LA Personal Trainer Interviews: Christopher Toscano

The Los Angeles Health and Exercise Club always recommends working with a personal trainer. Personal Trainers can help you push yourself to achieve goals that you may not be able to reach on your own. By correcting form and technique a personal trainer can also ensure that you exercise safe and effectively. There are lots of personal trainers out there, that's why the L.A.H.E.C. interviews different trainers with different philosophies.

Christopher Toscano is a trainer relatively new to the area, but in a short time has already started to create a big splash in health and fitness in Los Angeles. In a few short months he has already started a fundraising campaign for the CCFA (Crohn's and Colitis Foundation for America), uploaded a fantastic health and wellness website, and has already begun training tons of clients trying desperately to get fit. We picked his brain a little bit to see what makes Christopher Toscano tick.

LAHEC: You talk about how important it is to educate people on health and wellness. Why do you think it is so necessary that we all have knowledge of this?

Chris: Having a general idea of how the body works is very important. I think a lot of us arejust not in touch with our bodies enough to even know how to get fit. As a personal trainer I am answering questions to clients all the time about health and nutrition that should be no brainers. It's not that people are stupid. It's that unless you have gone out of your way to take a nutrition class or take a physiology class then you may be clueless as to how exercise and diet affect your body. I always said they should make nutrition classes mandatory in school so we are forced to learn about the food that we eat.

LAHEC: You've said before that the fitness industry are some of the biggest liars in the world.

Chris: The fitness industry is trying to make money just like any other business. If they have to bend the truth a little at the expense of selling their product then they'll do it. I actually don't blame the consumer. Just turn on a TV infomercial some time. There are so many different magical weight loss pills, super secret diets, and abdominal blasting exercise equipment out there that don't actually work. The problem is these commercials lie to us and tell us that with this stuff we will get the body we have always wanted, when in actuality the products they are selling us are based on lies anyway.

LAHEC: Tell us about the work you are doing with the CCFA

Chris: The CCFA is a really amazing charity. They are raising awareness for a truly serious health condition. People living with Crohn's, Colitis, have not had a real foundation to back them until now. As a result, people aren't likely to give to a charity if they don't know what Crohn's disease is. I myself have friends and family who suffer from Crohn's. I have also met many people who also live with the condition every day of their life. It can be very rough. I am running a half marathon to help raise money and awareness for Crohn's and Colitis research. Hopefully we will be able to find a cure for a disease that affects over 2 million Americans. You can donate to my fundraising page here.

LAHEC: You recently published dynastyfitness.com.

Chris: Yes! dynastyfitness.com is a health and wellness website. I started this site because I wanted to be able to reach out to as many people as possible in order to educate them on health and fitness. Dynasty Fitness will have thousands of pics videos, articles, recipes, and more. I want to cover every aspect of fitness and nutrition. My goal is to have it all represented on this site.

LAHEC: What do you tell your clients who want to lose the weight, but have failed in the past?

Chris: Anyone can lose weight! It's not hard. We tend to overcomplicate weight loss. It's not as hard as it sounds. All you have to do is burn more calories than you consume on a daily basis. This can be accomplished with exercise and nutrition. Working with a trainer can really help you hit your weight loss goals!

Healthy West LA Restaurants

Let's face it. It's hard to eat at a restaurant and eat healthy at the same time. Counting all the calories you'll be packing in is enough to make some health conscious people never want to enjoy a meal out again. But there is hope! Right here in Los Angeles there are plenty of places you can go out for a bite, a snack, or even a frozen treat, and not have to worry about a total caloric overload. Here are some of the L.A.H.E.C.'s favorite West LA eateries.

1) California Fresh

Located on Westwood blvd. and La Grange Ave.

This little restaurants offers quick service and delicious healthy food. With a flat screen TV and your meals delivered quickly, California Fresh is the healthiest family friendly restaurant in West LA. Kids and parents have a wide variety of food to choose from off of the menu. Mom and Dad may enjoy salads or a chicken dinner, while junior can sink his teeth into a (very) thin crust pizza. Take advantage of their combos and eat healthy for the price of a double western combo at Carl's Junior. The salads are delicious, but our reccomendation is the spicy fish. For a quick, healthy, cheap meal, California Fresh Can't be beat.

