Meet North Phoenix Dad, and owner of Frankie’s Fitness; Frank Carman. We love his community driven approach and the inclusivity of his fitness classes and training. Frankie’s Fitness is really built for anyone and everyone. So with fall here and seeing more folks getting outside to enjoy the outdoors we decided to check in with Frank to get some tips for the “indoorsy” type to be more “outdoorsy”.
The great outdoors can be an amazing place to work on your fitness goals all while enjoying the beauty nature has to offer!! If you’re in one of my classes you’ll even get to see some animal buddies run by as you’re halfway through your workout. But there are a few things you need to know up front before trying outdoor fitness classes:
#1 And probably the most important thing to remember is to layer!! Layer your clothing, especially living in AZ with the desert climate. We’ll have a day that reaches 80 degrees during the day in winter but drops close to 40 degrees at 5am. So make sure that you dress warm for the weather and then you can start taking off the articles of clothing as you warm up. You can always take off a sweatshirt but boy it can be tough to get through the warm-up if you feel like you need one from the start!
#2 Drink plenty of water! Even as we’re approaching our Fall and soon after, Winter weather, you ALWAYS NEED TO HYDRATE!!! I tell everyone that the absolute minimum is 1/2 your bodyweight in ounces of water drank throughout the day. But you’ll want to increase that over time as the more hydrated you are all year long, the better you will perform in your workouts, your digestion works better, you’ll sleep more efficiently throughout the night which leads to a more efficient recovery!
#3 Bring a thick yoga mat. One of the most underrated pieces of equipment to bring outside is the thickest yoga mat you can find to keep your body from having to deal with the rugged surfaces. They’re relatively inexpensive and the best ones to find are readily available at Amazon or your local retailer. The extra cushion can really come in handy when you’re working on your core strength, which is what we do often, and it helps protect your lower back and glutes from chaffing on the hard surfaces.
#4 Last but not least is to bring a towel. Use that towel to mop up the sweat of success you left all over your mat at the end of the workout! Wiping it up right after a workout helps with the longevity of the mat. You can also use the towel to wipe the sweat of whatever equipment you’re using so you have a strong grip on the kettlebell, dumbbell, etc. during the entire workout. The sanitation process should be left to the responsibility of the owner/head trainer. I sanitize all of our equipment immediately after each use to ensure cleanliness.
Take these 4 steps into consideration the next time you join an outdoor fitness class and see how much of a difference it makes!!
Coach Frankie 
480-322-7804
www.frankiesfitness.com
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