Blog - lifeSport Fitness

Welcome to lifeSport Fitness!

November 8, 2010 By Becky Leave a Comment

If you want to lose weight, get toned muscles, or decrease your risk for chronic disease, you’ve come to the right place! lifeSport Fitness has been helping get the residents of San Jose, Los Gatos and Campbell fit since 1989. There’s a lot of misleading information out there about how to get in shape and lose body fat. We take your health seriously by staying on the cutting edge of what’s new and relevant in fitness training.

We’ve got a number of programs to help you look better, feel better and have more energy.

If you want private, personalized attention in your fitness transformation, we suggest you visit our personal training page. We can train you at your home*, your office, or at a private personal training studio in Campbell. We’ll design a program specific to your needs and tailored to your goals. If you have a chronic health condition or simply prefer individualized attention our premiere personal training program is for you!

If you are on a budget, or prefer to work out with others, try our fitness boot camps located in San Jose (Downtown/Rosegarden area and Cambrian/Almaden area), Los Gatos an Campbell. These workouts are non-stop action and non-stop fun! You get a never-the-same twice professionally designed workout, supervision by a coach, and the motivation of working out with other fitness-minded people for a fraction of the cost of personal training!

If you’re a Benefits Manager at a Silicon Valley company and you need to develop a corporate wellness program, let us be your wellness team! We can administer your Health Risk Appraisal, create a wellness program and incentive plan specifically geared toward your corporate culture and your health care cost management goals.

Filed Under: Featured, Fitness Training Tagged With: boot camp in Los Gatos, campbell boot camp, downtown boot camp, personal trainer in Willow Glen, San Jose boot camp

Holiday Fitness Gift Ideas from San Jose Boot Camp

November 30, 2011 By Becky 7 Comments

Happy Holidays! It’s that time of year again to begin creating a holiday gift shopping list.

If you have a fitness enthusiast on your list, giving them a fitness/exercise related gift is a great way to give them a very personalized gift you know they’ll use and enjoy.

If you have a person on your gift list who is currently out of shape and wishes to improve their health, what better way to support and encourage them than to give them an exercise or health-related gift!

Just about everyone we know (including ourselves) needs to change up their routine, get some new workout gear, or pamper their hard-working body.

So….. with improved or continued health and fitness in 2012 as the theme, here are 12 holiday gift ideas that will fit any budget:

Gifts under $25

Drop-in pass for yoga, pilates or boot camp class

We all need to “change it up” from time to time. Giving a friend a pass to try new workouts is a great way to encourage them to try new things or simply get up off the couch. Buy a pass for yourself and make it an opportunity to spend quality time with someone you care about.

Ideas: Tru-Balance Pilates www.tru-balance.com, lifeSport Fitness boot camps! (shameless plug!!)

Jump rope

A jump rope is one of my favorite go-to pieces of equipment for interval training and circuit training. It’s also a great travel workout accessory. It’s easy to pack and can be used almost anywhere. A jump rope makes a great stocking stuffer!

Foam roller

Foam rollers are wonderful for massaging sore muscles and working out kinks in tight muscles. You can click the image below to learn more about foam rollers

Gifts under $50

Medicine ball

Medicine balls are a great addition to someone’s home workout arsenal. You can use them for core training, strength training and cardio training!

Idea: www.performbetter.com

Exercise DVD

For people who work out at home, an exercise DVD is a great gift! You can find DVDs on any type of exercise including strength training, yoga, pilates, kick boxing, and even complete medicine ball workouts.

Idea: www.collagevideo.com

Gift card for a sporting goods store

If you don’t know what your fitness enthusiast friend might like, a gift card to a local sporting goods or activewear store is an idea to consider.

Ideas: www.SportsAuthority.com, www.lucy.com

A set of exercise bands

Bands are another great tool for a home exerciser’s workout tool box. They’re also great for travel. You can get 4 bands of different strengths for well under $50! Click the image below for more information:

Gifts Under $100

Massage gift certificate

I haven’t met a fitness enthusiast who doesn’t love a good professional massage. ‘Nuff said.

Ideas: Roman Paradigm Massage, Dana Dobrenz massage therapy, BodyWork by Roger

Cross training shoes

Good shoes are important. It may be hard to choose the right shoe and size for someone else, but a gift card to a shoe store that offers professional fitting advice is the next best thing

Ideas: Athletic Performance (Willow Glen and Los Gatos locations)

Gifts under $200

One month at a fitness bootcamp

This is giving a true gift of fitness! One month of professionally designed, calorie-blasting workouts and personalized attention for the special person on your list!

