Times, they are a'changin...

Juno Fitness is my baby. For the past five months I have neglected my child. And Juno has suffered for it. I won't go into the ugly details, but trust me, it's ugly. 

i need attention!!!
cute monkey, gym.
same thing...

I really got stuck, and relied upon all the trainers at Juno to cover me (and they did admirably!!!) while I sank into a depressed malaise.


Let me tell you what happened, lo my 2 readers by this point, all the Juno trainers gave notice within 4 days. Holy Shit. First Willow (she gave me 6 months, because she's...Willow), I boo-hooed mightily because I love her dearly and she has been with Juno since the doors opened. Then the avalanche: Julie, Jennifer...at this point I was all "No way, all I need is Carey to give me notice..." and voila, she totally did, 2 days later. Every one of them said it had nothing to do with me (I am super paranoid, I always think I'm doing something wrong) and although I believe them, I also know that I haven't been there for any of them. 

When Carey gave me notice, I was all: "Fuck this shit, time to get it together."

john is a sweetie, love him

So here's the deal, I am going to miss these women terribly. But, now I'm back in the saddle. Ready to take it all on again. All inspired sayings for: I need to get off my ass and get working.

(BTW, John Wild Buckley is still kicking it live at Juno...)

This is the new NEW breakdown:
Starting the first week in June:
Mondays and Wednesdays, I will be teaching 6am bootcamp
Starting the first week of July:
Monday and Wednesdays, I will be teaching 7pm nitey-nite bootcamp (y'all missed me, right?)

Starting the first week in July:
Tuesdays and Thursdays our new trainer, Matthew, will be teaching 6 and 7am bootcamp.

You guys are in for a good time with Matthew. I've been trying to find a way to get him into Juno for about 6 months. Here is his abbreviated Bio:

Matthew Beals, NSCA-CPT/USAW-Level 1
Although Matt’s first love was for software, his life abruptly jumped the tracks as a youth when he decided to supplement his diet of computer hacking with classes in Kung Fu. Discovering a love for movement and training, he went on to graduate from Pomona College with a degree in Modern

Matthew! prolly looking at a heavy weight.

Dance (minor in Computer Science), and perform in Buenos Aires, New York, and Los Angeles. To deepen his knowledge of human movement and physicality, he pursued graduate-level studies in Acupuncture and later in Modern Dance. Through the years he has uses weightlifting and strength training both for corrective purposes and to increase his performance.
As a personal trainer he uses a technique-first approach rooted in knowledge of anatomy and alignment. He believes that full-bodied strength training, taught as a discipline of awareness and movement, is the keystone of true fitness.

Actually, that's not abbreviated at all. He's the real deal, and we are proud to have him. He is also available for personal training.

So...for now...Juno will be me, John, and Matthew.
Remember: 
So much fitness, it will make you cry.

pimpin' out the minions

Jennifer and Julie. It WAS movember

Somehow, trainers just fall in my lap. Not in a naughty way, but in the best way possible. Willow showed up right before Juno opened, and she has been with us for the three years we have been open. Miss Carey happened to be training at Ralph Gracie next door one day about a year and a half ago. The moment she shook my hand I knew she was right for Juno. John, well, he's my coach and has been instrumental in building our amazing kettlebell community. All of our staff are beyond amazing, I am grateful for them every day.

jennifer=note taking minion.

But let me introduce you to the trainers in training, Juno's minions.

An old friend emailed me about Jennifer, saying she was interested in becoming a trainer and did I have any tips (this is very similar to how I hired Willow, btw) for her. She dropped by and I knew she would fit right in. She faithfully attended the am bootcamps, observing, working out, taking ten jillion notes (I will never understand that, I think I'm just lazy as fuck). When I decided to add a pm drop-in class, I decided she would be the one to teach it. She worked with me all summer and took over late August. I think that all of the clients who get their asses whooped twice a week would agree that she rules. 

julie explains how sprint intervals are better,
not that we have a treadmill...

Julie moved here from Chicago and strolled into the nitey nite bootcamp, did the workout, posted a 5 star review on yelp (because...she was a minion even then!) and emailed me about tips on how to be a trainer.  She started assisting Willow in the mornings, and has been rocking her trial client, Liz. She is funny as hell, which I love. Even if she does send me links like this when I am doing the whole 30.
Both the new minions are great, I am really am amazed that these people just fall from the sky (like, it's raining men, only they aren't men) into Juno.
And, I know, we all roll our trainer-y eyes at Jillian Michaels, but this video is hilarious.

