Loving this new active wear line
I love my Dolman Sleeve Boatneck Top from Ideology– Macy’s new active wear collection! This loose fitting shirt moves freely, restricting no movements, while I train. Whether I am warming up, strength training or doing a cool down stretch this shirt performs beautifully. My favorite workout currently is a functional strength training and cardio circuit […]
Know your Calves
The calf muscles are notorious for being hard to build. I often hear that they are something either you’re born with, or you’re not. Well, if you’ve been doing leg press and lunges to no avail, keep reading to learn a little bit about what your calves are made of, and how to best work […]
The Gluteus Minimus and Gluteus Medius for Stability
Part 4 of our “lesser-known muscle groups” will talk about the Glute Medius and Glute Minimus. Most of us are familiar with the gluteus maximus – it is one of the strongest muscles in the body when activated and an integral part of proper squat, deadlift, clean, jumping, etc. form. So where do the […]
Spinal Erectors for a Healthy Back (And a great deadlift!)
In Part 3 of our “lesser-known muscle groups” series, we’ll talk about the spinal erectors. What are the Spinal Erectors? These muscles run all the way from the bottom of your spine at the sacrum to the base of your skull. As with most muscles, they come in pairs, one for each side of your […]
What are your Hip Flexors?
Hip Flexors is a word you’ll hear tossed around quite a bit, especially by your trainer. Have you ever heard that you have tight hip flexors and that sitting all day is the culprit? Has your trainer ever talked to you about your immobile or tilted hips? If so, you’re probably familiar with the term […]
Exercise(s) of the Week: Rhomboids
Here’s part 2 of our series on a lesser-known muscle, your rhomboids! Earlier this week we discussed what they do and why they are important to train, and in this post we’ll show a few exercises you can do to make them stronger. The Face Pull My personal favorite exercise to get those rhomboids working […]
Empower Receives Acupuncture
Hello Empower Community~ My name is Shea D Broussard,M.A., L.Ac., and I am excited to be a new addition to the Empower Team! I am happy to be offering Alternative Healthcare Services to supplement your commitment to a healthy life. My services include Acupuncture, Chinese Herbal Therapy, and Medical Qi Gong. Acupuncture is a painless, […]
Meet Your Rhomboids
Some muscles take all the spotlight. You’re probably familiar with your pectorals, your abdominals, calves, quadriceps, hopefully even your hamstrings and glutes! Unfortunately, this leaves some very important muscles by the wayside. They may not be what you can easily see in the mirror, but they serve us well and deserve some of the attention […]
Tight Hamstrings & You!
Inflexible hamstrings can be a real pain in the gym. Movements like squats, lunges and any deadlift variation become much more difficult to execute with proper form. So what can we do about it? First instinct says that they need to be stretched liberally throughout the day, but is that really the solution? Have you […]
Exercise and the Heart
Did you know that February is Heart Health Month? In the spirit of the month and Valentine’s Day this Tuesday, our blog post this week will talk about how exercise affects our heart. Let’s start with a little review of what our heart actually looks like! How romantic! The heart functions to circulate the […]