Attention Members: Join our NEW 5-vs-5 Fitness Challenge called “The Arena”

What is the Arena Challenge?

The FVT Bootcamp “Arena” is a brand new fitness challenge to help motivate you and build camaraderie between you and other members of the FVT Bootcamp community.

Here’s how it works:

We’ll put you on a 5 person team and you’ll battle against another team for points. Each day, you’ll earn these points after completing 60 second exercise challenges, completing your normal workouts, doing food challenges, etc. The team that has the most points for the day wins! The team that wins the most days out of 7… wins the battle!

The challenge is run through an app so you’ll be able to stay engaged with other members throughout the day or while you’re traveling.

When is the Start Date?

You can start now! The battles are running constantly so you may join at any time. New battles are launched when 10 new members register. Go ahead and register for the app today! It’s easy!

How do I join?

Go to either the App Store or Google Play store on your smart phone. Search “Exert” and install the Exert Fitness app.

IMPORTANT: During the registration process you’ll need to put in our FVT Bootcamp code which is “forest”. Make sure to add that code so you’ll be put in our Arena. Then once 10 people join, you’ll be put on a team and the battle will start!

June 2017 Challenge Results!

Our two secret challenge days were revealed, and those that showed up rocked the workout! It was a great chance for those who don’t normally get a chance to do a challenge workout. Check out the workout and results below!

June 2017 FVT Challenge Workout

— 30 second timed intervals – beat the clock style
— Continue the workout until no longer possible .. the total # of rounds 100% completed is your score
— Regular push ups for men, knee push ups for women
— 24k kettlebell for men, 16k for women (used for swings and squats)
— score guidelines – 6-7 = good, 8-9 = great, 10 = elite

First round =

2 swings
2 push ups
1 squat
1 burpee

Second round =

4 swings
4 push ups
2 squats
2 burpees

Continue in this fashion until no longer possible, climbing the ladder .. MAX score is:

20 swings
20 push ups
10 squats
10 burpees

#
And The Results:

Men

CB – 9

OM – 9

KE – 8

AW – 8

JM – 7

DH – 6

AB – 5

MW -5

 

Women

 

PK – 10

KE – 9

NP – 8

SK – 8

SM – 7

BH – 7

TR -7

LT – 7

KU – 7

PS – 7

AB – 7

RR – 5

GK – 5

Awesome job everyone! Till next time –

– FVT Team

 

 

 

Hill Sprints + Last Chance for OCR Training

The Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program kicks off tomorrow – last chance to register => http://bit.ly/fvtocr2017

Hill sprints are are very effective.

They are safer than standard sprints, they improve your running form, and they are amazing for burning a ton of fat in a short amount of time.

To start, go out and find a hill.

If you’re in a flat part of the world (like we are, in Sacramento), think creatively.

You can probably find a hill of some kind – for example, right next to my house is an overpass that goes over some railroad tracks that has a nice walkway and is perfect for hill sprints. Close to my home where I grew up in Southern California by the beach we had a walkway going from the beach up to the main road that was perfect for the same purpose.

Worst case senario, you can always use a treadmill set to an incline.

If you want to do this, find a way to get it done!

Now, set a goal for yourself in terms of time and distance.

Jim Wendler has talked about his goal of working up to the number of carries a running back would want in a football game – and I love this idea!

So you’re doing for a MINIMUM of 20, and working up from there.

Then, try to do a little better each time you go out.

Do this 2-3x per week (depending on your goals), and you’re going to see your conditioning and overall fitness shoot thru the roof.

Hill sprints – old school, simple, yet highly effective.

Consider incorporating them into your routine today!

– Forest Vance
Owner, FVT Boot Camp and Personal Training
ForestVanceTraining.com

The Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program kicks off tomorrow – last chance to register => http://bit.ly/fvtocr2017

[video] How to Win a Street Fight or Home Invasion

**Today’s content is a little different than what we normally talk about, but I think this info is SO important, that it’s critical to share.

One of the reasons that many people get into working out in the first place, is to better protect themselves and their family, should the need arise.

