Recently I happened upon a new Gym located fairly close to me in Langley BC Canada called Fit4Less (by GoodLife). Yes I have a wonderful home gym setup but I still like to get out of my house and do a workout from time to time. Sure I enjoy my CrossFit gym workouts for their group type setting but I still feel the need to do my body building and isolation work since this is required for the physique I am going for.
Up until now I have been training at Fitness World since I am grandfathered into a really low month to month rate (About $14 per month). But I find the Fitness World hours of operation to be a bit limiting especially on weekends and many of the workout stations and dumbbells are being used when I am there working out which makes my workouts less efficient.
So I thought I would give Fit4Less.ca a try, heck they only cost $8.99 per month for their basic membership and no locking in (as long as you are willing to pay their $35 initiation fee). You can avoid the $35 fee by signing up for a full year and at around $9 per month that is not a hard commitment to make ;)
The best part about Fit4Less.ca is that they are open 24 hours and have a card-lock system for when their staff is not on duty. And so far even at the busy times I can still get a quick workout in since they have a ton of free weights and dumbbells on hand.
If you want to ramp up your membership plan you can go with the Black Card Membership which is a wopping $18.99 per month! The same initiation Fee rules apply but with the VIP Fit4Less Black Card membership you also get free tanning, free massage chairs and half price vending machine prices. You can even hand off your Fit4Less Black Card to a friend or family member and they can use the gym for free any time they have your card with them...
One other bonus with the Fit4Less Black Card membership is that you can use it in any Fit4Less gym in Canada. That said there are not that many in BC where I live, just the one in Langley I go to and another one in Vancouver but I have a feeling that will change over time. Fit4Less also has other locations in Alberta (6), Saskatchewan (1), Ontario(29) and New Brunswick (2). But again most provinces do not have many of location just yet, except for Ontario which has close to 30 gyms. I'm thinking Ontario was their startup province and they are just now branching out to other provinces.
Well anyways I will be working out periodically at Fit4Less here in my hometown of Langley and taking advantage of the tanning since I have my Men's Physique Contest coming up soon in August.
Make sure to watch my YouTube video for this article on the 3 Most Important Tips for Success in Health and Fitness as I go into much more detail than here in my written article.
For those that just want the condensed written version here it is :)
My first number one Tip for Success in Health and Fitness is Diet & Nutrition:
Without your eating under control you simply will not achieve your Health and Fitness goals no matter what they may be. If you are trying to lose weight and fat, there is no way you can out train a bad diet because you can spend hours a day burning calories in the gym, and then in a matter of moments you can eat them all into oblivion by choosing the wrong foods. Likewise, if your goal is to get strong and gain muscle mass then you need to make sure every piece of food you put into your body has a purpose. Not only do you need a surplus of calories when bulking but you also need the correct macros, so lots of protein, enough fat to keep the machine working at it's best and yes you will need a decent amount of carbs to fuel the workouts.
Number two on my Tips for Success in Health and Fitness list is Intensity!
Many people believe if they simply put the time in the gym that they will automatically get results. By simply moving some weight around they expect their muscles will jump into action and grow bigger and stronger with each workout. Unfortunately this is simply not true :( Your muscle need to be challenged every time you do a workout. If you are picking up the same weight you have been picking up week after week and even month after month doing the same amount of sets and reps each workout, then how can you expect anything to change? Sure you can maintain a level of Health & Fitness this way but to improve upon it you need to step up your game. You need to do 1 of these things... Grab a heavier weight, do more sets than before, or do more reps than before. You may not be able to improve your strength each workout but over time by pushing yourself beyond what you think you can do, you will find that you actually can do it. This takes focus and concentration and writing down what you do each workout will help you to avoid falling into workout plateau.
The same is true if you have hit a weight loss plateau, if this has happened then you need to change something you are doing, either take a look at your diet and make an adjustment or increase the amount of exercise you are doing.
Last but still supper important on my list Tips for Success in Health and Fitness is Consistency:
We all have those times when we lose focus or get burned out and perhaps take a little too much time off from our routines. Getting back on track can be a struggle but the key to your success in Health and Fitness is sticking with it! That could mean you might have to scale things back to fit into your lifestyle and to make sure you don't burn yourself out or stray from your diet. If you go too extreme you are setting yourself up for failure. It's best to start out with realistic goals and then over time increase the level of exercise or tighten up your diet a bit more. Success in Health and Fitness is not a race it's a marathon that lasts a lifetime so don't be in such a rush, earn your success by sticking with it and making a positive change for the long haul.
