Category Archives: Fitness

It’s Never Too Late; Start Now

Fitness, Life Health

We are entering the tenth month of the year. 2022 is 75% of the way over and it’s now a perfect time to create better habits heading into the winter. We tend to use the calendar to set our goals and start new challenges. I am here today to tell you NOW is the time!

 

This week the nominees for the Nobel Peace Price will be announced. If you do not know how the Nobel Peace Prize got its name then you are in luck, as I am going to tell you a story. The Nobel Peace Prize is named after Alfred Nobel (1833-1896). Alfred was a Swede who during his lifetime was most well known for inventing dynamite. He invented dynamite to be used for safety. It would help miners remain at a distance while explosions would occur. The issue is that dynamite ended up becoming a weapon. One day Alfred opened the newspaper to read that overnight he had died. The paper had mistaken Alfred’s brother for Alfred. Yet, what he read was a headline about a man who died, and that man had caused more death than any human ever. This was clearly an awakening to Alfred.

 

Alfred did not want to be remembered as a killer, so he made a change. Upon his death he left his fortune to create the Nobel Prizes. He wanted to make humanity a better place for all peoples, and this was his way of paying it forward.

 

What Alfred teaches us about ourselves depends on your perspective. The way I see it, he reminds us that we can always adjust our sails. One of my favorite new artists is Jade Bird and in her great song, “Now is the time” she shares these lyrics:

 

“Never have I ever seen a better day to get upDoesn’t matter ’bout the weatherNow’s the time to go and get it”
As Alfred Nobel or Jade Bird reminds us, now is the time. It doesn’t matter what the past is, what the weather is, or past mistakes. All that matters is that we are here today so make a change. Now is the time to start anew and I challenge you to join me on a path of strength, health, and empowerment.
Hamer

 

Movements You Should Do Daily

Fitness, Life Health

I trained two people at UF. Duke and Jenn, each person brings something different to us and challenges me in different ways. Jenn just did her first powerlifting meet and has a goal of mastering pull ups. Duke is a seasoned lifter, he has done CrossFit, powerlifting, and been training for well over a decade. Having these two people to train with is great as it creates such an awesome environment for me to learn. Each brings a different strength, weakness, as well as personality to their training.

 

This week Duke is on a family trip and he is also coming back from a slight back strain. A few weeks back he aggravated some soft tissue in his back and we have had to adjust slightly to train through his injury. Knowing the this week is a planned travel week got me thinking. What are movements someone should do daily? Also, how we can make these a habit whether we are traveling or just sitting at home? So I made a short list of movements that I would recommend everyone does daily.

 

  1. Squat- I know this is obvious. There is probably no movement that is better for the entire body than a bodyweight squat. Cues are simple, keep your feet flat on the ground, your sternum up, and get as low as you can. Do this daily, for reps, for time, and for fun.
  2. Standing Quad Stretch- As a society we spend to much time in a forward leaning position. This will tighten our hip flexors (which include the quads). So grab your foot and pull it towards your butt. Just like with the squat, what matters is that you do the movement. How long, how many reps, and other variables doesn’t matter. Movement matters.
  3. Childs Pose to Cobra- Have you ever heard of creep? No, not the song (even though it’s a great jam). Creep in layman’s terms is when the fluid around your disk moves (generally this shift is posterior). Think about it like this, if you are sitting (and probably leaning forward) your disks are being pushed to open up posteriorly and the fluid will move more to the back. Doing these movements will help move this fluid and set your back into a more neutral position.
  4. Toe Touch- This movement has received a bad rap over the years. Yes, it is a fact that repeats flexion is bad for the spine. Yet, I’d contend that if you are doing all of these movements combined than the net affect will be a positive. So bend over and touch your toes.
  5. Lateral Lunge- A mistake I made way to often as a young coach was not moving through all three planes of motion. There is front, sagittal, as well as transverse. Move in all three of these planes and your body will feel better.
  6. T Spine Movements- There are many different movements here. You could do the worlds greatest stretch, multiple wall stretches, or lying t spine work. Just make sure you are moving your thoracic cavity.
  7. Being Bi-Pedal-This means walk more. If you want to be healthy, walk, if you want to think, walk, if you want to meet new people, walk. Most great thinkers walk and just let their minds be free. The adage about 10,000 steps a day is great, yet the science is pretty clear if you want to be healthy 8,000 steps is plenty. I average 15,000 a day, yet I have also never had a “real job.”

 

This is my short list and a simple catch all of movements you should do daily. These can be done whether traveling or at home and shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes.

