Whether you are home, traveling, or anywhere in between, exercise should be incorporated into your daily schedule. Exercise allows us to physically exert, but on top of that also sharpens us mentally. It’s been shown to improve symptoms of anxiety while decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Exercise also is a way to build our immune system because it places physical stress on our bodies that we must adapt to over time. By exercising regularly, along with consuming nutritious foods, we can make sure that our daily performance is to the best of our ability. This can be done without ever leaving the comfort of your home.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, at home and away, is easier than you may think. By choosing to walk or ride a bike to locations nearby rather than driving your vehicle, you can burn extra calories and increase endurance. This is a great way to incorporate active recovery on top of regular exercise as well. Active recovery helps with muscle soreness and gives a way to exercise without overexerting and overusing muscles.

Below you’ll find a couple of different combinations of exercises you can do at home with supplies found in a typical household. Items such as a towel, milk or water jugs, chairs, and socks can be used to assist. Each workout is designed to work your full body, as well as work on flexibility and balance/coordination.

Workout 1:

Start with a 5-minute dynamic stretch:

• Frankenstein’s 5/leg
  • Start standing with both feet together. Take a step and kick a straight leg up to tap toe with hand. Take a couple of reset steps. Repeat with the other leg.
• Walking Lunges w/ twist 5/leg
  • Start with feet together. Take a long stride forward and bend your front knee, push hips forward to stretch hip flexor, twist trunk from side to side. Bring legs together and repeat on the other side
• Inchworms 10
  • Start standing with feet together. Reach down and touch toes. Bend knees if needed to touch the ground, and walk hands forward until just in front of shoulders. Walk feet forward, keeping legs as straight as possible. Best done by flexing foot while bringing thigh to chest.
• Pushup to Downdog 10
  • Begin in tall pushup position, with hands under shoulders. Perform a pushup, and once to the beginning position, push hips back and extend arms in line with the back. Try to place heels on the ground and push the head through the shoulders.

Exercises:

• 2-leg Hamstring Curl (Eq Needed: Towel, Tile) 3×10
  • Start lying on your back on tile. Use a towel under your feet as a slider. If no tile is available, use a folder under your feet on the carpet. Push your hips off the ground with straight legs and pull your legs under your body.

• Push up with Retraction of Scapula 3×10
  • Start in a tall plank position with your hands under your shoulders. Lower yourself until your elbows reach 90 degrees, then push yourself back up. Once in the tall plank position, allow your trunk to dip in while squeezing your shoulder blades together. Push back up to the tall pushup position and repeat.
• 3 Point Milkjug Row 3×8/arm
  • Start With your feet about shoulder-width, place your hand on a chair. Pull the milk jug up through your elbow, making sure to squeeze your shoulder blade toward the center of your back.

• Bearcrawl Isohold 3x:45
  • Start in a quadruped position, with shoulders stacked over hands and hips over knees. Lift knees off the ground 2-3 inches and hold. If you want a higher intensity, tap one knee to elbow, and repeat on the other side.

• Downdog Pushups 3×10
  • Start in a tall plank position, and push hips back so that head is in line with arms. Bend the elbows and lower yourself as far as possible, then push back up.
• Narrow Stance Squat to Wide Stance Squat with Pulse 3×12
  • Start with your feet just slightly less than shoulder-width apart. Squat down, then pulse 3 times before pushing back to the top. Take a step to the side that is slightly wider than shoulder-width and squat down, pulse three times and push back up. Repeat the narrow/wide stance.

Finish with 5 min cooldown:

• Lower Trunk Rotations 10/side
  • Lay on your back with knees bend and together, arms out to the side, and palms up. Roll knees to right, while looking to the left, then rotate to the other side. Should feel stretch in the lower back.
• Side-lying trunk rotation 10/side
  • Lay on your side with straight legs, with a pillow in front of you. Take the leg that is on top and bend it to a 90-degree angle, and place it on top of the pillow. Have your arms straight in front of you, and open one arm up, rotating around as far as you can without lifting the knee off the pillow. Repeat on the other side. Should feel stretch in middle to upper back
• Hip Flexor Stretch 30/side
  • Kneel with one knee up and one knee down, and push hips forward while raising hands overhead. Should feel stretch in front of hip.
• Kneeling Quad Stretch (couch stretch) 30/side
  • Kneel with one knee up and one knee down, resting the top of your back foot on your couch. Lower to the ground. Should feel a stretch in the quad

