All posts by rnagy

RPR- Reflexive Performance Reset

Uncategorized

 

About a month ago, Casey, Lindsey and I attended a clinic in Columbus on Reflexive Performance Reset (or RPR): a system meant to help increase performance and decrease unnecessary injuries during sports and training using a variety of “wake-up drills” for your nervous system. Sounds great right? To be honest, after a little research, I was hesitant: when you watch video of the drills being performed, it seems like nothing short of voodoo. You’ll see people rubbing the back of their head, digging thumbs into their stomach, and karate chopping their inner thighs (so if you see Casey scratching his rib cage in the corner a little more aggressively than usual, that’s a wake up drill).

 

The system was designed, in part, by JL Holdsworth. JL is a long time member of EliteFTS and has been one of Casey’s friends and mentors over the last five years. JL was a world powerlifting champion and is currently running two gyms in Columbus OH (The Spot Athletics). So if anyone knows about performance AND stress, it’s him. Taken from the RPR website: You are under constant stress, which is interpreted as survival mode by your body. When in survival mode your body utilizes harmful compensation patterns which can lead to injury.  RPR® resets the body out of survival mode and into performance mode.

 

The guys behind RPR have been at this long enough to understand the initial skepticism, so we started the training with a simple anti-rotational test which they designed as buy-in for new RPR users. Everyone in the seminar was paired up with someone of a similar strength/build and we were instructed to try to knock our partner off balance by rotating one shoulder towards us while pushing the other away. This might sound easy, but even with the little resistance that my partner applied, I wasn’t able to keep the starting position (and I like to think I’m pretty strong). My first thought was that my core wasn’t strong enough: the first thing I am doing when I get home is planks every day. But what happened next confused me as my partner rubbed the muscles along my spine (erectors to be scientific) and then pounded on them with the end of his palm, like an aggressive, angry massage (percussion in RPR terms). This was my first experience with a wake-up drill. After this drill, we retested and I was able to resist my partner even after he applied more resistance. Needless to say, I was sold.

 

Through the rest of the seminar we learned more of these wake-up drills, moving from a group of drills meant for your core and out to more specific muscle groups and body parts. First we would learn the basics of the drill, then we would take a pre-drill measurement of performance, then we would execute the drill and finally, do a retest of our performance. Each and every time, my performance increased. Now the test that really hooked me was based on hip flexion. I have always had poor hip flexion, which I assumed was due to my glutes not activating. During our RPR training, I learned a more accurate way to think about my problem: my glutes were firing, but the timing in which my glutes fired was out of whack. This poor timing of my glutes firing actually lead to a serious non-contact injury. My hip flexion went from about 2 inches off the ground to about 4-5 inches off the ground. To be honest, my glute almost cramped since my body was not used to having to fire that much! Even though these still feel a little like voodoo, I can’t deny that the drills work.

 

 

While I don’t know every detail of the science behind RPR, I’ll lay out some of what I do know. RPR is designed to switch the timing in which muscles activate during certain exercises. This is the case when you are in hip extension, which is our most basic and most important movement pattern. You need to extend your hips every time you take a step or stand up from a chair. If you’re doing hip extension incorrectly, you’re creating poor motor patterns that will follow you into the gym. And if you do things incorrectly for long enough, you’ll end up with some severe dysfunction in the later stages of life. The gist of it is that the glutes should be the first muscle group to fire when we extend our hips, but unfortunately for many people, including me, that’s not the case. When the glutes don’t fire first, either our hamstrings or our contralateral quadratus lumborum (QL) deep in our abs, need to take over. Our body will always find a way to compensate for poor muscle firing, but eventually that can cause injury and subpar performance. The wake up drills we learned are intense enough that they cause a forceful reset (hence the name) of our nervous system, allowing us to retrain the body to fire the right muscles in the correct order.

 

Some of you may have noticed a new addition to our #powerful warm-ups: belly breathing or superman breaths. This is the most fundamental wake up drill used in RPR, and conveniently one of the easiest for us to implement. Most of us are “chest breathers,” meaning that we use the muscles around their upper chest to help inhale. This is not the most efficient way to breathe, and is often caused by chronic stress throughout our lives. When it comes down to it, your body can’t tell the difference between running from a lion and having a fight with your significant other – the stress reaction is the same. The belly breathing wake up drill helps reset our diaphragm to perform more deep breaths, which calm us down, help us focus on the task at hand, bring more oxygen into our bodies, and ultimately perform better. Of course we’re already having you do them!

 

We will be implementing even more of these drills in our warm-ups soon. We’re excited to get the rest of our staff together for a big RPR training this upcoming weekend! If you’re interested in how these drills can better improve your performance and overall daily activities in your life, come check out our #powerful class. We’ll get you breathing right and lifting heavy.

Building a Healthy Relationship with Food: A Work in Constant Progress

Fitness, Nutrition

When Alison suggested I write this particular blog post, I laughed.

