Think Fit. Be Fit.

This conversation is about where healthy habits originate and it’s deep. It goes beyond the biological stuff that is weight loss, food management and health psychology.

With the development of neuroscience, psychology and how our gut chemicals and health play into how we construct our reality, Holly and Jennifer have a very good question for all of us to ask- how does the mind impact our fitness?  

This conversation is deep, philosophical and can be of help to anyone struggling with consistency or habit building.

You’ll even hear Holly discuss the complexity of nutrition.  

Topics discussed:

• How Holly’s career has evolved from celebrity training to nutrition 
• Following strategy in a sustainable way
• The complexity of nutrition
• Exploring the undertones and motivations of losing weight
• How the brain, gut and feelings impact our healthy choices

Meet our guest, Holly Perkins:

Holly Perkins is a women’s strength expert, a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, and the author of Lift to Get Lean (Rodale). She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Physiology and Nutrition from The Pennsylvania State University.

With 30 years of experience in the field, Shape magazine named Holly a “Top Trainers to Follow”.

Holly helps women create the body they need to keep up with the life they love through her proven system of strength training and intentional nutrition. Her advice is frequently featured in Women’s Health, Shape, SELF, Prevention, BuzzFeed, and LIVESTRONG.com.

https://www.hollyperkins.com/

episode page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/holly-perkins-on-how-the-mind-impacts-healthy-habits/ 

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

HOST can be found at:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Holly Perkins

Instagram

Website 

YouTube

Season 3, Episode 7: The Whole Truth

Practice makes perfect, right?  Well that depends on the nature of the skill and the type of practice.  So when it comes to acquiring a motor skill, it’s possible you haven’t heard the whole truth. Conventional wisdom usually doesn’t distinguish between types of practice, other than more is better. In the Motor Learning world there are many different ways we define & design practice routines based on the desired outcome.

Broadly, practice can be conducted as a whole or in parts.  Should we deconstruct the movement and practice one phase at a time?  Or, perform the entire complex skill as one continuous movement?  

Join PJ and GG as they dive into this topic and cover the research, the different layers of whole vs part practice, including concepts such as sequencing, sub-routines, discrete movements and more.  Then, they’ll extrapolate the findings to practical applications and discuss their perspectives on how we can use this extraordinary information to help yourself or your clients in the gym.

In this episode we discuss:

• The difference between whole and part practice
• The difference between part practice and sequential practice
• Types of skills more suited to part practice
• Rote learning vs voluntary motor skill performance
• Subroutines
• Why we forget certain skills very rapidly
• Glossary:

Complexity: The number of parts and the amount of information processing demands that characterize a skill 

Discrete motor skill: A skill with clearly defined movement beginning and end points, usually requiring a simple movement

Part practice: A practice condition in which a skill is broken down into several parts and each part is practiced independently

Subroutine: A strategy used for deconstructing movement down into constituent parts for the purpose of analyzing performance of each part

Whole practice: A practice condition in which a skill is practiced as one whole movement

References:

1. Gobet, F., Lane, P. C., Croker, S., Cheng, P. C., Jones, G., Oliver, I., & Pine, J. M. (2001). Chunking mechanisms in human learning. Trends in cognitive sciences, 5(6), 236–243.
2. McGuigan, F.J. and MacCaslin, E.F. (1955). Whole and part methods in learning a perceptual motor skill. The American Journal of Psychology, 68(4): 658-661.
3. Naylor, J. C., & Briggs, G. E. (1963). Effects of task complexity and task organization on the relative efficiency of part and whole training methods. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 65(3), 217–224.
4. Park, J-H., Wilde, H., and Shea, C.H. (2004).  Part-whole practice of movement sequences. Journal of Motor Behavior, 36(1): 51-61.
5. Pechstein, L.A. (1916). Whole vs. part methods in motor learning - a comparative study. Doctoral Dissertation, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
6. Shea, C. H., Lai, Q., Black, C., & Park, J.-H. (2000). Spacing practice sessions across days benefits the learning of motor skills. Human Movement Science, 19(5), 737–760.

You might also Like:

Season 1, Episode 3 - The F Word 

Season 2, Episode 7 - Power Play 

Season 3, Episode 1- A Flick of the Wrist

Show page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/tag/f4c/ 

Find us on social: 

https://www.instagram.com/thinkfitbefit_podcast/ 

There’s a spectrum of emotions that come with exercise.  Some of the times those emotions happen in small spaces where cycling and expensive candles intersect.

Today Jennifer and Meredith are sharing optics and wisdom on this huge element in the fitness industry, Group Exercise.  

