Surprise! Our class packages are on SALE all month! Buy 5 classes, get 1 FREE. Buy 10 classes, get 2 FREE. Buy 20 classes, get 5 FREE. Don't miss out on these sweet deals!

PICK UP YOUR BINGO CARD AT THE FRONT DESK!

Transform your passion into action by joining our Lagree Level 1 Certification at CoreStrong  March 20-22. With only 14 spots, secure yours with a $500 deposit by Feb 20 and pay the remaining $1000 by March 15.  Contact Cathy for more info.

Use your membership for your lagree class and purchase a single class $15 or a 10 class climb 30 package ($13.50 per class) for your climb 30 class.

Pair Your Climb 30 Class with:

• MEGA STRONG/MEGA STRONG EXPRESS
• ESSENTIALS
• ARMS AND ABS
• OR STRENGTH AND STRETCH

WEEKEND MARCH 20-22

Get ready for CoreStrongs’ Lagree Fitness Level 1 Certification Weekend with Master Trainer Jami Jackson! Only 14 spots available! Deepen your practice, unlock your potential, and learn the why behind all those shakes you've had in class! If you are eager to lead, inspire, and turn passion into purpose, then this is your perfect opportunity!

Here's what your training with Jami includes:

• 24 hours of in person training over the course of 3 days
• Two 2 hour group virtual follow up sessions
• Each trainee receives 1 video review and 1 one on one call for feedback
• Discounted rate for mentorship
• And a lifetime of answers to your text questions regarding cueing, sequencing, etc.

This training elsewhere can typically run anywhere from $2500 - $3500.  CoreStrong is offering this training at just $1500.  Please reserve your spot with a $500 deposit by February 20, and final payment due on March 15.

Please email Cathy at [email protected] for more info and to sign up.

​We're excited to share our achievements, made possible by our amazing instructors and you, our CoreStrong Community!

​Get ready for 2026, the year of 'Connections'! We're excited about our close-knit community and can't wait to share amazing ideas and events that will bring us even closer together. Thanks for being part of this journey with us. Stay tuned for more updates and let's make 2026 a year to remember!

Did you know that if you scroll down on the home page of your app and then swipe left, you'll find studio updates and helpful policies.  This page is updated frequently. Please check back often!

As always, I'm here to help and answer any questions you may have.  Please reach out to me at [email protected] or respond to any email that you receive from the studio.  It all gets to me!

We've seen you working so hard and appreciate your commitment! Join us for our Client Appreciation Party on December 11th at Acero Boards and Bottles, from 5 to 8 PM. Enjoy raffles, amazing prizes, delicious food, and drinks. We can't wait to show our gratitude and celebrate you!

November 15th - 30th, 2025!

I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN HEARING THE RUMORS ..... AND YES, THE NEW MEGA PROS ARE ON THE WAY!

The New Mega Pros are an absolute GAME CHANGER!  It has a super smooth carriage, allowing seamless movements. The platforms and carriage panels lift and can be adjusted to different angles for a greater range of motion and targeted muscle activation. This feature also helps protect joints and connective tissues, reducing impact and inflammation during and after workouts. Experience smoother classes with better joint stabilization and less muscle strain.  There are also more resistance levels, allowing for greater customization of your workout intensity. This will be of benefit for both beginners and advanced users, giving you more control over the level of challenge.

The Mega Pro may feel a bit different at first, but by the end of your class, you'll already start to feel how much more your core and stabilizers are activated and how the Mega Pro will be taking your workout to the next level.
We can't wait for you to try the new Mega Pros! 

CoreStrong will be closed September 26 and 27 while we make the transformation.

​We're saying goodbye to Classic Strong and Foundations, and welcoming Mega Strong, our new full-body class launching on September 1st. Designed for intermediate to advanced levels, Mega Strong features longer durations, more moves on the back, and adjusted spring tension to deliver real results. You'll experience deep core activation, serious strength gains, and muscular endurance. Thanks to spring load options and offered modifications, this class is ideal for those who have mastered Essentials. Mega Strong promises a sweaty, shaky, and satisfying 45-minute session. Start your journey with Essentials, then step up to Mega Strong to build strength and progress!

​Our Summer Challenge "Too Fit to Quit" was a huge hit!  49 of you crushed it!  Our winner, Jess Hutchinson, proved to be a tough contender to beat!  She finished strong, taking 40 classes in 42 days - that's got to be a record! Your 1-month unlimited membership has been added to your account.  Congratulations Jess!

Join our Fall Challenge starting October 1st for the entire month as we celebrate CoreStrong's 8th year! Complete 16 classes in 31 days to enter a drawing for our 'Favorite Things' basket, filled with items handpicked by the CoreStrong team. Sign up on your app and get ready to give it your all!

We are incredibly grateful for you, our clients and the trust you place in CoreStrong to be a part of your fitness journey. Your dedication to not just personal growth, but to the collective spirit of our community, truly makes us stronger together. The effort, sweat, and determination shared in every session create bonds that go beyond just fitness—they make us feel like friends, like family. It’s an honor to be alongside each of you as we push limits, celebrate milestones, and grow stronger both physically and as a community. Thank you for choosing CoreStrong and for bringing your heart, energy, and commitment every single day.

Starting September 15, we will be adjusting membership rates slightly. We deeply appreciate your support as we navigate rising costs on nearly everything. This change is necessary to continue offering the quality classes you love, fairly compensate our amazing team, and maintain state-of-the-art equipment. Thank you for your trust and unwavering support; we look forward to serving you well now and in the future.

As always, I appreciate hearing from you!  Suggestions and requests are welcome.  I'm easily reached by responding to any of the emails you receive from CoreStrong or at [email protected].  

Stay Strong!
Cathy

Don't miss out!  Sale ends on July 9th.  Purchase on your app or on the website at www.corestrong.studio.

The opportunity for Level 1 Certification Training will be coming in September.
Please reach out to Cathy at [email protected] for more information.

​We are deeply grateful to be part of your fitness journey and witness your incredible passion and determination daily. To ensure we provide the best support, we're updating our fall schedule and would love your input. What class times and options would you like? Your feedback means so much to us! Please reach out at [email protected] or reply to this email. We're excited to hear from you!
Stay Strong!
Cathy

​Check out our schedule each week and look for "Low Peak" classes.  These are classes that have low sign ups.  Our goal this summer is to keep our schedule in tact and cancel a class only when attendance is less than 5!  

This is a great way to introduce your friends and family to Lagree at a discounted rate!  

$10 Class Credits can be purchased on our App or on the Website. 

Memberships are still valid for all classes, you do not need to purchase a $10 pass to attend a "low peak" class.  Don't forget, you also have free guest passes included in your membership.

​Please join me in welcoming Sunny to the CoreStrong Team!  You can find Sunny on the schedule on Monday evenings at 6:40 and 7:45.  She'll also be teaching every other Sunday at 11:10 and 12:15 starting in June.

We asked Sunny a few questions and here's what she had to say:

1. I fell in love with Lagree [when]... I did it for the first time! I thought it was so fun to be on the Mega and try all the different moves. I also loved that it was challenging yet rewarding and required 100% of my focus. 
2. The move that gets me shakiest is... inner thigh squats and side lying cable press get me every time. 
3. The workout is like nothing I've ever done because... no matter how much I come to class, it's always hard! The workout challenges my mind and body unlike anything else I've done. 
4. When I don't feel like working out I tell myself... it's important to make good choices for myself and my health, especially when it feels difficult. I also remember that I always feel good after working out.  
5. My advice to first time or new clients is... Stay consistent and keep showing up for yourself! I promise it will be worth your time and effort. I know learning the method and getting comfortable on the machine is overwhelming, so don't be afraid to ask your instructor for some extra help or clarification. It's what we're here for! Also, try the VersaClimber! I was skeptical at first, but it's so much fun and compliments my Lagree practice.  
6. My advice to advanced clients is... Set an intention at the beginning of class so you are always improving and getting stronger. Some of my intentions are to focus on keeping my core engaged in every move, maintaining my slow pace (especially in arms and core), or transitioning quickly and efficiently. Setting these clear goals at the beginning of class has helped me level up my practice.