 

Hamer

Live DJ Charity Event Recap

Fitness, Training

Hello!

 

Rachael jumping on the blog today to say THANK YOU to everyone who participated and donated to our charity DJ Bootcamp on September 17th. We raised $450 dollars for PPWP and had a ton of fun doing it! We had a perfect weather day, lots of smiles, hard work put in, and couldn’t have done it without the awesome community we have here at Union Fitness. 

 

Thank you to the UF mgmt. team for making this happen and to everyone who helped make the day possible (from set up to clean up)! Looking forward to more events in the future!

 

Rachael

Why Union Fitness?

Fitness, Training

I am proud of the work we do here at UF. I also know that we offer more than most commercial gyms in the area. Today I want to highlight some of the things that make us different than the other gyms in the area.

 

Special Events.

 

  1. Fundraiser Bootcamps. Rachel Riddell hosted a fundraiser bootcamp this weekend. we were happy to have 30 members and non-members here at UF to RYDE and enjoy a nice day outdoor on our turf.
  2. Comedy Shows- We led a bootcamp then hosted a comedy show with a fundraiser for the LGBTQ+ community.
  3. Bike Rides. We are happy to have worked with POGOHas well as Bike PGH to host numerous bike rides throughout out community. While raising money for bike safety.

 

Private space for our classes. 

 

We are one of the few gyms that offers a private training space in a different building for our classes. Our performance lab is the perfect space to take our flagship class powerful. We also host yoga as well as other events in this space.

 

Team Training.

 

We are proud to be the home of both Point Park University as well as Chatham University athletic programs. We oversee the training of the teams from both of these fine local universities. To the average member this may not seem like a great thing, yet having the college students around always brings an extra energy and intensity to the gym.

 

PITT IS IT. 

 

UF loves our hometown. We also love Pitt and are happy to have our Pitt powerlifters train here. While most of the Pitt lifters don’t lift here full time, most of the lifters do train here at different times. Seeing and supporting these young lifters brings a great energy to UF.

 

Fitness Center.

 

The fitness center does not get enough love. The fitness center offers everything you would need to get strong and fit. UF has many pieces of cardio equipment as well as racks, dumbbells, and kettlebells.

 

Strength Lab.

 

The strength lab is the Cadillac of training. We have everything you need to get strong and then some. Monolifts, platforms, racks, competition benches, and many different barbells. The strength lab always has competent spotters and a great group of lifters, who are willing to help each other and you get strong!

 

Personal Training. 

 

I am very proud of all the personal trainers that we have here at UF. The trainers here are a diverse group of strong trainers, and they do an amazing job with their clients. Curtis oversees all of this and he is a rock star with empowering our trainers.

 

Powerlifting.

 

One thing UF is known for is our powerlifting. We have our share of strong humans, and we host two meets a year. One thing that separates us from other gyms with powerlifting is our willingness to help all lifters. This weekend, World Record holder Bonica Brown trained at UF alongside many first time lifters back in the strength lab.

 

There is a basic overview of UF and why I know that we are the best at what we do. Come visit us anytime, and ask any questions.

 

Hamer

 

 

 

First Meet Experience

Fitness, Life Health, Training

This past Saturday, Union Fitness hosted the 2022 Texas Power Bar Open which happened to be my first meet that I’ve competed in. I have spectated and volunteered at three other meets that were hosted here at UF, but never actually lifted in one.

 

I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by several “meet veterans” at UF who were able to help me prepare for everything in the months beforehand. Curtis, Todd, and Zain helped me stay ready and answered all questions that I had both during training and on meet day.

 

I learned so many new things about myself and powerlifting throughout my training. I was able to test my limits, hit some solid PR’s, and I learned how to successfully train for a meet.

 

Going into meet day, I knew next to nothing about weigh-ins, lift commands, or how the flights of lifters worked throughout the day. Thankfully, I had the UF team with me for weigh-ins to help me know what I needed to bring and how the flow of it all went. I started training with the lift commands towards the last weeks of training, so I was still a little rusty but ended up not missing any of them on meet day. As far as the flights of lifters went, I had Zain by my side all day to help me to know when I was going to step out onto the platform and also what numbers I would strive to hit on the next attempts.

