If you’ve been interested in fitness over the years, you’ve no doubt noticed trends come and go. You’ve received a plethora of conflicting messages about all the things to do to lose weight, become more fit, build strength, and meet all of your goals. You’ve probably seen so many before and after photos, that it makes your head spin.
You’ve heard about the “afterburn,” that magical place that allows you to keep burning calories long after the workout has ended. You’ve been told that you must remain in a certain heart rate zone to optimize your efforts. You’ve been told that more is more. You’ve noticed that trendy programs are plenty.
Fact: you have lots of fitness options to choose from. There are hardcore HIIT classes, novelty workouts, cardio-palooza, slick gyms with fancy lighting, DJs and sound systems, boot camps, big-box gyms, and virtual options. It’s no wonder that people suffer from fitness ADD.
The answer isn’t complicated. But, it's not necessarily popular.
We stay in our lane, not glamorizing transformations, soreness, "feel the burn," and whatnot.
Here is the reasoning behind our programming:
First and foremost, movement quality matters. If you don’t move well, loading a bad movement pattern, doing too many reps, or performing reps under the stress of the clock, is just a recipe for injury.
Strength is king. Strength and muscle not only allow you to burn more fat at rest, but strength training makes you more resilient, and more flexible and results in less wear and tear on your joints than lots of repetitive movement.
We like just enough intensity. Intensity comes in many flavors. It doesn’t have to mean lying in a pool of sweat after your workout. It could also mean challenging yourself on the weight used in a strength training workout. Too many intense workouts during the week (and here we mean too many repetitions under too high a heart rate) wreak havoc on your central nervous system and disrupt your hormones. Intensity is good as long as it’s at appropriate levels.
We like “just enough” cardio. Cardio absolutely has its place in a well-rounded program. However, too much and you’re burning muscle, or, over time, your body is adapting all that cardio and you’re not getting the results you seek. Cardio should complement the resistance training you perform, not detract from it.
Again, at Vero Strength, we don’t do what’s popular these days. We value hard work, with a focus on resistance training where you first learn to move, then you get strong, and then you see results. It’s a slow process devoid of snazzy marketing lingo and false promises, but it's effective. And it doesn’t happen overnight.
Admittedly, we are not for everyone. We’ve seen our fair share of people join with good intentions and never show up or quickly leave because they didn’t achieve the body of their dreams in a month’s time.
The people who have seen success with us are in it for the long haul. They view fitness as a journey, not a destination. They enjoy the process and enjoy learning. They love getting strong.
If you’re one of our members, hat’s off to you for going against the grain.
If you’re not a member, but want a solid program, a supportive community, awesome coaches, and are up for a challenge, we’d love to meet you.
