I overheard a couple speaking in a coffee shop the other day and the topic was fitness. In particular it was about trying a new activity this summer… more specifically surfing. They were brainstorming where to go (I’m partial to Nantasket Beach as it’s in my backyard) and who to take a lesson or two from (certainly not me… I only excel at falling off of my surfboard). Summer is a terrific time in New England to try a new sport or fitness activity on for size. Trying out new exercises can be a ton of fun, but along with this excitement comes challenge and a few blows to the ego… there is a mental game to it all. Here are a few tips to keep you on track:

Be Comfortable Being Uncomfortable

New is new… new ways to move, new ways to think. If it was immediately comfortable, you would have likely done it before. Accepting the physical awkwardness and emotional discomfort of a new task sets you up to learn it most quickly.

Commit to a Fair Test of Time

Pick a specific date a few months away from your start date a new activity. When this date arrives you will reflect on whether your progress in the exercise has been sufficient. This allows you to step away from judging each training session as “good” or “bad.” Freeing you up to learn and fully focus on the journey.

Measure Success By What You Learn

Games won, pounds shed, or times run are all nice, but are truly poor measures of successful striving. Furthermore all can be distractions to why you embraced a new activity in the first place… for the novelty of it and to learn. Take time to marvel at your efforts and learning… the results will follow in due time.

Enjoy It All

Sport and exercise is serious play. Too often emphasis lies on “serious,” in neglect of “play.” Perhaps the troubadour of summer said it best, “With all of our running and all of our cunning if we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane.” Jimmy Buffett has come and gone from Boston this year, but he certainly knows something about summer… perhaps even summer exercise. Lots of laughs, better accompany our new (and old) fitness fun.

Find some new ways to play this summer. Adopt a mindset that lets you learn and enjoy it all.

Dr. Adam Naylor leads Telos Sport Psychology Consulting and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in Boston University’s School of Education. He has a decade and a half of experiences working with professional through amateur athletes – of note: US Open competitors, NCAA champions, Olympians, Stanley Cup winners, and UFC martial artists. Beyond sports, over the past five years he has served as a corporate performance and wellness consultant. He can be reached at adam@telos-spc.com. Follow him on Twitter @ahnaylor.

Confession: A large reason I've been able to stick to my fitness routine is due to friends.

While that may not sound shocking, to me it is.

By nature I'm an extremely extroverted person: I like to meet new people, I like to hear people's life stories, I would make friends with a blade of grass if I thought I'd get anything out of it.

That said, making fitness a social endeavor has been wildly helpful to me because as a mom who works full time I have to pack many things in to what seems like very few minutes of time to myself.

By Ryan Healy

Ryan Healy is a personal trainer for the Lynch/van Otterloo (LVO) YMCA in Marblehead. She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA, and earned her BS in Exercise Sports Science from Elon University. Find more posts by her in conjunction with the LVO YMCA at yhealthandwellness.wordpress.com. She can be reached at healyr@northshoreymca.org.

Typically set inside the quiet confines of a dimly lit studio, yoga is not something that immediately comes to mind when searching for a fun, outdoor activity to do. That is, until now. SUP Yoga adds a new, exciting twist to an age-old practice. For starters, a stand up paddle board takes the place of a traditional yoga mat. And a body of water acts as your yoga studio.

A single thought dominated my mind as we prepared to enter Beverly Harbor for a SUP Yoga class: ”there’s no way I am NOT falling in.” So much for the power of positive thinking. But our instructor, owner of SUP Yo, assured me that only happens to about 10 percent of her students. I tucked that affirmation into the back of my head and off we went.

If you’re like me and have never been on a stand up paddle board before, it takes a few minutes to acclimate yourself to the stance and balance required to maintain it. We did a little warm-up lap around the harbor and then settled closer to shore to begin our practice. In order to avoid being swept away by the current, each board is equipped with a small anchor that securely nestles itself into the sand after being dropped into the water.

The hour-long class included an assortment of traditional yoga poses like sun salutations, downward dogs, and rejuvenating twists. As the poses became more complex, balance became more of an issue. Even the smallest of waves, or simply the current, makes your “mat” feel unsteady. In order to stabilize yourself, you are constantly engaging your core, along with smaller subsets of muscles throughout your body. Ten minutes into class and I knew I would be sore the next day.

The thing that surprised me the most about SUP Yoga is the fact that it’s as much a physical workout as it is an exercise in mental focus. I admittedly lose focus quite a bit throughout the course of my regular yoga classes. But the paddle board has a way of penalizing you for letting your mind wander. At one point during the class, my focus shifted from the pose we were instructed to wind ourselves into, to three baby crabs frolicking along the ocean floor. Seconds later, I lost my balance and ended up joining those tiny crustaceans in the chilly water. I was officially part of the 10 percent. Moments later I was back on my board. My body was drenched but my mind was more awakened.

Enough can’t be said about the sensory adventure SUP Yoga offers. Our immediate surroundings , with the sounds of seagulls, soft ocean breeze, and smell of salt water, added a whole other dimension to the experience. It’s soothing, yet energizing at the same time. Kind of like ice cream, but with a much more favorable calorie ratio.

