My name is Julie Fairclough. Some people are curious about my origins, so I let me begin by telling you a bit about that. I was born in Canada, to a Canadian father and a Mexican mother. On my father’s side, my grandmother is Jamaican and my grandfather is English. I did most of my studies in Mexico City, where I studied Journalism and Communication Sciences. Besides the United States, where my father now has his practice, I lived in Amsterdam, where I studied script writing, and then Madrid, before coming to Brussels seven years ago.

My hobbies, like everyone’s else’s, are reading, travelling, exploring. However, sport has been a big part of my life, so much so that I decided to take it up professionally 12 years ago, working in my field and giving classes as well. I loved my work but this new occupation too. Finally, coming to Brussels gave me the opportunity to give into a 100% experience with it.

How did you spend the end of the year?

My end of the year was very exciting. I loved the warm and serene attitude of the people. The frantic joy of Christmas shopping gave the city a merry feeling. Walking through the streets I got the smell of Christmas on the markets, in the restaurants, all over the place. That gave me a seasonal dose of nostalgia, but I enjoyed every single day. I spent Christmas with my husband’s family and my sister, who came from Holland to Brussels. We were 20 people wining and dining, laughing and in short celebrating Christmas. After this, we traveled to Austria to see my dear friends in Vienna. The city was crispy with all the snow and frost, a bit ghostly and romantic at the same time. And of course we didn’t miss the chance to slide down a few slopes on our skies.

How did you know WorldClass?

My husband actually told me about the club in Diegem.

What brought you to work with WorldClass?

Right when I came to Brussels I decided that I didn’t want to start working in the same field as before. With two small children growing up, my husband and I just couldn’t be travelling as much as before. In Madrid I had been working for a radio broadcasting station and giving classes on the side, which I enjoyed enormously. So I approached WorldClass in Diegem, and they took me on for Cycling and Core. Later on I gave Power Yoga and Zumba classes. I’ve been part of WorldClass ever since, and happy to be here. What I like most about WorldClass is the staff. All my colleagues have become friends, and that makes the environment in the club engaging and cordial. I get a lot of support as well, with training and classes. I feel very fortunate to belong to WorldClass.

Do you have any advice for our members?

Doing sports is a gift to the body. Keep on training, and your body will thank you for it.

Ashtanga: Ancient Yoga Style

Ashtanga is a rigurous style of yoga that follows a specific sequence of postures. The core Ashtanga practice consists of six progressively more difficult series of linked postures, as this style links every movement to a breath. The series work like a combination lock. If you do the right poses in the right order, the mind and the body automatically open up. Each series unlocks a particular aspect of the body and mind. Ashtanga always performs the exact same poses in the exact same order. This is a hot, sweaty, physically demanding practice.

Vinyasa Yoga

Vinyasa (pronounced “vin-yah-sah”) is the Sanskrit word for “flow”, and Vinyasa classes are known for their fluid movement in intense practice. Vinyasa teachers choreograph their classes to transition smoothly from pose to pose, and often play music to keep things lively.

The intensity of practice is similar to Ashtanga, but no two Vinyasa classes are the same. If you have routine and love to test your physiscal limits, Vinyasa Yoga may be just your ticket.

Power Yoga: Modern Approach

Power Yoga follow up poses with strength training, while synchronizing one’s breathing patterns to each movement and bringing special attention to one’s posture and breath. This routine strengthens and stretches the muscles and focuses the mind, thereby improving the mind-body connection. Contrary to Ashtanga, it is not an ancient practice and it is not taught as a fixed series. This gives the teacher more freedom to vary poses and sequencing. Because Power Yoga teachers have more freedom to put their own stamp on their class, these classes tend to give participants more opportunities to explore a wider range of yoga postures. On the other hand, as postures are less repetitive and usually held for a shorter time, less advanced practitioners might find it more difficult to grasp the correct body alignment and connections.

Check out our class schedule for yoga classes.

Salmon flan: Combine 4 eggs, 200g canned salmon, 1 finely chopped onion, 50g flour, 60g low-fat grated cheese, 400ml skimmed milk and seasoning in a bowl. Pour into a greased 23cm quiche dish and bake for 45-60 mins. Serve with a salad with light vinaigrette. Makes 3-4 servings.

Tuesday Dinner

Chicken Caesar salad: Mix 2 chopped hard-boiled eggs, 2 chopped rashers of grilled bacon, 1 slice of toasted whole grain bread (shred and make into croutons) and 125g chopped chicken breast fillet. Arrange over a plate of iceberg lettuce leaves and top with low-fat mayonnaise.

Wednesday Dinner

Spanish tomato tortilla: Fry 200g sliced potatoes in olive oil. Add 150g chopped ham, 2 chopped spring onions and 150g chopped tomatoes to the pan and fry for a further 2 minutes. Add 2 beaten eggs, season with salt and pepper and cook until eggs are set. Sprinkle with parsley.