Workout 2:

Start with 5 min dynamic stretch:

• Frankenstein’s 5/leg
  • Start standing with both feet together. Take a step and kick a straight leg up to tap toe with hand. Take a couple of reset steps. Repeat with the other leg.
• Walking Lunges w/ twist 5/leg
  • Start with feet together. Take a long stride forward and bend your front knee, push hips forward to stretch hip flexor, twist trunk from side to side. Bring legs together and repeat on the other side
• Inchworms 10
  • Start standing w feet together. Reach down and touch toes. Bend knees if needed to touch the ground, and walk hands forward until just in front of shoulders. Walk feet forward, keeping legs as straight as possible. Best done by flexing foot while bringing thigh to chest.
• Pushup to Downdog 10
  • Begin in a tall pushup position, with hands under shoulders. Perform a pushup, and once to the beginning position, push hips back and extend arms in line with the back. Try to place heels on the ground and push the head through the shoulders.

Exercises:

• Jump Squats 3×15
  • Start in a tall athletic stance, making sure feet are shoulder-width apart. Squat down, pushing hips back, and push up quickly into a jump. Land in the same position, and squat back down once feet touch the ground.
• Crunchy Frogs 3×15
  • Start sitting on the floor, legs bent in front of you, and knees together. Rock back so that you’re balancing on your glutes, while straightening knees, and bring arms out to the sides of your body. Tuck knees in and bring arms around them, while still balancing. Release knees, and straighten back out. Repeat.
• Tricep Dips on chair 3×10
  • Start with hands on the chair seat, and legs in front of you. The farther out your legs are, the hard this exercise will be. Lower yourself until your elbows reach a 90-degree bend and push back up.

• Broomstick Row 3×15
  • Take two grocery bags and place a few cans of food in each, making sure they’re about the same size and weight. (duplicate cans work best). With a broom balanced on a chair, hang each bag on either side of the broom. Pick up the broom horizontally, hands about shoulder-width apart, and position yourself in an athletic stance, with a slight lean forward. Pulling through the elbows, and squeezing shoulder blades together, bring the broom up to the chest, slowly releasing it back to the bottom once you tap the chest.
• Curtsy Lunges 3×10
  • Start in a tall athletic stance, cross left foot behind right and squat down as low as you can, push back up, and place foot back to shoulder width. Repeat with the other side.

• Reverse Crunch 3×10
  • Laying on your back, position your head so that you can hold onto something heavy, either a couch leg or under a couch. Bend your knees, and lift them off the ground, and when ready, lift hips off the ground so that you are resting your body weight on your shoulders. Slowly lower your body down until your lower back touches the floor. Without dropping your feet to the ground, repeat.

Finish with 5 min cooldown:

• Lower Trunk Rotations 10/side
  • Lay on your back with knees bend and together, arms out to the side, and palms up. Roll knees to right, while looking to the left, then rotate to the other side. Should feel stretch in the lower back.
• Side-lying Trunk Rotation 10/side
  • Lay on your side with straight legs, with a pillow in front of you. Take the leg that is on top and bend it to a 90-degree angle, and place it on top of the pillow. Have your arms straight in front of you, and open one arm up, rotating around as far as you can without lifting the knee off the pillow. Repeat on the other side. Should feel stretch in middle to upper back
• Hip Flexor Stretch 30/side
  • Kneel with one knee up and one knee down, and push hips forward while raising hands overhead. Should feel stretch in front of the hip
• Kneeling Quad stretch (couch stretch) 30/side
  • Kneel with one knee up and one knee down, resting the top of your back foot on your couch. Lower to the ground. Should feel a stretch in the quad

Other Options

Lower body:

• Bodyweight Squats (or with milk jug in goblet position)
• Hamstring Curls on tile with towel/socks
• Curtsy Lunges
• Jump Squats
• Jumping Lunges

Core:

