Hello workout fans!
Starting this week, we're showcasing workouts for particular body parts and/or problem areas that we (and our colleagues) want to target. Up first - Sonya and I ask Gigi Filer to help us blast our thutts. What is a thutt, you ask? "Thutt is a word that has been developed to describe the area where the thigh meets the butt," Gigi says with a grin, "it's your thutt!"
Right off the bat, Gigi wants to make it clear that you cannot "spot train" a specific part of your body. However, it is possible to improve the look of you thutt (or anything else) with hard work in *all areas of your life. "I'm sorry ladies and gentlemen who are trying to lose in that one area," explains Gigi, "you cannot do it without being mindful of what you're putting into your body and how you're fueling it." This isn't earth-shattering news, but we still don't like hearing it. How much food, and what kind of food we're putting in our bodies makes a big difference. Another big component is cardio... if you're not doing enough, all of the sculpting moves in the world won't make a difference in your appearance.
Back to our area of concern - the thutt. We're interested in shrinking it, firming it up and giving it more definition and Gigi says we need to work specific muscles - primarily the glutes, hamstrings and hip extensors. The first exercise takes a basic step-up to the extreme. Lots of risers under a step mean it doesn't take long for us to feel this move right where we want to. It's important to move slow, maintain proper posture and keep momentum out of this move.
Next, Gigi comes at us with kids' toys! Super small moves with plastic balls add up to serious work for the thutt. "It's not a huge range of motion we're looking at here," she says, "it's all about form and targeting those key muscle groups." Those muscles are burning by the time Gigi is done with us and we're realizing that shaping the thutt is no small task.
If you want Gigi to help you get fit - check out her new location downtown at 1312 Locust. You can also call 515-279-0242 or email gigi@gigispilatesstudio.com.
Keep tuning in to "Workout of the Week" in the coming weeks and months - we take our colleagues requests to trainers around the metro and also show you some of our friends' favorite workouts.
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Fitness to your front door!
Hello fitness friends! I'm off this week, but slipping in some time for "Workout of the Week" because I love it (and you) so much. :)
This week's segment is perfect for those of you who find yourselves skipping workouts because you don't have time to go to the gym or you stop the exercise DVD five minutes in because there is no one there to motivate you. Sound familiar? If so - you need to meet John Willer. "I was overweight and I started doing aerobics tapes at home," says John, "then I went to school to be a personal trainer because I wanted to help others and make them feel better." John started his own personal training business - with a twist. "You don't have to leave your house - it saves time," he explains. "You go to the gym, it's 15 minutes there and 15 minutes back and you wait on sweaty equipment... I come to your house and we're done in a half hour."
For us, john visits the station where we have some empty office space - perfect for working out. "A lot of people have resistance bands or exercise balls at home - if you have it I'll use it, but if not it's no big deal." All we need besides our bodies, is a towel and a blanket ... more on that in a minute.
We start with a dynamic warmup - arm circles, knee lifts, hamstring curls - then the hard work begins. Push ups are first, and John has us working in a pyramid format. "So we do five reps first, then ten, then fifteen... then we go down to ten, then five...." And that's the plan we follow for every exercise - plyometric lunges, dead lifts, one legged squats - all using body weight. We use the blanket and towel to create resistance for bicep curls - just loop them underneath one foot and press down! We also do a move John calls "upsie doorsies" - you just grab a door knob or door frame and pull yourself toward it - a great way to work your back!
The first round doing five reps of each exercise flies by, the second round of ten feels rough, by the third we are sweating. It's surprising how much are hearts are thumping without any fancy equipment or heavy weights. And if you want to add more weight to moves like dead lifts of lunges John says just look around the house! "You can grab milk jugs, bags of kitty litter, canned food..." Since we're in an office setting, I snag a phone book and it works pretty well!
