Secrets That The Fitness & Diet Industry Don't Want You To Know

Core & Ab Exercises Without Using Expensive Fitness Equipment

Here's an awesome video tutorial we put together for you on how to strengthen your core & abs while using a "stability ball." As you will see, we will go through alot of challenging exercises without spending thousands of dollars on expensive fitness equipment.

I know most of you probably have a stability ball at home, but are you using it? Chances are you probably only know 1-3 exercises. Today we are going to show you over 10 core and ab exercises that you can do in the comforts of your home.

Here are some of the core exercises that you will learn:

• Plank
• Push up
• Leg curl
• Lunge
• Pikes, Tucks, & Log roll
• Dumbell rows
• Rear dealth flys
• Y's,T's, W's
• Hyperextensions

In addition, I will be showing the various progressions and regressions of all these exercises.

Watch this video over and over again to get new ideas on how to use the stability ball correctly. This piece of fitness equipment is really inexpensive. Most sporting good stores charge $15-$30 dollars a ball depending on the size.

If you have a any questions or comments about any of these exercises please write them below.

Check out these people who decided not to waste their money on expensive fitness equipment CLICK HERE

Quick Kettlebell Training Routine For Your Busy Life East Bay

Heres a quick and easy kettlebell training routine that you can do in the comfort of your home without going to the gym.

Watch the first five kettlebell training videos that we previously shown before doing this routine to make sure you are doing the movements correctly.

Here are the exercises in order:

1. kettlebell swings
2. kettlebell darcy throws
3. kettlebell clean & press
4. kettlebell snatches
5. kettlebell deck squats

Jenn performed each exercise in a very short amount of time, but there are variations that you can do to make this routine more challenging.

Instead of counting reps, do each movement for 45-60 second intervals and then without stopping, move onto the next exercise. Complete each routine for 3 sets around.

This routine when done right shouldn't take no more than 15 minutes.  Do this routine 2-3 days a week.

Another variation to this routine is counting reps and doing each exercise for 12-15 reps on each arm and then going into the next exercise without stopping. When performed right this variation can also be done in 20 minutes.

Watch this video over and over again to make sure you doing all the exercises correctly.

Kettlebell training is a great way to:

• Increase muscular endurance
• Strengthen your core
• Improve cardio endurance
• Increase metabolism
• Promote weight loss at a fast pace

If you want to learn more about kettlebells and the benefits of it CLICK HERE.

Lose Weight Without Fitness Equipment East Bay

If you live in the East Bay and are looking for weight loss, the best way is to achieve this is to not use any fitness equipment. You don't need to spend alot of money on a gym membership or some piece of fitness equipment you saw on late night television.

All you need is your own body weight. The best way for weight loss is to start doing functional training. Functional training is a style which incorporates resistance and cardio training with your own body weight. Functional training also involves free motion exercises that mimics everyday movement.

There is one piece of fitness equipment that you can purchase that is highly effective in your goals of weight loss. The TRX is a brand new piece of equipment that involves functional training that is shown to increase weight loss at a faster rate than traditional weight training.

You can hang the TRX anywhere and get a great workout. The first time I used the TRX, I was completely amazed on how hard and challenging it was. Basically, when exercising on the TRX, you are engaging your upper body and core. This is extremely hard because you are working against your body weight.

 

The TRX is just like kettlebell training in that it promotes weight loss at a faster rate and can be taken anywhere for a quick workout.

So if you don't like spending long hours in the gym or lifting weights, then this kind of fitness equipment is the best alternative.

Check out these trainers who specialize in functional training CLICK HERE

Gym Review on Crunch Fitness In The Bay Area

Hey everyone!  I just got done doing a killer workout at Crunch Fitness in Blackhawk. It was previously a Bally Total Fitness, but Crunch took over the building. (Hint don't buy a membership at Bally Total Fitness because they are going out of business)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are the reason's why Crunch Fitness is so unique and more cutting edge than traditional health clubs. They offer a fun,cool, and trendy service.

When I first entered the Blackhawk location, I was greeted by a friendly front desk staff and was given a quick tour of the facility. The bathrooms had flat screen T.Vs, leather couches, and a lot of other amenities. After touring the bathroom, I was shown the workout floor. It was big, with alot of free motion machines, clean free weight area, and had a brand new cardio theater.  

I was also given the oppurtunity to workout at the other Crunch locations in San Francisco this weekend. One of the clubs is located inside a old opera theater. Inside the gym, the stage was turned into a group exercise room and the movie screen played music videos.