• Dead Bugs
• Bear Crawl Iso Hold with Knee Tap
• Birddog
• Plank (or variations like a pledge, up & downs)
• Crunchy frogs

Back and Chest:

• Milk Jug Rows
• Pushup (or variations like plyo, incline decline)

Arms:

• Tricep Pushups
• Milk Jug Curls
• Tricep Dips on a chair
• Broomstick Curls (or weighted backpack, grocery bag with even weight inside)
• Pushup to Downdog

Maintaining overall fitness is a vital part of daily living, allowing us to perform and participate in all activities to the best of our ability. Utilizing active recovery, as well as these at-home exercise plans can help you get on the right track to achieving greatness. If you’re looking for more guidance in your workout routine, contact one of our FAST valley-wide locations today!

 

In honor of the Tokyo 2020 (2021) Olympics, this post is dedicated to a personal favorite of mine: the power clean. I get asked by many athletes, “how do I get stronger, faster, and more powerful?” First, we need to define “power.” Power is force over time. So, the more force produced in less time equates to more power. In the weight room, this can be achieved by developing type II fibers (fast-twitch) in the muscles. These fast-twitch fibers produce greater and quicker force.

What exercises help build type II fibers?

Compound exercises, such as squats, deadlifts, bench press, and split-squats are great places to start. However, there is one move above all else that will provide you with the most bang-for-your-buck when it comes to power development, the power clean.

 

What defines a power clean?

The power clean is the pinnacle movement for power production because it includes full-body and multi-joint movements. It’s a combination of a deadlift, high pull, shrug, and squat. That’s a lot of movement to cram in such a short amount of time (remember, less time & more force = more power). Because of the intricate nature of the power clean, it can take some practice to maintain proper form. This blog will provide a step-by-step guide to the movement and how to perfect it.

 

Step 1: pull

The first movement of the power clean is picking up the bar. This step will take place from the ground to the knees. Before you begin, keep your feet hip-width apart and have the bar directly over the base of your toes. Position your shoulders over the bar with your shoulder blades pulled back to help create tension through your back. As you pull, it is imperative that you have your hips and knees extend in one synchronous motion. This is where some athletes fault in their technique and can cause more problems later on in the move.

Step 2: pull again

This action will occur when the barbell passes the knees. The goal of the second pull is to get your hips to “drive” forward and help move the barbell in a straight vertical path. This is where you transition to the “triple extension” position through your ankles, knees, and hips. If one joint is not in an “extension” position, you are limiting your ability to produce power through the second pull. As you begin to maneuver yourself around the barbell to receive it in the “power position.” This is where athletes may fault while performing a power clean. Many try to move the bar around them when they should be moving their body around the bar.

 

Step 3: catch and receive

As the athlete performs the second pull, they will “feel” the weight of the bar traveling upward. This is a critical moment where the athlete will pull themselves under the bar to catch it in the “receiving” position. In many instances, coaches will tell their athletes to “jump” during the second pull to help achieve the “triple extension.” Coaching an athlete to “jump” during a power clean will often have the athlete spend more time in the air and limit their ability to pull themselves under the bar. I like to coach my athletes to “pull and drop” when receiving the bar. As the athlete drops to receive the bar, they will shoot their elbows forward, parallel to the ground, to catch the bar on the top of their shoulders in the quarter-squat position.

The complexity of the power clean may seem intimidating, but when performed properly it can provide a training stimulus nearly unmatched by any other exercise. It’s one of the best training tools to teach athletes and everyday gymgoers to become more powerful. If you want to improve your performance, strength, and explosiveness, contact one of our FAST locations today!

The Summer Sports Performance program aims to help the modern-day athlete excel in their sport. The modern-day athlete focuses on a singular sport and trains specifically to augment their performance in the fundamental movements of that sport. For example, a tennis player’s performance training may focus predominately on lateral movements and deceleration. As performance specialists we know that being well rounded is always a benefit, but a lack of training in the fundamental movements of the sport could hurt the athlete’s ability to yield great results. One thing that most, if not all, athletes have in common is the necessity to be multi-directional. Therefore, our jobs are to prepare these athletes for success in their desired sport(s).