We finish the body circuit and John has a surprise for us. "At the end, if you have any juice left... we do a four minute Tabata cycle." We've done this before with lots of different trainers so we know what's coming - twenty seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest. However, we have never done the ab move John calls the "dead bug." We are on our backs with our arms and legs flailing around and we think this should be called the "ugly bug." Regardless, this move is hard and it's causing me pain because of my back injury. John gives me a different move - I flip onto my stomach and do "swimmers" - another great core exercise. We look ridiculous, but before long Sonya's abs are on fire and my back and butt are burning. We're shocked that we've gotten such a great workout in just thirty minutes. "That's probably one of the shortest workouts we've done!" exclaims Sonya. "And hard!" I reply. "Yeah ... who wants to waste time?" asks John. Good question!
If you're interested in having John bring fitness to your front door, check out his website. www.willerprotraining.com. You can also call John at (641)891-0500 or email him at wptraining@live.com.
Thanks for stopping by the blog - remember, we want your workout ideas!!!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
This week's segment is perfect for those of you who find yourselves skipping workouts because you don't have time to go to the gym or you stop the exercise DVD five minutes in because there is no one there to motivate you. Sound familiar? If so - you need to meet John Willer. "I was overweight and I started doing aerobics tapes at home," says John, "then I went to school to be a personal trainer because I wanted to help others and make them feel better." John started his own personal training business - with a twist. "You don't have to leave your house - it saves time," he explains. "You go to the gym, it's 15 minutes there and 15 minutes back and you wait on sweaty equipment... I come to your house and we're done in a half hour."
For us, john visits the station where we have some empty office space - perfect for working out. "A lot of people have resistance bands or exercise balls at home - if you have it I'll use it, but if not it's no big deal." All we need besides our bodies, is a towel and a blanket ... more on that in a minute.
We start with a dynamic warmup - arm circles, knee lifts, hamstring curls - then the hard work begins. Push ups are first, and John has us working in a pyramid format. "So we do five reps first, then ten, then fifteen... then we go down to ten, then five...." And that's the plan we follow for every exercise - plyometric lunges, dead lifts, one legged squats - all using body weight. We use the blanket and towel to create resistance for bicep curls - just loop them underneath one foot and press down! We also do a move John calls "upsie doorsies" - you just grab a door knob or door frame and pull yourself toward it - a great way to work your back!
The first round doing five reps of each exercise flies by, the second round of ten feels rough, by the third we are sweating. It's surprising how much are hearts are thumping without any fancy equipment or heavy weights. And if you want to add more weight to moves like dead lifts of lunges John says just look around the house! "You can grab milk jugs, bags of kitty litter, canned food..." Since we're in an office setting, I snag a phone book and it works pretty well!
We finish the body circuit and John has a surprise for us. "At the end, if you have any juice left... we do a four minute Tabata cycle." We've done this before with lots of different trainers so we know what's coming - twenty seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest. However, we have never done the ab move John calls the "dead bug." We are on our backs with our arms and legs flailing around and we think this should be called the "ugly bug." Regardless, this move is hard and it's causing me pain because of my back injury. John gives me a different move - I flip onto my stomach and do "swimmers" - another great core exercise. We look ridiculous, but before long Sonya's abs are on fire and my back and butt are burning. We're shocked that we've gotten such a great workout in just thirty minutes. "That's probably one of the shortest workouts we've done!" exclaims Sonya. "And hard!" I reply. "Yeah ... who wants to waste time?" asks John. Good question!
If you're interested in having John bring fitness to your front door, check out his website. www.willerprotraining.com. You can also call John at (641)891-0500 or email him at wptraining@live.com.
Thanks for stopping by the blog - remember, we want your workout ideas!!!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Passing backward
Hello workout fans! This week's segment is unique - and it was a great time.
If you’re looking for a fun way to burn off a lot of calories and blow off a lot of steam – why not join a team? "We encourage anyone... any shape, size, interest to come out and give it a shot!" Jeff McHenry is a member of the Des Moines Men’s Rugby Club and also helps coach the women. When the team invited us to visit a practice, we said “Sure!” and at first, it seems like it’s something we can handle. We start with jogging laps around the field and then do some simple stretching. Drills are next – first simple passes standing still, but then things start moving. As soon as we pass, we loop around to the back of the pack so the entire team is moving like one giant organism. It’s not easy and the sprinting has our hearts pounding but it’s nothing compared to what’s next.
