NIFS Healthy Living Blog

Ramp Up to Weight Loss is a program designed to do exactly what the name suggests: ramp you up to weight loss. It’s a 16-week program that provides various tools to help you get a head start on achieving your goals. These tools include meeting with a Registered Dietitian, attending coaching sessions to help set and manage goals, and meeting with a trainer twice a week to walk you through workouts. As a weight-loss member, you also have access to the facility and group fitness classes every day. These resources are what makes Ramp Up one of the most popular programs at NIFS.

The Goal: To Teach You How to Reach Your Weight-Loss Goals

The ultimate goal by the end of the 16 weeks is to make sure you feel confident in your own abilities to continue the journey that you are on. Whether you are struggling with nutrition, knowing what to do in the gym, sleep, or stress management, this program provides resources to teach you how to handle these situations in ways that will aid you in achieving goals. We start by setting one long-term goal, then break it down into short-term goals to act as stepping stones to get there. After all of the goals are finalized, we look at what action steps can be taken to achieve them. Setting realistic goals is essential for staying on track, and reaching them builds confidence in your abilities.

Weight loss is not always an easy thing to achieve. It can be a very slow process full of trial and error, ups and downs, and frustrations. There’s not a magic solution that will work for everyone. But, by tackling weight loss from multiple angles—including fitness, nutrition, and behavior—we can figure out what works best based on the individual.

After the Program: Long-Term Membership

So, 16 weeks have passed and you’ve successfully attended all your sessions, received nutritional guidance, and mastered goal setting. However, you’re not quite ready to be on your own yet. After Ramp Up, you can opt to become a long-term weight loss member. This program never expires, and you get one session a week with a trainer, assessments every three months, and coaching sessions. You still have access to the facility and all of the group classes. It’s an extra step to help you transition into continuing the journey on your own.

As trainers, we want not only to teach you how to work out safely and effectively, but to help you build the confidence and knowledge to be able to do it on your own. Being able to independently work out and make healthy choices is essential for long-term weight loss and maintenance. By taking advantage of all of the resources over the course of the program, you can discover what helps you live a healthier life.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

It’s time to get serious about goal setting. Setting goals can help you dig more deeply into fitness and think about what you truly want to accomplish. Goals can range from wanting to walk 1 mile to squatting 2 times your body weight, and absolutely everything in between and beyond. Everyone is on a different path to fitness, so whatever your goals may be is completely up to you.

The current trend in the fitness industry is to lose weight, gain muscle, and look like this girl or that guy that you see on social media. While there’s nothing wrong with setting a weight-based goal, we’re completely missing one major key of what working out can do for you: unlock your potential.

The Pitfalls of Rapid Weight Loss

When we set a goal of losing weight, we often lose sight of the importance of being strong and healthy, and this may lead to behaviors such as disordered eating or excessive exercise. All too often, people just want to get rid of the extra weight quickly. This mindset may encourage rapid weight loss that is not sustainable over the long term. Rapid weight loss can also lead to the loss of muscle mass, instead of fat loss, which is not desirable because muscle plays so many important roles in the body. It drives metabolism (having muscle increases Resting Metabolic Rate), keeps people strong as they age so that they can maintain their independence for as long as possible, and more.

Focus on Performance

The human body is capable of so much more than how much weight it can gain or lose—it has the power to perform. If you want to run a half marathon, you can train to run a half marathon. If you want to deadlift 300 pounds, you can train to do that. You can push the boundaries of your strength and endurance to do the things that may seem impossible right now. By going beyond what you think your limits are, you will adapt to the stress and become stronger. If you limit your goals to how much you would like to weigh, your focus is on what your body is, not what it can do.

It’s perfectly reasonable to have a weight-loss goal. There’s plenty of research describing how losing weight is beneficial for long-term health if one is overweight. However, it is rarely a linear process, and you must be prepared to face ups, downs, and plateaus. Having a goal that revolves around some type of strength or endurance feat will give you something to work toward even during the hurdles of a weight loss journey. You’ll be too distracted trying to do three pull ups or running five miles to notice those tiny, yet frustrating weight fluctuations that are a natural part of weight loss (and in general).

