Take it from Guy Petruzzelli, personal trainer and swimming instructor, swimming is a great workout. And just like lifting weights or working on your abs, a lesson or two to learn exactly what to do can reap big benefits. Swim lessons aren’t just for kids anymore.
Here are Guy’s Top Five Reasons to Take Swim Lessons, even if you already know how to swim:
1. Comfort: Swim lessons will help you feel more comfortable and safe in the water. Whether you’re in a pool or the ocean, you should at all times feel comfortable so you can enjoy your experience. Swim lessons will teach you that you can make the water your friend no matter how turbulent it is.
2. Increase Your Cardio Fitness: Swimming works all of your muscle groups, and the best way to use those muscles to their fullest potential is to learn how to swim correctly and reap the benefits. The doggie paddle, side stroke or lying on your back are not going to improve your cardio fitness level.
3. Helps You Work Through Injuries: Since swimming is non-weight-bearing, it’s a great way to keep exercising while injured. If your form is good it’s a great way to stay active. Runners are often told to swim to give their muscles and joints a break and if you haven’t worked out for years because of an injury, it’s a great way to begin a fitness program.
4. Safety First: If you know how to swim and you find yourself near someone that begins to panic in the water, you’ll know how to calmly react and get that person and yourself to safety. The better swimmer you become, the stronger you will become, and in turn, you’ll act more confidently in stressful situations.
5. Helping Your Muscles Work as a Unit: Swimming helps other muscles fire correctly. Some of your muscles may not work correctly when you’re doing other exercises. For example, plantar flexion: if I have someone that is swimming and cannot point their toes, and they’ve mentioned they’re having problems running, I can help them. What I see in the water is very different than what I would see in the gym.
For more information on swimming lessons, contact Guy at guy.petruzzelli@midtown.com. Guy also offers lessons for kids as well.
Have you taken swimming lessons? What fitness benefits have you experienced?
Midtown personal trainer Guy Petruzzelli is a professional triathlete and duathlete who brings to the club a wealth of fitness and endurance-based knowledge. After being hit by a car in 1996, he thought his racing career was over. But with much determination and drive, he trained himself back into the game.
Here is a glimpse of what keeps him striving toward the next finish line:
Nicole: How did you get into fitness?
Guy: I started sports at a young age, and I played football and basketball in grammar school. I always stayed active, even in the summer with friends. Actual “fitness” really became critical to me in high school swimming. While swimming for the varsity team, I began to understand what it meant to be fit aside from just swimming.
Once I started working for the park district as a lifeguard on the lake front, it became critical to understand how to do other things besides just swim. I had to run and row as well. During our breaks, we would do push-ups, pull-ups and other basic exercises to stay fit.
While preparing to compete against other lifeguard crews for the Lifeguard Games and the National Lifeguard Championships, I was exposed to a variety of different fitness techniques and experiences. I always loved the idea of pushing harder, going further, and learning more.
Nicole: How has your training paid off?
Guy: In the last three years I’ve been granted a pro card by USA Triathlon and ITU, the International Triathlon Union to compete as a professional. That allows me to participate in higher profile races and gain better sponsorships. It also gives me the opportunity to interact with a higher level of athletes from all over the world. I’m now able to race for the United States in international competitions, which is an unbelievable feeling. I race from February to early November, about 20 races a year.
Nicole: How did you transition from giving swim lessons to working as a trainer?
Guy: Becoming a trainer is new for me but my passion for fitness has just gotten stronger over time.
It started close to home helping family members with illnesses and knowing it could have been curtailed if they would have taken care of themselves. Then I came to Midtown and developed a deeper understanding of health and fitness-related issues. I wanted to be able to take my fitness knowledge and help others.
Now, what excites me about fitness now isn’t as much “How can it help me?” but instead, ”How can I help other people?” by using my racing experiences and techniques I use to increase fitness through nutrition, exercise, and sleep.
Nicole: We know you are super healthy, but you have to have a vice in there somewhere. What two foods do you always have at home: one healthy and one not-so-healthy?
Guy: I always have 100% pure Italian almond butter as a healthy snack, and I drink regular Sprite as a treat.
Have a question for Guy? You can e-mail him at: guy.petruzzelli@midtown.com
And stay tuned for Guy’s Top 5 Reasons to Take Adult Swim Lessons coming soon.
The holidays are in full swing. Between shopping, wrapping, hosting parties, attending parties, visiting Santa, making snowmen, cooking, AND baking; you just might be at your boiling point!
