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Embracing Fitness at Every Level: Edmonton’s Premier Body-Positive Private Personal Training Facility

In south Edmonton, a private personal training facility stands out for its state-of-the-art equipment or top-tier personal trainers and its 15-year commitment to fostering a truly inclusive, welcoming, and body-positive atmosphere. This haven is where all ages, fitness levels, and body types converge to embark on a physical and mental well-being journey.

Why Body Positivity Matters in Fitness

Fitness is often misconstrued as a pursuit exclusive to those already in shape, but our private gym challenges this notion head-on. Body positivity isn’t just a buzzword here; it’s a core philosophy. We recognize that every individual’s journey to health is unique and deserves respect and support. Whether you’re a fitness enthusiast or taking your first step into a gym, our environment is designed to make you feel comfortable and motivated. Every age, every fitness level and every body is welcomed in the pursuit of mental and physical health.

Inclusivity at Its Core

Our facility thrives on inclusivity. We understand that the path to fitness is diverse and personal. Our best personal trainers in Edmonton are not just experts in physical training; they are empathetic guides who tailor their approach to meet your specific needs and goals. From teenagers looking to build confidence to seniors aiming to maintain strength and mobility, our personal trainers are equipped to assist all.

A Comfortable Space for All Fitness Levels

The thought of entering a gym can be daunting for many. Recognizing this, we’ve designed our space as welcoming and non-intimidating as possible. Our private training area allows for focused, one-on-one sessions with your trainer, ensuring privacy and a sense of ease during your workouts.

Inclusive Approach to Mental and Physical Health

Our philosophy extends beyond physical fitness; we deeply value the connection between mental and physical health. Our trainers are skilled in creating regimes that build physical strength and enhance mental well-being, resulting in a more inclusive approach to health and well-being.

Personalized Training for Every Body

Personalization is key to our approach. Our formally educated personal trainers are well-versed in various techniques, from strength training and cardio to mobility and rehab exercises. They work closely with you to develop a program that aligns with your lifestyle, body type, fitness level, and personal goals, ensuring a personalized, safe and effective workout experience. We meet you where you are at right now.

Community and Support

At our gym, you’re not just a member; you’re part of a community. The support from trainers and fellow gym-goers creates a unique, encouraging environment where everyone’s achievements are celebrated. This sense of community is vital in keeping motivation high and making the fitness journey enjoyable. Fitness can be much more enjoyable when surrounded by people who celebrate your wins and encourage you to keep pushing through the challenging times.

Safe and Professional Environment

Safety is paramount. Our personal trainers are the best in Edmonton and are committed to ensuring that each session is conducted with the highest level of professionalism and safety. This commitment helps build trust and confidence among our clients, making them feel secure in their fitness journey and investment.

Accessible to All Ages

We proudly cater to a diverse age group. Our personal training programs are designed to be adaptable, catering to the vibrant energy of youth as well as the specific needs of older adults. This inclusivity makes fitness a family affair, welcoming parents, children, and even grandparents to join in.

A Revolution in Personal Training

Our private personal training facility in Edmonton is more than just a gym; it’s a movement towards a more inclusive and body-positive approach to fitness. We welcome everyone, regardless of age, fitness level, or body type, to join us towards better mental and physical health. Here, wellness is for everyone, and every victory, big or small, is celebrated.
SVPT is not just about achieving fitness goals; it’s about transforming lives. We invite you to experience the comfort, support, and excellence that make us the best in Edmonton for personal training for the last 15 years.

Contact Us to Set Up a FREE Assessment to see if we fit you!

Why Starting with a Personal Trainer Before January is a Game-Changer for Your 2024 Health and Fitness Goals

As the year winds down, many of us start to think about our New Year’s resolutions, with health and fitness often topping the list. However, there are better approaches than waiting until January to start working on these goals. Here’s why starting with a personal trainer before January, especially at a private facility like SVPT Fitness & Athletics, is not just a smart move but a game-changer for your fitness journey.

1. Getting Ahead of the Curve

Starting early means you’re ahead of the game. While others are still pondering their New Year’s resolutions, you’re already making strides toward your health and fitness goals. This head start can be incredibly motivating and set a positive tone for the year ahead. Building gym confidence and improving health now rather than later will help ensure long term success.

