One thing we put a high priority on at Okanagan Peak Performance is education. We have summer interns who come work with us during the summer. We subscribe to relevant journals and trade publications. Staff are paid for the journals and articles they read each week.We put on seminars for our clients every few months. And of course we travel far and wide to learn from the best.So how do we improve on that?We bring the best to us, that's how.And who do we mean by the best anyway? Well bringing in 5 top level speakers from across North America. This list includes:Dr. Charlie Weingroff - I first saw Charlie speak last year in Seattle and I was immediately impressed. He stole the show. His presentations are a great mix of both interesting and useful. He has a great sense of humour and fields questions from the audience like a pro. Besides the fact he is one super smart dude he is also an accomplished powerlifter putting up a 1915 lbs total for his squat, deadlift and bench. Unbelievable!Want more? How about the fact he was the strength and conditioning coach for the Philadelphia 76ers of the NBA, has his doctorate in physical therapy and trained the special forces the United States Marines. Wow!Dr. Martin Gibala -In our industry there are a number of research papers that constantly get quoted by those of us who want to appear really smart and show what we know. Just kidding. But Dr. Gibala's research is commonly referenced when you are talking about high intensity exercise, EPOC and other exercise related topics. As well, it turns out Olympian Adam vanKoeverden thinks pretty highly of this guy as well. I still can't believe we're going to have him here.Joel Jamieson -Have you heard of this thing called...

There are a few things Okanagan Peak Performance is synonomous. And these include physical feats, strong women and helping others. So when we were approached about sponsoring a team for the United Way's Plane Pull Challenge it was a no-brainer. But we're not just sponsoring any team. We're sponsoring a team made up 100% of women. And these women will probably be the only all-female team pulling a plane down the tarmac. I know they will put some of the men's teams to shame. I already know what Jordy and Megan can do on the weightroom floor and they don't ease up for anyone in competition. But this event is for charity and we need your help. The team needs to raise $750 as an entry fee. So here's what Okanagan Peak Performance is going to do. We're going to run a Pull the Plane Training Session at our facility on Saturday April 14, 2011 with a mimimum $20 donation. We will run two training sessions at 11 am and another at 1230 pm with a goal of having 20 people out for each session. 40 people get an awesome workout. The United Way collects a $800 donation for the entry fee. We get to have fun working your butt off! Everybody wins! Here are all the details.DateSaturday April 14, 2012Times11:00 AM-12:00 PM and 12:30 – 1:30 PMLocationOkanagan Peak Performance Inc. #123-1511 Sutherland Ave.What to bringIndoor athletic shoes, comfortable workout wear, water bottle, min $20 donation 5X Bonus - We want to throw something else in for you to make this day a little more memorable. Take your donation to the United Way and times it by 5. We will credit this much towards a membership for you on Saturday April 14, 2012 should you sign up that day. For example, donate...

So a few Saturday's ago we hosted a charity training session at Okanagan Peak Performance. The goal was to raise funds for a team of women we work with that is competing in the Pull the Plane Challenge. And while it may seem weird to state these ladies are competing in this charity event this is no mistake. These women aren't entering this event just to take part. When I mentioned the winning time from previous year's was 9-11 seconds their reply was 'we'll do it in 8!' Right on! I love that answer! But back to the fundraiser. We managed to raise $700 in a one hour training session. And many of you that weren't able to participate still were very generous to donate to this cause. In addition to the $700 raised from the training sessions I know Ric's Grill Restaurants, a Kettle Valley business and Dairy Queen (Gorges family) all made sizeable donations as well. So needless to say, in addition to the forth coming effort to actually pull the plane there will be a large donation being made for this cause. And on this Friday, May 11 these 12 ladies are going to pull the plane. They've even got costumes. I know they got shirts from Big Kahuna because Megan keeps me in the loop on these types of things. But I didn't know about the tutus! And apparatently they bought 13. I wasn't too sure what the extra one is for until I realized that I am leading the warm-ups for all the teams competing in this event... So that got me thinking about what I will do with these teams to get them ready. Because I will have all of about 3 minutes to meet them, warm them up and then send them over to pull the...

