The deep squat is a functional movement and requires many different patterns to be working efficiently in order to maintain position. During this particular test we are analyzing the functionality of many of the components we tested previously, but now we are asking you to utilize them all together. The deep squat took place with your heels elevated on the board or on the floor and with a dowel rod pressed overhead.

What is this band for?

During this movement assessment we are looking to see if there is adequate hip, ankle, and thoracic spine mobility, and also proper core stability to complete the pattern. Leaning forward, inability to get the hips below parallel, and pain are the 3 major things we are looking for that will raise a red flag and therefore add in that purple wristband!

What does this mean when it comes to exercise?

If there is pain associated with this movement (often times felt in the knees), a large lean forward, or not quite enough mobility to get the hips to the desired depth, we want to improve all of these areas before adding an external load or stressing our extremities past what they can currently tolerate. Working through range of motion exercises will be beneficial at the current moment.

Examples of exercises not performed with a purple band:

• Loaded squats (kettlebells, dumbbells, resistance bands)
• Jumping

How can I work to get out of my band? I want to do some of those exercises!!

As stated previously, making sure we have proper mobility of the ankles and hips and stability of the trunk will be important for performing the deep squat. Therefore, you will want to incorporate the exercises listed below into your daily routine!

1. Adductor Mobes

How to perform:

• Start by kneeling down on your left knee and placing your right leg extended straight out to the side.
• Make sure to keep your right foot flat on the floor and your toes pointing forward.
• Place your hands on the ground in front of you, with your hands just underneath your shoulders.
• Rock your body forward and then sit back as far as you can.

Repeat: 5x on each side

1. 1/2 Kneeling Ankle Mobes

Purpose: Improve ankle mobility- dorsiflexion

How to perform:

• Set yourself up in a half-kneeling position with your L foot forward. Set the dowel rod up outside of the pinky on the L foot.
• While holding onto the dowel rod, drive your L knee to the outside of the dowel rod, away from your midline.
• Pause for a few seconds, reset to starting position, then drive knee forward again. Keep repeating these steps.
• *Focus on keeping the heel L heel on the floor the entire time.

Repeat: 1 minute on each side

Let's conquer this band!

I want to make eating unhealthy HARDER than eating healthy. Wouldn’t it be nice if you had to struggle to eat foods that were not good choices? Wouldn’t it be helpful if you had access to all the goodness of nutrition without sifting through all the other?

Begin Your Jumpstart

Date: Wednesday, July 12th

Time: 6pm to 7pm

Place: Get Fit NH Concord

Peter Hallock is shining bright in the spotlight today! Peter joined our 6:45 training hour in April. Since then I have had the opportunity to witness an incredible change in him. His form, mobility, strength and weight have all improved in a short time. Peter is a prime example of when the work is put in, the results follow! I am really proud of Peter for working so hard these past couple of months. His results have been earned and I cannot even imagine the Peter we will know this time next year!

"I came to Get Fit NH, because I had been going to different gyms for a long time and never found a routine I could stick with because I really didn't know what to do. I decided to stay because after two weeks I was already feeling better. I also really enjoyed the classes and how varied the classes were. I was excited to go to every class which was not something I had experienced before. It didn't feel like a chore going to class. It was something I wanted to do instead of something I felt I needed to do.

In the couple of months that I have been training with Get Fit NH, I have lost 20lbs which was a complete surprise to me. I have been working hard on both my nutrition and exercise and was really excited for these results. It is really motivating. I am feeling good and the classes are interesting and the people are great. The coaches and the other people in class are really motivating and friendly. For someone on the fence about getting started I would say to them to give it a shot. I was apprehensive at first, but the people and coaches make you feel welcome from day one and the workouts are always different and fun. Thanks Meagan for letting me do this. I am really enjoy the classes and I appreciate the hard work that you Cari and Adam put into the classes.​"

And thank you, Peter, for your hard work and your consistency! Keep making it happen!

Coach Meagan

Today I want to share with you my Pro Coach experience. Pro Coach is our nutrition coaching portal which is coached by the one and only Coach Nancy. Today I want to share with you how Pro Coach has completely changed my way of eating and helped me achieve some consistent results.

Focusing on one habit at a time. This has been HUGE! You don’t have to do any of the thinking with the habits. Pro Coach sets you a new habit to focus on every 3 weeks. This has been a game changer for me. I have never been more tuned in when I am eating than I am now. Habits like eating until your 80% full/leaving food on your plate. Slowing down when I eat. These are small habits that have changed the way I eat.

