Ancient discipline evolves through Fitness By Felesha Love, MBA Fitness culture is changing. Again! Have you ever wondered what happened in our culture to embrace yoga? Once upon a time, over twentyfive years ago, the traditional musty male dominated gym transformed into the co-ed, gender friendly work-out center and gathering place, which we are familiar with today. The gym uniform evolved from the boring, conventional gray, draw string sweat pants to body forming, dance inspired fashion, complete with sweat bands and leg warmers, for being seen. Credit that skimpy leotard with emergence of the infamous thong. Today’s serious exerciser knows, all too well, the benefit of the porous Lycra fiber sportswear. But, in the gym, when it comes to style and comfort, the focus is on the foot. The all-purpose casual shoe went from the street to the gym and was used by aerobic exercise enthusiasts in the lateral and side-to-side footsteps of the grapevine and shuffle steps executed in high impact aerobics and dance routines. In those days, shoes worn in the gym had little arch support and came in a choice of two colors - black and white. By 1987, the cross trainer shoe replaced the ‘the tennis shoe’. The avid runner can now enjoy the
protection of an athletic shoe and the freedom of movement, in the revolutionary barefoot running shoe. Although, for some, being a member of the hottest facility with the slickest décor, luxury amenities, A-list trainers, and the latest exercise dance craze had less to do with improving one’s health, and more to do with social status. Back then, exercise formats were limited to basic calisthenics and synchronized dance movements. Gin Miller, originator of the STEP, reshaped the fitness industry with his revolutionary and innovative Step Aerobics. Revolution is the name of the game in the fitness industry and, I, Felesha Love, happened to be one of a very small and select group of Atlanta instructors who were taught by Miller on how to teach STEP and later Ramping. Each one of us have our individual stories about how he had us move up and down, repetitively and feverishly atop of homemade wooden boxes, enthusiastically promoting a brand new form of cardio exercise. Or was it choreography? The STEP workout technique took the fitness world by storm. It was fun, fresh and innovative. From the very beginning, Atlanta, Georgia has been the hub of the group fitness evolution. In 1994, Body Pump arrived on the scene in America, more specifically at my fitness club. Australian Body Works, in Atlanta, was the first to introduce a powerful entertainment based, strength training workout with the use of barbells. The creators of Body Pump, Les Mills
International, molded the ‘70’s and 80’s style aerobics instructor into cutting edge fitness icons and ignited a fitness revolution. Again, I was one of them. Les Mills International achieved phenomenal success. The company slogan was “14,000 club, 80 countries, 10 programs and one group effect.” I will remain eternally grateful for the priceless training and experience attained as a Les Mills instructor and participant. Lose the equipment and toss out the pills. Body Pump really is the fastest way to get in shape! Mainstream fitness, in the 70’s and 80’s was focused on cardiovascular and strength training concepts. Little attention was given to the importance of balance with lengthening major muscles or strengthening the core. Collectively, fitness executives didn’t even consider Yoga or Pilates as valuable modalities for the general public until the late 90’s. It wasn’t until 2000 that fitness professionals began promoting the benefits of flexibility beyond quick stretching, before and after exercise. Yet, on the west coast, the popularity of yoga and Pilates had been building momentum since the early twenties. In 1920, Swami Paramhansa Yogananda began as a lecturer to thousands of American’s before he opened his first yoga school in Los Angeles, five years later. Clouded by religious based assumptions, it has taken nearly sixty years for the wisdom and benefits of yoga to surface. Pilates was developed by Joseph Pilates as an exercise system to build core strength. The discipline initially attracted dancers. Pilates designed the Reformer and other apparatus to
accommodate intensity of movement to some of his 34 standard exercises. Today, in the heart of mainstream fitness, along with wrist worn heart rate monitors, Lycra athletic gear, barefoot running shoes, iPods and YouTube you’ll find Pilates and Yoga. The concept continues to flourish. The benefit of yoga has revolutionized the perception of why we exercise in the first place. Previously, people looked to fitness professionals to carve out a road map to meet ideal weight goals, improve health and fitness performance within limited constraints of time. In this new millennium, fitness professionals are expected to meet this demand and more. National health epidemics of hypertension, heart disease, cancer and the like have insisted that fitness professionals learn more about holistic living. Understanding basic physical movement and an eight count beat of music is not enough to curtail the sedentary and unhealthy behavior choices. The fitness professional is expected to appreciate the variables that prohibit healthy change such as managing stress, addressing all segments of life, to promote wholeness and awareness of what it means to live quality life. The International Health, Racquet & Sports club Association (IHRSA) reported that the U.S. health club industry stacked $21.4 billion in revenue in 2011. This is amazing as some clubs continue to operate without dated fitness concepts and services, falling grossly short of meeting revolutionized cultural needs, yet they remain profitable; whether members reach intended fitness goals or not. I will be the first
to admit it that much of my fitness career was based on a narrow scope of understanding until I began researching yoga. Fitness professionals are trained to be results driven, which is not necessarily the goal for all clients. What I discovered is this: even if a client is lucky enough to find someone to help them change their body image, the likelihood of sustaining rewards are skeptical. Intended goals are weakened by poor lifestyle habits, low confidence and disconnection of self-worth. At the core of it all is spiritual disengagement. Welcome to the holistic benefits of MySpirtFitness! MySpiritFitness translates National Health and Fitness Standards, yoga, meditation and Ayurveda into simple and easyto-use concepts for people to improve overall well-being. East meets West through fitness! Felesha Love is a Nationally Certified Fitness Professional who teaches Yoga, Pilates, Step Aerobics, Kickboxing and instructor trainer. She is also Adjunct Professor in the Health and Physical Education Department at Spelman College.