5 Minute Daily Mobility Routine (video)

Doing mobility exercises on a daily basis for the last 4 or 5 years now has literally changed my life.

Among the differences I have noticed:

— Aches and pains from various injuries have decreased or even disappeared

— I move better and feel stronger and end up moving MORE throughout the day, and as a result I burn more calories and have gotten noticeably leaner

— My workout performance has improved

It’s really amazing how a simple, five minute routine done every morning has made such a profound difference in the way I feel for the rest of the day.

So if you’re NOT doing joint mobility exercises in your current routine – and you’d like to enjoy some of the same benefits that I have – you gotta start!

That being said, I got two resources for you to check out today.

One is this video. Try the sample joint mobility routine here for 7 days, and see if you can’t feel the difference.

Exercises covered in the clip:

— My “perfect posture” drill
— Hip circles
— Forward / back bend
— Side bend
— Waist twist
— Arm circles
— 3 way neck
— Shoulder shrugs

Second is the FVT Flexibility and Mobility workshop that will be held on Wednesday, May 9th from 6 – 8 pm at the FVT studio.

This special event is open to EVERYONE who wants to improve movement, reduce chronic pain, and “bulletproof” their body!

Details and reserve your spot now at the link below:

Flexibility and Mobility Workshop @ FVT – May 9th, 2018

Look forward to seeing you there!

– Forest and the FVT Team

(video) 3 Simple Foam Roller Exercises

*Spots at our upcoming Flexiblity Workshop on May 9th are filling fast! Only 6 spots left to get the free bonuses (inluding a foam roller like the one I am using in today’s video). Details and sign up below:

http://bit.ly/regenerateworkshop

A foam roller offers many of the same benefits as a sports massage, including:

— improved flexibility
— reduced inflammation, scar tissue and joint stress
— improved circulation

And more.

Perform each of these foam roll exercises each day – first thing in the morning, before your workout, after your workout, or any time you feel like it!

Roll each muscle group for a good 30-60 seconds; when you find a tender spot, hold for a few seconds on that spot until you feel the discomfort go down a bit:

— quads / IT bands
— piriformis
— upper back

Flexibility and Mobility Workshop @ FVT – May 9th, 2018

Registration for the the Flexibility and Mobility Workshop @ FVT – May 9th, 2018 is LIVE!

The FVT Flexibility and Mobility workshop will be held on Wednesday, May 9th from 6 – 8 pm at the FVT studio.

This special event is open to EVERYONE who wants to improve movement, reduce chronic pain, and “bulletproof” their body!

The first ten folks who sign up will get a foam roll and lacrosse ball FREE with registration.

Space is strictly limited to 15 participants.

Details and reserve your spot now at the link below:

Flexibility and Mobility Workshop @ FVT – May 9th, 2018

Look forward to seeing you there!

– Forest and the FVT Team

Meet Leanne :)

Leanne was around 20 years old when she first started working out.

She had about 30 pounds to lose, so she joined a gym, and hired a trainer!

In about 12 weeks of working with her trainer, she lost the 30 pounds.

This inspired her to get more into fitness, so she got certified, and started training at that gym. She was working one on one with clients while also continuing her own fitness journey.

For the next +/- 15 years, she trained and worked out the same way her previous trainer had taught her; lifting weights and splitting up her workouts each time. And she got okay results, and maintained the weight she had lost and her general fitness level.

Flash forward to 2016 and Leanne’s first boot camp at FVT! 🙂

Leanne’s first workout at FVT was really tough, because it was completely out of her comfort zone, and wasn’t the style of workouts she was used to. She hadn’t used kettlebells before, and there was a lot of cardio involved in the workout.

BUT – she liked how it was different, fresh, and challenging.

Since, Leanne has gone on to become a superstar trainer at FVT, and is a key part of the team and community!

But with the new workout approach and style, she has also made some big time improvements in her personal fitness. She has dropped 27 pounds since she started at FVT, and has kept it off. Her first day deadlifting, she could barely budge 135 off the floor, now she can do over 200. She has gone from swinging the 24 pound KB to doing the 53. She has gone from not being able to do a single pull up, to 6 with great form. And so much more!

We are so proud of you, great job Leanne! Here’s to continuing success in your personal fitness journey, and inspiring our clients to become the best versions of themselves!

– Forest and the FVT Team

Best stretch for shoulder pain? (pic)

Do you have shoulder pain?

Shoulder pain can of course be caused by a variety of issues, but one very common cause is a tight posterior capsule.

You see, the rotator cuff muscles in the rear of your shoulder wrap around, and attach to the side of your upper arm, and control its rotational movement. When those muscles get tight, they will come down and forward and taper down, and almost push the shoulder forward. Over time, this leads to a chronic shortening and tightening of the posterior capsule.

This is bad news, because when you are in this tightened and shortened position, and then you go to lift a weight over your head, or even do something like a push up, you have increased opportunity to start pinching some structures in the shoulder.

SO – if you think this might be an issue for you – I suggest the shoulder stretch below.

This one is simple, but most people haven’t tried it.