-juliet

Bootcamp

willow, pre-coffee iv

Beep beep beep beep…4:37am the alarm goes off…that is on days when I manage to sleep past 4:15.  I hate waking to an alarm clock so my brain usually wakes me up beforehand so I can switch the blasted thing off.  Get up, drink that first quart of coffee.  This time of day is so surreal; all of the people that stay up most of the night have gone to bed and the next shift of human activity hasn’t quite started yet.   It’s the best time ever to commute; the city is dark and quiet, just a handful of cars on the road.  It feels like I own this town.  Shift to the gym…almost eerily still…the smell of rubber mats and chalk. I switch on the lights and the brightly colored walls instantly saturate my retinas.  “Willow get ready to get your fitness on…did I drink all of my coffee yet?...where is the 18lb medicine ball?...I hope they like this workout…oops I failed to make a new playlist, AGAIN…how can I be this tired?” 

typical bootcamp workout

The words “boot camp” evoke a lot of negative imagery of some pinched looking guy in a uniform, barking out orders and raining down shame on everyone within shouting distance.  Not so at Juno.  Neither is it one of those cult-like gyms where you must, “comply to our lifestyle or fail”.  We don’t serve Kool-Aid at Juno, thank you very much.  A client once said (while groaning on the floor after a class), “I’m glad this is the ‘kinder, gentler’ boot camp because I don’t think I could take working this hard AND getting yelled at”.  I love teaching boot camp classes at Juno.  Of course it’s in no small part due to the amazing clientele.  I count myself lucky because across the board, from beginner to seasoned athlete they are inspiring.  Half the time when I’m standing there calling out time or counting (poorly) I’m thinking, “Wow I want to be like (your name here)!”   There is so much to love.  There’s the determination and fierceness that comes out in even the shyest, most unassuming person when they are driven to do that one more rep, to jump a little higher, to lift a little heavier.  There is the sea of positive energy that comes from a room full of people with the same goal, to be a little bit better tomorrow than they are today.  There’s the success that comes from hard work.  Seeing client progress is the best; that first push up or pull up, that perfect deadlift, positive changes in body composition, relief from back pain, better performance in their usual sport, the person that has “never worked out” admitting that she’s started doing Tabatas on her own.  Seeing those positive changes is so addictive it’s like a drug.  So what’s so special about boot camp at Juno? What gets me up at that early morning/fuzzy headed/haven’t-slept-enough-in-years time of day?  It’s not that I have some magical early morning skills (just try and get me to do simple math!)  It’s the people that come to class.  They are awesome. 

-Willow

Guest blog by Julie. We love Julie already!

I think I got a booty call(ing)

 “That was a barf inducing set.”  These were the words that came out of my mouth mid-workout on Monday, August 13th at Juno’s nighty night boot camp. Or what is often referred to as “booty camp.” Don’t worry, continue on with grabbing that kettlebell, I didn’t lose my lunch on it.

My name is Julie, and I just moved from Chicago to Berkeley just over 3 months ago. I am a sugar-loving, I-would-do-anything-for-some-chocolate-pescatarian- vegan-marathon runner. I have been marathon and ultra-marathon training for the past 5 years, and jumped right into trail running and racing within weeks of arriving in the bay area. I haven’t always been competitive and I did think at one point not too long ago that running a marathon was fucking crazy and stupid. Why would anyone want to run longer than I even like to drive?

So what! What does Juno have to do with this? Though active, I am pretty hard on myself.  I have always hated the scale and the full-length mirror.  I am not one to run around screaming, “I am so fat!” But, I am one self-conscious mother. As the years pass, I have realized one pair of Spanks just ain’t cutting it, that my abdominal region is a magnet for every single thing I eat, and that I can knock someone out with my arm flab trying to hail a cab. My jeans are still my worst judge on how fit I am. Right now my jeans are awfully critical.