Idea: BootCamp in San Jose (yes, I know, another shameless plug)

A package of personal training sessions

If the person on your list isn’t a “group” person, or needs one-on-one help, a few sessions with a professional fitness coach may be just what they need to get them started safely.

Ideas: Personal training in San Jose (oh, geez, there I go again!)

TRX Suspension Training System

This is one of my all-time favorite home exercise devices! You can use it at home, at the park, and even in a hotel room. Click on the image below to find out more about this amazing exercise equipment.

Okay. So that’s my list of a dozen ideas for great exercise, health and fitness related gifts.

Let’s get some more exercise and health related gift ideas going!

What other items should we add to my list? Leave a comment here your exercise or health related gift ideas!

Wishing you a happy holiday season and a healthy 2012!

Becky

Filed Under: Exercise ideas, Fitness Training Tagged With: "boot camp in San Jose", fitness gift ideas, foam rollers, holiday gift ideas, personal training in San Jose, San Jose massage therapy, TRX trainer

Corporate Fitness: Setting a Culture of Wellness in the Workplace

October 13, 2011 By Becky Leave a Comment

Corporate fitness programs aren’t just for big companies with big budgets.

It’s no secret that as a society we’re getting fatter. This poses an expensive problem for companies who are paying for health care plans for their employees. Overweight individuals statistically cost their employers more due to more medical visits, more sick days taken and higher usage of prescription drugs when compared to average weight individuals. Creating and encouraging a culture a of wellness through a program of corporate fitness for employees just makes good fiscal sense.

Large companies often have robust health and wellness programs complete with professionally staffed fitness centers, onsite clinics and a host of other offerings that only a large budget can handle. However, small companies with small budgets can most definitely embrace and encourage wellness at the workplace as well.

Corporate fitness success stories in small companies

There are small companies right here in Silicon Valley that are taking steps to create a healthier workforce and proving that it doesn’t cost a fortune to foster a culture of wellness at the workplace. It simply takes top level support, a little creativity and some dedication to finding cost effective resources. Last year I met with one of the partners at San Jose accountancy firm Abbot Stringham Lynch (www.aslcpa.com) and was really impressed with things they’ve put in place for their employees in order to encourage healthy habits. Although they’d be considered a small company with just 55 people at the firm, they planned and built an on-site fitness center when they took over the building in which they operate. On-site showers make it convenient for employees to get cleaned up before heading back to their desks. In their on-site self service kitchen they’ve got pantries, refrigerators and freezers filled with snacks and food that can be put together to create a meal. This offers employees an easy way to grab a quick piece of fruit in the afternoon, or put together a salad for lunch. The firm had a surge in births amongst employees, so they created a “mother’s room” where female employees can take few minutes to collect breast milk for their infants. Although this may not seem to be part of a “health and wellness” plan, I’d say it goes a long way towards employee satisfaction. Happy, well cared for employees are going to be more productive employees.

Bay area mortgage lender RMR Financial (www.rmrfincancial.com) has given employees pedometers to track their steps, and they’ve purchased access to an online accountability program (www.virginhealthmiles.com) where employees can log exercise activities and get incentive rewards. Employees can also track their fitness/weight loss progress at a measurement station right in the office. We recently awarded RMR Financial with our “Healthy Business of the Month” award because they’re a small local company putting an effort into employee wellness. In order to honor and support their efforts at making employee wellness a priority, we gifted their employees with a free one-month membership to our fitness boot camps in San Jose and Los Gatos. We look at it as a win-win-win for all concerned: RMR Financial has another fitness “offering” for their employees (that cost them nothing), the employees get a great workout several times a week to help improve their fitness, and we get to help a few more of our community members get in shape by helping them lose body fat and tone their muscles!

If there’s a notion out there in SiliconValley that only the larger companies have or can afford fitness and wellness programming, these two cases studies show this isn’t true. Whether a company has a huge budget, a small budget, or even NO budget, wellness at the workplace can be fostered.

Health care costs are going to keep spiraling higher. The best cost containment method Silicon Valley Companies can employ is to help their employees move more and eat better.

Filed Under: Boot camp workouts, free workouts Tagged With: Abbot Stringham Lynch, corporate fitness San Jose, low cost corporate fitness programs, RMR Financial, wellness program

How to Stay Fit While Traveling in San Jose

October 5, 2011 By Becky Leave a Comment

Business and vacation travel can wreak havoc on one’s efforts to lose weight and stay in shape. Luckily for those traveling to San Jose, there are many venues and opportunities to stay fit while there.

Located in Northern California, San Jose has mild climates that are conducive to outdoor workouts almost year round. San Jose and surrounding cities (Campbell, Saratoga and Los Gatos) have a large network of paved bike paths and dirt walking trails that offer miles of beautiful scenery for walkers, runners and cyclists.

