 TruFit Personal Training Studios is happy to announce it will be hosting a women’s self defense workshop on Saturday, March 3, from 10AM-12PM at 610 Davis Street to benefit the Evanston/North Shore YWCA.
Everyone deserves to feel safe and empowered. In this workshop with American Women’s Self Defense Association-certified instructors Michelle Courvais and Aaron Christensen, participants will learn valuable non-violent de-escalation and avoidance skills, as well as fundamental defense tactics against physical and sexual assault. More specifically, attendees will learn skills like environmental awareness and situational control, boundary setting, wrist grab and choke releases, striking techniques and targets, as well as your legal rights following an assault. All skill levels are welcome. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Evanston/North Shore YWCA whose mission includes to empower women. Participants can sign up by donating to the event’s GoFundMe page: https://www.gofundme.com/selfdefense-workshop-trufit. Signing up ahead of time is encouraged! The suggested donation to participate is $25. TruFit’s own mission is to be a fun, safe and inclusive space for Evanston’s diverse community to work on their health and fitness goals. “Fear of judgement is a major reason people don’t seek help to get in shape,” explains owner Isabelle Libmann. “We work hard to cultivate a culture of fun and empowerment while still offering the best personal training services.” TruFit has committed to raising $4000 as well as volunteer hours to give back to the Evanston community for 2018. In 2017, TruFit ran charity events for local organizations including the Center for The Independent Futures, The Ted Fund, The Evanston/North Shore YWCA, ESCCA and the Evanston Food Pantry.
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I’m a HUGE fan of rocking for a variety of reasons:
Let's break it down:
You can play with the direction you go in (you don’t have to go forwards and backwards, you can also go side to side, in a circle, diagonally; go nuts!). You can play with tempo (go slowly or quickly). You can play with taking one limb off the floor while you rock (so, for example, reach one arm straight out in front of you and do a few slow rockbacks and then switch arms; does it feel different from one side to another? You can also do this reaching one leg straight back. You get the idea.) You can also lift your knees off the ground an inch and slowly go back and forth (again, make sure you’re breathing!). The first time I did this variation, my quads were so sore! The rockback is also a great, safe way to either warm up your squat pattern or to reestablish your squat if your body’s had a really hard time getting into that position during training sessions. Rockbacks can be really great to help with mobility in arthritic knees, hips or shoulders! Don’t go into pain but slowly play with the range of motion you can manage. If you have tender knees, make sure there’s padding underneath them and if kneeling on the floor is still too much, elevate yourself by placing your hands on a steady chair or bench and your knees off the ground. In terms of how to incorporate this into your own workout, there are a few things you can do:
So play on and warm up, friends!  When I say that TruFit's biggest core value is to provide a fun, safe and approachable space to exercise and that my own training company's purpose is to help clients feel empowered to take back control of their bodies, it's because I meet so many people (men and women) who, because of bad experiences in the past, feel like exercise isn't for them.
I got to meet with a woman in her mid-50s this week who, after years and years of saying away from it, has decided to give the gym and training a try. The first thing she told me when we sat down was that she was the last kid picked in gym class. I had a visceral reaction as soon as she said that because I, too, was the last kid picked in gym class and WOW is that a feeling that comes right back to you: Hot tingling in your solar plexus like tiny pins poking at it; clammy hands; the unstoppable urge to look down. Those moments when you're so young can have a lasting impact on the health decisions you make as an adult! Legions of us last-kid-picked humans have made uncountable excuses for why working out just isn't for us. (I even failed at the solo sports in gym class!) So, you know, it's January and YOU might be looking for a new gym or trainer or program to do and I thought it would be a good idea to list out how finding said gym/trainer/program SHOULD go and when to run in the opposite direction. What to look for:
The woman I met with today told me a story about how, when they played softball in that dreaded gym class, the teacher gave her a ball and said, "Throw it." She did and the kids laughed and made fun of her. They did this because, as she said, no one took 15 minutes to teach her HOW to throw the ball. We all know WHAT we need to do. Look for the people who will take the time to teach you HOW to do it. Happy New Year, friends! Please let us know if I can be of any help in 2018! Shoot an email to [email protected] or call 312-497-8999! |
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