One of the locations had a shower room where you can see into the other shower.

Overall, this is a really cool and hip health club. I see this company being able to successfully compete against the other big corporate gyms in the future. They are so unique with their offers that they will probably become the "800 Pound Gorilla" in the health club industry.

Although the looks and shiny bells that they offer are great, there is a downside. They are an expensive club to join and their personal trainers are extremely over-priced. If you are willing to pay alot of money for the look of your fitness club, then Crunch Fitness is the place for you.

But if you want serious results with fitness professionals that care CLICK HERE

4 Big Reasons Why You Shouldn't Join a East Bay Bally Total Fitness

Today I am going to give my next health club review on Bally Total Fitness Clubs in the East Bay. To those of you that know me, you know that I worked for this company for 6 years as a personal trainer and managed a couple of their fitness centers.

 

For those of you that have been following the fitness industry or watch the news, you know this company is not doing well financially. Bally Total Fitness filed for Chapter 11 twice in 2009. For the last two years they have closed over 300 hundred clubs nationwide.

So if you're thinking about joining this health club, I repeat, don't waste your money. There are a couple of reasons why this club is not doing well and I will explain them.

1. Bally Total Fitness is being run by investors that don't know anything about the fitness industry. They have been trying to manage and operate this million dollar company like a car dealership. They don't care about the quality of the gym, the experience for it's members, or compensating their staff correctly. They aren't selling fitness or motivating its members anymore. They just want to make money and they don't care how they do it.
2. Bally Total Fitness is trying to save money by laying off its employees and lowering the pay of its employees. They laid off the housekeeping staff from all the clubs. The main reason why their clubs are struggling is because most of their fitness centers are dirty and disgusting because they are trying to save money by having the personal trainers, sales reps, and front desk staff clean toilets.
3. At one time, Bally Total Fitness had really good operators in the club as well as talented personal trainers. Since the pay cut, a lot of the best employees have left the company to start their own business or work for the up-start company "Crunch Fitness." Now Bally's has to hire underqualified personal trainers (just like 24 hour fitness) and end up promoting employees to management positions when they have no business running a $100,000 dollar health club.
4. The sales reps are so desperate to sell memberships now that they are using car salesman tactics to close "YOU" on a long term contract. If you watched my other video on how east bay health club scams, then you know that you should never sign a long term contract with a gym. Because this company filed bankrupcy twice in one year, you don't know if they are going to close their doors on you and never return your money.

Last year Bally Total Fitness closed the Utah market without telling the staff or managment. One day the members and staff went to work and saw chains on the door.

Bally's never gave the members their money back or bothered transfering their employees to another health club.

If Bally's treats their employees like "CRAP" they will definetley treat "YOU" the same.

So if you live near a Bally Total Fitness in the Bay Area, run away and join another club. My prediction in the next 5-8 years, they will not be around.

Most likely they will be bought out by "CRUNCH FITNESS."

If you're pissed with your current health club or have been ripped off by a gym in the past CLICK HERE to see how we treat our clients.

Things to Know Before Joining an East Bay 24 Hour Fitness Club

Over the next couple of weeks I will be doing reviews of East Bay health clubs and sharing my personal experience about each one I go to.

I'm going to start with an East Bay 24 Hour Fitness Club that I recently worked out at for the last 3 days. For the most part, it was like most fitness centers during January, extremely crowded, all the cardio equipment was taken, and every sales rep was trying to sell me on a "New Years Special."

My experience at 24 Hour Fitness was good overall. The clubs I visited had nice equipment, were a big facility, had good energy, and the employees were friendly.

 

 

 

Here are the things I didn't like about 24 Hour Fitness:

• During prime time hours, you can only use the cardio equipment for 20 minutes and then you must get off. I think that is stupid, it should be first come, first serve.
  
• Because the fitness center is open 24 hours a day, the condition of the gym is always dirty and messy. Dumbells are never racked, paper towels/water bottels are everywhere, and the bathrooms are disgusting.
• Personal trainers in most of these facilities are terrible. The requirement to get a job at 24 Hour Fitness is completely below standard. Anyone with a heartbeat can get a job. 90% of fitness trainers at 24 Hour Fitness aren't certified. They are mostly 19-21 years old, extremely unprofessional, and the only knowledge they seem to posses about fitness is from a muscle magazine.

