Reflexology is the practice of applying pressure to the feet and hands utilizing specific thumb, finger and hand techniques. There is
no use of oil, cream or lotion and the treatment is based on a system of zones and reflex areas that reflect an image of the body on the feet and hands. The treatment creates a significant physical change in the body.
Archeological evidence has proven Reflexology to be over 5,000 years old. Reflexology treatment has one goal: “Homeostasis” and to de-stress the body and prevent disease. Mental stress causes physical stress and the body is not at ease.
A Reflexology session promises to be effective, impacting a variety of physiological and psychological concerns.
A Reflexology session can energize or relax you, reduce pain, and improve blood flow. By touching specific reflex points, the therapist is touching related reflexes in the entire body, such as internal organs and the skin. Reflexology is directly related to body systems that control our immune system. The system of reflex areas can be found in hand, feet, and ear charts.
Certified Massage Therapist Susanne Suffoletta has over 25 years of experience and is a specialist in Reflexology.
According to Susanne, the top three reasons you should experience Reflexology are:
1. Detoxify. Reflexology will help detoxify your body through lymphatic drainage and balance.
2. Healing Sleep. Your body needs 8-10 hours of sleep to receive 2 hours of healing. However, 1 hour of Reflexology is equal to 2 days of healing sleep.
3. Stress Relief. Reflexology will help you achieve a deeper sleep, mental clarity, increased creativity and “profound relaxation.”
Susanne recommends scheduling Reflexology appointments after your workouts or on your off days. Everyone is a good candidate for a session, including babies. Susanne currently schedules treatments at the Midtown Spa Wednesday thru Sunday. Treatments range from $45/half hour to $85/one hour.
Have you experienced Reflexology? What did you think?
My goal is to try one new Group Exercise class a week. 
Early one Sunday morning, I found myself in a 90-minute Boot Camp. Instead of sleeping in, I dragged my husband to Boot Camp with me as a “bonding experience.”
I had needed some weight training and I love being outdoors. I was a committed new recruit to class. The same cannot be said for my husband, but he humored me and joined in the fun.
The term “Boot Camp” has its roots in basic training camp for new recruits to the US Navy or Marine Core.
At Midtown, Boot Camp enthusiasts are not recruits for the military, of course, but rather choose the class to get strong and push themselves beyond the limits of a Stairmaster. Our Boot Camp classes are popular among members who enjoy fresh air, intense training, and outdoor team camaraderie which cannot be replicated in a studio.
The workout mimics the fast-paced interval training originally created by the military. Just like a Drill Sergeant, the instructor will not hesitate to call you out if you are not giving it your all. I was committed, I was a fighter.
My husband?
Not so much.
Secretly, this was a highlight of the class. A man who boasts about how strong he is and can leg press over 1,000 pounds ran for water breaks every ten minutes. Furthermore, he could not finish one minute of 10 pounds (yes, just 10 pounds) of single leg lunges without whining.
This class was a humbling experience for him and he is now motivated to go every week with me. His first goal, finish the class!
As for me, Boot Camp kept me challenged and motivated to push myself harder than usual. I felt strong and eager to go back again for more.
If you are not currently taking Boot Camp or an interval-style of training classes, make it a goal to add this to your fitness plan. Boot Camp will motivate you to strengthen your weaknesses and improve your mental focus.
Boot camp will also boost your metabolism by:
Building Muscle
Building muscle allows you to maintain a high metabolic rate and helps you lose weight. A simple strength training program twice per week can limit your muscle loss and keep your metabolism running high. Boot camp incorporates strength-training exercises using both hand weights and body weight.
Interval Training
Increase the “afterburn.” The harder you work, the more calories you will burn both during and after your workouts and your fitness levels will really improve. Short bursts of power combined with a variety of exercises will prevent you from ever getting bored.
Cardiovascular Conditioning
Boot Camp may include running along with other cardiovascular aerobic exercises. Your heart and your lungs are the engines that run your cardiovascular system. By strengthening them you increase the engine’s horsepower, making it run smoother and more efficiently. In other words, boosting your metabolism.
Midtown offers Boot Camp classes 7 days a week. Classes are included in your membership fee and are found on the Group Exercise schedule.
