Better Gifts for Better Living – Our 2017 Guide to Health and Fitness Gifts!

By Better Living Staff Writer Dawn Weirauch

Finding the best health and fitness-related holiday gifts can be pretty difficult – after all, there are a lot of fads out there. Remember the Thighmaster? Not to mention the Shakeweight...

via GIPHY

Funny (and ineffective) fitness fads aside, this year our Better Living Fitness staff has come up with a number of great suggestions for the fitness buff (or would-be fitness buff) on your holiday shopping list.

Whether your friend or loved one wants to learn more about healthy nutrition, is interested in building their strength and cardio fitness, or wants to stay on track with their goals while out on the road, we've got the gift for you.

A Better Book for Better Eating: Better Living's Nutrition Counselor, Becca Body Kindness by Rebecca Stritchfield. “Body Kindness is about taking care of your body and treating yourself with compassion,” says Becca. “It discusses healthy eating, but also emphasizes the importance of allowing yourself to enjoy all foods and not go on crazy diets.”
Addison, recommends the book

A Creative, Budget-Friendly Solution for Better Wrist Strength: Wrist and forearm health aren't just essential for strength training but for daily living as well – and Better Living trainer Will Burchfield has the perfect do-it-yourself solution.
“Just pick up a para cord and a dowel from your local hardware store. It'll cost about $3, and them BOOM! You've got forearms for days!”

Here's a quick guide to creating a wrist roller from scratch.

Portable Strength, Cardio, and Better Balance In One: Better Living's Office Manager, Nina Carlson, recommends the TRX Suspension Trainer for anyone on your list who is both health conscious and frequently on the road.

According to Nina, “I love this product because you can do so much with it! Not only can you strengthen your whole body, you can add cardio elements and really work on your balance. The TRX is also small and lightweight. It doesn't take up a lot of suitcase space, and you can easily hook it up to your hotel room door for a great workout on the go. I've had several clients who wouldn't travel without their TRX!

Also, when you purchase the TRX directly from the company's website, you get access to a personalized app to guide you through different exercises and routines.”

More Fitness On the Road – Resistance Bands: For solid resistance training for a much lower price point than the TRX, Better Living trainer Eduard Font recommends this cost-effective four pack of resistance bands, which are just $9.99 from Amazon.
“Resistance bands are easy to use, lightweight, and you can take them anywhere,” Eduard says.

A Perkier Butt and Better Hip and Knee Health – The BootyCo Booty Belt: The Booty Belt may sound like the next Shakeweight, but according to Better Living trainer Mallory Ghrist this inexpensive product is a great gift to help your friends and loved ones build their glute strength – “...and everyone needs stronger glutes to support the health of their hips and knees.”

A Better Gift for Better Posture – Foam Rollers: Our trainer Josh Plonka swears by foam rollers, both to help with posture and to help ease tight muscles after a busy day. According to Josh foam rollers are, “inexpensive, yet versatile piece of equipment that anyone on your Christmas list can make use of. You can get foam rollers just about anywhere that fitness equipment is sold – here's a link to a nice, inexpensive model from Kohl's.

Better Hydration On the Go:  Better Living founder Mark Thiesmeyer recommends the Yeti Rambler because, “...drinking enough water and staying hydrated is so important, and water is a lot more delicious when you can keep it nice and cold all day long!” You can also use the Yeti to keep hot drinks hot, and – bonus – it's dishwasher safe.

Of course, no Christmas gift list would be complete without a gift from the Better Living Fitness Center. This year we've got something extra special: Purchase any membership or small group personal training package and receive a $100 FREE Service Package on us!

Buy the membership or small group training package for yourself and give the Service Package to a friend. Or, better yet, introduce TWO of your friends or family members to the Better Living Fitness by giving the membership to one and the Service Package to the other!

This year's Better Living Bonus is only available until December 23rd, so click here to get yours today!

If you're looking for even more health and fitness Christmas gift ideas, we've got you covered – check out last year's gift guide, which includes a look at wireless headphones and a comparison of the Garmin GPS watch vs. the Fitbit Blaze.

A Hands-On Approach to Helping People: Introducing Better Living's Newest Personal Trainer, Joshua Plonka

Josh Plonka joined the Better Living team back in November of 2016, working on the front desk to welcome members and schedule personal training sessions.

