January 2014 Challenge Workout Results

… and the results are in!!

Great work to everyone on last week’s FVT Band Challenge. Lots of new bands earned – you are getting stronger and fitter as a group every day.

Here’s the band challenge in again, explained in detail – just in case you missed it:

=> January 2014 FVT Challenge Workout

First, folks who maintained their GREY band statuses:

– SG – keep training those pull ups, you’re almost there!
– DT – black is YOURS next time around
– RA – way to go, staying fit and getting better every time
– BP – 1/3 rep away from black! you’ll smoke it in April
– RB – getting better every time
– JM – black band close within reach!
– MD – nice work
– SS – just a couple pull ups away from black

Props to GR, our one and only NEW grey band earner! Black is yours next time around.

And finally our three new BLACK band earners:

– RM – way to tough it out!
– JM – woo! finally crushed those burpees 😉
– SF – first pull up ever, yay!

Good times. And way to work it on the band challenge to everyone who participated – lots of other folks very close to qualifying for that grey band.

Be back next month with another FVT Challenge Workout. Thanks for reading, train hard, and talk soon –

– The FVT Team

 

Meet Jim!

Jim came to me looking to prepare for the Russian Kettlebell Challenge Certification.

He had been training with kettlebells on his own for some time – and was doing well. But he needed to really dial things in with his technique, and get MENTALLY prepared, for the 25+ hours of kettlebell training he was going to do in the three day period that is the RKC weekend.

I got the email below from Jim shortly after he finished the cert – and was so happy 🙂 I asked him if I could share it with you, and was even happier when he said of course!

Read what Jim had to say:

 

“Everything went well this weekend and passed the cert – the snatch test seemed “relatively” easy (4:45). Your tips made all the difference.

Like you thought, they picked up on all my faults, mostly with my press, get-up and 1-arm swing. Great experience. They (specific RKC instructors named here) were very helpful with my back and helped me preserve myself in movements that might have otherwise been a problem.

I’m pretty sure less than 50% of the people passed overall. The guys who were in great shape but still failed the snatch test could have all benefitted from the exact same tips you gave me.”

 

It’s just awesome to get emails like this one from happy training clients. This is why I do what I do. Thanks again for sharing Jim.

 

FVT Kettlebell Workshop February 1st

Not long ago, I had quite a different view on KB training. I thought I could just grab a kettlebell and start swinging it around after reading a few articles and watching a couple of YouTube videos.

Boy, was I wrong 🙂

Let’s face it, kettlebells are an awesome training tool … but if you don’t know what you’re doing, you at BEST won’t get the benefits from training with them that you should … and at worst, you’ll badly injure yourself.

I knew I needed some quality instruction to learn how to use kettlebells properly. I started with books and DVD’s from Pavel Tsatsouline (the man responsible for bringing the current kettlebell craze to America and the master of modern HardStyle kettlebell training). I spent thousands on personal training sessions from a local kettlebell instructor. I’ve even travelled across the country and paid thousands more (and untold blood, sweat, and tears) for what is now multiple RKC certifications.

And NOW … welll, I just love kettlebells. I’ve learned how to use them properly and am currently enjoying all the training benefits that they provide. And I want to help as many people as possible learn how to use them safely and correctly to reach their ultimate fitness goals.

SO, I’ve decided to put on a “kettlebell basics” workshop at the FVT studio on Saturday, February 1st, 2014. Click the link below to learn all about it – and to reserve your spot at a special discounted “early bird” rate:

=> February 1st KB Workshop at FVT

 

Thanks, train hard, and talk soon –

Forest Vance, MS, RKC
ForestVanceTraining.com

January 2014 Challenge Workout

New year, new set of FVT Challenge Workouts!

We are going to make our Band Challenge one of our regular, re-curring challenge workouts this year. And it’s going to be our official Challenge Workout for January of 2014.

It’s already underway and we have several new grey and black band earners. Stay tuned for the full report at the end of the week!

 

Here’s a full rundown of the FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge:

The FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge involves various feats and demonstrations of overall physical fitness. Upon completion of each band challenge level, the participant will recieve a special FVT Boot Camp wrist band.

The band challenge qualification requirements for each level are as follows:

Grey Band Qualification Requirements

  • :45 seconds non-stop kettlebell swings with PERFECT HardStyle form (16k for women, 24k for men)
  • 1:00 plank hold with PERFECT form
  • :15 pull up static hold (any grip, chin above bar) for women, one dead hang pull up (any grip, chin above bar) for men
  • Complete the FVT Tababta Burpee Challenge – You will do eight consecutive 20 seconds work/10 seconds rest intervals. You must complete at least four burpees in each interval period.

