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The ART Method

Terri Walsh, creator of the ART Method

Classes available in NYC, or on DVD.  Personal ART Method training sessions available in Brooklyn.

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What inspired you to start the ART Method?

It grew out of simplicity. I've been at this for 25 years, so I know a lot of people who do high-end, hardcore programs, but still don't do the basics correctly and end up getting injured. I started focusing on the foundational elements of the workout. I came up with four active resistance points. Once you consistently engage them, everything becomes more effective. Your body's resistance becomes stronger, it increases your flexibility, muscle tone, strength, and cardio output.

What is “active resistance?”

If you put your hand on a desk and push down, that's active resistance. You have to generate that all the time when you move. By engaging these active resistance points (your feet, shoulders, navel, and wrists) you connect your body more effectively, so you're able to generate exercise from the inside out.

What advice do you have for women over fifty trying to get back into a fitness routine?

Start with your own body weight--push-ups, squats, lunges, step-ups. You don't have to go out and buy anything, all you have to do is decide to do it.

Can you offer some workout tips for FOFs?

Consistency is more important than anything else. If you're going to do it, you shouldn't start and stop. You should make it part of your day, like brushing your teeth.  The minimum amount of time you need is 45 minutes. You have to make time for yourself.

What motivates you to work out?

If I feel tired and lethargic, I know I'm going to feel better if I move around, so I just do it. Make your life something that's exciting to show up to everyday. Being fifty doesn't mean that you're not a fun girl anymore. It doesn't really mean that anything is different other than how you have to handle your health.

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AM and PM Yoga

Colleen Saidman, Owner of Yoga Shanti

Classes available in Sag Harbor, NY -- workshops are hosted throughout the U.S.

 

Tell us about the benefits of AM and PM yoga from your new video.

It’s a challenge yet it’s approachable. By calling it AM PM, we were hoping to inspire students to practice it every morning and every evening. The morning practice is designed to invigorate and prepare you for the day, and the evening practice is to unwind you from the day and prepare you for a peaceful night. The benefits, when practiced consistently are a feeling of being alert, yet relaxed.

What are the benefits of this workout for FOFs?

The beautiful thing about this workout is that it is challenging, but won't leave you feeling deflated, exhausted, or frustrated. The instructions are very easy to understand. The core is always engaged so that helps the muffin top that most of us start to see around 50.

What advice do you have for women over fifty who are trying to get back into a fitness routine?

Make realistic goals. Start with 20 minutes a day. Practice with a friend. Hold each other accountable. Write it down on your "to do" list. I find when I write anything down on my list, there is a much better chance of actually doing it. The most important thing is to not use it as something else to beat yourself up about. We women are already too well versed in that. Don't set yourself up with unreasonable expectations.

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Chaise23

Lauren Piskin, Chaise23

and The Physical Mind Studio

Classes available in NYC.

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How did you develop the Reinvention Method?

It started with a pilates chair. I found [with the chair] I could mesh all of my expertise together. I started teaching classes using the chair. I was getting a waiting list and had a lot of older women coming in rocking those classes. One thing lead to another, and I started adding in bungees, and it came together it in a way I could never imagine. It was really changing people's bodies, and it was also taking stress off of people's necks and helping them balance and stabilize.

What are the benefits of this workout for FOFs?

It's very low-impact and there’s not a lot of stress on the joints. This is major because a lot of women over fifty have been injured, or many have issues such as osteoporosis. They're able to challenge themselves the way they would when they were young, reaping all of the benefits of a high intensity workout with low impact on the body.

You should try this workout if....

...you want something different. This is for people who want to look beautiful, with long, lean muscles, or want to change their posture and have strong backs. I think it's for anybody at any age.

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Flywheel

Ruth Zuckerman, Co-founder of Flywheel

Classes are available in New York, Atlanta, Florida, Chicago, North Carolina, and Seattle.

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You've been cycling for 15 years now--did you know when you started that cycling classes would become so trendy?

I knew that I was experiencing an exercise discipline that was above and beyond any other group exercise. I also knew that I could improve upon it and make it a regime that was here to stay, one that was not trendy. By taking it out of the gym environment and into a boutique setting, I was able to cater to the rider in a much more personal way.

How is Flywheel different from the other cycling classes out there?

We have stadium seating so you have a perfect view of the instructor, and the instructor is able to see every rider in the room.  Our rooms are dimly lit, providing a theatrical feel, as well as privacy for the rider. New riders no longer need to feel intimidated about attending an indoor cycling class. You get the attention and quality of a private training session with the infectious group energy of the rest of the class around you. We have performance tracking technology on our bikes that can measure your results throughout the class, and also saves all of your data to your online account so you can track your progress.

What are the benefits of this workout for FOFs?

It's never too late to start exercising, but if you are new to it, you must pace yourself.  Flywheel allows that to happen with the performance technology on every bike.  You can always adjust your numbers and build progress with every class.  A Flywheel ride provides an intense cardiovascular workout, which is needed as our metabolisms slow down. Add on to that an upper-body strengthening series which is included in every class as well as a healthy diet...and we can work toward defying mother nature!