Topics discussed:

• History of group exercise
• The community element of group fitness
• How Bootcamp falls short
• “Joy of Movement” and Health Psychology
• Building emotional substrates of exercise
• Spiritual intentions intersected with exercise classes

You’ll even learn about Jenn’s history of teaching group exercise!

episode page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/exploring-the-power-and-pitfalls-of-group-exercise/ 

Say hello to your PPFP Hostesses:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Meredith Mack

Instagram

Website

All Peach Pit episodes can be found here: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/tag/peach-pit-fitness/ 

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode.

episode.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Link of interest:

Business insider reference

https://www.businessinsider.com/why-i-stopped-going-to-soulcycle-2015-7

Kenneth Cooper and the history of Cooper Institute 

https://youtu.be/l0ueGppTLoo 

Related episodes: 

Tension generation episode with Meredith

 Episodes featuring Kathryn Zajac where Jennifer discusses group exercise 

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/100th-episode-and-fitness-trends-for-2021-with-kat-zajac/

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/how-jenn-is-training-glutes-and-insights-on-building-muscle-for-women/

Adventures in Mother Nature's Gym with Melanie Webb

Tell us what’s up!  What do you want to hear?

https://impactyourfitness.typeform.com/fitnesstrends 

We began this season with a declaration; we would be covering fitness through the very particular lens of motor skill acquisition.  As it’s been a couple months since episode one dropped, let’s define skill again; the consistent achievement of a goal, under a variety of conditions, with an economy of effort.  Thus far we’ve spent a good amount of time talking about approaching our workouts with a strategic intent on varying conditions and using them to achieve different gym goals. Now let’s focus on the last part; economy of effort.  What do we mean by economy of effort?  We’re talking about efficiency. 

What comes to mind when you think of movement efficiency? Squeezing all of our muscles as hard as we can for the entire workout?  What if doing that actually inhibited movement and minimized the application of force?  Would that be efficient?

Efficiency in the way we move, efficiency in reducing excessive levels of joint stresses and even efficiency in achieving our goals, are all factors that we should consider when designing exercises and workouts. In this episode we go deep into uncovering aspects of things we can do in the gym to facilitate our progress, or potentially hinder it. 

How? Why?  Well, you’ll have to listen to find out!  Along the way we’ll also cover what we can learn from research on the topic, and of course, what really matters in terms of applications you can try yourself the next time in the gym. 

In this episode we discuss:

Neuromuscular states of co-contraction and their effects on movement

What we’re really observing when someone is shaking on an unstable surface

The difference between generating force and applying force when it comes to strength

Tri-phasic emg patterns and what that implies about reciprocal inhibition

The drastic difference body position has on joint forces when doing a lunge!

Glossary:

Co-Contraction - A neuromuscular state in which more than one muscle around a joint contracts

Impulse - The aggregate of all forces throughout a range of motion of performing a task

Movement efficiency - Movement that is smooth, fluid and performed with an economy of effort

Strength application - The ability of the neuromuscular system to generate and apply force to an object

Tri-Phasic EMG pattern -  A neuromuscular phenomenon that happens during a movement task in which the agonist muscle fires, followed by the antagonist, then a final re-activation of the agonist

References

Hofmann, C.L., Holyoak, D.T. and Juris, P.M. (2017). Trunk and shank position influences patellofemoral joint stress in the lead and trail limbs during the forward lunge exercise. Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy. 47(1): 31-40.

You might also like:

Season 2, Episode 3  - In the Moment

Season 2, Episode 1  - I Feel the Earth Move

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

HOST can be found at:

https://www.instagram.com/fitnessforconsumption/

https://www.instagram.com/exercise_intelligence/ 

What happens when an Athletic Trainer realizes concussion protocols and muscle system care is extremely outdated in fighting sports?  They innovate from their experience, knowledge base, ask questions to find a new path forward.  

This episode might be short but it deserves to be on it’s own because Jenn and Arash Ranjibaran (AJ) of The Athletic Training Institute discuss the very important topic of concussions and fighter specific implications.  

Topics:

Mechanics and power for Hitting, pushing and throwing 

Commentary on designing programs for fighters

Concussive effects, monitoring and fighting

Examples of cognitive loading

Efficiency factors when training for speed 

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

HOST and GUEST can be found at:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Arash Ranjbaran aka AJ

Instagram

Related episodes:

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/arash-ranjbaran-on-biohackers-the-neuromuscular-system/

March 2019 episode https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/arash-ranjbaran-the-body-mechanic/

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/in-the-flow/

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/speed-bumps/

Book mentioned:

Power of Habit

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/speed-bumps/

Find AJ at the http://athletictraininginstitute.com/

If you’ve been following along this season, here’s a recap; we introduced the notion of skill, defined what it is to be skillful, identified types of skills, based on their constituent parts, discussed the merits of whole, part or sequential practice, and finally, explored emotional affect and its impact on skill.  Ok, now what?  