 

My first thought: no one could possibly be less qualified to write about having a healthy relationship with eating than me. But after we talked about it, I agreed. I’ve struggled with my eating habits and thought processes around food for a very long time and in those struggles I’ve learned a lot. If nothing else, I’ve definitely read just about every article on the internet on about nutrition at least 3 times, so worst case scenario I could regurgitate some of that information and be done with it.

 

Then it came time to actually write the article, and I procrastinated. In fact, I put off writing this until the day before it was due. The topic brought up a lot of anxiety and fear that I’d hoped were behind me. I felt uncomfortable with the idea of sharing my disordered history, and more uncomfortable with the fact that I’d have to openly admit that I’m not healed yet. However, I have made progress that I’m really proud of. None of us are perfect and I think it’s important that every person who comes through the gym knows and feels that. So I’m going to share some of my history, some of the things I’ve done wrong (very wrong), and some of the things that have really helped repair my relationship with food and eating.

 

An unhealthy relationship with food can permeate your entire life. I understand.  I wish that no one else had to deal with these issues, but I know for certain that many of you do. I really hope you can learn from some of my past mistakes and take the positive steps I’ll outline to heart.

 

How I got to this point

 

I’ll put this bluntly: I was diagnosed with non-purging Bulimia Nervosa in 2015. I’d been struggling with it for about 10 years at that point, but hit a breaking point that I couldn’t come back from alone.

 

My poor relationship with food started at a young age. I went through puberty early and was bigger than most of the other girls in my grade. I was super active with soccer, track, cheerleading (I know). I was usually on 4-5 different teams and at 1-2 practices every night. In response, my appetite knew no bounds. I could put away food, and I did. And at some point, a comment about my “thunder thighs” took root. I knew how I wanted to look: dainty and thin. Thunder thighs do not fit that image.

 

I remember my first diet: I was 12 and had a friend steal Weight Watchers materials from her mom so I could follow them. A pattern emerged pretty quickly: I’d follow that diet, eating as little as I could stand, and then one night I’d be so hungry I couldn’t sleep and I would eat EVERYTHING: a gallon of ice cream, and entire family size bag of chips, straight Cool Whip. If it was edible and readily available, it was going in my mouth. I’d wake up guilty the next day and did what I perceived to be the only logical response: I’d fast until I couldn’t anymore and try to burn off the extra calories by running extra miles.

 

Things progressively got worse through high school and college. There were ups and downs (in weight and mental health), but the pattern stayed: restriction, binge, fast and run.

 

I got into lifting when I was 22, in an unhealthy relationship, and needed something to help me feel strong and able. It worked: I got stronger, left that relationship, and found out I wasn’t too bad at lifting. Over the next few years, I got more and more serious and naturally decided it was time to dial in my nutrition. My goal body was a little different now: still thin, but muscular and lean. My binge/purge patterns were still there though, so I had to find a new way to compensate while still eating enough to get stronger.

 

I found a coach who specialized in concurrent endurance racing and powerlifting training, who also worked with a nutritionist. I thrive on order and planning, so I felt this was perfect for me. I knew if someone else was telling me how to eat and how to train, I wouldn’t let them down and I’d finally reach my goal body, and by extension, my goal life. I spent weeks justifying the reasoning to my boyfriend, who was rightly skeptical.

 

By all accounts, I did incredibly well on this system: I PRed my half marathon, my deadlift and bench progressed, and I successfully rehabbed a hip injury. Most importantly, my weight and body fat went WAY down. I went from around 142lbs to 122lbs in several months. I should have felt amazing, accomplished, disciplined. Instead, I somehow felt fat. I stopped going out socially because I couldn’t fit any restaurant foods into my diet, because then it wouldn’t be perfect. I couldn’t handle not being perfect.

 

Then it went off the rails on a family vacation. I was still slowly losing fat but eating a good amount: around 2600 calories per day. The problem came as soon as I let myself eat something “off-plan:” a single restaurant meal that included the most amazing flourless chocolate cake I’d ever had. I lost it after that. All of my binging behavior came back with a vengeance and I could not stop eating. It continued after coming home. I stopped going to work because I was so ashamed of myself. I was always somewhere between binging on thousands of calories at at time or fasting. I was eventually convinced me to seek help. This was one of the darkest times of my life.

 

Three years later, here I am, still lifting, up in weight, not healed, but substantially healthier. How?

 

Where I went wrong

 

If I could go back, I would change a lot of how I handled my disordered eating.

 

I would have talked about it and gotten help sooner.

I tried to hide my eating from everyone around me, which is a classic symptom of all binge eating disorders. I know that now. I was also really good at finding the other sick people around me in order to feel validated. I wish I would have put that pattern together when I was younger. Additionally, even after getting diagnosed, I opted out of some treatment options that probably would have really benefitted me. I can see now how seriously this disorder affected me, but in the moment I just talked it down. “This isn’t that bad, anorexics have it worse. Inpatient treatment is for teenage girls that are dying, not for 25 year olds that can’t stop eating.” That’s some bullshit. Those treatments are available for everyone for a reason (and there are lots of support groups aimed specifically at post-college age women and young professionals that I didn’t find until much later). Take advantage of them.

