This is the first of a series of articles where Gazette reporter Michelle Ferguson will try a different workout each month in an effort to introduce St. Albertans to the wide variety of fitness trends in the area. If you have a workout idea, email: [email protected].
At age 21, Sophie Gray was named one of the 100 most influential in the fitness world by a leading fitness magazine, so when the St. Albert nutritionist and certified personal trainer told me she was going to expand her online workouts into live group sessions I was excited to see what her newest venture was all about.
I attended a free open house on Tuesday, one of several Gray has held over the past few weeks to introduce the Edmonton region to Gray’s Nation.
Gray’s body-weight workout is designed as a high intensity circuit training that gets your heart pumping and your muscles burning.
“It’s a combination of high intensity and strength moves,” says Gray. “This is to make sure everyone is well-rounded. That prevents injury and maximizes weight loss.”
The nice thing about circuit training is that the difficulty of the workout rest on your shoulders, or thighs, or glutes… you get my point. This makes it accessible to women of all fitness levels. (Yes, these are women-only classes. Sorry fellas.)
“It’s a great program to get people started on their journey, as well as advance on their journey,” says Gray.
At the beginning of the class Gray reminds us that we’re here for no one but ourselves and that we can take things at our own pace. (No wonder she was heralded as the “feel good social media maven” by Greatist.) Gray oozes positive energy, which is contagious by the way.
Because my knees are starting to fail me the closer I get to 30, I take the higher impact, plyo-inspired exercises, like burpees and jumping spiderman crawls. They are a little easier and I really push myself on the lower impact maneuvers.
The high-paced workout is anything but boring. The moves are simple enough to grasp on the first or second set, which I really appreciate, but Gray often puts a twist on classics, like crunches and squats. She asks for an extra burst of energy to further strengthen those muscles.
By the end of the class, I’m glad for the female-only presence because I’m very unattractively sweating up a storm. It makes me wonder what would have become of me had I pushed myself harder on those burpees – a puddle of sweat and tears, I suppose.
Although I’m panting and I’ve polished off my water bottle, not to mention my legs feel like they have been injected with lead, I feel invigorated. It’s too bad the classes are only offered at night, because I think they could really help me kick my coffee habit.
But Gray’s Nation is more than just a killer workout. It is designed as a lifestyle program that focuses on the whole person – body, mind and spirit.
“People often think ‘I’m going to lose weight and fall in love with myself’ but it doesn’t work like that. It’s really important to address the entire person,” says Gray.
“With my personal experience I was working out and eating well, but even though I had lost weight and was looking good, I still wasn’t feeling happy. If you don’t feel happy and positive in your mind, the results that you see aren’t going to matter.”
When you sign up for Gray’s Nation you get access to group workouts, healthy recipes and what Gray calls a seven week “self love guide,” consisting of a series of video-guided tools and exercises meant to help you “fall in love with who you are.”
The first one asks women how they genuinely think of themselves. I won’t bore you with my answer, but maybe take a second to think about yours. As Gray says, this is a simple, yet hard question.
“I think a lot of us don’t feel the best,” she says. “But you need to know that to be able to have a starting point. It’s all about awareness and then working towards growth.”
Members also get access to 30- to 50-minute video workouts that can easily be done at home.
The 12-week program begins April 18. Payments are made weekly depending on the amount of sessions members wish to attend: $29.95 weekly for twice a week, $39.95 for three times and $49.95 for five times. There is also an initiation fee of $40.
St. Albert classes will be held at Athlete’s Nation on Carleton Drive. Classes are also available in central Edmonton, at Dance Code Studio, near MacEwan University.
Although she won’t be teaching, Gray is excited to bring her fitness philosophy to life. She plans to incorporate some dance, kickboxing and yoga-inspired workouts into the schedule to mix things up a bit.
