Why You Need HIIT!💙

Happy Mardi Gras Day! 💜💚💛Wear your purple, green, and gold in the studio! Such a great start the week!  We have loved hearing all of your goals and healthy habits for the Iron Sharpens Iron challenge, and we will be continuing to encourage you toward progress daily! Our Lunch and Learn was also SO INFORMATIVE!!!!! Make sure You watch the video on YOUTUBE or catch the recap email. Let's continue to commit to our goals this month. You are strong!

This month is all about HEALTHY HEART HIIT! But what is HIIT anyway?

High-intensity interval training, or HIIT for short, was named one of the top fitness trends in the world for 2022, based on an annual survey by the American College of Sports Medicine.

HIIT is comprised of short, hard bouts of cardio exercise—anywhere from 10 seconds to 2 minutes in length—broken up by brief recovery periods.

How hard is hard? That depends on the interval length, and your body but the key is to go as hard as you can for the duration of the effort. So, you’re working in your VO2 max zone, or about 90  percent of your max heart rate (or a 9 on a scale of 1 to 10) for the duration of the high interval. Then you recover - your bring your heart rate down.

How much recovery you take between intervals depends on your goals. Short intervals are usually paired with equally short or even shorter recovery periods so your body can adapt to repeated maximal efforts. And because your heart rate stays elevated during the recovery periods, your aerobic energy system gets a training benefit, as well.

New studies on the benefits of HIIT make the news regularly. Take, for example, researchers found that just two minutes of sprint interval training (in this case, four 30-second max-effort sprints followed by four and a half minutes of recovery for a total of 20 minutes) improved mitochondrial function—when your cells can change fuel to energy quickly—just as well as 30 minutes of moderate exercise in a group of active men and women. In other words, going ALL out two minutes of really hard INTERVALS can give you the same fitness benefits as a 30 minute steady, moderate pace workout. 

So it’s no surprise HIIT training is outstanding for your cardiovascular system. ♥️Research shows, depending on how fit you are when you begin, HIIT can boost your VO2 max (how much oxygen you can use) up to 46 percent in 24 weeks; increase your stroke volume (how much blood your heart pumps out per beat) by 10 percent after eight weeks of training, and significantly lower your resting heart rate.
It also makes your body a furnace of a fat burner. HIIT fires up production of your body’s growth hormones that help you maintain muscle and burn fat for hours after you’re done, and it lowers insulin resistance for better blood sugar control.

And it does more than benefit your body. HIIT is also amazing for your mind. Research shows that high-intensity workouts improve cognitive function and increase levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) more than easier exercise. BDNF is essential for learning, memory, and mood regulation, and your brain uses it to repair and maintain brain cells. HIIT really can help you live transformed in body, mind, and spirit!

TransFit offers HIIT options on Tuesdays, Thursdays, & Fridays! Maoist Transformer Strength Sessions have ant least two minutes of HIIT as well. HIIT Sessions are designed for every skill level so come give it a try! You can sign up to reserve your spot on the app!

After a heart pumping HIIT session you will want to try an inspirational YOGA Session. TransFit family, we now have yoga Tuesdays at 6:00 PM and Friday 9:30 AM. Join us to renew your mind and revive your body.  

Save the stretches below and use to stretch your hamstrings and IT bands.

TransFit GIRLS
TransFit MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS is in full swing! Look at them rocking the Rise Together 5K T-Shirts! This is a great opportunity for middle school girls to learn more about fitness and nutrition in a fun and encouraging environment. These sessions are Wednesdays at 4:30 PM. Sign up on the app to reserve your girl's spot! 

RISE TOGETHER 5K!
We are so excited to have our annual Rise Together 5K again this year! This is a special 5K benefiting ESP and is a great way to meet a goal and run with family and friends. We are so grateful for everyone who has helped out in the past and we would love for volunteers again this year! We need You to make this the best 5k of 2023! If you are interested in being on a 5K planning committee, sponsor the event or would like to volunteer to help on race day (MAY 6th), please fill out this short survey HERE!

Reminder for your day, "we were not called to be flawless, we were called to be faithful". Keep showing up, giving your best for you, for today. We are excited to serve you in reaching your goals. If you would like to meet for a 1-1 Session email us here.

