Marion Freijsen » Sports & Fitness

The Travelling Warrior

Marion — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 13:06:03 +0000

Apart from the tips on how to eat when you are totally busy travelling around, be it for holiday or pleasure – it is obviously harder for us weak-willed individuals to work out whilst we are on the road. So here’s some ideas of things you CAN easily do, just send spouse and kids off to the buffet, whilst you buff your body!

In a hotel:

You really can do a ton of different exercises in a hotel, here’s a favourite selection of mine…find a radiostation you ... Read More

Swim Equipment

Marion — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 11:57:50 +0000

Swimming is a great activity and obviously for us on the Western Hemisphere, a very attractive one, now that summer has more or less arrived! For serious swimming, i.e. doing laps or swimming in open water at a reasonable pace, you can use a number of things that will be useful in your training.

Funnily enough I was reading a blog on another site recently about swimming where they started out with reminding people that you needed a swimsuit… that is going one too far I think, I ... Read More

ALS – the rest of your life

Marion — Tue, 18 May 2010 06:22:17 +0000

I write about health, fitness and sports – that is my passion and an intrinsical part of my life. I write about things you can do to train, to get the most out of your life, to stay healthy and most of all, to LIVE your life with passion and joy.

But occasionally I have to veer to another topic and look at the other side of health, fitness and feeling great – one of my sporting buddies, the fittest guy of the troop on the bike – just got diagnosed with ALS. ALS ... Read More

Fuel your body

Marion — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 06:41:52 +0000

What I have noticed, and definitely like to see, is that there is a growing awareness of the need to feed your body the fuel it needs to perform. I know, it’s been around forever – sportsnutrition is definitely not a new phenomenon and no, I am not so old that I have forgotten that! But even though I have been around in the sports world for 25 years (and a bit more), it strikes me that now, finally, even the average person is starting to understand that food does make a huge ... Read More

Zurich2Venice

Marion — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 16:26:34 +0000

So from time to time, I am inspired to write not just about my own love of sports and keeping fit and healthy, but about the journey someone else takes.

I have this great friend, Roddy, that when we used to work together, would always be on the verge of starting a fitness regime. We’d travel around Europe together on business and he would “maybe” join me in the gym in the morning, or “almost” go on a run with me at 5am..but never quite make it. So we joked ... Read More

Swimming

Marion — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 15:35:27 +0000

As a (former) triathlete, swimming is 30% of the race. Not so much in time, but definitely in effort I never knew how to do freestyle, and started out doing my triathlons swimming my 1500 metres or even 3km doing breaststroke instead of freestyle. But although I was a fast breast-stroker, I realised soon enough that I simply would never improve my speed out of the water until I ... Read More

Running Schedule

Marion — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 10:55:27 +0000

It’s Spring… finally! Spring means you wanna get outside again, (well if it isn’t raining too much

Spring also means that you start looking at that bathing suit or trunks and wonder how it’s going to look this year. Or rather more pertinently – how YOU are going to look. So Spring is the time a lot of people try and make good on those resolutions ... Read More

Running, shoes and good advice

Marion — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 11:35:35 +0000

Got an interesting question today from one of my frequent readers (I do have them it seems, quite nice to hear…) She has started to run and is enjoying it but just recently started to get an odd feeling in her groin after running. Nothing too painful, but just a twinge that is annoying.

Whenever you start running (or any new sport) it’s good to keep a check on yourself. I mean that in two different ways – 1. Don’t overdo it, build it up and go slow! and 2. ... Read More

Age

Marion — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:26:32 +0000

Bet this title got your attention!
Age seems to be the new mass obsession. We have had smoking, and banned it – drinking, banned that too – coffee, diminished our intake but what to do about Aging? We seem to want to control everything these days, we seem to want to be healthy and look young until we are about to step into our coffins…but aren’t we ... Read More

Your best accessory

Marion — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:35:50 +0000

Whether you are an Oscar winning actress, or simply someone like me – I can tell you exactly which accessory will always work and make you look your very best.

You don’t need expensive dresses, amazing bling-bling jewelry or even a goodlooking guy on your arm .