Overall, the majority of East Bay 24 Hour Fitness clubs are good clubs to join.  Membership is cheap, they always have the latest equipment, and staff is friendly. They just lack knowledgeable fitness professionals to give good advice to its members.

*But I repeat do not waste money on their personal trainers, they are really terrible and bad representatives of what a fitness professional should be.

If you want serious fitness results from professionals that don't guess what they are doing with their clients, CLICK HERE watch this video.

 

Part 5: Kettlebell Wood Chop To Tone & Firm Abs East Bay

Part 5 in our video series is the kettlebell "wood chop." It's a great core exercise to tone & tighten your stomach. It's other benefits include  strengthening the lower back and to strengthen your core in dynamic movement.

The best way to start this kettle bell exercise is to start by holding the bell by the horns.

Start the beginning phase of this exercise in the squat position while holding the kettlebell by your side.

Just like the other exercise, all in one motion, thrust your hips, glutes, and hamstrings forward while coming up from the squat.

Once you are up and out of the squat, activate your core.

While your core is activated and tightened, you will now swing the kettlebell in one explosive movement upward in a diagnal plane of motion. Remember this is a core exercise that is using your obliques, back, and abs during this whole movement.

Once you get the bell up in a diagnol position up top, you will now proceed to bring the kettlebell back down in a diagnal range of motion to your beginning point.

While executing this exercise it is very important that you pivot your plant foot every time you swing the kettlebell upward to prevent an injury to your knees from the twisting motion.

Again the "Wood Chop" is an excellent exercise to strengthen & tone your abs.

So if your bored with your current workout routine, switch over to kettlebell training.

 

10 Reasons To Fire Your East Bay Fitness Trainer

If you are currently working with an East Bay fitness trainer, that's great. Hiring a fitness trainer is the best thing for you to invest your money in, especially if you really want to look and feel better about yourself.

But some people have a terrible personal trainer. A good trainer is hard to find, so if you have one that you like and relate with, don't let them go. Good trainers are hard to come by. There are actually more bad trainers than good ones out there.

In this video blog I will give you my top 10 reasons to fire your current east bay fitness trainer.

• Fire your trainer if they are constantly late. You pay good money to have someone train you so the least they can do is show up on time. My mother had a trainer at 24 Hour Fitness and her trainer was always 15-20 minutes late for every session.
• Fire your trainer if they consistently never return your phone calls, text messages, or emails. Your personal trainer should be accessible to you at reasonable times of the day and should return your messages within 24 hours.
• Fire your trainer if they don't follow through with what they say they are going to do. For example, they say they will help you with your nutrition and they never do.
• Fire your trainer if they are having you do the same boring exercises over and over again. There job is to deliver results and they can't help you get to your goals if they are training the same way everytime. They need to mix it up.
• Fire your trainer if they seem they are bored training you. They should have energy and be motivating when they are around you. That's what you paying them for, to help keep you motivated.
• Fire your trainer if they are checking themselves out in the mirror and not paying attention to you and your form. This can be very dangerous especially if you are lifting heavy weight.
• Fire your trainer if they don't listen to your needs. For example, if you want to work on your hips and thighs and your trainer ignores what you want and trains you a totally different way, they are basically ignoring your wants and needs.
• Fire your trainer if they are flirting with your or making sexual references all the time. Chances are they only have one thing on their mind and that's not helping your efforts to get fit.
• Fire your trainer if they are constantly talking about themselves and dumping their baggage on you every session. You are paying them to listen and train you. Your not paying them so you can be their shrink.

This basically comes down to having good customer service skills which is true in any industry. Your fitness trainer needs to be professional, on time, and listens to you what you want.

Please leave a comment below and tell me about your experiences with a personal trainer.

P.S.And if your looking for a personal trainer for the upcoming year to help get you to your fitness goals....Then CLICK HERE

 

Part 4: Kettlebell Darcy Throws Promote Weight Loss East Bay

In our 4th series, Jenn will demonstrate a the "Darcy Throw." This is a great full body workout that promotes weight loss because in this exercise, you are using more 5 major muscles.

The more muscles activated during any exercise at the same time increases the need for more oxygen.  The more oxygen needed to support muscle activation will increase metabolism. The faster your metabolism is, the faster your weight loss efforts will increase east bay.

So here are the muscle parts that are being used during this exercise: 

• lower back
• core
• glutes
• hamstrings
• hip flexor
• shoulders
• trapezius

The kettlebell "Darcy Throw" is the next progression. Just like the first 3 videos, you will want to start in the squat position holding onto the kettlebell by the horns between your legs.

