When I was in high school I started out thinking, intending even, to become a fitness professional, but somehow ended up pursuing an arts degree at university instead.
After 20 years, the fitness flame hadn’t left my heart and through a mix of luck and determination I became a part of the fitness industry. When it comes to health and fitness, I’ve certainly been on the same journey as most: a rollercoaster.
The analogy is apt, not just because of the ups and downs of working out (weight loss and gain, muscle loss and gain), but also the mingled fear and excitement.
In many cases, most of the ups and downs coincide with major life events, but the fear and excitement are often ongoing patterns constantly in fluctuation. We become excited about all the possibilities but fear failure, and, to some degree, success as well.
My hope for Friday Flex is to create a place to reflect on and deal with the excitement and the fear, and our failures and successes. Certainly we are living more sedentary lives, and many of us see the benefits of becoming more active.
Oftentimes fear and excitement get in the way of being able to find the time and motivation, eat well and do away with many of the preconceptions about what it means to be fit or participate in fitness, as well as just getting started on it.
I’ll examine current and emerging fitness practices, evaluate new fads and trends, offer advice on maintaining a healthy lifestyle and hopefully inject a little fun in how we approach fitness.
Friday Flex is a dialogue on the challenges of being healthy, especially as we age, in our modern environment. It will be an inclusive, honest guideline based on how I approach my own fitness rollercoaster, which means a lot of fun and a little sass.
The best advice I can give at the beginning is to find something you hate and stick with it. Everyone always says you should find what you love, so you’ll want to keep doing it, but I disagree. You have to hate it first to keep on going. Hate (used somewhat jokingly here) is the motivator and challenger.
Let’s take burpees, or squat thrusts, for example. They are an excellent, full-body, functional exercise. We all hate them, but we do them anyway. I've found that the more I do them, and get better at them, the more I like them.
We all love doing what we’re good at because we’re good at it. Pick something you hate or are bad at and become good at it. Find your challenge and keep going.
Do what you can with what you have, where you are, and always prioritize the positive.
At home mini workout
Do this mini workout at home or the gym, five times through.
• 10 push-ups (from your toes or knees)
• 15 squat jumps (remember to keep your weight back and allow the glutes to do the majority of the work)
• 20 v-ups (either both legs at the same time or alternating legs)
• 25 toe-touch jacks (make sure you come down to touch your toe in a squat rather than a hip hinge)
Melissa Sloos is a certified group fitness instructor, spin instructor and studio manager at Coast Fitness.