SUP Yo, www.sup-yo.com, single class $35, rate includes board and paddle rental; classes held in Swampscott, MA, Rye Harbor, NH, Seabrook, NH.

Do you have a workout for me to try? Tweet me @ApozTv.

One of the reasons I love running so much is because it is so unpredictable to me.

Sure, I can log training runs and prepare for races with the best of them but when it comes down to it, no two runs are alike. Heck, even with one run you can have one mile where you feel like a million bucks and the next like you're sucking pond water.

The BAA 10K was no different in it's unpredictability. But it wasn't because of the heat at 8 a.m. (that I really wasn't mentally prepared for) and it wasn't because the miles themselves were unpredictable.

By Ryan Healy

Ryan Healy is a personal trainer for the Lynch/van Otterloo (LVO) YMCA in Marblehead. She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA, and earned her BS in Exercise Sports Science from Elon University. Find more posts by her in conjunction with the LVO YMCA at yhealthandwellness.wordpress.com. She can be reached at healyr@northshoreymca.org.

I am so sick.

Not just like 'oh I have a cold' sick. Sick as in I had a fever for two days. I have no energy. My get up and go has gone.

Water. Saltines. Fruit. That has been what I have been able to keep down.

Why?

Well, first, the obvious: My adorable toddler gave me his crud (he's soooooooooooooo good at sharing though, on the brightside!).

Yet another #YearOfNoFear goal ticked off the list this weekend: tackling an obstacle course race.

The race? Ruckus Boston.

Let me just start out by saying you would think with all the running, swimming, lifting, and prepping for a triathlon AND a marathon that I would not have been worried at all about this 2-mile windy loop of mud, barricades, walls, cargo nets, and more.

Father’s Day can be a time to reflect on play and its role in bonding and building family. Signing a child up for organized sport is a gift. Getting out one night a week for men’s league lacrosse can be an energy giver. Nonetheless, neglecting playing together is a tremendous opportunity missed. Beyond the health benefits of exercise and the intrinsic fulfillment of shared time, children reap wonderful learnings when fathers, daughters, and sons share sports. Dr. David Elkind elucidates these benefits well in his book The Power of Play:

When we share or model our passions, we free our children to engage in activities they are not obliged to perform (play). In addition, sharing passions builds strong family bonds (love) and teaches socially valuable skills (work). Sharing our passions with our children is yet another way in which we can bring play, love, and work together in our parenting.

My daughter may not wind up a tennis player, but by taking to the court together she will see what a lifelong passion for play looks like. I can preach the values of sport all day, but when we live them together she will learn them. Registering children for sport classes may lead to a physically fit family, but parents and children engaging in sport and exercise together creates rich developmental experiences.

Dad’s, watch the US Open golf on Sunday… play golf with your kids soon. Happy Father’s Day.

Dr. Adam Naylor leads Telos Sport Psychology Consulting and is a Clinical Assistant Professor in Boston University’s School of Education. He has a decade and a half of experiences working with professional through amateur athletes – of note: US Open competitors, NCAA champions, Olympians, Stanley Cup winners, and UFC martial artists. Beyond sports, over the past five years he has served as a corporate performance and wellness consultant. He has a forthcoming collection of writings titled The Sports Parent's Playbook that will soon be available at Telos Performance Publications. He can be reached at adam@telos-spc.com. Follow him on Twitter @ahnaylor.

That knot returned today -- the one I had in my stomach immediately after the Boston Marathon bombing.

The knot that held on for days, only slightly easing up after working a grueling shift in the newsroom covering a manhunt for the bomber.

By Ryan Healy

Ryan Healy is a personal trainer for the Lynch/van Otterloo (LVO) YMCA in Marblehead. She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA, and earned her BS in Exercise Sports Science from Elon University. Find more posts by her in conjunction with the LVO YMCA at yhealthandwellness.wordpress.com. She can be reached at healyr@northshoreymca.org.

I was fortunate enough this past weekend to attend the Perform Better Functional Training Summit in Rhode Island. To say I was excited would be a vast understatement. It felt like Christmas morning to me as I waited in the registration line, about to start a profound and significant day. It’s one of the best fitness conferences to learn and grow from as a trainer, coach, physical therapist, or other health professional. I attended lectures by the renowned Mike Boyle, Alwyn Cosgrove, Charlie Weingroff, and Martin Rooney among many great others, and even got to hear Dick Vermeil give a remarkably inspirational speech.

Upon a milestone birthday, a dear friend of mine dubbed this year her "Year of No Fear."

And because she and I are friends for a reason, I jumped on that bandwagon -- because it's sort of the de facto theme of this blog. Except it's less about "a year" and more of "a lifestyle" of no fear.

So I had the best National Running Day! Did you?

First: I ran TWICE in one day -- 5 solid miles by myself in the morning and then 4 miles with just exactly the type of folks my post yesterday was about: Epic new friends.

And, my amazing running crew from across the United States assembled to run virtually with me all day long. The result? We ran a collective 142 miles yesterday, kids! (Not all the miles are reflected in these photos...these are just some of my favorites I was sent!)

