All posts by rnagy

Curt Signing Out

State of the Union

For those of you who may not know, I was born and raised in a small town on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. One of those places where very few people ever leave. My Wife, Liz, grew up here in Pittsburgh in the North Hills and moved down to Maryland for a teaching position at the local high school. We both met each other on the first week of our new jobs. Me as a Personal Trainer, and her as a High School Math teacher who became a member of the gym where I worked. She always had ambitions of returning to Pittsburgh, while I swore that I’d never leave home. 

 

Over the first few years that we were together, we made monthly trips up here to the city. Every time we were in town, we would make it a priority to stop by Union Fitness for a training session. Over that time, we met some absolutely amazing people who are now some of our closest friends. Each time we would leave to head back to Maryland, I would ponder what it might be like to live here. Each time, I grew closer and closer to making the jump. Being away from my family for extended periods of time is hard for me, but I knew that I needed to grow, and I knew that this City was going to help me to do that.

 

One day in January of 2019, I came home after a 12 hour day of training clients, looked at Liz, and told her that we should move to Pittsburgh. She asked if I was serious, but she already knew the answer by the look on my face and the tone in my voice. It was time. So we decided that she would finish out the school year, and I would finish my time at the gym. We decided that we would head up at the end of June. During that time, neither one of us had a job lined up here in Pittsburgh. I was willing to work wherever I needed to in order to make ends meet, and we knew that Liz would have no trouble finding a teaching position, even if it took some time.

 

One month before our move, I got a phone call from my good friend Casey Williams, who at the time was the Manager of Union Fitness. He told me that he needed a Director of Personal Training, and asked me if I’d accept, but he already knew the answer. It felt like it was meant to be. When I finally started at Union, my goals were to be the best Director, co worker, professional, and friend that I could possibly be. Every day for the past 4 years, that was everything that mattered to me. Since coming on board around the same time I did, Todd has trusted me and has given me the opportunity to grow and evolve, while also passing along the wisdom that he has acquired throughout his career. And for that, I cannot thank him enough. My co workers have been some of the best I’ve ever had. Because of them, there wasn’t one day that actually felt like work. They’ve believed in me, just as I’ve believed in them. I’m extremely grateful for all that they have done for me. The amazing members of Union Fitness are the reason that I get out of bed every morning. Seeing everyone grow and progress into the best versions of themselves while building the confidence to take on the world is the most gratifying thing that I’ve been a part of. I am forever grateful for meeting and working with everything single person.

 

Unfortunately, my time as the Director of Personal Training/ Customer Engagement here at Union Fitness has come to an end, and it is time for me to pursue the next step of my journey. You will still see me in the gym working out and training a few clients, so please do not hesitate to come up and ask me for help, advice, or just to catch up. Pittsburgh has become my home, and I look forward to continuing to grow with each and every one of you.

 

Curtis

How I Failed You.

Fitness, Life Health

I was a columnist writing for elitefts.com for about a decade. During this time I wrote a column monthly covering topics surrounding strength and conditioning. I am proud of the writing that I had done and it was an honor to share what I had learned from my years as a coach. One article I wrote that I often think about what entitled, “Know YA.” YA stood for Your Audience. Since coming over to Union Fitness I have struggled to understand our audience.

 

Who makes up Union Fitness?

 

When people ask me what I do for a living I say I run the worlds most unique gym. We have at any time 30-100 competitive lifters, we have over 100 people taking classes and growing through class, we have around 50 people doing personal training. We also have people who come here just to use a treadmill or do some basic lifting. On top of all of this we oversee the training of more than 400 collegiate student athletes. This means we are diverse, and we have diverse goals. With this in mind I have done some soul searching and figured out one way that I have failed each and everyone of you. I have not given the basics of training in a form that could help you.

 

Today I will try to not fail you with a list of things you should know about training. Here are some basics that I hope helps you.

