Work out with the help of the web
Find inspiration and help to achieve your fitness goals
By Cheryl Embrett
Fitness resolutions can nosedive before they ever get off the ground. According to the Canadian Association of Fitness Professionals (Can-Fit-Pro), 50 per cent of new exercisers quit their workout regimen within six to eight weeks. Fortunately, help is as close as your computer.
Whether you want to lose weight, run a marathon, increase your flexibility or just improve your health, the web is a great source of fitness information and inspiration, says Jill Barker, a fitness coordinator at McGill University and fitness columnist for the Montreal Gazette. Here are some great information-packed sites to help you go the distance.
Sign up with a personal trainer
Personal trainers are making their services more accessible and affordable (about $20 to $40 a month online) than ever before through the web. But with personal training sites springing up all over the Internet, it can be difficult to know which one to choose.
Verify qualifications. “First and foremost, check the trainer’s qualifications,” says Kari Gregory, a personal trainer in Calgary. Make sure the trainer has a degree in an exercise-related field or is certified by a well-known organization such as Can-Fit-Pro.
Seek out a customized program. You should get a customized program — not a “canned” one — and the site should provide good visuals of the exercises rather than text-only instructions, which can be difficult to follow. For more information on choosing a personal trainer online, visit the American Council on Exercise’s web site.
Join a running and walking clinic
With two active children, a home-based business and volunteer work, Bridget Swagar of Calgary needed a flexible exercise program. She found it with the Running Room’s online running clinic. You get good instruction and support, she says, and you can set your own schedule.
Suit your group to your needs. John Stanton, owner of Running Room Canada, says the Learn to Run and Women’s Only online clinics ($69.99) are increasingly popular. “They fit in with working parents’ busy lifestyles,” he explains. “And there’s a certain comfort level for people who are embarrassed about joining a group — they can keep their training programs as private as they want, and they’re more willing to ask questions they might not feel comfortable asking in front of a group.”
Find the right gym with an online tour
Gyms such as Premier Fitness and Mademoiselle Women’s Fitness & Day Spa offer virtual tours so you can research their facilities from the no-pressure comfort of your home. Curves, a popular women’s fitness and weight-loss franchise, encourages potential members to take an online questionnaire to determine if its program is a good fit.
YMCA Canada has an extensive listing of facilities across the country, some of which have their own web sites with information on special events, classes and services such as babysitting.
Access easy-to-use exercise tools
Want to know your ideal weight, how many calories your favourite sport will burn or your heart rate? Check out Self.com or Shape.com — both credible, fitness magazine-affiliated web sites — for fun, easy-to-use fitness calculators. The American Heart Association’s Justmove.org can help you discover your fitness type and track your progress with an online exercise diary.
Get information 24/7
Whether it’s 5 a.m. or 10 p.m., the web lets you get the fitness information you need when you need it, says Gregory, a mother of four who turned to Runner’s World for advice and support when she was training for her first marathon in Kelowna, B.C. Gregory also visits the magazine-affiliated site regularly for advice on treating her clients’ sports injuries.
Families who want tips on building more activity into home, school, work and play can look at Health Canada’s Physical Activity Guide.
Mix up your fitness routine
Stuck in a rut? Try something new. Yoga and Pilates are two fitness activities that have skyrocketed in popularity. Look on your town or city’s web site to find classes in your area.
Amateur sports enthusiasts will want to bookmark CanadianSport.ca, a national sports directory with hundreds of links to activities ranging from archery to yachting.
Visit GORP.com if you’re looking for an outdoor fitness adventure in Canada or around the world, and visit Hermail for women-only adventure tours — one of the hottest new trends.
Equip your home gym
When Margaret Cochrane of Dartmouth, N.S., was looking for a treadmill for her home gym, she consulted the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute and the TreadmillDoctor.com for tips on purchasing exercise equipment. She comparison-shopped online before going to the store.
Sites such as Fitness Source provide advice and information on all kinds of fitness equipment, such as stationary bikes, weight machines and in-line skates.
Raise money for a worthy cause
Recently, Toronto freelance writer Liza Finlay decided to help raise money for breast cancer and get fit while doing it. She registered her eight-person team for the CIBC Run for the Cure at the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation’s site.
“I used the site to solicit donations for Team Finlay and keep track of our progress,” she says. “It was very smooth. Training for a fundraising walk or run is a great way to get in shape and feel good about the end result.”
The Canada Running Series and Running Room list a selection of some of the best runs across the country. Associations such as the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and the Arthritis Society also hold charity fitness events.
