2020 is definitely making it difficult to stay focused on your health and fitness. Between a global pandemic and now forest fires making the air quality hazardous, it’s challenging to figure out where to go and what to do to get your workout in. Running, biking, hiking and walking outdoors have not been recommended for the last week. If you don’t have access to fitness equipment, are you out of luck? If there’s a will, there’s always a way and mall walking could be your answer when outdoors is not an option.

Depending on the mall in your community, a lap around the mall is easily equivalent to a lap around the track. If your mall is larger, you might be able to get a half to full mile per lap. At the Vancouver Mall, a lap including all the exit halls will get you close to a ½ mile.

To make your workout more challenging, you can include the stairs. For example, you could do the stairs at the start of each lap or to make it even more challenging, you could run the stairs every time you pass a set. Multiple repeats of stairs will drive up the intensity.

To make your workout more interesting, you could add shuffles and agility drills in between poles.

You could even add strength exercises to your workout. For example, you might do walking lunges down one exit lane. You could perform squats at each end. You could do bench pushups or tricep dips.

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The Vancouver Mall stores are currently open Monday-Saturday from 11am-7pm and Sundays from Noon-6pm. Typically the doors to the mall open one hour before the stores open so that you can go and get an hour workout in before the crowds of shoppers arrive.

Mall workouts are not a novel idea. There are a number of Mall Walkers that use the mall as their gym, especially during the cold, rainy months.

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Reasons Why MALL WALKING is COOL!

Most people can get to a mall

Everyone knows how to walk!

You don’t require any special equipment!

It burns calories and will help you lose weight!

Mall walking improves your stamina and endurance and lowers overall fatigue!

It will tone your booty!

Mall walking strengthens your muscles and joints!

It will help lower blood pressure!

It will help improve blood lipid levels!

It can increase your longevity!

It is a low-impact gentle form of exercise so tolerable with those with arthritis or joint pain!

Mall walking improves circulation and blood flow!

It improves your memory and the functioning of your brain!

It improves balance and will help to prevent falls in the elderly!

It reduces the risk for dementia and Alzheimers!

Mall walking improves your mood and reduces depression!

It will improve your sleep!

It will boost your immune system!

Mall walking will improve your bone density!

It will reduce your stress!

Mall walking gets the creative juices flowing and allows you the opportunity to think and come up with some great ideas!

It’s a great opportunity for bonding with friends, family and co-workers!

Mall walking is a great opportunity for a walk-and-talk meeting! So much better than a boring meeting around a table.

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Your health and fitness is critical, now more than ever. We need to stay committed to moving our bodies – for our physical strength, mental health, stress relief and maintaining the strength of our immune system. One of the best and easiest ways to start your fitness journey is just to start walking. There are very few barriers, even now, making it completely accessible for almost everyone! Start with a couple laps around the mall, and when that gets easier, make it more and soon, you’ll be walking your way to a healthy and fit life!

Yours in health & fitness,
Sherri McMillan

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We Are Open!

Northwest Personal Training is NOW OPEN! We are SO EXCITED to see you! For Private Training, you’ll have the option to continue doing virtual training, outdoor training or training at the studio. For Group Fitness classes, you will be able to continue doing virtual online classes (live or saved) and we are also going to host some outdoor programming.

We specific safety precautions that we have in place so please watch this video where I explain everything we are doing to keep you safe.

Here is a link to our Reopening Protocol in detail so you can review closely.

#NWPTSTRONG

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