A monthly feature in our newsletter, thanks to our instructor Briana Crotinger LMT!  Briana has a wealth of knowledge and loves to research and share her findings!  With over a decade of bodywork, kinesiology, and pain management experience, she weaves her knowledge into her barefoot myofascial massage practice at Mend Bodywork.
​
My phone buzzed, vibrating the table and shifting the food wrappers next to it. A millisecond later, my watch buzzed, not once, not twice, but three more times. It was an email notification sent by a company I never subscribed to for a doodad I absolutely did not need. I turned my phone to silent and stashed it away. My watch went directly into my purse. It’s been six weeks, and I haven’t put it on my wrist since. It was the final act of “going dark” or “offline” as the kids say these days. I simply couldn’t take it anymore- the notifications, the endless doomscrolling, the constant battle for my attention.

I was in Morro Bay when I decided enough was enough. I have lived online full-time since 2019- merely a few months before a global pandemic catapulted us all into living online for almost two years, forever changing how we interact with the world and others around us. At the time, I was running my massage clinic up north and nurturing a rapidly growing illustration business on Instagram. If I wasn’t working with my hands, then I was “working” by responding to comments, making content, etc etc     upwards of six hours a day, not accounting for my doomscrolling. It didn’t take long before social media became a full-blown addiction, conveniently hidden behind my “need to run a business.” And while life passed before my eyes, I was never looking at it- just this stupid 4x6 inch pocket rectangle that became the tyrant over my time and attention. The constant need to keep up with the algorithm and meet expectations crippled my love of art. My business collapsed in on itself like a dying star, and in 2023, I went a full year of doing near zero illustration. This vacation, however, I wanted to experience the now, in my favorite place on Earth with my favorite person and two dogs. 

While there, my phone stayed on silent, imprisoned on its charger. My sketchbook became my “image feed” and I spent four blissful days of drawing, drinking coffee, and existing in the real world. When I got home, my watch stayed off my wrist, and my phone was banished from my bedroom. I unearthed an old analog alarm clock to make sure I still rose with the sun (though that turned out to be unnecessary as my dogs are especially talented time-keepers). And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I logged off of instagram, and my last social media platform, for the last time. 
  
It seems ridiculous that clicking the “log out” button would be such an act of rebellion, but in a world where the most precious, battled-after, and manipulated resource is your attention, it feels like the only act of rebellion. A quote that stuck with me over these last six weeks is- “Modern-day threats no longer look like threats.” And it’s true. Even 30 years ago, a threat to our nervous system still looked like a threat- a bear, a reckless driver, an angry boss. But now? Now threats are more subversive. My biggest predator is that 4x6 rectangle that clings to me every place I go. Every ding, every chime, represents an urgent task demanding me immediately. Every chirp is a hot poker to my fight or flight system. Maybe you can relate. 
  
When I tapped the “log out” button for the last time, it felt like someone switched off a loud stereo. My life got uncomfortably quiet almost immediately. When you search “going offline” or “leaving social media” you’ll find quite a few inspirational stories, and the most honest of them will tell you that the first few weeks without social media- without your phone- is incredibly uncomfortable. While our phones and the apps that fill them keep us in a constant state of fight or flight, we reciprocate with a serious case of Stockholm syndrome. We happily hand over our time, attention, and data to companies that promise “greater connection.” But the reality is, we are the product, and we accept this for a few crumbs of dopamine and an escape from reality. 
 
I would be lying if I said I never reached for my phone and was immediately cured. With the social media apps gone, but the reflex still very much there, I think I checked my weather app about twenty times an hour. I did not like feeling out of the loop- something these big companies bank on to keep you scrolling. But as the weeks passed, and I started waking up to the reality I lived in, not the one shown to me with beautiful filters, life changed. Suddenly I found myself with more time than I knew what to do with. I started reading a little more. I started sketching again. When I talked to my friends, I was even more invested in what they were up to because I truly had no idea what was going on in their lives since I last saw them. I started feeling a little more connected. I started allowing myself to be bored, and in that boredom, I started feeling my creativity blossom. 

But the best payoff? My anxiety dropped off a cliff. That’s not to say it isn’t there- it’s just the size of a chihuahua and not a dragon. The constant overstimulation, comparison, fake-validation, time-wasting, artificial intelligence, bad-news stream that I was allowing into my life was gone, and thus, the natural reaction to such a constant stream of garbage was gone too. And the lie that you’ll lose connections if you log off social media? Hogwash. I text my friends even more now. And the connections you do lose weren’t meant for you in the first place. I found being off of social media clarified it for what it really is- a weird kind of mutual voyeurism. Most of what goes on there is either an advertisement or none of your business. 
 
In honesty, I could write a full-length novel of the lessons I have learned as I’ve phased out various social media apps over the last two years, but it’s an experience only appreciated by the doer. I have an entire catalogue of thoughts and opinions on the digital world, having experienced it from the earliest days of dial-up, to Myspace to now. But thoughts and opinions only have weight if they are bolstered by actions, and so, I’ll continue safe-guarding my own mental health and living in the real world. My phone will continue to live in my office and my brain will continue in the analog world. 

​You have 31 days to complete 18 classes.  Now here's the kicker!  Combo and Climb classes earn you 2 stickers and Mega only classes get 1 sticker.  

PRIZES:
LAST DAY TO SIGN UP IS APRIL 12TH. PLEASE SIGN UP ONLY ONCE.

​Your team of instructors spent 3 days and a total of 24 hours climbing 2,000 feet higher than Mt. Denali. We were led by none other than the world’s Senior Master Trainer, creator and facilitator of the Versa Climber Training program, Loui Pacheco. Drill after drill, class after class, lecture after lecture, Loui poured us instructors into the crucible, forging us into elevated coaches- instilling us with new knowledge, guidance and passion to help you achieve your goals. His devotion to perfection, energy, and the Versa method had us all hobbling around like trolls by day three, but it was easily an experience we would all do again in a heartbeat. 

Here’s what a few of your instructors had to say:
 
Cozey:
“One thing I’ve really taken away from my trainings with Loui is realizing that I’m far more capable than I ever gave myself credit for. His encouragement and ability to push us outside of our comfort zones made every challenge both demanding and rewarding. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought I could climb 20,000-25,000 feet in a single weekend. Yet, with the right support from him, and my peers around me, I felt like I could have kept going. For me, that was a powerful reminder of the impact a great coach or leader can have- someone who pushes you past your perceived limits and helps you discover your true potential. And that’s exactly what we should strive to do for our clients.”
 
Heather:
“Versa training was difficult, it was fun, and it was incredibly educational and inspirational. Difficult experiences shape us, but they don’t have to define us negatively. Instead, they can forge resilience, and remind us of our ability to rise above even the hardest moments…like sprints haha.”
 
Kerry:
“The VersaTrainer certification this weekend with Master Trainer Loui not only challenged us to come out of our comfort zone, but dig a little deeper into the potential that each of us have to be amazing instructors/coaches for our clients, along with making them all feel that they are capable at any age to embark on this amazing workout. Loui allowed us to grow as instructors and challenge ourselves to not only be physically there for our clients but mentally be able to provide the support, encouragement, and motivation that they each need when trying Versa.”
 
