SouthBMore Fitness Corner: Train For Your Ideal Body

Sponsored Post from Reese Ashe of Reflex Functional Fitness:

Hey South BMore! If you’re like most of America, you were watching the 2016 Summer Olympics and feeling…inspired!?  I mean you saw the gymnasts, the sprinters, the swimmers, and man, those bodies! The whole world was looking and seeing “their ideal physique” on TV but not in the mirror.

You follow the best hottest bodies that Instgram has to offer, you’re in the gym five days a week, and your diet can’t get any better, but you’re still not seeing those results. I mean, Cam Newton came to town and made a few local gym rats feel kind of small and out of shape just by looking at him! There’s no doubt, the pros seem to have it all figured out and may leave you wondering…

What’s their secret?

What are they doing that’s so different?

What are you doing wrong?

It’s not necessarily the case that you’re doing anything wrong, it’s actually pretty simple. Your body responds and adapts to the different types of physical stress you put it through. Depending on the type of stress will determine how your body adapts and changes to make that “stress” a little less, well stressful.

Look at the different types of athletes and look at their body types. Marathoners tend to be long and lean with muscular legs and thinner upper bodies. Their legs do so much work for so many miles. To make the 26.2 mile run most efficient, the body will become as light as possible by dropping unnecessary fat or even muscle to keep those legs moving.

Swimmers have powerful shoulders, strong core, and dolphin-like flexibility. This build gives them the ability to pierce through the water with superhuman speed.

Football players have to absorb high impact hits, damaging blows to their head and neck, and be able to run down and elude opponents. Hence their size, weight, and muscular necks, on top of their overall muscle mass.

Don’t get me wrong, hats off to you for running three miles every morning, benching 200+lbs, crushing that elliptical machine, and tracking those 10,000 steps. This is definitely doing great things for your overall fitness but may not be what you need to change your body.

Running three miles a day at say an eight or nine minute mile will improve your heart rate and cardiovascular health but your body is an amazing machine that will adapt to almost anything. This type of training will give you initial results but after your body adapts, it will do more to lower your resting heart rate, which is great, but do less to change your body.

Benching 200 or 300lbs is very impressive and may or may not give you that broad chest you are working for but I can’t tell you the last time I was walking through the Inner Harbor and suddenly had the need to push 300lbs off of my chest.

Tracking steps is great to give you an idea of your daily activity level and avoid being sedentary but…it’s…counting…steps.

This is the motivation behind functional training. Training to make your body work most efficiently for whatever demands you put on it. Granted, most of us won’t make it in the pros, let alone the Olympics, but that doesn’t mean we can’t train our bodies to work to the best of its ability.

Great runners cross train to be better runners, they don’t just run. Swimmers do more than just swim to get faster in the water. Football players have to do more than play football if they want to improve their game. You have to do more than the treadmill or weight bench to change your body.

They say “variety is the spice of life” so why wouldn’t this count for fitness as well. Mix up your training and see the results. I’ve said it before, instead of focusing on the scale, try to focus on a specific goal, race, event, or sport to train for. If you’re not into sports, find a functional fitness class or trainer who can show you a new approach.

Reflex Fitness is home to an Olympian, a National Tri-athlete, Pro MMA fighters, moms, dads, and everyday people who just want to improve. If you want to improve your overall health, body or fitness level, stay tuned into SouthBMore.com for information on our SoBo Reflex Functional Fitness challenge.

Reese Ashe, NSPA, ISCA, and Black Belt., is the owner and operator of Reflex Functional Fitness at the Southside Marketplace in Locust Point/Federal Hill. Reese, a familiar figure in Baltimore, has more than 15 years of experience in the fitness industry as a personal trainer, group fitness leader and martial arts instructor. He won Baltimore Magazine’s Best of Reese Ashe, NSPA, ISCA, and Black Belt., is the owner and operator of Reflex Functional Fitness at the Southside Marketplace in Locust Point/Federal Hill. Reese, a familiar figure in Baltimore, has more than 15 years of experience in the fitness industry as a personal trainer, group fitness leader and martial arts instructor. He won Baltimore Magazine’s Best of Baltimore “Best Personal Trainer” in 2010, Baltimore Sun Magazine’s “Top Trainer” in 2011, and Baltimore Magazine’s Best of Baltimore “Best Fitness Class” in 2012 and was again nominated in 2014.

Reese was a four-year NCAA Division I wrestler at Coppin State and has experience in Jiu Jitsu, boxing, Mui Thai, and Mixed Martial Arts. Reese has been taught and trained by some of the world’s best, which has fostered a discipline and work ethic that he strives to instill in all his clients.

Are you interested in ramping up your health regimen? Make sure to stop by Reflex Functional Fitness for a group fitness class, a personal training session, or to get more information.

410.962.8400 – www.ReflexBaltimore.com

via http://southbmore.com/2016/08/25/southbmore-fitness-corner-train-for-your-ideal-body/