Forever Young - You Can Be Fit at Any Age

“Determination is why mentally I feel like I am 25, physically I am 35 and, I bet, no one in here could guess my real age. Shhhh, my 80th birthday was Thursday, (January 28th. 2010)”

Tony Costa is a life long Boston resident and a recent member here at Fitcorp. At nearly 80 years old, we had to know where he finds his strength and motivation to spend up to three hours a day here, 5 – 6 days a week, doing everything from spinning to free weights. Recently, we got a chance to sit down with Tony to ask him how he does it.

Tony’s fitness path started out when he was just 12 years old. In the years that followed, his active lifestyle grew quickly and soon Tony was an avid boxer. As his fitness level developed, so did Tony’s interest in other activities. After spending over 20 years cycling and walking 10 miles a day, Tony’s dedication level grew when he purchased a spin bike so he could continue to spin and walk 10 miles while being a companion to his wife, Helen.

Tony’s dedication to fitness is an example for everyone to follow. “When I walk in here I am half asleep but I do it to stay active. Fitness is all about determination and drive. Love yourself and do something to keep your heart alive. I appreciate Fitcorp for its energetic staff, which makes sure to wake me up most days. Most importantly I value its positive attitudes. Without a positive attitude I would have never made it to 80, never mind 25 or 35.”

Tony continues to be a positive influence on all of us here at Fitcorp and acts as an inspiration to other members by reminding everyone to “keep it up”. His fitness plan is something that should not only be admired, but also practiced. Tony’s commitment to staying fit reminds everyone, “If I can do it at 80, you have no excuses.”

Americans Excercising Less In 2009 Than 2008

Though it might seem like Americans are becoming more health conscious every year, we at Fitcorp recently came across some interesting, yet disappointing findings.

Last Friday, the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index revealed that Americans (overall) exercised less in 2009 than they did in 2008. While the percentage of Americans who said they exercised for at least one day a week for 30 minutes or more was only down one percentage point for the year (68.1% in 2009, down from 69.1% in 2008), the more troubling statistic came from the year-over-year comparison, which showed it was down from the previous year in 10 out of the 12 months.

With so much evidence today about the mental and physical benefits of getting regular exercise, we at Fitcorp are confused as to why it took a back seat in ’09?
Is this statistic going to be the same this year or are we going to make up the lost ground in 2010?

Read the article and let us know your thoughts: http://ow.ly/YbSa

Pregnant and Fit: Andrea Goldstone

I’ve always been passionate about health and fitness, and as a high school and college athlete, exercise science was a clear path for me. I not only love working out and feeling healthy, but I also enjoy helping others accomplish their goals and changing their lives – which led me to Fitcorp. I worked as a trainer at our BRC location for 4 years, followed by 2.5 years as Client Service Manager at Fitcorp’s Summer Street location, and am now a General Manager at our Copley location. I’ve enjoyed every position I’ve held at Fitcorp and love working with a group of people who share the same passion for fitness as I do. It’s also a nice perk to have fitness equipment in your office, as there are no excuses for not exercising.

Last spring I decided that I wanted to get back on track with running and really focus on speed and less on long distances. I can honestly say through the Cardio Transformation group training program at Summer Street Fitcorp, I got myself into the best running shape of my life in a matter of 12 weeks. I recently ran a timed mile faster than what I did in college. At 29, I was pretty excited about this accomplishment! I also was able to run 7-8 miles comfortably. Previously 4 miles was about my distance limit. Speed and interval work was a huge missing link in my past running programs, and this program really brought the pieces together for me. In addition to 3 days of running per week and 2 days on the Stairmaster for cross training, I also strength trained 3 days a week.

On my one-year wedding anniversary in September, I found out I was pregnant and was very excited! I knew this would bring some changes to my work-out program but vowed that I would still continue to work out and have always said that I would exercise until the day I gave birth (We’ll see if I can keep that promise!). The first 2 months of pregnancy presented its challenges because I was so tired and not quite up to par, but I continued to exercise anyway. I subtracted the intervals and speed work from my program but continued running 3-4 miles a few days a week. I continued this until about 8 weeks of pregnancy at which point I found my running endurance was more of a challenge and my posture/gait was starting to change. For the next 4 weeks I split up my miles and incorporated them with my strength training (run a mile, do a circuit of strength work, run another mile, etc.). At 12 weeks, I decided running just wasn’t as enjoyable now that I’m pregnant and decided to work on the Stairmaster and elliptical for the rest of my pregnancy. Some people can run through their entire pregnancy and I envy them.

I’m currently 21.5 weeks and due on May 17. With the exception of battling a recent cold, I’ve stayed pretty consistent on my 5-day-a-week workout plan (5 days cardio and 2 days strength training). On the days I do strength training, I do 30 minutes of cardio, and on other days, I try to do 45 minutes - 1 hour. Exercise is definitely more challenging, but I feel so much better after I do it! Stretching is a bit more challenging now that I can’t lie on my back, but I find ways to do it. Stepping on the scale and seeing the numbers climb despite my efforts in the gym has been something I’ve had to adjust to. It really bothered me at first, but now I understand that it’s out of my control and I’m gaining weight because my baby needs it. I’ve realized that, even with this happening, I can still be fit!

I’ve read so many positive articles on exercising and pregnancy and I am keeping my fingers crossed that my labor will be short and sweet since I’ve kept my body strong and fit (Stay tuned for that update in May!). There’s not question about it, exercising while you are pregnant is harder, but you feel SO much better…it’s well worth the extra sweat. On that note, I’m heading to the Stairmaster! Stay tuned for next week’s workout…

Fitcorp is proud to help Women's Resource Center in Boston

Fitcorp is committed this year to helping the families from the Women's Resource Center in Boston have one gift under the tree this year for each of the family members. Help us help them. Gift cards are always great.

Please review the list of items. Let us know who you can purchase a gift for and what Fitcorp you can drop the gift off. Please bring your marked (with name of person the gift is for) and wrapped gift to any Fitcorp by Dec 22. Email cindy@otwadv.com or call us at 781-729-7229 for more details.

• Lexis Age 10. Toys”R”Us gift card
• Faith Age 2. Gift card to Toys”R”Us or age appropriate toy
• Marie Age 18. Gift card for a winter coat
• Female Age 3. Doll Set
• Chris Age 16. Clothing gift card
• Richema Age 18. clothing gift card
• Alexis Age 16. Clothing Gift card
• Caleb Months old. toys for infant or gift card to Target, Walmart or Toys”R”Us
• Male Age 14. Gift Card
• Samantha Age 17 College Dorm supplies

Did This Doctor Break the Law?

Just when it seems like things can’t get any worse for Tiger Woods, the whirlwind of speculation and rumors surrounding him have now become sports-related.

The New York Times website reported Monday that a Canadian doctor who treated Woods at least four times after his knee surgery in 2008, is now being investigated by the FBI for allegedly supplying professional athletes with performance-enhancing drugs.

The Canadian sports medicine pioneer, Dr. Anthony Galea, was found with Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and Actovegin, a drug extracted from calf’s blood, in his medical bag at the U.S.-Canadian border in late September, and was later arrested on October 15, the report said. Prescribing HGH is legal in Canada, and is acceptable for some purposes in the United States, but using, selling, or importing Actovegin is illegal in the United States.

Galea became famous in the professional sports world for his development of a blood-spinning technique called platelet-rich plasma therapy, which is an FDA-approved injection-based therapy that speeds up a person’s recovery after surgery. He said he has been using HGH for personal use for 10 years but has never given it out to any professional athletes.

So, we at Fitcorp are wondering if the law is actually being broken here?

Read the article, and let us know what you think?