  1.  3500 calories equals one pound. So if you want to gain one pound you must find an extra 3500 calories and if you want to lose a pound then you have to find a way to burn 3500 calories.
  2. The human body has three energy systems. The first is ATP/PC and is for sprinting and lifting (it lasts about 7 seconds of all out effort). The second is glycolysis this is sets of 20 reps and running a 400 meter sprint (this can last for almost a minute and this is the one that burns). The final energy system is aerobic, this is when the body is functioning smoothly (sleep is 100% aerobic).
  3. A calorie is not a calorie. Remember 3500 calories is a pound. Here’s the rub, if I eat 100 calories of celery and you eat 100 calories of donut then we will each have a very different outcome. The thermogenic effect of food is huge. Celery will use a lot of energy to breakdown, whereas the donut has very little thermogenic effect. In basic terms this means you get 100 calories from a donut and 50 from the celery (those numbers are not factual, yet you get the idea).
  4. Muscle burns more calories daily than fat does. This is simple and often stated with some random number assigned to each. I can tell you there is not magic formula. Just remember muscle=good.
  5. Water is the single best supplement. The human body is made up of mostly water. Dehydration affects our ability to burn fat, it also affects more processes than I could list here. Remember that drink your 8 glasses of water rule, well it was a made up number. Even knowing that it is a fictional number I still recommend it, as it can’t hurt.
  6. 10,000 steps a day is another made up number. So what! The rule of thumb is still this, walk more!
  7. Whatever your goals are there are only two things that matter. First is progressive overload, do more, better, faster than last time. Second is SAID principle, Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. This is simple, the body will adapt to the demand placed upon it so make it specific to your goals.
  8. Last one! Set point theory. If you weighed the same amount for a long time then yes it will be harder to change that number. The body gets comfortable and finds its equilibrium when you have stayed at a consistent weight. This means that if you want to make a change you may need to make a drastic change in order to see the scale move up or down.

 

I hope this helps each and everyone of you with some basics of training, health, and generally being better.

 

Todd Hamer

 

Welcome to 2023!

Fitness, Life Health

Welcome back to UF for a new year. January is a big month in the fitness industry. Many people begin the year with new goals. Now the key is to stick to those goals. We at UF are here to help you make fitness a lifetime commitment. Today I am going to give you a run down of things we have coming up in 2023 to help you!

 

  1. Strength Project 2023. Strength Project 2023 is open to any unlimited member, or any personal training member. If you are not one of these members yet want to join us we have a special buy in rate of 250 dollars for 3 months. If you want to join then sign up as a for the strength project class scheduled Sunday Jan 8th. This is not a class but we are using this for our roster. Join us by taking 30 classes, 3 RYDE, 3 CardioLabs, and 3 Yoga classes over next 3 months. Do this and you get a shirt, enter to win prizes including free memberships and gift cards for Federal Galley.
  2. Annual in house push pull. We are working on a final date for this event. Yet, this will be open to all members and special guests. This will once again be a chance for you to either compete for the first time, or get a heavy session in between meets.
  3. Powerlifting meets. Once again we are hosting two powerlifting meets. Come out to compete or watch and have some fun. Once again Doug Nostrant will be back to run these meets for us. More info here.
  4. Teams to watch. If you are unaware Union Fitness is the official training grounds for both Chatham and Point Park Universities athletic programs.  If you want to support some local student-athletes while at the same time watching some entertaining sports then check out either of these programs.
  5. Summer Bootcamps with CeJ. Once again we will be holding summer bootcamps throughout the city. We are working on that schedule now and will hopefully be in your neighborhood.
  6. United Not Divided Workout. Once again we will be working closely with our friends from LEG1ON on an outdoor workout with four gyms involved this year. Keep your watching for details on this event.
  7. New membership. Check out our new Wellness Plus membership. Our newest membership level will go live this week. This membership will include all classes as well as one, one hour massage per month.

