Divergent Fitness, Simi Valley, CA Videos

UNPOPULAR ADVICE: Some people are not READY for barbell work. This is not to say they won’t ever be, but if the structure isn’t there yet, highly skilled weight-bearing movements can do more harm than good. If you don’t have the upper back strength in the lats and traps, how will you support the barbell? You begin to displace tension in other areas, which can further exacerbate imbalances. If your back constantly hurts after deadlifting, how are you benefiting from the movement? If your glutes and hamstrings aren’t activating and our lumbar erectors are pulling the barbell instead, what is the point? Building structure is always the priority at Divergent Fitness. Once we gain that understanding and our structure is built up to the point where we can now stay strong under the barbell, we have then “earned it.” We can now use the barbell efficiently and safely.

Do you ever feel shoulder pain during bicep curls? Listen to Coach Mike’s tip on how to correct this! Creating tension in the pec while bicep curling AND lowering the weight back down is so important. Without it, we compensate in other ways which is why shoulder and/or neck pain can start to occur. 💪🏽 #coachingtips #fitnesstips #weighttraining #athletictraining #athletes #injuryprevention #trainsmart #tensionoverposition #strongfit #strongman

When was the last time you actually FELT your muscles in a workout? Often times we get caught up in the time on the clock, moving as fast as we can, or beating the people around us that we lose touch with what it means to actually “feel” in a workout. Awareness is everything. A lack of awareness can cause injuries, as well as a mind to body disconnect. The new FIT class we offer will teach you how you can promote awareness in your training, and how to actually feel certain muscles working. Curious to learn more about this? Email us at [email protected] to reserve your spot for the FIT class on Monday at 8:30am or 5pm!

One thing we like to assign to clients from time to time is simply taking a sandbag and seeing how far you can walk with it. The reason we take it outside is to allow the mind to create certainty in and UNCERTAIN environment. The goal is to create certainty with what she is in control of: the sandbag. Many times people will distract themselves by fixating on external factors (for her she was focusing on the squirrels playing in the field). This occurs when the client is trying to avoid being present in the task. Instead of focusing on the sandbag and feeling it in the hamstrings/glutes/obliques, she looked for a different stimulus to focus her mind on in order to avoid the task at hand. However, once she dropped the bag, we had some time to unpack what we noticed during her carry. On the way back, her presence increased and she began to FEEL what she needed to feel as opposed to distracting herself. Here’s our homework assignment for you all today: take a sandbag or something similar, and see how far your body will allow you to take it. Be present, and see what you discover about yourself! Curious to learn more? Come in for a FREE initial assessment! Email us at [email protected] 💪🏽 #sandbagworkout #presenceiseverything #fitness #mentalhealth #athletictraining