Ryan Thomson is a Portland Firefighter & EMT, as well as a CPR instructor. Ryan’s passion for training is deeply rooted in his spirit. He has a naturally strong work ethic that carries over into his training. He works with each individual to seek the optimal workout for improved conditioning and health. His workouts are highly efficient and effective. Ryan is NASM, MMA CS CPT, a Spin, TRX and Kettlebell instructor. Ryan has been training with Kettlebells for 9 years and continues to expand his knowledge. He always goes the extra mile to create workouts which are challenging and fun while targeting core strength, functional training, endurance and optimal muscle integration.

 

So, what is true fitness?

It’s definitely not huge muscles and the ability to benchpress the big numbers.  Instead, true fitness is the sense of well-being and an ability to handle every day challenges: climbing multiple flights of stairs, carrying groceries, riding a bike, helping a friend move, or keeping up with the kids.  Meeting these challenges requires true fitness and working all the body’s muscles as a functional chain.

We have come along way from muscle beach! Thankfully, the days of one-dimensional lifts are becoming obsolete, and all those repetitive motion machines are collecting dust.  Finally, the fitness industry has caught on to the importance of keeping the 29 muscles that compose the core engaged and of using all 300 muscles in the body in every workout.   We’re finally seeing the benefits to muscular coordination and how essential multi-plane lifting is for every day life.

 

How do you achieve true fitness?

How do you train for everyday tasks, and build overall strength that will last for years to come?  It’s all about training smart.  It’s time to expand away from the nautilus machine, elliptical machine, stationary bike, and the bench.  Simple adjustments – even just standing up while training – encourage good muscular communication and more complete muscular recruitment.    More complex movements mean better overall fitness and the harder the work, the bigger the gains!