RedCord for Runners

Thursday, 12 January 2012  |  Running + Triathlon

Last week, my good friend Mitch Felipe-Mendoza invited me to a free trial session for Redcord. I heard about Redcord early last year from my best running buddy, Annie, who raved about it being a hit in Singapore where she works as a Pilates instructor.

I dropped by the new b+b Studio in Infinity Tower conveniently located in Bonifacio Global City. Awesome studio with an amazing view of the city.

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– Pilates equipment –

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– Redcord area –

The only thing I knew about Redcord was that it’s a fusion of suspension training (think TRX) and Pilates. As a fan of TRX before and being a big believer in the benefits of Pilates especially for runners, I was very excited (and nervous) to give this a try.

During the session, I asked Mitch all about Redcord:

WHAT IS REDCORD?
Redcord is a suspension training system that uses body weight as resistance and exercises multiple muscle groups and the nervous system to produce the most optimal neuromuscular challenge and experience.

BENEFITS OF REDCORD FOR RUNNERS:
– improves balance
– challenges coordination by syncing the nerves and muscles in multiplanes
– improves full body strength by optimizing muscle activation
– educates the athlete thru body awareness-proprioception
– increases flexibility
– improves stability thru core control

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– This is me after my Redcord Session. Thanks to Mitch for the intro session –

For my first session, I was just familiarizing myself with the use of the cords. It wasn’t entirely new to me since I’ve used suspension training in the past, but there were certainly some exercises that I’ve never done before. We worked on both my arms and legs being extra careful with my foot which is still recovering from my marathons. It’s wonderful that there’s a wide variety of options for each exercise to make it easier or harder for each person.

While most of the exercises use body weight and tension to build strength, the reps still made it very tiring. I liked the fact that with each exercise, you could also feel a stretch in some muscles, something that all of us runners need. We also used the Bozu for balance and some hand weights for the upper body after the Redcord sessions.

Mitch took it easy on me for my trial session. She said the first session is always an assessment of a Client’s strengths and weaknesses. By the second session, the instructor can customize your program according to your needs. I’m definitely be back for more (and harder workouts…gulp!) in the coming weeks!

WHERE CAN YOU TRY RED CORD:
b+b studio
– 11th Fl., Infinity Tower, 26th St., Bonifacio Global City, +639178653878/+6324786691
– Gr. Fl., Bonifacio Technology Center, 31st St. corner 2nd Ave., Bonifacio Global City, +639178992639/+6328151009

AVAILABLE PROGRAMS AT b+b STUDIO:
1) Redcord Personal Training Session
2) Redcord Duo & Small Group Training
– Redcord Fitcore
– Redcord Full-body Conditioning
– Redcord Burn
– Redcord Athletic