Here at AMP, we take pride in being more than just a gym and strive to offer more than just a good old sweat session. We educate and drop mad knowledge bombs while we coach, explain how to move better, correct your position in each exercise, and have different variations for each student when needed. We help you understand the ‘WHY’ as part of your fitness education.
Why do we take such an interest in educating you?
We do this to not only help you train safe but because we are training you to live you best life and your life…. both inside the Superhero Training Compound but outside of AMP as well!
You may want to workout at home and will need a base of knowledge to help guide you. You could offer to help move a friend and this requires you to lift heavy shit. You might jump into a race with a friend or try a class outside of AMP. You may want to get outside with the kids and play a pick up game of kick the can (is that still a thing?) These are all great opportunities to show what your body is capable of, but if you struggle with or lack body awareness, then they are also opportunities to get hurt.
20 years from now you’re going to be picking up a box in the garage and remember to hinge like a deadlift and think back to that time your AMP coach taught you how to do it…and why. This is one of our ‘WHY’s. 🙂
Here are the top 5 ‘AHA’ teaching moments that you will have at AMP…
Where do you feel this exercise?
You will hear us ask this question over and over again. It is s tool for us to help you tune into your own body awareness. We also want to make sure that you are using the right muscle groups for the right exercises. We ask you where you are feeling something instead of TELLING you where to feel it. You then learn what muscles are being used and you get more chances to tune into you. It also helps us coach you better since everyone is a unique snowflake falling on a pristine meadow under the moonlight.
Body awareness is a valuable skill and is used on a daily basis, yet a lot of us have developed a lack of body awareness. We sit at a desk and take movement for granted. When we tune in, we learn what feels good, what feels hard and what feels bad. Knowing these feelings will help you get the most out of your workout and help keep you safe.
Why am I asking you to blow out candles with your exhale?
We constantly ask for hard exhales during your training. This may sound like:
“Blow out your birthday candle”
“Blow out all the air in your belly”
“Give me a Darth Vader breath!”
We say these things in order for you to create a pattern of tightening your core muscles when tension is needed.
Hard breath out = tightening of your core muscles = more tension
We say it enough so you are consistently doing it in your training. The more you do it the less you think about it and it becomes a natural part of certain movements. After awhile making a forceful breath out during a deadlift, kettlebell swing or pull up becomes natural. You naturally activate your core to keep your body safe during a high threshold movement. Learning to use your core properly helps to keep your spine safe during all types of movement and ninja skills.
Why do we ask you to tuck your butt? (or untuck it)
“The position of the your hips influences the effectiveness of your core” ~ Eric Temple
When AMP coaches give cues to tuck your butt, what we want is to engage your core muscles properly. This may feel weird when you do it, but that is because you may have become use to standing with butt out and core disengaged.
hips in place = effective core = good posture
Proper positioning of the hips will help not only during exercise, but can help with overall posture in your daily life.
As Coach Eric would say “think more Michael Jackson, less Nicki Minaj”
Why do we care so much about how you move your kettlebells?
SAFETY FIRST, of course!
Why would we work so hard as coaches to keep you safe during an exercise only to let you get sloppy and unsafe moving your kettelbells around?! Kettlebells are hard, heavy, and unforgiving if not respected. We emphasis the safe way to move your bells, pick them up and put them down. With this you learn how to respect heavy shit and how to move it properly and safely.
Why do we ask you to go “half speed”?
At AMP we value quality over quantity. When an exercise is performed with only speed in mind then some fundamental, but important parts can be lost. During a mobility drill taking the time to perform it accurately at the intended speed will get the most bang for your buck, or as we say at AMP more nuts for your squirrel. Speeding through the same mobility drill just to get to the meat and potatoes of your workout, will not only waste your time, but could potential do more harm then good.
Our team training classes are set on timers, but you will always hear coaches ask for quality over quantity for each exercise. This means if you have 20 seconds to do push ups, we would rather see 3 solid push ups instead of 10 sloppy ones.
Slow it down, do it right and get the most nuts for your squirrel
These are some of the ways we are helping you LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE!