March Membership Madness
March Madness is happening at MINT! Join now, then visit the club on 6 or more occasions during the first 30 days, and we’ll give you a $100 credit toward any fitness package. Plus, get your first month of classes free, use the promo code CLASSES at checkout
Applies to all new memberships. Not applicable to members who joined since Oct 1, 2016. MINT will auto-calculate your visits after 30 days, and send you a credit. Credit calculations will be performed in mid-April and mid-May. Limited time offer.
Volunteer for Rock ‘n’ Roll DC
The United Airlines Rock ‘n’ Roll DC Marathon and Half Marathon is coming to Washington, DC on March 8-11, 2017 and is in need of many great volunteers. Sign up today and help us celebrate this annual running tradition by supporting almost 25,000 runners and walkers!
All non-profit groups, schools, teams, and organizations are invited to take part as a fundraising event. Every volunteer from your group that comes out to work a shift will count towards a dollar amount back to your organization. Volunteers can help at any shift that suits their schedule, or a group can help all together at a water stop or at the start or finish line on race day (Saturday, March 11.)
In order to set up a fundraising group, or ask any questions about the process, please contact Volunteer Coordinator, Karen, for full details on donation amounts and registration process: dc@rnrracecrew.com
Each Race Crew volunteer receives:
Official Race Crew T-shirt *NEW Design for 2017*
Race Crew Drawstring Backpack *NEW Design for 2017*
Refreshments and snacks
Free parking OR a $10 gift card to reimburse your public transportation expense
Satisfaction of helping others while having a blast!
Key shifts where we could use your help include:
Thursday, 11:00 am -3:30 pm at the Expo (DC Armory)
Friday, 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm at the Expo (DC Armory)
Saturday, 6:00 am – 9:30 am at the Start Line (12th and Constitution, NW)
Saturday, 8:30 am – 1:30 pm at the Finish Line (RFK Stadium)
Saturday, 7:00 am – 11:00 am at Various Water Stops (just email dc@rnrracecrew.com for location details)
We look forward to seeing you race weekend!
To see the full shift options: http://www.runrocknroll.com/dc/the-weekend/volunteer/
Sincerely,
Race Crew Team
United Airlines Rock ‘n’ Roll Washington DC Marathon & 1/2 Marathon
March 8 – 11, 2017
DC@RNRRaceCrew.com
800.311.1255 x6956
Volunteer Information, Race Information
This newsletter was sponsored by RocknRollDC.
5 Quotes to Celebrate National Love Your Body Month
Did you know? February is National Love Your Body Month!
We want our members to love their body all day, every day (no matter the month), so we’ve gathered a few quotes to help you celebrate and remind you how awesome you are! Because you’re a rockstar! 🙂
Got the winter blues? Come to spin class!
February can be a tough month. The weather is cold, dark, and dreary. The holidays are over (except for Feb. 14, otherwise known as Single Awareness/Unrealistic Romantic Expectations Day). Work can be stressful. Situations with family and friends can get you down. So if you can’t spend your February working remotely from a sunny beach report, try to get to spin class. Here are three great reasons why:
You can find some peace of mind.
Unlike yoga or bootcamp class, spinning can give you a great workout and boost your mood without requiring too much mental effort. You have your own space, your own bike, and you control the speed and resistance. You can be alone, but still together with a group of people all investing their time and energy. Sure it’s fun during a ride with some coordinated moves and routines. But if you need to clear your head, just get lost in the music, and absorb some positive energy from class, by all means – you do you.
A chance to channel that frustration.
I recently had a student tell me, “You write great playlists when you’re angry!” It’s true. Negative emotions like anxiety, frustration, anger, and fear can start to build up and drag us down. Channeling all of that energy into a really tough work out can be a great way to work through those emotions in a safe, contained way. Sing along to the music, frown, clench your jaw, and ride through those emotions. A great work out can have you dripping with sweat but feeling refreshed and clean on the inside.
Win MINT’s “Can You Go the Extra Mile?” challenge.
If beating the winter blues and burning major calories wasn’t enough reason to get to MINT for a spin class, consider the fame and fortune that could be yours if you win our February challenge. Track your miles in each spin class, and compete with fellow MINTers to go the extra mile and win fabulous prizes. It’s one way to beat the blues and win big!
Come ride with us! You’re always just one spin class away from a better day.
The Elusive Ocean-Sounding Breath
Ujjayi pranayama, the “victorious breath,” is an essential component of vinyasa yoga. You may know it by its distinctive ocean-like sound. Here are some tips on how to achieve the ujjayi breath:
- First, to get a sense of the constriction that must occur in the back of your throat to achieve the ocean-sounded breath, hold your hand up in front of your mouth and blow on your palm as if you’re trying to fog a mirror. Now try this concept, but with the mouth closed.
- The ujjayi breath uses the nostrils only; the mouth is not opened during ujjayi pranayama.
- The constriction that creates the ocean sound should be in place during the in-breath, and the out-breath.
- The flow of your breath should be even; the length of your inhale should, ideally, match your exhale.
- On your inhale, think of filling your lungs from the bottom to the top, and then emptying them fully on the exhale.
- Don’t strain! A loud-sounding breath is not necessarily a more successful ujjayi breath. There should still be ease behind your breathing. Particularly labored breathing is counter-productive.
Breathing in this way facilitates expansion of energy and deeper meditation. It also helps activate the diaphragm, which is crucial for deep-breathing. You can learn more about ujjayi pranayama and other yogic breathing strategies in Refining the Breath, Pranayama: The Art of the Awakened Breath, by Doug Keller (2009).
Reading about yoga is a great way to learn more about the practice, but taking a class is a great way to explore the practice “in-action” under the tutelage of a trained yoga instructor; check out MINT’s yoga offerings, here.