2. Beating the Holiday Rush

Gyms are notoriously crowded in January. By starting in November or December, you get the luxury of less crowded facilities, and more availability of personal trainers. Many people get so busy over the holidays that fitness and health take a back-seat. This is a great time to capitalize on the calmness of a less busy training environment.

3. Navigating Holiday Stress

The holidays can be a stressful time, with overindulgence in food and drink and reduced physical activity. Having a personal trainer during this period can help you maintain a balance, keeping stress at bay and keeping you on track to your fitness goals.

4. Customized Training at SVPT Fitness & Athletics

Private training facilities like SVPT Fitness & Athletics offer a more personalized approach than standard gyms. Your personal trainer will design a program tailored specifically to your needs and goals, taking into account any previous injuries or specific concerns you might have.

5. Accountability and Consistency

One of the biggest challenges of maintaining a fitness regimen is staying consistent. A personal trainer provides that much-needed accountability. They ensure you stick to your schedule and maintain the momentum, even when motivation wanes.

6. Safety First

Starting your fitness journey with professional guidance ensures that you’re exercising safely. Personal trainers teach proper form and technique, reducing the risk of injuries and making your workouts more effective.

7. Setting Realistic Goals

A trainer helps you set realistic and achievable goals. This is crucial, especially if you’re new to fitness or have had challenges in the past. Achievable goals keep you motivated and prevent the frustration that often comes with unrealistic expectations.

8. Overcoming Plateaus

It’s common to hit a plateau in your fitness journey. A personal trainer can help you navigate these standstills by adjusting your training program, ensuring continuous progress towards your goals.

9. Mental Health Benefits

Regular exercise is known to improve mental health, and having a personal trainer can amplify these benefits. Regular exercuse can help manage stress, anxiety, and depression, especially important during the hectic holiday season.

10. Building a Sustainable Lifestyle

A personal trainer helps you see fitness as a journey, not a destination. This perspective is crucial for building a sustainable, healthy lifestyle, rather than chasing short-term gains.

11. Education and Empowerment

A good trainer does more than instruct; they educate. This fitness, nutrition, and healthy living education empowers you to make informed decisions about your health, even outside the gym.

12. Social Support

Working with a trainer, especially in a private setting like SVPT Fitness & Athletics, can provide a sense of community and support. This social aspect of fitness is often underestimated but can be a significant factor in long-term success.

Starting with a personal trainer before the new year allows you to pre-emptively tackle your upcoming fitness goals, manage holiday stress healthily, and set the stage for a successful, healthy new year. Facilities like SVPT Fitness & Athletics provide the ideal setting for such a start, with their personalized approach and focus on individual goals. By beginning your journey now, you ensure that you’re not just ready for the new year but already on your way to a healthier, fitter you.

Contact Us to Set Up a FREE Assessment to see if we fit you!

A Day in the Life of a Private Personal Training Session with Your Personal Trainer: Tailored Fitness in Edmonton

When you show up for your personal training session at our private personal training facility in south Edmonton, you embark on a journey meticulously crafted for your unique needs, goals and lifestyle. Our sessions, led by formally educated and certified personal trainers, are more than just workouts; they are an inclusive approach to fitness, combining expertise, personalization, and a deep understanding of the individual. Let’s walk through what a typical session looks like.

Initial Assessment: Understanding Your Unique Needs

Every fitness journey with us begins with a thorough assessment of your biomechanics, history, lifestyle, needs and goals. This isn’t just about measuring physical capabilities; it’s about understanding your daily routine, habits, past injuries, and personal fitness goals. Our trainers, equipped with formal education and experience in fitness and health, use this information to create a training plan that’s as unique as you are.

After assessing you, our personal trainers create a training plan tailored to you, but that encompasses our training philosophies and systems – building a foundation with safe and effective exercises that will not only get you to your fitness goals, but help you live life beyond the gym walls.

