Two Body Attack moves to get you Spartan fit and Spartan strong! Plus 20% discount from Blue Ant Extreme!

During the presscon for the Spartan Race, TeamRunnerRocky in partnership with Blue Ant Media got a taste of what’s to come for the 2018 Spartan events.

Guenter Taus – CEO, Spartan Race Philippines

Michael Reyes – Race Director, Spartan Race Philippines

I got to interview SpartanRacePh director himself Michael Reyes and he shared some training tips and what's in store for this year's Spartan Races.

What makes the Spartan race different from the other obstacle races in the country?

"It’s all about the experience. A Spartan race feels like an adventure rather than competition. Every race is gonna be different and the venue too, from mud,sand or jungle terrain, to enduring the cold or embracing the heat."

"Timing and officiating is also at its highest standards if you are in the elite and competitive category."

  

From my own experience in joining the Sprint Open category, it was amazing to see the camaraderie formed from the participants and you're going to see strangers helping each other get through the race.

Mike's secret body weight training to get you Spartan fit?

The 80/20 rule of Spartan training:  Running and Burpees

If you're not familiar with the Pareto principle, then just google it :p
The majority of the race is still gonna be about running. If your training consists purely of lifting heavy weights then you need to increase your aerobic fitness.

Your main priority is improving your aerobic fitness through running but also be ready to tap into your glycolitic and anaerobic energy system when it’s time to face the obstacles which usually requires you to use your full body movements like crawling, carrying heavy objects, lifting, jumping, climbing and more.

This is where the burpee training pays off. It improves your capacity for high intensity efforts and it's the currency you'll use ( 30 burpees) when you fail to do the obstacles.

That’s why I love a Body Attack workout. It improves your running fitness, efficiency and your capacity for high intensity maximum efforts.

It’s a combination of running drills, plyometrics and functional moves that gets you Spartan fit and ready anytime, anywhere using just your own body weight.

Once you get your running form and cardio to a good level, then you can also try out the actual obstacles at the Spartan Roof Deck obstacle course training camp W Fifth Avenue BGC to get a feel of the actual obstacles or t Spartan Group training at any Fitness First Branch.




Here’s some more good news from Mike!

Spectators at the Spartan Sprint and Super in Clark can now join in the party for free! Spectators can experience the Spartan festivities and there is gonna be a lot of beer and food to get you busy while waiting for the race to finish.

The Spartan race is opening the activity area for non-spartan registered participants so you can bring in your friends and family! We all know about the Group Effect so take advantage of the cheers and energy you get from your friends and loved ones.

During the press con, we also got to try out the obstacle training camp!

Blue Ant Media's Kezia killing it in the uneven monkey bars! Even with the girl shoes!

it's the dreaded Rope Climb and Olympus wall

Coach Andrea making it look easy!

Baras is life

If you haven't registered yet, you can use these 20% discount codes courtesy of Blue Ant Extreme! The official Cable TV partner of the Spartan Race

Spartan Kids: BLUEANTEXTREMEKIDS

Sprint Category: BLUEANTEXTREMESPRINT

Super Category: BLUEANTEXTREMESUPER

Hurricane Heat: BLUEANTEXTREMEHH

FREE RACE KIT RAFFLE (follow the mechanics below)

1. Share and like this post to your social media account

In the comment box:

2. Tell me why you love Body Attack 

3. Tell me why you love or hate  burpees

(Most creative, makapakabagdamdaming post wins)


Contest ends TODAY at 5PM (online registration for the spartan race ends today so you need to register the coupon code asap)

See you on Feb 24, 2018! AROO!

How to boost your cardiac power with Body Attack

Dear Body Attacker, Do you know what is Cardiac power?

It is how strong your heart can pump blood. When your heart gets stronger at pumping blood with each beat, you also get the benefits of increased anaerobic muscle buffering and local muscular endurance. Simply put, you will recover more quickly during intense bouts of sprints.

In track 4 and track 9 power training, we don’t just train the legs for explosive jumps and faster sprints, we also train the heart, similar to the Cardiac Power Method by Joel Jamieson, we improve the strength of your heart so that it can pump more blood with less beats.

Cardiac Power Training in Body Attack

We usually have 2 to 4 blocks of interval work in tracks 4 and 9 were we bring the heart rate up as high as possible and stay there for 1-2 minutes. Then we let your heart rate come down to 120 -130 bpm. And then we max out again on the next block of work.