Now that we know what to do and how to practice it, what type of cueing and feedback are necessary in order to master it?  Wait a sec, do we actually need any cueing or feedback?  If so, why, how much and when? How does it change from beginner to expert?  What does it look like when you need to get individuals of different strengths, sizes and capabilities to work together to accomplish a uniform outcome? 

This episode examines cueing and feedback from fresh perspectives. This week we’re joined by Dr. Nich Lee Parker, Head Coach of Columbia University’s Men’s Lightweight Rowing team, and Gregory Youdan MA, MS, Visiting Researcher at Brown University and Latsky Dance board member.  Together, we push beyond counting reps and tired cliches and dive into research and personal approaches and observations gained from the collective experience of working with individuals, from professional athletes to dancers with hemiplegic cerebral palsy.  

In this episode we discuss:

Greg and Nich’s take on the hardest skill in sport

Can you acquire a motor skill without feedback?

Movement as the skill vs moving to achieve a goal

The application of cueing and feedback as a function of stage of learning

Variability in movement

Use of cues and feedback to allow for error

Considering safety of the performer with the use of cueing and feedback

Glossary:

Augmented Feedback - providing information to a performer which is supplemental to feedback they are receiving from internal sensory mechanisms

Knowledge of Performance -  a category of augmented feedback, providing information about a movement process

Knowledge of Results -  a category of augmented feedback, providing information about the outcome of a movement process

Motor Learning - The degree to which a skillful movement is retained and can be transferred to different tasks

Motor Performance - The degree to which skillful movement occurs, without consideration for retention or transfer

Verbal Cue - short, concise phrases that direct a performer’s attention to important environmental, psychological or biomechanical characteristics of performing a movement

References:

Newell, K. M., & Jordan, K. (2007). Task constraints and movement organization: A common language. In W. E. Davis & G. D. Broadhead (Eds.), Ecological task analysis and movement (pp. 5–23). Human Kinetics.

You might also like:

Season 1, Episode 5 - Whose movement is it anyway?

Season 2, Episode 8 - It’s about time

episode site: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/cue-talent/

Exercise has an important role in our future health, but can modern medicine integrate exercise and lifestyle factors?  One of the answers to that question is in this episode.

This conversation moves from how we think about exercise to elevating healthcare and challenging the patterns of conventional medicine.  

Two talented educators and physical therapists join Jennifer in discussing professional healthcare education that has the potential to change medicine for the better, worldwide.

Jennifer talks with Dr. Adriaan Louw and Jen Uschold of Evidence in Motion about one of their newest course offerings, Certification in Lifestyle Medicine. This certification brings exercise, wellness and behavior change to the forefront of patient and client care in various types of practices: physical therapy, occupational therapy, behavioral therapy, and other types of licensed health care providers.

Jenn is starstruck in this episode.  It features a leader in Pain Education and research.

Topics of discussion include:

Certification in Lifestyle Medicine

Investing in wellness and health as a whole

Downstream vs upstream in healthcare

Pain associated with chronic diseases

Interconnectedness of poor sleep quality and health seeking outcomes

Guest bios: 

https://evidenceinmotion.com/people/adriaan-louw/

https://evidenceinmotion.com/people/jen-uschold/

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected] 

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. 

episode. 

You can find us on a variety of podcast apps:

Spotify

Pandora

iHeartRadio

Amazon music

TuneIn

Google podcasts

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thinkfitbefit for a chance to be featured!

HOSTS AND GUESTS can be found at:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Evidence in Motion: https://evidenceinmotion.com/ 

Jen’s website for Physical Therapy care in Alexandria VA: https://180therapyandwellness.com/ 

Certification in Lifestyle Medicine: https://evidenceinmotion.com/program/certification-in-lifestyle-medicine/ 

Links of interest:

Previous episode featuring Jen Uschold

https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/the-updated-way-to-understand-pain/ 

Pain Reframed podcast:

https://evidenceinmotion.com/pain-reframed-podcast/

Episode page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/dr-adriaan-louw-and-jen-uschold-pt-discuss-the-certification-in-lifestyle-medicine/ 

Ready to be aroused?  We’re not sure what you’re thinking, but we’re talking about skill here!  Simply put, our ability to perform gross or fine motor skills is determined, in part, by how well we manage our state of arousal.  Are we “locked in” and ready to go, or hyperstimulated, anxious and stressed?  Whether you’re an athlete competing in the world championships or playing Chopin in a piano recital, you’ve probably had firsthand experience with how unmanaged arousal can hijack your intentions.

The antithesis of being stressed is achieving a state of flow.  Ahhh, just saying it sounds relaxing.  What does it mean to be in flow?  Things seem to organize with less effort, we’re accomplishing tasks with precision, time seems irrelevant.  In a nutshell, there’s an enjoyable ease to our activity.

