also engaging the quads a bit more. Hold this for 45 seconds and then raise the opposite leg up in the air bringing the knees parallel, then lower back down. Repeat 5 times. Repeat process again for the opposite leg. 3. Thoraic Spine Roation - 8 roations/side You will want to get down into the classic “fetal position”. Bring both arms extended forward with palms touching. Squeezing the knees together, then bring your top arm up and rotate around to the opposite side. The head will then follow the moving arm - doing this will have the cervical spine and thoracic spine going in the same direction. Try to get the shoulder as close to the floor as possible. Hold for a few deep breathes and then return the arm back to start. Repeat 6-8 times and then perform the same for the other arm. ​​ 4. Child’s Pose + Lat Stretch - 30sec/side The popular yoga position -  If you’re not familiar, then you will want to get down on your hands and knees. With your toes touching and placing your knees more than hip width apart you will want to lower your chest to the floor, with arms extended straight out. Then push your hips as close to your heels as possible. Take deep breaths in the nose, out the mouth. On exhale try to lower hips closer to heels. ​​ 5. Kneeling Hip Flexors - contract + relax glute 5x/side (glute hold 10sec) You will want to get into a “proposal stance”. One knee is resting on the floor (or a foam pad for comfort), the other leg forward with the knee at 90 degrees. You will let want to squeeze the glute on the same side as the knee touching the floor. You may feel a stretch in the front of that hip. ​​ 6. Self PNF Stretch - 30 sec total ​​ Stretch can be performed against a wall, beam, body ball, TRX. Whichever modality you have available, you will want to have one hand grasping handles or against the wall. You will gently push your hand into the wall or beam (you will feel the muscle working but literally see no movement). Hold this contraction for about 5 seconds, then relax allowing the body to fall slightly deeper into the stretch, feeling it across the chest and front of the shoulders. Any questions? Please send me an email here.

Majority of the population today suffer from some form of “ache” or “pain”. Sadly, a greater number have adopted an idea that is this “normal” daily living. Some days are simply just “better than others”. I have said this myself and also heard this many times. Acute pain is occurring more frequently and chronic pain continuing to wear out their welcome. My purpose here is to introduce you to a training principal that is being used by health professionals and gym-goers. Corrective Exercise is the name given to training principals where we focus on the body's imbalances, often caused throughout everyday activities. This is correctedthrough massage and manipulation of the tissues. This stratedgy is easily done  because it can be self directed (you don’t need another person there to perform this). The name given to this method is Self-Myofascial Release (SMR) – self meaning you, myofascial meaning muscle, and release meaning relaxation. SMR is being introduced into training programs because it is a simple, non-invasive tool that helps alleviate stress throughout the tissues in the body that interferes with our biomechanics, which really is just a fancy word for the way the body is intended to move. With the alleviation of this stress on our bodies we have decrease pain, improved biomechanics and range of motion throughout our joints. It also aids us with our movement and muscle preparation before our workouts. How is SMR done? There are tools such as a foam roller. A piece of light weight, travel friendly foam that comes in a wide variety of sizes, and densities that you roll on to create pressure on the muscle. This pressure stimulates receptors located within the muscle fascia and connective tissue. This is when the body over rides the neural aspects that cause dysfunction or tension in the tissues. There can be some discomfort during this process. Once the nervous system has been overridden, the body is essentially telling itself, “this is okay, you can shut down”.  Here the discomfort begins to diminish and pressure alleviates off the muscle. This is the reduction of that stiffness or soreness. How long do you stay on the muscle? We want to stay on the muscle from approximately 30-90 seconds, recommended 30 seconds for those who are experiencing a high degree of pain with the SMR (self-myofascial release) technique and closer to the higher end of experience a low or mild degree of pain/pressure. Following SMR we want to perform a static stretch for the area, which helps increase the extensibility of the muscle, putting in more into realignment. Where and when do you foam roll? SMR can be preformed anywhere from your home, office, travel, vacation and hotel and during anytime of the day. It’s great to perform 5-15min pre and post workout to help with efficiency. With SMR we are breaking up the adhesions in the tissue, increasing blood flow, allowing more oxygen and nutrients throughout the body, which may speed up removal of waste in the muscle. The gains from SMR are relativity quick; however without regular engagement in this corrective exercise they can be lost quick however. When should you notfoam roll? Now with any form of exercise, corrective exercise (SMR) does have some contraindications that I will touch on. If you have any of the following it is advised that you do not engage in the SMR technique: Osteoporosis/osteopenia  - we want to decrease pressure on the bonesAcute Rheumatoid Arthritis -  we want to avoid causes more stress on the bones/jointsBlood clotting and related medicationsOpen wounds and healing fracturesAdvanced diabetes Now of course with every new exercise procedure you should advise a certified health care practitioner before any engagement. As a Certified Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist, I introduce SMR in most programs I design for clients given their specific needs and goals, as well as my own program.