 

This is just a short list of fun ways to be involved this year. As always please reach out anytime with your thoughts on how we can better serve you.

 

Happy 2023!

 

Hamer

2023 New Years Super Class & SO MUCH MORE

Fitness

Kick off 2023 with a great workout and your friends from the U. We are hosting our next Superclass on January 1st, 2023 at 11 AM. Sign ups are live here.

 

The first Superclass of the year will be prior to UF opening for 2023. I have listed our holiday hours here at as well.

 

  • Dec 24th 10AM-2PM.
  • Dec 25th Closed.
  • Dec 26th 9AM-4PM.
  • Dec 31st 10AM-2PM.
  • Jan 1st Noon-4PM (with superclass only at 11 AM).

 

As with all of our Superclasses we will have a mix of cardio and lifting. We are also offering this class free to everyone, member or non-member. So bring a friend and have some fun with us New Years day. One thing we do ask of you is to donate to the West Penn Burn Center. The reason we are asking for to donate to this cause is because we have seen a string of fires recently and we would like to help those who have been affected by these tragedies.

 

Yours in Strength,

 

Todd Hamer

 

PS Happy Holidays.

 

 

 

The Strength Project

State of the Union, Training

Hamer may be making me write a blog on my birthday… but it’s only because we have some very exciting news to share with all of you!

 

Starting January 9th, we are kicking off the 2023 Strength Project here at Union Fitness!

 

What is this “Strength Project” you ask? Here are the details below:

 

  • The Strength Project is a 10-week challenge for members who are looking to explore more of our classes. Entering this challenge will include your chance to win some awesome prizes.

 

  • This 10-week challenge will begin on January 9th and will run until March 17

 

  • During these 10 weeks, you will be tasked with taking at least 30 total classes here at UF
    • The stipulation is that you can take any of our Powerful classes, however we ask that you take at least – 3 RYDE classes, 3 Yoga classes, and 3 Cardio Lab classes total – accounting for 9 of those 30 total classes.
    • We ask that you please be sure to both sign up and sign into each of the classes that you take, so that we can keep track of who was present in each class and make sure to give you the credit that you deserve. If you don’t sign in, we can’t tell whether you were taking the class or not, so you may not have that counted towards your total!

 

  • Everyone who completes the Strength Project will be given a Union Fitness T-Shirt

 

  • Everyone who completes the Strength Project will also be entered to win one of three prizes:
    • 3 Free months of our NEW Wellness Plus membership.
    • 1 Free month of our NEW Wellness Plus membership.
    • $50 Gift Certificate.

 

  • Starting from now until January 8th, you can sign up for the Strength Project on MindBody. It will be set up just as if you’re signing up for one of our classes, and it will be a class sign up on the day of January 8th.
  • Bring a friend! If you have a non-member friend interested in joining us, they can buy in to the strength project for 250 dollars. This will give them 3 months of training. For each friend you bring you will get another entry to win our prizes.

 

We are looking forward to tracking all of your class progress over these 10 weeks and seeing how many you are able to complete! Please be sure to sign up on MindBody and to let us know if you have any additional questions, comments, or concerns.

 

Toria

One Year At Union

Fitness, Training

This month marks the end of my first year at Union Fitness, so I wanted to take this time to speak on the knowledge and wisdom I’ve obtained here, note goals in the upcoming year, and give thanks.

 

The time I’ve spent at Union has given me much in lessons and learning. I learned that trusting in the process is key to progress. Whatever your journey may be, whatever your goals are, and however you pursue happiness, it is crucial that you believe you will succeed. Yeah, sure, it is true that consistency and support will aid you in achieving your goals. Although, without internally knowing that you can/will be better for your efforts, your self-confidence will suffer, leaving room for wasted time and energy in doubting. We are all going to make mistakes, as they are a part of the journey, so don’t doubt yourself. Keep going.