“If you have glasses, take them off,” yells Jeff, “I’ll hold them for you.” And soon, we see why. Coach Sean Wieser demonstrates the “truck and trailer” drill. In it, he runs toward the backs of two players who are standing next to each other with their arms around each other’s shoulders, ramming into their backs with his shoulders. Then he whips around, and sprints in the opposite direction toward another pair that is linked up the same way. The best way to envision this is to think of the linked players as a training sled. During this drill we constantly trade places, so you hit – and get hit. "It's definitely a different kind of strength and conditioning you have to have out here..." explains Jeff. "Running on a treadmill is a lot different than coming out here and playing rugby."
Speaking of running, it doesn’t take long for us to be back at it. We are doing more ball handling drills – each one is more complicated, requiring more speed, agility and teamwork. Oftentimes, we have no idea where we’re supposed to go or what we’re supposed to do! Jeff finally gives up on the most complicated passing drill and moves on to full out sprinting. By the end we are dying and positive that practice must be almost finished. Instead we find out that it’s time to scrimmage. “All I know is that you can only pass backwards,” I explain to Jeff and the team. Sonya nods in agreement and when we first start playing it is obvious that we have no idea how to play this game. We spend a lot of time apologizing to our teammates for bad passes and dropped balls, but as the sun sinks and the shadows on the field get longer we start getting the hang of things. There is cheering and laughing and a great sense of camaraderie. We have worked our tails off and had fun doing it.
After the scrimmage, we also got to learn about "scrums" and "lineouts" - both are means by which play is restarted during a game. I will not do an adequate job of describing what these entail so you will just have to watch the story at five o'clock (or watch online) to find out!
Rugby was a blast, and you can give it a try if you're interested - everyone is welcome. Visit http://www.dsmwomensrugby.com/ for more information.
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
If you’re looking for a fun way to burn off a lot of calories and blow off a lot of steam – why not join a team? "We encourage anyone... any shape, size, interest to come out and give it a shot!" Jeff McHenry is a member of the Des Moines Men’s Rugby Club and also helps coach the women. When the team invited us to visit a practice, we said “Sure!” and at first, it seems like it’s something we can handle. We start with jogging laps around the field and then do some simple stretching. Drills are next – first simple passes standing still, but then things start moving. As soon as we pass, we loop around to the back of the pack so the entire team is moving like one giant organism. It’s not easy and the sprinting has our hearts pounding but it’s nothing compared to what’s next.
“If you have glasses, take them off,” yells Jeff, “I’ll hold them for you.” And soon, we see why. Coach Sean Wieser demonstrates the “truck and trailer” drill. In it, he runs toward the backs of two players who are standing next to each other with their arms around each other’s shoulders, ramming into their backs with his shoulders. Then he whips around, and sprints in the opposite direction toward another pair that is linked up the same way. The best way to envision this is to think of the linked players as a training sled. During this drill we constantly trade places, so you hit – and get hit. "It's definitely a different kind of strength and conditioning you have to have out here..." explains Jeff. "Running on a treadmill is a lot different than coming out here and playing rugby."
Speaking of running, it doesn’t take long for us to be back at it. We are doing more ball handling drills – each one is more complicated, requiring more speed, agility and teamwork. Oftentimes, we have no idea where we’re supposed to go or what we’re supposed to do! Jeff finally gives up on the most complicated passing drill and moves on to full out sprinting. By the end we are dying and positive that practice must be almost finished. Instead we find out that it’s time to scrimmage. “All I know is that you can only pass backwards,” I explain to Jeff and the team. Sonya nods in agreement and when we first start playing it is obvious that we have no idea how to play this game. We spend a lot of time apologizing to our teammates for bad passes and dropped balls, but as the sun sinks and the shadows on the field get longer we start getting the hang of things. There is cheering and laughing and a great sense of camaraderie. We have worked our tails off and had fun doing it.