 

I always needed to be perfect.

This is probably the core of my issues, and I suspect the same goes for a lot of the people I see struggling around me. A lot of things came easy for me early in life: school, sports, friendships. I picked up a thinking pattern that goes like this: If I’m not immediately really good at something, it means I am incapable of doing that thing. This has affected me in every aspect of my life. Saddest example: I wanted to be an architect, but convinced myself that since math wasn’t immediately as easy as some of my other subjects, I just wasn’t cut out for it. I let my childhood dream die in an instant because of that black and white pattern of thinking.

 

I assumed that at some point, the work would be over I would be fixed.

Did you catch that up there? I’m still not healed. I recognize now that there will never be a time where I can just “relax” because I’m 100% recovered with no chance of relapse. That is not a thing. In my last blog I talked about self-care as that hard work and those hard decisions we have to make if we actually want to take care of ourselves. For me, this is it. I need therapy, I need journaling. I hate doing those things because they make me feel sick, but the truth is I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been (both physically and mentally) BECAUSE I do those things that are hard. I will always have to work at this and that is okay.

 

What I’m doing right (and you should do too)

 

So what’s changed in three years since getting the official diagnosis?

 

I finally got professional help.

You hire a professional to reach your fitness and health goals right? So why not hire a professional to reach your mental health goals? I’m on my fourth therapist now and she is a gem. It was hard finding a good fit and took about 2 years. It’s worth it. Half the time we don’t even talk about food, because half the time my disorder has absolutely nothing to do with food! The best part of therapy for me is the work we do on battling that black and white thinking I talked about above. Everyone that knows me well has heard me harp on about how therapy is useful for everyone, and I’m gonna spout that here too. You don’t need to have a diagnosed disorder to go to therapy. We all have faulty thinking patterns, and we all have the ability to retrain those patterns to be more helpful. A good therapist is key in making those changes.

 

I’m surrounded by people that support me without enabling me.

I mentioned above that I’ve always found other disordered people to make me feel more normal. I’m not doing that anymore. My family here at UF in particular have been a huge driving force in my recovery because they keep me accountable. When my therapist gives me homework, I know I can go to them for some additional motivation. Just like we remind Alison that she’s growing a tiny human right now, my coworkers need to remind me that yes, I do need to eat even if I’m not training that day.

 

When I was ready, I had to start going out of my comfort zone.

In the thick of it, my life was as follows: wake up at 3:30am, train from 4am to 6:30am, shower, work from 8:30am to 6pm or later, train again or go to class until 8 or 9pm, in bed by 9:30 or 10pm. There was no room for a social life, there was no room for real friendship, and there was certainly no room for food I didn’t make myself. After months of therapy, I was able to get used to eating out again. It was painful, there were a lot of tears, but I did it. Now I’m happy to say that I can eat foods that were even previously “danger foods” with some regularity. Do I sometimes lose it a little bit and binge? Yes I do. Like I said, it’s a work in progress. But those episodes are FAR less frequent, and my response to them has gone from some kind of fasting or over exercising to breathing techniques and mentally refocusing. My body is better for it because I’m not constantly breaking it down. I’m injured less and therefore a better athlete.

 

I got back in touch with how my body is feeling

A major theme of my disorder has been ignoring every hunger and fullness cue my body was sending me. At first I’d be ignoring my hunger until I got too desperate and then eating far beyond fullness, and then eating to a pre-set schedule no matter how hungry or not hungry I was. While I do still track most of what I eat and eat with a purpose, I spend a little more time trying to parse what my body is telling me. Example: last night after finishing my last meal I was still hungry. I ate half a Clif bar and then I was full, so I just didn’t eat the rest. I never leave food unfinished! This is the constant little progress I’m looking for.

 

I’m striving to let go of my “goal body”

Because really, that “goal body” has always been code for control. If I could just make my body look the way I wanted it to look, I could therefore make my life look the way I wanted it to look. Instead, I’m doing the hard things that actually affect my life. I left my old job that I hated to come to UF and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’m keeping up with therapy despite it being hard and I’m consistently getting a little bit better. I’m not weighing myself as much and I spend a lot of time seeking out women on social media that are strong as shit but not fitness models as a reminder that I don’t have to be super tiny or super lean to be strong and capable. My goal body now is a body that can deadlift 400lbs (soon), that can run 10 miles, and that supports me in my non-fitness goals of being good to the people around me and helpful in every way that I can. And you know what, it’s succeeding. And I’m proud of myself for getting to a point where I can say that.

Training During Pregnancy

Fitness, Training

 

When I was newly pregnant with Asha and Alina, before I actually confirmed I was having twins, I told my suspicion of having twins to one of my sisters.  To this day, I remember verbatim what she said to me.  With a look of utter shock (and maybe some pity) she said to me, “If you’re having twins, you might as well jump out of a window now”.  The very next day, I found out I was indeed having twins.