What does that mean for you, our clients? Prepare for revamped routines, fresh music, new moves, and a new zeal from your instructors. We are here to bring the action, showing you how capable you are of maximizing your cardio potential. We can tell you all the whys of Versa. We can tell you that you burn 22 calories a minute on the Versa climber versus 13 calories a minute in a spin class. We can tell you that you round out your workout by engaging your fast twitch muscle fibers and actively improve your cardio respiratory fitness. We can tell you the Versa climber mimics the natural primal movement pattern of crawling, can help even out your posture, and provide mental health benefits. We can educate you on so many things. But the How? The How you have to experience yourself. If you haven’t tried Versa yet, or have only come to a few classes, now is the time. See you in a climb class!
 
*A special thank you to Cathy, who invests so much time, energy and resources into us instructors to make sure you get the best workout in Boise. A thank you to Julie who kept us fed with the most delicious and nourishing food all weekend. And finally, a huge thank you to Loui who traveled all the way up to Boise to insure you would experience the best Versa class in Idaho.

​Less than 2 weeks to go to finish strong!  Many of you have far surpassed the required 32 classes.  Amazing!  The winner of the 10 class package will be announced in class on March 13 and those completing 32 classes can pick up their grips socks at the front desk between March 13th and 18th.

If you'd like to do a final InBody scan, you can also do that March 13 - 18.  

Thanks for participating!  You Killed It!

​“Watch your RPM, don’t let it fall! Keep going!” By this time, I was punching 135 W on this ancient bike, I could feel the brick seat pad through my cycling shorts, and I was sucking wind like a newborn baby. I had long stopped hearing the encouragement coming from Ben Stein, cycling coach and VO2 max tester at Idaho Sports Medicine Institute, as he watched my metabolic line shift ever upwards on his testing computer. By then, I had long downshifted into a primal state- survive.

So why on earth would I pay one hundred dollars to fight for my life for fifteen minutes? Well, slap on your bike chamois and let’s talk about your maximal aerobic capacity, or VO2 max for short. At the beginning of this year, I set out to find out all of my health metrics to figure out what my fitness baseline is and how I could improve it. Now that I’m rapidly approaching my mid-thirties, I’m a lot less interested in the tiniest body I can cultivate (thank you 90s diet culture) and much more interested in laying the groundwork for a strong, capable, and let me be honest, absolute machine of a body. 

This journey began with cracking open the pages of Dr. Peter Attia’s book Outlive, which completely changed my perspective on health, longevity and what it means to be a functional human being. Chapter 11 Exercise was the pivot point. I have always known how important exercise is, but not the nitty-gritty of it all. This was the first time I stumbled across the concept of VO2 max and just how important it is as a marker for health and longevity. “It turns out that peak aerobic cardiorespiratory fitness, measured in terms of VO2 max is perhaps the single most powerful marker for longevity. VO2 max represents the maximum rate at which a person can utilize oxygen…The higher someone’s VO2 max, the more oxygen they can consume to make ATP, and the faster they can ride or run- in short, the more they can do.” Dr. Attia goes on to say that those with below-average VO2 max for their age and sex double their risk for all-cause mortality. Let me repeat that. Double. Smokers have a better longevity outlook with a forty percent all-cause mortality risk. 

As a naturally curious person who is interested in not dying prematurely, I, of course, had to know what my VO2 max is. For a 33 year old woman, the average VO2 max is roughly 28-36.9 ml/kg/min. Knowing that I don’t train cardiovascular fitness outside of the Versa climber, I was hoping to at least hit the average. So off I went to schedule my appointment with Ben at ISMI, unaware that I was about to partake in the world’s most hellish Peloton ride. 

I arrived at ISMI in the morning, when I knew I would be capable of peak cardiovascular performance. The day before I made sure to eat a lot of carbohydrates, hydrate, and get a good night’s sleep. To say I was nervous is a massive understatement. If something has the word “test” within a five mile radius, I get flashbacks to my college prep school days and start shaking like an overcaffeinated chihuahua. Ben was quick to dispel my fears. He walked me through the bike apparatus, explained how he was going to increase test difficulty, what to expect and what to aim for. He encouraged me to fight for every single last second I could, telling me that most people quit before they are ready, and then regret it. After his shpeal, he custom-fitted an oxygen mask-like device to my face, finagled the air tubes, let me get my music situated, and we were, quite literally, off to the races. 

Now, when someone says a VO2 test is hard, nothing except experience can prepare you for just how “hard” hard is. The worst things always start with the thought, “How bad can this possibly be?” and end with “Dear God, what have I done?” This is not your grandma’s stroll through the park. No, this test is designed to take you to your absolute maximum effort- the point at which your body slams on the brakes and you physically cannot do any more work. It is designed to break you. I hit that concrete wall at eleven minutes thirty seconds. Never in my life have I felt such a sudden and definitive stop in my body. In Lagree, we aim for failure, but this was advanced failure. I’ve never felt the sensation of my body ceasing any and all movement with such a sudden and complete finality. 

When my body cried uncle and I completed the cool-down, I thought I could taste blood. My legs felt like unworkable slabs of meat (an indicator that I had also hit my lactate threshold, but that’s another topic for another time). But, I also felt absolutely euphoric. As Ben looked over my results, he asked me again, “are you sure you don’t train cardio?” I affirmed. He gave a small laugh and then gave me the weirdest compliment I’ve ever received- “I think you have a high capability of going out and suffering in endurance sports.” So, what was the result? I am sitting pretty at 38.5 ml of oxygen a minute, which is above average for my age (and achieved just by using the Versa Climber I’d like to add!). With focused training, Ben said there’s a good possibility I could increase that number by 30% and to come back and retest at the end of the year.

After giving me a basic training plan, which consisted of near death by sprint intervals, he sent me on my merry way. Now I realize, I have not written a single word here that makes this test sound worth your time. So why bother? Aside from longevity, knowing your VO2 max also keeps you honest while training. If you know what your max heart rates are in each training zone, you know what to strive for. So many of us sell ourselves short while training our bodies, never giving ourselves the change to realize our full potential. Aging gracefully and aging painfully each have their own elements of suffering, but one is well within our control, the other we let external factors dictate. If you are willing to take control and discipline your body and mind now, it will pay dividends in the future. So yes, I highly recommend the VO2 test. It’s 15 minutes of suffering for a lifetime of information. Now I know exactly where I need to be heart rate wise on the Versa climber to get maximum benefit, and where I need to be on a rest day. Am I looking forward to training these sprint intervals? Absolutely not! But the mental feelings of well-being and knowing my body is getting stronger every day certainly is worth it!

​Getting into class these days can be almost as challenging as the workout itself!  We now have 14 spots available and most classes are waitlisted.  That's a good problem to have, right?  Well kind of.  I'm sure some of you find it very discouraging!  Can I let you in on a little secret?  We have lots of space, you might just need to plan your schedule a little more loosly.  I went back over our schedule this last week and counted up how many Megas/Versas sat empty.  Are you ready for this?  We had 98 spots available!  

Spots frequently open up in that 2 hour window before class.  Signing up for the waitlist is one way to snag a spot, but our waitlist does not add anyone with less than an hour before class.  

I enourage you to take advantage of this little secret and grab one of those 98 spots!

With the new year comes new changes at the studio, and the most notable is our newly structured combo classes. We’ve had a lot of you ask why the change, and it’s a good question! The “too long, didn’t read” version is- it simply works better with the fitness goals and values we have at CoreStrong. The long answer is steeped in exercise science. So if that’s your thing, grab a coffee or tea and let’s chat about the whys and the hows of this change. 

So, scientifically, why the change? If you Google, “which is better, cardio before resistance, or vice versa” you are going to find scientific articles that fit both narratives. But with everything in life, the real answer to which order reigns superior is….. It depends. It depends on your age, sex, and fitness goals. So, before we go further, let’s review the fitness goals we have at CoreStrong.