When starting a new workout regime or diet plan we all struggle with one huge aspect - motivation. Setting a goal or starting a new regime is simple because we're excited. But we often overlook how to maintain day one's excitement to the last day. “Shane, how do I stay motivated?” A question I often encounter once some one has started on their path. This question shows its ugly face anywhere from one week, three months to one year. There is no proven time where it arrives, but trust me, it will. I have experienced the excitement of engaging in a new routine myself, only to find myself struggling with the idea of staying on this path. Truth be told, I have been successful and I have also failed. The great thing about failing is that you often learn something. I have stated some strategies which have helped me maintain motivation: 1. Make It Personal. What is it you want? No I mean really want. Is it weight loss? Okay, great. But why? What happens after that weight loss? Is it more love? Acceptance? Attaching some personal relevance to our goals gives it purpose and makes it mean something. 2. Make It Specific & Measureable. You want to lose weight - great! How much? You want to get stronger - fantastic! In what way? When we set goals we often set them too vague and generalized. We want to be specific. Saying you want to lose weight is great, but saying you want to lose 20 pounds gives you a number to hit. Something to strive for. Having a measurable goal, allows you to keep track of progress, stay focused on what you are trying to achieve. Also seeing yourself getting closer to this goal is exciting and self motivating in itself. 3. Break It Down. Long Term vs. Short Term. You want to set out a basic outline of what you want to achieve. For instance, wanting to lose 100 pounds can be daunting. Like many challenges in life, I like to break it down. Don’t focus on the end goal itself. Focus on small increments on how you are to get there. “Check stops”, if you will. Every week, decide you will lose 1 to 2 pounds. This puts you at about 8 pounds a month, which puts you at about 95-100lbs for the year. Setting short-term goals that are on the way to your end goal makes the challenge not so daunting. ​​ 4. Do Not Be A Perfectionist. 80% STRICT.. 20% LEANENT. When it comes down to it, stop striving for perfection. Its not maintainable, realistic and more often than not it's unattainable. If you miss a workout, it’s not the end of the world. If you eat some pizza, ice cream or what have you - enjoy it, and move on. Do not stress about it. Life should be about moderation. Give yourself a break. You eat well majority of the time, exercise and lead a busy life with social and professional events. You cannot be 100%, 100% of the time. Strive for 80%, 100% of the time. 5. Pick An Idol. Sounds kind of funny, but pick someone you look up to and read their bio. Find out how they got where they are. What were their successes, struggles, failures, and lessons learned? Chances are they have had some of the same barriers you have. You could pick up some tips/tricks that relate to you and your situation. 6.  Make It Public. This can be terrifying. But posting or mentioning to someone your new goal is setting you up for more accountability. You will have more support. You never know who is also struggling with staying towards their goals or who is having the same issue as you. You can build a support system with people who have the same goals as you. 7. Write It Down. Simple and effective. Write down the goal you have for yourself. Post it where you often frequent and some places that are more “random” and “odd”. For me, in the past I have placed a post-it on the fridge, by the bathroom mirror, in the bedroom by the door. The latest, I have a ”reminder” set in my iPhone that goes off and now and then. This helps remind you of your goals, not how far you have to go, but how far you have come. It’s a little self check-in to help remind you of why you are embarking on this goal. ​​ 8. Journal. Marking your progress down keeps you on track because you can see what you last weighed, how much you lifted or how many reps/sets you performed. It keeps you pushing to be better than you were last week. It lets you know if you are on track or if you are off track. Counting calories becomes huge when hitting caloric deficits for weight loss or surpluses for weight gain. Its hard to know how much you're really consuming. Also, seeing yourself get stronger, lose weight and become faster, will push you forward. 