Multidirectional training is an aspect of training that all athletes would significantly benefit from. The question that would be frequently asked is, “where do I start with my athlete?” You start at the basics, give your athletes a good base position to start.

Base Position

Base Position is the universal athletic position in which the feet are set shoulder width apart (or slightly wider), a soft bend in the knees and hips, hand off of the thighs, eyes in front and ready to move. Base position allows our athletes to be strong, stable, ready to move and change direction. Establishing a good base is quintessential to an athlete’s ability to move successfully in any plane. After we establish a good base, we get more dynamic and complex.

Push to Base

Push to base is a simple lateral dynamic movement that consists of starting in our base position and pushing off (not hopping) the opposite foot to drive ourselves in the opposite direction, e.g. push off the left foot to move right. Developing the push to base movement pattern will allow our athletes to realize that we can maintain/reestablish our base position and still be powerful without sacrificing a center of gravity through movement. This is the first step in progressing our multi-directional movements.

Cross to Base

Cross to base is a true multidirectional movement that encompasses the two previous movements. Start in the base position, push off bringing the knee up and across the body, rotate the hips, pump the arms, maintain a square ridged head and torso, and finally return to base. A good cue would be to act as if they are about to sprint laterally and immediately break down. Being able to sprint, stop on a dime, and change direction is the ideal. However, this drill is about establishing sound mechanics and slowly increasing intensity and complexity.

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Like any other exercise or training modality it’s about reading the room and understanding where our athletes are at in the process. Ensure that we progress them gradually and establish great movement patterns before dialing up intensity and complexity. Know how to balance progression and regression at every stage. The Summer Sports Performance Program at FAST allows us to work with young and experienced athletes to establish key movements that are present in every sport, while also keeping them well rounded and focused on polishing the things that make them the great athletes that they are.

For more info about the Summer Sports Performance Program follow the link and fill out the form to get started today!

To maximize the benefits of gym time—it’s important to make sure that you’re doing exercises with proper form. More often than not, we see many exercises done incorrectly, but today we’re sharing how to fix that and do these exercises safely.

Barbell Deadlift

The exercise that we tend to see the worst form on is the barbell deadlift. It is one of the best exercises for you, but if done wrong can be one of the worst for you. We see rounded backs, arching necks and pulling arms that all tend to lead to major injuries. The best way to prevent injury on the deadlift is to maintain a flat back. To do so, you should be squeezing your shoulder blades together, pushing your hips behind you with soft knees, and strongly bracing your core. Imagine a stick from the base of your neck to your lower back, like the photo above shows.

-Greg Stein, FAST North Scottsdale

Push Ups

The push up is one of the most incorrectly done exercise out there. To do it correctly, start on the ground with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders. Set your feet in a stance that is comfortable to you as well as allows you to be successful. Think of your body as a straight line (plank position) and clinch your butt and draw in your belly button. Proceed to push up and down keeping that straight line. A great que is knowing that a push-up is really just a moving plank.

-Kyle Decker, FAST Arrowhead

Hip Hinge

The number one exercise I see people or athletes do incorrectly is the Hip Hinge or a Deadlift variation. Most people will initiate the movement by using their back rather than using their hips and hamstrings. Although the back is used during a Deadlift, it is important to initiate the movement from the hips by pushing your butt back while keeping your shoulders pulled back to ensure you don’t have any rounding in your back while you lift. This will keep your back safe but also put more emphasis on the glutes and hamstrings as the working muscle groups.

-Jeff Placencia, FAST South Gilbert

Deadlift (any variation)

This exercise proves to be one of the most improperly performed exercises. Many exercisers tend to bend too much with their knees instead of hinging with their hips, stand improperly, or have difficulty keeping their back flat. The biggest risk of injury occurs when the exercisers loses trunk stability and allows their back to round.

To help correct this issue, be sure to engage/contact the muscles surrounding the trunk and bring yourself into a shoulders back, chest out, back flat position. Once the muscles are engaged to start the lift, the chances of keeping correct form throughout the lift increase.