You will then thrust your hips, core, glutes, & hamstrings up and out of the squat position.

While swinging the kettlebell to eye level, you will want to let go of the kettlebell and in mid-air catch the kettlebell with the other hand.

When catching the kettlebell with the other hand it is very important that you control the weight with your core and stabilize so that the weight of the kettlebell pulls your upper body forward.

So when performing this exercise it is very important to use core strength to protect you back from any potential injuries when lowering the weight.

Because this exercise takes a lot of coordination, stability, and activation of many muscles simultaneously, it will help promote weight loss a lot faster than traditional weight training.

Check Out This Video That Shows How You Don't Need To Lift Heavy Weights To Get Weight Loss Results-(Watch Video)

Part 3: Kettlebell Clean & Press Training For Weight Loss East Bay

Here is Part 3 of how kettlebell training can help you lose weight. Kettlebell training is known to promote rapid weight loss. In this video, Jenn demonstrates the "clean."

• Have the kettlebell on the side of your body near your chin. From this position "sit" or squat down & have the kettlebell swing between your legs.
• After having the kettlebell swing between your legs, keep your core tight and in one thrusting motion explode with your hips, core, and glutes forward.
• As you are activating your core muscles, you are going to swing the kettlebell upward towards your upper body. Remember, keep your thumb and arms in tight towards your chin as your swinging the kettle bell up.
• Don't forget to use your glutes, hip flexors, and core to explode the kettlebell forward. Don't try to muscle the kettlebell with your upper body. This is a full body workout.

Remember try this movement with light weight and master the technique correctly before going heavy and moving up in weight.

When done correctly kettlebell training is the best way to lose weight. Many of my clients in the east bay are doing my kettlebell weight loss program and seeing tremendous results.

Watch This Video to see how they are losing weight CLICK HERE

 

Part 3: Interview Clients Before You Hire a Fitness Trainer East Bay

Today I will be going a step further on how to pick your local East
Bay fitness trainer. Have you ever wanted to go to a restaurant that you've never heard of because people are ranting and raving how good it is?

That's how you should decide on locating a fitness trainer. If everyone you know is saying great things about their trainer, then you should go interview them. But before you interview the trainer, interview their past and current clients.

Here are some of the things that you should look for when interviewing their clients:

• How long they have been with their fitness trainer? A good sign to look for if the trainer is good, their retention rate will be high. Do they have a good following or do they tend to have fall off? If they have a great retention rate, then most likely their clients are seeing results.
• What kind of results are they seeing? If you notice someone has been working out with a trainer for quite sometime and you notice that they haven't had any significant change in their body, then most likely that trainer sucks at their job. They either don't know what they are doing or they are terrible at motivating their client. You want a trainer who can push, motivate you, and help you to your fitness goals.
• What are your fitness trainer's workouts like? Ask their clients if their workouts are fun. You want to be apart of something that is enjoyable and fun to go to. Working out should be fun and not a chore. If your having fun with your fitness trainer and with their workouts, you will be motivated to go and continue to do what you got to do to accomplish your fitness goals.

If your looking for a fun and positive workout enviroment, check out this East Bay fitness trainer's workouts HERE

Part 2: Kettlebell Swing For Weight Loss East Bay

The kettlebell swing is the next progression in this video series. It's another exercise that promotes weight loss. Kettlebell training is starting to get more popular here in the East Bay. It is an Eastern European exercise program that has evolved into the mainstream of the fitness industry.

Here is exerise #2 in this video series-"The Kettlebell Swing"

The major muscles that this exercise targets are:

• Glutes
• Hamstrings
• Hip flexors
• Shoulders
• When done correctly, your core

When performing this exercise, you want to hold onto the kettlebell with two hands by the horns. Make sure you have a wide stance and hold the kettlebell between your legs.

The next step is to sit back on your heels and squat to 90 degrees.  In one motion thrust your hips, glutes, and hamstrings forward while coming up from the squat position.

At the same time, activate your core when coming up out of the squat position and swing the kettlebell upward to eye level.

Once you have swung the kettlebell upward and have come up from the squat, you want to control the downward motion of the kettlebell by keeping your core muscles tight to protect it from any potential back injury.

As the kettle bell is coming down from the upright position, make sure you end the exercise back into the squat position at 90 degrees between your legs. As your landing in back into the squat, sit back on your heels and keep your back straight the same way you started the exercise.