We're a week into June and it seems like we've gone back a page or two on the calendar. The temperatures have dropped and we're getting more rain. But besides the weather changes we know we're into June because the school year is almost done. And a number of young athletes will be looking for something to do. They'll have their days open and have energy to burn. With that in mind I should probably tell you about our Youth Summer Athletic Training Camp (YSATC). You can find all the details below. But I thought it would be important to tell you what makes our camps special. Here are 5 Unique Features About our YSATC. Feature #1 - New Camps for Younger and Older AthletesWe started these camps 2 years ago and there were 3 athletes that attended. Last year this grew to 31 participants. So for this year we're splitting the groups into two different times and 2 different groups. This will allow each group to work on things more relevant to their needs and goals. And for the older athletes they will have a better start time in the afternoon. Some teenagers seem to like to sleep in during the summer. Feature #2 - Effective & Safe Coaching of All Exercises Some of the athletes we work with will attend high school in the fall. And many schools now have weight rooms for the students. And unfortunately there aren't budgets to allow for proper instruction or supervision of these weight rooms. We want to make sure that these athletes have the basics in place before they step foot in a high school weight room. We want them to know what precautions to take. We want them to know the fundamental technique points on the major lifts. And we want them to be...

Over the last few weeks you may have noticed some changes at Okanagan Peak Performance. When there was a flu going around we thought hand sanitzers might help to control the spread of this.  When Ryder Hesjedal won the Giro D'Italia, and in anticipation of the London Olympics, we thought it would be appropriate to display a Canadian flag. And when we recognized we would have a need for a summer intern we brought on Jeremy Martin. Jeremy is going into his 3rd of kinesiology at UBC and is gaining some practical experience with us this summer. He has played a number of sports from football, rugby, basketball, MMA and more recently has gotten into powerlifting. I'll step aside here and let Jeremy introduce himself to you all.                 If anyone is still wondering who the meat head in the OPP shirt telling you what to do is, my name is Jeremy Martin. I'm a 21 year old Kelowna native, transferring into my third year of kinesiology at UBC Vancouver. Chris was brave enough to hire me on as a summer intern and I couldn't be more excited to be here.                I'll start by giving a brief rundown of my athletic background; I played basketball and rugby all through high school, going to provincials a few times in both sports. I also played football from grade 8 to grade 12 but my high school (Immaculata) did not have a football team so I played city league. After high school I decided to take up competitive mixed martial arts, much to the chagrin of my mother. I competed for about a year, ultimately stopping due to a mixture of concussions and the desire to pursue an education/career. Not having a sport to compete in started wearing on me so I decided to take up...

So you want to be a Tough Mudder?Well maybe not. Maybe you've never heard this term before.Fair enough.Below are a few videos that will fill in the gaps.Ok so are you still in? Do you want to know what it's like to push your body physically to the limit and overcome? Do want to test yourself and see how you stand?If that's the case then we can definitely help you out.Actually that's not true.There might be a few people that could help you out. We can help you crush this event. We can help you compete rather than just complete this event (if you have that kind of competitive spirit). We can make it so you aren't crippled walking stairs on Monday.But more on the program later. If you just can't wait leave a comment and I'll set you up with the exact program we used. Plus a few inside secrets as to what gear to use, how to fuel up, how to attack the obstacles and more. Trust me this insider knowledge is crucial to dominating this event.So what about the race? What was it like?Well it a was a true mountain challenge. You are running almost the equivalent of a half marathon race in the mountains. You will be completely submerged, and swim a short distance, in ice cold water. You will be run through mud that could be up to waist deep in parts. You will have to do climb Berlin walls and half pipes. And much more.Here's a sampling of some of the videos Okanagan Peak Performance client Nick Fane shot during the race.The first shows the Monkey Bars from Nick's perspective as he has the camera on his chest. The bars go up, across and then down. And if you don't hang on to the bars you...