Within my first week here, I was craving a new challenge and a new community of like-minded people who are outgoing, kind, and like to kick ass. Running was great, but something was missing. I did some research and first tried the Daily Method, which is hard as hell, but I didn’t sweat, so I didn’t like it. I knew I wanted some direction—I wanted someone to tell me what to do, hold me accountable, and to yell at me. I Googled and Yelped gyms in the Berkeley area, seeking out a boot(y) camp-style workout. I read the reviews and checked out the website and knew I had to try Juno. My first class was on June 27^th with Juliet, and dayyyum my body hurt for days after! I was immediately addicted. The class was not only challenging, but my booty classmates, Juliet, and Willow were all so kind, supportive, and non-judgmental on how much I could not lift. Juliet and Willow were great about paying attention to every person’s form, and made sure that no one was slacking. I have never been to a class like this before, and it was so encouraging to know that anyone of any ability was welcome to join. After my first class, I immediately signed up for the 6 a.m. July boot(y)camp class. What was I thinking.

Let’s just say I think I made it to two classes. A 5 a.m. wake-up call did not suit me, clearly. In addition to waking up at the asscrack of dawn (I give mad props to those who can do this), I was also still competitively running and often found myself in days of pain after a race that I was not physically able to even look at a kettlebell.  I spent most of July doing some athletic soul searching. I was suddenly bored with running and dreaded my daily run workouts. I would walk in the door from work and want to spat on my trail shoes (I actually might have spat on them, now that I think about it). I pretty much became sedentary and refused to run, using any excuse I could to get out of my mileage. I realized that I lost my big picture goal, or, perhaps I reached it. I placed third in my marathon age group just over a month ago, and I completed 35 mile ultra-marathon last October in Chicago. It was my ultimate goal, and now I realized I needed something new. It was an emotional realization for me. At first I felt like a quitter. Who quits the one activity they have loved for the past 5 years? Running and competitiveness defined who I was for so long. I realize, though, that my love doesn’t have to completely go away, but it is time to refocus; it is time to try a new poison and a new barf and sweat-inducing love that brings out my inner-competitiveness.

I attended the OKC East Bay Kettlebell competition on Saturday, August 11th at Juno. This was the first kettlebell competition I had been to. I dabbled in Cross Fit back in Chicago, which is where I played with my first kettlebell. That weight with a handle is not as easy to throw around as it may look! I watched strong and dedicated athletes do what they love, and was lucky to experience just a little bit of what this community is all about: Awesomeness. Each and every athlete clearly connected their mental and physical strength, and gave the competition all they had.  I was so inspired by the sport and the dedication it clearly takes. I only knew one person competing and I found myself so proud of every person in the room. I left knowing I wanted to set a new goal.

So…here it is.

The measurements and the meat: 39 inch bust, 31 inch waist, 39 inch hips

Height: 5’8’’

Current weight: 156 pounds

My goals (in a nutshell):

·       Most importantly, I want to engage my mind and body in a new, challenging way.

·       I would love to be able to wave my arms and not say hello twice with my flab and ditch the belly fat.

·       I would like to break 150 pounds—I would be happy with 149.

·       It would be pretty cool to have at least a semi-decent looking snatch (with a kettlebell, you perv).

So, how in the hell am I going to get there?

The sweaty stuff:

·       For two months, August 13 - October 13, I have committed myself to attend boot(y) camp classes two times a week at Juno.  (I will of course attend after my two month goal, but I need to have an end date in site for my flab loss and muscle gaining goals.)

·       In addition, I am incorporating at least 45-60 minutes of cardio, 3 days a week. This could be running, the elliptical, cycling, whatever my little heart and big ass desire.

·       And, last but not least, I will lift weights on one additional day during the week.

The diet:

·       I am a vegan who eats fish, but I eat out A LOT! It’s probably a good thing Berkeley is not known for its overabundance of drive-through food joints. I often eat salads, veggie burgers, or tofu scrambles, but not knowing EXACTLY what the hell is in my food is vexing and clearly adding to my big-ass (literally) problem. That being said, I am committing to only eating out for dinner 2 times a week and lunch 2 times a week for two months.

·       Dark chocolate is the second love of my life, so I am committing to giving up any candy and chocolate for 2 months.

·       Alcohol: Anyone that knows me well knows I love me a good Belgian Ale or porter. Though I am not a daily consumer, I have committed myself to not drink any alcohol for the first month.

**Disclaimer**Labor Day, however, will be the only exception to these rules, as my best friend is visiting from Chicago, and he is shipping me my favorite brew from my favorite pub.

Last but not least, why in the hell have I decided to blog about this and think you care? 

I want to be held accountable. Now if you don’t see me at boot(y)camp you can judge me, and if you see me slacking in class you have free reign to yell at me.