-Kyle Schneider, FAST Ahwatukee

Squat

The exercise I see most frequently performed incorrectly, is the squat. One of the most common areas a squat is done incorrectly is the knees caving inward. Placing a band above the knees is a great way to work on this aspect of the squat. The band is trying to pull the knees inward, thus the individual has to actively engage their glutes in order to keep the knees in line with the toes. This is a great tool to use as a cue, as well as also strengthening the area that is weak (hips) to fix this problem.

-Brandon Wood, FAST Litchfield Park

Chin Up

The chin up is one exercise I see performed poorly by many gym goers. During the chin up we tend to extend or arch are back when we really want to be doing the opposite by hollowing out our body. One cue I like to give our clients is to shape your body into the letter “C” before you start your pull towards the top of the chin up. This will engage your core fully and make the chin up that much more effect and beneficial.

-Wade Haras, FAST Old Town Scottsdale

There you have it—the top exercises that people are doing wrong and how to fix your form. If you’d like to work one-on-one with a FAST certified strength and conditioning specialist, visit our website to schedule a FREE fitness assessment. We work with weekend warriors, competitive athletes, and those who are wanting to build healthy habits.

New year, new FAST trainer Spotlight. Meet Jeff Placencia, FAST Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist at our Old Town Scottsdale facility.

What’s your background?

I’m a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, USA Weightlifting Level 1 Sports Performance Coach, and I’m also Functional Movement Screen certified. I received my bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from Arizona State University.

What inspired you to embark on the fitness journey with your career? Growing up, the only thing I consumed myself with was sports. Being a big football fan, I admired how these athletes looked and performed so I told myself I would do whatever I could to try and be just like them.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give anyone interested in becoming a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist?

Understand that every person you work with is different and unique in their own way. Being able to mold yourself to who they are and providing them with both their needs and wants will speak volumes as to who you are as a CSCS. As far as the actual exam goes, get a sound understanding of human physiology and energy system utilization. The one part of the exam that usually trips up people is the scientific foundations.

What’s your favorite workout style?

I love anything that’s high intensity. Whatever gets me breathing heavy, sweating, and leaves me on the ground asking: “What just happened?”

What’s your favorite song to listen to when working out?

‘Shower‘ by Becky G.

What’s your favorite thing to eat after a workout?

Chicken, brown rice, and broccoli. Bland and boring, but very effective.

What’s one food that you can’t live without?

Deep dish pizza with sausage, pepperoni and NO PINEAPPLE.

What’s the best advice you have ever received?

Stop feeling sorry for yourself. No one cares if you’re tired, sore, hungry, whatever. Get up and get to work.

What motivates you?

Complacency. Never stop learning. Never stop growing as a person.

Are you ready to hit the ground running and crush your new year’s resolution goals? Contact Jeff today to set up a one-on-one personal training session!

This November, we’re highlighting our personal trainer of the month, Raetricia Lucero. With a love for fitness at an early age, Tricia has turned her passion into a career. Read on to learn more about her background, favorite post-workout snack and more.

What’s your background?
My education includes a degree in Human Biology and USAW 1 credentials. Being able to share my knowledge, passion for fitness and overall wellbeing in order to help others achieve their fitness goals is very gratifying.

What inspired you to embark on the fitness journey with your career?
My passion for fitness grew at an early age. Being involved in athletics was and still is important to my large family’s lifestyle. I played soccer, softball, basketball and volleyball and later went on to play collegiate basketball at Chadron State.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give anyone interested in becoming a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist?
Taking the time and investing in your clients overall achievements and goals are essential components. With each client comes different challenges and different goals.
Take time to get to know their training styles. Do they get bored easily or do they like change? How do I keep them motivated and on track? This is amongst one of the many facets of my job that makes it fascinating and worthwhile.

What’s your favorite workout style?
I don’t have a favorite workout style. I like to switch it all the time that way I don’t get bored, and I stay motivated myself. Some days I’ll train for hypertrophy, next day I might do a high intensity workout and then another day I’ll do Olympic weightlifting.

What is your favorite thing to eat after a workout?
I typically enjoy a protein shake and some sort of carb, like pineapple, after completing a workout.

What’s one food you can’t live without?
Mexican food—I grew up in a Hispanic household, so it’s a must!