Please check out our website for more blogs, inspiration, recipes, workouts, and more!

Let us know how we can help you reach your goals and dreams! Email us at transfitathens@gmail.com if you have any questions.

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

February News and the MIND Diet

Happy February!! A month of Valentine's, black history, Groundhog Day, and you guessed it.... TRANSFORMATION! We loved watching your progress whether through Transform 30, Transform at Home, and weekly Wellness sessions with Lea.
The year is just getting started though! This month at TransFit we are excited to begin our Iron Sharpens Iron Challenge. The  challenge is based on the verse Proverbs 2, "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend." We want to embody this verse and lift each other up in our accomplishments and help each other along the way to our goals!

We will have notecards that can be filled out after any class! If you would like a partner, we can also help you find an accountability friend!!

Important Nutrition Information 
The MIND Diet for Alzheimer's Prevention
The Mind diet focuses on improving brain health and preventing the onset of Alzheimer's by cutting out foods that are linked to slower cognitive activity in the brain. Alzheimer's is a progressive and devasting neurodegenerative disease that causes memory loss and confusion. 
MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay and is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH diets! It is a plant-based diet that limits the intake of animal products high in saturated fats. A big tendancy in this diet is a high consumption level of berries and leavy green veggies. Health benefits from foods in this diet include: lower stress levels, lower inflammation, AND slower aging.
When our bodies lack antioxidants we need, oxidative stress occurs and the body can no longer fight toxic molecules in the body. This ultimately causes cell damage in the brain and throughout the body!! Several diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's are closely liinked to this!
SO... here are some of the BEST and WORST foods for the MIND Diet:
BEST:
- green leafy vegetables
- Nuts
- Berries
- Beans
- Fish
- Poultry
- Olive Oil
- Wine (no more than 1 glass a day)

Foods to Limit:
- Red Meat
- Butter and margarine
- Cheese
- Sweets (brownies, ice cream, etc. No more than 5 servings a week)
- Fried or fast food (Try to only have one serving a week)

A tip to sticking to any diet is to remember it's all a balance! If you starve yourself from the things you love the most, you will eventually crave too much and break and binge! Just try and incorporate some of these habits into your day to day life and remember, we eat to feel good and fuel our bodies with HEALTHY nutrients!!

Tuesday Night Yoga

We now offer yoga Tuesday's at 6pm! Join us in studio for an awesome spiritual and physical growth and stretch!
Click here to see the full TV interview on Fox 5 News of Caroline and the DAWGS yoga!! Yoga is vitally important for all of us! 

Bible Study

Wednesdays at 12pm we are reading through Encountering God by Kelly Minter! These sessions are a knowledge packed hour. Please join us as we learn how to incorporate God in every aspect of our lives every day!

TransFit Girls

We are still having our TransFit Girls sessions every Wednesday from 4:00 - 4:30 taught by Chloe Friedle. You can sign your girls up on our app!

Rise Together 5K Meeting 

Join us to be apart of our 5k supporting ESP. Our 1st meeting will be Friday 10:45am. Come serve with us and make the Rise Together 5k the best yet! 

TransFit Oconee 

New Session Times and sessions, check out the app for schedule updates and email Katie Woodall for details! 

We are so proud of you all for staying strong throughout January and we can’t wait to see you all live transformed in February!💗 As always, you can sign up for classes on our FREE app!

We are here to serve you! If you have any questions or want to schedule a one-on-one session, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. 

Blessings,

Team TransFit

Grace, Grit, and Gratitude - Three G's!

Hi Sweet Friend,

Monday Motivation! We enter this week with optimism and God's glory on our side! TransFit is focusing in on the three G's -- Grit, Gratitude, and Grace -- as a way of being, a way to live out this daily courageous life with joy. Philippians 4:13 supports the 3 G's and it a great verse to cling to this week. Here's to living bold and brave with Grit, Gratitude, and Grace.

GRIT, GRACE, GRATITUDE

The motive behind these 3 powerful words is to live a life of abundance and loving kindness. It's knowing the world is a better place if it is filled with healthy, joyful people living their greatest potential.

It takes GRIT to follow your dreams through all of the setbacks and struggles, and especially to stick to those dreams amidst the pull of short-term desires and distractions. It's even more difficult when the "how" is not clear.
It's so much easier to give in to short-term gratification than to stay the course when the going gets tough. It is in these times that we rely on Christ and lean into GRIT and determination.