 

Now you might be thinking of how that was such a terrible thing for my sister to say to me.  However, after the twins were born, and I wanted to actually jump out of a window, I was extremely grateful for both of my sisters’ honest, no bullshit approach to sharing mothering, pregnant, birthing & general parenting information. They have, and will always be, my go to resource for no sugar coating advice and information.

 

And now it is my turn to share the no-sugar-coating-no-bullshit-approach to my experience with training during pregnancy.

 

It’s no longer a secret (and if you’ve seen me around the gym recently, certainly no surprise) that I’m pregnant with my third baby.  I’d love nothing more than to say that pregnancy is beautiful and filled with joy.  But it can be hard to remain joyful when your body aches, you begin to sleep less and can’t stop thinking about ice cream. (Ok, maybe that last one is pretty joyful and beautiful!)

 

The little feminist voice in my head reminds me that, yes, pregnancy can certainly be beautiful but my training has certainly suffered as a result. And I’ve spent a lot of time and a lot of vent sessions with my coworkers coming to terms with this fact.  At least daily they have to remind me, quite sternly some times, “YOU’RE GROWING A TINY HUMAN INSIDE OF YOU, ALISON”. So sometimes I opt for a nap instead of an intense training session.  Most times I opt for conservative weights instead of my previous training maxes.  And all of the time, I remain mindful that my main goal is no longer getting stronger or training for an upcoming barbell meet, but rather to maintain my strength and to train for a meet of a different sort: labor and delivery.

 

Most pregnancy training blogs talk about things like: Sticking to low impact exercises, how prenatal yoga is the best form of exercise during pregnancy, not to lift heavy weights, not to lie on your back, and how to generally (in my opinion) let pregnancy take over your life.

 

But this is Union Fitness and we don’t know how to be average (and/or normal). So here is my personal experience on training during pregnancy:

 

  1. I’m pregnant not broken/incapacitated/dead!

No, I don’t need those special parking spots for expectant mothers. No, I don’t need you to carry the heavy boxes for me. Yes, I may walk a little slower than usual, but I could probably still crush you in a Cardio Lab class. Yes, I may lift less than usual, but my form is spot on and I feel great!

 

  1. I’m cautious but not scared!

So I’m a little more cautious about certain movements but not fearful of anything that I did previously to getting pregnant.  I still back squat, deadlift, snatch, bench, clean & jerk and basically every other lift/movement I did when I was sans fetus.  Being cautious doesn’t have to automatically mean eliminating them from my routine. It simply just means I pay more attention to how I’m feeling and how I may need to adjust my position or the weights.

 

  1. I still lay on my back (GASP!)

There are so many myths floating around out there about training during pregnancy and the “no laying on your back” rule is one of them.  Pretty much the only hard and fast rule about pregnancy that I follow is “listen to your body”.

 

  1. I deal with tons of body image issues

I don’t want to speak for all pregnant women out there but I imagine a lot of women deal with some sort of body image issue at some point during their pregnancy.  As a coach and competitive athlete, it’s difficult to see the scale climb each week.  Even with the knowledge that this is healthy and what’s best, it’s hard for me to watch the growing belly and increased body fat.  It’s a little bit of cognitive dissonance. This is where the help of my loving coworkers screaming, “YOU’RE GROWING A TINY HUMAN INSIDE OF YOU, ALISON” definitely comes in handy.  It’s helpful to have constant reminders that this state is temporary and normal and healthy.

 

  1. Yoga sucks

At least it does for me personally in this stage of my pregnancy. (I’m in no way advocating that yoga actually sucks. You should really go do some yoga right now. Seriously, stop what you’re doing and go to a yoga class!)  I’ve dealt with some SI joint issues this pregnancy and the stretching involved with yoga actually makes it feel worse, so I’ve completely cut it from my training regimen. Most, if not all, pregnancy training blogs advise doing prenatal yoga as the best form of exercise during pregnancy. The one size fits all approach is antiquated at best.  Any time I’m in doubt, I ask my midwives or consult the fitness experts (read: my coworkers).

 

  1. There’s so much pee

It’s not just the fact that I have to pee every 15 minutes during the day or even the fact that I wake up approximately 5 times every night to pee. That I can deal with.  But there’s definitely nothing beautiful or graceful about peeing your pants mid deadlift, mid jumping jack or mid sneeze, is there?!? While this is a common occurrence with pregnancy and women that have had children in general, it’s not normal.  I’ve realized I have to take some of my previous training time to start to strengthen my pelvic floor.  This means extra time with belly breathing exercises and kegels when I’d rather be squatting heavy. The things we do for our kids!

  1. I can still set PR’s!

One of my goals this pregnancy, like I mentioned before, is to just maintain my strength. But that doesn’t mean I’ve been shying away from adding on the plates when it feels good.  In fact just this month I’ve managed to set a personal record for my bench press and my overhead press! At the same time, I acknowledge my limitations. I know my lower body lifts are more challenging right now because of my decreased ability to brace my core properly. So I accept the fact that I bench press as much as I squat right now.  But a PR, at anytime, feels great!

