Evolution Health & Fitness

RealFit.tv ~ Evolution Delivers Fitness In A Whole New Way

We're bringing my "dana-designed" workouts at evolution straight to YOU through...

RealFit.tv ~ REAL fitness on your terms, anywhere you have an internet connection. 

 

This project has been a long time coming, and what a better time to launch the next stage of my fitness career than after our 3 year celebration last week?

The truth is RealFit.tv was born out of survival. It became quite apparent that our country entered into some brutal economic times when we opened Evolution. So, if people had to cut corners & couldn't "afford" a gym membership anymore, yet still valued their health, then the big question came up: How can I continue to do what I love - teach Group Fitness - but reach more people at a price-point that was doable?  

"Doable" in that, sure! I can drop Evo's rate down to $10/mo, but who wants overcrowded classes & congestion in the locker rooms? Who wants the wear & tear on their favorite spin bike? No way, no how! I'd rather close my doors & that's the harsh truth.  

This "low price" offering goes against all that is important to me in my vision of changing people's lives for the better...offering a warm & inviting place for people to feel safe & feel good in. Because YOU are not a barcode! You are important to me as a participating client whether you know it or not. YOU drive me & motivate me to do what I do every day & I just cannot do it for $10 a month. Not even $40 a month. If I turn the tables a bit, the fact is YOU are worth more to me than that. We have talent here at Evolution that's worth uh... a bit more than those cheap monthly rates. I am an EXPERT at what I do. Period.  

The solution: Video tape my workouts! After all, they are a culmination of over 15 years of teaching experience and an inner desire to constantly improve in how I connect & inspire you, so you can pull out more from yourself! Why not share them with more people, without asking people to "join" Evolution?

But, let's be completely "Real" here. You know it & I know it. NOTHING replaces actually being in my class, or any class here at Evo. But, it's the next best thing. So, if you can't get here, I'm gonna find a way for you to get this fitness thing in your life AND do it with some sticking power!   

Now, while that was going on... I saw 4 things happening in the Fitness DVD world.

First, who can be inspired by someone who gets filmed for 12 hours, then gets edited down to 45-minutes of perfection? yuk. That has never inspired me & never will. I want you to see what REALLY happens! The sweat of true human potential, that's the reality I want to share with the world! I'm real. I mess up my choreography sometimes. so what? & ya know what else? these are REAL people just like you in these workouts. NOT fitness models.

Secondly, DVDs are like CD's. They were hot 10 years ago, not so much today. Now videos are moving online & we're part of changing the game for the fitness industry. Hey, someone has to do it. If you know me well, you know I'm just the chick to do it. Besides, who wants to watch the same video over & over & over &...??? ugh. not me!  

Third, RealFit is an environmentally responsible concept. I refuse to contribute to DVD production & packaging & all that garbage & fuel (to ship it!). RealFit.tv is offering fitness videos in a very green way. That is something I am very proud of.

Lastly, my message is about improving your health & I want to empower REAL people that "yes! you can do it too &... look! there are people of all ages, shapes & sizes in RealFit workouts (who are also at Evolution, btw)" Our country isn't exactly in the best health. Our obesity rate is going up, so there is less of a motivational connection to those "six-pack" abs that you see in most of the Fitness DVD promo material. True, working out with me can get you there, but it's not really a "core" motivation if you know what I mean.  

So, here's what you can do to help us refine the site & move it from "beta" to the real deal:

1. Watch &/or follow along to 1 or all 3 of the videos posted: 

30-minute Interval

45-minute Cardio Defense

 

45-Minute Step & Sculpt

  

2.  Fill out the survey for a chance to win free music & movies... OR a 6-month FREE subscription to the site when we officially launch!

Just a side note: This is our BETA site, a.k.a. "test site". This was tough for me to launch, being the perfectionist I am. There are many things I want to change, but enough is enough I had to get this out there to you guys! The videos are grainy right now, but they won't be like that for our official site. Please look past the graininess (cuz that is easily fixed!) & provide feedback for the content or other areas you'd like to see improved upon. Be sure you have a speedy internet connection so the videos play smoothly.

 

Enjoy! 

 

5 Non-Food Ways To Show Your Honey "I Love You" This Valentine's Day

It's typical & predictable to give flowers & chocolates for Valentine's Day, so I thought I'd share my 2 cents about REALLY showing love this <3 holiday.

1. Make fitness a team effort. It's a fantastic way to bond, not just for V-day, but many "sweaty" days together in your future (wink, wink). Bring your honey for free this coming Monday, Valentine's Day! Whether it's Ari's EvoCore & Cross Training with the TRX or his Cardio Drill class with stations, Lisa's spin workout, or willPower & Grace with Tracy, sometimes the best gift can be a hot experience together.