Beyond Your Weight-Loss Goal

Besides, the work doesn’t stop once you have reached your weight goal. The last thing you want to do is gain back what you spent months or years working toward. So if you haven’t yet set a goal beyond weight loss, now would be a great time to do so. The moral of this blog is to remind you that it’s okay to want to weigh “X” amount of pounds, but it’s not in your best interest to limit your body to a goal revolving around a number. You are capable of much more than just weighing a certain amount. Unlock your true potential by knocking down barriers and pushing the limits in and out of the gym.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

One of the most critical things we do for our health is sleep. Without sufficient sleep, we risk impairing cognitive function, developing chronic diseases and mental disorders, and even an early death.

There’s a lot about sleep that remains a mystery to science, but what is known is that it plays a major role in consolidating memories, cleaning metabolites from the brain, and allowing the nervous, skeletal, and muscular systems to repair themselves. Good sleep is essential for our bodies to thrive, but 30 percent of employed adults have reported 6 or less hours of sleep per night, when the recommended amount is between 7 and 9 hours. Hormones directly involved in the sleep cycle also play a critical role in health, so it’s important to maintain a steady sleep schedule to prevent these hormones from becoming imbalanced. One of the hormones that plays a role in sleep is melatonin, and this blog will focus on its effects on sleep as well as metabolism.

The Physiology of Melatonin

The physiology of melatonin is a complex subject, and research to discover its mechanisms and effects is ongoing. However, I will explain some of the things we know to be true about melatonin and why it may be important for you.

Melatonin is a hormone made in the pineal gland when it gets dark outside. When melatonin levels increase in the bloodstream, you begin to feel less alert and more sleepy. Although a major function of melatonin is to encourage sleep, it has a huge impact on metabolism. Some of the functions are these:

• Regulates energy expenditure.
• Potentiates various actions of insulin.
• Regulates glycemia (blood glucose) and lipidemia (blood lipids).
• Manages circadian synchronization of insulin secretion, synthesis, and action; hepatic (liver) metabolism; white adipose tissue metabolism; and skeletal muscle metabolism.
• Regulates energy flow to and from storages.

That’s a lot of responsibility for one hormone. Whereas a lot of these functions are significant, what’s most important to understand is that melatonin balances energy expenditure by controlling the flow between energy stores. It has a direct impact on the browning of white adipose tissue, which is a way for the body to regulate body weight. This works because the function of brown adipose tissue is heat production by burning large amounts of calories. It also plays a major role in regulating glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity. When melatonin levels are normal, all of these essential functions can be carried out.

Chronodisruption

Chronodisruption is what occurs when melatonin production is impaired. This can be due to illumination such as lights turned on inside when it’s nighttime, working the night shift, or aging. All of the functions listed above become disrupted and no longer work efficiently. This disorganization can lead to metabolic diseases and obesity.

The best thing to do if you think you may be experiencing chronodisruption is to talk to a doctor. They may encourage you to try melatonin-replacement therapy, because there have been some successes in various research studies, or help you find a healthier sleeping routine.

Top Takeaways About Sleep and Weight Management

Melatonin is a huge contributor to overall health and metabolism. If disrupted, your whole body can feel the consequences. It might seem like the most important thing to do for your health is healthy eating and exercise, but sleep may be at the top of the list. Without adequate sleep, our hormones lose balance, our mental capacity is reduced, and our overall health is negatively impacted.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

If you’re trying to lose weight, you’ve probably started exercising, maybe you’re trying a new diet, and maybe you’ve been super consistent for months now, but nothing’s changing. You feel like you’re doing everything right, but you haven’t seen any changes on the scale. How can this be? Weight loss is all about diet and exercise, so why aren’t the pounds just falling off? Research suggests there’s more to weight loss and weight management than diet and exercise alone.

Total Daily Energy Expenditure: The Calories You Burn

Throughout the day our bodies expend energy in the form of calories. The components of Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) include Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), Thermic Effect of Food (TEF), and Physical Activity (PA). BMR accounts for about 60% of total daily energy expenditure. This is the amount of calories a body burns at rest. People who have increased muscle mass will have a higher BMR because of the amount of calories muscles use, even at rest. This is one reason why strength training is important for weight loss.

TEF results in roughly 10% of TDEE. This includes chewing food, digestion, absorption, and all other processes that go into consuming and processing food within the body.