GRATITUDE grounds us and keeps us positive and in a positive headspace rather than allowing us to be a victim of circumstance. It is impossible to be in a state of gratitude and focused on the negative at the same time.
Truth: There is always something to be grateful for, sometimes we just can't see it. Gratitude is the best to honor the struggle when we are in the middle of it.

The 3rd G -- GRACE -- Grace is about pursuing a courageous life with kindness and compassion for others, as well as for ourselves. God gives us grace each and everyday , we should do the same for others and ourselves. It's a way of being that collaborates, cheers, and claps and supports others on their path while at the same time pursuing your own. 👏

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Paul (in Philippians) says he has found the secret of being content in every situation and then goes on to say what it is. "I can do all this through him who gives me strength." He is saying that his contentment in any situation is a result of Christ, who gives him the strength he needs, the strength to be content. When you grow weary because of the challenges of life, God will give you His strength.

Grit to endure, grace to love unconditionally, and gratitude to give back thanks and praise are ways we have Christ's strength within us. Let’s use the 3 G’s to transform this week!

This Sunday is the ATHALF!!!

If you are running the race stop by TransFit Thursday or Friday for a Runners Goody Bag‼️ Plan to meet at Redeemer Church to park 6:30am Sunday morning to walk to First Pres Church to stretch and pray together.

Cheer Squat We Need You!
Meet at TransFit 7:45 to Cheer on the runners! TransFit is on the running course. Join families and friends to cheer and encourage our runners this Sunday!

Great Runners Stretches

Needing healthy recipes? Download our FREE Recipes and Back to School Meal Plans are in the Recipes section of our website. Click the link below!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Raisins, Shallots, and Pecans

Ingredients:

• 5 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

• 4 tablespoons Olive Oil

• 3 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar

• 1/2 cup raisins

• 1 cup shallots, finely chopped

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

• 1/2 cup maple syrup

• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Toss sweet potatoes with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper, raisins and shallots.

3. Spread sweet potatoes in a single layer in a 9x13 inch baking dish.

4. In a skillet over medium heat, melt butter.

5. Add pecans and stir until fragrant, about three minutes.

6. Add maple syrup and stir until most of the liquid has been absorbed, about three minutes.

7. Top potatoes with pecans, cover with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven 50-60 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Check out our website for blogs, inspiration, recipes, workouts, and more!

Thank you and please let us know how we can serve you! Email us at transfitathens@gmail.com if you have any questions or want to schedule a one-on-one personal training session or nutrition consult.

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

🏃‍♀️Run Faster and More Efficiently Today— Here’s How!

Sweet friends,

We are so thankful for another amazing week in the TransFit studio and we are ready to inspire and encourage you! March is full of so many fun events, including our Lunch and Learn! In honor of the Fit for a Miracle 5K we have coming up May 4th, we are hosting a Healthy Running Lunch & Learn. Our Transfit Staff and running experts will lead this luncheon, teaching us how to run or walk faster and more efficiently no matter how experienced we are!

During this luncheon we will cover safe, efficient running. Topics include: form fundamentals, nutrition, running shoes and favorite running gear, and health benefits. Come ready to be active and practice form drills! TransFit Running Director Lisa Patton will teach us about running/walking hills efficiently and safely, how to run/walk a 5K, and strategies to help us get faster! Whether you are a beginner or experienced runner, we can all learn and benefit!

You can register for this event on the TransFit app under Special Events by clicking the button below!

We each have a race set before us! May we look to the Lord for guidance while running the race marked before us! We hope to see you in the studio this week! The days you aren't in the studio, try to get in an extra walk or run. Text or email us pictures and tag #transfitrunning in your posts. We are stronger together, ladies!

If you have a goal to run a race, improve your form, or start running, schedule a 1-1 session with Lisa to help you achieve your goals! You can purchase a session on our website HERE or app HERE. Email Lisa directly HERE if you have any questions.

Are you in a rut or do you desire to feel stronger while walking, jogging, or running? We have heard this comment often in the studio as the sun starts to shine and we want to be out enjoying nature on foot. We want to challenge you and ask that you commit to making one healthy habit a priority today.