After the scrimmage, we also got to learn about "scrums" and "lineouts" - both are means by which play is restarted during a game. I will not do an adequate job of describing what these entail so you will just have to watch the story at five o'clock (or watch online) to find out!
Rugby was a blast, and you can give it a try if you're interested - everyone is welcome. Visit http://www.dsmwomensrugby.com/ for more information.
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
The Best of Both Worlds!
Hello workout fans! Thanks for stopping by the blog.
This week's workout is wonderful. It's "Yoga in the Gardens" at Salisbury House.
"We very much believe in aligning ourselves with nature," Brette Scott of Shakti Yoga in Des Moines tells participants, and in this class you’re surrounded by it. “Stretch for the sky,” and you see clouds overhead. “Touch the earth in front of you,” and you feel green grass under your fingertips. The outdoor setting gives downward dog an entirely different feel. "We thought of doing something outdoors with the popularity and curiosity about yoga and this seemed like a good fit." Scott says she was thrilled when event organizers at Salisbury House created “Yoga in the Gardens” this year. "The word yoga means connect,” she explains, “we're connecting with our community, our bodies and nature." And everyone is welcome. The people here are all ages and all abilities. "Generally you just feel better when you do yoga – no matter who you are. The body becomes stronger and more flexible, you breathe better, it decreases stress, and you sleep better." You have to put in some hard work to reap those rewards. "It wouldn't be yoga if we didn't get you a little pretzeled up, right?" But there are immediate rewards at the end of this class. A harpist plays live in the courtyard and wine and cheese round out the evening. "Yoga can be fun, “says Scott with a smile, “it doesn't have to be serious. If it's fun, people will want to do it." And that makes this the perfect combination for feeding body, mind and soul.
I'll be honest - the class started a six and I had to anchor, so I arrived just in time for corpse pose. That basically means I got a brief nap, interviewed Brette and had a glass of wine. Not a bad night of work, if you ask me!
In all seriousness, you should give this a try. Classes are the fourth Thursday of every month. And if you'd like to visit Brette before then - her studio is located in the Shops at Roosevelt.
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
This week's workout is wonderful. It's "Yoga in the Gardens" at Salisbury House.
"We very much believe in aligning ourselves with nature," Brette Scott of Shakti Yoga in Des Moines tells participants, and in this class you’re surrounded by it. “Stretch for the sky,” and you see clouds overhead. “Touch the earth in front of you,” and you feel green grass under your fingertips. The outdoor setting gives downward dog an entirely different feel. "We thought of doing something outdoors with the popularity and curiosity about yoga and this seemed like a good fit." Scott says she was thrilled when event organizers at Salisbury House created “Yoga in the Gardens” this year. "The word yoga means connect,” she explains, “we're connecting with our community, our bodies and nature." And everyone is welcome. The people here are all ages and all abilities. "Generally you just feel better when you do yoga – no matter who you are. The body becomes stronger and more flexible, you breathe better, it decreases stress, and you sleep better." You have to put in some hard work to reap those rewards. "It wouldn't be yoga if we didn't get you a little pretzeled up, right?" But there are immediate rewards at the end of this class. A harpist plays live in the courtyard and wine and cheese round out the evening. "Yoga can be fun, “says Scott with a smile, “it doesn't have to be serious. If it's fun, people will want to do it." And that makes this the perfect combination for feeding body, mind and soul.
I'll be honest - the class started a six and I had to anchor, so I arrived just in time for corpse pose. That basically means I got a brief nap, interviewed Brette and had a glass of wine. Not a bad night of work, if you ask me!
In all seriousness, you should give this a try. Classes are the fourth Thursday of every month. And if you'd like to visit Brette before then - her studio is located in the Shops at Roosevelt.
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Paper plates aren't for eating anymore!
Hello faithful fitness followers!