At CoreStrong we follow the Lagree Method, which includes effective range of motion, resistance, tempo, and duration. In short, we are building the kind of strength that takes a focused and rested body to get the best out of your strength workout and maximize your muscle gains. To maintain adherence to the Lagree Method, it makes more sense to start you out on the mega (resistance) while you are fresh and can gain maximal tension and duration then burn you out on the versa (cardio), rather than sending your poor, tired legs to their doom in a super lunge directly after a versa sprint. Theoretically, this also reduces the risk of fatigue-related injuries. 
​
But is there actual science to back this change? Yes! Especially for women and those over 65 years of age. One study found that women who engaged in high-intensity resistance training and then participated in aerobic exercise for 20 minutes had a higher fat oxidation rate than the aerobic-only group. Another study found that women who performed resistance training before aerobic training improved their maximal oxygen consumption or the “highest rate at which an individual can use oxygen during physical exertion.” This is also known as the VO2 max, an important marker for both longevity and cardiovascular fitness. And for those over 65? The science says resistance training before aerobic exercise is a statistically significant boon for improving the aforementioned VO2 max and maximum aerobic workload. 

Next month, I’ll be taking you for a literal ride as I dive deeper into VO2 max and why it’s a marker you want to pay attention to. In the meantime, I challenge you to catch a combo class once or twice a week and see how you feel after four weeks. I bet it’ll be along the lines of both stronger and faster. See you in class!

​I had a client pose a really interesting question to me earlier this month that immediately made me pause and go “hmmmm.” “Bri,” she said. “ I saw this video on social media that said collagen protein can’t be counted towards your daily protein intake.” My gut reaction was, that video sounds like malarky to me, but I am always down to investigate a question and then share what I uncover. While I’m not a nutritionist and can’t give nutritional advice, I felt like what I found was worth sharing with all of you. In short, amino acids are amino acids. The reason some doctors say you can’t count collagen protein towards your daily intake is due to a scale known as the protein-digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) which ranges from 0.0 to 1.0. (An aside, this scale’s validity is hotly debated in the scientific community, with many finding its current form to be a poor tool of measurement.) Because collagen is not a complete protein (lacking tryptophan and having lower levels of the muscle building amino acids) it gets a 0.0 on the scale. However, a study published in Nutrients titled “Significant amounts of functional collagen peptides can be incorporated in the diet while maintaining indispensable amino acid balance” states that collagen is an important source of peptides and amino acids that contribute to overall health. It found that 2.5 to 15 grams of collagen protein a day was an effective amount to add to a daily regimen, so don’t dump the collagen just yet! (For those wondering, I still drink 20-40 g of collagen protein a day.) Where things get murky is the claim you can’t count it towards your daily value because “it’s not a complete protein.” Following that logic, you can’t count anything that’s not an animal protein. Rice, beans, grains, or anything else that is not a complete protein is off the table. That is why having a well rounded diet full of various foods is critical to your protein intake. You’ll also notice that many supplements are lacking a daily value under the protein category. From what I found, if a supplement is not considered a complete protein, manufacturers cannot put a percent daily value on packaging.

To the client who posed this question, thank you! 

IF YOU HAVE A TOPIC OR QUESTION THAT YOU'D LIKE BRIANA TO DIVE INTO, PLEASE LET US KNOW.  SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO [email protected]

#1 - Two more Megas and two more Versas 
We'll have 14 spots in classes starting Monday, January 6th.  

#2 - New format for Mega/Climb Combo Classes
Starting in the Mega Studio for a 25 minute routine designed with a combination of foundational and advanced moves, challenging variations and quick, smooth transitions, and then over to the Versa Studio for 20 minutes of low impact, high intensity, cardio.  Build your endurance and coordination and love every minute of it!  

#3 - Winter Challenge begins January 12th
Sign up on your app (click on the trophy icon at the bottom of your screen).
In Body - get your first reading at the front desk, anytime between January 1st and 12th.
Download the Macrostax App and use your same email and password that you use for your CoreStrong app.  

ALL PARTICIPANTS COMPLETING 32 CLASSES RECEIVE A PAIR OF CUSTOM CORESTRONG GRIP SOCKS!  AND ARE ENTERED INTO THE DRAWING TO WIN 10 FREE CLASSES

#4 Face Foundrie will be at CoreStrong once again!
Take a class on January 3rd or 4th and receive discounted products and services at Face Foundrie.  You'll also get to spin the wheel for a chance to win a free facial, product samples, free tools, goodie bags, swag, etc.
 
#5 MODIFIED SCHEDULE FOR LAGREE CERTIFICATION - JANUARY 17 - 19  
Thanks for your understanding!

I know New Year’s resolutions aren’t everyone’s cup of tea but I LOVE them. I have made a resolution every year since grade school and look forward to a new one every year. Some have been wildly successful, and some have flamed out within the second week of January. I’ve run the gamut of cold-turkey cut offs to completely unattainable expectations. Through it all, I’ve learned a thing or two about what sticks and what doesn’t.

And so if you are a resolution maker like myself, I offer you some insights.

1. Make your resolution habit based. No resolution, no matter how small, will survive unless you build a framework of practical habits. If you want to get stronger, you have to go to the gym at least three times a week. Now take that goal and break it into three small, sustainable habits. For example, block your calendar to go to the gym every Monday/Wednesday/Friday at 9 am, leave a pair of grip socks in your car, and make sure you have a protein bar in your purse for after class to maximize recovery. The secret is to make the habits so easy and so automatic you don’t have to expend a single brain cell thinking about them. 
2. Focus on addition, not subtraction. Cutting things out is often unsustainable. Let’s say you want to cut out bread because you feel awful after eating it. Instead of ghosting it completely, make it a habit to eat a fruit or a vegetable before you reach for the bread. Chances are, you won’t want the bread after. Replacing one thing with another option is not only a more sustainable habit to maintain, you also avoid a scarcity mindsight which leads to broken resolutions. 
3. Focus on intrinsic motivation, not extrinsic. In other words, focus on your own internal drive rather than outside expectations. The most unsustainable and unrealistic resolution I see crop up every year is, “I just want to look hot!” Ok, that’s great, but beauty standards are ever shifting and, here’s the bad news- you will never be happy with the way you look if the goal posts keep shifting. Instead, focus on goals that make you feel powerful. How much weight can you lift? How much muscle can you gain? Can you get to sleep every night at the same time?

It’s been an absolute pleasure working out with you this year and I look forward to hearing about all the goals you have planned for yourself in 2025. Until then, Happy New Year and see you in class!!

Alright my friends, after months of warning and preparation, the day has finally arrived! We begin our Macrostax challenge starting…now! Many of you have already explored the app, asking lots of questions in preparation for this challenge. Still, the most popular question I’ve gotten is the same question I asked myself- “How on Earth am I supposed to eat this much protein?!” 

I won’t kid you, it’s a learning curve. To help, I asked a few of the instructors what their favorite protein supplement was and why, as well as a few tips to sneak protein in when you physically cannot eat any more. 

Instructor Hanne
“I find that it’s hard to find whey protein powders with clean ingredients that aren’t insanely expensive so I’m excited to try to hear what others prefer! My go to is Orgain organic vegan protein powder. For a whey powder, Ballerina Farm is delicious and while I’d love to drink it all the time, it’s so expensive I can’t get myself to keep it stocked and drink consistently.”

Orgain 

• Protein per serving- 21 g
• Cost per serving- $1.00
• Main protein source(s)- organic pea and rice protein
• Purchase here 

Ballerina Farm

• Protein per serving- 24 g
• Cost per serving-  $2.23
• Main protein source- grassfed whey protein
• Purchase here

 
Instructor Hailey 
“Fairlife CorePower protein is my fav protein! I drink one every morning- it legit tastes like ice cream!