When we run or walk, the glutes hold our pelvis level and steady, extend our hip, and propel us forward. The glutes also keep our legs, pelvis, and torso properly aligned. When our glutes are weak, our entire kinetic chain is disrupted. Research links weak glute muscles to Achilles tendinitis, shin splints, and IT band syndrome. Let’s don’t give in! Let’s commit to strengthening these areas! Here, we show you glute exercises that will strengthen your backside for more efficient healthy walking and running. 

Here are some incredible yoga stretches to do post walk or run to release the glutes and hamstrings!

Fit for a Miracle 5K

As some of you may know, our first annual Fit for a Miracle 5k benefitting ESP is scheduled to take place on May 4, 2019 at 5:00 pm. We will also have a Miracle Mile (1 mile fun run) at 4:30 pm. We are SO excited about this opportunity to support ESP Miracle League, which will provide transformative experiences for individuals with disabilities to thrive through the magic of accessible play and inclusive baseball.

You can register for this event online HERE or download the mail-in registration form below. All of the proceeds from this event will be donated toward Extra Special People and help to fund the new Miracle League Complex. If you or your business would like to help sponsor this event please email us HERE!

Our “Commit” shirts are here and they are amazing! So cute and soft!! Make sure you grab one of these shirts in the studio or from our Etsy!

Check out our website for more blogs, inspiration, recipes, workouts, and more!

Let us know how we can serve you! Email us at transfitathens@gmail.com if you have any questions or want to schedule a on-on-one.

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Exciting November News To Help You Transform!

Sweet friends,

November is here and the holidays are right around the corner! With the joyful holidays comes a lot of temptations of unhealthy foods and lack of exercise, but this month is the perfect time to challenge yourself to stick to your goals!

November is a time of Thanksgiving, and we want to focus on nourishing our bodies this month through mind, body and spirit. We can do it! Instead of diving into those unhealthy foods, let’s view proper nutrition and exercise as a form of worship!

For Nourish in November, we want to challenge you to be active and exercise 5 TIMES PER WEEK and eat THREE servings of vegetables per day! You can go on a nice walk in the cool fall air with your family, come into the studio for a TransFormer session, do yoga, or play with your kids in the backyard! Just be active! One serving of vegetables is typically equal to 1/2 cup. Try to get a minimum of three servings per day.

Download our November calendar below and fill in your exercise and vegetables EVERY DAY. Turn in or send us your calendar at the end of the month for a chance to win A MONTH OF FREE SESSIONS!

It’s almost time for our Holiday Extravaganza! For those of you that have never participated, this is your year! The goal is to maintain your weight through the holiday season! The cost is $20 to participate. Weigh-ins will begin the week of November 12-16.

If you maintain your weight, you get your entry money back in January when you come back to weigh-in! If you gain weight, your money stays in the bucket! At the end of the holiday season, we will re-weigh and the biggest loser gets to keep ALL of the leftover money! The top-five finishers will also receive a gift!

We are excited to share with you our Service Outreach Project for the holidays! Our service project will benefit the students of Downtown Academy, a school just a few miles from TransFit that seeks to provide children of inner-city Athens an excellent and rigorous Christ-centered education that builds knowledge, character and purpose.

We will be purchasing fitness equipment (balls, jump ropes, fitness bands, etc.) for students to use during recess and in their after-school program. This was a need we became aware of recently, and it resonated with our mission here at TransFit. We are passionate about health, which includes mind, body and spirit.

Look for the Giving Tree that will be set up in the studio right after Thanksgiving, with instructions on how you can participate. We look forward to celebrating the birth of Jesus with our clients and community!

Join us for a yoga session on Mondays at 5:30 p.m or on Fridays at 9:30 a.m. to stretch and nourish your body!

This 55-minute yoga session will increase flexibility and core strength. The postures are connected through the breath for a transformative and balancing effect. The yoga session will burn fat, increase endurance, flexibility and strength. The session will inspire you physically and mentally to live transformed in mind, body and spirit.

Sign up for the session on our app at the link below!

We look forward to seeing you in the studio this month! Please let us know how we can encourage you to reach your goals and pray for you! If you have any questions or want to set up a one-on-one session, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com.

