Hi guys, Day two of my blog! I can get used to this! My day started out with an AMAZING blueberry, banana, coconut, protein smoothie and some oat bran that I attempted to make using Katie’s voluminous oatmeal trick. Apparently the trick does not work as well with oat bran as it does with oatmeal. My oat bran overflowed several times during the microwaving part and never soaked up the water when it was left in the fridge. I did however use the trick to make my husband a nice “voluminous” bowl of oatmeal with stevia and cinnamon which he loved (it came out to be 2 cups!)
BLUEBERRY BANANA COCONUT PROTEIN SMOOTHIE
- 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries from trader joes
- 1/2 frozen organic banana
- 1 scoop of Sunworrior protein powder- Warrier blend (this is their newest- I love it)
- the flesh of 1/2 of a medium young coconut
- 1 1/4 cup of almond milk
blend above in a high powered blender such as the vita mix and voila!
After work I had a chance to preview San Francisco’s newest studio; Body Rok. Body Rok officially opens doors next week! Body Rok utilizes the SPX Fitness workout which is designed to combine the principals of Pilates, but with a greater emphases on strength and cardio. Classes on the MegaFormer can be taken separately (40 minutes long) or combined with a 20 minute heart pumping cycling class on their A.C. Performance Schwinn bikes (20 minutes of each). Cycling classes will also be offered independently.
Walking by the studio a couple of weeks ago, I bumped into the 2 of the owners Jake and Tina who just moved here from San Diego to set up shop. Tina and Jake graciously offered to give me a free session on the MegaFormer to see what I thought. The results…..painful! After already completing a month of Pilates on the reformer at Pilates Pro Works, I though I would be able to handle the MegaFormer. Wrong! I struggled exercise after exercise (in a good way 
) and have a feeling that I won’t be able to walk tomorrow. Jake totally kicked my butt! They both have assured me that after 3 sessions I will see a serious increase in my ability to hold the posses and complete the sets. The SPX uses a concept that is pretty new to me: Muscle Failure. According the the website:
Muscular “failure” is defined as when the muscle can no longer move or contract concentrically. During a session, each set allows you to progress through all 4 motor unit types. Your body will start by recruiting your slow twitch fibers first, as the set progresses and those fiber weakens, your body will recruit your fast intermediate muscles fibers (type 2a and 2b); finally for the last 2 to 20 seconds of the set, your body will recruit your fast twitch fibers. That progressive overloading seems to stimulate the biggest amount of muscle fibers and creates the greatest metabolic response.
Instead of completing 15 reps of an exercise, movements and poses were completed for durations of around 1:30 second which ends up being a lot more than 15 reps! Overall I really liked the machines. Its amazing to see the way Pilates has been transformed. However the session did make me feel like a weakling which no one likes to feel like but has motivated me to get stronger! More on BodyRok to come when doors open next week! Hope everyone has a nice weekend!
Rachel Lauren
