Merritt Clubs Blog

If you were to ask anybody on the planet what percentage of a sport is physical and what percentage of it is mental, I guarantee you that literally no one will say “It’s 100% physical.” We all know that there is a mental aspect to performance especially in lifting. If your mind is not clear and focused then your performance under the weight will not be as good as it could be. Yet, how many of us actually practice the mental side of lifting? The point of this post is to get you thinking about thinking!

It's no secret that exercise is good for your body. But what you may not know is that it's also great for your mind. Exercise can be a powerful tool for stress relief, and it has a host of other benefits as well.

Having a fitness program in place is essential, however, something that is just as important is making sure that you stick with it. There are often a lot of things that can happen in life that may derail you. Thankfully, there are certain tips that help you to stay on track and reach your goals. Here are three tips to overcome temptations that might derail your fitness progress.

The Gene Mile

A little back story about myself. For the past 10 years, fitness has been a focus of mine. When I first started out it was to lose weight and to simply be stronger and healthier. I accomplished my goal and dropped roughly 100 lbs in my first year. I had more energy, I felt stronger, and overall healthier. After a few months of hitting my goal weight, I became stagnant in my workouts, started making excuses, and simply not going. So, when I saw the scale starting to creep back up in weight, I had to give myself a new challenge: Powerlifting.

If you have read the title of this post and are looking for some great hype to get your blood pumping, goose bumps on your arms, and electricity bolting through your entire body then you came to the right place.

When you think of core training, you probably think of endless crunches and planks. You might think of six-pack ab muscles on beach-ready bodies. But you may not think about all the other things a strong core does for you.

Sure, treadmills get all the glory - they're the cardio queens of the gym after all. But don't count out the good old-fashioned stationary bikes just yet. These workout warriors have a lot to offer in the way of a great workout, and they come with amazing benefits!

My son is currently in a spectacular production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. A few weeks ago, I met one of the female cast members for the first time, and we chatted about her experience. She said to me, “I’m not a singer or a dancer, but I’m having so much fun!” I immediately responded, “Oh yes you ARE a singer and a dancer! I see you up there singing and dancing your heart out!”

We're spending more and more time behind a desk with remote and hybrid work becoming more common. Even if you don't, back pain and depression are common issues amongst the population, not to mention the desire to better ourselves. We're here to help with the fitness class you didn't know you were missing.

The value of training with (a) partner/s in relation to strength training cannot truly be quantified, but, I am going to try to in this short read. First we must put into context what “training” is and what “working out” is. Then we will get into how and why having a good training partner is almost imperative to training progress.