In this week's installment, Sonya and I once again find ourselves saying, "What?!?" The "Workout of the Week" features paper plates, and it is super challenging.
I've known personal trainer Angie Gallagher for years - we used to teach fitness classes at the same club "back in the day." I told her to throw a workout our way that would be something really unique, and she did not disappoint. Before going to her studio Sonya asked me, "Do you think this is going to be really hard?" I just smiled and said, "All I know is Angie is a great trainer... so it probably will be!"
When we show up at the Urbandale location, Angie explains that all we're going to need for this workout is paper plates, weights and a mat. Then she tells us about the circuit she's created. "We're going to do one minute of cardio, one minute of upper and lower body, and one minute of abs," she says with a grin, "then we'll repeat from the top so it's eight cycles." Neither one of us is really great at math (it's why we chose careers in journalism) but we were thinking, "Each cycle is three to four minutes long, we're going to do eight cycles, that's roughly 25-35 minutes of work ... no problem!" Yeah, right! Halfway through this workout, we were dying!
Angie has us doing all sorts of cardio - jumping jacks, karate kicks, squat hops, burpees - ugh! But the most grueling part of this workout turned out to be all of the moves we did incorporating paper plates. There were lunges and squats where we placed one foot on a plate and slid it back and forth during the moves, pushups with plates under both feet where we had to pull up into a pike position, and a bridge with the plates under our feet where we first extended our legs and then curled them in (for hamstrings) - followed by pushing our feet apart and bringing them back together (for inner and outer thighs).
To be honest - it is really difficult to describe this workout, so I'd advise watching it online. What I CAN describe is how hard it was. Sonya and I were sore for days afterward. "It takes your muscles through a whole range of motion so you get double the benefits of a traditional strength training program," explains Angie. An added bonus - it was really fun!
If you want to give the paper plate workout a try - contact Angie. She's great!
Web: www.fitnesswithangie.com
E-mail: fitnesswithangie@gmail.com
Cell: (515) 710-6987
Here's to a healthy week!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
In this week's installment, Sonya and I once again find ourselves saying, "What?!?" The "Workout of the Week" features paper plates, and it is super challenging.
I've known personal trainer Angie Gallagher for years - we used to teach fitness classes at the same club "back in the day." I told her to throw a workout our way that would be something really unique, and she did not disappoint. Before going to her studio Sonya asked me, "Do you think this is going to be really hard?" I just smiled and said, "All I know is Angie is a great trainer... so it probably will be!"
When we show up at the Urbandale location, Angie explains that all we're going to need for this workout is paper plates, weights and a mat. Then she tells us about the circuit she's created. "We're going to do one minute of cardio, one minute of upper and lower body, and one minute of abs," she says with a grin, "then we'll repeat from the top so it's eight cycles." Neither one of us is really great at math (it's why we chose careers in journalism) but we were thinking, "Each cycle is three to four minutes long, we're going to do eight cycles, that's roughly 25-35 minutes of work ... no problem!" Yeah, right! Halfway through this workout, we were dying!
Angie has us doing all sorts of cardio - jumping jacks, karate kicks, squat hops, burpees - ugh! But the most grueling part of this workout turned out to be all of the moves we did incorporating paper plates. There were lunges and squats where we placed one foot on a plate and slid it back and forth during the moves, pushups with plates under both feet where we had to pull up into a pike position, and a bridge with the plates under our feet where we first extended our legs and then curled them in (for hamstrings) - followed by pushing our feet apart and bringing them back together (for inner and outer thighs).
To be honest - it is really difficult to describe this workout, so I'd advise watching it online. What I CAN describe is how hard it was. Sonya and I were sore for days afterward. "It takes your muscles through a whole range of motion so you get double the benefits of a traditional strength training program," explains Angie. An added bonus - it was really fun!
If you want to give the paper plate workout a try - contact Angie. She's great!
Web: www.fitnesswithangie.com
E-mail: fitnesswithangie@gmail.com
Cell: (515) 710-6987
Here's to a healthy week!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The workout gets wet!