And it’s one of the best stretches I know of for tight and painful shoulders:

#

EAGLE ARMS STRETCH

– Start with the arms wide apart.
– Cross the arms in front of you cross the right arm under the left arm. (Do NOT ‘whip’ your arms ballistically into position – go slowly, safety first!)
– Try to bring your right arm back towards your right shoulder.
– BEGINNERS – stop here! (middle pic) – keep going if you want more stretch …
– If it is possible press the fingers of the right hand into the left palm.
– Attempt to bring the elbows to the height of the shoulders.
– The gaze should be in the seam of the two forearms.
– Try your best to draw the shoulder blades towards each other onto the upper back.

#

If you have painful / tight shoulders, give the Eagle Arms Stretch a try each day for the next two weeks, and see the change you can create.

To your success! –

– Forest Vance
Master of Science, Human Movement
Certified Corrective Exercise Specialist
ForestVance.com

PS – For tight / painful shoulders, I also recommend you check this out.

REGENERATE is a simple recovery program, designed specifically for lifters and athletes.

It is a combination of yoga poses, static stretches, core exercises and more combined into simple sequences that take 3 to 6 minutes to do, that require no special equipment.

Not to mention, they will also help you reduce chronic pain, improve mobility / flexibility, and feel amazing!

Simple recovery for lifters and athletes

meet Tangerine DJ Meow$er$ Perez :)

Your attendance at our Charity Boot Camp this Saturday supports kitties in need like Tangerine DJ Meow$er$ Perez. Here is a message from his new owner!

In March 2016, we adopted “Tangie” now called “Tangerine DJ Meow$er$ Perez.” I fell immediately in love when I saw him online and we went into go visit him. He was absolutely terrified to leave his little carpet house in the area where he was staying. So terrified in fact that he had to be carried out by a volunteer in the carpet house to the meeting room. He did not want to leave that carpet house and was so scared that he was just hiding in every place possible. I was told that he was one of nine cats that was rescued from a hoarding house. I instantly adopted him because I knew he just needed a loving home.

Once I got him home, it was a rocky start learning to be re-potty trained and learning the rules like no jumping on the kitchen table. Now, the scared little cat I adopted is the most confident cat I have ever had. He walks right up to new people the moment they walk into the door! He loves to snuggle and play with his little brown mouse toy! He also greets me every time I come home from work. He is my perfect little love bug.

#

Details and reserve your spot at this Saturday’s SPCA Charity Boot Camp at the link below:

https://forestvance.wufoo.com/forms/zfpzhsw14knac3/

Hope to see you there! –

– Forest and the FVT Team

Proper Tire Flip Technique (video) + OCR Group Reminder (4 spots left)

The tire flip is a great move for strength, conditioning, and power development.

It’s also one of the events in the Spartan Race.

But if you want to do it safely and effectively, you need to learn how to do it with proper technique.

See the video and breakdown below. We will also be working on this during our Spring FVT OCR Training (starts Monday, April 16th, 4 spots left, sign up here => http://nanacast.com/vp/10005846/).

To your success!

– Forest and the FVT Team

#

Proper Tire Flip Technique

Get set up about a foot away from the fire, with the feet outside the hips and the body pressed against the tire.

Drive with the legs to get the tire off the ground, take a half step, then give it a knee with the other leg.

If you get the tire off the ground, but struggle to complete the flip – stop for a second, re-grip, and get things going again.

The key is being AGRESSIVE – drive the tire off the floor, keep it in motion, and knee it at just the right time.

Imagine this:

Imagine what you will feel like when you finally:

– get as lean as you want be
– get as strong as you want to be
– move and perform and be in the overall physical shape you want to be

Your clothes will fit better, and you will feel more confident.

You will have more fitness and strength and energy to do all the things you want to do, and to live a high-performance life.

And you will get compliments from all of your friends and family on how great you look!

Now, if you have not already reached these goals, I want you to just take a moment and reflect on why.

There are several possible reasons, but in working with thousands and thousands of people over the last 12 or so years as a coach, one of the most common is this:

Many times, people try to do it their own – without the help of a coach – and while you certainly CAN make progress that way, typically, you can only get so far.

So if you think having that accountability to make sure you show up, that extra push during your workouts, that person checking in to see how your meal planning is going … to be that trusted mentor and advisor in your fitness life that you know would do you so much good … I invite you to come and check out FVT!

We have a Charity Boot Camp event coming up on April 21st that is the perfect opportunity.

You can come out, donate as much or as little as you like, experience a workout, check out our facility, and meet us in person!

It’s an easy, win-win (you support a great cause), very low pressure way to test us out.

The ONLY catch us, we have 15 spots total available for the event. It is being held at our Pocket / Greenhaven location, and space is limited.

So if you want to attend, please sign up asap at the link below:

SPCA Charity Boot Camp

Look forward to seeing you there!

– Forest and the FVT Team

PS – In case you are wondering – the workout we are going to do will looking something (but not exactly) like this:

*Do as many reps as you can of each exercise in 40 seconds
*Rest for 20 seconds between moves
*Continue through the sequence, circuit-style, until you’ve completed all exercises
*Rest approx 60 seconds, repeat for a total of three rounds

KB goblet squat
push up
alternating step up on to plyo box
recline row
burpee

PPS – Check out the results some of our clients have gotten at the link below:

FVT Success Stories (watch the video at the top of the page)