 

  1. My endurance, strength, stamina and balance have all taken a huge hit

It can be huge pill to swallow when things that were previously easy for you become challenging.  But I’ve never been one to back down from a challenge! I see this time as an opportunity to learn new things.  Because of my ever-increasing belly, it’s become impossible to deadlift conventional style.  So I started learning how to pull sumo style.  Admittedly, this has never been my forte but with the patient guiding of Coach Lindsey, Coach Ryan and Coach Casey, I’ve been learning the ins and outs of this style. Dare I say I even enjoy it?!

 

 

Pregnancy does not have to be a time where you accept your fate of growing big and slow. Naturally, every pregnancy and every woman is different and obviously I encourage anyone that is pregnant, trying to get pregnant or recovering from pregnancy to consult with their doctor or midwife before training or starting a new training program.

 

I have about 10 weeks give or take left in this pregnancy and I’m excited for whatever obstacles and/or surprises come up in my training program until the birth of this baby.  For now, I relish in the fact that I (mostly) feel healthy, fit, fabulous and strong.  And as always, I am ever so thankful for my coworkers and gym family here at Union Fitness for creating such an encouraging and positive environment to be in! Now I’m off to grow this tiny human inside of me and toss around the barbell for a little bit. Cheers!

State of the Union, Fitness

Uncategorized

 

 

We’re going to try something a little different with one of our blogs each month moving forward. You’re going to hear straight from me about what I see and hear every day in our gym. My goal is to make it easily digestible and worth your time. If you find that it is, tell us. If you find that it’s garbage, tell us. We’re just like you- trying to improve at everything we do.

 

 

Our staff at UF has done a tremendous job putting our blogs together to get information across to our members each month. Most of it is what we preach daily to you all. Some of it was fun. Starting in February we went from 8-12 blog posts per month down to one per week. Like we preach in training- quality over quantity. So, if there are things you’re interested in learning more about, email us and we’ll write you your own blog post.

 

 

To keep this coherent, I’m going to use our values at UF to organize this information. That may change over time, but I think this is a great way to start. If you’re interested in reading more about those, click here: https://unionfitness.com/about/

 

 

UF values- EPIC: Education—Passion—Integrity—Community

 

 

Education

Earlier this month our staff took a trip to Columbus for an RPR clinic (Reflexive Performance Reset). Admittedly, I went for selfish reasons. I’m trying to fix my hips because my training has been suffering as a result of some dysfunction. However, my staff jumped at the opportunity to go (spending their own time and money) to help better serve our members with their performance and recovery. The basis of RPR is to use very simple techniques to reset your nervous system, allowing your muscles to do what they were intended to do. Traditional methods- massage and Active Release Therapy (ART) and rehab are all great tools, but they’re focus is limited to the muscle. RPR focuses on the nervous system, which controls the muscle.

 

 

One common application is back pain. We live in a world that our bodies are not designed for (sitting all day, eyes glued to phones or computers, etc). It causes bad compensation patterns including tight hip flexors and tight psoas.  So when you walk in to train, your nervous system keeps your psoas and hip flexors tight because that’s what you’ve taught it to do. I can explain why that leads to back pain but the point is moot because you have back pain and you don’t care why, you just want to fix it. So if you’re seeing some new warm ups in class, it’s a result of this clinic. If you have any questions, please consult one of our coaches.

 

 

Google “psoas” and “hip flexor” for reference.

Read more about RPR here: https://www.reflexiveperformance.com/about/

 

 

Passion

I’m going to try to make this as inclusive as possible, but understand I’m only one set of eyes. And I don’t get to see everyone in the gym each week let alone every day. With that being said, I want to take a moment to acknowledge Piyush Gupta for his commitment and passion in training. He comes in every day and busts his ass, but more importantly, he sticks to his goals outside of the gym. He and I have worked together over the last few months to tailor his training and nutrition. He’s responded really well already adding a few pounds of muscle in such a short time period. He understands that this is a process and there are no short cuts and for that I admire his work ethic. So thank you, Piyush, for you passion.

 

 

Integrity

There are two definitions of integrity. (1) the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles and (2) the state of being whole and undivided. Both apply to Union Fitness. We try to uphold honesty and integrity through our everyday interactions with our members. You and your experiences in our facility #1 and #2 priorities for us. Without you, there’s no us. Which leads me to the second definition- wholeness or oneness. I want to take a moment to publicly commend Coach Ali and Coach Lindsey. They’ve both poured themselves into coaching over the last year, but specifically empowering the women of Union Fitness. They’ve created a wholeness in our community that welcomes women of all backgrounds and ability levels. Through their hard work and our members’ trust, they’ve strengthened the integrity of our community at Union Fitness.

 

 

Community

Last but not least, I think this might be my favorite part of Union Fitness. So let me publicly thank you all for your contributions to our community. This is the first facility that I’ve managed, but I’ve been to every size and style gym across Pittsburgh, Columbus, and Austin. Very rarely do I have to stop someone from doing something dangerous or disruptive. More often than not I see members in both the Fitness Center and Strength Lab supporting each other and that means the world to me. It’s hard enough to get to the gym some days. Having a friend, training partner, coach, or even an acquaintance can make this process easier. Stay accountable to yourself, but lean on this community that YOU ALL have built to hold yourselves accountable.

