Happy Friday!

Thanksgiving has come and gone as we welcome December. Isn’t it wild to think that 2024 is just around the corner?

For those of you who have been training consistently throughout the year, keep it going. Only 30 days left to finish out the year on a strong note.

For those of you who have fallen off the wagon, now is the time to get back on. Don’t wait until January 1st to restart your fitness. The longer you wait, the more deconditioned you become, and the harder it will be to reestablish healthy habits.

So, whether you’ve been grinding through the holidays or not, this week’s WARM UP tips are meant for you.

4 Tips For A Solid Warm Up

Tip #1: Pick a cardio-based activity.

This can be walking, treadmill walking, incline walking, cycling, jumping jacks, jump roping, jogging, swimming, etc. You get the gist of it. It can literally be any activity. The point is to get your body temperature up where you feel warm, hence “warm” up.

Tip #2: Perform for 5-10 minutes.

The initial warm up should last about 5-10 minutes of continuous activity. You can always warm up longer if you feel like you need it. Some instances when you might need to warm up longer than 10 minutes would be for 5am practices when you’ve been asleep all night. Another instance is during the winter when it’s cold out and it’s harder to increase your body temperature quickly.

Tip #3: Add dynamic stretching.

This is different than static stretching. Dynamic stretching is movement-based stretching that is slow and controlled that aids in improving muscle pliability, reducing stiffness, lubricates joints, and further increase your body temperature.

If you like static stretching, save it for after your workout.

Tip #4: Aim for an RPE of 4-6.

What’s RPE? It’s the rate of perceived exertion. There are two scales of RPE, but the more common one is 0-10, 10 being you’re completely pooped and can maybe squeak out 1 rep. A rating of 4-6 is warming up at a 40-60% intensity.

What does that look like?

On land, it’s walking at a moderate pace of about 3.2 mph. In the water, it’ll look like an easy 200-400 yards freestyle where you’re swimming with nice, long strokes and a steady, rhythmic kick.

What I’ve Been Up To

With baby Malia hitting 4 months old this week and becoming more playful and engaging by the day, I’ve come to realize that it’s getting harder to sneak out of the house for an hour to get a lift in.

Some might use that as an excuse to stop lifting. Me? I’d lose my mind before that happens.

So, I’ve spent all of November building my ideal fitness studio in our house. Now I get to keep an eye on baby girl (or more like she keeps an eye on me) while still getting to lift 4x/week.

Goodbye, excuses. Hello, consistent training. Baby girl better watch out. Once Spring and Summer rolls around, she’ll be joining me in the pool 😉 

If you’re local to Bakersfield, CA and you’re in need of personal training or you need some recovery work done, I’m now taking in-person clients.

Reply to this email for more information.

Do you have a home gym, too? It doesn’t need to be fancy with a squat rack and barbells. If all you have are a few dumbbells and some bands laying around, I’d love to create a customized strength program just for you, with the equipment that YOU have at home.

Sometimes, simple is just as effective. And you certainly don’t need to spend $100s to $1000s in equipment to get fit, live healthy, and look great!

Start your lifting journey with me and you’ll be surprised how much better and stronger you feel when the New Year rolls around!

As always, leave feedback by replying to this email. I love sharing the wealth of knowledge and I’m glad I get to share it with you!

Have a FANTASTIC weekend.

Until next time,

Sandra

PS - Need customized strength coaching or swim coaching from someone who’s personally recovered from 10+ injuries and surgeries, and helped many others recover from the same? Sign up for 1:1 coaching with me.

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