womens health Archives - NW Women's Fitness

Growing Tired of Repeat Workout Routines? Try Group Fitness Workouts!

February 15, 2019 By Danielle Smith Leave a Comment

Did you make a New Year’s resolution to get fit?

If you’re already struggling to stick to your resolution, try group fitness workouts.

Instructors keep things fun and varied with different routines. They also provide the motivation and inspiration you need to blast through every workout.

Read on to see what’s on offer at NW Women’s Fitness

Group Fitness Workouts to Get You in Shape

No matter what your fitness goals are, there’s a class for you.

Strength

Looking to build muscles and improve strength? These are the classes you should be joining.

Barbell Cardio – Use the barbell to perform basic lifts, combining them with cardio exercises for strength and stamina.
WOW (Women on Weights) – Learn how to use machines, barbells and free weights so that you can walk into the weight room with confidence.

Cardio

Burn calories and lose fat in these high-energy cardio workouts.

Indoor Cycling – Burn 450 calories in just 30 minutes. Bike n’ Buff and Bike n’ Butts classes add strength work to target your glutes.
Cardio & Strength Circuit – Use weights, steps, resistance bands, kettlebells and other equipment to give you a high-intensity workout. These are ideal fitness classes for beginners.
Cardio Party – An interval class using 20-60-second bursts of exercise for a full-body workout.
HIIT, HIIT Circuit, HIIT & Core – HIIT workouts are some of the most fun and effective ways to train, using high-intensity workouts with short rests.
Pure Energy Step -Challenge your coordination while burning calories in an intense aerobic workout.
Step n’ Strength – Use the step to do intervals of cardio and bodyweight exercises.
Metabolic Resistance Training – A circuit training class for intermediate and advanced gym members.

Martial Arts

Whether you want to learn some self-defense, reduce stress or just have a fun workout, these martial arts classes will do the trick.

Nia – A mixture of martial arts and dance moves to develop strength and improve cardio.
Qi Gong – An ancient Chinese art that allows you to focus on your breathing while performing slow, controlled movements.
Turbo Kickboxing – Learn how to punch and kick with shadowboxing and pad work.
Moving to Heal – A combination of yoga and Tai Chi set to relaxing, rhythmic music.

Flexibility

These classes will help you to prevent injury by balancing, stretching and rehabilitating your muscles.

Yoga – Poses and routines to challenge all fitness levels. Hatha, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, Kripalu and Yin yoga are available.
Pilates– Sculpt your core while improving flexibility and balance.
willPower&grace – A barefoot workout that focuses on functional movements, building muscle strength and flexibility.
Essentrics -Dynamic stretching exercises to help you to increase your range of motion.
MELT – Learn how to use foam rollers to stretch and balance the body, helping your muscles to recover.

Dance

With these classes, you’ll have so much fun that you’ll forget you’re working out!

Zumba – Zumba has taken the fitness world by storm, using moves from various types of dance to get you sweating. There’s also Zumba Gold for older adults.
Barre – Use the ballet barre to stretch and strengthen your muscles, with a combination of yoga, Pilates and ballet dance moves.
Boomers Cardio & Strength – Fun choreography gets you moving along with the music with strength-building bodyweight exercises.

Fuel Your Body

With a whole range of group fitness workouts at your fingertips, you can whip your body into shape in no time.

However, that’s only if you make sure you’re eating right, too. After all, abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym.

If you need some extra guidance, we’re here to help. See what our nutrition counseling can do for you.

Too Cold Outside to Exercise? Come Visit Us at NW Women’s Fitness

December 15, 2018 By Danielle Smith Leave a Comment

The cold weather can disrupt your usual fitness routine. Some people skip out on their daily runs because the temperatures drop too low for them to enjoy their workout.

Don’t let the outside temperature ruin your exercise habits! It’s important to maintain these habits all year round so your body becomes stronger, no matter how cold it feels outdoors.

Indoor cardio workouts can be amazing. Here at NW Women’s Fitness, you have a lot of indoor cardio options… along with the equipment in our cardio work out room, we have a wide variety of group fitness cardio classes for every fitness level, including Zumba, indoor cycle, step, cardio party, cardio & strength just to mention a few…. Join in on a class today with a free trial membership.

Read these reasons why you should come to visit us at NW Women’s Fitness Club instead of suffering while you exercise outside.

When It’s Too Cold Outside to Exercise, You Can Injure Yourself!

If you think you want to exercise outside when the winter weather hits, you need to be prepared.

The outdoor climate during the winter feels a lot different than the summertime for many reasons.

The cold can cause a lot of injuries if you do not wear the right clothing. Be sure to wear mittens, a headscarf, insulated pants, a wool jacket, and wool socks to feel comfortable while exercising outside in the winter months.

Injuries are more common in the winter. People are less likely to remember to warm up their bodies prior to an intense run because the cold makes them feel ready to go for it.

Warm-ups are essential for a healthy run. Reduced circulation occurs within your body in the winter, which is yet another reason why injuries happen more frequently during this time of the year.

People Tend to Hydrate Less in the Winter

Another common issue with exercising outside is a lack of hydration. When working out outdoors, people tend to forget the importance of staying hydrated, especially when the cold season starts.

Hydration keeps the body feeling it’s best during the winter. People tend to think that because they aren’t sweating as much, they need less water. This is simply not true, as your body requires even more water to replenish.

Consider working out inside at a venue where water is readily available. The women’s club at Northwest Women’s Fitness Club features a safe space for you to work out with plenty of hydration stations close by.

Join Our Women-Only Gym Today

NW Women’s Fitness Club has a wide range of amenities to provide our clients with the utmost satisfaction each time they visit. Our beautiful facility located in Portland caters toward women who want to achieve fitness success.

From a supportive environment, the best group fitness classes, top notch trainers, massage to child care options, NW Women’s Fitness Club will be the best part of your day.

Join today to get your body in shape for the new year ahead.

Catch up with our latest blog posts for even more fitness advice and fun tips on staying healthy throughout the year.

Why Bulking Up Could Be Better Than Slimming Down

February 26, 2016 By Danielle Smith 1 Comment

Society has taught women to avoid putting on muscle, because it looks too “manly”. However, for some women trying to lose weight past a certain point could be simply unhealthy. A psychologist and body image expert at Boise State University, Mary Pritchard, Ph.D. says “The message that our value is based on our thinness is all over our society”.

Jen Sinkler, a contributor for Women’s health fitness promotes a different approach. One that throws away the conventional trimming and weight loss, and focuses on muscle gain. She says “By focusing on muscle gain, you’re able to shift the conversation around women’s bodies”. This allows women to feel great about their bodies, and the stigma that is attached to bulking up will be a thing of the past.

For some of us forcing our bodies to shrink is not what our body biology actually wants to do. We all have unique bodies, and for that reason you cannot expect to have the same size thighs as the women next.

Then there are the health benefits of putting on muscle. When we increase muscle mass our metabolism increases and this promotes hormone balance, blood flow, heart health and a whole lot more. Also more muscle means that fat will burn at a faster rate, so ironically by putting on muscle losing the fat becomes easier.

When deciding whether to bulk up or become smaller there is no right or wrong answer. Listen to what your body is saying to you and do what makes you happy, but what you shouldn’t do is listen to the outdated stereotypes!

CONTACT US!

If you’re interested in learning more about NW Women’s Fitness and getting on track to a healthier life, contact us today!