Warming Up: Laying the Foundation

A warm-up is essential, and ours are tailored to prepare your body for the specific workout ahead. This might include dynamic stretching, light cardio, or mobility exercises. The aim is to increase heart rate, enhance blood flow, and prepare your muscles and joints for the session, reducing the risk of injury. We also focus on your movement patterns. Our personal trainers help you refine your technique for the exercises to come, ensuring that you perform each exercise correctly and effectively. This is crucial, as proper movement forms the foundation for more advanced training, ensuring you progress safely and efficiently.

Power Training: Staying Fast

Power training is where things start to intensify. Depending on your fitness level and goals, this could involve plyometrics, throws, or explosive weight lifting, which is progressed and/or regressed to cater to your current fitness levels and abilities. The focus is on improving your speed and power, which are crucial for fitness performance and functional daily activities. For every year we age, we lose power and the ability to move quickly. It is essential to keep this function so we can prevent injury and falls. Power training is always modified for your age, fitness level and goals.

Strength Training: The Core of Your Workout

This is the heart of your session. Our personal trainers guide you through a series of strength training exercises and functional exercises, chosen to align with your specific goals. Whether it’s weight lifting or bodyweight exercises, each movement is selected to maximize your strength gains and overall physical development.

Conditioning

The session concludes with conditioning work to improve your ability to tolerate more work. This could range from high-intensity interval training (HIIT) to endurance exercises, depending on your needs, goals and abilities. Conditioning is vital for improving your cardiovascular health, stamina, and overall fitness.

Customized Training Plan: Beyond the Gym Walls

Our responsibility doesn’t end when the session does. We provide you with a customized training plan, including exercises and routines that you can do outside of our private personal training sessions. This “homework” ensures that you continue to progress, even when you’re not in the gym.

Continuous Assessment: Tracking Your Progress

In subsequent sessions, we continuously assess your progress, tweaking and advancing your training plan as you evolve and progress. This approach ensures that you are constantly challenged and progressing, and that your workouts remain effective and engaging.

A private personal training session at our Edmonton facility is a comprehensive, personalized experience. From the initial thorough assessment to the customized training plan and nutritional guidance, every aspect is designed to cater specifically to you. Our certified personal trainers are not just instructors; they are your partners in this fitness journey, dedicated to helping you achieve your best self physically and mentally.

So, whether you’re looking to start your fitness journey, break through a plateau, or reach new heights, our private personal training sessions are the key to unlocking your potential. Join us and experience the difference of a truly personalized approach to fitness.

Contact Us to Set Up a FREE Assessment!

“I Will Start When…….”

Getting into new routines is arguably one of the hardest things to do as an adult. It never seems like the “right” time to start or to get back on track. Let’s be honest, it’s also freaking hard in the beginning. Understand that there is NO perfect time to start. Life will always be there, getting in the way of the ‘perfect window’. This window may exist here and there, but realistically, long term, it won’t always be there. So you have to just start, regardless of if life is messy at the moment. Whether you’re just getting back into fitness, the first few weeks back are rough. You’re tired, you’re sore, and it feels like it just won’t ever get better.

It’s easy to fall into feeling like fitness just isn’t something that is for you, or that the “fit” people on Instagram have some gene that you just weren’t gifted with. The truth is, it’s hard for everyone. No matter what level you’re at or were at, if you’ve fallen off the wagon and have decided to jump back on it, the tough reality is that it will be hard to comeback. The good news is, that this phase doesn’t last forever. Once the initial shock has worn off, you’ll settle into routine, and things won’t seem so impossible.

Following are a couple tips to getting into (or back into) a fitness routine.

(1) The first hurdle is talking yourself into just STARTING. It always seems like there is a better time coming up where it would be more ideal to start. Typically, we’re in a busy period, or things at work are exceptionally stressful or the weather isn’t just cooperating with your vibe. There are infinite reasons to start at some point in the future. But we all know what that next Tuesday quickly turns into next Saturday and that turns into next Wednesday. It will never feel like the right time to start a new fitness program. Just like it never feels like the right time to buy a house, change jobs, have kids, etc.. This is just the way that life works, and the best thing to do is set those excuses aside and start today, not tomorrow. And starting doesn’t have to be 100% effort – it can be as simple as just going for a walk, or 10 minutes of physical activity.