Do not be intimidated. Be motivated. Boot Camp can strengthen your body and your mind.
Have you tried Boot Camp? What did you think of the class?
Midtown is known for hiring the best of the best in the fitness industry, including experienced, nationally certified personal trainers.
Members trust our trainers to rebuild, recondition, and re-train their bodies.
Pediatric Pulmonary Physician, Samuel Vazquez, knows the importance of a strong body system. He works six full days per week (not including on-call time), eats healthfully, and enjoys playing tennis. Samuel has been a Midtown member since 2001, and recently began training with ACE & NASM-certified trainer for more than 15 years, Sandor Morris.
Born in Jamaica, Sandor is a former track star and Sprinter who still plays volleyball, soccer and basketball on a regular basis. He is has two daughters and is a favorite among high-performance athletes because of his fun, energetic, and motivating training approach. When Samuel hired Sandor, he simply wanted a couple of sessions to improve his endurance during his tennis game. He specifically requested Sandor because he had witnessed Sandor working his clients hard and after speaking with him said, “Sandor knows his stuff.”
Samuel has now been training for five months and has benefitted from personal training much more than he ever expected. Samuel gets one day off per week and chooses to spend it training with Sandor.
Ever wonder what goes on when one of our trainers works with a client?
Read on.
Sandor : Samuel first came to me to improve his endurance when playing tennis. As I observed him, I realized he could barely bend his knees. He was also extremely tight in his shoulders, across the chest, and into his arms from years of strictly weight training. I needed to recondition his muscles and his mental approach to fitness. I decided to completely change up his routine. Improving his flexibility was just as critical as improving endurance to help him improve his tennis game.
Samuel: I work out with Sandor once a week and follow his routine on my own on another day each week. I play tennis at least twice a week. After one month, I noticed I could actually bend my knees again! I noticed I was in a better mood and had more energy. I have now been training with Sandor for five months and continue to see the benefits.
Sandor: I see Samuel once a week, so we work his total body in a way that will train endurance, strength, stability, rotation and core all at the same time. My favorite piece of equipment to accomplish this type of workout is the Free Motion Dual Cable machine. Although I do not do his entire routine on this equipment, I certainly could.
A session for Samuel with a focus on endurance, flexibility , stability and core may include:
Plymoterics: Step-ups on a box with dumbbell shoulder press. This works endurance, shoulders, legs, and core.
Burpees: The burpee is a full-body exercise used in strength training and aerobic exercise. It is performed in five steps:
Free Motion Dual Cable
- Single leg dead lift
- 1 leg, 1 arm row
- Squat to wood chop
- Triceps extension to squat, shoulder press
- Lunge to bicep curl with knee up
- Cable rotations
Core Focus
- V-up with medicine ball
- Medicine ball rotations
- Explosive leg lifts
Stretching
- 15 minutes of assisted stretching
Interested in your own training session with Sandor? Please call the front desk at 954.384.2582. You won’t regret it!
I will humbly admit that even though I am a 40-year-old native Floridian with a backyard pool and the ocean at my fingertips, I am
not a very strong swimmer. I can doggy-paddle pretty well, but usually feel like a sinking ship. I love to bike and run so I mentioned to Aquatics Director, Raphael Lima, that I would like to take some swimming lessons to prepare for a Triathlon with my 62-year-old father.
Raphael was eager to help me by suggesting Midtown’s Masters Swim Program.
The word “Master” alone was enough to make me steer clear from this offer. Raphael is from Brazil and Portuguese is his native language, so I thought perhaps he had misunderstood my current swimming skill level.
I said, “Raphael, I am a horrible swimmer and need to get a basic freestyle down so I don’t feel like I am drinking more water than I am swimming in.”
Again, he said, “Masters Swim is perfect for you.”
Masters Swim is perfect for anyone over 18 years old who wants to improve his/her swimming skills. We currently offer the program Monday through Friday with a variety of times to accommodate different schedules and levels. It’s only $60 for the month and feels like small group lessons.
