Do you realize that once-upon-a-time, carrying a few extra pounds of fat was considered a sign of good health? How did we go from a culture that appreciated girth to one obsessed with being skinny? Why do we exercise the way we do? What societal forces influence the ways that we exercise? Dr. Natalia Petrzela is an Associate Professor of History at the New School in New York City and teaches about the history of the fitness industry; Fit Nation: The Gains and Pains of America's Exercise Obsession is her book that describes the origins of our obsession with fitness and how that has shaped our s ..read more

What motivates you and why? Motivation is an elusive emotion; high achievers seem to have motivation seeping from their pores while slackers can barely be motivated to answer the door for the food deliver service. Motivation can be focused as a powerful force used to accomplish seemingly insurmountable tasks. Emily Rudow was motivated to make her mark on the world and set out to run a half marathon a day for a period of days. Find Your Stride is Emily's book that can help you to find motivation and purpose in your workouts. It's all about how motivate yourself to accomplish challenging tasks o ..read more

Why do you do the exercises in your workout program? Why do you add certain exercises to your routine, but not others?Not all strength-training exercises are the same or produce the same output; in this section of Smarter Workouts, you will learn why it is so important to perform exercises for the way that your body is designed to move. In addition, you will learn the one movement pattern that ALL muscles are involved in performing; it's all about strength training for the way you move on this episode of All About Fitness. Dynamic Anatomy This e-book explains the difference between muscle an ..read more

Dr. Rick Richey is a physical therapist, personal trainer, massage therapist, studio owner and fitness educator and podcast host for NASM, one of the largest personal training certification organizations in the fitness industry. On the second half of the conversation, Rick shares his insights on the latest trends, we discuss what you can do to build more physical activity habits into your lifestyle and we offer tips for how you can use exercise to enhance your quality of life. It's all about how to use fitness to achieve freedom on this episode of All About Fitness. From mobility exercises t ..read more

If you think that planks and crunches are the only core exercises that you need to do, then think again; on this episode of the audio book for Smarter Workouts: The Science of Exercise Made Simple, we transition from mobility into strength training, specifically strength training for your core muscles. This episode identifies the muscles that control movement in the core region of your body and identifies the fundamental approach that you should follow when designing an exercise program to strengthen your core muscles. It's all about developing a foundation of core strength on this episode of ..read more

Dr. Rick Richey is a physical therapist, licensed massage therapist, studio owner and an educator and podcast host for the National Academy of Sports Medicine (FYI - NO one in the fitness industry has 1, single job; making you sweat doesn't pay a lot, so we all have to get our hustle on). Rick was recognized as the 2022 Personal Trainer of the Year by IDEA, a trade association for fitness professionals; on this episode, which is actually part 1 of the conversation, we discuss the differences between principles and trends and identify new, different ways for how to use exercise to improve your ..read more

How will 2023 make you sweat? What new fitness trends do you need to keep your eyes out for? It's a new year which means that between December 31, 2022 and January 1, 2023, suddenly EVERYTHING about changed about fitness and that you need to start over from ground zero. Not really, but the way that information is delivered this time of year certainly makes it feel that way. The fact is that it is NOT the latest, greatest fad that can help you achieve the results that you desire, however, the same thing that worked last year, five years ago or 20 years ago will still work in 2023 to help you g ..read more

We are all born knowing how to walk which explains why running is one of the most popular forms of exercise; we already know how to do it and all that's required is a decent set of shoes, some proper kit and you're off. However, poor running mechanics or a poorly designed training program could cause injuries and keep you from being able to do any exercise. There are many different methods of training for running, the most important approach is to identify one that works for your needs and follow the proper progression. Eoin Everard, PhD, is a champion runner who is also a physiotherapist and ..read more

Necessity is the mother of invention. Fitness enthusiast, personal trainer and powerlifter Molly Galbraith saw a need for women who enjoy being strong to come together to form a community around strength training and that is how Girls Gone Strong came into being. What started as an online support community has evolved into an organization focused on education, specifically on the science of strength training not just for women, but for all genders. Molly and the Girls Gone Strong team have created two ground-breaking education programs, the Women's Coaching Specialist and the Pre-post Natal Co ..read more

Do muscles really have memory? How does your brain tell which muscles to move and how hard they should work? Is it possible to learn how to shoot a basketball like Steph Curry? Dr. John Krakauer is a professor of Neurology who runs the Center for Motor Learning and Brain Repair at Johns Hopkins University (he's a smart dude who knows why and how we move). Dr. Krakauer is an expert in the field of neurophysiology which is the science of how our brain controls our movements. On this episode, originally recorded in 2019, Dr. Krakauer discusses how your brain learns movement patterns, what that me ..read more