 

 

Casey, Manager Union Fitness

February Member of the Month: Terry Wiezorek

Uncategorized

 

 

Congratulations to our February Member of the Month: Terry Wiezorek!

 

Terry is only a couple months shy away from her one year anniversary with us here at Union and she has worked hard to earn this title. She joined last May with the intentions of becoming a better runner but started taking classes and fell in love with our #powerful class. Now she’s a lifter extraordinaire!  Add to that list: Supermom, Yogi and Metcon Crusher.

 

She’s a star student— always willing to learn and try new things and she’s our ring leader morning class goer.  Terry is the glue that holds our classes together in the mornings, always welcoming to new members and bonds together the regulars. Everyone knows or recognizes Terry. Everyone.

 

Her hard work is continually paying off with a new PR on the board almost every few weeks, constant muscle growth and increased endurance.  As if keeping up with her busy family isn’t enough, she balances everything out with yoga sessions three times a week.

 

She’s recruited her husband to step outside his comfort zone and take some Personal Training sessions with Coach Ryan and sweat it out in the Cardio Lab classes with Coach Lindsey. The pair can often be seen downward dogging together in Jocelyn’s Friday Happy Hour Yoga class #relationshipgoals

 

 

We are so thankful to our members, like Terry, that give so much meaning to what we do everyday.  She embodies the spirit and purpose of Union Fitness.  We can’t wait to see where this journey takes her!

How Much Cardio Do You Really Need

Fitness, Training

 

Cardio for most people is the least exciting thing next to watching infomercials. But it is important for everyone in some way. Now not everyone needs to be training like an ultra-marathon runner but some should be incorporated into your fitness routine.  When determining how much cardio, or aerobic exercise you need, first you need to establish what your goals are. The amount of aerobic exercise you need vastly changes depending on the goal. For example someone that wants to become a world class powerlifter will not need as much aerobic work as someone that is preparing for a marathon. So first, determine your goal.

 

 

But first, let’s define “aerobic”…relating to or denoting exercise that improves or is intended to improve the efficiency of the body’s cardiovascular system in absorbing and transporting oxygen. In simpler terms, aerobic exercise raises your heart rate and requires your body to use more oxygen. The benefits of aerobic exercise include reducing your resting heart rate (meaning while you’re not exercising) and lowering blood pressure. Both have significant impact on long term health (“Aerobic Exercise Directory”).

 

 

Now you are probably wondering where do I start or HOW MUCH DO I NEED? The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity each week (“ACSM Issues New Recommendations”). ASCM defines moderate exercise as 50-70% of your Maximum Heart rate (“Target Heart Rate and Estimated Maximum Heart Rate”, 2015). The calculation to find your Maximum Heart Rate is simple- subtract your age from 220. As convenient as the heart rate equation is there is a much simpler way- the talking test. If you can talk comfortably with your friend or trainer during any aerobic exercise you are below that moderate zone and thus not working toward increasing your aerobic capacity.

 

 

A very common misconception is that more aerobic work equals fat loss. This is not the case. Yes, aerobic work can supplement weight loss, but so can any type of activity. The best weapon against the battle for fat loss is muscle. Think about it in these terms- if the goal is to lose fat and KEEP IT OFF then what you’re ultimately looking to do is increase your resting metabolic rate. Resting metabolic rate is the amount of energy that your body requires to stay alive. What I mean by staying alive is literally sitting on the couch watching TV. Wouldn’t it be great if you could burn calories while sitting on the couch watching your favorite movie? Sounds too good to be true? In fact, it’s not, but it takes time. A combination of strength training and cardio is really the ultimate combination to change your body composition and overall health. What is the easiest way to get started? Talk to our coaches about a plan. The Strength Lab and the Cardio Lab were designed with these principles in mind.

 

Now for all you cardio haters… I know you put cardio last on your list of training priorities, especially those of you that love lifting weights. But here’s a “life hack” that may change your mind. Aerobic exercise can increase your capillary density in your muscle (“Muscle Adaptations to Aerobic Training”). This increase in capillary density can help deliver more oxygen and nutrients to your muscles for fuller recovery from those long squat sessions. This doesn’t require 30+ minute cardio sessions. 10-15 minutes on the treadmill at a brisk pace (remember our moderate zone) or some weighted carries or prowler pushes. These workouts can be relatively short with the focus being recovery rather than building a huge aerobic base. Ultimately, however, your aerobic base determines your work capacity and ability to recovery between sessions. So, if you like lifting weights, and you want to do it more often without being as sore or fatigued, then some purposeful cardio will help.

 

 

Remember, these are just the basics. If you’re in a routine but don’t seem to be making progress, then assess your training and invert it. If you’re doing 3-5 hours of cardio and 1-2 hours of strength training, do the opposite for 2-3 months and see if you notice any changes. Otherwise, consult our coaches and we’ll walk you through a plan using the classes in the Strength and Cardio Labs.