The remaining 30% of TDEE is physical activity, which then gets broken down into exercise activity thermogenesis (EAT) and nonexercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). EAT accounts for about 5% of TDEE, while NEAT can contribute as much as 15%.

NEAT vs. EAT

NEAT are the little movements or tasks you do throughout the day, but are not considered moderate to vigorous exercise. This can include walking, taking the stairs, vacuuming, doing the dishes, playing fetch with the dog, talking, standing, tapping your foot, cooking, yard work, and so on. These small tasks vary from 50 to 200 calories per hour. All of these small movements can add up to a significant caloric deficit. On the other hand, EAT is the exercise-type activities like running, weight lifting, and so on.

Exercise is encouraged in weight loss because it can increase muscle mass, improve mood, encourage movement, and so many other benefits. However, if your workout is one hour long and you sleep for 8 hours, there’s still 15 hours of the day in which you might be completely sedentary, which is not ideal for weight loss.

We live in a society that encourages sedentary behaviors throughout the day, for example, working in an office. Meanwhile, over half of leisure time is spent watching television. This means that Americans are spending the majority of their time completely sedentary. This is thought to be one of the causes of the obesity epidemic in the United States.

What Does This All Mean?

To be clear, increasing NEAT activities is not a replacement for exercising. Structured exercise of moderate to vigorous intensity for 150 to 300 minutes a week has countless benefits that have been researched over and over again. However, in overweight and obese patients, adherence to workout programs shows low long-term success. And those who do show success initially seem to gradually gain the weight back. Instead, replacing sedentary behaviors with NEAT-type activities can boost energy expenditure throughout the day while maintaining long-term adherence. Not only is NEAT easier to maintain, but the amount of NEAT activities seems to increase over time.

Overall, weight-loss programs should focus on a healthy diet, a structured workout program, and strategies to decrease sedentary behaviors to increase NEAT. Although the full mechanisms of NEAT still need to be explored in research, there’s plenty of evidence to prove that decreasing sedentary behavior may aid in weight loss when combined with diet and exercise.

For some ideas of increasing NEAT at work and at home, check out this blog.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

Consistency is arguably the most important component when working to accomplish goals, in or out of the gym. Without consistency, programs are unorganized, the body has a harder time adapting, and forming habits may be more challenging.

Build and Follow Workout Programming

Whatever your goals may be, they require a consistent level of training for you to reach them. One way to ensure consistency within the scope of your goals is to build a program. Programs make it much easier to stay on track because you won’t have to think about what you’re going to do at the gym today—it’s already written out. Most programs are designed to be followed for a set amount of time, typically about 4 weeks. Depending on the desired goal, the program will have a different focus—hypertrophy, endurance, strength, and so on. Each day is designed with the goal in mind, while ensuring that you are training in a way that minimizes imbalances within the body. If you aren’t following the program consistently, the chance of it working is reduced.

Theoretically, if you have a program and you don’t follow it, the body is not going to be able to adapt to the program because there isn’t an opportunity for progressive overload, which is when the amount of stress on the body is gradually increased over time, leading to increased strength and performance.

Work Toward Adaptations

Biologically, a lot of things happen in the body during exercise. Over time these reactions change the body to become stronger, grow, or run more efficiently. Different factors affect adaptations in everyone, so it’s impossible to predict when these changes will occur. But being consistent with training will increase the likelihood of seeing adaptations sooner.

Different modes of exercise elicit different adaptations. Endurance training will produce different changes than resistance training. While there are far too many adaptations to discuss in this blog, a few examples reported by the CDC include the following:

• Improved ability of muscles to use fat as energy
• Stronger ligaments and tendons
• Increased VO2 max and lactate threshold
• Increased number of capillaries in muscles
• Cardiac muscle hypertrophy
• Increased force production

Each of these changes is beneficial for different scenarios. The body is either becoming more efficient or stronger, or performance is enhanced. However, these long-term benefits are seen only after consistent training over a period of time.

Create Habits

We are creatures of habit. The more we practice something, the more natural it becomes. We experience this when we learn to walk as babies, when we learn to drive, and when we exercise. It’s normal to feel out of your element when you try something new, but the more you do it, the more comfortable you feel.