Thursday Dinner

Grilled chicken with German potato salad: Gril 150g chicken breast fillet. Boil 150g potatoes and 1 egg, then drain, cool and chop. Toss together with 1 chopped gherkin, 1tbsp capers and 1 chopped celery stick. Serve with steamed asparagus and carrots.

Friday Dinner

Mushroom and cheese tortilla: Fry 70g mushrooms and 1tbsp chopped onion gently in a little oil, then add 1 beaten egg, season and cook until set. Heat a big frying pan and spray one side each of two flour tortillas. Place one tortilla spray side down on hot pan, spoon on mushroom/egg mixture, top with 20g grated cheese, top with other tortilla spray side up and cook until golden and cheese has melted.

Saturday Dinner

Beef fried rice: Heat a little oil in a wok or frying pan. Add 1 chopped spring onion, a handful of peas and 1 chopped red pepper, stir-fry for 3 mins, then add 150g lean beef fillet and stir-fry for a further 3 minutes. Add 1 beaten egg to pan and stir gently until scrambled. Add 125g precooked brown rice and 1tbsp low-sodium soy sauce.

Sunday Dinner

Bean Nicoise salad: Mix 90g couscous with 100g drained canned mixed beans 2tbsp diced onion and 1 chopped tomato. Add a plate of diced lettuce leaves, 1 quartered boiled egg, chopped sun-dried tomatoes and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

Supplement of the day: BCAA

Branched Chain Amino Acid is known by the acronym BCAA. Its name comes from its molecular structure as a chain. Proteins are made of amino acids, which are 20 in number. There are certain “essential” amino acids (8 in number) so called because it is impossible for the body to produce and synthesize them naturally. When the body needs energy, it can break down muscle to take the amino acids and use them as an energy source.

BCAA includes three essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine and valine

Leucine is a source of energy. It stimulates protein synthesis and is involved in the healing of the skin and bones. We find leucine in foods such as whole grains (wheat, rice), nuts and meat. Isoleucine is involved in energy production, improves endurance levels and is a source of energy for muscles. We find isoleucine in fish, lentils and almonds. Valine helps in the body’s recovery efforts and contributes to the proper functioning of the nervous system. We find valine in mushrooms, dairy products and meat. A deficiency in amino acids can lead to physical and intellectual weakness.

Why use BCAA if we can find these amino acids in our diet?

Taking supplements allows a much faster synthesis of proteins, and thus a greater and quicker supply of energy. Before an amino acid is synthesized from the diet, it must first pass through decomposition, digestion and absorption.In conclusion, I would say that if you are an athlete, if you prepare for any type of competition or if you exercise intensely on a regular basis (at least 3 times per week), taking a supplement is essential for protein synthesis and fast recovery. For an average person with a well-balanced diet, however, taking a supplement is not essential.

Note: Before using supplements, please contact a coach.

Basically speaking, human evolution has enabled us to deal with two different types of activities. Activities like walking, talking, lifting a spoon to your mouth or typing on the computer require our muscles to contract for a longer period of time but with little force.So these “daily” activities solicit the use of endurance fibers. Others such as reacting quickly, runnung after the bus, jumping a hurdle or lifting a heavy load require a short and intense muscle contraction. These “survival” activities, therefore, solicit the use of strength fibers. To move from one activity to another or to combine the two types, different energy sources will become available.

Slow twitch Fiber = Endurance
Fast Twitch Fiber = Strength

On a scale of 0 to 100% (100% being our maximum muscle capacity), the first 50% represent Slow twitch fibers (STF). They are also known as Type II, aerobic or red fibers. The latter name refers to the fact that they carry red blood cells and need oxygen for their development. The second 50% are called Fast twitch fibers (FTF), also known as Type !, anaerobic (without oxygen) or white fibers. The average human body is composed of 50% STF and 50% FTF, but it is possible to change this ratio depending on how we exercise on a daily basis.

Sprinters such as Usain Bolt or Carl Lewis reached a ratio of 65% FTF to 35% STF, while marathon runners such as Patrick Makau or Tasame Dame have about the same ratio, only reversed. Any exercise requiring less than 60% of our muscle capacity uses the endurance fibersș beyond 60% we will use the strength fibers.

The questions I often hear in the gym are: At what intensity should I train? and Should I lift heavy or light weights?

To this, I answer that it all depends on your goal. If you are aiming mainly to lose weight and burn fat, you should target the area below 60% (endurance zone). That’s because slow twitch fibers are the type burning more fat. If your goal is to gain muscle mass, you should focus your training between 60 and 100% of your muscle capacity, as FTF is the only type of fiber for growth and muscle development.

Let’s look at an example: if your maximum capacity for a bicep curl is 20kg, working with a weight of 10-12 kg will solicit more slow twitch fiber and therefore burn fat. By working with a weight of 16kg, however, you are building more muscle mass.