Fairlife CorePower

• Protein per serving- 26 g
• Cost per serving- $3.99
• Main protein sources- filtered lowfat milk
• Can be found at Costco or Albertsons

 
Instructor Kerry
“Equip Prime Chocolate Protein! I love the flavor and picked this brand because it got the highest rating for most digestible as I have a sensitivity to whey. It’s not gritty and there is no after flavor.”

Equip

• Protein per serving- 20 g
• Cost per serving- $3.20
• Main protein sources- grassfed beef protein
• Purchase here

I’ve made mention in previous articles that my favorite is Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides. The flavor is the least “proteiny” of all the brands I’ve tried and it’s so easy to digest. 

Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides

• Protein per serving- 18 g
• Cost per serving- $1.22
• Main protein sources- beef collagen
• Can be found at Costco

It’s been a few months since I’ve been experimenting with getting enough protein- I still have yet to hit that 154g goal- and have had to trick myself into eating protein multiple times. Here are some protein cheat codes to use if you are feeling completely over it. 

1. Use your protein powder of choice as cereal milk. When the thought of chugging a straight protein shake makes my stomach turn, I’ll mix it up and pour it over plain rice chex. My brain thinks it’s Cocoa Pebbles and it goes down a lot easier. 
2. Speaking of cereal, you can also use your favorite mix as a base for overnight oats. 
3. Make it the base of your iced coffee. If you already reach for an iced mocha or vanilla latte in the morning, swap the chocolate syrup for chocolate protein milk. Hailey’s choice of FairLife is perfect for this.
4. Instead of a plain smoothie, blend it and use it as a replacement base for an acai bowl. I go bananas with mine (literally) and top it with grainless granola, coconut shavings, and drizzle it with honey. 
5. If you have a Ninja Creami, you can use your protein as an ice cream base. I have done this with FairLife as well and can attest- it tastes exactly like a Wendy’s frosty. 
6. If you can handle whey protein, you can actually get clear protein! Kerry showed me a brand called Clean Simple Eats that you can find at The Vitamin Shoppe. I was skeptical at first. My brain wouldn’t accept the idea of protein that has no consistency and goes down like water. But truly, it’s like drinking gatorade! 

And finally, a non food related protein hack. If you don’t have a shaker bottle (like me- I HATE washing shaker bottles) you can get a smooth protein blend by adding two to three tablespoons of your liquid of choice to your protein powder and stirring it with a fork until you get a smooth syrup consistency. Then add the rest of your beverage. Voila! No grainy, separated nonsense. 

If you've been attending CoreStrong for a while, you know that we have a pretty strict cancellation policy.  Our policies are in place to ensure that you can get into class.  in 2024 we had over 500 no shows, 2936 late cancels and 763 of those were less than 2 hours before class.

I want to challenge you to save your money in 2025!  It's a chance to start fresh!  Beginning January 1st, you will no longer be charged an extra fee for cancelling class less than 2 hours before class.  The fee will be a flat rate of $15 for cancelling less than 12 hours before class.  However, we will still be monitoring last minute cancellations and if you've cancelled less than 2 hours before class more than 3 times after January 1st, 2025, you will receive a notice and you will be charged an additional $20 for any additional cancellations within the 2 hours before class.  Cancel as soon as you know you have a conflict.  

I encourage you to wait to sign up for class until you know for sure you can attend.  Checking your app for available spots during that 2 hour window before class, will surprise you.  We almost always have room! 

Our no show fee will remain at $50.  A no show prevents anyone else from joining class and disrupts the flow of the studio.  The instructors and I work very hard to produce the very best class possible, and I'm sorry, but it just hurts our feelings when you don't show up!

We are sorry if you are sick and we appreciate you not trying to come to class and infecting others, however, we cannot offer refunds or exceptions.  Please do not email or call the studio.  Cancel your class immediately.  

Not everyone likes to check their emails, but I have no other way of communicating with you, so please read your emails.  Every time you sign up for class, confirm the date and time with the confirmation email you receive and make sure to add it to your personal calendar.  If you've cancelled a class, check your emails for a confirmation of your cancellation. 

Our scheduling system is the best of the best!  We've added 2 more Megaformers and 2 more Versa Climbers and reduced cancellation fees.  Now it's your turn!  Please take charge of your personal schedule.  

Your positive experience at CoreStrong is our #1 priority!  We care deeply about your health and fitness and want nothing more than to see you succeed!

Cheers to 2025!

​

​Your incredible response to our Black Friday Sale has been overwhelming!  Whether you are at the beginning or well into your fitness journey, we are grateful for the opportunity to challenge you with impactful workouts that show you just how capable you are!  The bonding that happens when we work together, accomplishing hard things, and staying committed to our goals, is exactly how we create the community that we have at CoreStrong!  Thank you for showing up and giving it all you've got!  

You might remember from last month’s Macrostax article that I spent a whole lot of time talking about the importance of breakfast in my protein goal journey. I also made mention that Kerry, Natalie and I formed a Breakfast Club to keep each other accountable, because, let’s face it, we know that breakfast is “the most important meal of the day” but the hardest to implement. And if you are preparing for the Macrostax challenge coming up in January, trust me, make breakfast a habit now.

Listen, I can regale you with enough scientific data on the importance of breakfast until you cry Uncle. I can tell you that your iced coffee is not a proper breakfast and will spike your cortisol levels. I can climb to the top of the Wells Fargo building and scream that skipping breakfast is wrecking your hormones and causing that dreaded midday crash. That waking up not hungry is not a good sign, and that not getting enough protein in the morning will leave you starving for the rest of the day. But here’s the truth, I don’t need to dig up those scientific articles- you already know all this. Facts don’t necessarily lead to action, so instead, here’s a tale of your instructors Kerry, Natalie and myself navigating our way into making breakfast a habit over the last 60 days, and what we learned by putting these scientific principles into action. 

What was your main motivation for implementing a breakfast habit?

Natalie- “I want to be a good example for my girls. It’s important that they see me eat balanced meals so they grow up to have a good relationship with food.”

Kerry- “I just wanted more energy!”

Briana- “I knew I was going to have to frontload all of my protein in the morning or the Macrostax challenge was going to be a flop, but I also just wanted more energy. The midday exhaustion was getting out of hand.”

What were the greatest benefits you experienced from eating a daily breakfast?

Natalie- “I noticed more energy, no “crashing” midday. I also had no midday or early afternoon headaches. I was able to lift more and push harder with cardio. I noticed no dizzy spells, which I often noticed with my super low blood pressure.” 

Kerry- “With incorporating 30g of protein within 30 minutes of waking, I’ve noticed a huge change in my energy. I never realized how beneficial it was to not only get breakfast in, but within an hour of waking.”

Briana- “Hands down, my energy levels. I could finally go all in at CoreStrong and still be humming through my back to back 90 minute massage sessions. No more afternoon bonks!”

What surprised you the most about committing to this breakfast habit?

Natalie- “That there was no weight gain, even though eating breakfast increased my calorie intake.”

Kerry- “I think because I didn’t eat breakfast for so long, that I lost my awareness of hunger. Now that I’ve been getting in my morning protein breakfast, I’m actually not only more hungry in the morning, but I’m getting appropriate hunger cravings throughout the day.”

Briana- “I’m with Kerry and Natalie on this one. I finally have normal hunger cues, which at first was a bit scary. I was eating a lot more than I used to, and feeling hungry was a new sensation. But like Natalie, I didn’t experience any unwanted weight gain.”

What was the most challenging part about making breakfast a habit?

Natalie- “The biggest challenge I had was to make sure I planned accordingly, even planning out my breakfast the night before and also my lunch on the days I was at the studio for several hours.”

Kerry- “A lot of times I was teaching/working out soon after I woke up. I would always have my protein shake but I needed to remember to have a bit more breakfast after I worked out. Sometimes that was hard when I got busy with work. I then decided to set an alarm on my phone so I wouldn’t forget to get my “second breakfast” in.” 