In honor of National Running Day, I need your help.

When I started this blog, it was created solely with the intent of documenting my stab at getting healthier.

But then, over the months, it morphed into much more. Suddenly, the blog was a place I was repeatedly drawing inspiration from (thanks in no small part due to my incredible readers who leave comments, e-mail, and tweet at me).

By Ryan Healy

Ryan Healy is a personal trainer for the Lynch/van Otterloo (LVO) YMCA in Marblehead. She is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA, and earned her BS in Exercise Sports Science from Elon University. Find more posts by her in conjunction with the LVO YMCA at yhealthandwellness.wordpress.com. She can be reached at healyr@northshoreymca.org.

The rotator cuff, made up of four small muscles known by the acronym SITS: supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis, in my experience are often neglected and frequently injured by many fitness enthusiasts. I’ve had many clients come to me for personal training after they’ve had rotator cuff surgery, and I always wonder if I had trained with them before the surgery, could it have been avoided or delayed? A strong rotator cuff is hugely important because it can help improve posture, shoulder stability, strength in pressing exercises, and injury prevention.

Here are three fantastic exercises to help improve the strength of your SITS muscles. Try 10-12 reps of 2-3 sets. For extra credit, try these exercises to address your thoracic mobility and breathing patterns, which can also improve your rotator cuff function.

1. Side lying External Rotation

2. Supine External Rotation

3. Chin Tuck with Shoulder W

Imagine doing a pull-up. Ok, now imagine that pull-up taking place on the side of a steep mountain, where your arm muscles begin to shake and fingertips burn as you try and hoist your body upward toward the summit. A bit dramatic? Perhaps. But this is what it felt like to me to climb up the side of a wall at the Boston Rock Gym in Woburn. Um, the “beginner” wall to be exact. And did I mention that I was strapped into a safety harness the entire time? Minor details.

If you’re like me and have never scaled anything bigger than a jungle gym, the facility, which is the second oldest indoor rock climbing gym in the country, can be a bit intimidating at first glance. There are a multitude of walls, all different shapes and sizes.
The various “routes” to climb up are color-coded in order of difficulty.

I would attempt my first climb on the “greens,” which are otherwise known as the “beginner” holds. But first, a safety tutorial was provided, where I learned about the bevy of equipment that would prevent me from crashing to the ground. Next, I was given a pair of shoes that were purposely snug. So snug, in fact, that it reminded me of a recent shoe shopping excursion where I mistakenly tried to fit my size nine foot into a seven. But I was assured by the instructor that tight shoes are a necessity when climbing in order to fit your foot into the crevices of the rock (or wall).

My hands were slightly trembling as I climbed up the first few holdings. But I quickly realized that it’s as much a physical exercise as it is mental. That part of your mind, where you think about all of the horrible things that could happen, has to be switched off and a level of trust needs to be immediately established between you and whoever is controlling your harness. Once I figured that out, I was good to go. It became fun and challenging to figure out where to strategically place my hands and feet as I inched my way up the wall. And the joy I felt when I finally summited was coupled with a slight sigh of relief.

There is very little cardio involved in climbing, but it’s definitely a strength workout. Instead of lifting free weights at the gym, you’re hoisting your body weight from one holding to the next. Even more so on the special “boulder” walls, where you climb without the support of a harness. Shoulders, legs, and your core are all being worked simultaneously. It’s no wonder so many climbers appear very lean. And you’re so focused on the climb, that it’s hard to remember you’re simultaneously getting a good workout.

With a variety of programs for adults and kids, as well as outdoor excursions, there’s something for everyone at the Boston Rock Gym. All in all, it’s a fun activity, it will keep you fit, and it is also a cool place to beat the summer heat.

Boston Rock Gym, Woburn, www.bostonrockgym.com, 1 month membership $85, day pass $16, see web site for hours.

Regular workouts keep me in decent shape. But I’m always looking for ways to get faster, stronger, and more flexible. There are a myriad of options out there, which can be overwhelming for beginners and seasoned athletes alike. I’ll play the role of guinea pig and review some of the new and unusual exercise classes being offered around the region, with the hope you’ll find one that appeals to you and gets you moving. If you would like to suggest a workout for me to try, tweet me @apoztv.

Good Monday morning, kids!

I hope you all had a fantastic weekend-- I know mine was pretty great. Well, mostly. There was that whole running in the insane heat thing...

Let's talk about that for a second, shall we?

Bottom line? I'm insane.

Nope, it's not an ultramarathon or something crazy like that (yet), this blog post is less about fitness and more about my personal next big thing: A new gig here at The Globe.

I will still be writing posts in this blog on a weekly basis as I have since I started the blog, but I'll no longer be @BeWellBoston on twitter because I was offered a new opportunity here at The Boston Globe that I just couldn't pass up as the new social media marketing manager.

By Ryan Healy

I have this quirk. Habit. Reflex. That's it -- I have this reflex.

When I really want to get to know someone, I will always ask them a series of questions, the first of which is always: "Do you run?"

And then I ask when we can go running together.