One of the things that has been fun as we continue to move forward with Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. has been all the changes that have happened in the past year. We've moved into a new facility. And we outfitted it with the best equipment anywhere in town. Next we did some touch ups to freshen up the look of the place and make it a little more comfortable for everyone. Lastly we've looked to bring on some new talent that can help us continue to help you get better results in less time. But we're not looking to bringing just anyone on board. We want people that meet very specific criteria. They need to be great people, who live an active life already and have a desire to continue learning and getting better. With this mind we've recently added Matt Baumeister to the OPP team. Matt is a recent kinesiology graduate from UBCO and is certified through the Canadian Society of Exercise Physiologists. But besides his degree and credential Matt is also an accomplished athlete specifically in triathlon. Recently we did our weekly sand dunes workout on a Saturday morning. If you've joined us before you'll know what this workout it all about. If not let me explain. This dune can take anywhere from 5 minutes plus for a newbie to climb. Some first timers don't make it up. And the all-time fastest climb ever was 3:12. I thought I might have a shot at this time as I put up a 3:15 this year but now this dream is crushed. You see Matt climbed this dune in 2:50! For the longest time I was trying to go under 4 minutes. And when I did I felt like Roger Bannister breaking the 4 minute mile. Now sub 4 minute climbs are a regularity. And seeing Matt going under 3...

Often times people will stop in to our facility and ask what it is we do. They already have some idea because the signage out front identifies us as an athletic training facility and through the mindows they can see some of the equipment. But while there will be some pieces of equipment they will recognize there will also be some items which are foreign to them. For example, for what do we use the big wooden platforms are the floor? And what is the bench back by the med balls? And lastly why do you have a big tractor tire? And that's just trying to figure out the equipment. Imagine trying to make sense of the various types of training that goes on. Whereas most fitness centres are slower in the summer we are the opposite. Summer is the time winter sport athletes have an off-season. And it's also the time student athletes are home for the summer and can make gains with their training. And summer is when we run our youth fitness training camps. So when you add all of these to the mix it can make for a busy place. Take a look at the following video to see what I mean. http://youtu.be/AiRHwZ8fZ3M Let me walk you through everything that's going on here. The first thing you'll see is a client foam rolling before a training session. This is something we have all our clients do before training to release any knots or trigger points. Next the shot shows Matt and Jordy doing a powerlifting session. Matt is doing deadlifts on the platform and Jordy is doing presses beside him. All the way in the back corner you'll see someone in a Group Fitness session performing a hip mobility drill at the squat rack. This involves stepping over the...

Recently we've incorporated a couple of new technologies at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. This supports our goal for you which is to get you better results in less time. And by incorporating these technologies we know that we will be able to help you recover from your injury, lose more weight and compete at a higher level.So what are these new technologies?They are Bioforce HRV units and Polar Heart Rate monitors. And I know what you're thinking. There's nothing new about heart rate monitors. And you'd be right. But how many of the people who know the benefits of training with a heart monitor actually use one? Very few. It's kind of like back when people owned VCRs but nobody ever programmed it and instead it flashed 12:00.So we've made a bulk order with Polar to be able to supply all of our clients with heart rate monitors.And the heart rate monitors came about as a result of a need to be able to use the Bioforce HRV units. So what exactly is a Bioforce HRV?Well HRV stands for heart rate variability and is a measure of magnitude of change between heart beats. This was developed by the Russians in the 60s when they would send cosmonauts into space and needed a way be able to monitor their health. Some of the only data coming back from space was heart rate data which the scientists were able to break apart and determine that there is valuable information contained within the heart beat.When there is a lot of variability between heart beats we could say an individual is fit or well rested and recovered. On the other hand if the variability between heart beats was minimal this could be indicative of someone in poor shape or someone who needs a rest day.This is not the same as simply measuring the pulse of...