Imagine this –

You’re walking down the street and pass by a couple arguing.

The guy gets physical and starts shoving the girl around.

You decide you can’t let it slide so you simply try to inject some calmness and ask him to leave her alone.

This guy’s anger is now squarely focused on you …

OR …

You walk through the front door of your home and find someone in your house.

Now you are between him and his escape route.

Time to get honest … do you have the GO TO move that will end this and keep you alive?

I recently reviewed a program called First Strike that covers these topics (and many other situations of violence).

I thought the training was very well put together, so wanted to share a video for you to check out from Todd Lamb and and Ari Bolden, creators of the program.

In this video, they talk about how to survive a home invasion.

*Todd and Ari are pretty clear in the video that there is more than one way to skin a cat – but before you get all hopped up on your favorite martial art and respond back to this with your comments, Todd is in a position of authority and experience when it comes to this topic. He has 2 black belts in different diciplines, and also has personally participated in 350 high risk operations.

If you find this video useful and informative, I also want you to check out the First Strike course.

First Strike breaks down 17 simple combatives moves that you can use to defend you and yours in any violent encounter.

It has been proven time and again throughout history — in the most violent docksides, war fronts, gang enclaves and criminal hotbeds — effective and deadly fighting boils down to somewhere between 15 to 20 moves, depending on which system you look at.

And this is an extremely easy to learn – and VERY effective – system of devistating fight techniques:

=> First Strike

I know that today’s content was a little different than what we normally talk about, but I think this info is SO important, that it’s critical to share.

Hope it helped!

Keep training hard, talk soon –

– Forest Vance
ForestVance.com

PS – The language on the First Strike page is geared towards men, but the program is highly valuable for women as well!

[video training] 3 Tips To Improve Your Running Form

During the FVT Ultimate Challenge Workout – happening in just a few short days! – we’ll be running a 5k.

Here are a few tips to help you run faster, better, and longer during the event (or any time):

Tip 1 – Use Good Posture

As we run, it can get easy to slump forward into a bad posture, which does our bodies a disservice. To help maintain good posture while running, imagine there is a string coming from your head pulling you up to keep you upright.

Tip 2 – Cadence

For those who might not know, cadence is the number of times your feet hit the ground each minute. Check out what your cadence is the next time you go run – an ideal cadence is about 180 steps per minute. Working your way up to and maintaining a good cadence will not only help you run faster, but it will maximize your overall benefits your body is getting.

Tip 3 – Foot Placement

This is one you might not notice.. when you run, where is your foot landing? An ideal position would be right underneath your center of gravity. Try not to land your foot while you are reaching out, do your best to keep your feet in line with your body.

It’s important to remember that these tips take rehearsal and training, but over time you will improve your overall running performance.

The Ultimate Challenge Workout is happening this Saturday, June 24th. All the details and register online using the link below:

FVT Ultimate Challenge Workout

– The FVT Team

OCR Prep Training – Question from Ashley + Programming Overview

Writes Ashley:

“I’m interested in doing the training for the Spartan starting on June 26, but I can’t actually do the Spartan. Is that ok?”

Yes!

To Ashley – and anyone else who is interested – it would be great to have you on board.

Though the training will be geared towards getting you ready for event day on October 1st, it is also perfect if you are in need of a structured training program to get you back on track.

Here is an overview of what our training will look like:

Day 1 – OCR – specific workout (lift, kettlebells, calisthenics, sprints)

Day 2 – OFF / optional FVT boot camp workout

Day 3 – stadium / hills

Day 4 – OFF / optional FVT boot camp workout

Day 5 – boot camp / lift

Day 6 – OFF

Day 7 – “long” run / hike

The training will be PROGRESSIVE – so each week will build on the last, you’ll work up to slightly longer runs / hikes each week, etc …

The training will be SPECIFIC – during the special training days together, we’ll work on:

— upper body pulling strength for scaling walls and climbing ropes
— strength endurance for weighted carries
— crawling ability for army crawls / mud pits

And just as important, the training will be FUN! You’ll get together with a hard-charging folks on a weekly basis to work together towards a common goal.

