Melanie Jans joins Club Meadowvale Team

Club Meadowvale is very excited to introduce our members to our newest team member, Melanie Jans, a highly respected professional squash player that represented Canada on the international stage. Beginning her squash career at the age of 11, she went on to become Canada's top ranked female for many years, now we are fortunate to have her join Club Meadowvale. Melanie retired from national team competition in 2006 and is now the squash pro for casino games online our facility. Her career had many triumphs that included several Canadian senior and junior women's titles, and a double gold-medal performance at the 1999 Pan-American Games in Winnipeg. 1995 saw her reach the top of the squash world as Melanie claimed gold in the Pan-Am Games being held in Argentina. Not only did she win gold for individual titles, but was also victorious in the team championships as well. Join us in welcoming Melanie to our team.

Benefits of Playing Tennis

Many people look to start getting healthy by getting a fitness gyms membership, grab their bag, head to the gym full of enthusiasm and excitement to only end up getting there and feeling out of sorts.  Where do I start, I don’t know anyone, I am so out of shape compared to them, and do I want to get as muscular as him/her! These thoughts creep in to your head and prevent you from feeling comfortable.  While we all start that way, sometimes going to a gym isn’t for everyone.  Now Club Meadowvale tennis club offers you a lot of benefits and can be a great way to do something with a spouse, friend, co-worker, or child.   There are many benefits to play tennis, some of them are:

1) Physical Benefits

Burning calories is the fundamental goal of doing any exercise program. Tennis is a great way to burn calories, no matter what your skill level.  Caloric expenditure studies showed competitive tennis burns more calories than aerobics, inline skating, or cycling. You’ll burn more calories in a mere half hour of singles tennis, than rowing, riding a stationary bike, doing yoga or playing golf.

2) Mental Benefits

Our brains need to be exercised as well.  Tennis requires quick reaction mentally as well.  Having to read and react to your opponent, tactical decisions while playing, and anticipating your opponents next move are all ways your mind is active while playing.

3) Emotional Benefits

We all have stress throughout the day.  Many times we will go for a run to relieve our stress, but spend the entire time reliving or planning our day. 

4) Networking

Another benefit, the social interaction. Tennis is a sport where tends to be in a club format.  People get to know each other, there is social interaction, and provides you the ability to network with different people you may not normally meet. you into the rhythm, use them periodically to help motivate, or use them for the first while to help establish a discipline. Exercise is an important part of our overall health.  Eating, proper rest, and exercise all contribute to our overall health. Tennis is a great way to get the exercise you need, but also provides that release of stress that will ultimately make your rest time more effective. 

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Simple tips to getting started at the gym

Everyone has that moment where they realize that need to start exercising.  Going to a gym, meeting new people, feeling healthier, and making changes to our bodies seem like such an exciting endeavor.  Most people think about it, but never get to the point where they stay with it.  It can seem overwhelming, intimidating, and sometimes an inconvenience.  Whether you're heading back to the gym after a long hiatus or are new to the fitness scene, here are a handful of tips to help you tackle the gym. Hopefully they will help you maintain your fitness enthusiasm for months to come.

 

Give your body the fuel it needs.

Your body requires fuel to drive the energy you need.  Too often people deeply cut out calories, then by adding exercise drain the body completely of its fuel.  The key to fueling your body is to ensure you eat small meals throughout the day.  If you're too full you get cramps, and if you're too hungry you can't work your hardest. Keep pre-workout snacks, eaten 30 to 90 minutes prior to exercise, mostly in the carb family. These foods should be easily digestible and should contain about 40 to 100 grams of carbs with a low amount of fat. It's also a good idea to keep the fiber content to a minimum since high-fiber foods can be difficult to digest.

Focus on exercising, not the calorie counting of the “burn”

Too often people get the gym with a number in their mind. “I must burn x amount of calories to make it worth it”.  In actuality, you will continue to burn calories at a higher rate long after you have finished at the gym.  Weights can keep your metabolism higher for 24-48 hours after a workout, helping you burn additional calories without knowing it.  The other issue is people focus on using the machines to tell them their calorie burn.  While Cardio machines are a great way to get your heart rate up, there are other great ways to burn calories and improve athletic performance.  Squash, tennis, and other racquet sports allow you to burn calories, improve athleticism, and make cardio more interesting.

Go to the knowledge when you need help or have a question

It can be intimidating to see that staff member who is perfectly sculptured and looks as though their body has not seen a calorie from fat.  Reality is they are there to help you and at one time were beginners.  They are knowledgeable, well trained, and want to help you.  When confronted with a weight machine that confuses you don't skip it or plow ahead and hope for the best — many injuries begin with this attitude. Instead, ask for help. The gym staff is there to help you and should be happy to show you how to work the equipment. They may be able to provide you additional tips, strategies, and that quick motivation to help you achieve your goal.