Matt Baumeister Final Blog PostHi everyone,Matt here again. Here I go, writing to you for one last time. As many of you know, I will soon be starting another phase of my life as I travel to Vancouver to begin a Master’s degree program in Physiotherapy. As I write this final column, I can’t help but stop and reflect on some of the great times and learning experiences I have had over the past year. Working alongside such a great mentor as Chris has been a fabulous learning opportunity, and has undoubtedly made me a better and more balanced professional. Perhaps my fondest memory will be of our 80’s workout themed Halloween dress-up day! Simply legendary would be an apt way to describe it.And who could forget those two lovely ladies – Megan and Jordy? Although I have yet to receive any frozen remuneration from a certain Dairy Queen Heiress (who shall invariably remain nameless) I am indebted to each of these girls for the support and encouragement they have provided me every step of the way.In addition to reflecting upon my colleagues and mentors, I also find myself reflecting on my own work as well. If you take anything from this blog - or from me for that matter, I hope to be thought of as a kind, smart and encouraging trainer who had an affinity for dubiously short-shorts and an ever present love for styling his hair. And, perhaps something should be mentioned about an unquenchable thirst for Arizona Ice Tea here as well.Of course, who could forget all of you? Yes you, the clients of this great facility, the life-blood of any fitness community. In the past year I have come to know many of you much better and in turn each of you have no doubt made...

At Okanagan Peak Performance we put the highest priority on education. But we don't want to just say we put a high value on education and not back it up. So we back it up and host one of the top educational events right here in Kelowna, BC. Below is a quick recap of the 2nd Annual Okanagan Strength & Conditioning Conference (OSCC). When the first year of the OSCC concluded one of the presenterscommented that Boston puts on a top level event but that this event is on par with and set to become the standard in strength & conditioning conferences. And so the expectations were already pretty high when we sought out to plan out the second installment of this event. With our first go round we had 41 registered attendees, plus guests, presenters and our team here at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. This year we set out 96 chairs and there was only standing room once things got started. So we know we had succeeded in terms of growing the event and now all that was left was the chance to sit back and learn from the experts we had flown in to share their knowledge and expertise with everyone. Here's who we brought in. Patrick Ward - The Power Capacity Continuum Patrick is a massage therapist and strength coach currently employed by Nike working with their top athletes. He is one of those really smart guys that teaches themselves things that the rest of us would struggle with even with a teacher or tutor. With his topic Patrick was speaking about how power can be important for the aerobic athlete such as a triathlete as well as a shot putter. In the middle are team sport athletes that will have to generate high levels of power a...

Last week we hosted a seminar at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc on Intermittent Fasting (IF). And while all in attendance said they weren't familiar with IF it quickly became apparent that they not only had an idea about IF they were all practicing it already.Since IF means to go brief periods without eating and none of the people attending are in the habit of eating through the night they all practiced IF until morning when they would break 'fast.In addition to not eating breakfast there are a variety of different IF protocols which are usually defined by two numbers separated by a slash. For example a protocol might look like 16/8 and refers to 16 hours of fasting and 8 hours of eating. So you could see anything such as 12/12, 20/4 or a full day of fasting which would be a 24/0.And in terms of the number of days per week someone would fast this ranges as well from one day per week to two days per week, alternate days or everyday for part of the day. Depending on which protocol they follow you may hear terms such as the 'Warrior Diet', 'LeanGains' and 'Eat-Stop-Eat' to describe when to eat and when to fast.Benefits of IFSo why would someone become an IFer?Well the proposed benefits include reduced bodyweight, reduced bodyfat, increased longevity, reduced chance of certain disease and improved neural function. And these are interesting claims which will draw the attention of almost everyone looking to shed a few pounds and improve their health.But the reality is there is not a lot of research out there to support these claims. And the studies that do exist tend to be done with animals. For example, when it comes to looking at mice completing a water maze task, the mice experiencing an IF...