 

I ended up going 8/9 on my lifts, which I was very happy with. And I also hit a huge deadlift PR, which I was very excited about! I couldn’t have made it through the whole day without Ava, Diana, and Miranda (who all three also competed and did awesome) helping to motivate me and we hyped each other up all day, Zain who helped me with everything from warmups to figuring out my next attempts to getting me platform ready, Curtis who helped with my training program for months and he shared all of his powerlifting wisdom with me, Todd who gave me some pre squat trap slaps to get me ready to lift and as I’ve said before he’s my everyday hype man, and last but not least my dude Malik who kept my muscles ready to make the gainz and hit my lifts.

 

Thank you to everyone who helped make my first meet experience a great one. I’m planning to do some more in the future, and I’m looking forward to it!

 

Toria

Neat Adaptations to Anaerobic Training

Fitness, Life Health, Training

They blinded me with science.

 

Today let’s take a quick look at what happens inside our body when we start a weight lifting/ resistance training program. This style of exercise is called anaerobic training.  Anaerobic training is defined as high-intensity, intermittent bouts of exercise like weight training, plyometric drills, speed, agility, and interval training.

 

Anaerobic exercise results in benefits and increased levels of these functions listed below.

 

Cardiac output & Stroke volume: Heart can beat faster and harder to provide more oxygen and nutrients to active muscles.

 

Heart rate: Decreases resting HR & blood pressure.

 

Oxygen uptake: Increases ability to take in oxygen from the respiratory system and deliver it to the working tissues

 

Neural adaptations: Motor cortex activity increases when the level of force developed increases and when new exercises or movements are being learned. Aka learning new exercises will create a “muscle memory”.

 

Bone & connective tissue: Strengthens bones, tendons, ligaments and fascia.

 

Muscular growth: Muscle hypertrophy is muscular enlargement from an increase in the cross-sectional area of the existing fibers.

 

Strength & Power: Mean strength & power increases up to 73%  in untrained athletes.

 

Body Composition: Increases in lean tissue mass, daily metabolic rate, and energy expenditure during exercise are outcomes of resistance training.

 

Flexibility : Anaerobic training potentially can have a positive impact on flexibility, primarily if the individual has poor flexibility to begin with & completes the exercise with use of full range of motion.

 

Aerobic Capacity: Circuit training and programs using high volume and short rest periods have been shown to improve VO2max.

 

Motor Performance: Resistance training has been shown to increase running economy, jumping, sprinting, golf swings, throwing and hand eye coordination.

 

Come toss some weights around on a regular basis and reap all these neat benefits and gains with these adaptations to anaerobic training.

 

Get Bumpy,

CEJ

There Is No Growth Without Change

Fitness, Life Health

Some of you may know me as a trainer, a group instructor, and a fitness enthusiast here at Union, but my life consists of a lot more than that now.

 

At the beginning of this year, I began to feel like I wasn’t performing to my full potential, not in the gym, but in life. I felt like I had so many people I still needed to reach and help, but not as a trainer, as something else. I knew I had all these other skills I wasn’t utilizing, creativity, entrepreneurship, hustle, problem-solving, honesty, and so much more. Yes, of course I utilize those skills as a trainer, but at a much smaller capacity. So, what could I do with all of that at a greater capacity? Real Estate.

 

I really can’t pinpoint how I decided to put my energy into becoming a realtor. It’s always been something that’s been in the back of my mind. I grew up watching every HGTV show under the sun, I’m obsessed with interior design and renovation projects, and most importantly I am an independent and hardworking individual. I knew that whatever I ended up deciding upon, I was going to make it happen. I started my studies in the beginning of the Spring, finished in 2 months, passed my exams, secured my license, and joined a brokerage.

 

Going into it, I knew this career wasn’t going to be easy, especially being a personal trainer on top of it. Since becoming a realtor, my life has changed, my goals have changed, and my routines have changed. I no longer have time to train 5-6 days, utilizing a bodybuilding split, and spend 1.5-2 hours in the gym. Sure, if I really wanted to make the time to stick to that I could, but honestly, I was so sick of training that way.

 

It started to sink in that my life would no longer solely revolve around fitness, and it was scary, but it was also kind of exciting. I decided to start training every other day, 4 times a week, utilizing full body workouts. On the days in between I was aiming to get in 10,000 steps for the day, but if it didn’t happen, I wasn’t going to put pressure on myself.

 

Training this way has been great! Before, all my workouts just felt like I was going through the motions, and now I have gained back that excitement and passion that was there in the very beginning. Mentally, I have taken a lot of pressure off myself. If I get to my workout in, great! If I had a busy day and can’t lift/ don’t have the energy, great, there’s always tomorrow! Adding something else to my plate allowed me to take my hyper focus off fitness and create realistic boundaries for myself.

