I believe a warm-up should involve stretching and waking up/ warming up posture muscles. If we properly warmup ⭐️ focusing on posture ⭐️ then our muscles will strengthen in a way that supports our skeleton in that better posture position 🤯
Most of my work this week has been online and I AM TIGHT and uncomfortable. So lifting weights without attention to this first would NOT be serving my purpose. It would be making my situation worse.
My favorite tool for opening up chest + shoulders, stretching small neck muscles and getting a nice spinal rotation stretch quickly and easily is the HeadFloater 😍 Using it before workouts has been very valuable for me and my clients!
Check it out if you spend a lot of time on technology or have small kids you’re constantly hunched over taking care of. This gives much relief AND will help you look better!
I have a NEW way of cracking into my favorite drink!
A few years ago my kids gave me a coconut opener tool so I could have the freshest coconut water and I LOVED it and used it! I do love the taste of a young coconut with no additional ingredients 😍
That worked better than NOT being able to crack open a coconut, but a few weeks ago I found an upgrade!
Watch the video to see it in action. On the hot summer days, I use the CocoNUT tool and enjoy my favorite refreshing drink straight from the source!
So is coconut water good for you? YES
Is coconut water bad for you? YES 😆
Coconuts are so ironic and that’s another reason I LOVE them! If you want to get really confused, google “is coconut water good or bad”
Yes I believe it’s healthy – it is an rehydration drink because of its source of carbohydrates and electrolytes (potassium, sodium, and magnesium), but it’s also a diarrhetic that can dehydrate you, so…… don’t drink too much!
In conclusion, what I’ve learned over the last 20 years of being a wellness bitch is that we can, and often do, take these “healthy” things to extreme, and then it becomes bad.
So, to conclude…
I drink coconut water because I like it 😊 = good!
I’m a total nerd because I bring young coconuts to parties.
I’ve found that adding a little rum is also good 😄
Fashion isn’t my strongest skill, and almost every time I’m dressed nicer *not wearing workout clothes 🙄 I include at least one item that I wear for workouts. It makes me feel more like myself. For example 👇🏼
Daytime: the usual Pilates instructor look: yoga pants and tank. That day I wore my favorite Alo Yoga leggings with a simple Lululemon tank top.
Fast forward to getting ready for a night out… As usual, I over think what to wear, trying on many possible outfit options, leaving my bedroom looking like a tornado hit. I land on the same white Lululemon top, paired with a pencil skirt that looks similar to my yoga legging. Throw on a long, layered necklace and swap out the sneakers for heels, and BAM 💥 I’m ready for a night out!
That’s my style! What’s yours?
Comment below and let me know your fashion strategy!
It’s posterior chain day 👊🏼 The back body includes some of the largest and strongest muscle groups, and in good condition, helps reduce injury and improve posture. Check out Stack.com to learn more and get some examples of gym exercises you can use to target these muscles!
When you don’t have access to the gym, use the TYE4 harness to recruit and strengthen the back body ANYWHERE! Athletes are using TYE4 to warm-up, condition and recover at home and before practice and games.
With burpees being such a controversial exercises, I thought I’d share the irony of why I think they’re a bad idea, but also why I just taught an entire online class ‘Sponsored by Burpee’
First, I’m not alone in my evaluation: Ben Bruno, Kate Upton’s trainer, recently professed his loathing for the exercise.
Mark DiSalvo , NYC-based certified strength and conditioning specialist is spot on with his quote in SELF magazine…
“The primary problem with burpees, DiSalvo says, is that they are an advanced, complicated movement that require a high-level of strength to perform properly. Because many people who attempt them do not have the adequate core and upper-body strength needed to nail the move, they don’t reap the full benefits—and risk injuring themselves in the process.” read article
the PROBLEM – burpees are included in many Pinterest cardio and functional fitness workouts 🤔 Ummm, but burpees ARE NOT functional and they are not an example of functional conditioning for real life common movements. But if you google “are burpees functional fitness”…
Well ok, maybe you often find yourself running through the forest being chased by a bear and you trip over a tree root and fall on your face and have to pop back up real fast and continue sprinting so you don’t die.. then yes, burpees for you can be considered functional fitness.
Or, in some cases, they are good for athletic training. But still, many athletes do not have the flexibility or core strength to do them properly and safely.
Mike Boyle, one of the foremost experts in the fields of Strength and Conditioning, Functional Training and general fitness, refers to Burpees as “The World’s Dumbest Exercise”
“Wrist impact, shoulder impact, lumbar flexion. A million opportunities for bad mechanics with what upside? It’s hard? Is that upside? … It’s our job (fitness professionals) to choose exercises that are effective. It’s also our job to keep our athletes and clients healthy… If you look at an exercise and see injury risk and then can’t really explain why you do it, that makes it a really bad choice.” read article
SO WHY DID I TEACH AN ENTIRE CLASS CENTERED AROUND THE BURPEE?
