I'm always curious as to why people train? Are they seeking a body transformation? More lean mass? Less fat mass? Are they looking to address an injured or painful joint? Maybe they would like to increase their performance in sport? Or maybe extend a professional career?Obviously there are lots of reasons to train. And they to achieve success in each of these would be different.But there is something that is in common with all of these different training goals. And that is the value of testing. And maybe the appropriate term these days would be 'monitoring'.So that is the question to anyone who trains...what are you doing to test or monitor your training?Do you wear a heart rate monitor? Do you use a training journal? Do you weigh yourself before or after training to check water losses? You you keep a clock on yourself to keep track of rest breaks and total duration?Besides what we do during a training session we can also measure our workouts outside of the gym as well. We can use an HRV device for recovery, we can measure our heart rate in the morning and journal our nutrition.So why even monitor or test in the first place? I mean you can usually test if something is working or not without testing right? And for athletes shouldn't the goal be success in the sport anyways?You could answer yes to both of these. It is possible to see improvement in the early stages of training without testing. And athletes may see little benefit and potential injury if testing is not appropriate.But that doesn't outweigh all of the benefits of testing or monitoring. Here are a few.1. AccountabilityI know I am competing in Tough Mudder on June 20 in Whistler. This race will be tough (pun intended) and will...

Do you use a heart rate monitor when you train? I guess at most big box gyms the majority of people don't. I mean when you consider that most people don't have a training journal to record their workouts they probably aren't going to go to the trouble and expense of investing in a heart rate monitor. But for those that do have and use a heart rate monitor I'm curious as to what they monitor? Again if I had to guess what number most people check first when they complete a training session I would say it's the calories consumed. And this is kind of amusing because: A. This is simply a rough estimation of correlating calories burned with elevated heart rate. If this is all it took to get lean we could probably just watch marathon horror movies every day to spike our heart rates repeatedly, burn tons of calories, and get lean. B. The estimation is just that. It uses an average and includes the calories burned while at rest. In other words if my body uses 50 calories at rest and 110 calories to go for a hike than the hike only burned 60 calories. But the display on my heart rate monitor would show 110 calories and perhaps give me a false impression of how effective a particular training session was. But other than tracking the calories consumed a heart rate monitor can tell us the duration of our exercise, our average heart rate and our maximal heart rate. Now you can always pick up models with other functions that include lap functions, GPS, elevation and other things but at minimum you'll get heart rate data. So why would I want a heart rate monitor anyway? Can't I simply stop and check my pulse every now-and-again? To answer...

Many people are into running, cycling, triathlon and other endurance events. It's surprising with how much is invested into these sports both in terms of time and money that more people don't use heart rate monitors.Why is using a heart monitor such a great idea? Well it for starters it allows the user to get better results in less time. It makes training more efficient and safer.[caption id="attachment_4325" align="aligncenter" width="300"] How far would you drive without any feedback?Consider owning a high performance sports car such as a Ferrari.  You only drive this car in the summer and only on certain roads. It never sees the rain or snow. If you have to park you are that jerk that takes up two spots to give a large buffer. Servicing is done by the only person within 100 miles that works exclusively on Ferraris. It only takes premium fuel and you make sure to log and note everything about this awesome machine.Now let's say you plan to take your Ferrari out onto the highway for a few hours to have some fun. You want to test out the handling, the acceleration, how it climbs and most importantly to feel the top end speed.Only one problem...none of your gauges are working. While you can start and turn the car on all of the needles for every gauge are buried to the left. So you can't read the speed, temperature, tachometer...nothing works.Are you still going out for that drive with no feedback on how the car is performing? Probably not. I'm guessing some people might even call for a flat bed tow truck as to not risk doing any damage to the vehicle while out on the drive.But guess what? You are way more valuable and rare than a Ferrari. In a lifetime you could own...

At one time heart rate monitors would have been considered for elite athletes and those with extra cash for all the latest gadgets. Not any more. The regular fitness enthusiast, amateur athlete and weekend warrior recognizes the value of using a heart rate monitor to track their workout. And not only has the price dropped substantially but the technology has also improved to provide more accurate readings. If you are already in the habit of using a heart rate monitor keep doing so. And if not, what are you waiting for? The sooner you begin tracking your workouts the better results you will begin to see. Below are 4 Top Reasons for Using a Heart Rate Monitor #1 - Proper IntensityWhile it's great to push ourselves when we train I subscribe to the approach that it's better to stimulate and not annihilate a system. You want to figure out what is the dose of exercise that won't kill you but will challenge you enough to come back stronger. In training circles this is referred to as the minimal essential dose. Think of this in terms of poison. Too much of it will kill you but a small dose may allow you to develop an immunity to it. This is similar to how vaccinations work. Anyways wearing a heart rate monitor allows you to track your heart rate and know when you are doing the right amount, not enough or too much. #2 - Track DurationWe're all busy. And if we could have the results of proper hydration and training without all the efforts many would choose this path. But the reality is a magic bullet doesn't exist and so we have to make efforts to maintain our health and fitness. Using a heart rate monitor allows us to see how long we have been...

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...

Do you enter competitive events? For example, if you don't play a sport what are you doing to assess yourself?For many, the days of playing competitive sports is long gone and a thing of the past. Now just the thought of getting in a workout feels like a accomplishment let alone thinking about actually entering a race or competitive event.But there are huge advantages to entering some type of competitive event. Here are a few.1. You'll zero in on the weak points of your training.Let's say you entered a powerlifting competition and tested your squat, deadlift and bench. And you put up a personal best in your squat and bench but not in your deadlift. You would know where to put more of your attention in the next phase of your training.You can also get very specific about certain aspects of your lifts. I won't go into all the details here but let's imagine you had difficulty locking out the arms to finish the lift. That would be a clue as to how we could modify your training so this is not an issue for you.2. You'll get a better appreciation for tapering.For example, if you were to enter an 8 km race on a Sunday it may not make a lot of sense to go out late on Thursday night and run intense sand dunes and initiate a swim program on a Saturday (more details below).If doing something you routinely do for a race feels difficult on race day, chances are you didn't back off on the training enough, increase your rest enough, or both.The higher the level you attain in your sport the more you'll appreciate the benefits of tapering and adjusting your training as race day approaches.3. You'll be more clear of what you're capable.If I weren't a runner...