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
“Be present” and allow yourself to focus on what’s happening right now in your life, not the past because it’s already behind you and not the future because it hasn’t happened yet. But instead “be present” in the moment with whatever you’re doing or who you’re with. Never give less than yourself.

What motivates you?

My family motivates me. Their love and support is always at the forefront. My clients motivate me as well. Whether it’s a high five, a hug, a smile, some tears of joy because they’re reaching their goals. It’s exhilarates me, and makes me so proud just knowing we together are making strides, and beating the odds!

Are you ready to take your fitness goals to a new level with Tricia? Contact the North Central Phoenix facility today to schedule a personal training session with her.

Wading through all the information on what workout is best for you, how many days of the week you should work out or even making a decision on the right shoes can be overwhelming. We get it, and often times, these decisions paralyze people from simply starting a workout routine.  Today, four of our FAST facility managers are sharing advice that they give to their clients that are starting out on their fitness journey.

 

Wade Haras, facility manager at FAST Old Town Scottsdale

Look for small wins at each session. Assess how you feel in the beginning instead of how your performance is. Small wins may include making it through a full hour or showing up for the next workout.

 

Kyle Schneider, facility manager at FAST Ahwatukee

Don’t focus on the number on the scale. There are much better indicators of fitness level than weight. Focus on how you feel, what your body fat percentage is, heart rate, or how many reps/how much weight you can lift.

 

Greg Stein, facility manager at FAST North Scottsdale

Consistency is key and king. You cannot make physiological adaptions in your body by being spotty and missing training sessions or eating unhealthy. Lay the foundation for your fitness journey by being consistent and commit to the process.

 

Brandon Wood, facility manager at FAST Litchfield Park

One piece of advice I give in addition to making the workouts a constant part of your daily or weekly habit is to keep clean eating habits and get enough sleep every night. A clean diet and getting good sleep will only increase the benefits they receive from working out.

 

Ready to start your fitness journey? Or team of Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialists are here to help you jumpstart your workout routine and create a one-on-one program that will help you reach your goals. Contact us today to set up a FREE fitness assessment.

The FAST Trainer of the Month is designed to help you get to know the trainers and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialists at FAST. Our July Trainer of the Month is Kyle Schneider, facility manager at our Ahwatukee location. Read on to learn more about Kyle and his vision for fitness, wellness and what motivates him.

What’s your educational background?

I went to the University of Wisconsin—La Crosse where I graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Exercise and Sports Science, with an emphasis in fitness and a minor in nutrition. Along with my Bachelor’s Degree, I’m a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

Along with being the FAST Ahwatukee facility manager, I also play a role on the administrative side for FAST. I work alongside all our locations to ensure things are running smoothly and help make sure our numbers are accurate and data is accessible and easy to understand.

What inspired you to embark on the fitness journey with your career?

From a young age I always enjoyed being active (athletics and leisure) as well as helping others. It made sense to combine the two and do something I’m happy about every day. It’s an amazing feeling to be a motivating factor in other’s reaching their goals and making those relationships in the process.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give anyone interested in becoming a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist?

Invest in your clients. Too often clients are viewed as a way to make money or just another number and if that is how you view them, you’ll most likely treat them as such. You can have all of the knowledge, all of the equipment, all of the titles to your name, but if you don’t take the time to invest in your client relationships, it will be hard to retain any client base. Care about them and their goals/needs and you will find success in training. Also, know what you don’t know and don’t be afraid to communicate with others if what they are seeking is outside your scope of practice/knowledge

What’s your favorite workout style?

I try not to get too caught up in any one specific style. I believe that everyone has individual needs/limitations which need to be taken into consideration when programming. I feel that most everyone could use more posterior chain (back, glutes, and hamstrings) strengthening and higher intensity cardiovascular training. We live in a society which is seated too often and we develop rounded/slouched posture, tight hip flexors/hamstrings/chest, and weak posterior muscles.

What’s your favorite song to listen to when working out?

Anything by the band Shinedown–albums “Leave a Whisper” or “Sounds of Madness” are favorites.

What’s your favorite thing to eat after a workout?