One of my favorite hiking trails starts in Downtown Los Gatos at Main Street and takes you up to the top of Lexington Dam for beautiful views of the valley. Another collection of hiking/biking trails worth considering are the trails of Almaden Quicksilver Park. Quicksilver Park offers miles of trails with beautiful scenery.

Business travelers who may not have the option of venturing far from their hotel will find many downtown San Jose hotels, such as the Fairmont Hotel, offer well-equipped gyms for patrons. Business travelers in Downtown San Jose who find themselves at a hotel without a gym can purchase a day pass at the San Jose Athletic Club on 3rd street. The local YMCA on The Alameda and the Southwest YMCA on Santa Teresa Boulevard offer non-local members passes to work out while traveling in San Jose.

Also available to travelers in Downtown San Jose are the paths of Guadalupe River Park and Gardens. These paths run through Downtown San Jose and offer several miles of paved, flat paths for walking or running.

For the adventurous types who like a challenging workout, I suggest walking the 224 steps at Communications Hill in South San Jose. This creates a great interval training workout by challenging you on the way up, and giving you a much needed rest on the way down.

Rain or shine, if you want to stay fit while traveling in San Jose, we’ve got many options for you!

Filed Under: Boot camp workouts, Fitness Training Tagged With: "boot camp in San Jose", Almaden Quicksilver Park, fitness on vacation, San Jose boot camp, travel fitness, walking trails in San Jose

Exercise During Cancer Treatment: Exploring the Benefits

September 8, 2011 By Becky Leave a Comment

Many thanks to Sydney Simmons of MesotheliomaSymptoms.com for this guest post on the benefits of exercise during cancer treatment.

For a healthy individual, exercise can provide both physical and emotional benefits. However, for those with cancer, taking part in high intensity fitness programs can often be overwhelming.

Even if heavy exercise is contraindicated for a very ill patient, with their doctor’s approval they may be able to consider a lower intensity exercise program for the psychological benefits a regular fitness regimen can provide. Lower intensity exercise might include walking, light bike rides, and light strength training.

The exercise level that is appropriate for a particular person battling cancer often coincides with the stage of cancer a patient is in. In stages one and two, patients are likely to have greater strength and stamina than if they are in a later stage of cancer. For example, mesothelioma cancer patients have a staging system which goes from one to four. Patients who are in stages one and two can often be found partaking in regular routines of exercise and fitness because it helps them feel better and withstand the rigors of treatment better.

Besides allowing them to maintain some level of their fitness during treatment, many cancer patients find that regular, gentle exercise can help cut down on the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. Chemotherapy and radiation can often limit the body’s flexibility and bring on nausea and other unpleasant symptoms. Yoga has been found to not only help cancer patients maintain better flexibility, but also to improve their mental well-being. Time spent exercising can positively affect the mental state by allowing time for reflection, and time away from the hospital, testing, and meeting with doctors.

Certainly physical fitness can bring great value to everyone. For cancer patients, it can play a very special roll in improving stamina during treatment as well as improving mental and emotional outlook.

www.mesotheliomasymptoms.com

The Mesothelioma Support Network has pulled together as a single resource everything related to asbestos in order to promote education and awareness for victims, their families, and the general public. Our goal is to provide accurate, relevant information that can be used for general informational purposes, and to advocate for a greater awareness of the dangers of asbestos and the realities of mesothelioma.

Filed Under: Exercise ideas, Fitness Training Tagged With: exercise and cancer, exercise during cancer treatment, mesothelioma

Burn MORE Calories with Nordic Walking!

August 14, 2011 By Becky 1 Comment

Over 8 million people actively participate in Nordic Walking in Europe. If you enjoy walking for fitness and you’d like to burn more calories on your walks, you should check out Nordic Walking!

There are a few misconceptions about what Nordic Walking really is. It all started in the mid-1990’s in Finland. The Finns are avid cross-country skiers. To keep in shape during the off season, they pioneered that piece of gym equipment called the Nordic Track. Although you don’t see a lot of Nordic Track machines around anymore, one of the off-shoots of their design is the Nordic Walking pole.

Nordic Walking poles are telescoping and are adjusted to the individual such that the forearm is horizontal to the ground. The poles are high strength aluminum or even carbon fiber. They are feather light. The proper technique is to slightly drag the poles and keep them behind you at a 45 degree angle as you walk normally, with a left/right arm swing. You slightly push the pole into the ground to help propel you forward. This little action brings the triceps into action. By getting resistance into your walk, you involve muscles that normally would not get exercise. Even speed walking utilizes only about 70% of the body’s muscles. Nordic Walking increases that to 90%. To feed these muscles, your heart pumps more blood, raising your heart rate (this is good). More oxygen is need to produce the energy you need, so you burn more calories. One additional benefit of using poles – you carry a level of protection against snakes, dogs and other hostile critters!

