During this time of year many of us are working long hours in the lead up to the holiday season. It is these extra long hours in the office, sitting behind a desk and in front of a computer that can affect our posture. It is difficult to hold perfect seated posture for 8 hours a day, so we suggest you regularly remind yourself to take a break, stand up, stretch and if possible get some fresh air too! A simple trick to help remind yourself to check and work on your posture is to schedule a reminder in your Outlook program. This will pop up on your screen and give you a visual reminder to take a break. You could set this to remind you every 2 hours.

There are many exercises that assist in creating and maintaining good posture when standing and sitting and our trainers have outlined 3 in the video above.

Deadlifts: This exercise is a whole body exercise that creates whole body strength. It major benefit to posture in the strengthening of the muscles supporting the spine along with the traps (shoulder/neck muscles). Although this exercise looks simple enough, the correct technique is important and should be monitored by your Personal Trainer.

Hip Lifts: This particular exercise requires no equipment and can be performed anywhere. It’s a great one to do at home in front of the TV (in the ad breaks!). By lifting your hips off the ground you and strengthening the hip flexors and improving your core strength. Try to engage your core muscles before you lift then maintain that contraction during the exercise.

Upper Back Stretch (Foam Roller): If you are lucky enough to have a Foam Roller at home than this exercise is great for stretching the upper back muscles that may be tight after a long day. It is important during this stretch to continue to breathe throughout the stretch and NOT hold your breath.

If you would like further education or demonstration on these posture improving exercises or like more information call 1300 NEWLEVEL or contact via this website.

Four of New Level Personal Training’s best trainers got together and decided on their 3 best tips to Shape Up For Summer. So when we put them all together we have 12 Tips to get in shape. The tips in no particular order are:

1. Stop Eating Processed Food, Eat Natural Food

2. Drink More Water and Green Tea

3. Do Whole Body Exercises

4. Stick To A Meal Plan

5. Cut Out Alcohol

6. Increase The Workout Intensity

7. Lift Heavier Weights

8. Do High Intensity Cardio Intervals

9. Cut Out All Sugar From Your Diet

10. Train At Least 4 Times Per Week

11. Drink More Water During The Day

12. Cut Out All Take-Away Food

So, there you have it!!! 12 Tips to think about in the lead up to Summer. If you would like further advise feel free to download our 3 FREE Session offer on this site, or simply contact us on 1300 NEWLEVEL for a chat!