Fearless Fitness Weekly Update 9/12: POWER to the PLANK!
1.) Caroline Jordan Fitness Schedule and Special Events September 13-19.
Monday 9/13: 12:05pm Cycle Express San Francisco Bay Club, 5:30pm Competition Core and 6pm Chisel’d EQUINOX
Tuesday 9/14: 12:30pm Cycling EQUINOX, 5pm Ball, 5:30pm BOSU, 6 pm Spin Circuit, and 7pm Yoga Flow Club One Citigroup
***TUESDAY 9/14: 8:00-9:30pm San Francisco Bay Club Sampler Class at lululemon Grant Avenue! Stop by the Union Square store from 8-930 for fitness, nutrition, and program demonstrations of the San Francisco Bay Club’s specialties. Please join us for this fun open house! I’ll be there – stop by and say hi!
Wednesday 9/15: 12:05pm Cycle Express San Francisco Bay Club, 5:30pm Competition Core and 6pm Chisel’d EQUINOX
Thursday 9/16: 12:30pm Cycling EQUINOX
Friday 9/17: 12pm Abs and 12:30pm Cycling EQUINOX
Saturday 9/18: 10 am Chisel’d and 11am Cycling EQUINOX
Sunday 9/19: 930am Vinyasa Yoga EQUINOX
Find more information on specific club locations by clicking on the links included above.
Interested in individual, group, or corporate Personal Training Sessions? Contact Me for details and seasonal discounts.
For the wonderful weekly events in beautiful spandex, check out the lululemon athletica Grant Avenue community online SCHEDULE.
2. Fearless Fitness Tip Of the Week: Power to the PLANK!
The best ab exercises are surprisingly easy to do. What’s one of my “go-to’s”? THE PLANK. The plank is one of the BEST exercises for strengthening your core. You don’t need special equipment, you can do it anywhere, and you simply use your body weight as resistance. The plank is deceptively effective. It’s an amazing multitasking move – you’ll engage the abs as well as the shoulders, back, and arms. The plank works the core in ways crunches, free weights, and machines can’t – making this exercise a great addition to your existing workout routine.
How to do the perfect plank:
Lie face-down on the floor with your legs together, forearms close to the torso, and toes perpendicular to the floor as if you’re going to do a push up. Lift your body using your abdominal muscles and your arms, until it’s in a straight line from head to toe, and the only things touching the floor are your toes and your forearms. Hold this position for as long as you can, working up to three minutes at a time.
Be sure the head doesn’t sag – keep it in alignment with your body. Don’t let the back arch and be careful not to hold your breath. Calm, regular breathing will help you maintain your posture by helping the blood circulate freely and will prevent dizziness. Doing the exercise incorrectly puts you at risk of injury.
If you can’t hold this form for more than a few seconds, try doing a modified plank by using your knees instead of your toes as the contact point. This is easier to do, and it helps take pressure off your back. You’ll still reap the benefits of exercise, and won’t get discouraged by an exercise that’s too difficult. When you find this version is too easy, try doing the full plank.
There are a million variations of the basic plank exercise – so be sure to mix it up! In need of a few ideas? Stop into my CORE CLASSES and I’ll be sure to give you a few!
3. Fearless Fitness Challenge of the Week: Perfect YOUR plank!
This week I challenge you to perfect YOUR plank! Try holding a basic forearm plank for 30-60 seconds. See if you can work your way up to holding a plank for two or three minutes. You will have abs of STEEL by next sunday – I know it!
As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to contact me! Have a great time working the planks this week. I hope to see you in a class or around the lululemon grant avenue store soon.
Caroline
