MEET THE TRAINER: NIKHOLAS PARKER
Nikholas received his BS in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison). He found his way into personal training through his lifelong passion for athletics. After growing up in southern Connecticut, Nikholas had multiple athletic offers across collegiate divisions for basketball but ultimately accepted UW-Madison’s track and field program offer.
MEET THE TRAINER: AMANDA HOFFMAN
Amanda Hoffman is a certified personal trainer who recently relocated from Cleveland, Ohio to Pittsburgh. She is super excited to join the PFP team and community. Amanda has specialty certifications in Russian Kettlebell training, Yoga, TRX, and small group training.
SAFETY TIPS FOR SUMMER WORKOUTS
It’s hot outside! Summer months bring humidity as well as heat. Unfortunately, we are likely to see more heat and humidity in the future. So how can you exercise outdoors in these conditions? Let’s look at some safety tips for summer workouts.
UNDERSTANDING SLEEP NEEDS: A LIFELONG JOURNEY
Sleep plays a vital role in our overall well-being, and as we progress through different stages of life, our sleep needs and patterns undergo significant changes. In this blog, we will explore the various stages of life and how sleep is affected during each phase. Additionally, we will discuss common sleep issues that individuals may encounter and provide practical strategies to address them.
SUNS OUT, FUNS OUT: SUMMERTIME FITNESS
Summer is a great time to get outside and be active. It’s an easy time to get the benefits of the sun, get a little sweaty, and have fun with friends. Check out these tips from our Pittsburgh Fitness Project trainers to add a little more movement into your summer!
DO THESE NUTRITIONAL INGREDIENTS HOLD ANY MERIT?
In our quest for a healthier lifestyle, we often come across a multitude of nutritional ingredients that promise to transform our well-being. From matcha and turmeric to activated charcoal and probiotic foods, these trendy ingredients have garnered attention for their potential benefits. But before we jump on the bandwagon, it's crucial to examine their merits and understand if they truly live up to the hype.
UNDERSTANDING RESISTANCE TRAINING SKILL LITERACY
While physical literacy covers a diverse spread of skill sets in a variety of environments, it is worth asking, “Is there a specific benefit to having youth in gyms and weight rooms?”. The short answer is, yes. The reason is that performing resistance training movements can grow one’s understanding of how to use their muscles and move their body. This skill is called resistance training skill literacy (RTSL).
DOES THE TIMING OF MY MEALS MATTER?
The frequency and timing of nutritional intake is a topic that is debated and questioned, and we’re here to clear a bit of that up for you.
PITTSBURGH PRIDE MONTH
This year numerous events will be happening around the city for Pittsburgh Pride. The Pittsburgh Fitness Project will be hosting several events during Lawrenceville Pride on Saturday, June 17th.
GOAL SETTING AT PFP
This month at PFP, we introduced a more formalized goal-setting process and instituted weekly check-ins. We have done this to help better frame out workouts, add an additional layer of accountability, and help our coaches communicate better with all of the members at Pittsburgh Fitness Project.
TURNING ACCESSORIES INTO SUCCESSORIES
Accessory work is additional exercises or modalities that are added to your program to help you build strength, improve position, improve technical abilities, or even reduce pain caused by inefficiencies. Whatever accessory work you decide to do it should have a clear purpose for being your program, especially if you have limited time to train.
5 TIPS FOR WORKING OUT AS YOU AGE
You’re tired after a long day. You’re achy. You probably don’t feel like doing a workout. But working out gets even more important as you age. Over the long haul, working out protects our joints and gives us energy. What can we do to maintain our health and well-being as we get older? Let’s look at these 5 tips for working out as you age. But you can apply them to yourself no matter how old you are.
RECOVERY: THE BEST WAYS TO RESTORE YOUR BODY
Recovery is a commonly used term to describe the physiological processes that bring our bodies back to equilibrium after we encounter stress. Stress is another big word that may be summed up as the things we encounter in our lives (environment, social interactions, physical activity) that have the ability to affect us. These stressors move our body away from equilibrium, or homeostasis as it's called in physiology textbooks. This happens due to the release of hormones like epinephrine and cortisol (stress markers), that cause the body to react in a way that physiologically moves us away from homeostasis. Recovery modalities aim to augment our natural recovery processes so that homeostasis is reported more quickly.
REPETITION MAXIMUMS & AUTOREGULATION
Everyone loves max-out days at the gym. These days are usually saved for the end points of training blocks and programs. The chance to test your strength and skill can seem very tantalizing because it gives you the opportunity to display the result of all the work you have done. While this is a normal time to use rep maxes, it is not the only use for them. Rep maxes can serve many purposes in a program. Whether it is to get an idea of how you are reacting to the program or indicate that you need change, rep max testing can give you a glimpse of how well or not well your training is going.
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR CARDIO EQUIPMENT
At Pittsburgh Fitness Project, we have a great selection of three types of cardio equipment you may choose from when looking to get the heart rate pumping. These are the air bike, the rower, and the self-propelled treadmill. PFP Method classes regularly use them to complete interval-style training as part of daily workouts. Weight lifters also get moving on cardio equipment for warmups and conditioning circuits. Each style of cardio equipment is unique in the movement patterns they challenge your body with, and because of this, there are a few things to consider when choosing your cardio equipment to make sure YOU have a great workout. Read on to learn what makes each piece of equipment shine.
SETTING NEW TRAINING GOALS AFTER A COMPETITION
Competing in your first competition or even just another one years down the road? Well, then, it's time to analyze and reevaluate your goals and what you’ve done. Whether it is hitting a new maximum weight, a new placing, or a new best time in an event, the time has come to restructure training and set forth new goals for yourself. The purpose at this point is to see what was done well and what might need improvement. This can come in the form of changing training frequency, entire movement patterns, training times, or trying an entirely new training style. Whatever you decide, the first step is the evaluation of yourself and previous training.
WHAT IS DOMS? DELAYED ONSET MUSCLE SORENESS
The term of DOMS is thrown around very casually in physical activity settings, but what is it?
MAXIMAL ATTEMPTS: MENTAL & PHYSICAL APPROACH
You have finally reached the point in your program where you’ll be taking maximal attempts. Whether these are snatches and clean and jerks or bench presses, squats, and deadlifts, they will no doubt challenge what you have worked for up until this point. Maximal attempts are just that, they call for us to exert both our reserve of strength as well as require the highest level of technique and precision that we can muster at that moment. Not only are our physical capabilities challenged but our mental capacity to focus and overcome what is in front of us. It is, without a doubt, extremely difficult but you are more than capable of doing so.
TEEN WEIGHTLIFTING AT PFP BARBELL
The Teen Weightlifting Program at PFP Barbell is designed to introduce teens to barbell exercises and movement in a safe, positive, and supportive environment.
VARIATION IN TRAINING: WHY DO IT?
One of the main reasons people start training/exercising is because it can be fun and challenging. There comes a certain point when you do the same things over and over they can become boring and unfulfilling. This usually leads to people dropping exercise altogether or resorting to making changes with no real plan for why. Another phenomenon that occurs is called the law of accommodation. This basically states that our bodies will eventually adjust to the stimulus we enact on them and that in order to see results, we must keep challenging it. Although, how much change is enough?