2. Feel like a kid again & carve out some arts & crafts time. Make your own Valentine's card! Pull out some magazines, construction paper, get scissors & glue. Sit down on the floor (my favorite) or at a table (if you still want to feel like an adult) with lots of space & go to it! Tear out messages & images that mean something to you & your honey. Make it a riddle & paste images together to create a story. Handmade cards can be so much fun to create & ones they'll want to keep. They can be funny, or sentimental. The cool thing is, you get to create it from your hands & mind to his/her heart.

3. Sit down & plan your next getaway together. Even if it's not until the end of the year. Make it a point to get away from the every-day & plan the escape! Decide your budget, figure out a 4-day weekend & start surfing the net. Its amazing the hot deals that are available to travelers these days. The planning & dreaming can be romantic & fun. Once you decide, print out a couple pictures of your destination & hang it up in your office or your fridge as a constant reminder of something to look forward to, something you are doing together inspired by Valentine's Day.

4. As the book title goes Love is a Mix Tape. One of our members suggested this book to me, so it's on my list of reads for this year. Inspired by the theme of this book, here's another Non-Food love task: Create a playlist of the songs you know your honey will love - even if you don't. What songs do you hear, that make you think of when you first met? or a time you took a road trip together? or maybe even the lyrics that express how you feel in such a way that makes you wonder, "why give a card when this song says it all?" Another movie I love that inspires this idea of expressing your love through music is High Fidelity with John Cusack. Check it out if you haven't seen it.

5. Send each other sexy & fun-loving texts all day. This is especially fun since Valentine's Day lands on a hum-drum Monday this year. So, when you're stuck at your 9-5 all day trying to catch up on emails, mix it up by sending out love messages every hour or so. It's exciting to await their reply. Then hold off... keep 'em waiting... and send another one. As it builds throughout the day, you'll look forward to seeing each other later on. It'll be easy to remember why you fell in love - it'll all come back after a bit of teasing & taunting thru texting.

 

February 9th Marks 3 Years of Sharing My Dream with You

 

 

Wow. Can you believe it's been 3 years since we've opened? What a momentous event! 

I wanted to share the above photo with you. Here I am in my favorite room in the house, our Group Fitness Studio, & this was taken during construction (around December of 2007) as I witnessed my dreams coming true before my eyes.

Can you just see me beaming with happiness? A contentment as if "I've arrived" because I found what I was meant to do with my life & despite all external forces working against me, I made it happen. I love this photo for that - what it represents to me & how I feel when I look back at how far I've come.

I was once told by a business mentor of mine that the skills I needed to open my business were the exact opposite set of skills that I needed to run my business. How true was that!

So, I'd like to share the same concept with you, but apply it to your health goals or your weight loss goals. What it takes to get you there will shift into a different set of skills to keep you focused on managing your new way of living healthy towards continuous improvement, until it becomes second-nature & part of who you are.

So, if this "skill-set transition" weren't the case, you wouldn't see so many people piling it back on after a significant weight loss. It's about learning what to do & learning who you are once you "get there."

What's exciting about reaching the point in your life where you can say "I did it!" is that you then can allow other areas of your life to excel. It begins with YOU first. Deciding your physical health, your happiness...filling yourself up spiritually is so important, that nothing will get in your way (not even the Jersey Winter of 2011!!!)

Your personal success around your foundation of good health will inevitably, with no doubt, positively pour into other areas of your life. This is why I built Evolution. To be your rock-solid, yet soft & fluffy, landing zone for which all other pieces in your life fall into place.

I worked on opening evolution for as long as we are open now, 3 Years! So this is quite a momentous milestone for all the blood, sweat & tears I poured into this... uh... for lack of a better term, fitness studio.

I am still trying to find a name for what we are. Even after all this time, the problem is there are no industry terms for a place like Evolution. I mean, how do you describe us to your friends? If you have any words of wisdom here, please share! As you know, it's been quite challenging to share the concept of Evo with others so they understand the FEELING you get from working out with us. We just say, "you just have to come & see & feel for yourself." So, send me an email (dana@everybodyevolves.com) if you have some phrases or thoughts on this, I would love to share what everyone has to say in another blog post.

Words cannot begin to express my gratitude for my husband Steve, the Evo staff & the dynamic & talented team of professionals that truly make Evolution who we are (I am nothing without them!), along with the clients who "get it"; Those who have put their health first NO MATTER WHAT, just as I have dedicated myself to this service, NO MATTER WHAT.

A place like Evo is THAT important to changing the fitness industry & impacting our obesity issue. I do what I do, & with such passion, conviction & heart because of YOU sharing it all with me. I appear to be your teacher, but in fact I am your constant student.

I'd like to close with my favorite quote by Mahatma Ghandi:

"Be the change you want to see in the world." 

About 6 years ago, the day came when I stopped bitching about what I didn't like in the world & I did something about it. Thank you for believing in me & being here to celebrate this, celebrate YOUR Evolution!!

All my love and gratitude,