Category Archives: resistance training

ONLINE COACHING GROUP

finalposter

Online TYE4® Coaching Group starting up next week! This will be the ONLY place to get our full length TYE4 workouts, and new ones will be added regularly! Plus, members get access to our coaches, accountability, general fitness tutorials and a fun social group to be a part of!!

⇢ Membership starting at $4.99 ⇠

*** TYE4 must be purchased before joining the group BUY NOW

⇣ Become a MEMBER Today ⇣

★★★ Click HERE ★★★

“I’ve been using the Tye4 on and off since December to help lose baby weight, get in shape, and increase flexibility. During the last online coaching group I dove in head-first thanks to the competition aspect. My favorite way to workout is running and I quickly realized that the Tye4 is a great compliment to my running routine. Using the Tye4 to warm up before my run made a noticeable difference in my performance, including the addition of an extra mile and a better pace. It also gives me a great “rest day” alternative!” … Rochelle Kennedy

FITMARK BAGS GUEST POST: TYE4

[This is from a guest post I wrote for Fitmark September 2013 – see it here.  Now, over a year later, I’ve continued using  Tye4 personally,  with test groups and with my clients.  If I had to rewrite this post, I would not change a word.  More on Tye4 here ]

There is a new fitness love in my life, and it’s called Tye4®. I attended the Official Tye4 Launch and Training Workshop in New York this summer and am now teaching five Tye4 classes a week and can’t stop talking about it! This new fitness tool has my creative exercise juices flowing and has given me a fresh excitement and hope for the health, strength, and the repair of our bodies.

The Tye4 is a wearable resistance. It’s a harness that can be worn higher or lower on the chest, depending on preference, with easy adjusting straps. It has a bungee that attaches to both feet separately, and one that attaches to both hands.

tye4collage.jpgIt was invented by Joan Breibart, Founder and President of the PhysicalMind Institute. She introduced the first Pilates certification program, the first Mat Work Pilates Video in 1991, ‘Working Out The Pilates Way‘ and other books, articles, and inventions that have helped the Pilates Method evolve and benefit our generation.

I teach two different classes: 1. Tye4 Fusion and Tye4 Pilates. The Tye4 Fusion class is a combination of aerobic, barre, strength training, Pilates and stretch. I start with a dynamic warm up that loosens our spine and hips and awakens the body to move. Using Tye4 gives us something to push or reach through (a closed kinetic chain) and enables greater stretch and lengthening. We move from warm up to full on sweaty, aerobic exercise. I give high impact options for some of the moves, but it is optional. The beat of the music is fast and we have fun feeling a full body burn.

Next, the music slows down and relaxes our minds so we can put full focus and concentration into the Barre moves. Here I use the Tye4 to assist in leg lifts and balancing. We don’t over work the hip flexors and because we are able to hold balance so much better and longer with Tye4, we feel a beautiful burn from our glutes all the way down into our calves in the stabilizing leg! I LOVE THAT! Honestly, this is where I start sweating! Hard work.

After Barre, I take my class through a series of strength moves, including pushups and plank. Again, using the Tye4 is changing the game! We use a front cross leg bungee variation when doing a modified pushup. The leg bungee cross “reminds” the body to keep the core engaged during the movement, and the crossed hand bungees provide resistance! I no longer have to nit pick on form. It just happens with Tye4! And modified or “girly pushups” create such a surprising burn!

I wrap up our class with Pilates down on the mat using Tye4 in each exercise. We now can move with more control, stabilize with more awareness, and stretch deeper. As I’ve heard from a few of my clients, “I can really feel my muscles now.”.

I agree with what About.com had to say about the Tye4, “What is so great about the Tye4 is that the lines of resistance feedback to the core of your body. This is very Pilates approach to fitness. It’s an effect we get from much of the larger Pilates equipment like the reformer, but getting that direct feedback with something as portable as the Tye4 is unusual.”.

Tye4 was invented in the Pilates world, but it is a creative, effective tool that can be used with many other types of fitness.

For more information, visit TheMethodPilates.com and ‘Like’ my my FaceBook page Nashville Fitness for the latest updates on classes, workshops, and Tye4 talk.

So far, I’m getting great feedback from every one of my clients who have tried it out. It seems to be quite addicting! If you can’t tell, I’m really excited about Tye4 and I hope you take some time to look into it. Maybe it’s something you can incorporate into your exercise routine or use to bring your clients to a new level of health!

Stay fit,
Ashley Benson
Fitmark Ambassador 2013

10264541_10152500878949047_606929856058807493_n

REVIEW: Murfreesboro Kettlebell Gym

#kettlebell
I’ve spent the past few weeks studying and practicing kettlebell exercise with 
Raymond Harvey -RKC (Russian Kettlebell Certified), CSCS- at Stronghold Fitness.  I began with a skills class to learn the fundamentals and the safe, proper way to use the kettlebells.  It was great to break down the familiar kettlebell swing into individual movements and then put it all together with proper, efficient form.  I loved this!  Now I understand where the power comes from. I watch myself in the mirror and can visually see and feel when I start recruiting other muscles to help out.  When this happens, I focus harder to hold proper form or grab a lighter bell. 
Since the skills class I have attended 3 group classes.  With each class I feel that my form is getting better which is allowing me to begin increasing my weight and have a better workout!  I feel great after the classes and know that it’s building my body up stronger – not breaking it down like other kinds of exercise can.

RESULTS FROM KETTLEBELL

  • Lose fat and increase endurance
  • Increase energy levels
  • Develop Functional Strength
  • Shrink your waist and strengthen our core
  • Get fantastic results in less than 3 hours per week
  • Become less injury prone
  • Increase flexibility
 
A FEW THINGS I’VE LEARNED
 
* Kettlebell workouts are a great way to build strength and endurance.  They offset your center of gravity and require you to work harder to maintain balance… which leads to a stronger core.  What I’ve learned from my pilates training is that balance is controlled through the core muscles.  Strong core=balance.
 
* If you do it with good form, it can be a huge benefit to you.  If you perform the moves with sloppy form, your chances for injury are high.  The slightest wrong movement can cause injury.  It is important to learn from and train with an experienced, certified kettlebell instructor.  You may find a certified personal trainer who  understands the body and exercise, gives instruction, and knows how to perform kettlebell exercises correctly but this is NOT THE SAME AS BEING TRAINED AND CERTIFIED WITH THE KETTLEBELL.  Your trainer needs to understand the precision of each movement, and be able to teach you!
 
* Stop and rest or lower your weight if you start getting fatigued.
 
* Don’t try to compete with others in the class who are using a heavier kettlebell.  (This is directly pointed at me!  I tend to want to compete and have ended up getting hurt from it.  This time around I am happy when I finish each class to the best of my strength, experience and ability!)
 
* I must “pack” my shoulders for stability and power.  Ramond reminds me to do this when my shoulder starts to do the work.  Read more about Packing the Shoulder for Protection and Power here.  Also, take a look at this post I wrote last year about the Scapula as an Anchor for the arms.
 
* The kettlebell swing is about hip hinge.  The arms are like a pendulum.  It is not a weight lifting move – it’s a full body core power movement.
 
* This is a great way to turn your body into a strong, efficient powerhouse!

To learn correct kettlebell training form,
contact Raymond at rdharvey68@comcast.net

 (615) 429-5888
and visit murfreesborokettlebell.com 

IF YOU ARE GONNA DO IT, LEARN TO DO IT RIGHT!

Kettlebell