Dominator of the Week: Sheila L. Agnew

Sheila L. Agnew does not believe in "I can't". She personally works out 5 days a week for an average of 1 hour per day. In addition, she is a personal trainer and group fitness instructor...add conducting those sessions to her own personal workout!

Sheila encourages her clients to move beyond their physical challenges and mental limitations. She often works with clients who are recovering from various joint surgeries, diabetes and arthritis. As a result, she has seen their conditions improve tremendously with consistent exercise. Her goal is to have her clients focus on living a better quality of life not their current condition.

Part of the reason that Sheila became a personal trainer is because she understands how important it is to fill the gap in training older adults. Her involvement has propelled her into becoming an advocate to inspire and motivate others to live a healthier life. Our physical challenges should not distract us and job us of our latter days. As a breast cancer survivor, Sheila knows what it's like to get a life changing diagnosis but she also believes that that diagnosis should not define you.

Sheila subscribes to the wellness concept that includes the total body...mind, body and soul. She believes that focusing on any one area is a defeating attitude. It is vital to always take time out for yourself. She believes that if you don't, you will eventually wear yourself down and find it challenging to complete every day tasks. Self care is the BEST care.

Sheila is a senior fitness specialist at 180 Training. Her group fitness classes that involve balance, low impact aerobics, strengthening and light weight training are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Crosswind Active Adult Community in Peachtree City, GA. She also performs short weekly exercises on her Facebook Business Page that are easy follow, even if you have a busy schedule. You are worth waking up 15-30 earlier every day wouldn't you agree?

Sheila says, as a trainer, the two most commonly asked questions are:

1. How can I tone my core or lose my gut?

2. How can I get rid of my jiggly arms?

Her answer does not vary and it's simple...it takes time, effort and repetition. The core is the center of our bodies and as we mature, we lose elasticity in our core muscles . If you add to that a lifetime of a fatty diet, then there is even more fatty tissue to break through. In conjunction with a consistent exercise routine, it is imperative that you change your diet as well.

Here are a few more recommendations from Sheila:

Use exercise bands - help strengthen and tone muscles

Lift weights - build strong muscles and help reduce body fat. Start with lower weights and move up. Your progression should be 3, 5, 7.5, 10 pound weights until you are able to graduate to more as your stamina improves.

Balance training - very important for older adults. Falls are the number one cause of injuries in seniors and in some cases, those falls lead to death. As we age, our joints weaken, so we want to improve our balance for posture, walking and day activities.

Cardio exercises - good for the heart, can assist with losing and maintaining weight loss and it can be fun! These exercises include, but are not limited to, aerobic exercises, tread mill, biking, walking, and swimming.

Free weights and machines weights will give you faster results but you can also incorporate good ole push ups, crunches and resistance bands into your work outs. Power workouts or simply working your way up to power walking are also good choices.

Sheila challenges anyone reading this to make a commitment to yourself and let's go!! You can follow her on Facebook and Instagram under Sheila's Fit 50 Plus and contact her via her personal website Sheila Agnew.

Sheila L. Agnew...Our Dominator of the Week!!