Over time your heart rate comes down faster and you recover more quickly from a maximum effort as your heart gets stronger and stronger. When your heart can pump more blood with less beats, you don’t get tired quickly when your moving, lifting weights, or living your life with your daily activities like climbing a flight of stairs, carrying groceries or lifting your your children. My favorite exercise for this kind of training is the Body Attack burpee. It’s a full body movement that recruits a lot of muscles, requires a lot of energy and brings your heart rate up as quickly as seeing your crush across the room.

So this month of the hearts... let me see you max out and pump your heart out! Love, Erik

The Body Attack Group Effect

Dear Body Attacker,

Do you want to learn a simple trick you can do to boost your performance and push you to go the extra mile every time you workout?

Its not coffee. Not Alaxan. Non of those expensive pre-workout wheyprotein or energy gels. It’s something as simple as joining a group class!

Les Mills calls this the “Group Effect.”

It's a similar concept in psychology called "social facilitation" where in scientist observed in an experiment "a significant improvement in performance produced by the mere presence of others’.

On your own, it’s easier to stop when the going gets hard.
In a group, you'll gain strength from working out with others and you'll motivate each other to work harder, and push yourself just a little more.

This is one of the main essence of Body Attack. Shared energy and connection.
As I’ve mentioned in my previous post, the most effective way to get motivation, inspiration and results is by making exercise fun and not a chore.




Surround yourself with like minded people, bring your friends along to a Body Attack Class, have fun working out to chart-topping music and experience the Body Attack group effect!

Let's sweat together!

Erik

Body Attack Plyometric Lunges: The Bridge Between Strength And Power!

Dear Body Attacker,

Do you want to be strong or fast? Why not choose both?

Squats, deadlifts and snatches are a staple of any good training program if you want to build strength and explosiveness.

Although training squats and deadlifts with heavy weights will give you a base of strength you need and improve your efficiency in the way you move, in can only and increase your speed to a certain point.

here's what a bar bending deadlift looks like... complete with angry face and popping veins

If you want to work on explosiveness, the best exercise to help you with it are things like olympic lifts (clean and jerk, barbel snatches), ballistic kettlebell moves (swings and snatches) and plyometrics. However, these moves are fairly intense and can tax not just your muscles but also the nervous system.

That’s why one of my favorite Body Attack move is the Plyometric Lunge. The lunge is the key that will unlock your strength (for a heavier squat and deadlift) and develop your explosiveness (higher jumps and speed).

It is the bridge between strength and power.

You don’t just want to be strong. We want to be fast too. The ability to explode, sprint and change directions like a ninja.

The Body Attack plyo lunge is great for explosiveness but not as hard and taxing as a box jump or a full-on tuck jump. You'll gain more strength weight training with deadlifts or squats but when it comes to delivering the benefits of speed and power, plyo lunges will take you a step further.

Because you drop down and have to explode going up, your body has to learn to absorb force and redirect it which is GREAT for developing power in a way that is easy to learn and not to tough on the joints.

If all you want in life is to look and feel good, get the most out of life that you can and have no plans of competing in the Olympics anytime soon, then lunges are a great tool to increase your speed and power without costing a lot of time or energy.

However if you're training to beat Goku and could use a little more gains in speed and power, lunges provide a great transition into more intense tools like olympic lifts and plyometrics.

So the next time we do some lunges in track 4, keep your front knee out, back straight, chest up and feel the strength and power in your glutes and your legs!

Feel awesome knowing every lunge is a step further towards a functional, strong and fit body attack booty!

Happy lunges, Erik

How to start a Body Attack a habit and take your fitness to the next level effortlessly.

Dear Body Attacker,

How are your fitness resolutions? 

The first month of the year is almost over and most people have already fallen off their promises and new year resolutions. Don't let that happen to you!!!

How to make your new year resolutions stick

“Motivation is what gets you started, habit is what keeps you going…” This quote written on the walls of Fitness First Wynsum Ortigas many years ago stuck with me and it still rings true today.


In truth, there’s no substitute for hard work and discipline, in your fitness goals or any goals for that matter, you have to put in the work, sweat hard and you have to do it on a consistent basis.

The secret lies in making “work” fun for you and turning it into a habit so it doesn’t require discipline, or willpower for you to do it regularly. That’s why the Les Mills group exercises worked so well for me when I was starting on my fitness journey.

It was fun, and it turned into a habit. Instead of dreading at the thought of the workout, it was something that I would look forward to every time I would go to the gym

Become a Body Attack athlete by building a Body Attack habit. 