 

The next lesson is something I still struggle to do, but I do see myself getting a lot better at asking for help. I find it tough to do this because, as a survival technique, self-sufficiency has been my default setting when navigating new and old experiences. Though there are places and times for this tactic, no one can do everything alone. Some questions cannot be answered from within; some needs cannot be resolved from our own resources. When you put the work in to understand yourself in a compromised position, you can understand your needs to be met and how to meet them. Then, you can convey your vulnerability to people who are there for you, people that care about you. I know this is easier said than done, but always worth the emotional labor.

 

Making use of the wisdom I’ve assumed this year, I want to keep working to achieve my goals to compete in a full powerlifting meet, acquire certifications in several massage therapy and fitness fields, and continue to seek physical and emotional growth. I have much more to learn, and I’m pretty excited about it all. So, watch out for me!

 

I thank every part of the staff at Union Fitness and all its members for their ongoing support and investments they make in me. I am forever grateful. As this is the manifestation of the beginnings to another great year, all I ask is that you continue to believe in me. We’ve got work to do, and we’ll make it great together.

 

-Malik

Why I Love Failing Lifts

Fitness, Training

We have all heard the quote “we learn from mistakes, not from success.” And when I dissect this quote, I think that part of it is right and part of it is wrong. We absolutely learn from mistakes, but on the contrary, I believe we learn from success too.

 

We learn from mistakes because once we make them, we can figure out what went wrong and improve those missed steps, so we don’t repeat them. But when we succeed, we also learn. We learn what works. We learn what we are capable of and what we need to continue to do to keep succeeding. Both failure and success will always be key parts of our journey, and without the other we cannot continue to grow.

 

I take this approach with my training. When many of us think of a “failed lift” we naturally think of it negatively, but that shouldn’t be the case. For one, failing a lift is proof that we are training to our maximum effort, you’re giving 110%. If you never fail a lift, you know you aren’t getting uncomfortable enough. Uncomfortableness is where we grow, in lifting and in life.

 

My favorite thing about failing a lift, is that once I fail that attempt, I know I can pull apart what went wrong, what I can fix, and when I can attack that weight again with a better chance to be successful. That weight isn’t going anywhere, it will be there when you’re prepared to challenge it again.

 

I also love when I fail a lift, and somebody in the gym who is stronger, has been training longer, and is more knowledgeable than me can tell me exactly where I went wrong and how I can fix it. The best part about lifting is we always have room to get better and continue LEARNING, and that growth never stops. We keep fighting the battles and we continue to win as we get stronger and as we continue our journey. When you find yourself no longer failing lifts, you are too comfortable. Learn from your success and learn more from your failures.

 

Take pride in the failed lift, it means you’re pushing for more. And to me, that is elite. 

 

 

Maria

2023 UF News

State of the Union

As we are all seeing from Spotify wrapped, 2022 is coming to a close. With the end of the year we here at UF are spending time on two important issues. First and foremost we are judging your Spotify wrapped and wondering what that music is you are listening to (jk, maybe).  The second thing we are working on is our new plans for 2023. Here is a short list of things we will be doing to end 2022 and kick off 2023.

 

  1. First ever members get together. We will host this December 21, 2022 from 7-9PM in the performance lab. Bring a small treat to share and we will have some fun together. We may even have a few things to give away.
  2. Return of the strength project. We are in the process of making changes to how this program was run in the past. Keep your eyes and ears open for ways to improve your fitness and life through this popular program.
  3. 2023 kick off superclass. We will kick off 2023 with one more superclass. This class will be January 1st, 2023 at 11 AM. Sleep in then roll over to the gym and have some fun with us to kick off 2023. We will then open our doors for all members from 12-4PM on New Years day.
  4. Powerlifting is still here at UF. We will be hosting two meets again this year.
  5. United not divided workout. We are proud to work closely with our friends at LEG1ON Training on this great workout. This year we will have 4 gyms coming together to host a workout. Time and date to be announced soon.
  6. Last but not least. You! We are here to serve you and we are always looking for ways to improve. Please stop by anytime and tell us your goals and how we can help you.