Stress is good for us, as it helps us to survive and stay competitive; it’s the reason why we get up in the morning to “do what has to be done”. But too much stress over a long period of time is a killer because it erodes our immune system. When that happens, we are at risk of becoming ill. In this case I don’t mean merely catching a cold, but more serious health issues such as burnout, diabetes, stroke, or heart attack. In short: all those things we’d like to believe only happen to other people, but never to us.

Good nutrition is an important part of keeping your immune system in top shape.

In this article I want to explain why nutrition is such an important factor in boosting your immune system. You will see that catch phrase “you are what you eat” extends much further than just how your body looks on the outside. It’s the food that you eat on a daily basis that is going to support or work against your body’s immune system. Let’s see how that works.

The quality of your immune system depends on what you eat.

People under stress often cut corners when it comes to their nutrition. Easy solutions are often timesaving and appealing, but they wreak havoc on your energy balance, leaving you with less energy than before. Refined foods such as sandwiches will upset the sugar balance in your body. The carbohydrates in these foods are so quickly absorbed in your body’s blood stream that the body cannot use it all at once. In response, it releases a large dose of the hormone insulin to lower this “sugar” level in your blood to a more acceptable level. Because of this, your energy levels crash.

When these energy levels gets too low, you will experience strong cravings for more sweet foods (triggered by the hormone cortisol). This is your body’s way of “helping” you by pushing you into restoring energy levels quickly. As a result, you get locked into a sugar  roller coaster, with unbalanced energy levels that add to your (already high) stress levels. Over a longer period of time, that stress will lower the capacity of your immune system to deal with sickness.

Nutrition is not the same as calories

I am sure I am not telling you anything new when I say that your body needs vitamins and minerals. But what most people do not realize is that by ingesting processed foods “all the time”, they are eating foods that lack “nutrients” (vitamins and minerals that your body desperately needs). This creates a body depleted of the nutrients that it needs to function correctly and deal with stress in an optimum way. Whereas a banan contains potassium (ensuring that nerve impulses reach your heart so that it can beat) and magnesium (crucial in contracting and relaxing your muscles), a sanwich will most likely contain none of these minerals. And on top of that, the more refined foods we eat, the more we suppress our immune system because the refined carbohydrates foster a climate of inflammation in our bodies; they deplete our reserves of vitamin B, for example, in order to process the high carbohydrate load.

Supplements alone are not the answer

We humans are “clever enough” in such cases, however, to take a supplement to ease our guilty minds. But does that really work? People that lead a hectic lifestyle often reason that they can get away with eating “bad” refined foods as long as they supplement with “good” multivitamin. This is a myth. If you are living on a diet based on toast with jam, cornflakes, sandwhiches, snacks, coffee and a quick TV dinner with a few drinks in the evening, you cannot make up for the lack of nutrients in those foods by taking a vitamin supplement. These refined foods stress your adrenal glands and will produce more (rather than less) stress hormones in your body, eventually undermining your body’s immune system.

Supplements can at best be an insurance policy to help you work away small deficits or to make the impact of the “bad” foods less damaging. That said, the most useful supplements to deal with long-term stress are a (separate) B-complex vitamin and a supplement of magnesium to help relax the tension in your muscles. Zinc helps the “intelligence” of the T-cells in your immune system, vitamin C helps antibody production, and selenium can help the NK cells (natural killer cells) in your immune system to clear out intruders. And adding vitamin E to the combination with the vitamin C may help increase the total number of T-cells in your immune system. All good reasons to eat nutritious foods, right?

The best way to keep your immune system strong is to prepare your own foods and to plan your meals. If it sounds complex or time-consuming, just have a look at the many websites that focus on healthy meals in 15 minutes. Let’s not forget: preventing sickness is always less time-consuming than having to fight it off later!

Paul Schuchhard is a certified Counselor specialized in the psychology of burnout prevention; he is also a certified Sports Nutritionist and fitness trainer.

www.paulschuchhard.com

Of course, our WorldClass team was there to see and learn about the latest trends and developments in the fitness industry.

For four days, IHRSA 2013 offered seminars every two hours in 15 different (American-sized) meeting rooms with the fitness world’s most successful entrepreneurs and leaders. Many of the seminars we listened to were given by successful fitness club owners, who spoke about what they offer their clients and how they run their operations. We msutn’t forget that the USA is the biggest and most advanced country in the world in this field.

One of the many things that I would like to share is just how fast group personal training is growing: it is now even more successful than the one-to-one personal training.

This new form is all about a small group of four to ten people who are guided by a personal trainer for eight to ten weeks to improve their health and fitness. There are as many specific concepts as there are trainers, but working in a small group inevitably builds team spirit and creates a lot of fun. Together you reach a new level of fitness.

We will develop this approach further here at WorldClass, so please join us!

The trade show also showed us that the fitness world is moving more and more towards functional training. This is something we’ve been increasing but will naturally emphasize even more in future. We laso discovered a number of innovative class concepts, such as workout with kettlebells soon to come to WorldClass as well.

Four days of great learning experiences and exciting training concepts, the best of which will soon be coming to our club!