Mindfulness: Inside the Gym and Out

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We are all, I’m sure, far too familiar with stress.  It’s a part of everyone’s daily life (yep, you too!)  From work deadlines, caring for children, dealing with school delays or trying to understand recent school shooting tragedies, and everything else ranging in between moderately annoying to completely infuriating. How can we even begin to mitigate the damaging effects of these constant stressors?

 

My personal life has become so jam packed with these icky, permeating, suffocating stressors that I’ve found myself desperately searching for some kind of relief from it. So I work out.  I feel better momentarily and then it creeps back in.  So I work out again. It works and I find some instant relief, albeit brief.  So I try again, I test out a new Cardio Lab workout and let the sweat (and maybe a little swearing) cleanse me.  By the end of the day, I’ve worked out three times and yet the weight of the stress still sits heavily on my chest.

 

I continued to run my body into the ground to avoid the black hole of emotional stress inside my brain.  Until someone reminded me that I have the most powerful tool available out there to combat stress: a mindfulness practice.

 

As a yoga teacher, you’d think I’d have this whole mindfulness thing down by now and know better when I needed to whip it out like a strong, sparkling mind/body shield. Except the thing is, I found myself only practicing mindfulness when I was inside the yoga studio.  And with a growing pregnant body, a full time job and 6 year old twin tornadoes to raise, I found myself practicing less and less. I began to feel like a fraud yoga teacher, preaching one thing in my classes while my personal life was crumbling.

 

So I’ve slowly started implementing my mindfulness practice again, one step at a time, inside the gym and out:

 

Step 1: Breathe

As lifters, we know breath is the most important aspect of any lift. Yet sometimes  we forget that it is the most important aspect of anything. I began to try to  harness the power of breath control. When I feel overwhelmed, I take deep breathes to a count of five and exhales to a count of five.  Even after just one round, I can feel the calming effects.

 

Step 2: Practice gratitude

It is so easy to let this one fall to the way side when stress feels suffocating. Inside the gym I have begun to remind myself that I am grateful for just being here. I am grateful for my health, strong muscles and resilient body. I am grateful to be surrounded by a supportive community of fellow friends and lifters.  Outside of the gym, my gratitudes are much the same. I am grateful for just being here, for beautiful, healthy children and a supportive family.  Honestly, once the list starts flowing it amazes me how never-ending it seems. For that, I am thankful.

 

Step 3: Turn off my phone

Admittedly, this one is challenging for me.  I clutch to my phone at times like it is a cherished child. Ridiculous. So, starting small, I turn off my phone during my training sessions and begin Step 4.

 

Step 4: Turn a routine task into a mindful moment

Although you can use this technique in simple daily tasks like showering or washing the dishes, I’ve been trying this with lifting sessions.  I use all my senses and try to focus on the experience. Try it yourself: How does the chalk feel on your fingers and on the barbell? How does the air around you smell? What does the bar feel like in your hands? Notice what happens to your breath, your body and your muscles before and after you complete a lift? Listen for the multitudes of sounds surrounding you.  Close your eyes, what do you see? Open your eyes, what do you see?

 

Step 5: Remember mindfulness means simply being present

When frustrations naturally set it, when the doubts all come creeping back and when the stress is angrily knocking on my door again I try to remind myself that mindfulness simply means being present.  It doesn’t need any fancy gimmicks or fancy meditation classes or any twisting contortions of yoga poses.  It can simply mean taking a moment to hug my child or a simple moment of silence.

 

 

So, yes, the stressors are still there. They are still just as jam packed and just as icky. But there is a breaking in those dark clouds now.  And yes, working out is a great way to combat stress but it is not a cure-all. In fact, in my case it was just a Band-Aid and a momentary endorphin boost.  To reap the full benefits of it, I needed to pair it with my powerful tool of mindfulness, both inside the gym and out.

Let’s Talk About Self-Care

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Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and if I’m being totally honest, it’s not my favorite holiday. So instead of writing about workouts you can do with your boyfriend or whatever, I’d like to focus on loving and caring for the most important person in your life, who you probably neglect especially around this time of year: you.

 

I want to talk about self-care today.

 

This is a topic I know that I struggle with, and from my interactions with our members, I’d guess many of you do too. I find it so easy to pour myself into helping other people – at work, at home, at school; family, friends, significant others especially. But I find it incredibly difficult to turn around and care that much about myself. I give and give until there’s nothing left, hit a breaking point where the only thing that helps me recharge is an extended vacation in some beautiful tropical country. Then come home and do it all again. In 2018 I’m trying to cut that cycle short by taking better care of myself so I can take better care of others (without the breakdown). I’ve learned a few things about self-love and self-care so far this year that I’d like to share:

 

What self-care ISN’T

 

When I started this self-care project, I did what every millenial does best and read a million lists on a million clickbaity websites. “Take a hot bath, light a candle, have a spa day, eat some comfort food, buy a whole new wardrobe, go broke at Sephora, drink a glass of wine in front of the fireplace you don’t have and reflect on your beautiful life,” etc. These things are all great if you enjoy them (I unapologetically do), and they can be a form of self-care, but let’s be honest: this is some surface level stuff.