 

There it is. 2023 is almost upon us and we are ready to make it a strong year.

 

Todd Hamer

Curt’s Meet Prep Nutrition

Life Health, Meal Prep, Nutrition, Training

I’m currently 10 weeks out from my next Powerlifting competition. During this time, I always adjust my diet to fit my goals and needs for strength, hypertrophy, and recovery. Below is a sample of my day to day nutrition intake for the last few months leading into a competition. This is still very similar to what I consume even outside of competition prep, just with slightly increased protein and carbs. Keep in mind, this is what I’ve found to work best for me and my body. When I consume food, it is simply to nourish my body for performance, and rarely for actual enjoyment, which is why it is very simple and routine. I don’t always enjoy this, however, it’s just one less variable that I have to worry about as I’m focused on being the best athlete that I can be. 

 

Breakfast:

24 ounces of water

4 whole eggs

Diced potatoes

2 pieces sourdough bread

Greek yogurt

10 ounces of black coffee

 

Lunch:

24 ounces of water

Crockpot chicken breast:

Chicken breast with salsa

White rice

Black beans

Peppers

 

Pre workout snack:

24 ounces of water

Cream of rice

2 splenda packets

Drizzle of honey

 

Intra workout:

Granite intra workout w/ BCAAs, EAAs, Cluster Dextrin, and Electrolytes

Post workout shake:

4 ounces of milk

8 ounces of water

2 scoops of Whey protein

1/2 cup of oats

1 banana

Handful of strawberries

 

Dinner (Monday & Wednesday):

24 ounces of water

Taco bowls

Ground beef

Hard shells

Shredded lettuce

Diced tomatoes

1 Avocado

Shredded cheese

Taco sauce

 

Dinner (Tuesday & Thursday):

24 ounces of water

Salmon

Rice

Zucchini & squash 

 

Dinner (Friday):

24 ounces of water

New York Strip or Fillet

Roasted potatoes

Asparagus 

 

Dinner (Weekends):

24 ounces of water

Occasional beer, wine, or cocktail depending on occasion

Leftovers or a fun restaurant date

Night time snack:

12 ounces of water

Greek yogurt with Granola

 

Curt

Where’s the Confusion?

Fitness, Life Health

Last night Erica (my wife) and I were discussing why people don’t reach their goals. First and foremost people don’t come to the gym consistently. As Curtis wrote about recently we must not just be motivated we must have discipline. Step one is taking the first step everyday. Just arising and beginning the day with some movement is the first step toward success. The problem is that many people start and then hit a wall due to confusion. Today I will hopefully help remove some of that confusion.

 

Here are tips to remove confusion from your training and maybe your life.

 

  1. Create goals. Have an idea about where your are going. Too many people come to the gym only to spin their wheels. Set some sort of goal and be ready to adjust, yet start with a goal.
  2. Create a plan. The worst plan that’s run with consistency is better than the best plan not run with it.
  3. Overcome obstacles. I promise you that you will miss a training session, have a bad training session, or have hiccups along the way. None of this matters, just show up again tomorrow.
  4. Get your diet right. This is one area with much confusion. It should not be that confusing, veggies are good, fruit good, protein sources good, and candy not good. Do not fall into the trap of social media. If someone says something too good to be true, then it is too good to be true.
  5. Give yourself a break. No one is perfect and stop looking at people who lie for a living. If someone is trying to sell you an image then they are probably not being 100% truthful.
  6. Find small wins. Small wins add up to bigger ones. If your meeting runs late and you have to shorten your workout then do it. But still do something!
  7. Sleep and drink water. These are two of the most underrated ways to achieve any goal.

 

This is all I know after more than two decades of studying this information. What I do know is that if all you do is follow these basic rules then your chance of success will increase. Additionally, you’ll feel better about your health.

 

Hamer