Briana- “I went more than a decade without breakfast, so pushing through the morning and chugging a protein shake when I didn’t feel hungry was really hard at first. I had to reframe my morning breakfast like brushing my teeth or showering- it’s not necessarily fun, but it is good for me.”

What was your favorite or go to breakfast?

Natalie- “A piece of avocado toast on sourdough with four ounces of either baked salmon, baked chicken, or baked tofu on the side, drizzled with basil olive oil, lemon juice and chili flakes.” Author’s note- Natalie has the most beautiful breakfasts and needs to make a cookbook. 

Kerry- “For me, the days I worked early, my go to was a 30g protein shake followed by 20g of protein yogurt after my versa class. On the days I don’t teach, my go to is eggs, cottage cheese and sourdough toast.”

Briana- “Within an hour of waking, it was 50 g of vital collagen protein powder in almond milk- every single day. I like to streamline things. After my core workout I’d do a slice of sourdough with avocado.”

Any tips for those just starting their breakfast habit?

Natalie- “Plan accordingly and have a support system!”

Kerry- “Create a support system!”

Briana- “Streamline the process. Pick one high protein option, and stick with that for 30 days. Eat it as fast as you can if you have to, but just prioritize it within an hour of waking. The first week or two is really difficult so just push through. Also, the accountability helped a ton! Not wanting to eat but knowing I’d have to post a picture in the group chat was a big motivator.”

Here’s to healthy habits for 2025. See you in class!

DON'T MISS OUT ON OUR BLACK FRIDAY SALE!
Sale starts on November 24th and ends on December 2nd.  9 days to take advantage
​of our best pricing options.  Set yourself up for success in 2025 now! 

“Kerry, how the (bad word) am I supposed to eat this much protein?” That was the text I sent immediately after I downloaded the Macrostax app and was duly informed that I need to consume 154 grams of protein every day. “Just listen to the podcast I sent you- trust me.” She replied. And thus began a full 30 days of tracking my macros. Now I sit here to tell you the good, the bad and the ugly of my experience. Why? Because in January, CoreStrong will be running a Macrostax challenge, and trust me when I say now is the time to familiarise yourself with tracking your macros because, as I learned, you can’t go from 0 to 100 overnight.

So what does “tracking your macros” mean? The body runs off of three main macronutrients- carbohydrates, protein, and fat. Carbohydrates are the body’s main energy source and provide four calories per gram. Protein is the major repair nutrient for the body and also provides four calories per gram. Fat plays a huge role in satiety, hormone production, the uptake of fat soluble vitamins such as vitamins A, D, K, and E, and carries nine calories per gram. When tracking macronutrients, the rationale is a 40/30/30 split of calories from carbohydrates, proteins, and fat in that order. Tracking macronutrients instead of calories allows the user to focus more on quality of food rather than quantity while still allowing freedom of choice when it comes to choosing food for the day. So, if you want a piece of chocolate cake and it fits your macros, go for it. 

If you are wondering, yes I absolutely ate cake and cookies and chocolate while tracking my macros, but before I can venture too far into the forest, a little groundwork first. I agreed to this assignment for various reasons. Since May, I’ve lost muscle, which was not a trend I was expecting. I’ve also been experiencing the most intense fatigue all summer. Not the, “I need a nap” fatigue, no, no. The “bury me in the ground six feet deep and wake me next year fatigue.” I’ve also noticed I bruise like a peach and my wounds don’t heal very quickly. My heart rate variability tanked and my workout recovery? What recovery? So when it came to downloading the app and sticking with it for a month- barring my fear of tracking my food and the ever lurking shadow of an eating disorder- what did I have to lose? All my important metrics were already trending down anyway. 

My experience can be broken down into three distinct phases. Phase one was a wakeup call, phase two was a period of overcompensation, and phase three was all about balance. The first week was rough. I faced the bleak reality of my ingrained habits and boy were they refusing to exit the stage without a fight. I was woefully unprepared for just how quickly I would have to flip my previous ideas of personal nutrition to get within a 7 mile radius of my target numbers. It became crystal clear, given my storied history with food, that I would have to put some concrete boundaries in place if I was going to make this experiment successful.

1. Protein is king. If I can make it to 100g of protein a day, this is considered a win.
2. Carbohydrate and fat macros were less important targets to hit. As long as I hit my caloric intake goal, it was less important how the calories were distributed among those two. I tend to run better off of fat, so I allow myself more fat than the macrostax recommends.
3. Macrostax is a guideline, not a holy text.

Even though that first week proved a huge challenge, I noticed a massive shift in energy after only three days. This was expected as I was easily eating at least 800 calories and 80 grams of protein more a day than I usually did. The notes from my journal during the first week are laced with elation; energy when I normally had none, and on October 10th, I hit a personal best on the VersaClimber.

The second phase is clearly delineated by the advent of a migraine, which I battled off and on for an entire week. Regardless, I was still getting over 100 grams of protein every day, and noticed a positive trend in my sleep patterns and recovery rate. By the 15th, I noted how quick I was to recover after a workout, and how good it felt to go hard at the gym. On October 16th, after a few days of hitting roughly 120 grams of protein (and as my journal recorded, a lot of whining about protein yogurt and a subtle horror about how much processed food I was eating) I decided to commit and hit that 154 grams. In doing so, I made the most vile protein dish I have ever made in my entire life- one carton of egg whites, butter, and white rice. This meal was so vile in fact, that I had to take two days off from tracking because the thought of eating anything that even smelled like protein twisted my stomach. It was at this moment it became extremely clear I was not going to be hitting that 154g goal anytime soon. 

This ill fated meal threw me into phase three- balance. The beauty of tracking every piece of food that enters your mouth is that you can’t lie to yourself. Macrostax has a handy little feature that tracks important metrics like fiber and micronutrients. In my quest to jam as much protein as physically possible, I was ignoring healthy carbs like fruits and vegetables to my own detriment. And while I was still hitting my personal goal of at least 100 g of protein a day, I did a hard pivot and started focusing on whole food, nourishing meals like soups and stews. In the early days, I found myself shying away from dining out, because trying to dissect a restaurant meal into something acceptable to the Macrostax app was too much. And, to be honest, I was beginning to feel a little burnt out from tracking literally everything that came across my plate. So, I implemented tracking free days- usually a weekend day. By this point, I had a very good idea of what I needed to do to hit 100 grams of protein, and so when I finally went out to eat, I prioritized the protein, but still ate the cake. 

After these last 30 days will I continue to use the app? Yes, absolutely. This app helped  me crystalize nutritional goals in a way I’ve never been able to do. I didn’t once obsess over calories while using this tool, which is the biggest win of them all. Because I prioritized protein, I never felt restricted in my food, neither did I feel hungry.  I loved that the app has a barcode scanner built in, so food entry is a breeze. This feature also highlighted just how much ultra-processed food I ate, guiding me gently to choose more whole foods.   However, the app is not without its faults. Tracking home-cooked meals is a giant pain in the butt. You can enter a recipe and then portion it out, which does make the process easier, but when it comes to dining out? You will be left guessing. I also found the macronutrient breakdown too aggressive for me. Even after 30 days, I still hadn’t hit my goal of 154 grams of protein but hit my fat goal by lunch everyday. This left me wondering what the heck I was supposed to do for dinner many nights. As mentioned, my body runs better off of fats, and so I disregarded the fat metric, letting carbohydrates and fats balance themselves out. 

As we inch closer to the MacroStax challenge, I encourage you to start playing with the app to work out your own personal bugs. Below are the six most helpful tips I implemented over the last 30 days to achieve my personal goals. 