Now we know what Connor Mc Gregor has been up to... Body Attack secret training! 

In any training program, there’s the nitty gritty of planning the progression, recovery and varying levels of intensity and volume. But none of these stuff will work if you don’t actually show up and workout on a regular basis and not just on the first month of the year.  Have fun, enjoy the workout, feel the music and  don’t worry about dialing up the intensity. The first step is making it a habit.

SMART START - What’s the secret to building a habit? Start with small doses. “Too many people make the mistake of leaping into exercise when baby steps are what’s needed,” says Bryce Hastings, Les Mills Head of Research. If it’s your first time, keep these in mind:

Start slow – Don’t push your body too soon, stop your workout when things are feeling tough.

Build gradually – Aim towards staying for a full workout as your fitness builds

If you want to start a habit of flossing your teeth every night, Psychologist Bj Fogg recommends starting by flossing just one or two of your teeth.

With the BODY ATTACK SMART START format, you can just do half the class (tracks 1 to 5) and you will still get the benefits of agility and mixed impact training (track 2), high intensity interval training ( track 4),  and athletic strength training in (Track 5). You still get high and happy from the endorphin rush of a good workout and experience the fun and feel good music in every Body Attack release.

How to make the most out of your Body Attack workout when doing the low impact options

Body Attack is for everyone. Whatever your fitness level, Body Attack will unleash the inner athlete inside of you.

In Body Attack, there are many ways to tone down the intensity. You can:

Take away the complexity - Most of the Body Attack tracks will have your arms and feet moving  in a contralateral way. A contralateral movement pertains to exercising muscles on opposite sides of the body from one another and this is important for developing your core and stabilizer muscles and it improves functional fitness.

To make it easier, you can focus on the footwork and take away the arm movements and with time, the arm movements will come naturally.

Tone down the intensity and take away the impact- Plyometric moves like tuck jumps and burpees burn a lot of calories as it involves moving your whole body with a fair amount of intensity. Even the Body Attack Jump Jacks will have your legs, arms, lungs and heart pumping hard.

If you need to recover or if you find your form and technique starting to suffer, you can switch to the low impact options shown by your instructor in every track. It’s actually called “low impact” options and not “easy option” because it is not necessarily easier but it shifts the focus of the moves to a different aspect of the workout.

The options let you focus on the form, technique and alignment of the exercise  by toning down the intensity and taking away the jumps. This will help you ingrain the functional movement patterns in Body Attack deep down into your muscle memory and give you a foundation of strength and balance when you choose to do switch to including the plyometric moves.

Start small and keep doing it until it becomes automatic! Make Body Attack a habit!


KIA ORA!

Erik

Wear your Santa Hat and be a hero for kids at the "Lahat Santa" Christmas Charity Run

Save the Children’s #LahatSanta campaign wants you to put on our Santa hat and be a hero for kids.



October 30, 2017, Save the Children launches its new Christmas campaign #LahatSanta giving everyone an exciting opportunity to become Santa to poor kids.

“In the Philippines, 1 in 3 children suffers from stunted growth due to hunger and malnutrition, and this means that they wont be able to reach their full potential. Poor families struggle to feed their children and its estimated that 1.5 million Filipino children go to sleep hunger every night, not having eaten a thing all day” says Amado Parawan, Save the Children health and Nutrition Advisor.

Be a hero, wear a Santa Sombrero
Lahat Santa is a new fun way to celebrate Christmas@ save the children encourages individuals, schools and companies to wear their Santa Hats, raise funds in their own creative way and make the holidays much more meaningful by donating to save the Children’s programs

Upon signing up on www. Lahatsanta.ph, participants get a free fundraising kit which includes a coin bank, Christmas poster and a Santa hat. The kit includes ways you can fund raise, from bakes sale to the good old Christmas caroling, it is up to the participants how they’ll spread the cheer.



On the day of action on December 15, save the children calls participants to put on their Santa Hats and shout out on social media how the are fundraising for save the children using hashtag #LahatSanta. The fun does not stop here. On December 17, a fun run will be organized to benefit Save the Children’s Christmas campaign.

Filipino artists and influences such as Ria Atayde, Bianca Guidotti, Jeush Wenshiu and Trish Ramos have also expressedi nterest in the campaign. Many reputable companies have also come together to support the Save the Children’s campaign, including BPI foundation, Family mart, Strong Media Avertising Soultuions, INC< light Network, Nyxsys, OLX, ANC, Business mirror, Page One, Manila Scorep, Philppine Graphic, Lamudi, Manila Times, Manilan Bulletin, Manila Business insight, Pilipino Mirror Zen Health and When in Maila.

