A couple Sundays ago, the Empower Team became certified ViPR instructors! You may have noticed them (whether by observing other clients, or working with them yourself!) being used in the studio a bit more recently now that all of the trainers have some new tricks in their bags. So what exactly is ViPR?
ViPR: Vitality, Performance, Re-Conditioning
The ViPR was at its core made to be a functional training tool. There are several different definitions of “functional” out there, and here is ViPR’s take on the phrase:
ViPR was created to allow training and exercise to be more purposeful and free. There needs to be an objective behind every exercise that you do. Think of daily tasks such as putting shopping away, playing sports, carrying heavy bags – they all have an objective.
Unfortunately most movements and exercises that we perform in a gym are void of any real objective, and this mind-numbing process robs individuals of the opportunity to achieve fitness for life. Our bodies lift things, shift from place to place, and rotate to achieve optimum performance. Isolation training doesn’t often exist in real life because it’s too inefficient and ineffective… The body is designed to spread forces and stress out into the system, through each joint and tissue in the body. The more effectively that this is accomplished, the less injury will plague the system.
The ways that you can use the ViPR training tool are endless! During our Training Workshop, we came up with our own exercises as well as learning how to progress, regress, and change things around according to how many participants we have, or how many ViPRs are available. Take a look below for a short clip of the Empower Team doing an exercise to come up with partner variations of certain exercises!
Training for the Athlete, Everyday People and Rehabilitation
No matter your goal, whether you want to improve performance, stay fit, or work around injuries, ViPR has an exercise for you. Ask your trainer for a good exercise – once you get acquainted with this functional training tool, you’ll be able to think of variations to do yourself! There is no ‘incorrect’ way to use the ViPR, so you can help us add to our ViPR exercise library by coming up with new movements.
We hope that you’ll enjoy using this new piece of equipment. Make sure to let us know what you think and how it’s working for you.