Blessings,

Team TransFit

💥Exciting October News to Help You Transform! 💥

Sweet friends,

This month, we challenge you to be active and stretch every single day as we focus on Optimism in October! A great way to get your daily stretching in is to do yoga! Yoga is a great way to exercise and renew your mind, and has essential health benefits like increasing flexibility, building muscle strength, preventing cartilage and joint breakdown, and increases your blood flow! It will help you transform your mind, body and spirit!

Congratulations to our September calendar challenge winner, Jennifer Leahy! Jennifer committed to her strength and being active every day in September! You are such an inspiration!

Don’t forget to pick up your October calendar at the studio for a chance to be our October calendar challenge winner and win a month of free sessions!

Join us for a NEW yoga session on Mondays at 5:30 p.m. in the studio! The session will be lead by our new yoga instructor, Emily Dietz! Yoga is a great opportunity to reach this month’s goal of stretching every day!

Emily’s practice centers around vinyasa flow, and she loves the idea that all movement is linked with breath, both on and off the mat. Yoga helps center the mind and body and provides calm and connection to spirit. Come join her for her first class on Monday!

Are you a walker or jogger ready to begin running and want to feel your best? Or are you an advanced runner who wants to better your running form, build cardiovascular fitness, run more efficiently, or add speed to your step? Join TransFit Running Coach and Personal Trainer Lisa Patton on Wednesdays at 8:20 for a TransFit Outdoor Runners Workout!
TransFit Outdoor Runners Workout is a 55-minute session that includes essential dynamic warmup sequences, running form drills, strength exercises for runners, a heart-pumping outdoor workout, and an inspirational cool down and post-run stretches.

For October’s Lunch and Learn, we will be welcoming Kisa Raye to the studio on October 23 from 12-1! Kisa Raye, MEd, FST is an exercise physiologist, fascial stretch therapist and owner of KR stretch and inspi-Her Wellness LLC.

“Let’s take stretching beyond the muscle. Learn how to reach more and achieve more through better stretching techniques that will not only improve your physical health, but bring peace and balance to your mind.”

The cost of attendance is $12 and includes lunch from Maepole!

Sign up for the Lunch and Learn under “Special Events” on the TransFit app HERE!

We are now offering a FALL MEAL PLAN on SALE for $9.99! This meal plan, which was created by our registered dietician, Kaeti Shurling and Consultant Katie Woodall, includes four-weeks of meals, grocery lists and healthy fall recipes! Let’s transform our nutrition this month together! You can download the meal plan on our website at the link below or on our app HERE!

Here are some tips for stretching this month! You can also visit our YouTube channel HERE for more stretching and workout videos.

Hips and Glutes Focused Yoga Sequence

We are so excited for all of the new and exciting things happening in October at TransFit! We can’t wait to see you in the studio soon. If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com.

Blessings,

Team TransFit

NEW Yoga Flow You NEED This Saturday! We Value Your Feedback- Survey INSIDE!

HAPPY SATURDAY! 

Wow, what an incredible week in the studio! Thank you for all your hard work! This week we challenged each of you to set a goal to encourage one another, stretch, and get at least 80 ounces of water daily! We are so proud of you and thank you for challenging yourself to commit to a daily goal! Keep it up!

Today, we are sharing one of our NEW short yoga videos that will help release tension in your hips and glutes. Walkers, joggers, runners this flow is for you! You are worth it- make time to stretch this weekend! Click on the 8-minute video below for an inspiring yoga sequence. You can add yoga and stretch in at home and while on vacation! We have a YOUTUBE CHANNEL (click here) where you can access all our videos, as well as, links to all the videos on our TransFit website under the HEALTHY LIVING TAB and WORKOUT VIDEOS! Commit to your health and exercise at home and on vacation! We believe in YOU!

We are so thankful for you and your constant support! We want to check in with you and find out how we can better serve you!  After completing the survey you can use the code TRANSFORM5 for $5 any workout package purchase. We greatly appreciate your feedback and want to hear from YOU Today! Please take 30 seconds to complete it! 

We pray you have a wonderful weekend! Commit to your health this weekend and live transformed! We believe in YOU! If you missed our last blog, check out our May Client Spotlight- Patti McWhorter HERE!

If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com.

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Need a LIFT in Your Spirits This Week? NEW Session Added 11:30 Monday's!

Happy Sunday! 