(2) The flip side of this is that life sometimes throws us curveballs that mean we need to adjust our sails. Sometimes things really do become too much, and we need to take a step back for a minute to deal with other life problems and stresses. This is called SELF CARE and it is just as important to your heath as your fitness routine. If you have to take some time off, that’s OK, don’t feel guilty, and don’t panic. Just do what you can, when you can and don’t delay getting back into routine when life settles down. Progress isn’t linear, and you won’t lose all your “gains.” Muscle memory is a thing, and fitness comes back faster than when you’ve already reached that level before.

(3) Most importantly, whether you’re starting your fitness journey for the first time, or just jumping back onto the wagon, make sure you choose what works best for you and do something you enjoy. There is no one-size fits all fitness plan. Try new things, new sports, new classes, and find what works with your schedule and doesn’t spark feelings of rage rather than fitness-induced joy.

Finally, a few things to remember. Fitness and health is truly a journey – there will be peaks and valleys, and it will NEVER be perfect. Seeking perfection is a set up for failure. The most important thing you can do after you start is to KEEP GOING, even if that means a once a week, a quick 20 minute walk or whatever gets you moving.

There is no more perfect time to work on your health and fitness than right NOW!

Kristen Hansen, BA, CSEP-CPT, PFT-NAIT, NASM-CES, FRCms

New Routines

Spinach and Feta Chicken Burger

Spinach and Feta Chicken Burger

Spinach and Feta Chicken Burger

Take a look at our recipe for the Spinach and Feta Chicken Burger. Serves 4 (1 burger per serving)

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. ground chicken
  • 4 cups spinach
  • 1 tsp. olive oil
  • 1 egg
  • ½ cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 cup onion, diced
  • 2 tsp. oregano
  • ½ cup feta cheese

Preparation:

  1. Heat oil in a pan on medium high heat.
  2. Add spinach and cook until wilted. Pour into a bowl and allow to cool.
  3. Once cool, combine with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
  4. Preheat grill to high heat.
  5. Form the mixture into 4 patties.
  6. Place on grill, reduce heat to medium-high heat.
  7. Cook for 15 minutes on one side, flip and cook for 8-10 minutes, until cooked through.
  8. Serve with your favourite toppings and Enjoy!

 

Nutritional analysis per serving: 265 calories, 10 g fat, 27 g protein, 13 g carbohydrate (11 g available carbohydrate), 2 g fibre, 454 mg sodium

Created by Revive Wellness Inc.

Now try the ‘Move of the Month’ on their blog!

Breakfast Quesadilla

Breakfast Quesadilla

Take a look below at our recipe for a delicious Breakfast Quesadilla.

Breakfast Quesadilla

Serves 1

Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 cup spinach
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 oz. cheddar cheese, grated
  • ½ tsp. garlic powder
  • ½ tsp. onion powder
  • ½ tsp. black pepper
  • 1 8” whole wheat tortilla

Preparation:

  1. Heat oil in a pan on medium-high heat. Add spinach and cook until wilted.
  2. Whisk the eggs in a bowl, then pour over the spinach.
  3. Sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder and pepper over the eggs and stir well.
  4. Allow the eggs to set and cook through.
  5. While the eggs are cooking, lay the tortilla out flat and sprinkle cheese over the whole thing.
  6. Add the egg mixture to half of the tortilla and fold in half.
  7. Return the tortilla to a clean pan and allow to get crispy and the cheese to melt.
  8. Flip and repeat on the other side.
  9. Serve and Enjoy!

 

Nutritional analysis per serving: 435 calories, 27 g fat, 23 g protein, 28 g carbohydrate (24 g available carbohydrate), 4 g fibre, 621 mg sodium

Created by Revive Wellness Inc.

Now try the ‘Move of the Month’ on their blog!

 

Exercising vs. Training

As summer winds down, and we approach ‘fall back to fitness’, many will be seeking the fitness routine they had before summer shenanigans. So as you get back into your routine, ask yourself – are you training or are you just exercising?

Exercise and training might often be used as synonymous terms, but there are a few important distinctions between the two. Exercise can best be thought of as physical activity that serves an immediate purpose and effect. It is done for its own sake, whether that is during the workout or immediately after. This “effect” or “purpose” can include burning calories, getting a pump on, getting sweaty, or as a way to blow off steam & de-stress. Training, on the other hand, is utilizing physical activity to achieve a definite performance objective, which is often long-term. The difference between exercise and training is a question of intention.

