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For those of you committed to a training program or an exercise plan, you may be doing everything you can to ensure you get results. You are showing up to your sessions, giving it your best effort, eating right, drinking water, choosing whole foods, and getting plenty of rest. Things are progressing and you are feeling more energized, your clothes are fitting better, and you are finally enjoying those smoothies in the morning. You are in the groove and you couldn’t be happier…..and then a little injury pops up - your knee, your shoulder, a little twinge in your back perhaps. You think, it’s not a big deal and it doesn’t keep you from working hard, so you push through, proving your dedication. A few months go by and the nagging injury is still there and probably (though you do not want to admit it), your injury is affecting your daily life. You can do certain things at home, it’s affecting your mood, and maybe even your sleep. Aaaaaagh!! All this effort and now I cannot even sleep well. Well, I am here to tell you that if you slow down when you are exercising you will allow your body to move as it is intended to, repair recurring injuries, and limit the opportunity for new injuries to happen. By slowing the pace of your movements down, you are allowing yourself time to think about technique vs repetition. When we make technique more important than the number of repetitions performed, we tend to slow down - allowing more control over the movement. This leads to stronger movements and less strain on all of your important joints. The joints that tend to cause you pain - ankles, knees, hips, low back, neck and shoulders are now stable, creating a safer movement. Now, as you slow down and improve your technique, movements become more efficient, your body and mind start to remember quality and at this time you can start to increase your pace. However, you must always be in check with yourself - am I going at a pace that allows me to in control of my movement? Check out this quick video on how you can slow your pace down to focus on technique with these foundation exercises. The key to keeping pain out of your exercise routine is to slow down, allow your body to time to learn, and focus on technique - not on repetition. At Wilcox Wellness & Fitness, our trainers are incredibly skilled at keeping your form on point, keeping you from being injured. If you are looking for some guidance on achieving your goals through a focused, fun program free of injury, check out our KickStart Program here: www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/kickstart Happy Training!
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When it comes to working out, there is a fine line between working too hard and not hard enough to achieve amazing results. We work out too hard, we become tired, develop bad habits, and become injured - and injuries hold us back. When we do not workout hard enough we become disappointed and frustrated the progress is not what we hoped it would be. As your fitness level improves, this truly will be a moving target. Therefore, you want to be in tune with each and every workout to ensure you are making the most of your time and your effort! This truly will be a moving target.  As you are learning your body, you will want to tune into how you are feeling throughout your training sessions (workouts). Take the time to cue into what your body is telling you. The key to any successful training session is to put in a good effort so you get a little “uncomfortable” but leave your training session feeling great, not destroyed! It takes a lot of discipline to push yourself the right way and knowing when to dial back the intensity to ensure proper technique. When you feel yourself getting tired you will compensate - it is at this crucial moment that you ask yourself - “Can I regroup and get my technique back on track or do I need a few seconds to rest?”. Making the right choice will prove to be more beneficial to your long term health and fitness goals. When to Push, When to RestAnother way to think about this dilemma is: If you do not need a rest… you’re not doing it right. In other words, you’ve got to get uncomfortable in order to make progress. This goes for anything we do in life. What’s exciting is by focusing on “when to push and when to rest” you will be accelerating the results you are working so hard for. You will be making more out of your time and effort and you will continue to learn about yourself and grow into a more fantastically fit and able person!! Just by focusing in your workout a little more. Exciting!!
At Wilcox Wellness & Fitness, our trainers are incredibly skilled at helping you determine the answer to the burning question - When to Push, When to Rest? If you are looking for some guidance on achieving your goals through a focused, fun program check out our KickStart Program here: TABATA - that’s fun to say! Tabata has recently become a very popular training method and for good reason - it is an incredibly effective and efficient tool to get into great shape fast. First, a little history lesson about how Tabata has evolved to become a popular method of a putting workouts together. The name Tabata is not just a fun, made up name for a challenging style workout. Dr. Izumi Tabata developed this idea in 1996 as a strategy to improve the aerobic and anaerobic fitness of his speed skating athletes in Tokyo. Officially, to perform a proper Tabata, one would perform a specific exercise for 20 seconds and rest for 10 seconds and repeat this for 8 rounds. The total amount of time it takes for a complete Tabata circuit is 4 minutes. This is one of the reasons it is so popular, you can get a lot out of just a little bit of time. Since Tabata has grown more popular in a general fitness sense, variations of this method have evolved to keep it fun, interesting, and more dynamic. Some common variations might include using more than one exercise, changing the timing of the effort vs rest periods, and doing a different number of rounds. No matter how you choose to do it, the goal is to challenge yourself enough that you need the rest at the end of the work period. We have designed a fun Tabata workout you can do just about anywhere. As always, you should warm up for 5-10 minutes before and cool down 5-10 minutes after any workout. Check out our previous video about foam rolling for some tips on getting the body prepared for challenging workouts. Tabata RocksTabata CircuitsIn this workout we have chosen 2 exercises for each Tabata circuit. Do the first exercise for 20 seconds & rest for 10, perform the second exercise for 20 seconds, rest for 10 and repeat this 4 times for a full Tabata!! Way to go! Circuit #1: Squats and Push Ups (or Plank) Circuit # 2: Jumping Jacks and Stationary Lunge with Rotation Circuit # 3: Crunch & Reach and Marching Glute Bridge Circuit # 4: Lateral Line Hops and Alternating Jabs There you have it! A full body workout in just 16 minutes!  Your life is so busy - you don’t have the time to spend your life inside the gym. That is why at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness we design workouts using techniques like Tabata and compound movements that get great results quick. We find that just 3 training sessions with us is the sweet spot for achieving your health and fitness goals.