Current research suggests that to make a habit stick it must be performed for 68 consecutive days. The idea of sticking with something brand new for 68 days may feel overwhelming for some people. When taking on a new challenge, focusing on taking it day by day might be a helpful mindset. Yes, we might be aiming to create a lifelong habit; however, thinking about just starting a habit to last for years could seem daunting. Start by doing it for one day, and then two, and then three, and so on.

Once you feel comfortable with one small change, add another small change, and so on. Small changes are more sustainable over the long term and add up to form new habits. There will likely be days that your plan doesn’t work out how it was supposed to, but that doesn’t mean all progress is lost.

The Takeaway

Our bodies adapt gradually to exercise. In the end, consistency will help you reach your goals. Without it, you might not have enough structure to allow for growth. Work first on figuring out your goals, determine the best route to achieve them, and get started with one step. If you’re not sure how to get started, the trainers at NIFS can help you set goals and develop programs tailored to those goals.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

Group Fitness is one of the most popular attractions here at NIFS, with more than 60 different classes a month taught by highly qualified instructors. If you’ve never tried group fitness or you’re not sure what it’s all about, this blog is for you.

There’s a ton of variety in our classes, which range from calming yoga to fast-paced Cardio Hip Hop—and everything in between. Group Fitness instructor Tasha Nichols has experience with multiple classes and is here to help you get the inside scoop on Group Fitness and how to get involved.

Q&A with Tasha

Tasha has been involved with NIFS for 10 years as an instructor, and previously was the Group Fitness Coordinator. She has spent much of her career expanding LES MILLS nationally when she’s not instructing classes. Not only is she an incredible instructor, but she has also claimed the title of World Kettlebell Champion.

Q: What classes do you teach? Describe your favorite.

A: I typically teach LES MILLS BODYPUMP, BODYCOMBAT, and BODYJAM. I can’t possibly pick a favorite! I love each format for a different reason. I choose to teach the LES MILLS formats because they are my favorite class styles of any group workout I’ve done. The combination of music and movement is addicting, and the science behind them as well as the preparation involved in each release makes me trust the quality of the program I’m delivering. This trust allows me to focus on delivering the best experience to the participants, whether it’s lifting, punching and kicking, or dancing.

Q: How long have you been teaching group fitness?

A: I just passed my 10-year mark in November! I actually taught my very first class at NIFS back in the day. It was ironically the 6am BODYPUMP class that I teach now. Even after leaving Indy for a few years, it still has some of the same people!

Q: How did you get involved with group fitness?

A: Teaching group fitness was something I always wanted to do. My grandma was a group fitness instructor when aerobics was just becoming a thing, so I grew up hearing lots of stories about her classes. My sister started teaching BODYPUMP when I was in college and I loved her class, so I decided to start by becoming certified in that.

Q: What’s your favorite thing (and least favorite thing) about group fitness?

A: Favorite thing: the energy of a group is very powerful, and the combination of music and movement. There’s a unique ability to get lost in the music that feels incredible.

Least favorite thing: I wish we’d get a little more of a chance to work one on one with everyone, to be able to tweak movements and coach corrective exercises. But, that’s what the awesome trainer team is for at NIFS.

Q: In what ways have your participants benefitted from class?

A: 1: Results 2: I like to think they find a little more joy, fun, and freedom in movement and in life.

Q: What advice would you give to someone who has never taken a group fitness class but wants to get involved?

A: Be brave and talk to the instructor and the people around you. Let them know you are new and don’t be afraid to take options! It’s totally okay (and sometimes necessary) to stay for just part of the class, especially when you’re new. We call it the Smart Start option in LES MILLS classes. We’ve all been new once; we get it! As mentioned above, I’ve been doing this for over 10 years, and after recently having two kids in two years, I’ve found myself taking the Smart Start option quite a bit. It’s all part of the journey, and there are no judgments in my class; I’ve got your back.

Q: Is there a certain skill set or prerequisite to get started in a class?

A: Nope! Just get there a little early (particularly for BODYPUMP) so I can help you get set up.

Q: How do you stay current with your education?

A: Three main ways:

I carry Personal Training and Group Fitness certifications from ACE and AFAA, so I stay up-to-date on their research as well as LES MILLS.

I follow many of the classic strength and conditioning coaches (Mike Boyle, Dan John, etc.) and a few physical therapists who work in the strength and conditioning field.