“With every Lahat Santa Hat comes great responsibility. Your commitment to Lahat Santa camping could mean life-saving support for a child. Your donation  an provide treatment to babies suffering from malnutrition and help expand our programs that could impact their lives in the Long run

HOW YOU CAN HELP

1. First, SIGN UP on www.lahatsanta.ph to receive a free fundraising pack which includes your coin bank, Christmas poster and your Santa hat for December 15. We’ve included some tips and ideas there too

2. Plan your fundraising activity and gather your family and friends from work and school to help you out, Whether this is through a garage sale. Good old caroling, selling artwork and doing Christmas dares, Because you are Santa we want you to be as creative as possible




3. Send your donations to save the children, the sooner we receive it, the soonerwe can put it to good use.

How do I pay in my donation?

You can send your donations to Save the Children through bank transfer, facebook https://www.facebook.com/SavetheChildrenPH/ or by visiting our office!

Bank details: Please contact one of our Save the Children staff at 852 – SAVE (7283) for our bank details.

National Office:
G/F Midland Bldg. 1040 EDSA Magallanes Village, Makati City 1232, Philippines
Luzon Program Office:
4F Sunnymede IT Center, 1614 Quezon Avenue, Quezon City, Philippines

Team Runner Rocky, Team Run Direction, Podium queen Seanna and Guerilla Race director and obstacle racer Gas joined forces at the Lahat Santa Media Launch 

Wear your Santa Hat on December 14 and have a shout out post or selfie using hashtag #lahatSanta selfie to show us how you are fund raising for children.

TeamRunnerRocky discovers ANYTIME FITNESS’ secret to exponential growth (not just muscles but in business too) from Anytime Fitness CEO Maurice Levine

October 17, 2017.  Anytime Fitness, the world’s number one, largest, and fastest-growing fitness franchise has opened the doors to its 50th branch in Glorietta, Makati, in the Philippines. The brand is recognized by Entrepreneur magazine as the world’s top global franchise in 2015 and 2016, as well as the International Franchise of the Year by Franchise License Asia three years in a row.

(From left to right) Billie Pech, Director of Glorietta 5 Branch; Michael Pineda, Director of Glorietta 5 Branch; Mainard Sahagun, Multiple Club Franchisee; Maurice Levine, Anytime Fitness Asia CEO; Rey Bolivar, Anytime Fitness Asia COO

“We are thrilled to replicate our global success in a country like the Philippines, where the hunger for health is growing. Our franchise system has allowed Anytime Fitness to support local communities’ increasing need for safe, secure, and welcoming environments for Filipinos access to get to a healthier place. We are honored to have franchisees who are just as committed to providing our members with the tools to help them reach their goals as we are,” says Anytime Fitness Asia CEO and Master Franchisee Maurice Levine.


In less than three years since Anytime Fitness opened its first gym at Pioneer Center, Pasig City in 2014, the chain has branched out beyond Metro Manila to Laguna, Pampanga, Baguio, Cavite, Cebu, and Davao. With strong year-on-year growth of almost 250%, Anytime Fitness Philippines joins the ranks of over 3,000 gyms in 25 countries servicing over 2.5 million members annually.


What’s the secret to their success?

“Anytime Fitness empowers our franchisees through our 4 Ps: People, Purpose, Profit, and Play. Our people – from the members to the staff – are at the core of our business. Their goal of a healthier place, is our shared goal, and we all have fun reaching it,” Levine explains.

“There is no pressure to lift heavy weights or look like a model, and our team truly cares about each member that goes through our doors. Our facilities – open 24/7, secure, and world-class – that’s what inspires people to enter. But it’s our people, our culture, our environment that makes members stay.”
With each membership opening the door to every other Anytime Fitness around the world, the brand has a unique global reciprocity that allows members to work out not just anytime, but anywhere as well. “The Glorietta branch, just like most of our gyms, are located in communities within 1-3 kilometers of where people work, play, and live. We look forward to further growth in the Philippines, in Asia, and around the world, and we invite everyone to get to a healthier place with us,” Levine states.

For more information on memberships and franchise opportunities, visit www.anytimefitness.ph and follow Anytime Fitness Philippines online at https://www.facebook.com/AnytimeFitnessPhilippines/.