You've been fit all your life. You love activities like running, cycling, cross country skiing, hiking, etc and you do them all the time. After a while you start to notice that you're constantly injured. What do you do? Do you fight through the pain and keep doing what you're doing? Or do you go in a different direction and try something totally new?
Nicolette has lived a healthy and fit lifestyle for as long as she can remember. Native of England, she was the captain of every team in high school. She's always been active in sports like netball, field hockey, cross country skiing, you name it. She was even on her college swim team. However, she never did any weight training and she rarely stretched if at all.
Then after planning a cross Canada cycling trip with her husband Gordon and their friend Jeff (over 3 summers) this July, she realized that she had to step up her game and that she needed to stop doing things ad hoc. She needed some kind of structure.
Now 6 months later, Nicolette is reaping the rewards of being on a structured weight training routine. Nicolette has lost some weight, her clothes are fitting better, she's much stronger and she's seeing the benefits of an injury prevention program first hand.
Starting with Evertrain
Nicolette had been thinking of hiring a coach for 3-4 years. She'd dipped her toe in many times but never found something that she thought was going to work for her.
After a recommendation from her good friend Catherine, she contacted us about more information. As residents of Carp, Nicolette and her husband Gordon hadn't originally considered working with us. But after an initial meeting they decided it would be worth the drive and committed to 12 months on the LeanAfter50-VIP program.
Her initial goals were;
lose 10lbs
increase core and upper body strength
address a herniated disc in her lower back
improve her performance in running and cycling
Nicolette felt good about getting started. She knew that if she paid attention she would succeed. But she hadn't realized how all encompassing the program would be. She really likes the emphasis on nutrition habits. It helps her recognize that she is being set up for success in the longterm.
The game plan
Nicolette started the first 3-4 months of her program with a lower back injury rehabilitation focus. She was consistently working out 3-4 times per week and has done spinning classes or cycling in her basement on other days.
She struggled at first to put enough time into the stretching and rolling. After a few discussions with her coach, they decided that she would re-commit to this aspect of the program.
She's realizing more and more that she needs to maintain the car if she wants to take it out for a spin, so-to-speak.
Every week Nicolette is visibly better at something. Either she's moving better in her shoulders, she's improving on position in a core exercise or she's just lifting a heavier weight while maintaining perfect form.
Although she still has a lot of room to grow, she's progressed at an accelerated pace.
Nicolette focuses her attention on her technique in a barbell deadlift. Deadlifts are movements that should be learned as it replicates the act of picking something up (a movement people do every day).
Results and feelings about yourself
Aside from being able to progress through to more advanced exercises like back squats and push up variations, Nicolette has seen a lot of changes. Before leaving for her trip to Costa Rica she hit a personal best of a 1 rep Dumbbell Goblet Squat for 65lbs!
Nicolette focuses her attention during a dumbbell bench press. One of her top goals was to improve upper body strength.
Recently she's noticed improvements while sprinting on the beach and cross country skiing in the Gatineau hills.
"I can definitely see I have better muscle tone in my arms and my stomach area. I had to park a lot of my trousers because they are falling off me now. I feel much better about that. I have decreased carbs and sugar intake in general. I feel better about the food that I am eating and I have a tendency towards hypo-glycemia. I am no longer getting the headaches and jittery feelings. I am definitely stronger."
How do you feel about your future?
"I feel good. We have this bike ride coming up. I am always scheming where we are going for our next hike. That's always a test to see how my legs hold out. I am paying more attention to things like maintaining good form so that you don't get injured. It really sets you back. So far so good, in 6 months I've been fine, I've got no aches and pains. My lower back has been fine after 6 months, the program has been great for building strength in my lower back."
Nicolette is noticing her performance improve in the activities she loves to do like hiking, cycling, sprints, cross country skiing, etc.
Takeaways from his time as an Evertrain member
"My coach. He is very patient. He listens to me whine and complain. haha. He's helped me emphasize good form and has taught me how to exercise safely. Because of this I have built confidence to lift weights on my own. I also like not having to think about what to do or plan my workouts."
Advice for someone like her
"One thing is that the environment is welcoming. It's a focus on me and I don't feel like I am competing with anyone else.I have a bunch of lady friends who are in a similar boat. This program will help you figure out what you need to eat to lose weight. From an exercise perspective, if you haven't done weights, this is a great way to get into a safe environment where you can have someone coach you on how to do these things properly."
If you would like to learn more about a coaching program like the one Nicolette is on, simply click the link below. We would love to speak with you on how we can help you overcome obstacles and reach your goals.