If you are interested in learning more about the fun, fast, and efficient workouts we are doing at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness and how you could get started check out our website and the link to our KickStart Program! Happy Training! Mike Wilcox KickStart Program http://www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/kickstart.html The KickStart Program is designed to help you form healthy habits that you can sustain for a lifetime. The program includes 14 group personal training sessions and a complete whole foods based meal plan. Click the link above to learn more. Learn More www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com Visit our website to learn more about Wilcox Wellness & Fitness in Bangor, ME. Working on your posture and mobility isn't always the sexiest topic of conversation but it is critically important to your overall quality of life. Working on your mobility will allow you to do all the things in life that you love to do without compensations that lead to pain and injury. Our goal at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness is to keep everyone injury free and operating at their peak performance. Essentially, foam rolling is a form of self-myofascial release, or self-massage, that gets rid of adhesions in your muscles and connective tissues. Foam rolling increases blood flow to your muscles, allowing them to perform more naturally while helping with recovery and improving performance.  It is crucial for anyone who is working out to spend time improving the way their bodies move, not just moving their bodies. Every sessions starts with some foam rolling, which gets the body ready for the challenging movements soon to be performed during the workout. Here is a tutorial on how you can easily use a foam roller, and build a foundation to more advanced methods. Foam Rolling for Pain Relief Key Areas to Foam Roll Before Every Workout Upper Back - Thoracic Spine Hip Flexors Quads (front and sides) Glutes (your bottom) Calves The key to a great foam rolling session is to spend 3-5 minutes on each section of the body. Gentle, continuous pressure can be applied, with minimal movement in most cases. You should do your best to relax, breath throughout, and allow your muscles to slowly loosen up. Now, if it is your first attempt at using the foam roller, do not be alarmed if it is a TAD bit uncomfortable at first. Just like with most things, the more often you do them, the better or easier it will get. You will need to be gentle with the amount of pressure you put on your muscles, too much and you could be causing damage. I hope you enjoyed the tutorial on foam rolling and are on your way to pain relief through better mobility and improved posture. If you are interested in connecting with us and getting more great information from us, join our free private Facebook Group - Healthy Living with Wilcox Wellness & Fitness. Daily we post all things healthy living - pro tips for healthy living, recipes, and weekly workouts for you to do at home. We will answer any question you post and we encourage you get involved in the discussion. Happy Training! Mike Wilcox
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! The holidays are a time for friends and family and lots of celebration. They are also a time where a lot of people find themselves ‘falling off the wagon’ and this adds a lot of stress to a time that should be savored and enjoyed.
Many people deal with this stress by rationalizing ‘It doesn't matter - I will get back on track in the new year.’ The problem with that is that by slacking off during the holidays you are going to feel like C-R-U-D and come January 1 you are going to be working against a lot of resistance to get back into your healthy habits. ALSO - who wants to feel like C-R-U-D during the most wonderful time of the year? Not me - I want to feel vibrant and full of energy so that I can take in all of the wonderment of the season. PS: food even tastes better when you are feeling good! I wish that I had a magic wand that I could wave to cure the ALL OR NOTHING mentality. I believe that this is the most destructive mentality there is in terms of health and fitness. The ALL OR NOTHING mentality sets people up for a vicious cycle of deprivation and over exercise (which by the way is not sustainable) and total apathy. As the owner of a health and fitness business it is so sad for me to see people vacillate between these two extremes. When these people are our clients, we coach them through the process even when they are in the ALL IN phase encouraging them to embrace the 80 / 20 rule. 80% of the time, be on point with your nutrition and exercise so that the other 20% of the time you can really enjoy life. 
That means that people can go to the holiday party, enjoy their favorite treats, relax, enjoy themselves, enjoy the conversation without feeling guilty and get back after it the next day with a renewed sense of commitment. SO - what is the solution? Commit to healthy habits that you can sustain for a lifetime. At WILCOX, our mission is to inspire people to enhance their life by forming healthy habits they can sustain for a lifetime. We have identified 5 habits that most people struggle with that will have the most IMPACT on your life. These are habits that you can keep anywhere - traveling, at grandma’s house, with your family, on a month long backpacking trip, caring for a loved one in the hospital - ANYWHERE. Habits bring structure to our lives. 
Habits determine our future. 
So what are the habits that are going to bring structure to our life and set us up for success? 
