Commitment

Work consistently and steadily toward your goals without attachment to the outcomes.

Training is not about being the fastest in the race, the strongest in the weight room or the only one in the room who can get their leg behind their head. It's about the discipline of working to make yourself a little bit better each and every day. It's about commitment. It's about seeing incremental changes in yourself that add up to a healthier lifestyle. It's about staying the course even when it gets hard. It's about continually moving forward, even when we fall short of our expectations.

"Practice, and all is coming."
Pattabhi JoisFollow @catherinederrow

Changes, Changes, Changes

With the recent closing of Lifestyle Family Fitness clubs in the Columbus, Ohio market, my class schedule was slightly reduced. Unfortunately, in the buyout by Lifetime Fitness, those of us who did not work for the acquired clubs were not able to continue teaching at the new Lifetime gyms. While saddened by this news, I look forward to the opportunities available to me in the future.

Change is an inevitable part of life ... it means that we are alive! Without change, we have stasis, no improvement, no progress. While we don't always feel like changes are positive, even these unforeseen challenges present an unexpected opportunity for growth.

And my whole career is about change --- inspiring others to make a change in themselves, to motivate them to make new choices to lead a healthier lifestyle. Ben Franklin has been quoted as saying, "Consider how hard it is to change yourself and you'll understand what little chance you have in trying to change others." Undergoing a difficult transition such as losing a job can help me be more empathetic as I encourage my clients to make new and different choices.

So I wish my friends and former co-workers at Lifestyle good luck on their journey and I look forward to meeting more wonderful people in whatever direction this new path takes me!Follow @catherinederrow

"Today I will do what others won't, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can't."

-- Jerry Rice, Football Player

I love this quote! Push yourself harder, strive to reach your goals, challenge yourself anew everyday. You never achieve anything you don't work for.Follow @catherinederrow

Closer to the Edge

I recently received the great news that I passed my Les Mills video certification. The assessment feedback provided is highly detailed, analyzing each movement made throughout the 60 minute workout, offering suggestions for improvement and praise when demonstrating excellence and competence.

While well pleased with this result, I inspected the remarks carefully. One particular comment caught my attention. The examiner suggested that I "trust my strength" and up my weights. Les Mills instructors are expected to be inspiring with their weight choices, lifting to their upper limits of strength. I have to admit that with teaching a couple of classes each day, I sometimes go slightly lighter than I could lift in order to preserve my energy and strength for another class. Keeping my weights at an average level, I have noticed that completing the 60-minute class is less of a challenge now than it was when I first starting teaching it.

I have begun to plateau. Plateau: " a relatively stable level, period, or condition". That means - my body has reached a level where I am comfortable with the weight that I am lifting and it is posing no significant challenge to me. As a result, my body has adapted to these loads, and stopped changing to meet the physical demands of the workout.

Uh, oh. Not good. The goal of our workout is to change our bodies -- to continue to shape, tone, define and improve.

So today, I upped my weight. In some tracks, I simply added a 1 kilo plate to either side of my bar. That little donut doesn't look like much, and it certainly doesn't feel like much to pick up on its own, but just that small amount of extra weight on each end really made a difference after 5 straight minutes of repetitions in a single track.

Reaching a plateau is a common occurrence for people who workout regularly. At first, dramatic results come easily - pounds melt away, muscles start making an appearance. Just as it seems you are getting in the groove of exercising, you realize you haven't noticed a difference in your body recently. That means it's time for a change! Push yourself closer to the edge and mix it up.

If you think you may have reached a plateau, read this article to see if these 4 Signs that You Need to Lift More Weight apply to you.

If you decide to lift more weight, start with a modest increase, no more than ten percent higher than what you are currently lifting. Your weight should be heavy enough so that when you reach the end of a set (or track, in BodyPump), you feel completely fatigued and unable to complete even one more repetition.Follow @catherinederrow

Core Training the Les Mills Way

On the cutting edge of fitness training, I am lucky enough to be a part of Les Mills' latest program, CXWorx. CXWorx challenges the body in a 30-minute program that packs a punch! The format works the entirety of the core -- not just the abs -- including the rectus abdominals, obliques, glutes, hips, back and shoulders. The workout efficiently improves functional strength through athletic moves that require endurance, strength, and balance.

Check out "Fit Bottomed Girls" recent review of the CXWorx class in her local gym.



Find a CXWorx class in Columbus:

Tuesday morning, 9:45 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
Jewish Community Center

Tuesday evening, 5:15 p.m. - 5:45 p.m.
Lifestyle Family Fitness, downtown

Wednesday evening, 5:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Lifestyle Family Fitness, Gahanna

Thursday evenings, 7:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Jewish Community CenterFollow @catherinederrow

Catherine Derrow, Fitness Fiend

Catherine Derrow, the Fitness Fiend, is an enthusiastic and dynamic teacher, with an infectious energy that motivates her students. Catherine has been involved in fitness for most of her adult life, teaching aerobics while in grad school and coming back to the fitness profession when her children started school. Even when not leading group exercise, Catherine is likely to be found in the gym, running on the treadmill or lifting weights. Catherine is AFAA certified in primary group fitness, trained in Les Mills BODYPUMP and CXWorx, and is a Registered Yoga Teacher-200 hours, with a focus on Ashtanga yoga. Catherine loves the physical vigor of Ashtanga and other athletic pursuits, and finds joy in challenging students of all levels.

Catherine's physical strength is apparent, and she loves leading her students in classes that not only builds their own strength, but their balance and flexibility as well. Assisting clients in reaching their fitness goals and helping them to surpass their own expectations makes this fitness fiend smile!

Catherine has taught step aerobics, boot camp, circuit interval training and group resistance training. She has studied exercise technique, coaching cues, anatomy, principles of fitness, benefits and risks of regular exercise, basic exercises for major muscle groups, safety measures, appropriate modifications for special populations, standards and guidelines for group exercise. She has also taken courses in alignment, breathing, teaching savasana, doing hands-on adjustments, anatomy, yogic principles and philosophy, ethics, and guidelines for instructing. Catherine is lucky enough to have trained with world-renown yoga instructors, including David Swenson, Tim Miller, Doug Keller, Roger Cole, Martha Marcom and Marcia Miller. She has over fifteen years of fitness experience, maintaining regular personal exercise regimen, 6-7 times weekly: including yoga, running, weight lifting, kinesis, other fitness activities.

In addition to working in the fitness profession, Catherine has a master's degree in Teaching English as a Second Language, and has travelled extensively around the world, including New Zealand, Korea, Greece, England, Spain, Thailand, China, Indonesia, and Tahiti. She is married with three children.

Follow @catherinederrow