TRAINER SHARES SIMPLE SECRETS TO BETTER FITNESS

By Larry Ward Staff Writer                                             When Herb Duncan played professional football he had a following. Things didn't change much after he retired from the Arena Football League where he was a member of the 1997 world champion Arizona Rattlers. But now, instead of giving autographs he is dispensing advice and facts on health and fitness through Nexlev, a innovative science based company at 633 E. Ray Rd. in Gilbert Arizona. Duncan's intimate storefront facility with a half-dozen exercise balls and a minimum of exercise machines is smaller than the lobby of some national franchise centers, but it is where clients like Maria Hernandez feel comfortable. "I was one of those people who was very intimidated by a gym," Hernandez said. "I couldn't do this by myself and I like the idea of not having to think about it and having someone else tell me what to do." An administrative assistant at a Phoenix hospital, she lives in Mesa, but has followed Duncan, a certified trainer, through two other more conventional facilities for almost three years. That may have been why she wasn't surprised to find exercise and medicine balls instead of heavy iron muscle machines at Nexlev. "The first thing people notice when they come in is that we're totally different from what they've seen before and right away it's stress time," Duncan said. "They see equipment and moments that they haven't seen before and, of course, the balls." The exercise balls are more challenging than they look, but they work, Duncan said. He uses one for a chair at his office desk. "Using nothing but the balls, I can have anyone sweating in an hour because it exposes all the weakness and requires more muscle discipline than people realize," Duncan said. "They require the body to operate the way it was designed as a unit, just sitting on one forces certain muscle groups to function. When you see tape of the Phoenix Suns doing a shoot-around in practice, or a boxer training for a fight, you'll see all kinds of movements and functional training equipment  in the background. "But health and fitness is measured by more than a pint of perspiration, Duncan added. It's part of the myth and twisted tales, according to Duncan "Promises at other places are very much exaggerated," Duncan said. "We Americans want stuff to happen overnight and there are people who play on that stuff. If someone came out with something that worked in five minutes you'd sell a million of him or her, and I'd be the first to use it. Professional athletes have $1 million bodies and if any of this stuff came close to working, especially for longevity, we'd be the first to use it." "But it's not as hard as it's made out to be to be fit for life," Duncan said. Magazines and media give people unreasonable expectations, with results based on temporarily fixes rather then life longevity Duncan added. "People are getting a twisted version of how to get fit and healthy," he said. "Not eating before you go to bed, for instance is a myth. The body wants smaller meals throughout the day instead of one at the end of the day. If I don't overeat and exercise, I'm not going to gain weight. But we tend to make a lot of excuses for why we gain weight, including what we eat." Duncan isn't training bodybuilders or football linemen. . "Something as simple as a golf swing requires getting stronger core functions," Duncan said. "Tiger Woods figured that out a long time ago and everyone else had to get over the idea of drinking beer and eating doughnuts to stay competitive. "Professional athletes do things to get stronger in movement that they use daily and we apply the same thing to simple everyday things like carrying groceries or stepping sideways to look for something on top of the refrigerator without getting hurt. We trains everyday people to strengthen their bodies to enjoy life, family and daily activities that we take for granted until we get hurt doing them like just picking up our children at the park" Hernandez explained most of the encouragement to continue is subtle. "Once you start to feel the difference," she said, "you want to work at it more." Duncan has heard the story before. "About 80 to 90 percent of my clients are finding something totally new," Duncan said. "It becomes a way of life and they really start enjoying things and do things that they haven't been able to do for a long time. It doesn't take as much effort as they think.".  The report can be reached at (480) 898-7915 or by e-mail at lward@aztrib.com.