Vitruvian Fitness Is Going Virtual.
vmfit • March 18, 2020
For the past several weeks, I’ve been tearing myself inside out trying to balance the healthy benefits of community with the health risks to the community by staying open.
This afternoon, Mark, Niki, and I decided to transform Vitruvian Fitness from an in-person training studio to virtual online coaching.
You might want to start calling us Virt-ruvian Fitness. But please don’t – it sounds corny and you’ll just start typing it wrong all the time.
The governor of Colorado coincidentally may have imposed certain restrictions on “gyms” although we do not know what that means as there is no official guidance as of this moment.
Ironically, as many of you may remember, this past January, we were busting at the seams and trying to figure out how to fit more of you inside!
Here’s what the exciting new Virtual Vitruvian is going to look like starting tomorrow.
- All in-person classes and personal training sessions are cancelled until it’s safe to re-open the doors.
- Mark, Niki, and I will begin creating workouts that you can do on your own.
- In the park, at home, with your family, on the trail, on the bike path, or wherever.
- Personal Training clients will have your programs modified according to what phase you’re in, what your equipment resources are and what your workout environment looks like. We will continue to be engaged with you making sure you’ve got all the structure and accountability that makes training work.
- All members will have access to all new content we’ll be posting online. There will be written workouts, videos, tips, insights, inspiration and maybe some perspiration.
- Workouts will be written with various equipment options and exercise goals – bodyweight, TRX, Kettlebells, cycling, running, and freestyle ski aerials.
- Personal Training clients will be able to check out equipment from the new Vitruvian Fitness equipment library.
- Everyone is highly encouraged to purchase your own TRX. They are on sale right now at TRX Training for $169 and the kit includes everything you need to get started at home including the door anchor which means you can be working out as soon as you open the package.
If you have shoes or other personal belongings at the studio, please make arrangements to come pick them up.
Now for the mushy part.
I cannot express enough my immense gratitude to all of you. Vitruvian Fitness turns 10 years old in May. Those of you who have been with us since the beginning know this has been my labor of love for all those years. Where we started and how far we’ve come has been an amazing trail of blood, sweat, and tears. Literally.
We’ve made so many friends and connections. And that’s awesome.
Everything is going to change now. Hopefully, this is a blessing in disguise – just not too well disguised.
As always, my phone is always on and I’m always on email. I just wish I could say my door is always open, too.
Thank you.
Tom Wigginton
chief awesomeness officer
Vitruvian Fitness
Play Hard. Eat well. Be happy.
You might also enjoy these posts . . .
How Vitruvian’s new partnership with DexaFit Denver helps you fight bone loss, build muscle, and personalize your fitness – starting with real data. Vitruvian Fitness has partnered with DexaFit Denver to bring you three powerful tools for assessing and improving your health: the DEXA Scan , VO₂ Max Test , and Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) Test . These aren’t gimmicks – they’re scientifically backed ways to track meaningful progress in your training. If you're in your 40s, 50s, or 60s, you're at a turning point where training isn’t just about looking better – it’s about aging better . As the saying goes, “What gets measured gets managed.” And just because that’s a relic from my corporate past doesn’t make it any less true. Like your annual bloodwork, these tests give you a snapshot of important health markers that offer direction, motivation, and a baseline to measure progress against. Here’s what each test measures: DEXA Scan – bone density, lean body mass, and visceral fat VO₂ Max Test – cardiovascular fitness and aerobic efficiency Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) – how many calories you burn at rest (your metabolic baseline)
Ace your ride on Bike to Work[Out] Day! Pledge to ride, then swap a car trip for a ride on your bike in celebration of this annual event focused on reducing traffic congestion and improving air quality. Hit the trails and bike lanes to find a path that’s suited just for you. Whether you travel to the office, grocery store, school pickup or a nearby park, go all in this Bike to Work[Out] Day! The key to a successful ride is to be prepared. Here's a list of things you may want to consider: A bicycle! Bonus points for a well-tune bike! Comfortable clothing to ride in and a change of clothes to wear at work. A windbreaker or rain coat. Lights. Helmet. Water. Snacks. A safe route! Speaking of safe routes . . . the map below shows many safe options to ride your bike to Vitruvian Fitness from your neighborhood. If you would like us to create a custom door-to-door route for you, let us know!
How to create a cardio habit and turn it into a cardio lifestyle. We’ve talked about why cardio matters . You’ve got a handle on tr aining zones . And you’ve seen how we program your cardio training to maximize efficiency and results. But knowledge alone doesn’t build consistency. Cardio becomes the life-changing ingredient in your life when it becomes routine. So let’s talk about how to get started and how to make it stick —even if you don’t love it, even if your schedule is full, even if you’ve tried and failed before. This article is written mostly for the dabblers . The key is to get started, keep moving, and eventually create a new identity for yourself as someone who finds joy in their daily cardio habit. And to be clear, this isn’t about becoming a pro athlete. It’s about living longer, living better, protecting your independence as you age, and showing up for the future you want.
How to build a cardio plan that matches your goals—whether you're in it to win it or just want to feel 10 years younger. Nobody wants to rust out too early and yet, not everybody wants to race either. Most people fall somewhere in between. Maybe you’re not chasing a podium, but you are chasing longevity and quality of life. Or, maybe you’re not training for a triathlon, but you do like to enjoy a long hike without needing three days to recover. Or maybe you are chasing podiums, glory, and fame! In any case, that's great! In part 1 of this series, we talked about Why Cardio Matters . In part 2, we talked about gauging your effort levels by Decoding Your Training Zones . If you haven’t read those, you will find them helpful. Whether your goal is vitality , confidence , or competition , there’s a cardio plan that fits. The trick is structuring it smartly based on what your body needs and your life allows.
How you can train smarter to live longer, live better, and stay active and independent — maybe into your 90s or 100s. In our previous article, Why Cardio Matters , we talked about the benefits of doing cardio (like living longer) and introduced you to a few terms that might have been new: Zone 2, VO₂ Max, and lactate clearance. We also offered a general recommendation for how much cardio to do weekly. This article takes the next step: breaking down how the intensity you work at affects the benefits you get from each training session. The science of exercising is rich, complex, exciting, and overwhelming. Besides the fact that it is indeed complicated, it’s made worse by having acronyms for everything, buzzy catchphrases, and intimidating fitness personalities. This is where I’m going to try to make this easier to understand, convey why you should care, and encourage you to add cardio to your daily, weekly, monthly, seasonal lifestyles.
“Doing cardio.” What even does that mean? For some people, it’s hopping on the rower, bike, ski erg, treadmill, or elliptical and checking the box for however long Tom said to do it, then sneaking out before anyone asks questions. Others train for sanity. It helps manage stress, clear the mind, and release a flood of feel-good chemistry. Also in this category are people who actually just love to run, bike, swim, or play sportsball purely for the fun. And then there are those training for performance—to win races, set PRs, and push personal limits. All of this is cardio. And yet, when you zoom out and look at the data, it becomes clear that cardiovascular fitness does something that has a very measurable outcome: it extends your lifespan . And while we’ve all heard that cardio is good for your heart, most people don’t realize just how deep that benefit runs. And as in the case of so many other aspects of life, the broader public often benefits from the insights that trickle down from elite performance research. So whether you're reluctantly doing cardio or chasing a vibe, you’re tapping into the same physiological systems that turn podium-seekers into podium winners.