9. Think About It. “Do I really want this?”, is usually a question I ask myself. When I find myself struggling to get in a workout or diving into a bag of chocolate almonds, I take 10 seconds to think to myself. It sounds silly, but it works for me. It takes out the impromptu reaction to just grab that bag of chips or go home right after work and skip the workout. Actually stopping to revaluate the goal I found works well. 10. Take Progress Pictures. I was never adamant on taking progress pictures, I usually focused on the measurements and the scale. Then one day I was scrolling through pictures, saw a "before" picture I had taken of myself. Of course I had to take an "after" picture, which happened to be about a year and a bit later. I was shocked at the difference the two looked. I hadn't felt any different than a year ago (that I remembered). I knew I was stronger. But comparing the two pictures, I was happy with the amount my body composition, and size had changed. I had put on almost 10 pounds in that time, and it showed in my change in muscle mass. I then came to realize that pictures are important when maintaining motivation and marking progress. You can pay attention to the numbers, but that can get tedious and stressful. What's remarkable is seeing the difference in your body. YOU CAN DO IT!

I had a great talk with a client who was doing a fantastic job on daily workouts and their nutrition. Everything was perfect. Until life dropped a couple bombs. They didn't workout in weeks and dove head first into piles of processed foods and sugars. All while feeling horrible, guilty, stressed and struggling to get through the weeks. What was our conclusion? It's done - you can't go back and do the workouts. You can't take back the poor nutrition choices. Forget that, its over. We're moving on. All we can do is get back to the way we were - with one minor change. We are going to stop trying to be perfect. Cut that crap out. You're not perfect, I'm not perfect, your neighbour is not perfect. Beyonce herself, is not perfect (craziness, right?). Life is not perfect. So lets stop trying to make our exercise and nutritional habits that way. We're setting ourselves up for failure. We need to set healthy lifestyle habits that work for us and our lifestyles. Ones that hold longevity in our lives. 80%, 100%  OF THE TIME. I like to follow the 80%, 100% of the time. Allow room in your life for those setbacks - they're going to happen. We all know they do. Life never goes as planned, but you can plan for when chaos strikes. I've learned many times that when a storm strikes - it can really strike, and then strike some more. But you know what? Just like every storm in nature, the storms that cause the life battles, will too, settle down. The sun doesn't shine everyday for us and it won't for our health regimes either. Moderation is key. Allow moderation in your life. I was first really introduced to this strategy by Jill Coleman. When we allow ourselves lenience in health regimes, we are less likely to dive into the dark places when stress hits. Eat the foods that make you feel amazing. Do workouts that make you feel strong. Allow the foods in every now and then that give you some enjoyment. Don't set yourself up for a roller coaster of “on/off the wagon” with a side of guilt. Guilt is a feeling, responsibility or remorse for some offence, crime or wrong, whether real or imagined.That sounds awful. So lets quit that. When you want to have a treat every now and then, don’t stress about it. Enjoy that little treat now and then. Ain’t nothing wrong with that. Guilt is a shitty feeling and just don't allow that into your way of thinking. You deserve better.