Arousal and flow states are mentioned like other nebulous fitness terms, including “holistic” and “functional,” but what do they really mean?  To answer our questions, we’re joined this week by Sport Psychologist and triathlon coach, Dr. Susan Sotir.  Our conversation focuses on the psychological aspects of physical performance, including arousal, coping skills, and self-efficacy.

We turn  to recent events in the sports world to explore the psycho-emotional challenges confronting world class athletes.  And through our discussion of Dr. Sotir’s approach to managing cognitive load and improving mental focus and emotional readiness, we present a model for working with our own clients in a gym setting.

Of course, no episode during our season of skill will be complete without our guest’s perspective of the most difficult skill in sports.

In this episode we discuss:

The definitions of arousal

States of arousal needed for fine vs gross motor skills

Do high level performers reduce their arousal or improve their coping skills?

The questions Suzi asks her clients after performing a task

Definition of flow and the conditions inherent in a flow state

The biological ramifications of psychological states, why words can really matter

Glossary:

Arousal - A physiological response to a psychological experience

Flow - A model of optimal experience in which intrinsically motivated individuals achieve a level of focus in which they are fully invested in the present moment while eliminating negative feelings and distractions

Gross Motor Skill -  A motor skill involving broad, general movement patterns, requiring the use of large musculature

Fine Motor Skill - A motor skill requiring precise movement control, typically involving hand and finger function and small muscle groups 

References:

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. New York: Harper and Row

You might also like:

Season 3, Episode 2 - Speed Bumps

Season 1, Episode 1 - Why we move

www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/in-the-flow/

Box Jumps seem quite simple, face the box and smoothly launch yourself on top of it. 

Since these jumps are deemed 'full body exercises',, Fitness Influencers and experienced trainers alike use them in various ways.  The claims for using them range from ‘functional strength’ to explosive strength to blasting fat.  Jenn and Meredith Mack take a step into the textbooks and mechanics to look at the origin of this exercise and examine its use across the wide span of industry recommendations.   

Are the jumps worth the potential cuts and bumps? Of course in most fitness circles, you’ll hear- ! Box Jumps ! have so! many benefits! 

Before you jump in, on or down, check out this episode because Peach Pit takes a critical look at this popular exercise.

Be sure to tell us what you think about our new term #AppropriatelyPumpy and if it applies to your box jumps.

Topics: 

Are box jumps as sensational as their hype?

Box jumps, Jump training and plyometrics: what are they? Is one better than the other?

Classical view on box jumps from strength & conditioning

Goals, sport specific training and conditioning

NSCA recommendations

Get ready to be inspired by perspective and industry wisdom on exercise trends, past and present!

Your hostesses can be found at:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Meredith Mack

Instagram

Website

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode.

episode.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Facebook, and Instagram.

Visit the episode page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/box-jumps-are-they-functional-or-just-for-fun/

Links and references: 

Siff, M. C. (2009). Supertraining (6th Edition). Supertraining Institute.

Special Strength Training: Manual for Coaches by Verkhoshansky, Yuri, Verkhoshansky, Natalia (2011) Paperback. (2014). Verkhoshansky.com.

Dr. Yessis on YouTube

https://youtu.be/NFS9oc-vLQ0

If scientists can measure 9800 plus molecular interactions during a single bout of exercise, don’t we want to know how to retain and enhance that capability?

Muscle health is not often sought after, but Jenn and her guest Arash Ranjbaran of the Athletic Training Institute in Bellevue Washington explore why this is and some of the healing and performance factors in the neuromuscular system.  

Arash (AJ) even discusses the neuromuscular system as a programming language, truly fascinating! 

Topics:

• Concepts on various functions of the neuromuscular system
• Muscle Activation Techniques Rx 
• Injury physiology
• AJ's perspective on muscles and injury as a professional MMA coach and conditioning expert. 
• What biohackers get wrong about muscles and shoulders

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach dedicated exercise professionals, future trainers, and exercise enthusiasts all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started, [email protected]

SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER: Dive deeper with us. Sign up here. We offer a unique view on muscles, portals to new ways to respect the body and health.  Learning and ‘enjoy the process’ is a buzzy term.  We take learning seriously and want to take our listeners on that journey with us and through us

HOST can be found at:

Jennifer Schwartz

Instagram

Twitter

Arash Ranjbaran aka AJ

Instagram

Related episodes:

AJ and Jenn from March 2019

Sports Physical Therapy: Dr. Seth Blee

Episode page: https://www.thinkfitbefitpodcast.com/arash-ranjbaran-on-biohackers-the-neuromuscular-system/