Super simple, right? Nothing crazy here! We are not talking intermittent fasting, or Keto Dieting, or gluten free / dairy free / (natural) sugar free / fun free. We are talking wholesome habits that you can sustain for a lifetime. And - you only need to be on point with these habits 80% of the time to live a healthy lifestyle - so take the other 20% and LIVE IT UP. These habits were designed for our clients who train with us 3x per week - our sweet spot for getting great results FAST. On your own you are able to - eat breakfast, nourish yourself throughout the day, eat whole foods, and drink your water but most people don’t know what to do when it comes to exercise. Don’t worry - I’ve got you covered. I asked our team to come up with a simple bodyweight workout that you can do on your own at home. 
I hope this helps you stay on track over the holidays so that you can really enjoy that time with your friends and family, live it up at your holiday parties, feel amazing, and enter the new year feeling freaking FANTASTIC! If you are interested in really stepping it up and committing to your health and fitness in the new year, check out our KickStart Program which is designed to help you implement these healthy habits we have been talking about and sustain them for a lifetime. How is that for an amazing gift?
Most importantly - ENJOY this holiday season!
Much Love, Paige Wilcox Interested in our KickStart Program? http://www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/kickstart.html Click the link above to learn more. The KickStart Program is designed to help you form healthy habits that you can sustain for a lifetime. The program includes 14 group personal training sessions and a complete whole foods based meal plan. Inspired to get started now? Download this free QuickStart Guide: http://www.wilcoxwellnessfitness.com/quickstart.html This free QuickStart Guide that has been used by many of our clients and is proven to increase your energy levels and help you feel great. This free QuickStart Guide includes a full 7 day whole foods based meal plan, a simple to implement exercise plan, 18 delicious whole foods based recipes, and daily encouragement from our trainer team to help you stick with the program. Want more support? Join our free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/WilcoxHealthyLiving/ Join our free private FaceBook Group - Healthy Living with Wilcox Wellness & Fitness to connect with us live. Daily we post all things healthy living - pro tips for healthy living, recipes, and weekly workouts for you to do at home. We will answer any question you post and we encourage you get involved in the discussion. The kettlebell is an excellent tool that we use to help our clients: Improve coordination, agility, posture, and alignment. Kettlebells can also be used to help enhance cardiovascular conditioning, strength, and flexibility. In our group training program, we have a kettlebell and TRX session that is focused on building functional strength throughout the body. Come let us show you how much fun training with kettlebells is and let us help you get some amazing results.
At Wilcox Wellness & Fitness we follow a functional training style – preparing the body for everyday life. In our training sessions, we use different methods to help our clients achieve the best results possible. One of these methods is TABATA or interval training. TABATA was invented by Dr. Izumi Tabata and a team of researchers from the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo.
The Tabata portion of a workout lasts only four minutes, but it's likely to be one of the more challenging four minutes you have ever faced. The structure of the program is working hard for 20 seconds, resting for 10 seconds and completing eight rounds. One of our themes in our training sessions for the past few weeks is knowing when to rest, and when to push in order to get the most out of your workouts. The Tabata method is a tool we use to help our clients learn their bodies to really help them push hard for 20 seconds and take that 10 second rest. The Tabata workout is super effective and a lot of fun! We are looking forward to sharing this training tool with you. Happy Training from all of us at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness. In your training sessions, knowing when to rest, and when to push is tricky. When you find the right balance, you will take your training sessions to the next level and accelerate your results. This session was designed for each person to learn their body better to determine the best time to push through or take a break to regroup and refocus.
The goal was to work quickly causing fatigue, but keep the integrity of strength throughout the body. Once the body fatigued, it was up to the person to learn to push through or take rest. The goal of our trainer team at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness is to design workouts that constantly challenge participants at a level they can effectively work at and provide guidance to help correct technique or suggest rest. Take the time to learn your body and take your training sessions to the next level. The trainer team at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness is here to help you every step along your training journey and will help you know when to push and when to rest. Happy Training from all of us at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness! We are excited to announce the launch of our new release of the Peak Performance System. This system was developed to help our clients maximize their investment in healthy living, reach their goals more quickly, and make the most out of time with the trainer. We have several ‘reformer’ sessions on the calendar this week that are free to all clients. Be sure to get in and take advantage of this extra training opportunity. Peak Performance System
At Wilcox Wellness & Fitness, we have developed a program we call the Peak Performance System. This Peak Performance System is one of the key success factors to help you reach your goals and make the most of the time with your trainer at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness. The exercises in this system are switched up quarterly to ____. Commitment to this system will ensure your success in our training program. This system includes Foam Rolling & a Dynamic Warmup that is performed before the workout and Corrective / Cool Down Exercises done after the workout. This system is designed to help you reach your goals more quickly by:
The new release of the program is being launched this week and we have several ‘reformer’ sessions on the calendar that are free to all clients. Be sure to get in and take advantage of this extra training opportunity. Happy Training from all of us at Wilcox Wellness & Fitness!!! |
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