Traveling can be quite stressful. Especially if you really want to maintain the health regime you’ve created for yourself. My approach today is more lenient than the strategies I implemented a few years ago. For instance, years ago I was curious on how I was going to manage my nutritional ranges while traveling to a wedding. During this time I was experimenting with Intermittent Fasting. I thought to myself, "How am I going to do the least amount of damage to my progress without falling completely of the wagon?” Upon departure I brought along almonds, assorted vegetables and a coffee. I felt pretty good about my eating “time frame” for fasting and the food I brought with me. But hours later I found myself out of food, getting tired, hungry and irritable. I felt bad for my family (haha). Over my headphones I heard the consensus is to stop and get McDonalds. I was annoyed, but I went with it. Taking out my phone, I Googled the McDonald’s menu to see what the healthiest options were. After deciding on a salad variation, the decision was made to thenpull into a parking lot of anotherfast food joint. This added to my frustration as I thought, “I took the time to make an educated choice, then only to have it changed last minute”. Looking back on the situation years later, there were some clear signs where I needed to do some mindset work, as I was perpetuating a victimhood mentality, but I digress. I walked over to a nearby sandwich shop and ordered a healthier alternative. I had a proud moment when my brother and his fiancé followed my lead. I thought to myself, “Disaster adverted still on track!”​​ We checked into the hotel hours later and the wine started flowing in celebration of the nuptials. I admit I felt fantastic having only one glass of wine before going to bed early. Weddings with too much celebration the night before are brutal. I knew it was going to be a hot day and I was still 100% on my nutritional guidelines. The day of the wedding we stopped at the restaurant across the street. I ordered a chicken pecan salad, a coffee and a glass of water. I was still proud of myself for remaining on track (even with the fasting time frame). The day went well - the wedding was fabulous and the bride, beautiful. I knew the reception would be the challenge. What and when food is served was out of my control. The buffet had assorted meats, fruits and vegetables. After dinner came desert. I distinctly remember looking at my watch seeing I had 30 minutes of the “eating window” left. Cheesecake was in sight. I did it. I dove in last minute and enjoyed every piece of it. I thought to myself, “given the circumstances I have done well. I am still proud of myself for only indulging in this one piece of cake and some wine.” At midnight, Trouble struck or you can call him Doug, my "second father" and father to the groom. I was passing by Trouble when he grabbed me to put a plate in my hand and told me to eat. After I declined, we debated for a while. I will say, if you ever try to explain to a Ukrainian man whose been sipping Moonshine, that you're now fasting, so you’re eating window is closed, is a losing debate. So I caved. I broke my fast by having another meal at midnight. Did I feel bad? Sort of. Was I feeling succumbed to peer pressure? Sure. But then I reminded myself of the great job I did going into this weekend. The plan was fairly well executed. So I let it go and gave myself the win. The following morning, we all hugged and reminisced about the event then headed home. What I learned that weekend is when traveling you need a plan to be somewhat successful. You need to give yourself some options. Was I 100% all the time? No. I am not perfect, but I had a plan and did my best. It’s important to note, having a plan will set you up for greater success, but even the best-laid out plans can crack. Go with the punches – it’s life. Life is not perfect. Neither can be your diet or fitness regime - especially while traveling or on vacation. All you can do is plan ahead, think of some strategies and put the odds in your favour. The above situation was a special scenario where I was experimenting with a new eating pattern, so I tried to be more regimented. However, my preferred style is to enjoy myself. I still continue to do my best, but realizing my best can change from day to day (or even hour). It’s not the end of the world if you indulge a bit or miss a workout while you are traveling. I mean I did test the waters here. I ate after midnight and I didn't turn into a pumpkin. Yeah, I woke up as a less glorified Cinderella, with both my shoes, but it’s a win. ​​ Here are some traveling tips to help plan for success: If driving, plan where you are going to make your rest stops for food. Look at the menu for the restaurant beforehand so you can make an educated decision. Not able to look up the menu beforehand? Narrow in on your restaurant options, so you know which are healthier choices. Bring food with you - food you enjoy. You will save money as well. Everyone loves saving money. Water - bring and drink lots of water.