To validate the benefits of Nordic Walking, the prestigious Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas did a study comparing normal walking with Nordic Walking. Comparing the two forms of walking, their study revealed that Nordic Walking burned an average of 20% more calories, with some individuals consuming up to 46% more than the walkers. Their heart rates went up 6% and oxygen intake increased up to 20%. All this with no perceived extra exertion and no knee or joint pain. In addition, the back is supported and causes the walker to be more upright.

Interested in giving it a try? LifeSport Fitness has arranged with San Jose local, Rick Deutsch, to teach and Introductory Nordic Walking Class along the Los Gatos Creek Trail. Rick is an American Nordic Walking Association certified instructor. You might know him better as Mr. Half Dome, as he is rather famous for having hiked to the summit of Yosemite’s Half Dome 30 times! Rick teaches Nordic Walking on the # 1 rated cruise line, Crystal Cruises. He’ll have loaner poles for the 1-hour sessions so you can experience the benefits of Nordic Walking. This 1-hour classes will be held at 6 pm on Wednesday, August 17th. The cost $25 and pre-registration is required. We can take up to 10 people at the session.

To register, log on to http://bootcampinsanjose.com/boot-camps/nordic-walking-class/ to secure your spot!

Committed to your success,

Becky

Filed Under: Fitness Training, Weight Loss Tips Tagged With: Mr. Half Dome, Nordic Walking, Rick Deutsch, walking for weight loss, walking programs

San Jose Boot Camp: The 30-day Challenge

August 1, 2011 By Becky 2 Comments

It is said that it takes 30 days to solidify a new habit or behavior change. As I write this post, it is Monday, August 1st. It’s the beginning of the week, and the beginning of a new month. August has 31 days, so it seems like a great month to put this “30 days” theory to the test.

I am challenging all the members of our Campbell and San Jose boot camps to make a commitment to work on just one simple behavior change all month. I decided to throw to challenge out to all readers of this blog as well.

What is one small thing that you could change in your current lifestyle this month that would lead to better fitness down the road? The ideas are endless–but you instinctively know what you need to change .

Here are some ideas to get you thinking……

• If you’re currently sedentary, pledge to add moderate exercise to your schedule on a consistent basis two times per week this month.

• If you’re currently exercising and you’ve hit a plateau, challenge yourself to do a “different” style of exercise once each week or to consistently add in a 4th, 5th or 6th day of exercise.

• If you’re trying to lose weight and you drink alcohol or soda, decrease your intake of calorie filled drinks like blended coffee drinks, juices, or alcoholic beverages by 60% each week.

• If you’re trying to lose weight and you eat out a lot, challenge yourself to eat no more than 2 “commercial” meals each week this month.

• If you eat the same things day in and day out, challenge yourself to eat one new fruit and one new vegetable each week this month

• If you’re trying to lose weight , challenge yourself to decrease your portion sizes by 20% at dinner each night this month.

Increased veggie consumption is promoted at San Jose boot camps

Very often, when we’re trying to lose weight or get in better shape, we go hog wild and try to change everything in our lives all at once. We over-exercise, we under-eat and we deprive ourselves. For many of us, it’s a 180 degree turn from our normal routine. An approach like this, although it may provide some immediate results, is doomed to fail because it is so foreign to our normal way of doing things. Eventually the “other shoe” drops and we revert to our normal routine.

Although results won’t come overnight, long term results are often realized by taking smaller steps toward better nutrition and fitness. I believe that long term results come from consistently applied change—not quick fix diets or overbearing workout routines that you couldn’t ever stay on for more than a few weeks. The ideas I’ve listed above are ways to work on improving your lifestyle in smaller steps. Work on just that one thing all month. That’s it! Just one thing.

Then, come September, tackle one more thing. If you practice this “30-day Challenge” with yourself each month, you could be living in a totally different body next year at this time!

Healthy, fit people practice a healthy lifestyle most of the time.

Healthy lifestyles aren’t always learned. But they can be adopted one step at a time.

Today is August 1st, 2011. What ONE thing can you do consistently this month to be healthier, fitter, happier or more energetic than you are today??

Be an action taker and commit to change! Please post here and share the 30-day challenge you will give yourself.

Committed to your success.

Becky

Filed Under: Fitness Training, Healthy Eating Tips, Weight Loss Tips Tagged With: 30-day fitness challenge, San Jose boot camp, San Jose Personal Trainer, San Jose weight loss

Welcome to lifeSport Fitness!

Holiday Fitness Gift Ideas from San Jose Boot Camp