Leg Exercises- Advanced!

Hi, Lani here. My favorite sessions in the gyms are my leg days. Depending on the type of training period I am in, I can lift heavy with less reps or lighter with higher reps and still able to elevate my heart rate in any period. Because your legs and butt are bigger muscle groups, more energy is required to move them in different patterns and therefore can reduce fat, increase bone density or (if it is your goal, don’t worry ladies) increase muscle mass.  

Power Clean- speed strength movement. This exercise is great for athletes or people who want to improve their speed strength to their sport because the movements are quick and explosive, much like the movements they will be performing in competition.

Heavy Deadlift- This is my favorite exercise as it works my legs, abdominals, butt and back.  Perfroming tis exercise properly, it will help you to safely increase your strength and build muscle mass (if this is your goal, not mine). I use the sumo stance and the mixed grip (hook grip) to help me grip the bar when I lift a heavy weight.

Balance Board Squats- Squats effectively work most of the major muscle groups of the butt, hips, thighs and abdominals. Exercising on balance boards help improve sore strength, proprioception and balance. Combining both of these together, and you get a challenging and effective all-round body exercise.

Single Leg Deadlift with a Twist- When this movement is performed correctly, the single leg deadlift pattern requires the recruitment of all of the muscles up the posterior chain. It encourages your body to use both sides just as efficiently and improves balance. Adding a row to this exercise advances the movement by increasing the number of muscle groups that are working and therefore burning more calories.

Please enjoy the video and remember that form always comes first before the amount of weight or reps you are lifting. Also, until you can perform the primal squat, bending and lunge patterns you should not try these more advanced exercises.

SEE VIDEO OF THESE EXERCISES HERE

Yours in good health,

Lani

Tokyo Fitness- Personal Training Tokyo

Elana Jade Beauty Salon Tokyo

Pregnancy Training- Spring!

Being Spring and all I thought it would be a perfect time to write a quick blog about Pre and Post Natal training. I have had the pleasure of training dozens of women though this experience and cant stress how important it is to train before, during and after pregnancy.

The video below is of my lovely wife Miki training under the Sakura trees in our local park.  Miki gave birth to our little girl just over three months ago and as you can see in the video- she has not only fully recovered from her pregnancy she is able to once again kick some butt!

The reason Miki can safely kick box (as well as do weights, run, and of course do the dreaded "stairloops" etc) is because she not only diligently trained before and after pregnancy, but, she did it right! Like most of my clients Miki trained all the way through her pregnancy and focused on strengthening her hips (butt, hamstrings etc), abdominals (tva, pelvic floor) and back (particular the muscles that retract the shoulders). Obviously the choice of exercises during this period is important, but, equally important is HOW you do the exercises. As I always say to my client "a squat isnt always a squat!" Squatting without stabilizing the spine and correct lumbo-pelvic rhythm can  exacerbate hip and back pain (especially when under load). So make sure you are moving right!

Focusing on these important postural muscles and movements allowed Miki to also continue to do the exercises she really likes such as boxing. 

The results? 

Miki had next to no pain throughout her pregnancy and the doctor was very impressed with her pushing power as baby Sora was shot out into the world!

Just 7 days after giving birth Miki began doing gentle pelvic floor exercises. 6wks later she progressed to training all those important muscles we trained during pregnancy and when we were satisfied Mikis core muscles were working well and she was pain free we got straight back into the fun stuff! If you notice in the video, when Miki is kneeing you can see her navel pulling in as her knee rises- this means she is sufficiently stabilizing her pelvis and lumbar spine and is not at risk of injury. 

Performing such exercises as this (or squatting, lunging, running etc) without adequate stabilization of the lumbar spine and pelvis can lead to short and longtime injury (also means that no matter how much you diet that little paunch will never go away!).

Pre and post natal pregnancy does not have to be boring! Perform the important exercises and you can still do the fun stuff. Being pregnant, giving birth and raising a baby is a wonderful experience and it shouldnt mean you have to be in pain or lose your pre-baby physique in the process!

Happy Training!

Nathan

Tokyo Fitness Personal Training

Fantastic Organic restaurant in Tokyo!

After living in Tokyo for 3 ½ years I have finally found a beautiful organic restaurant that I recommend with confidence.

I always prefer eating organic food as it not only ensures your body receives the high quality nutrition it also tastes better!

I was invited by Azusa san from Jasmin Aromatiques to have a business dinner at one of her friends organic restaurant. I was surprised at the range of quality organic food and beverages (Luca, the owner even makes is own Cola). All dishes were amazing and even some exotic dishes like a strawberry risotto that was surprising yummy. The one dish that I recommend above all is the dehydrated vegetables (picture). The flavor jumps to life and each vegetable is so distinct its like having a party in your mouth!

