Verve

Our first Cookbook Club meeting is tomorrow (2/22) at 7pm!

Bring a drink, your favorite Half Baked Harvest receipe and come hang out!

Introducing Isaac, the newest addition to the Verve team! He joined us a few months ago, and we're thrilled to have him on board.

A Certified Personal Trainer, Isaac is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Physical Therapy at The Ohio State University, following his Mechanical Engineering degree from The University of Akron. His senior project combined engineering and fitness, where he designed a new hand cooling technology to enhance performance and recovery. Isaac's commitment to integrating the most up-to-date scientific research into his fitness approach is evident.

His passion for the science of health, recovery and longevity deepened after having his own shoulder labrum repair surgery. He strongly advocates for exercise as the "best medicine" and eagerly shares his knowledge with others. In his leisure time, Isaac enjoys trail running, mountain biking, reading, and engaging in his fantasy football league.

If you see him around, don't hesitate to say hello and give him a warm welcome!

Introducing the Verve Cookbook Club – where good food meets great company. Join us every other month to swap dishes from a featured cookbook or blog. Bring your favorite recepie, beverage of choice, and let's build connections beyond the gym.

We're kicking things off Thursday 2/22 at 7:30PM with Half Baked Harvest!

Have you ever wondered what the differences are between a conventional and clean deadlift and what the purpose of each is?

The first big difference between the two, and one of the most common mistakes beginner weightlifters make with the clean, is the positioning of the hips. Oftentimes, these individuals are already familiar with a conventional deadlift, so the hips naturally set up higher. However, this leads to improper mechanics and positioning for the clean.

The reason for a lower hip positioning in the clean is because one of the most important pieces for the first pull off the ground is to keep the shoulders over the barbell as much as possible. In order to do so, in the starting position, the knees need to be a little more forward (so you are in more of a “squat” rather than “hinge” position), hips positioned slightly lower, and chest and thoracic spine extended.

Which leads to the next difference in torso angle and openness of the chest, engagement of the back and lat muscles, and shoulder positioning. All of these are slightly different from the conventional deadlift, though it’s important to note that the spine stays neutral in all of the lifts.

Lastly, how do these key differences translate in practice? Well, the conventional deadlift is an excellent exercise for engaging the whole posterior chain: the hamstrings, glutes, lats, erector spinae, etc. These make it an excellent strength-based movement. However, in comparison to a clean, it isn’t a movement that generates much power.

Typically a clean deadlift is used to overload the first pull off the floor and maintain proper positioning with a heavier load without going through the full lift. Depending on where you’re at in your training cycle, these deadlifts will be close to maximal or supramaximal loads.

Want to learn the Olympic lifts? Consider joining Coach Kelly in the 12-week Olympic Weightlifting Clinic that starts August 22, 2023! Click the link in our bio to learn more!

The hook grip is one of the essential pieces of weightlifting that you must learn to incorporate, especially if you’re wanting to increase the amount of weight lifted in the sn**ch and clean.

Compared to a conventional grip, a hook grip is where your thumb is wrapped around the bar and your first and second fingers meet your thumb and wrap around it to pull the thumb further around the bar. This then creates the “hook”, allowing you to have a more secure grip as you pull the barbell off the floor.

Using a hook grip is essential for weightlifters for 2 reasons:

1. It allows the lifter to fully utilize hip extension to explode and direct the barbell overhead because the lifter can more “loosely” hold the barbell so that when the barbell does make contact, it can still spin without rolling out of the hands as it would in a conventional grip.

2. It allows the lifter to have a less tense grip on the barbell. Less tension leads to a more relaxed grip and upper body. While you might think this is a bad thing and that you want weightlifters to utilize their muscle to pull the barbell off the floor, it’s actually quite the opposite. The less muscle you use and less tension you have, the more you’ll be able to utilize your legs to generate force, explosiveness, and power, which are all elements of Olympic weightlifting.

So how do you set up a hook grip? Follow these steps!

#1. Place the crevice between your thumb and first finger onto the barbell.

#2. Wrap your thumb around the barbell, creating a “hook” with the thumb.

#3. Wrap your first finger and second finger (if hand size allows) around the thumb. Allow your other fingers to wrap loosely around the barbell. You should feel as if you have a good grip on the barbell, but not so tightly that you’re holding it in a “death grip”.

