Hi and welcome to another week,
Apparently if you do a lot of walking lunges, you can end up with sore quads. And glutes. And apparently if you do leg sliders/hamstring sliders, you can end up with sore hamstrings AND calves. And doing squats work all of those muscles as well. As do jump squats. And tuck jumps. And if you do all of those things in a two day period – say, Monday and Tuesday of last week…then you end up with sore legs for the next few days! Who could have predicted that???
There is no doubt that the sessions we all completed last Monday and Tuesday were really challenging in terms of leg work and everyone who got through both sessions did super well. Anyone who got through both sessions then backed up on Wednesday did super, super well (and is just a little bit crazy!). I know that my legs simply must be stronger for getting through it – and I am sure yours will be as well.
Round 1 Fitness opened 3 ½ years ago and within a month of opening the doors a very young Jason Totten had commenced work at the gym. He was in the process of finishing his Cert III/IV in Fitness at Fremantle TAFE and when I contacted the TAFE looking for staff Jason was the person the course co-ordinator recommended I hire. His interview consisted of running one of the Kids Classes (remember those??) and he quickly took over the Thursday night and Saturday morning sessions.
Now, back then the gym was a quite a different place. We still changed the sessions all the time, but given an average ‘peak’ session had 10 people in it rather than 35, those sessions seemed to change from moment to moment rather than from day-to-day. And this suited Jason just fine. He had a never ending array of body-weight exercises – most designed to leave our clients unable to walk ‘normally’ for 3-4 weeks (or days for the lucky ones) – which he was more than happy to ‘try out’ on people at a moments notice. High on his list of contributions to the gym exercise list are the wall-sit to bike combination, bin runs, sprint starts, bin runs with medicine balls, hop square, bin runs with tyres, foot fire, and – my all time favourite – single leg burpees. No way am I taking the blame for any of those!
There is no doubt that the gym has changed over the years – and for the better. And Jason has been there right throughout – leading the way in terms of improving our training standards and level of professionalism. There has been absolutely nothing I have thrown at him in all that time that he has not been able to handle – and more than that, do the job better and more effectively than I ever could. Every time you do a class that Jason is running, you just know that there are going to be no short-cuts allowed with regards to either effort or technique – he is the master of making newbies feel comfortable whilst at the same time challenging experienced trainers to do just a little more, just a little better. It is a unique skill he has that I have not seen from too many other trainers in all of my time…and one that I wish I possessed.
All up, I think he has only missed three or four of his beloved Saturday morning sessions since he started at Round 1 – but this coming week will be the last one he takes. Unbelievably, he is leaving us – his mates of nearly four (4) years, for some girl called Brooke who he has known for about 3.8 seconds. Now, the fact that Brooke is both smart and beautiful – and did I mention she was really smart…and beautiful – really shouldn’t come into it, should it? He is leaving us for her – and we are feeling abandoned…yet are so incredibly happy for both of them at the same time.
So – this Saturday – September 21st will be Jason’s last day at Round 1. Without wanting to turn this into any more of an obituary that it already is, let me say a heartfelt ‘We are all going to miss you mate’. I have really valued your input into the gym – but above all your support and friendship. I know the gym will be fine – your influence on Round 1 will last forever – but I honestly don’t know what I am going to do without our daily chats about where the place is going and how we can challenge one another to become better.
For anyone who wants to say goodbye to Jason, we will be meeting him down at the Quarrie for a couple of quiet beers (or ciders in Jason’s case) this Saturday afternoon after classes finish at the gym. I hope we see a heap of you down there.
See you at Round 1,
Michael.
The much spoken about new equipment finally arrived on Friday morning. We now have:
Additional 4kg and 6kg and 16kg Kettlebells – more 2-hand kb exercises are on the way!
Additional 6kg Deadballs (please – slam them on the rubber, not on the carpet!).
New 10kg and 20kg weight vests
Now, these vests are a great way to really challenge yourself during the classes – I have one that I try to wear one day every week (Monday)…which didn’t work our too well for me given all the walking lunges last week. If you are interested in getting one you can have the 20kg vest for $190 whilst the 10kg ones are available for $120.
As mentioned in the last couple of blogs, the October 2013 Whole Life Challenge is GO. In our two previous life challenges, we have seen some great results with who see it through losing 4.5kgs in weight (on average) whilst seeing their measurements/skinfolds drop by around 10%. People who make sure they score 3 food points every day – who really take it seriously – do even better than that.
Now – all of the details are in last week’s blog which you can find HERE!
At the bottom of the section on the challenge you will find details of when you can get your measurements done pre/post challenge. These times are:
Pre-Challenge: Monday September 30th between 4:30pm and 9pm.
Post Challenge: Friday November 1st between 4pm and 8pm.
The cost of having your measurements done is $5 per time – there is no cost to do the challenge BUT you will need to create yourself a Google ID in preparation for using the spreadsheet to keep your progress up-to-date.
Well, the new timetable has been in place for a couple of weeks now and it has been great to see everyone supporting the extra classes. Remember, there is now a 4pm class on every single week-day…so if you finish work early be sure to take advantage of the chance to ‘Get it Done’ a little bit earlier than usual!
Our ever popular time-table cards are back and available from reception. These show ALL of the new session times (including those for TANKS and Starting Strength).
We have a new leader! With just three (3) games remaining Michelle (HotPies) Howley has opened up a one (1) Point margin over Leigh Rodgers…and it might just be enough to hold sway when the final scores are tallied. For some reason Leigh had faith in the Power to continue their run from the bottom 4 in 2012 all the way to the top 4 in 2013 – and whilst it was a worthy effort in the end it was not to be.
Whilst Steve McGarrigle and Kim Searle have not been mathematically eliminated from winning top prize, the contest really has become a race in two – Michelle vs Leigh – with just two weeks left. Good Luck.
After a quieter week last week our Facebook group was back to its usual self this week with a heap of great links:
Mel Monaco: https://round1fitness.com.au/rn_profile/mel-monaco
Paleo Template: http://chriskresser.com/beyondpaleo
Dr Karl talks Paleo: http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2013/09/10/3842158.htm
Abs workout: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xs8sh4G7Gqg
1000 Reps: http://www.catalystathletics.com/blog/blog.php?blogID=1798
What comes first – The weights or the cardio? http://breakingmuscle.com/strength-conditioning/science-takes-look-cardio-first-or-strength-first
I am sure there are some invisible wires being used by these guys! Well – it is the only explanation I can come up with.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcTFcTa9Jo8
See you in the gym!
Michael.
We know this can be a daunting time. You’re probably wondering if we really are the right fit for each other. And it’s OK! Many people before you, have felt the same, and that’s why we want to offer you something special – our $29 Health Check.
Let’s work out together to see if we’re the right fit. Just hit the button below to let me know if you’re ready to see what’s included.