Training is a process designed to achieve a specific result. It is a pre-determined progression of activity designed to satisfy a long-term performance goal. Training is less about the workouts individually than it is about the process of utilizing the workouts to reach the ultimate training goal, or the cumulative effect of the individual workouts. The results are reached by progressing week after week, tracking progress and adjusting as needed. Training is about long-term improvement for a specific purpose, which often means displacing the immediate feeling of having achieved a goal until that goal is realized down the line.

The primary goal of exercise is, generally, to keep you healthy. Exercising can produce immediate results, and results over the long term even; however, training is deciding on a goal and using physical activity to achieve that goal. Long-term results from consistent exercise are a welcome by-product but are not the outcome of intentional physical activity. Any program that features exposure at random to various types of physical stress cannot produce a specific physical adaptation. Past a certain point the adaptation that occurs naturally with exercise will stop, a point that occurs relatively quickly.

Should we all be training? Not necessarily. It’s more about your specific goals. If the goal is to maintain health, exercising might be sufficient, and the most important thing would then be to choose exercise options that motivate you to continue and be consistent. Jumping from program to program or choosing random workouts can be a great way to exercise without getting bored. For those who have specific goals, a long-term training program with trackable results is more appropriate.

Kristen Hansen, BA, CSEP-CPT, PFT-NAIT, NASM-CES, FRCms
SVPT Fitness & Athletics

Steady State or interval cardio

Steady State or Interval Cardio?

There are two types of cardio people: those who choose aerobic exercise (i.e. running, jogging) and those who choose anaerobic exercise (i.e. HIIT, intervals). Although both are technically cardio, doing just one type is not enough and a well-rounded program will include both types.

Generally, exercise done in short bursts up to two minutes in duration will utilize the anaerobic system primarily. This includes any short burst of activity that can only be maintained for about two minutes, usually referred to as intervals. Exercise for an extended period of time at a slow or moderate pace, will utilize the aerobic system primarily, and is often referred to as “steady-state cardio”.

Those who prefer aerobic exercise (aka runners and cyclists) tend to neglect interval training, while those who prefer interval training (aka metconners) tend to neglect doing steady-state cardio. If cardio is cardio, why should it matter if I prefer hard and fast or long and slow?

Whether you should focus on anaerobic or aerobic exercises is entirely dependent on what your goals are. Ideally, you’re doing a mix of both in a balanced program. Aerobic exercise will help build endurance and increase cardiovascular health overall, while interval training will enhance muscle strength, power, size and speed.   Aerobic exercise helps build a bigger window in which you can perform intervals, or a aerobic base.  Without an aerobic base, you won’t be able to do a lot of intervals.

While each type of exercise will build and produce different results and develop different skills, the two types of training can function together to make you faster, stronger, and healthier overall. Training exclusively by one type of exercise will limit the progress you can make, and actually increases your chance of injury. Incorporating anaerobic training into an exercise plan that is mostly aerobic will lead to increased speed, power output, economy, increase VO2 max and decrease the chance of injury.

The way to improve cardio performance is to train at and above your threshold. This means to improve aerobic capacity (read: become a better runner) you need to incorporate training intervals that mean you’re working near your current aerobic threshold. On the flip side, those who only train using intervals will not increase their steady state endurance. What this means is that the metconner who also does steady-state cardio training will be able to work harder for longer (read: get more done in each interval).

Both interval and aerobic exercise should be incorporated into a balanced exercise plan. This balance will allow the two systems to complement one another and will maximize results and increase overall health, while minimizing the chance of injury.

Kristen Hansen, BA, CSEP-CPT, PFT-NAIT, NASM-CES, FRCms

To Stretch or To Not Stretch?

There are so many questions and confusion when it comes to stretching. Do we do it? If so, how often and when? Will we die if we don’t?

When it comes to stretching, the opinions are divisive. Some say there’s nothing beneficial about stretching before or after exercise, some say it’s actually a risk to stretch before activities, and others swear that you’ll explode if you don’t stretch before jumping into a workout. So, who is right?