Another HUGE benefit to Pro Coach is how engaging it is. You write your own “Owner’s Manual.” You discover where your weaknesses are and help yourself overcome those obstacles. The best part is that your coach (Nancy) is reading your responses and helping you dig even deeper and take another step toward success. The feedback alone from my coach has been so valuable and life changing. It is okay to have a bad day and it is a place to check in and measure your progress.

This is a lifelong version of the Sizzling Summer Slimdown (S3.) It puts nutrition in front of you every single day. It provides a short lesson about where your focused habit is and has you check yes or no daily on your habit. On top of all of that, bi-weekly you share your results and it measures your progress over time. I have been doing Pro Coach since April and as of two weeks ago these were my results (be transparent, right?).

This program is worth it. I am talking to you not only as coach, but also as a human being who struggles with nutrition and needs accountability to stay on track.

-Coach Meagan

Funny story…some of you might know this story…

The other day we got to have a Fun Friday on a Thursday. Coach Cari and I arrived at the gym Thursday morning at 4:20AM to find the parking lot pitch black. Every single light was out as we pulled in. At 4:20 AM that is kind of creepy, by the way! We went in together and learned that we had NO power. The iPod was dying, we couldn’t see the board, or two feet in front of us…crud!

At the drop of a dime, our plan went COMPLETELY south and we had to quickly come up with a new plan. The planning process wasn’t totally smooth either. I came up with a training we could do outside that would have worked well, BUT it wouldn’t have worked well for our poor bands. When Coach Dean came in, he came up with a much better plan that was safe for our students AND our equipment! The training was a total blast. The outcome was positive and everyone left feeling happy and accomplished.

Success!

Now let’s apply this to any other real life situation, right? We have a plan and sometimes stuff happens! Stuff that is TOTALLY outside of our control, but has a direct effect on THE plan, such as getting stuck at work and missing training or forgetting your lunch in the fridge at home. That was not in the plan, so what do you do?

Learning to plan is a skill, and you know what else is a skill? Coming up with a plan B! I did not have a plan B the other morning at 4:20AM, but you know what? I will now! Situations come up all the time where we have to make a choice that wasn’t on our radar. It is a skill to make a choice that you will be proud of and happy with. For example, coming to the next later training hour or making a nutritious choice at lunch at a restaurant. Just because the plan fails sometimes doesn’t mean our world needs to come crashing down. Be ready to adapt and overcome. Be flexible and make choices you will look back and be happy with. Every failed plan is an opportunity to learn.

-Coach Meagan

You may have noticed a theme with these posts, they all center on kids not being able to get out and play the way they used to. The next step in our Athlete Academy program for ages 9-12 over the summer will be to work on some proactive flexibility.

You may be wondering why I am prefacing that with the word “proactive”. Here is why - as kids get older, their time sitting in class and sitting on the couch increases. Ever notice that a toddler walks around endlessly, can squat down perfectly to pick something up, but a 15 or 16 year old has to kneel down or bend over at the waist to do so? Its because of two things: growth and lack of movement in functional patterns.

That’s why in this 6-week summer program we are looking to offset that. Kids sit at desks all day which shortens their hip flexors and stiffens up their upper backs. Combine that with growth spurts that make connective tissue suddenly inflexible and you have a recipe for a child lacking in mobility. Those who are in athletics will notice declines in performance, and those who are not will notice compounding problems that will make any active activity much more difficult.

That’s why our goal is to correct the problem this summer before it even becomes a problem. We have kids in our high school program now that are seeing just how major the benefits are of increased flexibility and mobility. Imagine if they didn’t have those restraints in the first place?

-Coach Adam

The hurdle step, which is demonstrated on the left, corresponds to our green wristbands. This movement allows us coaches to analyze functional symmetry. While performing this stepping/stride like motion, we are looking for maximal hip flexion of the stepping leg all while maintaining hip extension of the supporting leg. This exact movement was performed during the active straight leg raise as well but we are now adding core and pelvic stability into the mix!

What is this band for?

As a coach, we are looking to see if you are able to properly dorsiflex your ankle to clear the string (having adequate ankle mobility), proper hip and knee flexion/extension, control your pelvis, maintain extension of stance leg, and to maintain upright and minimizing upper body movement as much as possible while completing the movement.

If anything stood out and/or you needed to compensate, we want to work towards fixing that problem before potentially causing a greater one!

What does this mean when it comes to exercise?

We want to stay away from exercises that require jumping! Adding in that impactful activity may not be appropriate at the moment. First, we want to work on improving hip mobility. Jumping/landing without the proper postural control and movement mechanics could result in injury.

How can I work my way out of this band?