So far my Fox Force Wrist Wraps have been holding up really well and I am now in possession of some more products from FoxForce.ca! My old Knee Sleeves where getting kind of sloppy so I needed a new pair, and my Wrist Straps where starting to get pretty shredded up, hey that's what happens when you use stuff all the time ;)
So LeeAnn from FoxForce.ca was kind enough to set me up with a new pair of their Fox Force Knee Sleeves and Wrist Wraps. I have been using them for a few weeks now and have no complaints. The Fox Force Knee Sleeves have just the right amount of thickness to give ample support without being so thick that they constrict my movement. I like how they keep my knees nice and warm while I workout and cushion my knees when I do lunges, no more bruised knee caps!
My Fox Force Wrist Straps have added neoprene in the wrist area that I find eliminates how standard Wrist Straps can bite into my wrists. Wrist Straps are a must for me as I have mild carpal tunnel which can really flair up if I am not careful to reduce how much stress I put on my wrists and tendons. The Fox Force Wrist Straps help out tremendously in aiding my grip when pulling heavy weight, allowing me to concentrate on the exercise rather than my grip.
At the time of this Article FoxForce.ca does not have their new Knee Sleeves and Wrist Straps listed but after some testing (by their local Patrons), they are planning to add them to their product lineup.
Watch my YouTube Video Review for the Fox Force Knee Sleeves and Wrist Straps:
My reason for entering the Victoria Cup is mainly for some more experience and to keep myself on track and motivated till the next BC's come around. Hey, you never know, I could even get my BC's qualification for the Open Class but I kind of doubt it since the under 40'ers are in pretty good shape generally!
We are about 2 month out from the Victoria Cup and it would be pretty normal to stat cutting for a competition like this but to be honest I am really well setup right now sitting around 7-8% body fat and only really need to lose 2-3% before the competition which is only around 4-6 pounds. I should have no problem doing this a month out, so my contest prep videos will begin in another month or so...
The next Big August announcement is that I will be attending TheFitExpo in Anaheim California and as it turns out this expo is literally the weekend after my Victoria Cup Physique Competition. This means I will be going to "TheFitExpo Anaheim" August 22nd 2015 in pretty much contest ready condition. What a great time to mingle with other Fitness folks and make some new connections in the industry!
If you are also planning to attend the "TheFitExpo Anaheim" this year then send me a shout out and perhaps we can connect at the show!
I also mention a couple of other things in this video, mainly to do with my nagging chest shoulder injury that has not really stopped me from training but has limited how much I can push myself on certain exercises. I have been doing higher reps and lower weight to work around the muscle strain and I'm getting pretty close to a full recovery. I have noticed a little bit of a strength loss but not so much of a muscle loss which is good.
Keep posted in about a month when I start my series of contest pre videos!
This isn’t going to be one of those product reviews that go over every detail about a product, you can go to the Garmin Website or read some other very detailed and well written reviews for the info if that is something you are interested in? I will focus on my own personal experiences with the Garmin VivoActive and point out my reasons for buying it and what I like and don’t like so far after my time using the Garmin VivoActive. Also make sure to checkout my Unboxing Preview video to see what comes in the box along with some of my initial thoughts on the Garmin VivoActive.
What does the Garmin VivoActive Activity Tracker and Smart Watch do for you? The Garmin VivoActive works like an Activity Tracker and also doubles as a Smart Watch. The activity tracking side of the VivoActive senses your motion and steps all day long, and for when you get really active you can start a GPS enabled workout for outside activities like running, waking, biking hiking and many more. For high intensity indoor activities like weight lifting, cardio, CrossFit, martial arts, yoga or what have you, you have the option of wearing a heart rate monitor to track your heart rate for optimal calorie burring information.
Flipping over to the Smart Watch capabilities of the Garmin VivoActive, when paired with your Smart Phone, you will received notifications like text messages, emails, phone calls and pretty much any other notification you have setup on your Smart Phone. You can quickly see if there are any upcoming events in you calendar, look at the weather forecast and even customize your watch face or install new applications on your VivoActive. All this data is available via the touchscreen color display that uses ambient light for super clear viewing in virtually any lighting situation including darkness by using the built in backlight when required.
The Garmin VivoActive only comes in one size but it is not bulky at all so it should fit both men’s and women’s wrists nicely. You can also get the Garmin VivoActive in black or white and there are options to customize the watch band to a different color or even a leather strap.
With so many Activity Tracker Smart Watch options out there why did I choose the Garmin VivoActive? It was a tuff decision but when it came down to it, the Garmin VivoActive had everything I needed and nothing more, the nothing more being a key component since a device so accessible can be a real distraction at times. The more it does the more I want to play with it and I already have enough trouble keeping my iPhone in my pocket at times ;) One of my biggest fears I have with the Apple Watch is simply that it will become a distraction with so much going on onscreen. And the other problem with the Apple Watch is that it is just so nice looking, perhaps too nice to feel comfortable thrashing it during a workout! I wouldn’t want to scratch up my $500 watch now would I!
