Body + Soul Fitness

From our work to our hobbies, we take measures to prepare ahead of time. So why not be proactive and prepare your body for potential challenges? Prehabilitation is a preventative strategy that involves training your body to prepare yourself, both mentally and physically, for what life could bring – like strenuous activity, injury, or surgery. Prehab training can include strengthening or conditioning exercises, sport/task-specific exercises, stretches, nutritional advice, or strategies for improving mental well-being. Learn more (and sign up for a free week!) about prehab and rehab specialized training here: https://lnkd.in/gdriVze7 

Welcome to the team, Paul! 🎉 Since 2011, Paul has been deeply immersed in the fitness industry. He brings extensive experience as a personal trainer, athlete, coach, and professional hockey trainer. He strongly advocates for the importance of physical and mental health and is passionate about helping others achieve their fitness and wellness goals.  We're happy to have him on the Front + Berkeley team!

At 66 years old, Christine came to Body + Soul Fitness with one goal: correcting her shoulder pain. With her trainer’s support, she gained strength, corrected her posture, and started living pain-free. In the process, she gained the strength to enjoy ease in all aspects of life - from her yoga practice to hikes with her family. Read her inspiring story to learn how you can accomplish this and more.  https://lnkd.in/guFuBsMm 

When it comes to building strength, tracking your rest periods can either make or break your workout. Many don’t rest long enough between sets when doing heavy strength training. If you don’t rest enough, your nervous system won’t recover properly, and you won’t have enough energy for another strong effort. This means you won’t be able to lift as heavily as you should. One effective way to ensure you're optimizing your rest periods is by working with a personal trainer. They can help you plan and track your rest periods, making your workouts as effective as possible. Learn more and sign up for a free week of training here: https://lnkd.in/gc88uFhc 

When we ask our members what they want to achieve, we often hear, “I want to look and feel better.” One unexpected way we help people improve the way they look and feel is by improving posture. Sitting for hours upon hours a day leads to poor posture, back pain, and neck pain. Over time, we can see changes in our soft tissue, where certain areas shorten and others lengthen. This can impact how easily (and even safely) we can perform other types of movement.    To counteract sitting and improve your posture and overall health, get up and move for 5-10 minutes every hour. When you’re standing, look up to the sky and hold this position for a few seconds. Perform this a few times every hour to help offset the time spent in a seated position. For a stretching routine made for office workers, check out our Healthy Living Library: https://lnkd.in/giN9Se9K 

People who are more stressed typically need to eat more frequently.  When you’re in a high stress state your body is producing the stress hormone called cortisol. This can make it difficult for your body to maintain steady blood sugar levels, causing energy and mood disturbances.    To help you maintain a steady blood sugar level, consider eating healthy snacks between meals. A good time to have a snack is about 2 to 3 hours after a meal and 1 to 2 hours before your next meal. Learn more about healthy eating by reading the complete article from our Healthy Living Library:  https://lnkd.in/gZtfs-_a 

To keep your motivation soaring, we're celebrating the success of our members who have transformed their lives for the better. Your success is our success, and we're proud to be part of your journey.  Kathryn Liedeman's journey began with the goal of losing weight, but her story is much more than that.  After a lot of sweat, Kathryn has not only lost over 30 pounds, but she also now enjoys activities with her friends and her dog with more ease and has rekindled her passion for once-intimidating hobbies. Read her inspiring story and learn how you can achieve your weight loss goals and more. https://lnkd.in/gmubAJJa 

Cardio can be a great healer if you aren’t doing an activity that worsens your pain. Cardio increases your body’s ability to move nutrients around, which can help heal injuries and pain faster. It also helps eliminate waste products that might slow down recovery.  As a starting point, practice low-intensity, low-impact cardio for 30-60 minutes, keeping your heart rate between 120-150 beats per minute. A great exercise you can do is incline treadmill walking.  A personal trainer can work with you to develop a cardio routine that’s specific to your needs and help with your individualized injury healing. Learn more about injury rehabilitation training here:  https://lnkd.in/guGg9dnW

When Javeria first came to Body + Soul Fitness, her body felt imbalanced and broken. Suffering from debilitating injuries, Javeria didn’t know if living a pain-free lifestyle was ever going to be possible. Then, she met her trainer, Meagan. Starting with rehabilitation, Meagan created an individualized training program built around achievable goals - like regaining movement, mobility, core strength and coordination - so Javeria could return to a functional lifestyle. It worked. Several sessions later, Javeria is a new person. She is pain-free for the first time in years and has also developed impressive strength and endurance. Now, her goals surpass even her own expectations. She’s crushing chin-ups and squatting 50% of her body weight, with a target to squat 100% by the end of the year. We know she’ll get there. Javeria got her life back, so what’s next for her? Read more about her inspiring story here: https://lnkd.in/gd7MXCQj