By Tim Zackery, Manager of Crosstrainers Fitness, B.S. in Health and Exercise Science From the University of Oklahoma, A.A.S. in Allied Health Science from the Community College of the Air Force, A.A.S. in Human Resource Management from the Community College of the Air Force. 19 year verteran of the Air Force and Oklahoma Air National Guard, former Air Force Medic and Iraq veteran.
For over 10 years, Crosstrainers Fitness has been providing its members with the best that the fitness industry has to offer. Our trainers have received four year professional degrees in Physical education, Health and Sport Science and Health and exercise science the owners have had over 25 years in the fitness industry in Oklahoma.
One of the latest trends in fitness is passive stretching. In fact, there are now businesses that provide this service exclusively. Here is a secret… This service has always been available at Crosstrainers Fitness as a standard of our excellence in the industry.
So what is passive stretching?
Passive stretching is a wonderful way to increase flexibility for:
-Increased performance, rehabilitation, pre habilitation (injury prevention) and it just feels good.
Is it safe?
Yes. IF… provided by a properly trained and educated provider, passive stretching is not only safe but very beneficial for: Increased performance, rehabilitating injuries, pre-habilitation (injury prevention), it creates a more functional level of fitness and it just feels good.
How do I know if my trainer is properly trained and educated?
The easy answer is to simply shop smart and ask questions of the individuals providing these services for you. What is their background? Are they fitness professionals or just an enthusiast? Are they certified? is their certification accredited? Do they have a 2 or 4 year professional degree in the industry?
The fact is, Oklahoma has very loose laws and guidelines governing the fitness industries professional standards. They leave it up to the industry to regulate itself. Oklahoma has no legal requirement for personal trainers to be certified or licensed in the state of Oklahoma other than to not misrepresent. They only require a spa license in order to operate a facility. This has opened up the business opportunity for anyone to enter the fitness industry as a owner/operator/trainer.
Now, this is not to say that you cannot have a good trainer that is not professionally degreed, but I personally would not seek financial advice from a day trader on investments so why would I seek fitness advice from someone that has not received a professional education in Health and Exercise?
Remember, in the wrong hands this can become very dangerous.
So why Crosstrainers Fitness?
In addition to maintaining the most well educated and experienced staff in Yukon, we also have the benefit of having two on site physical therapists that act as an addition resource for providing training to our staff for the purpose of ensuring safe and effective applications for passive stretching and flexibility evaluation.