The world’s best accessory is Self-Confidence. Hold your head high, back straight and you ... Read More

TRX training

Marion — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 16:30:54 +0000

In the last year, I have been introduced by my PT Nando to TRX training. Yesterday I continued on the learning path with Chris Dovale at Equinox San Francisco.

TRX training is a great way or working out and can literally be carried with you anywhere. I just love it. Instead of using all sorts of machines, or even dumbbells/weights, it uses your own bodyweight. The core system consists of two pairs of straps, hooked at an elevated level. That means, you can hook it over a door, a ring ... Read More

the importance of Protein

Marion — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:39:36 +0000

There are tons of myths about protein and sports. For instance, that simply eating more protein will increase your muscles. Now – it would be nice if it worked like that but then again, when have you ever found something to be that easy? No, unfortunately, eating protein alone will not build all that nice toned muscle for you – you have to work at it yourself!

But protein is a very important nutrition source for muscles and you should look closely at your diet and ensure ... Read More

Trail riding

Marion — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:19:52 +0000

If you are in an area where you can get up into the hills – GOOOOO! It’s so incredibly exhilarating to ride high over the ridges – even though the climb up to the ridge and the bit down again usually will take the most time and the easy riding on the top will only be a fragment of the journey

To find great trails, first find your local bikestore, ... Read More

In sickness….

Marion — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 08:05:01 +0000

Here I am writing a blog about health… and end up talking about illness. However it’s the natural other side of being healthy and worth spending a few words on. And those words are “don’t let being sick stop you from being healthy!”. What I mean is that too often a slight cold, or even light flu does not mean you have to stop exercising (obviously you need to consider how sick you are! I am only talking about minor illnesses here). As with all things though, you ... Read More

You’re only as good as…. your equipment

Marion — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 18:28:31 +0000

As regular readers know by now, I am all for exercising outdoors. I run outside, bike outside, ski, skate, do my weight sessions and stretches outside whenever I can. Part of my love of sports, is that I CAN do all these things outdoors, get some much needed oxygen into my system and feel that sense that I call “love of the universe” as a result.

But at times you are forced to go indoors – either because of (extreme) weather, or because you are travelling or you live ... Read More

Power of Positive Thinking

Marion — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 01:56:25 +0000

I was watching a programme this week on TV, whilst on my treadmill of course , which was claiming this wonderful new fitness movement. Basically, what it boiled down to was the fact that it combined a good solid exercise routine based on yoga moves, pilates and cardiovascular work-out elements with positive thinking. Well – I must say – I couldn’t agree more then ... Read More

A little sunshine…

Marion — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:26:24 +0000

During these long dark winterdays, it sometimes seems that you are endlessly waiting for a little bit of light to filter through into our lives. So let me help you with this special playlist I created. It will bring that a little sunshine and a lot of beat into your exercising hours!

The playlist is built so you can start with any easy warm-up, the moves up a notch to a few more energetic sections to get your heart going and then let’s you cool down to some classics. Use it on the ... Read More

Crosscountry Skiing

Marion — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 16:50:24 +0000

Adding a bit of variety seems to be quite easy at the moment – the winter weather is throwing in all sorts of challenges and obstacles but at the same time – it makes it a great time to do something out of the ordinary. Ofcourse, you can continue your workouts as you did before indoors, but why not make the most of the cold weather (across a lot of the western hemisphere at least) and go out in the snow and on the ice?

Cross-Country skiiing – like many sports really ... Read More

Great set of stretches!

Marion — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 16:49:27 +0000

Here’s for all of you who didn’t buy into my winter fun suggestions of earlier this week… a nice half an our stretch work-out you can do in the warmth of a fitness centre or even at home.

Start loosening up – just take a couple of deep breaths in, letting your stomach extend as you inhale. Exhale through your mouth.

Do all off the below about 20 times (either side for arm/leg movements) not forcing the pace, but letting it flow ... Read More

Swim training

Marion — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 23:51:10 +0000

Of all the training sessions you can do, swimming is often overlooked – even by me. I realised suddenly I hadn’t written up any swimsessions yet! Major oversight, for sure. Swimming is great exercise. I once looked at a health magazine that posted pictures of sports men/women of various sports AND at various ages, so like at 20, 40 and 60. The swimmers aged the most graceful of all of the sports displayed by far. They kept a great shape (that nice V-shape) and long, defined limbs. ... Read More