1. 1/2 Kneeling Hip Flexor Mobes

Purpose: Improve length of hip flexors and teach your body about hip extension rather than lumbar extension

How to perform it:

• ​Set yourself up in a half-kneeling position, with the R leg forward and L leg down on the floor. Ensure that both knees are at 90 degrees.
• Place your hands on your R knee and keep arms extended straight to keep your chest tall.
• Press your R knee away from your body, while tensing the L glute.
• Push forward until you feel a mild stretch in your L hip flexor.
• Hold for 1 minute.

Repeat: 1 minute on each side

2. Figure 4 Stretch

Purpose: Stretch out hips, glutes and lower back

How to perform it:

• Lay on your back and bring your right foot to your left knee.
• Reach through your legs and lace your fingers around your left knee and pull it gently towards you.
• If you are unable to keep your head on the ground – place your hands around your thigh or support your head.

Repeat: Hold for 30 seconds and then switch sides, repeat 2 to 3 times

Let’s conquer this band together,
Coach Cari

This is a somewhat different spotlight I am sending your way this time. After the Rock’n Race this year, Adam Rosenthal came up to me and told me about how he had used his Myzone to make sure he was exercising safely in the Rock’n Race. I asked for permission and was given the okay to share the follow up email he sent about it. 

This is more a spotlight on Adam for having the wherewithal to not only use the information provided to him, but also apply it for his own health. Also it's a great reference for anyone else who needs some other ideas how they can also apply the information! Read below!

“I just wanted to thank all of the coaches at GFNH for the wisdom you have en parted on me via the MyZone training sessions. At Mile 2 last night on the slight incline coming out of the State of NH complex I looked down at my heart rate and saw it had reached 155 BPM which is my Max. 97 degree temperatures and fast walking my usual 5K race pace had pushed me to my max and it was time to back my pace down to 135 BPM and finish the last 1.1 miles which I did. My time was 2.5 minutes slower than my usual 5K times but under the weather circumstances of record high temperatures I accept that and am looking forward to my next 5K race. As Bob Moses stated after the race it was a PW (Personal Worst). I have lived to race another day! I wanted to thank everyone at GFNH for giving me the knowledge and wisdom to make such a crucial decision to back off my race pace because of the heat. Without the MyZone training program this might not have happened resulting in more serious complications. Thank You!”

Thank you for reaching out to us, Adam. Great job using the tools available to you and making the quick decision to keep from setting yourself back. You can continue to make it happen!

-Coach Adam

Fitranx is an exercise leveling system composed of 8 levels. The best way to think of it is like belts in martial arts - as you become more proficient in more difficult exercises, you have the ability to test into the next level during Fitranx testing days at Get Fit. As you progress from Level 1 all the way up to Level 8, the exercises will become more challenging. This will be sure to give you something to consistently strive for to make yourself better.

The thing that makes this different than other things we have done in the past, like the Get Fit games for example, are a couple big factors. First, these tests are standardized and are being performed all over the country. You know that if someone on the west coast is a Level 5, and you just passed the Level 5 test, you both had to complete the same number of exercises, the same selection of exercises, and the same weights from those exercises. Also, these level tests are categorized by age: Bracket 1 is ages 16-35, Bracket 2 is ages 36-55, and Bracket 3 is ages 56+.

Now, for a little information about the testing days. First and foremost, every participant must level their way up, so everyone, regardless of current conditioning, must start at Level 1 and work their way up. Our next testing day will be July 15th (it’s a Saturday) where the Level 1 and Level 2 testing will take place. Subsequent testing days will follow once it has been fully kicked off. Each tests consists of two parts - a strength portion and a conditioning portion - so you must be up to the task in both in order to complete the test. More information to come! be on the lookout!

-Coach Adam

Summer is here! With summer comes beautiful, gorgeous days! With those beautiful, gorgeous days comes the desire to soak up the sun for every minute possible, which means some of our colder month habits get brushed off…

Yes, I am talking about training. Here are three things you need to know and DO this summer so that you stay in the game!

1. Don’t let weather dictate your attendance. Easy for me to say, right? This is my job. But this is YOUR LIFE we are talking about. We only get 2-4 hours of your whole entire week to keep you moving toward your goals. Training is ongoing. You want results? You gotta be consistent!

2. Make training an appointment. You know how you put a dentist appointment or a doctor’s appointment on your calendar? You can’t miss it, right? It is planned. So is training. Make training a “non-negotiable.”

3. Understand that while biking, walking, running, hiking are all forms of exercise, it is far different than strength training. Strength training is the magic that keeps you aging gracefully. We need to be STRONG to keep our bones healthy and we need to be STRONG to continue to get up and down off of the floor. Being STRONG is what keeps you independent and you can’t be STRONG if you are inconsistent!

Be consistent. Be strong. Be accountable. Get results. Be better than you were yesterday!

Coach Meagan