Training with Tim

This may come as a complete shock. You know those pole dance fitness classes? Not everyone is there purely to get in shape. I know this because the co-owner and instructor explicitly tells me so. And because I’m not there purely to get in shape. “I don’t think anyone does it just for fitness,” says Maureen Metzger, the co-owner of Blush who is leading me in hip and butt stretches using the dancer’s pole. “You could just go to the gym if that’s all you wanted.” “There is a mystique and fantasy aspect,” adds DJ Hamilton, the other co-owner and…

I am a video game addict. It was almost 15 years ago exactly when I last succumbed to gamer addiction. The results were fairly disastrous. I just turned 12 and spent my birthday money on a new Sega Genesis console. After that, I sat in front of the TV playing Sonic the Hedgehog until my eyes glossed over and I became sick to my stomach. I stopped playing outside. Much to my horror, I turned into a seriously chubby kid. My 6th grade photo looks like I have an acute bee sting allergy and I’d just been attacked by an…

There’s not many people who, if the brakes went out on their car, would attempt to fix it themselves by turning wrenches and moving random parts around until everything suddenly – magically – becomes good as new.   And yet many people think they can fix their own bodies even if they’re not sure what they’re doing. Sometimes you need a mechanic for your car. And sometimes you just need a trainer for your body. It’s unfortunate that some people – especially in the Midwest – view hiring a personal trainer as an indulgence. That comes from not knowing what…

Jenn Turner calls it the “Apparently I DO Have the Sense God Gave a Goose” Diet. The AIDHTSGGAG Diet follows two fundamentals that are easier to remember than its acronym. 1) Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup, partially hydrogenated oil and any litany of unpronounceable ingredients 2) Portion control. Turner, co-director of Bucketworks, started abiding by these simple principles after years of yo-yo dieting sent her weight careening between 100 and 135 pounds (she’s 5’2”). A desk job wreaked havoc on her figure and she was pushing a size 10. She even fell asleep on her desk after crashing from dipping…

What’s the secret to weight loss? That’s kind of like asking, “What’s the meaning of life?” Sure, you could get reductive and say the secret to weight loss is to eat less and move around more. But that’s like saying the meaning of life is to keep breathing and avoid ax murderers. Weight loss, like life, includes a million tiny subtleties. So over the next three weeks we’re going to hear from three very different Milwaukeeans who lost weight three very different ways. Feel free to try their approaches, add your own tips in the comments below, or forge your…

By his own admission, Jason Kayzar is terrible at golf. “I suck,” he says. “It would be OK with me if I never played it again in my life.” But as a business owner, that could put a handicap on his career. How’s a guy supposed to wheel and/or deal if he can’t hack it on the links? That’s one reason Jason founded the Midwest Cycling Network. In doing so, he merged his passion for cycling with networking – and he gets a workout at the same time. “I’d heard that cycling is the new golf,” he says. Jason, who…

Back in the day, Olympic records used to mean something. You had to wear gold shoes or sport a cheesy ‘70s mustache to own one or two of them. Now everyone and their brother has laid claim to a New Olympic Record®. These days you’re nobody unless you shave at least two-hundredths of a second off some dusty old record while on the world’s stage. In all, 30 records were felled at this year’s Olympics. That’s a lot of records. What in the name of Frederick Carlton Lewis is going on here? Contrary to what the evidence suggests, these breathtaking…

Sometimes to take a step forward, you have to take several steps backwards. Or sideways. Or both. I mean that literally. The second part, anyway. The first part is a metaphor. If you’re confused, let me say it simply: Running and walking sideways and backwards can make a dramatic improvement in your overall cardiovascular fitness. Just think about it: It forces you to work muscles that you don’t often use. “Sideways and backward running hit your legs in ways other cardio training does not!” says Catherine Andersen, founder and head trainer of Milwaukee Adventure Boot Camp. And yes, she used…

As a freelance writer, one of my earliest assignments was covering an event put on by a Waukesha group called The Hash House Harriers. Their motto: “A drinking group with a running problem.” Many of their members were serious racers, including an elite marathoner and even a former Olympian. But this event was not at all serious. It was called, appropriately, the Beer Run. The rules were simple: Run a lap, slam an 8-ounce beer; run a lap, slam an 8-ounce beer; and so on for four laps to complete a mile. “We’re hoping to see some puking,” said one…