Thanks for asking! Well, the single burpee movement broken down is full of wonderful functional exercises! So we took each part and worked on the mental and physical connection of understanding and maintaining strong stabilized core through movement AND we spent time working on transitioning the anchor (the part of the body that connects you to the earth).
For example, in a squat jump our anchor transfers to toes as we lower to the ground, transfers back to the heels as we raise up, and back to the toes preparing to lift off the ground for the jump. WOW that’s complex! And actual functional training for walking/running. All movement follows this pattern: transfer, then anchor (or load) and finally move. You can see why this would take some practice, but it makes all the difference!
As far as the CORE – we must understand neutral spine and be able to find it quickly after spinal flexion.. and avoid spinal extension during the plank and optional push-up. Thanks to my PMI Pilates training and experience, I can facilitate training that will lead up to this.
So this is how I analyze a burpee. And I think it’s jumping the gun to add it to a Pinterest HIIT workout and challenge people to do as many as they can in 30 seconds.
After practicing the fundamentals and “Pilates style form” for each exercise that combine to form a burpee … which may I add totaled up to be a killer workout!! .. we put them all together at the end and did 5-8 controlled, slow-mo burpees 💪🏼
For more of my online workouts, check my Online, Pilates-based Studio TYE4FITNESS.COM
We use the wearable TYE4 harness and bungee system that gives us resistance in every plane (up to 30 lbs of resistance depending on how you use it). It also strengthens and heals the joints as we exercise – and THIS is why I love it and recommend it.
“IF you thought that pilates was a Zen-based activity for women, ironman Kendrick Louis wants to have a word.
Louis credits regular reformer pilates classes at Vive Active in Brookvale for helping him go from No.5 to No.1 in the ironman series.
As a result of taking up pilates two years ago, he said he was fitter and stronger than ever before… continue reading
Louis now incorporates at least three pilates classes into his weekly training schedule. As a result, he said his performance on the ironman circuit had improved tenfold.”
story/ccfe1e260035f2ed2d21855a3852fb77ce
“It (pilates) is one of those things that you don’t know how good it is until you actually do it,” he said. Read full article here
This is the easiest way to reach your fitness goals in 2019 🎉
Join me for 30 minute classes you can do anytime / anywhere. Check out the ‘NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION’ classes offered and join our tribe 💪🏼
“I love the social part (chatting it up online before the workout starts and meeting new friends), the accountability, the ease & convenience and the effectiveness of these workouts! When I can’t join the live class, I get a killer workout from the class recordings. I’m getting great results and each workout leaves me feeling energized and ready to take on the world! This is FITNESS MADE EASY!”
January online class schedule posted! Come check out the 30 minute classes offered, including the NEW TYE4 6/1 Pilates class! I love this one, as it focuses on hip mobility/ flexibility & strength, targeting and toning inner and outer thighs … PLUS a BONUS arm workout, thanks to the beloved TYE4 😍 Check out the little demo below and head on over to TYE4FITNESS.COM to see the full January schedule. Then sign up and workout with me! Only $20/ month for unlimited classes!!! You can’t beat that! PLUS we have fun!
This is one of the most important moments before my day starts… it’s part of the ‘warm-up’ but I prefer to call it ’posture prep’
According to my Chiropractor, Dr. Bills 🙌🏼 I happen to be tight in my thoracic spine area and naturally unstable & unsupported in my lower spine/ hip complex 😭 Without attention, this is a recipe for pain and injury (I know this from personal experience from before I started paying attention to movement fundamentals).
My GOAL rx
1. stretch the hard-to-reach- deep stabilizing posture muscles. 2. Wake up/ recruit these muscles so they support the skeleton while lifting weights and pushing my body beyond it’s normal workload.
EQUIPMENT
With HeadFloater, bungees compress and decompress the skull while lengthening and stretching the neck. I use it to stretch and open chest, shoulder and back muscles.
Parasetter® is a unique foam roller system used for lower back stretches to improve the flexibility of the intercostal muscles (muscles surrounding the ribs), the spine and the deep fascia that is continuous from head to toe. The balance aspect fires up the deep core muscles and preps them for their stabilizing responsibilities.
Because I have all my clients prepping this way, I created some videos showing exercise with both HeadFloater and Parasetter and you are welcome to them as well! https://ashleybensonfitness.vhx.tv/products
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