 

With that being said, I’m so grateful for this opportunity and the change it has brought in my life. I still love being a trainer and plan to do it for as long as I can. Everyone that I’ve had the pleasure of training since being at Union has been wonderful! My clients never fail to amaze me. It’s truly a blessing that I get to help people change their lives!

 

Three lessons you can take away from this:

  1. You can do anything you set your mind to.
  2. At the end of the day, nothing is really that serious.
  3. If you need to buy or sell a home you should call me 😉

 

April

Live DJ Charity Based Bootcamp

Fitness, Training

Hello To All of The Wonderful People of Union Fitness!

 

The UF Team would like to announce that we are hosting our first ever RYDE, Bootcamp, and Yoga workout event next Saturday September 17th at Noon. We will have live music from DJ Dre Williams to add to the fun of the event as well!

 

This team-teaching event will have everyone on the bikes for 20 minutes, a strength focused bootcamp for 20 minutes, and then we will all finish together with 20 minutes of yoga led by Kayla Hersperger. This is a donation-based class to a local charity, and we can accept Venmo or checks on the day of the event. Due to the size limit of the class, make sure to reserve your spot (and your friends!) on MindBody as soon as you get the chance to.

 

Hope to see you there,

Team UF

We Have The Meets

Fitness, Life Health, Training

It’s that time again! In 10 days we will be hosting the 2022 Texas Power Bar Open, right here at our very own Union Fitness. This will be the 10th sanctioned meet that we have been fortunate enough to hold here at Union Fitness since opening in November of 2016. Each one has gotten bigger, better, and more exciting for the lifters, as well as the spectators and fans. Obviously, we couldn’t do it without the help and support of our amazing staff, along with our good friends Doug and Candi Nostrant and their awesome team who always provide the best experience possible.

 

If you have never been to a powerlifting meet, I highly recommend that you check one out! Especially our meets here at Union. I may be bias, but we are very fortunate to have an amazing facility and support that allows us to hold some of the best meets that I’ve ever been a part of. Regardless of if you’re a competitor, or a spectator, there is something for you. This year we will have many great sponsors and vendors on hand providing a ton of support for the lifters and the spectators. Businesses such as Live Large, Fortifix, Victory Float Lounge, Athlete Recovery Lounge, and At War Athletics, will all be on hand with their products and services. Along with this, Edgar Snyder will be giving away $500 to the best overall Male and Female lifters, Texas Power Bars will be giving away two of their power bars, and Iron Rebel will be giving away gift certificates.

 

This year, we have four members who will be competing. Diana Jordan, Ava O’Brien, Brian Steinmiller, Eric Price, Jenn Robinson, and Zane Augustine are no strangers to the platform, and have been training extremely hard over the past few months to prepare. Along with this, our very own Miranda Gard and Toria Crispin will be competing in their first meet. It has been an absolute blast watching all of these individuals showing up every day and giving their all to each session.

 

So be sure to stop by and show them your support! If you would like to stop by, lifting will begin at 9am right outside of the main entrance. Admission is $10 for adults and free for children. We look forward to seeing all of you here, and maybe we will even see you on the platform at our next event next June.

 

– Curtis Miller

New Staff Spotlight, Maria Fautali

Fitness, Life Health

Hi everyone! My name is Maria Fautali, and I am so excited to join the staff at Union Fitness. I am new to the Pittsburgh area, moving most recently from Cleveland, Ohio. I was a three-sport athlete in high school and continued my track and field career beyond that at the University of Rio Grande as a sprinter. While there, I received my Associates Degree in Business Management with a minor in Psychology. 

 

I am currently attending Phoenix University and working towards my bachelor’s degree in business management, with a focus in Diversity and Inclusion. I have always had a deep passion for creating a safe and comfortable space for everyone. I want to be the reason that everyone feels heard and seen. I also have a passion for Women’s Empowerment and equality for women and girls in sports. Because of that, I started my own company called Strength In Us LLC that focuses on empowering women through fitness. I chose to join Union Fitness because they share my passion and dedication for an inclusive environment.

 

Although my days of a college athletics have ended, I have just begun my career in the world as a professional athlete. I currently play for the Pittsburgh Passion, Women’s professional tackle football team as running back. 2022 was my first year in the league, and I was named an All-American player as a rookie. I am very blessed and excited to continue playing for the city of Pittsburgh!

 

I look forward to working with everyone at Union Fitness and meeting all of our awesome members!

 

Maria