JA Strength

05/17/2022

JA Strength is looking for clients!

We specialize in helping busy parents/people get more athletic, stronger and healthier!

Our training program is delivered to you online, through Trainerize, an app that features exercise videos, chat and more.

Together, we’ll chart a course that makes sense for you and your schedule. Whether you’re at a fully equipped gym or just starting out at home, we’ve got you covered.

As parents, our time and energy is limited and precious. We start where you are and add as you go. We’re striving for an always something attitude, not all or nothing.

We believe that fitness is a lifelong journey, so we work to stack habits day by day, week by week. You’ll be surprised what you can achieve over time when you progressively build this way.

So if your time is precious and you’re looking to become more athletic, strong and healthy we want to hear from you!

Shoot us a dm we’d love to chat!

05/15/2019

Last week i posted about how there are no special exercises for weight loss.

That’s true and I stand by it.

However, there are groups of exercises that should be included in just about every weight loss program.

Squat
Lunge
Pulls
Pushes
Carries
Getting stronger in these main exercises should be a focus for you if losing weight/improving body composition is your goal.

There are enough ways to do each of these to make any workout ore effective. You can train around injuries, find variations that you like or fit your body better, and you won’t be bored.

I’ll be posting some of my favorites from each of these categories, let me know if there are any you want to see!

05/14/2019

In any exercise program, I’m a big fan of adding in a lot of Rowing exercises.

They offer a lot of benefits. Improved shoulder health, posture and it shows everyone that you don’t jut work on your bench and biceps.

Practically speaking, if you want a stronger bench press and deadlift, these should be included in almost every training day in some form.

I’d suggest trying out different grips and angles (high/low) to find out which ones feel best for you. Aim for 2 rowing variations for every push exercises that you do (bench press, push ups etc.) to strengthen your upper back.

05/09/2019

Is doing Cardio necessary for weight loss?

Short answer: No

Long answer: Also, no

Should you do it, then? Maybe.

The main question here as it relates to weight loss is: do you want to do cardio?

I've posted some of my thoughts about this on my blog. Check it out here:

05/08/2019

One of the first things I ask my clients to do when starting a weight loss program is to slow down.

At first, we may not even talk about what they’re eating (although this is still a huge piece of the puzzle).

We talk about HOW they eat.

Do you feel full or hungry afterwards? Do you eat quickly? In front of a screen?

Checking in with a few of these questions helps you develop more awareness around how much you’re eating and why.

This is called ‘Mindful Eating’ and I find it’s a great way for people who are beginning a weight loss program to start building healthy habits around food.

Give it a try next time you’re at a meal. After you finish, ask yourself: am I full? Satisfied? Still hungry? You might surprise yourself.

05/07/2019

Using the lats in Pull-ups/lat Pull-downs.

Something I see regularly is people using their arms to start a lat pulldown or pull-up instead of their back.

The lats are the main drivers of vertical pull motions (Pulldowns, Chin-ups etc.) and are essential to getting your first chin-up (or more) and are even used when deadlifting and squatting heavy weights. You need to use them well.

One of the first cues I use for vertical pulling exercises is to ‘Pull Your shoulders away from your ears’ when starting the lift. By starting the lift by thinking about firing these larger muscles, you’ll begin to feel what they’re doing.

Use the lats properly and you’ll see some impressive changes to how your upper back looks as well as strength gains in your deadlift and squat.

#

05/06/2019

Strength Training for weight loss.

What exercises are best for weight loss?
Unfortunately there isn’t one ultimate exercise for weight loss (sorry) . But, a great place to start is with compound exercises.

Compound exercises are bigger movements that use more of your body to complete the lift.

Deadlifts, squats, Chin-ups, lunges etc. are all excellent examples.

The benefit for these is that by using more of your body to lift, you’ll build up more strength and more muscle. Getting stronger is consistently being shown to make positive changes to your body.

You’ll use more energy to lift heavier and heavier weights. This (along with changes in eating/lifestyle) leads to looking leaner and ACTUALLY being stronger.

My favorite lift currently is the deadlift.

Which is your favorite lift?

# deadlift

04/13/2016

Here's a quick read I wrote on how to improve your conditioning level for competitive dodgeball

02/18/2016

A quick guide on how to not be so tired all the time. Simple, and worth it. Proper recovery and rest are incredibly important to reaching your goals quickly,and healthily.

A super-obvious, but not-so-obvious guide to not feeling so tired all of the time: the eat and sleep edition. Something I hear all of the time (and you probably do, too) is that everyone, everywhere, seems to be tired. People usually talk about it like it’s a competition - “I’m so tired, I only had…

02/11/2016

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