Glute Activation and Strengthening: Ask the Trainer

Let's talk about asses, shall we?

Feet don't fail me n... oh. Never mind.

 So the question for this installment of Ask The Personal Trainer is:

What's the deal with "glute activation," is something you work with people on? And if so, why is important and what's your approach?

"Glute activation" was a term I'd been hearing tossed around on various websites, and curious about the difference between active and lazy asses, and how to have one of the former rather than the latter, I thought I'd ask a couple of our trusty personal trainers.  Plus, I'll weigh in, just 'cause I have an ass  myself and it's my blog.

Workout Work-Arounds

 Perhaps your reliable ol' gym just closed for construction.

Or maybe you fell down and broke your crown, or alligators and brain-eating amoebas have infested the swimming pool at the local Y, or your favorite Zumba teacher just converted to a religion in which ass-shaking is strictly prohibited.

What happens when you are forced to switch to an entirely new way of exercising? Some people quit, that's one option.  Others figure out a way to suck it up and forge on ahead.

Cranky Fitness regulars know that I've written this same "take lemons and make lemonade" post 90 bazillion times before. Whatever! When life stops with the lemonning, I'll shut up about the lemonade.

So what recent trauma inspired these latest musings on how to deal with messed up workout routines?

Do Just One Thing... Less!

 

So originally this was going to be an "Ask the Trainer" post, until I realized I'd actually forgotten to Ask one of the Trainers!  So later I guess on that.

And then I thought, hey, what about a Wordless Wednesday post, that'll be quick! But that would require finding a copyright-free image so earth-shattering it would shut me up entirely, and that quest would not ultimately be any sort of time-saver.

Part of the reason I got a late start posting is I was having fun swingin' in the park, and then got caught up in email, which I get a lot of, and I was pondering the thought-provoking Just One Thing missive I receive that was all about Giving (and asking, and communicating, and other similar things).

So I thought, well, maybe I'll write a post about that!

Quick Personality Test!

So being the world's most half-assed Twitter participant, I rarely catch cool stuff as it scrolls on by.  Which is too bad because there are all kinds of great Tweeple Twittering away all kinds of Tweemendous links.

And yep, every time someone writes one of those "what not to do on Twitter!" lists, I hit pretty much every bullet point.  Swear words and offensive tweets? Check! Failure to RT or engage in conversations? Check! Just tweeting if and when I feel like it instead of on a sensible schedule? Check!

But here's a cool thing: I stumbled upon on a fun blogger/health writer on Twitter last week.
And so, intrigued, I ventured over to her blog and stole this post! Which, I'm thinking, is, um, just being friendly, right? I also discovered she has an awesome ebook you guys will like, which I will tell you more about at the end.

So this is courtesy of Helen Foster (@healthehelen) over at Health-e-Helen. Check her out!

But first here's the personality test. It takes less than five seconds. And try it FIRST before you skim down to see what it means.

New Directions!

And no, I'm not referring to the "New Directions" choir, featuring the fictional misfits of Glee. But hey, wouldn't it be fun to have costumes and professionally choreographed musical numbers to celebrate every new direction we take in life?

"Honey, I wonder if we should think about switching to a 'greener' toilet bowl cleaner? This stuff is probably pretty toxic..."

Cue music and lights... roll in the tile bathroom backdrops and 80 ft tall shower curtain and giant 3 story toilet, and then ... let's all dance and sing about the virtues of environmentally friendly cleaning products while dressed as scrub brushes amidst clouds of swirling turquoise bubbles!

[And hell, now that we're in the bathroom anyway, here's a complete digression for which I blame our good pal Leah at The Goat's Lunch Pail and "The Kitsch Bitsch." It's a rather astounding retro musical inducement to get your kids to consider taking a New Direction in personal hygiene. But if your sons all turn out totally gay as a result don't say I didn't warn you].




Anyway, back to the "New Directions" thing.

Do you ever struggle a bit with a sense that it might be time to head in a New Direction, yet you're still kind of attached to the Old Direction?

Greedy and Grateful..."Naturally!"

So, I'm back from the Natural Products Expo West with an exciting report about everything that's new and hot and happening in the industry!

OK, let's be honest. I'm really back with some vague impressions and a bloated belly and the vestiges of a sugar coma and some random business cards and a HUGE CRAPLOAD of free samples.

Ah, life is good.

Showtime!

So tomorrow I'm headed to the Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, and I'm psyched!

Crabby goes "Au Natural"!

Although oddly enough, no purveyors of natural products have even tried to recruit me as a brand ambassador for anything.

Seems awfully short-sighted, don't you think?  Just imagine the cachet a natural product could obtain by having a frequently foul-mouthed health blogger who goes by the name of "Crabby" spreading the word to millions... er, thousands, or, well... literally several regular readers who might buy something someday!

Well, their loss I guess.

However, even though I may be unsponsored, I did manage to wrangle a press pass for myself and my wife helpful Co-Blogger, the Lobster. And I am hope-hope-hoping to run into other bloggers I admire, like the most awesome Jody who may very well be there.

Will I actually end up turning this adventure into a blog post? We shall see! Depends on what I find there and whether the camera-phone catches something interesting or if I end up with the usual abstract art featuring underlit blurry objects or the inside of my coat pocket.

So in case I get too lazy, I at least have a few random preliminary thoughts to share before heading out on our great Natural Foods Expo Adventure.

Confession: Crabby is a Secret Swinger

 

You can't really blame me, can you, after so many years?  So yeah, maybe I wanted to mix things up a bit.

As I recall my first experience was on a lovely warm evening, after a glass of wine or two, accompanied by seductive music--what can I say? I couldn't resist!

I thought the Lobster might think my proclivities were too, well, weird and embarrassing, but once I explained she was surprisingly accepting, even if she didn't often want to join me.

And hell, now I'm shameless.  I'll do it in the morning, in a park, in broad daylight!  Even though technically what I'm doing there is against the park rules, but hell, what are the chances I'll get caught and punished?

Yep, after years of keeping it respectable....

Alzheimer's Diet Giveaway Winners

Here are the first three winners of The Alzheimer's Diet: A Step-by-Step Nutritional Approach for Memory Loss Prevention and Treatment. 

Jody
Ellen Rent
Laura

And what about the fourth winner? Well, here's the thing: I said I'd set aside one copy for a Canadian reader, and I forgot to ask you all to say where you're from!

So the first Canadian reader who leaves a comment here who wants it gets the fourth copy.

And winners, please email me at the address on the Schmooze page to let me know your mailing info, thanks! If I don't hear by end of day Friday March 8 new winners will be chosen.