THE NEW IM HEALTH TRAINING FACILITY IS FOR EVERYONE (YES, EVEN YOU)!
One of my main goals with this blog is to make fitness more accessible for everyone. You don't have to be an accomplished athlete to enjoy fitness. I'm a perfect example of that! I like to hang with the athletes (yes, I happen to have a bunch of friends who played college sports and even more friends who are fitness professionals) and my husband luckily passed his athletic gene onto our kids. I play tennis-- not very well-- but I love the sport. I run races-- not very fast-- but I feel good doing it. I lift weights and may look strong but don't ask me to help you move that piece of furniture. I never let my athletic ability stop me or get in the way of trying something new. Maybe this confidence has come with age and experience or the fact that I just don't give a shit. I want you to know that I was not at all like that growing up, or even in my early 30's-- How I would love to go back to that younger version of myself and slap some sense into her!
I tell you all of this because for the first time in a reeeeeaaaaally long time, when I stepped out of the elevator and into the GORGEOUS Performance Center located on the top floor of IM Health in Radnor (that new 3-story brick building on Lancaster Avenue that went up last year), I was nervous. Had I finally bitten off more than I could chew? I am not an athlete and this is clearly a state of the art facility where the "real deal" comes to train. I'm not working towards a sports scholarship or the next big game. I'm just a 41 year old mom who is all about getting a good workout in and having fun while doing it.
I had signed up for "The Huddle", IM Health's version of a small group training session, which uses a 1:6 coach to member ratio. With these small group sessions, you get all the advantages of working out with a trainer, without having to pay the cost for a one on one session. Plus, it's really nice to work out with other human beings again. The small group sessions are available at The Performance Center every hour on the hour, Monday thru Saturday, from 6 am until noon. In the afternoon, the small group sessions run on the half hour.
Rene Cammarata met me at the door. Rene is kinda a big deal, although he would never lead you to believe that. (But my husband knew all about Rene from his golf performance training experience). Rene, along with Dr. Rocklan Walker, of the IM Family Practice (formerly, the Radnor Family Practice), are the masterminds behind the top-notch Performance Center on the third floor of IM Health. Rene coached Dr. Walker's daughter, Brynn, throughout high school (Brynn happens to be a professional women's golfer now). Dr. Walker always dreamed of a facility where prevention and wellness played a role in overall healthcare. Rene and Dr. Walker worked together to create The Performance Center at IM Health. Rene's small group coaching philosophy leans into the overall mission of IM Health: Relationships, Convenience and Inspiration.
The Performance Center is more than a gym. It's a "best practices facility" where members and patients get the benefits of exercise design, accountability and motivation in an individualized and focused small group setting. With the small group sessions, each day of the week is a full body workout but with a different focus. Monday/Tuesday is Acceleration. Wednesday/ Thursday is Change of Direction and Friday/ Saturday is Max Velocity. The intent is to cycle through the week starting with Acceleration and ending with Max Velocity. (I happened to work backwards based on when I could make it into the center).
These are some examples of the brand new, top of the line equipment in The Performance Center. No corners were cut when selecting the equipment up here. That curve treadmill is so cool because it pushed me to speeds that I never would have set for myself on a regular, motorized treadmill.
After a brief discussion about the goals for the session, we began with some warmups that incorporated stretching and moving across the 20 yard turf. I quickly loosened up after Rene told me I look like a 90 year old when I did my lunges-- I appreciate a good sense of humor and grew up in a family where everyone was constantly making fun of each other so that's the way to my heart. Training at The Performance Center was unlike anything I have done before. Because I was not a successful high school athlete, I never had the chance to use this kind of equipment before. And actually, most 90's kids couldn't have trained with this equipment because it didn't exist! (Coaching young athletes now is so much more specialized and the kids today truly have technology on their side... but that's a whole other post). That's the beauty of this facility. Anyone can become a member. Anyone can train amongst the athletes. And anyone can use the equipment and benefit from it!
I did this traveling warm up move at the start of each session.