Here’s what I learned about Masters Swim:
1. Choose Your Outfit Wisely
I purchased an appropriate swimsuit that would actually stay on and would not end up in the lane next to me. I bought goggles, waterproof sunscreen, and a swimmers cap to keep my long hair from strangling me during my lesson. With as few distractions as possible, I arrived for the 12:00 pm Masters Swim session ready to sink, I mean swim.
2. Bubble-Blowing Isn’t Just for Babies
The instructor asked me to swim a few laps so he could evaluate my form, or lack thereof. I was asked to bob up and down and blow bubbles, which I assume was because it was terribly painful for him to watch me swim.
This part was actually a lot of fun and somewhat relaxing. I later found out it was to help regulate my breathing, a very important skill when you are swimming. As a Pilates Trainer, I thought I had great breathing technique. The Pilates has helped, but I still had a lot to learn.
3. Kicking It
Following breathing exercises, he gave me a kick board and we began working on my feet and my kicking. He helped me improve my freestyle stroke. I learned you are not supposed to actually slap the water and swimming should not be painful in any way. That was a great tip! I was ready to do some laps.
You know when you are young and a room in your house seems gigantic until you grow older, and then you see it as the small room it really is?
This did not happen with the pool lane.
As I have aged, the lanes seem to get longer and longer instead of shorter. After laps, I was exhausted from completely changing my usual fitness routine. One hour of Masters Swim worked all of my muscles and I was breathing heavily, yet I was surprisingly refreshed and relaxed. The water felt great, and my coach taught me so much in just one session, it was worth my time.
Surprisingly, I already feel more confident in the pool and I am proud to tell my father I am now a Masters Swimmer. It might not be like the Masters in golf, but some of the swimmers are at an elite level. I never felt intimidated. The coach focuses on helping you improve your own skills, and they are not concerned with comparing you to anyone else.
Finally I realized this was the first one-hour workout during which my mind did not have a chance to wander. I did not think about the dog, the kids, or what we were having for dinner that night. The coach kept me focused and busy. Add the need for “survival skills” to your workout like I did and you will quickly be focused too.
Have you tried Masters Swim or any of our swim programs?
Perhaps you have seen Midtown members working up a great sweat in Spinning class. I love the heart-pumping adrenaline during indoor cycle classes followed by the relaxing “Spin Buzz” that lasts for hours after class has ended. I thought no other cardio workout would compare to spinning euphoria; that is, until I decided to shake up my workout routine by trying each of the cardio dance classes offered at the club.
If you have heard Jennifer Lopez’s new song, “On the Floor,” then you know what I was doing on Friday at 11:30am during Manny’s Fit Dance class.
The group exercise schedule is packed with popular cardio dance classes from Fit Dance with Manny Castro (as seen on “Live to Dance” and “America’s Got Talent”), to Latin Dance with Pocho Gremli, to Zumba with Sol Beraza, to Dance Tribal Lab with Sebastian Santos. I was thrilled to discover the choreography in all of the classes is easy enough for anyone to follow, yet still an intense workout for all levels.
Age and dance experience do not matter. Whether you’re young or young-at-heart, a talented dancer or a willing-to-learn beginner, you will still feel like a superstar after class.
I have taken each of these classes and I find myself smiling the entire time, no matter who is teaching.
I have re-discovered the “Dance Buzz,” which is clearly the reason our dance classes are packed and a regular part of many of your fitness routines.
I adore the instructors. Each one is kind, motivating, and completely unique!
However, there are a few constants across each class. Each promises a great cardio workout, a lot of sweat, and the use of muscles and body parts you never knew you had. I discovered some leg muscles that have never been sore until doing the Salsa, Meringue, and some “drop it low” moves, which I opted to keep a little higher. I also met a few new members who kept me going with encouraging words and an occasional, “Go Carole! Go Carole!”
If your fitness routine needs a new “Buzz,” I encourage you to try one of our cardio dance classes for a workout experience that’s both fun and energizing. Classes are offered mornings and evenings as well as on the weekend to accommodate a variety of lifestyle schedules. If you are too shy to introduce yourself to others, bring a friend along with you!
What’s your favorite song to dance to?
Regardless of whether you have been a member of Midtown for more than ten years or just ten days, we have six spectacular hidden treasures you may not be aware of.