What could be a better way to spend your Monday mornings this summer?

All the details, and join us here:

Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program

– The FVT Team

PS – It’s not too late to join us for the Ultimate Challenge Workout too – this is a great way to kick off your summertime hardcore training plan:

FVT Ultimate Challenge Workout 2017 – Saturday, June 24th @ 8am

What are YOU training for?

It’s only been a few days since I signed up for the Spartan Beast on October 1st in Lake Tahoe.

The crazy thing is, I can already tell you that my training sessions have taken up a notch.

Just yesterday morning, I was by myself in a hotel workout room doing this dumbbell complex workout – and it was super intense!

I was sucking wind by round 3, but still pushing through and testing my conditioning and getting after it …

Because now I have something to train for.

Maybe it’s just how I’m wired … but the moment I sign up for some sort of physical event, or test, or challenge, I seem to INSTANTLY start training harder.

Largely because I just refuse to show up out of shape and not ready on event day.

But I end up typically losing body fat, gaining lean muscle, and improving my overall physical fitness as well, as a result.

So if YOU want to get in shape, I suggest you do the same.

Signing up for this special program that we’ve put together to help you prep for the Spartan Beast is a fantastic way to make it happen.

Get it done this summer, and here’s to getting in the best shape of your life!

– Forest Vance, owner, FVT Boot Camp
Lead Trainer, Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program

PS – If you want to get the fast action bonus, you have to sign up for the Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program by tonight at 11:59 pm PST:

=> Summer 2017 FVT Obstacle Course Race Prep Program

Meet Gabrielle

Gabrielle is incredibly positive, so kind, and has an uplifting attitude that she spreads everywhere she goes.

We are beyond blessed to have her as a loyal client and friend.

This is her success story!

Gabrielle’s GOALS – coming in to FVT:

Gabrielle was working out on her own, running and doing some weights at home.

But the biggest problem was – and this is according to her! – she never broke a sweat.

So her first goal was, quite simply, to work out harder.

She also wanted to get stronger, and increase her muscle tone.

In her words:

“When I first started, I was in my late 30’s – and I did NOT want to go into the ‘flabby 40’s’, waving goodbye to my family or people I know, and have my arms flapping around!”

Gabrielle’s FIRST WORKOUT:

Gabrielle admits that at first, she was a bit intimidated.

She was worried that she wouldn’t be able to keep up, or that she might look stupid.

But after her first workout, she felt right at home, welcomed into the FVT family … and was hooked!

Says Gabrielle:

“There were many new challenges for me in the boot camp than I had faced working out on my own.

But the welcoming environment and awesome people at FVT made it so easy!”

Gabrielle’s MILESTONES!

1 – Gabrielle can now do 3 pull ups in a row. When she started, she was no where close to doing even one.

2 – Gabrielle had never touched a kettlebell before coming into FVT. She started with the 10 lb on day one. Now she does swings with 35+ pounds on a regular basis.

3 – In general, she can lift a LOT more weight than she did when she started – more than she ever thought she could. She says that this has helped improve not only her fitness, but every other aspect of her life.

Final Thoughts from Gabrielle:

“You will not find a better environment, space, encouragement, workout space than FVT. It is the best, ever, in Sacramento, of all time. Don’t even go anywhere else, or look anywhere else.

This is not your average gym. There is so much care, and concern. Forest and Gina have done a wonderful job.

There isn’t any of the “looky-loo” stuff going on like there is at other gyms. Everyone is just focused on being positive and healthy and getting better every day.

Forest is as important in my life as a doctor, as a life coach, as any one else that I trust with my health. He is one of the most important people in my life.”

#

GABRIELLE – you are the best.

We are honored to have you as a client and friend.

You are one of the most important people in our life as well.

Congratulations on your success, so glad to help and be a part of it, and here’s to a fantastic 2017 and beyond!

– Forest and the FVT Team