We are all ready for a great new month of March! HOPE is in the air! Start your Monday with us at TransFit and lift your spirits! 

The new TransUpLift session will begin tomorrow (Monday) at 11:30.

TransForm your Body- Elevate your Spirit- Renew your Mind! 

TransUpLift will inspire and challenge you while you release toxins and tension from your entire body. The 55-minute session will help you clear your mind by flowing in rhythmic, yoga-inspired movements. Activate your core, strengthen your arms, and tone your legs in the full body session. By allowing the body to gracefully move and flow, you will free yourself to be re-energized and lifted up! You will leave the session with renewed energy and total strength in body, mind, and spirit! This session will use only your body (not weights or machines) to UpLift your day! 

Bring your yoga mat or borrow one of ours for this new, inspiring session. 

We are excited to announce our March Lunch and Learn date! Mark the calendar for March 8 at 11 AM! We will meet at The National and hear from master chef, Peter Dale. We will enjoy a delicious and healthy Power Lunch, learn about the nutritional components of the power lunch, how to cook this fabulous lunch, and gain some insight on how to make your own healthy lunches at home with some of Peter's favorite recipes! You don't want to miss this! Sign up on our FREE app under SPECIAL EVENTS! The cost is $20 and it includes the power lunch, drink, and tip! 

If you need some ideas while meal prepping, check out our website under the HEALTHY LIVING TAB! Don't forget about our March Recharge Nutrition packages! You can find more details on our past blog and under SERVICES on our website! 

Sign up for our new TransUpLift session, Lunch and Learn, and other sessions on our FREE app! We hope to see you this week! Come join us! 

If you have any questions, email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. Let us know how we can help you live transformed! 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit

Is Sleep Really that Important?

Happy Thursday friends!

What incredible start to October! We have loved beginning this month with you and are excited about our October challenge! Yes, you can do something active each day in October! Whole body health is what we strive to help you balance at TransFit and rest is one key that will help to unlock your total transformation ("rest...that that I can do"...I hope you are saying)!  Our TransFit yoga instructor, Melynda McCutcheon is sharing why sleep is vitally important for your body! 

At Transfit we talk about mind, body, and spirit a lot because we are passionate about your whole health body and well-being!  We want you to thrive in your daily lives.  In a world where we hear and see a great deal of value placed on the mom or career woman who can “do it all” while running on fumes, we sometimes get the impression that it is actually a good thing to sleep less and DO more.

Over one third of adults are getting less than the 7 hours of sleep minimum that we need to restore our bodies to health.  In addition to those who aren’t getting enough sleep, there are those of us who wake frequently during the night and who over estimate how much sleep we get as a result of that!  While we are sleeping our immune systems are revamping; our metabolisms are resetting; our muscles are healing and using the nutrients we consumed to create lean muscle mass; and our minds are resting and being restored.  Without ample sleep, we find ourselves feeling sluggish, less effective in our daily tasks, stalled out in our goals for our health and grumpy!  So, yes, wonderful ladies, 

our sleep is just as important as our nutrition and our workouts. 

We have a few simple tips to get you on the right track to a good night’s sleep.

At night…

• Turn off the TV or your electronics at least 30-45 minutes before lights out
• Read a devotional
• Write in a gratitude journal
• 10 minute yoga/stretching practice
• Keep a consistent bed time that allows for 7-9 hours of sleep each night
• Drink a cup of ward chamomile tea
• Take an epsom salt bath

In the morning... 

• Avoid the snooze button and get up and moving!
• Open your curtains or turn on soft lighting to help you body wake more easily
• Think of the breath you are breathing and be grateful for this new day

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Take note of your sleeping patterns and allow yourself to rest more! Rest is so important for your body and truly benefits whole health. Finding our strength in God and honoring Him by resting is vital for your transformation. Through proper rest you will have the mental clarity to focus on your goals and strive for progress. Rest in God's strength and believe that His plan will work for your good! 

The Lord replied, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

Exodus 33:14

If you have any questions, please email us at transfitathens@gmail.com. To sign up for TransFit sessions, click HERE!  Rest well beautiful ladies, we believe in you! 

Blessings, 

Team TransFit 

The Truth About Flexibility

We had another great week of sessions in the TransFit studio this week! Thank you each for bringing your best energy and positive attitudes each time you come to exercise! 