 

It’s EASY to sit in the tub with some candles and drink wine and tell yourself that this right here is the thing that’s going to fix the stress and make everything okay again. It certainly feels good in the moment. But when it’s all done and you’re still laying in bed at night unable to sleep and you don’t know why, I think it’s safe to say that your self-care practice wasn’t really cutting it.

 

What self-care IS

 

No one likes to hear it, but this is the truth: self-care is WORK. Buying new shoes isn’t getting at my real problems – especially if my real problems include paying off my student loans (they do) and better managing my money. I might get some instant gratification out of a new purchase, but that wears off and then I’m back to square one, just with even less money.

 

In a lot of ways, self-care means putting your current whims and wants on hold to focus on the bigger picture. Yes, maybe eating a tub of ice cream would feel awesome right now, and in some circles that would even count as self-care. But if what you really want for yourself is to be a faster runner, is that what you actually need?

 

This version of self-care feels to me more like a parenting relationship than the enabling best friend one I found in those self-care lists. It’s weird to be both the parent and the kid in this relationship, but just roll with it: would I let my kid sleep in and skip class all the time because they didn’t feel up to it that day? Of course not. Care about your future self as much as you care about your hypothetical (or real) child.

 

So here’s my self-care listicle. It’s not as fun as lying in a meadow surrounded by butterflies or whatever, but it’s definitely been more effective than the other things I’ve tried:

 

  • Pay your bills on time. Open that mail even if it makes you anxious. The sooner you get it out of the way, the better you’ll feel.
  • Make those doctor’s appointments you’ve been avoiding.
  • Eat enough food. Make it nutritious. You know what that means.
  • Make smart choices while you’re still at the grocery store. Avoiding ice cream once is easier than avoiding it every day after it’s already in your freezer.
  • Have those hard conversations. Be honest about your feelings. No one can address how you feel if they don’t know.
  • Cardio Lab hurts when it’s happening but clears your head after.
  • Go after your goals. No one can do that for you. Get that first pull-up or a 400lb deadlift. You have to put in the work and that is within your control.
  • Hate your job? Start looking for new ones.
  • Get yourself on a budget. If you don’t know where your money is going, you can’t really save anything can you?
  • Ask for help. A lot of this you can do alone, but not all of it. Lean on the people that love you. They want to be there for you.

 

This kind of self-care is hard. I’m still working on it everyday. Tackling some of the more serious issues in my life is draining and often terrifying, but I know that I’m going to come out on the other side a happier person. And for now, I’m lucky to be surrounded by people that are willing and want to help me get there. I hope you can do the same and consider loving yourself first this Valentine’s Day.

Movement Screening with Mike Allen

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This Monday evening we are excited to welcome Mike Allen, DPT, to Union Fitness. He’ll be offering free functional movement screenings for all members, and we encourage every one of you to take him up on this offer, whether you’re currently experiencing aches and pains, or feel healthy as can be.

 

Mike is the President of Precision Physical Therapy and Performance in the North Hills. He’s an excellent physical therapist with over 11 years of clinical experience. He attended Slippery Rock University for both his undergraduate and graduate degrees, finishing  his Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science in 2003, and his Doctorate of Physical Therapy in 2006.  His post-graduate work includes studies in spinal manipulation through the Spinal Manipulation Institute, Selective Functional Movement Assessment through Functional Movement Systems, and soft tissue treatment through the Institute for Physical Art. He’s also a lifelong athlete: he has played baseball, basketball, competed as a power lifter, and currently practices Brazilian jiu-jitsu. So you know that his advice doesn’t come down to “stop doing the things you love to do.”

 

Why should you get a functional movement screening (FMS)? If you’ve ever experienced low back, shoulder, or hip pain, you probably already know the answer. If not, the key is injury prevention. Mike will assess your movement joint-by-joint, looking for faulty movement patterns that may be putting you at risk of injury. Fixing these fundamental issues will make your day-to-day life more pain-free, AND you’ll find yourself moving more efficiently during your workouts. Can’t go wrong there!

 

Mike will be in house from 4-8pm on Monday, February 5th. We hope to see you all there!

January Member of the Month

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Congratulations to our January Member of the Month: Amy Bistocchi!

 

 

Amy has been with us for a little over 6 months now and her work is really showing (look at those arms)! She jumped right into our Strength Lab offerings and quickly picked up on the big movements we come back to again and again. As of this writing, her best deadlift is a huge 205lbs and will surely continue increasing this year.

 

She also made the jump into working with a registered dietitian after attending a nutrition seminar we hosted last summer. Amy knows how to work hard but also knows how to lead a balanced lifestyle. We can’t begin to explain how excited we were to have a drink with her during our member happy hour over the holidays!

 

Amy is a familiar face here at Union now. She’s always quick to help out newcomers to our women’s #powerful class on Fridays. We can’t wait to keep watching her get stronger and healthier in 2018. Cheers to you Amy! Enjoy a little massage on us.