I went to the gym with a plan in mind. I was going to use the foam roller, do some kind of cardio for 20 minutes, and then sit in the sauna. Plans got destroyed when I finished my 20 minute run on the treadmill and decided to use the foam roller for a few more minutes. One of the trainers (Dave) was nice enough to show me how to stretch my glutes using a small ball. It can get deeper into the muscles than the foam roller.
We started talking about my back issues and my background in gymnastics and cheerleading. Dave ended up spending 20 minutes with me, going over different ways to work my abs besides crunches. My rectus abdominals are overworked and everything else is under worked. He also showed me some exercises that target multiple muscle groups. Instead of doing a circuit and working one muscle at a time, I can do one or two different exercises and work more major muscles. My workouts are usually limited to my lunch hour so that was a major score.
(I'd love to share some of the exercises with you guys but he went over so many that I'm have trouble remembering. I'm going to try to write everything down later on tonight)
I'm always afraid to approach trainers, especially since I'm not paying for a session. But he said that if I ever see a trainer hanging around, just ask what his or her favorite core exercise is. Learning a new move or two a week would be great!
~Do any of you know any good core moves? Or websites with exercise demos?~
I am always scared to approach trainers too, but during a recent class I was taking a trainer took 20 minutes to talk to me about my knee and what I can do to help it. He also recommended a running coach to me that ALSO did a free consultation to help me with my knee. Tons of help all for free! Amazing.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice guy. It just goes to show that all you have to do is ask :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your evening!