What I was really looking for in a Fitness Tracker Smart Watch combination was of course my daily activity readings to get a good overall idea of how many calories I am burning just doing my normal day to day routine. But what I really like is the ability to throw on a dedicated Heart Rate Monitor when I want to perform my more intense activities or workouts. A persons heart rate is a really great form of data when calculating exactly how much energy they exert during a workout. Yes the Apple Watch has an optical heart rate sensor, but at this point in time optical heart rate sensors are just not accurate enough for high intensity training sessions that include a lot of arm movement or up and down heart rate activity.
There are even several areas where the Garmin VivoActive wins out over the Apple Watch. Features like having a built in dedicated GPS, being water resistant down to 50 meters, having up to three weeks of battery life on a single charge and an always on display. Not to mention a much cheaper price tag than the Apple Watch!
In terms of Smart Watch capabilities the VivoActive has everything I need to be aware of, I get notified with a vibration of all my iPhone notifications including incoming phone calls. I can set alarms, quickly check my calendar events for the day and see what the weather forecast is going to be. Garmin also has the Connect IQ App Store where I can get custom watch faces, download new Apps and install widgets.
Is the Garmin VivoActive the perfect Activity Tracker and Smart Watch Combination?
For me it’s pretty close but there are a few areas I would like to see improved. Number one, Garmin needs to listen to their customers and offer more Event Naming options, I often perform CrossFit workouts and marital arts while wearing my Heart Rate Monitor to record my workout session. The only option I have that even comes close to this activity type on the Garmin VivoActive is indoor walking (on a treadmill I presume). The reason I choose the indoor walking option is because I don't need the GPS to be turned on during my indoor workouts.
The good news is, I can go into the software after the fact and change my workout type to a more appropriate name other than indoor walking, the problem is that there is no option for some very popular indoor activities like: CrossFit, martial arts, yoga, HIT training, boot camps, aerobics… There are however some rather obscure outdoor options for Activities like: stand up paddle-boarding, wind kite surfing, snowshoeing… go Figure! I really don’t think it would be all that difficult for Garmin to add a few more Activity Names to the Garmin VivoActive data fields to make it even more versatile and appealing to current and potential new customers.
For the most part my Garmin VivoActive has worked really well but I did have a few instances where the Bluetooth failed to work, during these times I was not able to pair with my iPhone or my Heart Rate Strap via Bluetooth. A simple restart of the Garmin VivoActive was all that was needed but I found it strange that this happened at all. I imagine that a firmware upgrade at some point should fix this small inconvenience and to be honest this Bluetooth disconnection has not happened to me for a while so perhaps it has already been addressed?
My Garmin VivoActive seems pretty decently built overall and so far the screen is holding up well, I have noticed a bit of a nick on one of the sides of the watch case since the watch case is made out of plastic. Perhaps a metal band around the watch case would toughen up this area and make it less prone to damage.
The Garmin Software:
In general, Garmin has a really nice software package, their online and Smart Phone Apps work well and show you just about everything you are going to need to see. You can access all the important information like steps, calories burnt, distance walked or run, how well you slept the night before, any activities you have done along with specific detailed information about that workout. Garmin also plays nicely with MyFitnessPal, and since I have a Fitbit Aria WiFi scale that tracks my body weight, this information is automatically updated to the Garmin App via MyFitnessPal. Of Course any food related info I am entering in MyFitnessPal shows up in the Garmin App as calories consumed so I can figure out if I need to eat more or get more active to meet my daily goals.
When using the Online Garmin App you can generally drill down into the information a bit more but other than that you have access to a lot of the same information.
Garmin has Developed their Connect IQ Store which so far is all free! You will find downloadable Watch Faces, Applications, Data Fields and Widgets to customize your Garmin VivoActive. The Connect IQ Store is open to 3rd part developers so we should see lots of new software added over time.
Again I would like to see Garmin add in more indoor type workout activities to their naming conventions, not that it changes how many calories you burnt in a given workout, but I think most people like to keep an accurate record of what exactly they where doing during an activity.
In Summary:
Is the Garmin VivoActive the perfect Activity Tracker and Smart Watch combination? Well even for me it’s not perfect but it is the best option for me right now in terms of offering complete and comprehensive activity tracking and the ability to interface with my iPhone and send me the information I really need to see.
Tuesday, June 16, 2015 at 11:20PM 
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;){kind=link}