Ask the Trainer Corner

Member Appreciation Days:

"Ask the Personal Trainer"

Have questions about a training regiment? Nutrition? Losing weight?

Come chat with one our personal trainers and get answers to these and all other questions. You will also have the opportunity to get your body fat tested and get weighed on our high tech digital scale.

Upcoming Dates:

Tuesday March 10th 11:30AM-1PM with Mike @ Malkin Athletic Center

Friday, April 3rd 12:30-1:30pm with Jason @ Hemenway Gymnasium

Question of the Month

Question: “I have this stubborn fat around my midsection that just doesn’t seem to go away no matter what I do; any ideas to finally get rid of it”?

Personal Trainer, Jason Carriveau's Answer: Well guess what, you’re not the only person with this problem. There are a lot of people that I see at the gym every day doing cardio and strength training and say they have a “good diet”.
You have to sit back and take a look at what you’re currently doing for your exercise program. How many days a week do you go to the gym or break a sweat? Is your diet complete with healthy fats, proteins and complex carbohydrates? How bad do you want to get rid of that stubborn fat? It’s these questions that need to be answered truthfully and only then can you begin a quest to abolish that nagging midsection, thigh and lower back body fat.

Let’s take a look at these questions in detail:

1. How many days a week do you go to the gym or break a sweat?
Many people don’t put in enough time at the gym or engage in activities that require the amount of work necessary to get rid of those last few pounds. The human body is designed to maintain a certain amount of body fat and just doesn’t like to lose it easily. Two days a week is not going to cut it unless you already have a really low body fat to start with. 3-5 days a week is the minimum amount necessary to get the results you want. Intensity also plays a large role in getting rid of those last few pounds. You have to push your body to a new level and keep your workouts varied to create new challenges for your body. New routines and varied exercise will help your body to respond by burning more calories.

2. Is your diet complete with healthy fats, proteins and complex carbohydrates?
You need a combination of good foods in order to keep your body looking and running the way it’s supposed too. There are a lot of fads out there that have scared many people away from fats and carbohydrates but your body needs these fuels to not only get through a strenuous workout but for recovery as well. Healthy fats consisting of olive oil, flax seeds, fish body oils, to name a few are very important in order to keep your body and brain functioning optimally as well as aiding in burning up stored body fat. Protein is just another key to the puzzle, amino acids are vital to maintaining lean muscle mass and other bodily functions. If you haven’t looked at your diet closely then maybe it’s time, you can’t out train a poor diet.

3. How bad do you want to get rid of that stubborn fat?
This might sound like a silly question but you need to answer this one to seriously change your body composition. Do you really want to put in the time needed and plan out your meals for the day? How important is it to you to get rid of those last few pounds of annoying fat? Only you have the power to change and make the commitment to yourself to get rid of those last few pounds!

If you have a burning fitness question visit the Ask the Trainer table on Tuesday, February 10th at the MAC. Interested in personal training this spring? Simply complete a Personal Training request form and submit it to Fitness Program Manager.