Monday 22 February 2016

After an amazing 12 years of Personal Training and integrating Pilates with my PT clients, I’m changing my brand and am now The Swedish Pilates Studio.  

The Swedish Pilates Studio is a boutique Pilates Studio located in beautiful Glen Iris on Glen Iris Rd just opposite from Ferndale Park in Melbourne.

My blog will still provide you with information and motivation for a fit and healthy body and lifestyle. If you live in Melbourne, copy this blog and email it to me with your details and you will receive a free class when you buy your first package!

Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta


Thursday 19 February 2015


The power of exercise

Life is not always as easy as we would like it to be or turn out how we had planned.  Dealing with these situations can be very hard on the body, and we need to know how to look after ourselves so we don’t end up with a body working less than 100%.
It’s very easy to feel that the problems are so overwhelming and tiring that you just want to curl up in bed and pull the covers up. While that may feel good at the time, in the long run it will actually drain you more.  These times are when we tend to get out of our normal exercise routine and grab fast food instead of sticking to our well established exercise and nutrition habits. But this is when you and your body need your healthy lifestyle more than ever.
Exercise increase resilience; the fitter we are the easier it is to cope with daily life and whatever problems we have.
This is because exercise increases energy levels, improves sleep and distracts us from our worries and increases our sense of control and self-esteem. It plays a very big role in helping us deal with the unpredicted in life.
I have through experience by working as a Personal Trainer for a long time (and also unfortunately in my own experience over the last 1 and a half years) developed five very important strategies to keep life going with the power of feeling good in a not so good life situation.
·         Exercise; when you exercise, your brain releases endorphins, adrenaline, serotonin and dopamine. These chemicals all work together to make you feel good. In addition, after exercising you may feel a sense of accomplishment and your muscles will relax deeper because of the workout – easing tension and strain.
·         Eat well; there’s more and more research indicating that what we eat may influence on our mood.  Healthy eating, meaning  balancing your carbohydrates, getting enough omega-3, cutting back on alcohol and simple sugar, has been linked to an improvement in mood but also boosts your energy levels making it easier to face each day.  The foods we eat influence our brain messengers (neurotransmitters) which control feeling of happiness and sadness. A balanced diet will regulate the response to stress and improve your feeling and reactions towards themselves.               
·         Stay in contact with your friends who give you positive energy; family and friends are very important for a happy life. Being socially engaged leads to more positive emotions, which boost your immune system and reduce stress. It’s also important to feel that you are a good friend, providing others with support and friendship adds to your own happiness.
·         Find something positive in every day; it might be as simple as looking out the window in the morning and enjoying the sun rise or the rain, or enjoying a good laugh with your family or friends. Whatever it is, make sure that you find something positive in everyday.
·         Letting yourself feel sad; if you are going through a tough time in life you need to allow yourself to feel sad. Hiding whatever is bothering you inside will only make it worse, so make time to feel sad but maintain above routine and remember you are one of a kind.
But most of all don’t let a bad situation be even worse by letting good habits fly out the window. If you are not looking after yourself you will soon not just feel bad about the situation but also feel bad about yourself.
The question is not what you look at, but what you see.
 

Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta
 


 

Tuesday 17 February 2015



Due to high demand I’m starting up a couple more Pilates classes. Join and discover the amazing workout Pilates can give you, how your body can change and the fantastic feeling of a new body.
Don’t wait, give me a call today!


Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta



Thursday 29 January 2015


Personal Trainer; it’s not about you

Personal Training has exploded over the last 15 years, and I think it’s fantastic (not just because I’m a PT but because I really think we are a great asset to people’s healthy lifestyles). 

It makes me very sad though when I hear people telling me their stories about how some PT’s behave. Our job as a PT is to help people get in shape and stay in shape, and we do this through training and wellness coaching. When we are with our clients we need to focus on them (not texting, facebooking, checking out our own bodies, flirting with other clients, having our coffee- believe me it happens), this is not just due to the fact that they have paid for the session but also and most importantly for safety reasons.

Regardless of what is going on in my personal life, whether I am having a bad day, stressed or haven’t gotten enough sleep the night before I always ensure that I look energetic, well dressed and full of life and happiness, because this is what being a PT is all about.

As a PT we need to read our clients as soon as they walk through the door, to be able to make that particular session just what they need on that day. If they have had a tough day at work or a bad night sleep we might have to adjust the program to suit them for that training session.

We need to know our exercises so well, how it feels to do them and how to execute them, so you can read your clients bodies and see that they are using the right muscles and having the right body aliment.

If they need to talk, we will listen and we will remember the conversation so we can relate back to it later on if your client needs to.

We need to be the best possible role models we can be for our clients, so that they see just how attainable a healthy lifestyle is, helping them on their own journey to health and fitness.

Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta


 

 

 

Sunday 4 January 2015


Another year have past with fun, fitness and challenges, and now we have a new year with all the wonderful opportunities to make a fresh start and make 2015 an amazing year.

May the world be filled with warmth, joy and good cheer, wishing you a Happy New Year!!

Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta


 

Tuesday 23 December 2014

Merry Christmas everyone!

Do you think you are going to struggle with keeping fit over the holidays? Don’t worry check in here and I’ll keep you up to date with some fun and great exercises over the lazy season!! See you then :)

Merry Christmas!!!!


Yours in health and fitness,
Birgitta

Friday 19 December 2014


Staying fit over the holiday!


Keeping fit over the holidays may seem very hard, and too difficult to manage. The wonderful food that can be hard to resist, and the lazy days with the family around make it less tempting to get out for a run or attending a class.
But with a few strategies and a helping hand you can keep your holiday fitness right on track and feel good as the New Year begins.
·         Set the goals of simply maintaining your weight; Christmas is not a time of the year when you should to have to “holdback”. Be realistic and enjoy the holiday season, but don’t overdo it.
·         Think about the meals, we don’t need to eat Christmas dinner every day over three weeks. Have same fruit and vegetables before lunch and dinner, which will help you not to be starving for the meals and be realistic about which day is actually Christmas
·         Cut down on some of the “heavy” foods, skip the potatoes and add a fresh salad. Don’t save yourself for the big lunch or dinner. Eat your normal, healthy breakfast and lunch so you don’t overeat by the time the “big” meal comes around.
·         Stay motivated to exercise by giving yourself incentives. Keep an activity chart on the refrigerator and reward yourself with some new exercise gear when you have reached your goals each week.    
So what should you do?
30-45 minutes brisk walk every day
3 times per week add some core exercises to your walk

Have yourself a merry little Christmas!!

 Yours in Health & Fitness,
Birgitta