It was a typical Tuesday night in the gym. My client went through their warm up, then we began our training session. About a quarter of the workout through, they said to me with great disappointment, “Shane, do I look bad? Do I look unhealthy? Honestly.” I was taken aback, then reassured them that they looked great and were crushing their workout. With a bold statement like that, I had to ask why? "My family told me that I have lost toomuch weight. That I look unhealthy”. My heart immediately sank. When you're starting a health journey, there comes the feelings of uncertainty, doubt, and lack of confidence. Also, the learning process of how to deal with these feelings and not letting them hinder your path. The last thing you need is someone telling you, you are doing it wrong or you, “don’t look good”. DID THEY ACTUALLY JUST SAY THAT? “Don't comment on other people's bodies unless it's POSITIVE or they happen to ask for your opinion or advice.” – Neghar Fonooni. The thing is, no one has any right over your body. It’s yourbody. It’s yourbusiness. No one else’s. It’s that simple, but simple things can made complicated. In this case, outside noise, and Nay-sayers. Nay-sayers are at the market. They’re at work. They’re at the gym. And unfortunately, they’re even found among your family and friends. The issue is where they are found, but that they don’t have a problem telling you exactly how your journey to better health makes themfeel, for better or worse, and they're ignorant to how these words may effect you. At the end of it, some people struggle to be happy for another person's success. We’ve all encountered them to some degree. We've probably even been this person ourselves. This can be about what food you eat, to when you eat it. What exercises to do, to what exercises you don’t do. To spin or not to spin. That Crossfit is good or no its bad. You will get it all and everything between. On your health journey you will get advice and comments you have not sought after or want. This is very frustrating when you're starting a new fitness class, to then hear, “Why are you doing that? You should be doing this.” Because they’re an expert on your body and enjoyment right? "YOU WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT? ...NO." The scenario above is not an isolated case either. This happens to everyone who goes through a body transformation or fitness journey. We just don’t talk about it. The possibility that some people will not exactly be happy for you or your success. “When I initially lost my weight, everyone told me I was losing too much and they always judged what I ate. Some to the point that they didn’t like eating with me anymore.” - Undisclosed This is sad, but real. It's often we go out with friends and try to eat healthier, ordering a chicken salad and some guy at the table pikes up, “Oh yeah, you would order that. I forgot…you're eating healthier nooow.” Or in another case, everyone at the table knows about your fitness journey and you order a burger with fries. So, Angry Amy from across the table announces, “Aren’t you on a diet?” Being in this industry, I’ve had the pleasure to encounter this as well. Right out of college, I was trying to get clients. I got an email stating, “Maybe if you lost weight, you would have more clients.” Thank you, kind stranger. Another interesting moment, “Your waist is looking wider” and “Shane, you’re looking trimmer.” In one day, I had someone tell me I looked “wide” and another “trim”. All within 3 hours. At first, this was confusing and I didn’t know how to process this information. Now, my thought is simple: It’s nice to have compliments and with compliments come criticism. Outside feedback about your body is all subjective - a matter of opinion.Take it as that. No matter what journey you embark on - fitness, personal, or professional, you are going to get unsolicited feedback. Whether they're pleasant, hurtful or indifferent - it doesn’t matter what comments are made about you. At the end of the day you can lose 10lbs and someone might mention how great you look. Or maybe they’ll say you look like you’ve put on a few. Heck, you could gain 10lbs of hard muscle and get comments like, “Hey, you’re looking good. You must be trying to slim down.” The comments will come, but don’t let these words or phrases hinder you. Take it, as is background noise. It doesn’t matter what anyone, anyone thinks about you. In the end, its how you feel. It’s your body. Its your life. Its your story. Now go on and continue to create that great story. You're Awesome. Did you enjoy this article and want more? Subscribe herefor more insights into health, fitness and mindset.