Category: Core Exercises Napa

Stay Fit for Recreational Sports

An engaging and fun activity after a day of labor is playing a recreational sport.  Golf, tennis, pickleball, running, and biking are some of the most popular sports among our personal training clients.  Engaging in sports requires physical capabilities and athleticism, including the ability to endure long periods of potentially strenuous activity, consistent practice to …

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Complexities of Core Strength

“Imagine if your arms and legs magically disappeared from the armpits and hips.  All the muscles in the region between the armpits and hips are your core.”  These were the words of the fitness director who supervised me at a gym I worked at many moons ago.  I was selected to teach a small-group fitness …

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Refining Balance and Posture by Standing Upright

The ability to stand upright on two feet can be perceived as a normal activity that doesn’t need much appreciation.  However, standing upright is an invaluable asset.  An example of a pivotal moment in our everyday life is getting out of bed first thing in the morning. This might look like pushing oneself up from …

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Building a Strong and Resilient Lower Back

“All I did was bend over to pick up a bag of dog food,” Wolfgang explained as he eased himself onto the bench at the beginning of his training session, clearly wincing in pain as he put his hand on his lower back. “I hear about people throwing their backs out moving couches or refrigerators.  …

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Strength, Coordination, and Endurance contribute to Everyday Balance

As members of the general population, we engage in a wide variety of physical activities.  Some of us participate in a broad range of hobbies and chores that keep us active, such as walking our pets, gardening, or completing home improvement projects.  For those of us who have children or grandchildren, our physical activities become …

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Dynamic Stretching vs. Static Stretching

There are two primary forms of stretching we use with our personal training clients: dynamic and static. Dynamic stretching is performed before exercise.  Dynamic stretching can be defined as the act of moving through full ranges of motion to create short, repeated stretches that prepare the body for exercise.  A few examples include arm circles, …

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Shoulder Injury Prevention via Muscles of Scapular Stabilization

Along with injuries and joint complications in the lower back and knees, shoulder injuries are among the leading causes of issues affecting everyday functional ability in the general population.  Upper neck and shoulder impingement, rotator cuff strains, and frozen shoulder are among a slew of conditions that can afflict people’s shoulder health, causing pain, weakness, …

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Exercise Tip of the Month: Lateral Split Squat

Commonly seen Lower-body exercises at the gym might include squats, lunges, and leg presses. However, one overlooked movement that is critical not only for refining lower-body strength but also for reinforcing the structural integrity of the stabilizing muscles of the hips, knees, and ankles is side-to-side movement. The lateral split squat targets lower-extremity muscles involved …

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Coach Alec Goes the Distance

On Sunday, March 1st, 2026, Napa Tenacious Fitness’ own coach, Alec Cornwell, participated in the Napa Valley Half Marathon. This was his first half-marathon, and he completed it in 1 hour, 56 minutes, and 57 seconds, exceeding his expectations and finishing strong. Coach Alec’s main preparation consisted of one long run over the weekend and …

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Deep Intrinsic Core and Hip Muscles

“Engage your core” is a term we often hear to avoid back injury during strenuous activity.  It should go without saying that bracing one’s core is beneficial when lifting a wine box off the ground, carrying it thirty meters, rotating it to place it on a shelf, and lifting it to a shelf of varying …

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