As of March, though, he's the one being scheduled – and we're thrilled to have him as our newest personal trainer!

Josh (left) with Will Burchfield

Josh has always known that he wanted a career focused on helping people, and first went to school to pursue occupational therapy.

“I've always been physically active, and I wanted to help people live healthier lives,” he said. “But after being in school for awhile, I decided I wanted to practice a more hands-on approach to helping people heal themselves, and decided that earning a B.S. in Exercise Science was the way to go.”
 

Josh in his kitchen

Eventually, Josh plans on earning a doctorate in physical therapy. In the meantime, though, he's enjoying learning even more about the ropes of personal training from Better Living Fitness founder Mark Thiesmeyer.

“Mark teaches Better Living trainers a lot about communication with clients, as well as the proper techniques for all of the exercises,” Josh explained. “I've also learned how to quickly spot when a client's form is 'off,' so we can prevent an injury before it happens, and muscle testing to help target areas where a client needs special attention.”

When he's not working with personal training clients, Josh said that he's still staying active with camping, Frisbee golf, and biking. When it's time to rest, though, Josh makes time for one of his abiding passions – food.

“I'm a foodie – I love cooking, going out to restaurants, and trying new things,” Chef's Table on Netflix, because it's not just a full hour of cooking. The show also looks at food culturally, and why people cook what they do the way they do.”

Back at Better Living, Josh said the biggest surprise he's had so far as a personal trainer is how quickly the time goes by during sessions. “The hour just flies because my client is having fun, I'm having fun – it doesn't feel like work at all. We're just having a grand old time together, while at the same time my clients are working toward their fitness goals.”
he said. “And I also love cooking shows. Right now I'm obsessed with

Josh, and our other Better Living personal trainers, are available to help you achieve your best body ever. Just click here for your free initial consultation, and we'll set you up with personal training that works!

Full-Body Fit Is a Family Thing for Kauser and Mike Shahpurwala

After trying - and leaving - other gyms and fitness centers over the years, Kauser and Mohamedi (Mike) Shahpurwala have been coming to Full-Body Fit since we opened the Better Living Fitness Center in January of 2016.

“I got a post card from Better Living in the mail and realized that this is near my

work, so I decided to check it out,” says Mike, who is the founder and president of Aven Tools in Ann Arbor. “It was fun, so I brought Kauser with me and we decided to do it.”

According to Kauser, she wasn't very enthusiastic about the idea of working out at first – “...but when I started coming I saw the advantages of the Full-Body Fit class, and I was having a good time.”

Both Kauser and Mike say they appreciate the variety of workouts offered during Full-Body Fit, and they enjoy the friendly group atmosphere.

“We've tried other gyms, and I was a member of a country club that has a fitness center, but working out by yourself isn't very fulfilling,” Mike says. “Not only that, but normally with fitness places you get bored after a certain time. That hasn't happened with Better Living and Full-Body Fit, because the sessions are very interactive and because of the group setting.”

“The people in our classes (on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays) are a lot of fun to work out with, and we really support each other” Kauser adds.

They also like working out together.

According to Kauser, “When we started working out together Mike would push me, and now we push and encourage each other.”

The couple also love the fact that, even though Full-Body Fit is a group session, Better Living trainers customize exercises as necessary to fit the needs and limitations of individual participants.

This is particularly important for Mike, who is recovering from a shoulder injury.

“I have to be careful not to move my shoulder beyond what it can tolerate or to use overly heavy weights, but I'm still able to get a good workout during Full-Body Fit,” Mike says.

In addition to helping Mike strengthen his shoulder and enabling him to work out without further injuries, Mike and Kauser say that they're enjoying the results of coming to Full-Body Fit regularly.

Kauser says that she's more energetic, and Mike adds that he's seen a lot of improvement in his weight.

“I'm more toned, and I feel more fit in general,” he says.

Join the fun at Full-Body Fit! Full-Body Fit is a strength and cardio conditioning session that also features exercises that improve balance, posture and flexibility. We offer Full-Body Fit several times a week to fit a variety of schedules – whether you join Kauser and Mike's sessions or come another time, we guarantee you'll get fit and have fun!

Full-Body Fit is included with our Lifestyle, Comprehensive, and Unlimited memberships. Click here for more information about membership, and get ready to start experiencing your best body ever.