1. Get a food scale and use it. Trust me. If you are like me, there is a good chance you have no idea what a serving of food looks like. I was severely underestimating how much food I was serving myself, and so the scale was my saving grace. It also makes tracking a breeze. 
2. If you focus on only one macro, make it protein. And trust me, focus only on one macro to start. 
3. Aim for 50 to 60 g of protein before noon. If you aren’t a breakfast person, too bad. You’re about to become one. And I don’t say that without empathy. I am not a breakfast person, and haven’t been one for the better part of a decade. For accountability purposes, Natalie, Kerry and I formed a Breakfast Club to keep eachother on track. Every morning we submitted our breakfast picture to the group chat. 
4. Make those first 50 to 60 g of protein easy. My go to was 50g of chocolate Vital Collagen protein powder in almond milk first thing in the morning, or right before my morning CoreStrong Class. When I got home, I would aim for another 20 g in the form of hard boiled eggs or Chobani protein yogurt. 
5. For the next 30 days, avoid the scale and focus on other metrics for health- namely, your energy levels, your sleep, your skin health, and, most importantly, your mood. A lot can happen physically in 30 days, but change is happening at the cellular level. You may not see the rapid changes you are expecting. 
6. If you start to obsess over tracking, take two days off to reset.

And now for the long awaited finale! So how did my numbers change over the last month? I’m happy to report only positive results. When I began this journey, I weighed 122.2, with a body fat mass of 27.0 lb, and a skeletal muscle mass of 52.5 lbs. At the end of my journey, a mere 30 days of me fumbling about to get this right, I weigh 120.8, with a body fat mass of 25.3 lbs and a skeletal muscle mass of 52.7 lbs. Mind you, I did not set about this journey to lose weight, but as a 33 year old woman, the change in trend alerted me that I needed to make some serious changes. So, after a mere 30 days and more macronutrients that equaled to a minimum of an extra 800 calories a day, I corrected the trend I was seeing. 

But beyond numbers, I feel fantastic. My sleep is now so good that my sleep app reset my baseline. My heart rate variability (a metric used for overall recovery) increased 6 points, and my resting heart rate dropped 3 points. My skin, once so dry it flaked like a snowglobe, is now much healthier. My workout recovery is phenomenal and for the first time ever, I was able to get over 200’ on the VersaClimber sprint. I no longer need a midday nap and have plenty of energy to do my workout and complete my physically demanding job. My mood has been more stable, and I’m a little less reactive to life’s daily stressors. For the first time in my entire life, I was able to eat dessert with zero guilt because I knew exactly what my body required, and if it fit my macros, then dessert was merely just part of my fuel. 

I encourage you to play with the app and get familiar with it and then when the challenge arrives, really commit. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how much your body can do when given the proper tools. See you in class!

-Briana, LMT, CES

For access to the MacroStax app, check the email you used when you signed up with CoreStrong. It is free for members.  Or send us an email at [email protected] and we'll send you a link to get signed up.

TRAINING STARTS IN JANUARY!
Please email Cathy at [email protected] to learn more.

IT'S OUR 7TH BIRTHDAY AND WOW!
​DO WE HAVE A FUN MONTH PLANNED JUST FOR YOU!

​Birthday Bingo starts today! Pick up your Bingo card at the front desk and get after it! Sign up on your app by clicking on the trophy icon and get your classes booked! You'll need to take 16 classes in 31 days, along with a blackout on your Bingo card to put yourself in the drawing. Hang onto your Bingo card until you fill in all the squares and then turn it back in at the front desk to be added into the drawing. Fill in as many squares per day as you can!

Our first-place winner will take home a fabulous gift basket filled with all of our favorite things! Your CoreStrong instructors, front desk crew, and I have collaborated to make this prize one of our best yet! Our 2nd-place winner gets 10 classes added to their account, and our 3rd-place winner gets 5 classes added to their account.

We hope you have a fun time participating in Birthday Bingo!

​A monthly feature in our newsletter, thanks to Briana Crotinger LMT!  Briana has joined our team at CoreStrong and we are so lucky!  Briana has a wealth of knowledge and loves to research and share her findings!  With over a decade of bodywork, kinesiology, and pain management experience, she weaves her knowledge into her barefoot myofascial massage practice at Mend Bodywork.

In the near-decade I’ve been working with people’s bodies, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a client proudly display how flexible their hips are, and then fail to perform a proper squat. It’s usually a source of frustration for them, because they’ve been led to believe they are super mobile and therefore should be able to properly execute a movement.  If you’ve ever done a brief search on strength and stretching, you’ve no doubt come across the terms “flexibility” and “mobility.” More than likely, these two terms were used interchangeably, as they often are in most fitness articles. However, they couldn’t be more different, and understanding the difference is of great importance for your training. 

Flexibility has two common definitions. It is either “the ability of the muscle to lengthen” or “the ability of a joint to move through full range of motion without pain.” While both of these definitions are correct, they leave out a critical component. Flexibility is a passive movement. Having your foot in the mega cable strap to pull your hamstring towards your nose is an example of flexibility in action. You aren’t actively lengthening your hamstring to move your hip joint, the cable strap is doing that for you. 

Mobility on the other hand is active movement through a joint’s range of motion. Mobility requires stamina, balance, strength, coordination and, yes, flexibility. In simpler terms, mobility asks, how efficiently can you move and control that movement? In many cases, mobility is also referring to how multiple joints move together. In a squat, any mobility dysfunction in the ankle, knee or hip will ultimately impact the entire movement. Let's revisit that leg in a cable strap. Time to do some slow leg circles! Now you are controlling the movement of the hip joint. You need stamina, balance, strength, coordination and flexibility to move your leg in slow, fluid, circular movements at the hip joint. For most, mobility is a process, so perhaps your mobility in a hip circle is limited. Maybe the coordination isn’t there, or you struggle to balance inner thigh strength with outer thigh strength. Worry not, mobility can take time, but consistent practice in achieving full, controlled range of motion in all of our joints helps protect from injury. 

Think of Mobility as the main course and flexibility as an ingredient. You can be as flexible as a cooked noodle but have terrible mobility if you cannot control active movement. You can be as strong as an ox but have terrible mobility if you lack flexibility. Remember, mobility requires stamina, balance, strength, coordination and flexibility equally. 

Mobility is also a key longevity predictor. The Timed Up and Go Test (TUG) requires a patient to stand from a chair, walk ten feet, turn around, walk back to the chair and sit. While we may not think of this as an exercise in mobility, the act of sitting, standing, and walking requires a great deal of stamina, balance, coordination, flexibility, strength and cooperation of many joints. When tested among the elderly, a failed TUG test is a strong all cause mortality predictor. This stands to reason as all of the factors that are required for good mobility rely on a strong, healthy body. For those of us who scoff at the simplicity of such a test, going from a seated cross-legged position to standing without the use of hand support is another good indicator of mobility.

So where does the confusion between mobility and flexibility come from? I find the confusion stems from stretching. The National Academy of Sports Medicine defines stretching as a  passive process to elongate muscles and connective tissue in order to increase a present state of flexibility. If we take that definition, the movement hierarchy is as follows-
 
Stretching increases flexibility (the ability of a muscle to lengthen) which contributes to a joint’s mobility (the ability to actively move through a joint’s range of motion pain free). 

If you are looking to increase flexibility find a passive stretch and hold it for 15-30 seconds, or over 60 seconds if you are older than 65. However, a quick search on stretching also brings up other forms- active and dynamic stretching. These are also commonly labelled as “mobility exercises” which, technically they are as they are not passive movements. These two methods of stretching require active participation in joint movements. In an active hip flexor stretch, you would be actively squeezing your glute to force the hip flexor to release. In a dynamic stretch, you mimic movements you are about to perform in a sport, like a leg swing. 