There are a few different ways to stretch. That’s right, not all stretching is the same!

Static stretching is what most people think of first. This involves a stretch that is held for a longer period of time, while holding the same (static) position. Another type of stretching is dynamic stretching. This involves using movement and momentum to propel the muscle into an extended range of motion. There is also Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) stretching. This type of stretching can be used to increase mobility by opening a new range of motion that was not available prior to the stretching. It uses a sequence of contracting and relaxing muscles to basically trick your brain into allowing a greater range of motion.

It seems that there is research to support any argument about stretching, largely because the research is inconclusive at best. There is a consensus that there may be benefits to stretching before exercise, provided that the stretching is not deep, static stretching. There is little evidence to support the idea that not stretching before exercise is detrimental, and you certainly won’t explode. That said, stretching is completely different from warming up before exercise. Stretching is not a warm up, and should not be used as a warm up. Stretching can help prepare the muscles for the stretch they might encounter in the activity you’re about to do, but that won’t prepare your muscles to do the WORK that the exercise demands.

For the average Joe stretching before exercise is neither definitively beneficial nor harmful. More elite athletes, on the other hand, do need to weigh the evidence that there is a temporary reduction in the ability to produce force following a stretching session. This means those in power sports, or sports that do not require a special flexibility or range of motion are better off to skip the pre-game stretch for maximum performance, unless its followed by some type of movement or other explosive type of warm up before heading into practice or game performance.

Stretching post-exercise has largely the same results in terms of studies as pre-exercise stretching. Although there is a marginal increase in reports of less muscle soreness when post-exercise stretching is completed.

It is important to note that the trials that have been completed have centred around static stretching and have not explored other kinds of stretching. It is also important to note that there are no studies that have looked at the chronic effect of stretching, as all have focused on the acute effects of stretching.

So, what does that all mean? More or less, stretch if it makes you feel good, and don’t feel guilty if you don’t. At the very least, getting your stretch on won’t hurt!

Kristen Hansen, BA, CSEP-CPT, PFT-NAIT, NASM-CES, FRCms
SVPT Fitness & Athletics

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year?

Hustle and bustle! That’s usually what comes to mind with the holiday season and family obligations, work parties, and other social gatherings. This usually means less free time and lots of (tasty) foods and drinks. Maybe this is what sparks the desire in most people to start up a new exercise program in the New Year as a result of guilty feelings towards a month of poor eating and neglecting your healthy routines. Many gyms thrive on the unrealistic goals of the “resolutionists”, but the best ones remain steady throughout the year because they teach balance and not using shame to make you feel like you need to “exercise away” the holiday weight gain.

The #SVPTway isn’t about shame or guilt surrounding the holidays. True LONG TERM success is about recognizing the ebbs and flows of life and not feeling bad when you have less time to give to your healthy habits. The holidays are a time for maintenance, not for making gains in fitness. But hey, if you are making gains then keep it up. We are just saying that maintenance is AWESOME during this time of year. Just keep moving and get some exercise in where you can. Be attentive to what you’re putting in your body, but life is short (READ: eat the damn cake). While the New Year might inspire you to get back into routine and maybe work a bit harder, remember that getting back into things means that you’re going to need to ease in to avoid a burnout. Remember that setting sustainable goals will help you stick to your new routine. Hiring a certified, qualified trainer can help you learn how to set attainable goals and stay motivated as well as keep you accountable which usually means sticking to the plan for longer.

Tips for December training:
● Try to get in exercise where you can – not only will this help you keep your gains, but also relieve holiday stress, and give you a moment of YOU time
● Don’t be afraid to change it up if travel and time means you can’t do what you normally do – opt for outdoor activities, a new class, etc. – something is better than nothing
● Try to incorporate movement into family activities when you can – get everyone moving

Tips for January training:
● Ease into it – don’t go all out in the beginning
● Create SMART goals that are attainable and sustainable – just because its January 1st, doesn’t mean your life has miraculously changed and all of a sudden you can do more than what you could in 2019
● Stay away from trends and challenges
● Hire a trainer to keep you accountable and teach you how to be independent, after all, you don’t want to be making the SAME goals next year. Next year you should be hitting NEW ones!