Focus on the form, not on that horrible black and blue mark on my thigh. I got that from closing my husband's heavy truck door on my leg while trying to maneuver my 4 year old out of the car in a tight parking spot... remember, I never said I was coordinated.
Another traveling warm up exercise to wake up my muscles.
For the first half of each session, I worked with Rene on the turf doing exercises that built upon each other, focusing on the skill of the day. On Monday- with Acceleration- and Friday- with Max Velocity- a lot of the exercises were the same but with differences in posture, foot placement and momentum to achieve different results based on the skill of that day.
This is the form for acceleration. We started with these wall exercises.
And moved to the turf with actual accelerations across the 20 yards. Fun!
For the second half, I was off to complete my own personalized workout each day using kettlebells, free weights and those beautiful red weight racks. I accessed my daily exercises through the app, Team Builder, on my phone or on one of the many iPads placed around the center. Rene was there to demonstrate the exercises for the newbies (me) and to oversee and assist, but the class was really working on their own. This part also involves the total body, relating back to the overall skill of that day.
These are some of my individualized exercises.
Renee designed this program for everyone. Yes, of course, the skills are crucial for the high school and college athletes that train at IM Health, but they are also useful for "normal" people like me, who want to live a fit and healthy lifestyle. I can easily apply everything I learned to some area of my life.
No, I am not sprinting in a 100 meter dash, but I love to run and can always benefit from learning proper form and how to run more efficiently, faster, and without injury.
Apart from the stunning views of Lancaster Avenue and the latest and greatest training equipment, The Performance Center has some of the most successful and skilled coaches in the area. Rene is the Director at The Performance Center. He has more than 30 years of experience in fitness and sports performance. Small group coaching and group fitness has always been his secret sauce. Rene has been named one of Philadelphia Magazine’s “Standout Trainers” and “Best of Philly”. He has numerous certifications ranging from speed and agility training to Olympic weightlifting, golf performance training and sport nutrition coaching. Pete Franco is the other coach at The Performance Center. Pete's training is in strength and conditioning, and exercise and sports science. Pete specializes in functional range mobility conditioning. You are in great hands with either of these guys on your side!
I totally appreciate these small group coaching sessions for my fitness goals. Small group sessions are really the central focus at The Performance Center. But, there are other options available, which may be appropriate for certain members:
💪 "The Pipeline" is team coaching and usually happens in the afternoon and evenings when the teams train in The Performance Center. (If your team is interested in using The Performance Center to train, get in touch with Rene to schedule a tour).
💪 "Open Gym" is use of The Performance Center and equipment. You do need to register for Open Gym time because IM Health limits the number of members at a given time to ensure that private gym feel.
💪 "My Coach" is one-on-one personal training, which is really beneficial for someone returning from injury and requiring dedicated one-on-one attention.
Yoga is also offered on Sundays at The Performance Center.
What makes IM Health so unique is the full team approach. The coaches in The Performance Center can utilize the expertise of the other medical professionals in the building to get a complete picture of the person they are training. The doctor, the physical therapist and the dietician all work together with the coaches. For someone recovering from an injury, what a way to get back. For someone training for a big race, this is the place. As you pack the miles on, it's a good idea to get a physical therapist and a dietician in your court. For the first time in my life, with the support of the IM Health team, running a full marathon may actually be in the cards.
You may have driven past IM Health on Lancaster Avenue and wondered what was inside of this beautiful building. The building is a full service health center that is open to the public. The Physical Therapy Center works closely with the athletes and members in The Performance Center. The beautiful new Urgent Care Center on the first floor is the one I will be visiting the next time I need to see a doctor quickly. The Urgent Care Center is also a Covid Testing site. The Family Practice has two physicians and four nurse practitioners (I will be seeing a certain nurse practitioner there who specializes in women's health soon). A chiropractor, a registered dietician, a health advocate and a care coordinator, are all part of the team, working together to ensure you are your healthiest self.
There truly is no other place on the Main Line like it. And not just because little old me can train here like a real athlete!😄