At the moment it’s their tomato harvest, so we indulged in a special tomato course. The tomato harvest is only for a limited time so please don’t miss out! This is a 6 course meal for only ￥7,800.

I have already made a reservation to go back on Saturday!

Happy Eating
Lani


Tokyo Fitness

Elana Jade

Killer Push (chest) Superset!

Killer  Push Superset!

One of my favorite push exercises is a heavy dumbbell push off the ground with a twist (literally!). I like to add the twist as it is adds functionality to a normally 2 dimensional exercise because it more closely mimics pushing a heavy object (such as a person!) off the ground and also a punch. Since I have a keen interest in fight training, this is a great movement pattern for me, and I have found it really helps with power & strength. 

Also just to add an extra burn and increase my heart rate, I super-set this exercise with a standard push-up. I like the push-up because if done correctly, it uses just about every muscle in your body. Especially your core and chest!

If you have no back or shoulder pain and have perfected the dumbbell press,  give this superset a try and take your workout to the next level!

We did this work out at golds gym, Omotesando Tokyo.

Yours in good health,

Lani

Tokyo Fitness Personal Training

Elana Jade Beauty Salon Tokyo

Review: "Toe Shoes" Adipure by Adidas

I have been testing out the Adipure "barefoot" trainers for the past few months and thought I would write up a bit of a review.

I am a big fan of barefoot training, in fact, as a young runner we were always encouraged to train barefoot on grass to strengthen our feet/ toes and legs in general.  Although I dont run barefoot anymore, I still always tried to train in the gym barefoot. Unfortunately this is often frowned up by gym operators!

The Adipure is basically designed to mimic being barefoot, with a little extra protection for the soles of the feet.  I was originally a Vibram Five Finger wearer, the originators of this type of shoe, but wanted to see how Adipures measured up. To be blatantly honest, one of the main reasons I wanted a change was the Adipure looks a lot cooler! Of course any shoe that looks a "foot glove" looks a little weird, and I am not ready to wear them out on the street just yet, but for the gym they work!

But the real question is, does it improve movement/ training in the gym? Structurally the Adipures are very flexible and do allow for very natural movement. The soles are a little more stiff than the Vibrams that I have worn, but I prefer this when I am doing heavy weight training as I get a quicker response via the nerve sensors in my feet and it also allows for a very good base of support.

The highlight for me in the design are the toes. With the Vibrams my toes felt slightly displaced, but the "wetsuit" like material in the Adipures are very comfortable (dont notice any seams) and I really feel good control of my toes.

All in all, I think Adidas have done a great job with these shoes and its great to see a major shoemaker get into this market. Their ability to promote "barefoot" training shoes will benefit many people who are currently training in heavy, cushioned  gym shoes and in turn suffering from a variety of orthopedic injuries.

So why dont I run in them long distances? I have progressed to "Free" trainers (little support and super flexible soles)  for running but after years of running thousands of kilometres in running shoes I am not ready to change. I have tried short runs but had some pain in my platar fascia (bottom of my feet) and Achilies tendons. Short bursts on soft surfaces are fine, but for longer running, for now, I will stick to the "free" trainers.

So all in all- I say five toes shoes are a great step in shoe develop! They definitely do improve training conditions and your body"s bio-mechanics.

 I encourage anyone wanting to make the transition to do so with caution- start slow! Gym training, walking, short jogs are a great way to allow your feet to adjust- after all, they more than likely havent worked right for decades!

Check out the Adipures here.

Yours in health,

Nathan
Tokyo Fitness Personal Training

Ha Ha Ha ... Just a little fun!

Nath mucking up at the gym in between sets on a Friday afternoon. He must be genki because the weekend was upon us!

Lani

www.elanajade.com

www.tokyo-fitness.com

Push and Pull Training Session

Push and Pull Training Session

Nathan and I did our push and pull training session tonight at Golds Gym. We were mixing a combination of Power and Strength.

Pull: One of the exercises we did tonight were Chin Ups using close grip. Nathan is demonstrating a power chin up: he pulls himself high enough to be able to let go of the bar as he drives up and catch it again on the way down. I am demonstrating the chin up as a strength exercise. I am using my own body weight as it is heavy enough for me, however it is often performed with a weight tied around the waist by a weight belt.

Push: Performing a push up exercise, Nathan is using the power range to explode off the ground lifting all arms and legs off the ground and landing again with good form. I am performing the push up in the strength phase. I have added a weight on my back to be able to achieve the amount of weight needed for me to be in this particular phase.

I hope you have enjoyed these demonstrations. Please remember that when you are performing any exercise, ensure you are doing so with correct posture and alignment.

Lani
Tokyo Fitness Personal Training
Elana Jade Organic Beauty Salon