by Cori Lefkowith | Sep 16, 2014 | Blog, Foam Rolling, Pain Relief
If you sit all day, much of your lower body is constantly in flexion, which means that you need to roll out before your workouts to prevent injury.
If you like to run as your workout, then it is extra important that you roll out.
Runners especially need to do these moves to prevent hip, knee and ankle pain as well as shin splints, hamstring strains, plantar fasciitis among other common lower body ailments all too many runners have to deal with.
You don’t need to spend hours doing these moves to benefit from them. Spend just 5 minutes before and after you workout (or any time you feel tight!) rolling out to help you remain injury and pain-free!
However, do not rush through and just roll quickly up and down. It is better to pick just a few tight spots and spend more time on them than to roll quickly through all the muscle groups. Just rolling over the knots won’t help. You actually need to hold on any tight areas to help them release.
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by Cori Lefkowith | Sep 9, 2014 | Blog, Exercises, Suspension Trainer
If you don’t have time to make it to the gym often or you find yourself traveling a lot, you may want to invest in a Suspension Trainer like the Jungle Gym XT, CoreX or TRX.
The Suspension Trainer is a great home workout and travel tool because it is easy portable and can be stored almost anywhere. Plus it is easy to use and can be a great workout for anyone from the beginner to the advanced lifter.
And while you can get a great full-body workout done on the Suspension Trainer, it is also a great way to isolate and work our big muscle groups like the glutes.
If you are looking to get in a great glute workout, but don’t have access to any weights, try these 5 Suspension Trainer Glute Exercises.
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by Cori Lefkowith | Sep 3, 2014 | Blog, Core
A strong core means less risk for injury and pain. And if you suffer from low back pain, you need to strengthen your core!
That is why the Pelvic Tilt exercise is a must-do move. It activates your intrinsic core stabilizers so that your core is working and your low back doesn’t have to.
Because we sit all day, which create imbalances and tight muscles, our abs aren’t activated and working. Because our abs aren’t working, our low back sometimes take over and does work it shouldn’t, which leads to pain and injury.
Therefore anyone with low back pain or even simply a desk job, needs to do the Pelvic Tilt Exercise.
Plus if you’ve ever done Leg Lowers, or any other ab exercise, and felt the move in your low back, it means your abs aren’t yet strong enough to stay engaged during that move. Therefore, you need to do the pelvic tilt first to engage and strengthen your abs!
While we firmly believe that EVERYONE should do the Pelvic Tilt, it is often only recommended for women post pregnancy to help them regain their ab strength. However, no one can ignore this very important core stabilizing exercise if they suffer from low back pain!
Here’s how to do the Pelvic Tilt exercise and prevent and alleviate your low back pain!
How to do The Pelvic Tilt:
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by Cori Lefkowith | Sep 1, 2014 | Blog, Core, Exercises
Often when people think about training their core, they think of six-pack abs and crunches.
They think about aesthetics. But core training is about more than getting six-pack abs. A strong core means less risk for pain and injury and it also means you can lift more and run faster.
Plus, core training is about more than working your abs – it is about strengthening everything from your shoulders to your knees.
Proper core training isn’t about doing a million crunches. It is about doing exercises that work everything from your shoulders to your knees.
Core training will improve your stability and strength in every plane of motion.
Below are the Best Core Training Exercises to train your core and improve your stability and strength to prevent injury and help you move better (aka run faster and lift more!).
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by Cori Lefkowith | Aug 27, 2014 | Blog, Foam Rolling, Pain Relief
If you sit at a desk all day, you’ve probably struggled with neck, shoulder and/or upper back pain at some point in your life.
One great way to alleviate some of those aches and pains is by foam rolling.
Foam rolling is basically a massage you can do to yourself.
So if you’ve ever harassed your friends or loved ones for more neck and shoulder massages, here are some ways you can do it yourself!
5 Foam Rolling Moves to Alleviate Neck, Shoulder and Upper Back Pain
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by Cori Lefkowith | Aug 25, 2014 | Blog, Bodyweight, Exercises, Handstands
There is just something so cool and fun about handstands.
However, they are far from easy and many of us can’t even hold one against a wall let alone hold a freestanding one for a second.
But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t include handstand work in our exercise routines.
Handstands are a great way to build upper body and core stability and strength. Beginner variations even improve your upper body mobility so that as your strength increases, you can do more and more challenging variations.
No matter your level, there is a handstand variation right for you that can help you work toward that freestanding handstand and give you a great upper body and core workout.
Check out our How to do a Handstand Progression (and our How to do a One-Handed Handstand Progression) to help you achieve that handstand or at least get in some great upper body and core work!
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