In the end, why does the difference matter? Because understanding what mobility is and isn’t can help you figure out where your weak spots are. For example, I have limited range of motion in my big toe joint due to an injury. No amount of passive flexibility stretching has helped. This tells me that I’m lacking a strength component, and more than likely a stamina component of the muscles that control the extension of the big toe. Knowing this, I can better target my weak spots. In Lagree, time under tension, full range of motion strength training is the perfect mobility workout. Remember, if you can’t reach full range of motion, start small and work up to it. Your body will thank you!

See you in class!

Are you ready? Please email Cathy at [email protected] to learn more.

 A large majority of my clients show up for their first appointment either rehabbing an old injury that refuses to go away or struggling with a new one. The vast majority of these clients share two things in common- they’ve either started a new workout program (or ramped up the intensity) and also have a very noticeable compensatory movement pattern (ie, knees rolling inward at the bottom of a squat, poor shoulder control or mobility etc.) And while no one moves perfectly, the vast majority of these injuries could be resolved or lessened with a basic understanding of the 7 fundamental movement patterns-  the squat, lunge, hinge, push, pull, carry, and rotation.

The sad reality is that many of us cannot perform these movements without compensatory movement patterns. These less optimal movement patterns place a strain on our musculoskeletal system, eventually leading to many common overuse injuries: runner’s knee, jumper’s knee, Achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, rotator cuff tears, and sacroiliac pain to name a few. Often, our inability to complete these movements is a byproduct of our modern-day culture. The typical adult works a traditional 9 to 5, chained to a desk doing their best postural impression of a banana. Unfortunately (or fortunately) how we spend the majority of our day moving informs the brain and nervous system what optimal movement looks like. So, if we sit at a desk 8-10 hours a day, shoulders rolled forward, head hunched forward, tight hip flexors with low back extended, this is our “normal.” 

If, after work, you like to hit a high-intensity class, your body’s normal movement patterns are not optimal for the demand you are about to place on it, and thus your likelihood of injury increases. Consider knee valgus (or knees bowing inward when squatting) is a commonly associated movement pattern displayed by many office workers and is a massive determining risk factor of an ACL tear of the knee. If you enjoy jump squats or skiing but haven’t mastered a perfect lunge or squat, your risk of injury increases dramatically. Or, if you enjoy slinging heavy weights overhead on the weekend but haven’t put the effort to correct a hunched shoulder position and learned to brace your core, your chance of a rotator cuff tear or a low back injury skyrockets. In short, if you cannot complete one of these 7 movements slowly without maintaining pain-free, optimal form, then adding speed and intensity to them is a catastrophe waiting to happen.

The good news is that Lagree focuses on these 7 fundamental movement patterns and slows them down to a snail’s pace, allowing your body ample time to understand and integrate proper body mechanics and movement patterns. This slow pace helps retrain your nervous system to overwrite old, less optimal movements and desensitize the nervous system to pain or discomfort. A common adage I give my clients is, “Practice does NOT make perfect; practice makes PERMANENT, so practice each repetition as close to perfection as possible.” Over time, your body will adopt these correct patterns, and you’ll be able to “jump” back into your sport of choice with a decreased risk of injury. 

 If you do not understand a movement or experience pain when performing a movement, it is critical that you talk to your instructor after class. If you have to modify to maintain perfect form, then modify with intention. In Lagree, you are laying the foundation for every movement you do throughout the day, so strive for excellence in each of your reps. Remember, the tortoise wins the race. Starting from ground zero and building your way to optimal movement patterns is the key to movement longevity. Movement is medicine, but like medicine, it’s in the dosage and the application. See you in class!

WE ARE BEYOND EXCITED FOR OUR FALL SCHEDULE!
​STARTING SEPTEMBER 15...

Feel free to take a sneak peak on your app.  Scroll to September 15th and
​beyond to see all the new class additions, and class time changes.

SO HOW IMPORTANT IS HYDRATION ANYWAY?

Do you ever have days where you just feel, well…dumb? It’s as if the word you need to finish your sentence just took a four-week-long vacation. Or your workout endurance did a swan dive off a cliff? Here’s the bad news- you probably are suffering from a case of what I like to call The Dumb. The good news? The Dumb can usually be cured with proper hydration.

A few months ago,  a viral news article dropped with the sensational claim that dehydration makes you just as impaired as being inebriated. The study published in Physiology and Behavior found, “The magnitude of decrement reported [of dehydration],was similar to that observed following the ingestion of an alcoholic beverage resulting in a blood alcohol content of approximately 0.08% (the current UK legal driving limit), or while sleep deprived.” Yikes.

Before continuing, we have to agree on what it means to be dehydrated. Science has determined that a loss of 2% of body mass in fluid is the bottom line for dehydration. So, if you are a 150 lb person, a 3lb loss of fluids means you are officially dehydrated. On a hot day when you are pouring buckets of boob sweat, it doesn’t take much to lose 2% of your body’s water—especially this summer, when we’ve all been treated to an inferno.

So, what happens when you lose, at minimum, 2% of your body’s water? According to a Meta-Study that reviewed 33 other studies looking at the effects of dehyrdation on the human body, “dehydration impairs cognitive performance, particularly tasks involving attention, executive function, and motor coordination when water deficits exceed 2% of body mass loss.” In other words, the very brain functions we need to function as adults. But why does dehydration cause so much chaos? We are composed of 60-70% water, and all chemical reactions in our body happen in this medium, especially in the nervous system. Lack of water is like having spotty cell service, the messages may or may not be sent. So yes, dehydration can be causing The Dumb.

So how much water do you need? And more importantly, are you rehydrating correctly? (Yes, there is a correct way to drink water.) Every human has a different daily water requirement based on physical activity level, weight, sex, age, and air temperature. Generally, the medical community agrees that the average man needs around 3.7 L/day and the average woman needs 2.7 L/day. Thankfully, this amount includes water found in food. Unless you start your day with no fluids and a breakfast of popcorn, you can meet this requirement with a balanced diet of fruits, veggies, soups, and various beverages.

But now that we are in convection oven weather, your water requirements might have changed.

I can already hear it now. “But Bri! If I drink so much water I have to pee all the time.” If that’s the case, I’d wager you are drinking water incorrectly.  Chugging water in one go freaks your body out. Your body perceives a large amount of water at one time as a danger, activating something known as the “bolus response.” To protect you from rapid hyponatremia- the dilution of salt in your blood, which is very dangerous-  your body will excrete most of your water-chugging marathon. So you’ll still be dehydrated and running to the bathroom 75 times. 

Instead, it is far better to sip your water throughout the day. Contrary to popular belief, sipping water throughout the day will not make you live in the bathroom. In fact, one study done on water volume intake found that those who sipped water throughout the day not only retained more water (hydrated) but excreted less. 

If you are sweating significantly, adding electrolytes can help hydrate more efficiently. Now before I go further- I cannot stress this enough- if you have a heart or kidney condition please check with your doctor before you go messing with your electrolyte levels. If you have any of these conditions, messing with your electrolytes without medical supervision can be disastrous. With that out of the way, my favorite electrolyte replacement is LMNT- unlike many electrolyte supplements, it contains salt. It’s an acquired taste- read, watermelon-flavored ocean water. My next recommendation is Liquid IV, which you can find in any supermarket. If you aren’t feeling additives, coconut water is nature’s Gatorade. Or if you have few options, a pinch of sea salt in a glass of water will do. So next time a word escapes you or your body’s check engine light clicks on, check your water levels. See you in class!

Briana

SUMMER CHALLENGE ENDS ON AUGUST 17TH

We've had a lot of fun over these last 9 weeks and we hope your challenge - YOU AGAINST YOU - was a success!  We noticed you staying so focused and determined!  

Please stop by the front desk during the week of August 17 - 24 to have the front desk staff help you get your updated body composition numbers and see the results for yourself!

If you'd like to share your results, we are all ears!  But no pressure!  It's YOU against YOU!