I also work to gain personal experience in my fields—I trained Brazilian Jiu Jitsu for 2+ years for BODYCOMBAT and have competed (and won) internationally for the kettlebell sport. (#worldchamp #nobigdeal)

Q: Do you teach anywhere other than NIFS? Can you compare them?

A: I don’t teach anywhere else, but I do work for LES MILLS on the business side, which gives me a unique perspective. I run trainings for BODYPUMP and BODYCOMBAT nationally and oversee the development of the assessment criteria for new instructors across all programs globally, so I get to see instructors in all types of gyms. But at the end of the day, NIFS is still my favorite place to train, and I think the participants who come to my classes are the best in the world. You all are my favorites.

Group Fitness at NIFS

Our Group Fitness Instructors at NIFS are dedicated to helping clients reach their fullest potential by ensuring they have all the tools necessary to succeed. Tasha is just one out of several amazing instructors who is here to help you reach your goals. Their drive to help our clients is what has made Group Fitness the most popular program at NIFS.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

By this point, everyone has heard that exercise is good for health. The fitness industry has been growing significantly over the past decade. As of 2017, there were more than 200,000 health and fitness clubs worldwide, which is up from nearly 130,000 clubs in 2009. Clearly, fitness is becoming a huge part of peoples’ lives. But why are we seeing this massive growth in the industry, and in what ways is it improving health?

The Physical Benefits

The physical benefits of increased activity include the following.

Increased Muscle Mass

A well-known benefit to working out is increased muscle mass. This alone has so many benefits to your health besides the visual appeal that people seek. Muscle is a huge driver for metabolism. In fact, it takes so much energy to maintain muscle mass that having more of it increases metabolism significantly, even at rest.

Improved Bone Health

Most people hit peak bone mass in early adulthood. After we hit our peak, our bone density begins to decline. Several factors go into how much we build before we hit our peak and how fast we fall once over that peak. And of course, exercise is a huge factor in this. Weight-bearing activity that forces you to challenge gravity is huge in preserving or even building bone density by breaking down the bone so it can build back even stronger.

Better Sleep

Exercise can improve sleep quality by expelling built-up energy. Another way sleep improves is the cycle of body temperature brought on by exercise. During activity the temperature increases; once activity has stopped the temperature gradually decreases, causing chemicals to be released that promote drowsiness.

Increased Energy and Stamina

In the short term, exercise increases blood flow throughout the body to improve energy. Over time, exercise causes improvements in cardiovascular health, allowing the heart to pump more oxygen-rich blood throughout the body, therefore increasing energy.

Reduced Cholesterol

When exercise, weight loss, and dietary intervention are combined, the LDL (bad) cholesterol levels decrease while HDL (good) cholesterol levels increase.

Decreased Risk of Chronic Diseases

If you’ve ever heard the phrase “exercise is medicine,” it will be no surprise that exercise actually reduces the risk of chronic diseases. Various things happen in the body to cause this, but the most important is that by getting active, the chances of developing Type 2 Diabetes, some cancers, stroke, heart disease, and more are drastically reduced.

Increased Coordination and Balance

By staying active, people learn how to be more coordinated and balanced. Motor control over movements becomes more natural the more it is practiced, and will translate to real-life scenarios. In the long run, especially through aging, this is beneficial to help prevent falls and the negative consequences, such as fractured bones, that come along with them.

The Mental Benefits

The mental benefits of increased activity include the following.

• Stress relief
• Positive mood
• Improved mental alertness
• Reduced anxiety and depression
• Improved self-esteem
• Increased cognitive function

Most of these improvements occur due to the increased blood flow to the brain, which acts on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. This area of the brain interacts with several other regions, including the limbic system, hippocampus, and amygdala, which are correlated with motivation, mood, and responses to stress. Other noted improvements may be explained by providing distraction, improving self-efficacy, and increasing social interaction. Research shows that exercise can improve cognitive function by promoting neuroplasticity. By staying active throughout adulthood and senior years, cognitive decline can be prevented.

Although many mechanisms go into this complicated process, one thing that is known is that the rate of neurogenesis, or the production of new neurons, is greatly increased by exercise. This may be the result of increased blood flow to the brain during exercise, with an abundance of oxygen and nutrients.