Flexibility and stretching are such an important part of our TransFit workouts! We love getting to spend our last five minutes together in the studio after a full body workout- lengthening our bodies and allowing our minds to focus on how to live transformed each hour of each day.  

Our new TransFlex instructor, Melynda McCutcheon, is a certified yoga instructor, and she wants to share with you just a few of the many benefits of stretching and flexibility.

Meylnda McCutcheon and Caroline Ward

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 To stretch or not to stretch?  And how often?  What is the answer?  Before I get to that, let’s take a stroll down old memory lane... Do you remember how you felt when you first started at TransFit?  Do you remember a goal you had that you thought was too difficult to reach, and yet now that you have accomplished it, you realize that it just took that daily progress toward better choices to achieve what seemed impossible? 

When I began Transfit, I knew that water intake was something I had to address immediately.  Trying to reach that goal of 100 ounces a day was tough!  I felt like I spent all day filling my water cup and running to the potty...and there were lots of days I didn’t reach 100 ounces, but I kept trying new things...a new cup, fatter straws, a pitcher of lemon lime water in the fridge...I tried every tip anyone gave me, and guess what?  Most days, I easily surpass 100 ounces a day and truly feel strange and lethargic if I don’t fuel my body with enough water, so that goal that seemed difficult at first is now a habit.

What about stretching?  When I tell you that it is vital to our physical health, it seems daunting to begin from scratch, doesn’t it?  But the answer is in leaning into progress, ladies.  The answer is in the effort to prioritize it for long enough for it to become a habit, a part of the routine of our summer days.  Here is some helpful information and tidbits to get you going on your journey toward more flexibility and better form in all of your workouts:

Studies have shown that daily stretching works better than one LONG stretch session once a week...it’s just like drinking water... I can’t drink all of the water I need for the week on Monday and satisfy my water goal that way.  As we stretch or workout, we tear our muscles, little tiny tears, but tears nonetheless, and the way our body gains strength in our workouts of any kind is through healing and repairing those tears.  In turn, we end up with strengthened, lengthened and more flexible muscles.  Our stronger muscle tissue is also less prone to injury or strains.  This happens, though, a small amount at a time, so daily practice is the best and quickest way to see results in your flexibility and strength.

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Here are 3 reasons why stretching is essential for whole body health:

1. Stretching improves your flexibility and range of motion. Exercising can cause muscles to become tighter than normal, so your range of motion decreases. As a result, your body can become more prone to injuries. Therefore, it is crucial to increase your flexibility to help improve your body's strength, balance, and health.

2. Stretching can improve your mobility and your performance in multiple activities. As you stretch, you are lengthening your muscles and increasing the blood flow to your muscles. It will then become easier to work those muscles while exercising and will allow your muscles to work effectively.

3. Stretching allows you to clear your mind and thoughts. It is easy to recognize stress, but sometimes we forget about the toll stress can put on our bodies. Stretching daily will allow your mind to focus on something other than your to-do list or schedule for the day. Your body is able to concentrate on what is important, allowing the mind to recharge.

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Melynda McCutcheon

To condition your muscles, attempt for 15-20 minutes a day of flexibility work.  We will post a few yoga workouts for you here soon, but in the meantime, you can work through 3-5 rounds of sun salutation followed by a flow through poses like Warrior I, II, III, and triangle pose.  After you complete that standing sequence, take a seat on the floor in a pike position and stretch for your toes with a flat back 2-3 times (Use a towel around the bottom of your feet and hold each end).  Finish up with some twists on your back...you can use the twists that our trainers guide us through at the end of TF sessions or any supine twist that feels good for your back.  My favorite is to lie down with my knees bent, feet on the floor about hip width apart.  I let me knees fall together to one side and turn my head to the other side with my arms out to my sides in a “T.”  Repeat on the other side.  As you go through this stretch routine, match your breath to each movement, inhale when you raise your arms, exhale when you forward fold, etc.  Through this attention to your breath, your body relaxes and warms up in the poses, not to mention the bonus benefits of a calmer mind and spirit.

Come join Melynda on the mat at the studio at a Transfit Flex class soon! TransFlex meets Tuesdays at 7:00 PM and Thursdays at 11:30 AM.