Well My TMR Friends, with the heat of summer enveloping us like a luxurious sulphur bath, it’s time to talk about sweat. Ah, that salty excretion that actually keeps us cool. Some people choose to avoid sweating by staying indoors in the faux January that cranked conditioning provides. Others play sports, recline or bicycle under the summer sun and get a shiny forehead and damp undergarments for their effforts.
Me? I chose to sweat, and to move, and to have my ass worked into pleasant shape by the fine folks at The Motion Room.
Back in May, My fabulous friend Raymi of raymitheminx.com invited me to work out with her at The Motion Room. She said that it was the best workout regime she’d ever done and that she’d lost a bunch of weight and was feeling incredible*. Luckily, Raymi posts pictures and video’s of herself on her blog every thirty seconds or so, so I could actually see that something was up… She’s looking pretty great!
(Introducing Tyler to TMR: http://raymitheminx.com/2011/05/22/the-promotion-room/) [links enabled are not available on FB notes–please copy and paste to review]
Now this workout regime was obviously working for a busy, young, multi-threat Writer, Actor, Dancer, Singer, Drinker, Eater, Party Babe… but what about for a bald father of three in his early forties?? Sure I have a physical job pounding the skins and occasionally prowling the stage with Barenaked Ladies <www.barenakedladies.com>, but lets face it – I like to cook, eat, drink and relax in my spare time! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NxyNpx1AtM</www.barenakedladies.com>
All it took was a look down the rolling curve of my belly and a slight weeze in my lungs as I climbed the stairs to my bedroom to decide to take Raymi up on her offer. When I got to The Motion Room, I met one of the co-owners and head trainers, James Cappellano. James is a handsome young man, with a friendly demeanor, and an easy charm.
I soon found out that was a facade – that James is in fact a sadistic torturer – capable of demanding additional push-ups, squats and lunges at any given moment! James started out by sitting me down and asking some key questions:
- Had I worked out before?
- What were the results?
- What am I looking for from working out?
- Do I sleep well at night and how many hours, do I drink (YES!) etc.
Next James gave me a body fat measurement and took some dimensions of my body. He entered all of this into a laptop computer, so they could track my results over my initial 6 weeks. I love this about TMR – they keep track of everything and they stay in touch with you electronically to keep you up to date. They even send you reminders and summary’s of your last workouts. I find this works perfectly for Smartphone addicted busy-heads like me (and Raymi!).
Next, James put me through some comprehensive testing to determine my cardio vascular health and my strength levels. Wow – I thought much of this was frikkin’ torture at the time, as I struggled to keep a fast pace on the bike, I managed about 8 push-ups and zero sit-ups, not to mention a few failed balance tests on a bosu ball. Well – it was kind of a kick in the pants, I had nowhere to go but up.
Once my workouts with James started, I found his attention to detail incredible. He paid close attention to my form and corrected me when I was doing more harm than good with poses and moves. We started off building my strength and endurance so that I could begin to meet the more demanding aspects of the program as time went on.
Did I mention push-ups or as I like to call them “F#$*ING PUSH-UPS”?? I like that you use your own body weight in many of the excercises… like squats, lunges, sit-ups and planking, but you also use equipment like medicine and bosu-balls, free weights, elastic bands, and rollers. Having James spot you and give pointers is very motivating, as are his little comments like “Beautiful” after I’ve just planked for a full minute and fallen to the mat, exhausted and mad from pushing my body to the max.
“Do You know what that word means, James?” is usually my response.