Other Benefits

A lot of benefits that come from exercise can be measured or researched. Some benefits are harder to measure but still occur. We learn how to set realistic yet challenging goals, learn the discipline needed to accomplish those goals, and learn more about ourselves. We can gain a better understanding of how much we can push ourselves and improve our mind-body connection.

How Much Should You Work Out?

The current Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans outlines the recommended amount of activity for different age groups. Adults should do at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise a week. Most health benefits can start to be seen at the minimum amount; however more benefits are seen beyond 300 minutes of activity a week. Adults should also do some type of resistance-training exercise at least two days of the week.

At NIFS, we have multiple group fitness classes every day to help you reach your goals and hit the minimum requirements. Check out the group fitness schedule for 30–60-minute classes to help you achieve at least 150 minutes of exercise a week.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.

How do you define fitness? Whatever your answer is, it will shape the way you work out, influence the goals you set, and impact your long-term health. Although everyone might have different perceptions of what “fitness” means, the American College of Sports Medicine has defined what Health-Related Physical Fitness is and has broken it down into five measurable components.

Whether you know it or not, you use every single component in everyday life, so incorporating all of these factors is vital to maintaining high quality of life. As people age, their ability to carry out certain tasks may become compromised if they don’t regularly challenge their bodies to perform them. So, one key to aging well is to incorporate all of the components of health-related physical fitness.

The 5 Components of Health-Related Physical Fitness

• Body composition is the comparison between fat mass and fat-free mass, where fat-free mass is everything that isn’t fat, including muscle, organs, bones, and so on. This proportion can be used to assess risk for potential health issues, or used as a baseline measure to be retested after you have started a program to track progress. There are several ways to measure body composition; the most accurate methods are water displacement or the BodPod. (See the complete list of NIFS assessments here.)
• Muscular strength is the amount of force a muscle can produce in a single maximal effort. Muscular strength is relative to a specific muscle group, so a few different tests may need to be conducted to get an overall picture of your strength. A grip strength test is popular and has been utilized frequently in the fitness world. Another is the Repetition Maximum test that can be conducted by the NIFS Health and Fitness Instructors. It is important to gain or maintain muscular strength as you age for many reasons, but we use our strength every day.
• Muscular endurance, by definition, is the ability of a muscle group to execute repeated contractions over a period of time sufficient to cause fatigue. Like muscular strength, it varies depending on the muscle group, so multiple tests are required for a proper assessment. A common muscular endurance test is the pushup test (you’re probably familiar with this test from grade school). Another is the plank test, which is relatively new, and is a way to get a baseline value for core endurance and use it as a reference for retesting to measure improvements.
• Flexibility is having the ability to move a joint through its full range of motion. Having sufficient flexibility can help prevent injuries and ensure that you’re capable of performing movements that you may need in daily life. While having enough flexibility is necessary, too much can be risky.
• Cardiovascular endurance is the ability of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems to deliver oxygen to the rest of the body during continuous exercise. It’s directly correlated to our ability to perform exercise that involves large muscles, dynamic movements, and moderate- to high-intensity workouts over a period of time. Having adequate cardiovascular endurance is vital to keep up with daily activities.

Start with Things You Like to Do and Then Branch Out

If your main goal is to achieve good health, you’ll want to make sure you distribute your training so you can hit all of the categories. Start by doing things you like to do and then branch out by trying new things. It’s common for people to tailor their training to one particular component for whatever goal they are trying to achieve, but to be lacking in most of the other areas. For example, a marathon runner might excel in cardiovascular endurance but be less than average in muscular strength or flexibility.

On the other hand, someone who only lifts heavy weights may lack cardiovascular endurance. However, the runner may start to notice running is easier after incorporating resistance training into their routine, or their muscles might feel great after adding stretching and mobility work. This doesn’t just apply to marathon runners or heavy lifters; almost everyone can benefit from including all 5 components into their routines.

To sum it up, you should practice different forms of exercise to achieve a holistic fitness regimen. It’s perfectly fine to include running, resistance training, or group fitness such as yoga or STEP, and that’s just a few examples. There are so many different activities and classes to try to help get you to your goals. When you blend different types of training, you can discover your talents, weak links, and things you just enjoy doing.

This blog was written by Hannah Peters, BS, CPT, Health Fitness Instructor. To learn more about the NIFS bloggers, click here.