And it’s not just annoying or painful. Too much stress can be dangerous. Stress contributes to high-blood pressure, heart disease, poor habits and a lowered immunity.
Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered. Here are the top 5 ways to reduce your stress level throughout the holidays here at the Club.
1. Friday Night Family Swim
Bring your kiddos to our pool any Friday night from 6-8pm and they can swim, splash, and just go water-crazy. It’s a great way for you to relax while they have fun. They will be exhausted when you go home, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll get the rest of the night to yourself while the children are nestled all snug in their beds. Ah, peace and quiet.
2. Take a Yoga Class
Yoga reduces stress and tension. When your shoulder or neck starts to hurt, it’s more than likely due to worry and pressure that has built up inside you. One of the ancient yogis’ most profound insights was the link between breathing patterns and state of mind. In yoga, the goal is to slow down the breath, primarily by breathing through your nose. We currently have nine yoga classes per week at various levels. Check out our website for our full schedule.
3. Get a Massage
When we are stressed we tend to tense up the muscles in our body; our shoulders, neck, and jaw are the biggest culprits. Massage can help relax and soften injured, tired, and overused muscles and helps release endorphins . 
Even better, through December 31, 2011, if you purchase any combination of spa services of $60 or more, you’ll receive a voucher for up to $20 towards your next spa service. How cool is that?
4. Kick it Out in Mixed Martial Arts
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), a full-body contact sport that provides a great way to hit and kick my aggression out! And hey, certified personal trainer Rick Guzaski doesn’t mind. He runs weekly MMA sessions, so contact him at rick.guzaski@midtown.com to see when you can kick him next!
5. Pedal Through a Cycle Class
Sure, any form of exercise is a stress reliever but cycling in particular can be better than some others. The repetitive action of pedaling involved in cycling can help your brain release outside stresses in the same way that mediating on a phrase or a word is used in classical mediation.
By focusing on your pedal stoke you can block out other worries and stresses of the day, giving your brain a break from your daily problems. And with the upbeat music and encouragement from our instructors, it gives you all the more reason to try out a class.
Let the relaxation begin. What’s your favorite way to reduce stress during the holidays?
Fall is here again, and many of us take our workouts back indoors and into Midtown.
While some consider this a negative, it can actually be pretty awesome. With all of the variety in the club, it’s hard to choose what to do next! Of course, there are lots of machines and great classes held daily, but there are also some hidden treasures you may not know about, and ways to make fitness fun without dreaming about next summer.
Give these routine-busters a try:
Cardio Tennis
What is Cardio Tennis? It’s a fun, group activity featuring drills to give players of all abilities an ultimate, high-energy workout. It includes a warm-up, cardio segment, and a cool-down phase. If you want to find a great new way to get in shape and burn calories, give it a try.
Even if you’re not the best tennis player and find yourself unable to reach ANY ball (which is pretty much how I feel when I play), with Cardio Tennis, you’ll experience short cycles of a high-intensity workout and periods of rest, almost like interval training.
You’ll consistently elevate your heart rates into your aerobic training zone and burn more calories than just playing singles or doubles tennis. When you are playing tennis you are focusing on, well, winning at tennis, but Cardio Tennis focuses primarily on getting a great workout.
Group Training
Group training is a great way to personal train without a huge cost. When you split the 
trainer with three or more people, it can cost as little as $25 for a 25-minute session. Personal training in a group can add many elements to your workout.
First, a trainer can push you harder than you would push yourself; and we all know we can be pushed just a LITTLE bit harder! You may also push yourself harder to compete with the other group members.
There is also more accountability when you group train. If you know someone’s waiting for you (the trainer and your group) and you know you’ve paid for the class, you WILL show up! You may also learn a few new exercises you can do on the days you’re not with your trainer.
At Midtown there are many options available for group training; TRX, Kinesis, Kettlebells, Pilates, or even traditional group training that may mix in a few of the ab combine a few of these. Monthly sessions are in full swing, so join one today to shake up your weekly routine.
Laps and Drills
Another way to shake up your routine is our Laps and Drills class. This is not your ordinary aquatics class.
This class uses the strokes you learned in high school swim class to really get your heart racing. It’s a one-hour class filled with form instruction and mini-competitions to increase your endurance. If you regularly run or cycle and think you have great lung capacity and endurance, try the Laps and Drills class. You might be surprised. It’s a completely different way to train your heart and lungs and will only help you run faster or bike smoother.
So, how will you shake it up next week?