California Fresh has cheap delicious food at a great price

2) Fro Play

Located on the corner of Santa Monica and Colby

Looking for a delicious desert, but don't want the extra calories that come with most frozen treats. If you haven't got on board the frozen yogurt train yet it's time to start and there's not a better place to go than Fro Play, right off of Santa Monica blvd. Frozen Yogurt is low calorie, (mostly) fat free, and can come in a variety of different flavors. Speaking of flavors, try the cake batter at Fro Play. you will feel like you are cheating on your diet even though you aren't. Top off your yogurt with some fresh fruit toppings for even more healthy goodness! With frozen Yogurt and Fro Play, who needs Ben and Jerry!

Fro Play has a variety of flavors and toppings.

3) Native Foods

Located in Westwood

Native Foods has a wonderful track record and a great history. It was founded 15 years ago by famous Chef Tanya Petrovana. This restaurant describes itself as organic/vegan/ vegetarian. But don't worry there's plenty of food to order for you meat lovers as well. Try the Tijuana Tacos and you won't be disappointed. At Native foods you know you will be ordering off of a menu created by a famous chef and eating healthy food at an affordable price!

Even vegans can eat like men! Try the Malibu Veggie Burger at Native Foods

These three healthy eateries will have you coming back for seconds and even thirds. The bad news is you may become addicted to eating out. The good news? It's all healthy and all affordable so Enjoy!

Best Free Workout Spots near West LA

Lets face it spring is almost here! That means summer is right around the corner. If you live in Los Angeles you know that the weather during this time a year is fantastic. So who wants to be cooped up in some stuffy gym for a workout when the sun is shining as bright as it does every year around this time?! The answer is nobody. That's why the Los Angeles Health and Exercise Club is bringing to you the top places in and near West LA to workout. Enjoy.

1: Drake Stadium (UCLA)

The historic Drake Stadium at UCLA is not only the home of the Bruin track team, but a fantastic place to train and workout. With a quarter mile track, huge field, 84 stadium stairs, 3 foot plyo box , monkey bars, multiple pull-up bars, rings, and a 20 foot tall rope climb, Drake stadium has everything an avid outdoor workout fiend craves. Cardio circuits are run very effectively here.

Try this workout when your there:

1. run 1 lap
2. do 20 pushups
3. run 1 lap
4. do 30 squats
5. 1 run lap
6. do 40 situps
7. run up and down the stadium staris 5 times.

2. Muscle Beach (Venice)

Yes, you do have to pay to workout at muscle beach. It is a gym just like any 24 Hour Fitness or Bally's. But right behind the gym itself is a "playground" complete with rings pull-up bars and dip bars that is open for anyone to use. Not only that, but miles of beach to run on. Running in sand is not only less impact for your body to absorb, but it will also recruit more muscles in your glutes, calves, quads, and hamstrings, and help you shape those trouble spots.

3. Stoner park (West Los Angeles)

Whether you want to play a pick up game of basketball, shred it up at the (almost finished) skate park, or just want your kid to get some exercise at the beautiful playground area, Stoner park is a great place for the whole family to enjoy living a healthy lifestyle. Stoner park also offers an awesome pool for those hot summer days! Is your kid to young for public pools? That's ok! Stoner Park also has a wet and wild playground for your little ones! Try taking Fido by in the evenings to let him run around off the leash. This dog friendly park is a perfectly safe environment for your pooch. If that was all this park had it would be enough, but with tennis courts, baseball diamonds, and a HUGE field that frequently hosts boot camps, Stoner Park is the park with a little something for everyone in L.A.

Los Angeles has many great exercise locals on the West side, where fitness enthusiasts can come, get healthy, get fit, and not have to open their wallets. Keep reading The Los Angeles Health and Exercise Club blog and check us out on twitter for more info on everything that is fitness in L.A.

The LAHEC is Online!

Thats right! Los Angeles' newest non profit health and fitness organization is now online. Get tons of fitness news, nutrition advice, free boot camps and much, much, more from some of the top health and fitness professionals in Los Angeles today. Plus you will receive coupons for health and exercise related businesses around LA.

The L.A.H.E.C. is a great way to get in shape and stay fit.