Ambassador's Corner: Rise Kickbox

January fitness rundown with AFM Ambassador Jason Bourgeois.

By Jason Bourgeois

Hello AFM readers! This month, we journeyed over to a small kickboxing gym located off of Airport Boulevard: Rise Kickbox. First and foremost, Rise Kickbox is a welcoming environment for all fitness levels, and you can tell that they love to see their community succeed. Whether it’s losing weight, building confidence, breaking a bad addiction or improving your fighting skills, at this gym, there is a community in your corner.

Walking in, you can tell that’s what Rise is about. It’s so much more than just a gym or a place where you go to work out — it is a community, a family. I experienced the thrill of taking on a Bag Work & Body Weight class with Coach Fernando Bernstein, and I can vouch that it was as much fun as it was intense. The continuous movement and active recovery made for just the right amount of intensity — you know, the kind that causes quivering legs and your arms to feel like noodles? Yes, that’s the good stuff.

Coach Fernando has 18 years of experience in kickboxing and martial arts and has competed professionally in kickboxing, mixed martial arts (MMA) and jiu jitsu. He’s been coaching for 16 of those years and loves learning and drilling the basics, because it’s the key to advancing in each client’s journey. If you are unsure how to get started or are a little intimidated, here’s what Coach Fernando recommends:

• Finding a gym which is easily accessible to you.

• Asking if it’s a bag class or partner work class.

• Visiting to meet the instructors and get a feel for the facility.

The first thing I noticed when I entered the facility was 10-12 heavy, 6-feet-tall bags suspended from strategically spaced racks. The floor plan is functional for group classes, body weight movements and of course, pounding the stuffing out of these heavy bags. Upon entry, it was as if every piece of equipment had its designated place, and I appreciated that the class was respectful of that, and it says a lot about how they care for their studio.

Coach Fernando set the tone and got us going through our movement prep warmup as we prepared our bodies to move. Following the gradual warmup, Coach Fernando gave us the format of the class. He instructed us through a base combination of strikes, kicks, knees and elbows and explained that we had 90 seconds to drill the combination, followed by a body weight movement circuit and repeat. Additionally, following each full round of bag work and body weight circuit, we added on to the base combination.

Our body weight circuit entailed banded lateral walks, medicine ball push-ups, left lead split lunges, right lead split lunges and a med ball squat into an overhead press, followed by med ball sit-ups.

I am a huge fan of how we started — with an initial combo that gradually built on for the duration of the class. Also, the combinations were practical, in that the order of strikes/kicks flowed as it would if the bag could hit back. You see, if a punch is coming towards your face, it’s instinct for our hands to move up to protect our face, leaving the mid-section exposed. What I found challenging was focusing my mind to execute the combination accurately when my fatigue continued to increase (thanks to an active recovery, body weight circuit between 90-second rounds). Our class was fantastic about keeping each other motivated, yet allowing the space for you to get in your own zone and work stuff out. It’s nice to unload into a bag that doesn’t hit back, but it’s exhausting. Just try it for 90 seconds and see how it feels.

My forearms experienced the fire — then it crept into my shoulders. I appreciated that even though I’m no expert in kickboxing or martial arts, they made it easy to learn new strikes and kicks, how to put them together and get an exhilarating workout. Rounding out our fifth set of strikes and kicks followed by our body weight circuit, we finished out with eight minutes of core work — talk about bringing on the heat!

Core work consisted of side planks, which I was able to modify due to a recurring shoulder impingement, followed by hollow rocks and med ball sit-up throws. We finished our class with a cool down where I used a band to stretch my legs and lengthen my core while focusing on controlling my breath.

The class was 45 minutes in duration, leaving enough time for the instructors and class to wipe down the equipment with bacterial wipes, briefly socialize and hear announcements for upcoming Rise events. It was inspiring to see everyone hanging out after class and just catch up with each other — I think that speaks volumes about their community.

Jason's Chosen Nonprofit: Central Texas Food Bank