What workout tips do you have for FOFs?

Set realistic goals and be patient.  Start slowly, eventually adding classes to your

schedule as your strength improves. Schedule your classes into your week so that you are committed.

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Lotus Flow

Dana Flynn, Owner of Laughing Lotus,

creator of Lotus Flow

Classes available in New York City and San Francisco

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You were ahead of the trend when you started doing yoga 27 years ago, why do you think it's become so popular?

Because yoga works, [so] people keep coming back to it. It inspires people to have a holistic approach to fitness. When you think of fitness, sometimes you isolate the physical part. But yoga allows you to look deeper--to also have the spiritual connection.

When did you first start doing yoga?

I was a stockbroker at 22, straight out of Cornell. By the time I was 25 I signed the lease to a restaurant/bar, and it became a real hit. I had all of this amazing success really early on, but I had a sense that there was something more. I began going to yoga classes. Yoga connects you in a sacred way.

How did Laughing Lotus get started?

I opened up Laughing Lotus on a rooftop in New York in the late 90s. I started to incorporate movements into the flow. It still continues to grow and change. I include new things that I discover through the practice, and whatever I discover, I share, so it becomes a living, breathing process. Some of our dance moves you might not get the first time you do them, so you repeat them, until you start to get it.

How is Lotus Flow different from traditional yoga?

My partner and I love yoga, and wanted to include dance and music. The initial feeling was that we had to keep them separate, because yoga looks a certain way, but then you start to understand that there are as many different types of yoga as there are all of us.  We could have the same teacher, but the personal experience is different. So even if it's all called ‘yoga,’ everyone has their personal footprint on it.

What advice do you have for FOFs who want to try a new workout routine?

Happiness needs to come from a deeper place, not trying to hold on to being 40, or a new handbag, or the next new thing. That's going to be short lived. We can access that deeper place through [yoga] practices.

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Velojoy

Susi Wunsch, creator of Velojoy

A guide to city biking, also includes bike routes and rides all over the world.

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What inspired you to start Velojoy?

I became inspired to use a bicycle for everyday transportation in New York City. There was a lot to write about, so eventually Velojoy became a city cycling website dedicated to inspiring other women to give it a try. I think there are a lot of women who are curious about using a bicycle for transportation, so I encourage others to join.

When did you first start cycling?

A little bit late in life--probably 8 years ago. I feel so fortunate to have discovered this passion on so many levels. My gateway drug to cycling was spin classes, and after a while you feel like, ‘I'm doing a lot of pedaling and I'm not going anywhere!’ So that's what lead me to do some road biking--I bought a bike and I just found that I loved it.

What advice do you have for women over fifty who want to try roadcycling?

Check out our cycling 101 feature on Velojoy--we went all the way through the process of researching a bicycle, shopping for a bicycle, finding the appropriate fit for the way you plan to use your bike, locking it up, storing it and taking it on public transit. I would encourage you to try it in a place where you feel secure and protected, like a park that's closed off to traffic. If you've never ridden a bicycle before, there are adult clinics that teach people how. It's never too late to learn.

What are the benefits of cycling for FOFs?

One of the best parts of being outdoors and riding a bike is making it social. It's a great thing to do with family, girlfriends, or people from work.

What motivates you to get on your bike everyday?

It's fun. It's a completely different way to experience the city--you're up a little higher because you're on a bicycle seat, you're moving through city air and there's a connection to the outdoors. You feel good and you clear your head. It's a much more efficient way to get around--there's no waiting for public transportation, you don't have to hail a taxi--you can simply hop on your bicycle and go.

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Nia

Debbie Rosas, Co-Creator of Nia

Classes are taught in 49 countries, including the U.S.

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What inspired you to start Nia?

I was intrigued by martial arts -- you see people doing it in their 90s. I thought it was kind of odd that when it came to the other kinds of art forms, like dance, people in their late 20s stopped doing something that they loved because they couldn't sustain it. [I wanted] to create a program sustainable for human bodies, something that anyone could do.

What is Nia?

Nia is a sensory-based movement practice that draws from martial arts, dance arts and healing arts.

What are the benefits of Nia for FOFs?

Nia, as a work out, is made for a woman's body. If you look back at the history of fitness and how exercise has evolved, a lot of exercise is driven from a male point of view, not a female body--we move more fluidly, in a different way. A woman can walk into this class and feel like, 'oh, this is really made for me.'

What advice would out have for FOFs who are trying to get back into a fitness routine?

Start making everything that you do feel like a dance. When you get up in the morning get up more slowly, like a cat. Put some music on and just get up and down from the floor in a playful way, which is one of the most enhancing things you can do, it requires no machine, no equipment, and it's going to start loosening you up. Get familiar with your body moving.

What fitness tips do you have for FOFs?

Don't think that because you're 50 you can't do. Set an ideal for yourself. If the ideal is to lose 5 pounds, move towards that goal. Keep making those little ideals, but make them things that you can actually achieve. Remember that fitness is accumulated, it’s a result of moving your body, so move your body every single day and fitness will just happen.