I have a sweet tooth, so I love chocolate milk afterwards. It has a great ratio of carbs/protein and tastes great!

What’s one food that you can’t live without?

I always crave a good dessert, but I think pizza is a food item I would have a hard time living without. You can do it up in so many ways with toppings, sauces, and crust types!

What’s the best advice you have ever received?

Do what you love and love what you do. If you wake up each day dreading what’s to come, make a change. If you’re going to do something, do it the best you can with the best intentions.

What motivates you?

Improvement; each day is a new opportunity to grow personally and professionally.

Do you have more questions for Kyle or want to book a training session with him? Contact the Ahwatukee location today to connect with Kyle and his team.

At FAST, we offer personal training, group fitness, and sports performance training. Many athletes prefer to come in and train with us in our facility, but we also offer off-site training. Our off-site team training programs are focused improving speed, agility, strength, explosiveness, mobility and more. At North Central Phoenix FAST, we have the privilege of working off-site with many high schools and club teams throughout the valley.

Specifically, we have been put in charge of the strength and conditioning program of two local boys’ basketball programs. Both are year-round programs that help keep the team in-shape during the season, and help build strength and agility during the off-season.

In the last couple of years that we have been working with these schools, they have seen incredible improvement in their strength, explosiveness and competitiveness. We have recorded an average increase of 30lbs in bench press, and 60lbs in front squat and back squat in their first year of training. On average, we tend to see an increase of 2.5 inches in the vertical jump and 9 inches in the broad jump. These are very good improvements for these exercises considering their regular playing season and FAST training overlap. Not only do the players play for the school, but many participate in club teams during their off season.

The results of our sports performance training are evident as we have seen improvements in both teams since we began working with them. In 2014, one of our valley schools went from not being a playoff team, to contending for the state title in 2015, to winning the state title in 2016! They are training now to defend their title next year. We began working with a second high school in 2015, after which they went on to double their win total in 2016. Currently, they are training to outperform next year. We love to see how our training programs help each team to reach their goals.

Our training isn’t the sole reason these teams made incredible improvements to their win record, but it helps the teams to realize their full potential in the game. If you want to try team training, contact your local FAST location to learn more about our on-site sports performance training for teams.

High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) has recently made resurgence in the fitness world. You might be wondering what exactly HIIT is and how it can benefit you. HIIT requires an individual to perform at their highest intensity for a duration of time, followed by a timed rest. This process repeats several times. We keep the burst of energy short to ensure that we are always performing at maximum effort close to VO2 Max, the maximum oxygen our body consumes during exercise.

Exercising at this intensity burns calories not only during exercise, but your body continues to burn calories at a higher rate after exercise compared to traditional steady state cardio. Over time individuals will increase their metabolic rate, making their body more efficient at burning calories.

Studies have found that HIIT provides benefits to both your aerobic and anaerobic fitness. The muscle is impacted at a cellular level and provides the same benefits seen in traditional cardio, in less time. The reduced time makes HIIT a valuable method for many that don’t want to spend 30 minutes or more on a treadmill or stair master.

Now that we have gone over what HIIT does to your body, let’s go over how you can do it. One of my favorite methods is Tabata training. Tabata training is an all-out 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeating this cycle 8 times. The total time for this workout is 4 minutes. Although this is short, I guarantee it will be extremely tiring. This workout is a very stressful, so I recommend only performing it 2 to 4 times a week, depending on your fitness level and your body’s ability to recover.

Tabata is not the only HIIT method. If you want to work up to performing at that kind of intensity, try having a short bout of max effort followed by a longer period of rest to adjust yourself to the intensity. For example, as an introduction to HIIT, I like 1 minute of high-intensity exercise and 3 minutes of low-intensity exercise, such as walking. This allows your heart rate and rate of breath to come back down, and allows you to truly perform that 1 minute at maximum effort. There are many ways to use HIIT, just remember you want the exercise, or work, portion to be short, allowing yourself to reach maximum effort. This should be no longer than a minute. You also want both the rest time and the work time to be the same throughout the duration of the exercise.

Contact FAST to find a HIIT program that best fits your fitness level. You will quickly notice the difference in your body when you frequently perform exercise at a high-intensity.