Effective in the Gym??

Hi Jon-Erik,

Me and my wife love your website! We read “Butt it Out” in Canadian Running that you wrote and wanted to start adding in strength training to our running program. We run with the local running store running group but don’t feel that’s enough to help us finish a half marathon we are training for. We went to the gym a few times this year (also it’s our new year’s resolution) and used machines like the one where you straighten your legs with the pad on your shins and the one where you curl your legs with the pad on your calves. Are we making use of our time in the gym?

Thanks and keep up the good work!

Danny and Amanda

Thanks for your question.

The exercises you described sound like the leg extension machine and hamstring curl machine. I’ll give you an A for effort but I wouldn’t recommend those exercises to runners. Actually, I wouldn’t recommend those exercises for any athletes – the only sport that I would attribute those machines to is body building.

Machines in general have traditionally been deemed as safe and beneficial to people who don’t have much exercise experience. In my humble opinion, machines can sometimes be dangerous because the range of motion, even though usually linear, can be awkward or too extreme for someone depending on the machine’s set-up or his/her limb length. Studies have shown excess and unwanted knee joint stress from the leg extension machine – just an example of how a machine can be harmful.

It will be far more effective and beneficial for you to stand on stable ground and perform double and single leg exercises. Exercises such as split squats or reverse lunges are great for beginners. Not only will you develop functional leg strength but you will also challenge your balance and develop single leg hip stability => this will help prevent lateral knee pain and ITB syndrome.

Also, you don’t run sitting down, so why would you strength train sitting down? Other machines like the hip adductor/abductor machine or the standing hamstring curl machine should also be avoided.

Some people ask me if they can use the leg press machine or incline leg press machine and my response is always the same => learn how to double leg squat below parallel without lifting your heels off the ground while keeping a neutral lumbar spine. If you can’t, dynamic mobility drills will be an important part of your program. Once you can achieve that, develop strength through that full range of motion. Here’s a version called the Goblet Squat that I will be featuring in my next Canadian Running magazine article.

So the bottom line: No lower body machines for runners.

Thanks for reading and continue to RUN STRONG.

-JK

Phyllis Swyer

Personal Strength Training by Jon-Erik Kawamoto

My initial goal was to find qualified personal training services in a personalized small gym setting. I have never been a fan of large gyms. JKC offers a friendly, happy gym experience that motivates me to strive for bigger and better results every week. Jon, Thomas and Craig are genuinely talented and always excited to celebrate everyone’s success.

I have a passion for challenging myself to achieve or beat goals. My favourite memories take me back to greater wins than I ever imagined with deadlifts and after a lot of determination and hard work, being able to do multiple chin-ups. Training at JKC has been one of the best experiences of my life – thank you for your commitment to helping me stay fit!!💪🏼😅

Krista Harding

Personal Strength Training by Thomas King

I joined JKC because I wanted to better care for my physical health, but didn’t really know how, or where, to begin. Seeking help from a trainer seemed like a wise choice, and I had heard great things about the staff at JKC. Anyone who knows me knows that I hate exercising. So, I’ve only ever tried sticking with a gym routine twice in my life. Each experience consisted of me wandering around, not knowing what to do, and settling for an elliptical machine or something else that seemed comfortable and non-threatening. Each session was the same, and I felt like I was wasting my time.

Each session at JKC, however, is specifically crafted for me. I don’t have to think about what to do, because I’m told what to do. I don’t have to worry about how to do things properly, because I’m shown (sometimes multiple times!) how to accomplish each task. I don’t have to be concerned about slipping into a comfortable routine, because Jon and Thomas won’t let that happen.

Lloyd Hussey

I started at JKC in January of 2014 and I’m 67 years old. When I had my Initial Assessment, I knew – almost immediately – that Jon knew what he was doing and what he was talking about. I was overweight, out of shape, and in serious need of someone, like Jon, who could get me back on a fitness/conditioning routine that suited me, my age, my less than acceptable physical condition, my sometimes intermittent RA, and my need for a structured, consistent and yet flexible training and conditioning program that would work for me.

Fundamentally, if I made a choice at all with respect to JKC – it was to continue to come back each week. I have not been in a lot of gyms. To be honest, they used to intimidate me. What makes JKC different is their approach to each and every one of their clients. Jon and Thomas – and now Craig – tailor each training regime to the particular needs of each client. That ensures that the training regime will suit each client upon the start of training and changes as the client improves. It adjusts for any physical setbacks such as injuries and it adjusts for success. It is just that simple.

It is also the consistent encouragement that comes from Jon, Thomas and Craig. That voice that comes to you while you are in the middle of a particularly difficult set – rear-foot elevated split squats comes to mind immediately – that says “good job” or “keep it up” or “just a couple more reps.” To know, in that moment, that you are not alone and the trainer is paying attention to what you are doing. That is priceless for me.

Dawn Armstrong

A few of my wonderful friends and colleagues recommended JKC. I was told by one colleague that “It’ll be the best thing you ever do for yourself” and she was right! To be honest, I didn’t have much experience in any gym setting. And NO prior weight training experience. It was always so overwhelming! But from the first day, nothing was intimidating about JKC. Each workout is set up just for me, and with my specific skills and goals in mind. There are no stupid questions, you learn as you go, and what I really love, I always feel included and important, regardless of my skills/experience.

Craig Whittle

I chose JKC because I row/coach teams in the St. John’s Regatta and was looking to add strength training to our program. My wife is also running friends with Julia, so I got to meet Jon a few times and heard lots of good things. I like JKC over other gyms because of the level coaching I receive and the gym atmosphere. The energy in the gym helps me through the tough workouts.

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