Free weights are your friend

Everyone has seen the picture of the 250 pound, huge armed, barrel chested weightlifter who looks like Conan the Barbarian.  Reality is that not everyone working out with free weights will look like that.  Free weights, combined with high repetitions will help you tone your body, not turn you into Mr. or Mrs. Universe.  Working out with weights creates toned, strong muscles. Free weights are far more effective then machines, as they force more muscles to participate in the movement.  Stabilizing, pushing, and balancing are required with free weights so many smaller muscles are involved.  Don’t be afraid to give them a try, if you are, review the tip above this one!

Rome was not built in a day, so don’t try to change it in your first workout

If your goal is to lose pounds, inches off your waist, or improve your overall fitness level then you should make a note of it.  However, it will not be completed in the first week at the gym.  Set small goals for yourself that will ultimately get you to what you wanted to achieve.  For the first month, set the goal of getting to the gym 3 times per week.  Then set a goal of losing 1-2 pounds per week, or 1 inch per month, or increasing your lifting ability by 10%.  Set smaller milestones that will get you to the larger goal, it will not seem as daunting a task.  Those small wins will be huge motivation for you, giving you confidence and more mental energy to head to the gym.

Be Reasonable With Post-Workout Treats

If you're heading to the gym to lose or maintain your weight, don't fall for the temptation of treats after working out. It is easy to rationalize eating fattening foods after spending 30 minutes on the treadmill, but it's easy to consume more calories than you burned. The best food post-workout is carbs and protein, but you don't need much and you really only need this if you worked out for over an hour. Be sure to drink plenty of water while at the gym.

If you can, work with an expert

If you are new to the gym, want to learn new techniques, or want to get some guidance I suggest you work with a personal trainer. You will learn new exercises, how to work the weight machines, how to push yourself, how to monitor your cardio, etc. Having a trainer takes the guesswork out of your fitness life. It could be for a few sessions to get you into the rhythm, use them periodically to help motivate, or use them for the first while to help establish a discipline. At the end of the day you are trying to accomplish a goal – improved fitness, weight loss, increased energy, etc.  It is important to find the right workout for you, so you are excited to go to the gym.  If you are not a cardio person, then running a treadmill will seem boring and painful. Substituting indoor tennis, squash, or even a spin class may make it more interesting and enjoyable.  Some people love free weights; others prefer yoga, while some prefer a mix of all the various options to create a powerful workout.  Whatever your fitness goals, joining a gym is as easy as walking up and getting a free trial. Try a one week pass and get started on your fitness journey.

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5 Reasons to Join a Gym and workout with Weights

Everyone has seen the rise and fall and rise again in the popularity of working out with weights.  Many people are concerned with the concept of “bulking up” rather than meeting their goal of toning and slimming down.  Club Meadowvale is a Mississauga gym that offers training facilities to help you meet these goals.  Here are 5 benefits that we believe come from working with weights. 

Prevents osteoporosis

Osteoporosis affects both men and women, with an estimated 50 per cent of women and 20 per cent of men suffering an osteoporosis fracture after the age of 50. One of the best prevention methods is to strengthen the whole body.  Resistance training is a great way to achieve this goal since lifting weights actually stimulates the skeleton to get thicker and stronger – which will help to counteract the effects of osteoporosis.

Helps weight management
 
Muscle burns calories – even when you are at rest.  As you increase your muscle to fat ratio, your body will naturally burn more energy.  If you tone up, you will increase your calorie burn 24 hours a day. Another benefit related to weight management is that the continual increased consumption of calories lasts long after the workout is completed, allowing your casino online body to continue to “eat” away the fat. 

Cardiovascular benefits

We all think that we have to run 10km, bike for hours, or swim countless laps.  Even though a resistance workout is usually less dynamic compared with aerobic activities such as jogging, there is an increase in demand for oxygen by the working muscles.  A properly designed exercise program will give you the cardio improvement you are looking for from your workouts. 

Maintains strength.

Our body requires strength for everyday activities – walking; picking up objects, sitting at your desk, working with your hands, eating…the list goes on.  A well designed weight program will help you maintain the strength you need to get through your common activities.  Have you ever heard of patients after a broken leg, arm, or any injury needing to rehab to get their strength back?  It is because they cannot maintain their strength through their injury; it is why we should all be maintaining our strength. 

Reduces injury risk
 
A lot of our injuries come from tendon and ligaments.  One of the benefits of this is that we are able to strengthen these as we complete our workout program.  When you do a resistance workout, the focus is generally on improving your muscular strength. However, not only does the strength of your muscles improve, but so does the strength of connective tissues such as tendons.

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