Hello workout friends!
Thanks for stopping by the blog. This week brings another adventure - and a workout Sonya and I NEVER do. Water aerobics. If this conjures up images of your grandmother and her peers - forget it. This is tough stuff.
The class is called "Aqua Boot Camp" and the name should've given us a clue as to what we were in for. "Just the sound of it has brought a lot of people in, "says instructor Jill Reding, "because they want a really hard water workout." And right off the bat, she has us working hard. There is a lot of running and kicking to start with as we warm up our legs, and oftentimes Jill has us "go suspended" - doing the moves without touching the bottom of the pool. Before long we start interval training. At first it's twenty seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest, but Jill keeps adding more and more time to the clock - thirty seconds, then forty, and sometimes up to a minute - and of course the rest period stays the same! Jill is really great about constantly giving us cues, which is helpful since neither one of us does this type of workout. She's always reminding us to relax our shoulders, tuck in our abs, squeeze our glutes ... it's a lot to think about and you have to keep your mind and your muscles engaged.
We are working way harder than we imagined we would, and then Jill drops this bombshell, "OK! This is the part where we drag each other to the other end of the pool!" Soon we're connected by bungee cords, with one of us acting as dead weight for the other. Then we have to get to the other end. The method doesn't matter - you can run, swim, wiggle any which way you choose - but let me tell you, your heartrate goes through the roof on this drill!
Once we reach the other end, we do arm work. First bicep curls, then another length of the pool, chest presses, another length of the pool, triceps, another length of the pool ... you get the idea. It's hard. Really hard.
We're feeling really pooped, but Jill has more lined up for us. The next round is cross country skiing and our heart rates are jumping again. All of this takes more coordination and strength than we dreamed it would. "A lot of people think water aerobics is easy, they think it's just good for your joints," Jill grins, "but you get so much resistance in the water, you've got resistance in and out and up and down!" And ALL AROUND! Ab work is next and it's just a tough! First we do a V-sit move that also works our inner and outer thighs, followed by a fast-paced tuck and press. The last move is something Jill calls "humdingers" and they are as hard as they sound! "I always tell class members - it's what you put into it. You can work really hard or you can slough off, because you can't see in the water!" That's so true, but this workout is also a lot of fun and we're pretty sure you'll feel great about donning a swimming suit after doing this for a few weeks!
If you'd like to try Aqua Boot Camp, contact Prairie Life:
4875 Mills Civic Parkway
West Des Moines, IA 50265
515-223-5999
www.prairielife.com
Keep sending us your workout ideas!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Thanks for stopping by the blog. This week brings another adventure - and a workout Sonya and I NEVER do. Water aerobics. If this conjures up images of your grandmother and her peers - forget it. This is tough stuff.
The class is called "Aqua Boot Camp" and the name should've given us a clue as to what we were in for. "Just the sound of it has brought a lot of people in, "says instructor Jill Reding, "because they want a really hard water workout." And right off the bat, she has us working hard. There is a lot of running and kicking to start with as we warm up our legs, and oftentimes Jill has us "go suspended" - doing the moves without touching the bottom of the pool. Before long we start interval training. At first it's twenty seconds of work followed by ten seconds of rest, but Jill keeps adding more and more time to the clock - thirty seconds, then forty, and sometimes up to a minute - and of course the rest period stays the same! Jill is really great about constantly giving us cues, which is helpful since neither one of us does this type of workout. She's always reminding us to relax our shoulders, tuck in our abs, squeeze our glutes ... it's a lot to think about and you have to keep your mind and your muscles engaged.
We are working way harder than we imagined we would, and then Jill drops this bombshell, "OK! This is the part where we drag each other to the other end of the pool!" Soon we're connected by bungee cords, with one of us acting as dead weight for the other. Then we have to get to the other end. The method doesn't matter - you can run, swim, wiggle any which way you choose - but let me tell you, your heartrate goes through the roof on this drill!
