#fitforlife: duet training at fitness on the run, part one
We asked both Angela from Bellacara and Alicia from The TulleBox to participate in and review a duet class at Fitness on the Run. This duet class is simply a personal training class shared by one other person, who also shares the cost. Today, Angela and Alicia’s reviews are posted separately. This is Angela’s.
Walking into Fitness on the Run (F.O.R.) I felt pretty confident having lost a bit of weight and beginning a workout regimen this year. I didn’t really know what to expect, but I figured I could handle it. I didn’t get nervous until I saw the group of women working out in class tossing kettle balls from arm to arm and jumping up and down off a pretty high step. Lifting kettle balls…sure. Swinging them from hand to hand without dropping them and breaking a toe I wasn’t so sure. After the women left and I started to chat with Denise (one of the owners of F.O. R.) I expressed my concerns. I was assured that they had been working out with her for about a year and I was not in for anything so challenging. I was glad to hear that. Alicia McCaslin was due to join me and we would be working out as a duet. I was happy that someone else would command at least some of Denise’s attention.
Denise started out with some basic assessment activities to ascertain my fitness level and areas of weakness that I should focus on. It turns out that my left side is not as limber or strong as my right and that I need to work on my core strength and balance. Denise spent a good amount of time showing me how I should stand for proper spine alignment. It turns out I have the tendency to stand completely wrong which lends to my lower back issues. Since then I have been making a concentrated effort to correct my stance and my lower back has felt much better.
Next we worked on how to properly engage my core and glute muscles to maximize the benefits of any exercise I might do. More than once Denise told me to squeeze my glutes (which I thought I was doing). Realizing that I clearly didn’t know how to engage them properly, she pulled out a band and wrapped it around my thighs telling me to push outward with my knees and back in again over and over again. The ensuing pain made it very clear which muscles were my glute muscles and how I had wrongly been squeezing my inner butt muscles instead of the muscles on my outer buttocks. I explained that my non-existent rear end should have been the first clue that I had no idea how to properly engage those muscles. Somewhere in the past eight to ten years my rear end and the back of my thighs have forged a very strong relationship. So much so, that it is hard to distinguish where one ends and the other begins. That relationship needs to end and I am working hard to break them up with the end goal being a full divorce.
After the assessment portion of our session, we got into the workout. This consisted of mat and rope work. We only had about ten to fifteen minutes left for this, but I had broken a full sweat by the time it was over. I was glad to have Alicia to switch back and forth with. Moving from activity to activity kept it interesting and kept me from feeling too fatigued by any one activity.
I really appreciated the time that Denise put in to explain that working out the right way was more important than the amount of time or intensity. As I left I took away valuable information that I have already put to practice…I am squeezing my glute muscles as I type.
- About the boutique
Located in historic Old Town Alexandria, for more than 17 years Bellacara has been Northern Virginia's preeminent boutique for high end cosmetic, skincare and haircare products. At Bellacara you will find premiere beauty products that have been carefully edited by the store’s owner, Angela Sitilides, who personally tests all the products sold in store. The boutique carries only the best product lines – Kiehl’s, Jouer, Dr. Dennis Gross, Christophe Robin, Moroccan Oil, Bumble & Bumble, Fresh, Molton Brown, Skinceuticals, Smashbox, Stila, Mario Badescu, Clarins, Dermalogica, Kevyn Aucoin, Kai, Child, St. Tropez, Smith and Cult, and many more.
1000 King Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
703.299.9652