Black Band Qualification Requirements

  • :90 seconds non-stop kettlebell swings with PERFECT HardStyle form (16k for women, 24k for men)
  • 2:00 plank hold with PERFECT form
  • One dead hang pull up(any grip, chin above bar) for women, five dead hang pull ups (any grip, chin above bar) for men
  • Complete the FVT Tababta Burpee Challenge – You will do eight consecutive 20 seconds work/10 seconds rest intervals. You must complete at least seven burpees in each interval period.

Good luck to you on the FVT Boot Camp Band Challenge!

– The FVT Team

 

PS – Know a friend, family member or co-worker who could benefit from training at FVT? Forward this message their way – and have them contact us HERE for more info and to schedule a free Test-A-Trainer session …. OR, if they’re not quite ready to visit us just yet, you can send them to THIS page where they can get taste of our workouts with a 15 minute follow-along video and meal plan from FVT.

How to Make 2014 Your Best Year EVER

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THANK YOU for making 2013 great … and wishing you a fantastic 2014!

I’m thankful every day I go to ‘work’ (if you can call it that) … I feel so fortunate that I can help thousands of people around the world improve their lives, do what I love and actually get paid for it … and it’s all because of YOU … so again, many, many thanks.

New Year’s resolutions may be a bit cliche – but now is an great time to reflect on the past year and plan for the one ahead.

I’m personally huge on goal setting in every aspect of my life. And it’s so important, no matter what your goals are – whether that’s losing weight, managing your time more effectively, doing something you’ve always wanted to do like start a business or travel to a foreign country … because it works!!

If you’re questioning the true effectiveness of writing down your goals, here’s some research statistics I dug up on goal setting from ideamarketers.com:

There are numerous studies that prove the value of journaling to write down and keep track of your thoughts and goals. A research study sponsored by the Ford Foundation discovered that:

– 23 percent of the population has no idea what they want from life, and as a result, they do not have much.

– 67 percent of the population has a general idea of what they want, but they do not have any plans for how to get it.

– Only 10 percent of the population has specific, well-defined goals – and seven out of ten of those people reach their goals most of the time.

– The top 3 percent of folks who take time to define specific goals, write them down, and take a planned course of action to reach them achieved their goals 89 percent of the time.

I’m a firm believer that you can have whatever you want in life – and that, ultimately, you are the one responsible for how your life turns out.

I always take time at the end of each year to write down my goals (actually, I do it a lot more often that that) … I recently found a journal from about five years ago where I wrote down my goals at the time … and it was uncanny … I had achieved and surpassed almost every one of them … I’m absolutely convinced this process works …

So, for example, if improved fitness is your goal, write it down. Be specific about it, and have a great reason why you want to get in shape. Is it for your health? To be there for your kids? To feel better and have more energy? Or even just to look great and feel good in your clothes? How much weight to you want to lose? By what date? And what’s your specific course of action to get there?

In conclusion, though New Year’s resolutions may not be your thing, take some time to reflect on 2013 set some concrete goals for the coming year. Remember, you are the creator of your own destiny and can have any kind of life you want … so, what are your goals for 2014?

– Forest

PS – Would love to hear your thoughts on this post in the comments section below!

Happy Holidays from FVT

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Happy Holidays from FVT!

First, a big THANK YOU to everyone who came out for the FVT/Wellspring Women’s Center Charity Boot Camp event on Saturday, December 21st.

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We were able to raise almost $500 in cash and a HUGE amount of donations for the cause.

If you participated in yesterday’s charity event, or any of the other events we’ve organized throughout 2013, you rock 🙂 In total, we have raised over $5000 as a group for local Sacramento charities this year, such as:

– The Muscular Dystrophy Association
– The Sacramento SPCA
– The Alzheimer’s Association
– The Wellspring Women’s Center

And we couldn’t have done it without your help. THANK YOU!!

Looking back at 2013, it’s been an incredible year. We’ve had the good fortune of helping thousands of folks like you – at boot camps, small group and personal training programs at our studio, in-person workshops and special events, and online via our email newsletter, websites, YouTube videos, and social media presence – reach their fitness goals.

It was a breakthrough year in terms of business growth and numbers of people that we helped both locally in the Sacramento area and around the world. We are thankful every day for the business we are in and the positive impact we can have on people’s lives.

Happy Holidays to you and your friends and family, and here’s to a great 2014!!

– The FVT Team