Once we reach the other end, we do arm work. First bicep curls, then another length of the pool, chest presses, another length of the pool, triceps, another length of the pool ... you get the idea. It's hard. Really hard.
We're feeling really pooped, but Jill has more lined up for us. The next round is cross country skiing and our heart rates are jumping again. All of this takes more coordination and strength than we dreamed it would. "A lot of people think water aerobics is easy, they think it's just good for your joints," Jill grins, "but you get so much resistance in the water, you've got resistance in and out and up and down!" And ALL AROUND! Ab work is next and it's just a tough! First we do a V-sit move that also works our inner and outer thighs, followed by a fast-paced tuck and press. The last move is something Jill calls "humdingers" and they are as hard as they sound! "I always tell class members - it's what you put into it. You can work really hard or you can slough off, because you can't see in the water!" That's so true, but this workout is also a lot of fun and we're pretty sure you'll feel great about donning a swimming suit after doing this for a few weeks!
If you'd like to try Aqua Boot Camp, contact Prairie Life:
4875 Mills Civic Parkway
West Des Moines, IA 50265
515-223-5999
www.prairielife.com
Keep sending us your workout ideas!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Train like an athlete
Hello workout friends!
I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. Mine meant great time with family, but several days of eating poorly and not working out. It's time to get back in the groove!
If you're feeling like you need a jump-start, this week's workout is a great one to try. Nick Rouse is the owner of Spartan Strength in Clive and he knows a thing or two about sports training. He's a former Drake football player and coach and now he's a personal trainer - or as he likes to say, a "performance specialist." However, Nick says you don't have to consider yourself an athlete to train like one. He starts Sonya and I out with basic lunges and then starts adding modifications to target our guads and hip flexors - areas that are often tight thanks to many hours sitting at our desks. There are also little changes that force us to work on balance and flexibility, and side lunges and squats that get work our glutes and inner and outer thighs.
Various forms of running are next. We do high knees and rear kicks and then move on to a funky little move Nick calls "Kid 'n Play." He looks like a member of a boy band when he does it, but we feel pretty goofy. "You'll be on Dancing With The Stars, next!" Nick says with a laugh. That's doubtful, and be decide to give speed and agility drills a try next. We're doing footwork on a cloth "ladder" that's stretched out on the floor and it's not always easy. "Geesh!" says Sonya, "Can't I just go run a mile instead?!?" But that's the whole idea - to get us to do things we normally don't - and that includes the next portion of the workout. Nick sets up four cones - one in each corner of the artificial turf. We have to sprint to the first cone, turn, sprint to the next cone, run around it and sprint back to the start. We do that three times through and then reverse directions. We are sucking wind and not at all prepared for the next cone drill. This time we have to shuffle to the first cone, turn and shuffle to the next, turn and sprint to the next, back pedal to where we started and finish with a sprint. BRUTAL! We feel like we are back in our hometown high school gyms during two-a-days for volleyball! "That's the benefit," Nick explains, "at Spartan we are constantly giving you a different stimulous, so you continue to see improvement."
Speaking of new stimulous - we're moving on to timed stations that include exercises we've NEVER done before. "That's a good thing!" Nick exclaims, "once you become accustomed to any kind of work, it becomes easy!" There's nothing easy about these moves. There are five stations and we spend twenty seconds at each one. We do a crazy mountain climber move with our hands gripping gymnastics rings, an exercise called "The Rock Singer" using a weight bar, high plank with an opposite reach, weighted ropes, and finally - some equipment that comes straight from the Rouse family farm. We get to use sledgehammers and pound the snot out of a huge tractor tire. This is definitely our favorite part! Nick usually puts clients through four rounds of this circuit, but for us he cuts it in half. "Everything is adjustable," he explains, "we can make modifications for anyone with any exercise." We're glad to hear it, and also glad this is the end of the workout ... except that it's not!!!