Recently you may have noticed some big changes at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. Specifically I'm referring to a recent addition to our coaching staff at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc, Graeme Lehman. At 6'5" Graeme is definitely big but it's not his stature that impressed us enough to know he would be a key addition to our team. Read below to find about Graeme, his background and what he brings to OPP. [caption id="attachment_3865" align="alignleft" width="243"] New coach Graeme Lehman Chris Collins (CC): First of all Graeme I want to say welcome aboard and we are excited to have you as a member of our team. Why don’t you start off by telling us a bit about your experience in the strength and conditioning industry. Graeme Lehman (GL): Thanks Chris, I am really excited to be a part of Okanagan Peak Performance!!! I’ve been working in this industry for 10 years now and have accumulated roughly 12,000 hours of coaching a wide range of clients ranging from post surgery rehab to elite level athletes and everything in between. My first job was as a general manager of a fitness studio since my under graduate degree was in business administration from Jamestown University in North Dakota. About a year later I literally got thrown into the training side of the business when one of our trainers called in sick and I haven’t looked back. In 2006 I became a certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) and in 2008 I enrolled in a graduate program to get my Master’s degree in Kinesiology from the Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN). CC: North Dakota, Newfoundland and now BC. You’re all over the map. What brought you to Kelowna? GL: Kelowna has always been a place that I have wanted to live ever since I was kid...

Hockey coaches and scouts put players through combine workouts to see which athletes are the fastest and strongest in order to select teams for the year. Good strength coaches put players through combine workouts to see where an athlete needs to improve so that they can make the team next year and every year after that. The Okanagan Peak Performance Inc hockey combine was put together using the latest and greatest information out there in regards to what is most important for success on the ice where it matters the most. Here is a quick look at some of the things that we do at our combine that helps set us apart and gives you as the athlete the most information that you need going forward in order to achieve your hockey goals. 1 – Biological Age vs. Chronological Age Looking at height and weight is important information but it is only a small part of the information that we need to help train an athlete towards reaching their potential. This is especially true for a young athlete who might be 15 years old but they could be anywhere between 12 to 18 years from a developmental or biological stand point. The way to properly train a 12, 15 or an 18 year old athlete differs drastically and without any knowledge of how old an athlete is from a developmental point of view players are often forced to adapt to the training program when it should be the program that adapts to the athlete. [caption id="attachment_4170" align="aligncenter" width="258"] These players are all the same "age" but            should they train the same way? 2 – Injury Screening This part of the combine is absolutely vital and is not done with traditional combines. We put our athletes through...

One of the best things about Okanagan Peak Performance Inc is the people. Whether it be the variety of clientele or the coaches that work them we are fortunate to be able to interact with interesting and dedicated people everyday. And we've recently added a new member to our team. Nathanael Burke joins us after working in a management position at a local competitor and brings specific expertise working with athletes and those with injuries. But rather than let me tell you about him I'll step aside and let him introduce himself. Hey guys I’m the new trainer and coach on the block. I just wanted to introduce myself so you guys can get to know a bit about me. I'm really excited to get started here at OPP and get to know everyone.[caption id="attachment_4557" align="aligncenter" width="225"] Welcome to Okanagan Peak Performance Inc Nathanael! I’m Nathanael, born and raised in Kelowna, and raising my two children Mikayla and Levi with my wife Megan. I come from a large family with 7 siblings so sports and being active came naturally. Growing up I played basketball, road hockey, rugby and soccer but started with a serious career with football at Rutland Senior Secondary. After grading from Rutland as a Football Interior All Star I made the move to CJFL with the Okanagan Sun in 2007 as a defensive back / linebacker.At the start of the 2009 season I made a career ending tackle that resulted in cervical spine damage, a rib injury and nerve damage to my left shoulder. After spending the next 6 months recovering I decided to follow my passion of fitness and focus on a career as a personal trainer specializing in rehab. I started my education with Okanagan College in personal training and shortly following with a Post-Rehab Specialist certification. Wanting to...