While a hook grip may be uncomfortable, and potentially painful, to use at first, over time and with continued use, it will become much more comfortable and easier. You can utilize chalk or even flexible athletic tape to wrap your thumbs to minimize the direct contact between the thumb and the barbell. Just ensure that the tape you’re using is flexible and elastic so that your thumb can still move!

“I’m gaining weight, but I don’t feel any stronger in my lifts”

“My scale at home says I’ve lost 10 pounds, but I don’t look quite like I thought I would at this weight”

Sound familiar? You might benefit from a body composition scan…

Before we dive into the details, let’s walk through how weight and body composition differ:

🔸 Body weight refers only to an individual’s total body mass
🔸 Body composition is a breakdown of total mass into various components, such as body water, skeletal muscle mass, fat mass, bone density, and more depending on the assessment method

, we use the to perform scans to assess progress (p.s. did you know these are FREE with any Verve membership?!)

*𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘳: 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦*

So, what do the results tell us? Here’s how scans help us measure progress:

📈 𝐅𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬: If you experience weight loss, it’s important to determine which body component was actually reduced. For most with physique goals, it’s ideal for that loss to be comprised of mainly fat mass. A scan helps to clarify these important details.

📈 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬: Similar to the above, when someone has goals of adding lean mass, it’s important to ensure that weight gain is comprised of mostly muscle mass, although it’s unlikely for this to occur without gaining some fat mass.

📈 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐚𝐥𝐬: For those looking to improve their performance, regardless of their sport or hobby, InBody scans can be a great tool for identifying muscular imbalances as each assessment provides a 5-part segmental lean analysis: L/R arm, L/R leg and trunk.

📈 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡: If your goal is to achieve or maintain a healthy lifestyle, body composition assessments can help us to identify areas of improvement and determine whether or not we’re on the right path.

Book a free No-Sweat Intro to chat with a team member about whether a body composition assessment is right for you and your goals.
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Click below to learn more about our 12-Week Olympic Weightlifting Clinic! Begins August 22nd. Availability is limited. Registration now open.

Verve on Google Olympic Weightlifting Clinic

Fitness is jet fuel for your life. 🚀⁣
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Learn to appreciate what you’re capable of doing TODAY, get stronger physically and mentally, build confidence and watch every area of your life thrive. ⁣
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What’s holding you back? 🤔⁣
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Drop a ❌❌ in the comments if you’re sick of your excuses and ready for some jet fuel!⁣
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You might think that beautiful ray of light is shining in through the windows, but really it’s just the aura .judy brings with her everywhere she goes.☀️

We’re going to miss Elizabeth’s smile, energy, and infectious positivity as she soon leaves us to moves out of state. We’re so lucky to have had you in the Verve community and we wish you nothing but love and success in this next chapter of your life! 🫶💌

🤗 MEMBER SPOTLIGHT 🤗

Meet Kevin!!!

When did you join Verve? March 2022

Favorite Lift: Bench Press 💪🏻

Favorite Food: Chips & salsa or pizza 🍕💃

Favorite Team: Detroit Lions! I enjoy pain and suffering 🙃

Fun Fact: I have a dog named Scout 🐶

What do you love about your coaches?
🙈 The constant verbal abuse. It really brings out the best in me. Jk they’re all great and consider them friends outside the gym 🥰

We're so thankful to have someone like Kevin in the Verve community! No matter how grueling the workout or how much tough love you lay on him, you can always expect to see a smile. 😁

What do you love most about sharing a class with Kevin?? Drop it in the comments to make his day; he deserves it!

DROP WHAT YOU’RE DOING….and give Roo Cotter the warmest welcome to the Verve coaching team! 👋

“Hi everyone! My name is Roo Cotter and I am happily expanding my involvement in the health and wellness space with Verve. After being a personal trainer and gym manager for several years, I fell into the medical device industry full time, but the Verve community has made me miss coaching, so here I am again!

My personal and professional fitness history is quite varied. Growing up, I played multiple sports, but fell in love with the pre-season lifting and conditioning, which made me want to teach similar classes in college.

Fast forward: I eventually earned my StrongFirst level 1 and level 2 kettlebell certification, tossed several half marathons and triathlons in the mix, and most recently completed my 200 hour yoga certification. Why all this? Because I firmly believe intertwining training modalities creates the best foundation for better movement and longevity.

I can’t wait to help make this community even stronger (literally and figuratively) ! 💪🏼”
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