The last thing we do at Spartan Strength is what Nick calls a "finisher." We're pushing a weighted sled like you see football players use in practice and we have to do three laps, followed by three sets of shuttle runs. We are supposed to be sprinting, but our bodies are so tired we're mostly stumbling back and forth. We know we've burned a ton of calories and gotten a great workout, but we also feel like we've conquered a new challenge and that's what Nick likes most about his job. "My biggest pride is not seeing the body change - it's seeing the mind change," he explains, "that's what changes people's lives faster than any change in body composition." Amen.
If you want to work out with Nick - check out the website, drop him and email or give him a call.
www.spartan-strength.com
(515) 987-0341
NICKROUSE@SPARTAN-STRENGTH.COM
I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend. Mine meant great time with family, but several days of eating poorly and not working out. It's time to get back in the groove!
If you're feeling like you need a jump-start, this week's workout is a great one to try. Nick Rouse is the owner of Spartan Strength in Clive and he knows a thing or two about sports training. He's a former Drake football player and coach and now he's a personal trainer - or as he likes to say, a "performance specialist." However, Nick says you don't have to consider yourself an athlete to train like one. He starts Sonya and I out with basic lunges and then starts adding modifications to target our guads and hip flexors - areas that are often tight thanks to many hours sitting at our desks. There are also little changes that force us to work on balance and flexibility, and side lunges and squats that get work our glutes and inner and outer thighs.
Various forms of running are next. We do high knees and rear kicks and then move on to a funky little move Nick calls "Kid 'n Play." He looks like a member of a boy band when he does it, but we feel pretty goofy. "You'll be on Dancing With The Stars, next!" Nick says with a laugh. That's doubtful, and be decide to give speed and agility drills a try next. We're doing footwork on a cloth "ladder" that's stretched out on the floor and it's not always easy. "Geesh!" says Sonya, "Can't I just go run a mile instead?!?" But that's the whole idea - to get us to do things we normally don't - and that includes the next portion of the workout. Nick sets up four cones - one in each corner of the artificial turf. We have to sprint to the first cone, turn, sprint to the next cone, run around it and sprint back to the start. We do that three times through and then reverse directions. We are sucking wind and not at all prepared for the next cone drill. This time we have to shuffle to the first cone, turn and shuffle to the next, turn and sprint to the next, back pedal to where we started and finish with a sprint. BRUTAL! We feel like we are back in our hometown high school gyms during two-a-days for volleyball! "That's the benefit," Nick explains, "at Spartan we are constantly giving you a different stimulous, so you continue to see improvement."
Speaking of new stimulous - we're moving on to timed stations that include exercises we've NEVER done before. "That's a good thing!" Nick exclaims, "once you become accustomed to any kind of work, it becomes easy!" There's nothing easy about these moves. There are five stations and we spend twenty seconds at each one. We do a crazy mountain climber move with our hands gripping gymnastics rings, an exercise called "The Rock Singer" using a weight bar, high plank with an opposite reach, weighted ropes, and finally - some equipment that comes straight from the Rouse family farm. We get to use sledgehammers and pound the snot out of a huge tractor tire. This is definitely our favorite part! Nick usually puts clients through four rounds of this circuit, but for us he cuts it in half. "Everything is adjustable," he explains, "we can make modifications for anyone with any exercise." We're glad to hear it, and also glad this is the end of the workout ... except that it's not!!!
The last thing we do at Spartan Strength is what Nick calls a "finisher." We're pushing a weighted sled like you see football players use in practice and we have to do three laps, followed by three sets of shuttle runs. We are supposed to be sprinting, but our bodies are so tired we're mostly stumbling back and forth. We know we've burned a ton of calories and gotten a great workout, but we also feel like we've conquered a new challenge and that's what Nick likes most about his job. "My biggest pride is not seeing the body change - it's seeing the mind change," he explains, "that's what changes people's lives faster than any change in body composition." Amen.
If you want to work out with Nick - check out the website, drop him and email or give him a call.
www.spartan-strength.com
(515) 987-0341
NICKROUSE@SPARTAN-STRENGTH.COM
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