If you know me you know that I love business. I'm always looking for recommendations as to what people have read which helped them in business. And when I have down time I like watching Shark Tank, Dragon's Den and The Prophet.I guess it's a number of things that appeal to me about business. Part of is the risk that's involved and paired with a potential reward. As they say with investing, you should invest in what you know. And I consider business to be one of the ultimate investments you can make as you should know your area of business better than most.As well it's fun to learn about really great and successful companies. In particular I like learning about the core values of a business. What is that they stand for? What do they believe? How do these values help distinguish them from the rest of the competition? Does what the business believes resonate with me?A good friend of mine, LM, and a very successful entrepreneur shared something really valuable with me once regarding core values. He said that once you know and can articulate your core values every decision you make regarding your business becomes a lot simpler. And he's right. Whenever I think about a question facing our business I put it through the filter of our core values. And then you can evaluate how the question stands up to your core values.For more than a year now I've been scribbling down our core values in the notebooks I always carry around. And for some reason I never made them public. Maybe I thought the list wasn't complete? Or maybe I needed to take some time to 'sleep on it' and really make sure our core values were accurate.Anyways, I think we're more than ready to make our core values known...

Have you ever wondered what personal fitness coaching would be like? Have you wanted a way to sample personal fitness coaching without a long-term commitment? Would a more economical trial version of personal fitness coaching help you decide if this is a fit for you? Have you held off getting started due to how busy things get during the summer? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these than you should apply for the 3-Week Kick Start Fitness Training Program at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. [caption id="attachment_4658" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Apply for the 3 Week Kick Start Program. Sample Group Fitness and Semi Private Training for 3 weeks at Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. to find out what is the best fit for you. Program includes: 2 Semi Private sessions per week 2 Group Fitness sessions per week Full facility access No Joining Fee No contract  This program is normally valued at almost $600. Successful applicants will be able to participate in this program for only $177 + tax for a savings of almost 70% off. To apply send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with ‘Kick Start’ in the subject line. You will receive an email back the application. Or stop by Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. and fill out an application on-site. Conditions Completion of application form Never have participated in an Okanagan Peak Performance Inc. program Local to Kelowna, BC Cannot be combined with any other offer or discount Program runs September 8-28, 2015 Application deadline is September 4, 2015

Every summer we see a number of hockey players come back to Kelowna and return to Okanagan Peak Performance Inc for their off-season hockey training. These players want to get to the next level, to produce at the highest level and finally to have a lengthy career at the highest level. This summer we welcomed back a number of players who had played professionally, played in & won at the Spengler Cup and played at the World Championships. But also had a number of younger players training with us. One in particular was Alex Swetlikoff. [caption id="attachment_4680" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Alex Swetlikoff Now it might not be easy to recognize Alex underneath his helmet and gear but maybe this will help. He is the son of Dr. Garrett and Tammy Swetlikoff and attended KCS in Kelowna while playing bantam hockey.When he's at the gym he always goes about his workout. He comes in grabs his program, warms up and gets to it. And he finishes every workout the exact same way. He seeks me no matter where I am in the gym, comes over and shakes my hand saying 'thanks Chris'. It's always been this way over the years we've been working with Alex. It all started probably about 5 or so years ago when training a number of young hockey players. Besides Alex there was Gio Sambrielaz who stood about a foot taller than Alex as he was a couple of years younger. Fast forward to this summer and Alex has grown and matured to the point where he is now going to venture away to play hockey in the Fraser Valley. This coming year Alex will suit up for the Yale Academy Lions of the Canadian Sport School Hockey League as a second year bantam. Other teams in this league include...

Hi Peak Performer! We're one week from the opening of the Tokyo Olympics. What do you think about that? There are a variety of opinions on this. Some huge supporters of sport are not sure the Games should go ahead. They cite the state of emergency in Japan and the fact that many countries are still recovering from the pandemic. And I get that. At t...