GRE : Gravity Resistance Exercise

As our studio and team grows, we are excited to be launching our latest concept to add to our ever expanding schedule. This exciting new resistance training programme will be a mix of strength, mobility and stability training which will have you working your whole body while getting fitter in the process.

Our yoga teacher Karthik has developed the new concept, Gravity Resistance Exercise (GRE), where you will be using dumbbells and body weight as your tools to a stronger, more functional YOU. Blending strength and mobility, the class is the perfect complement to a regular yoga practice, giving you more strength to hold the poses for longer, while developing your flexibility and mobility to help you better access those elusive challenge poses.

Drawing on other movement modalities, Karthik, whose background is in gymnastics and dance, said: “The focus of these exercises is to bring about equilibrium and strength in the whole body.” The training will be a way to optimise the body’s essential natural movement patterns, from pulling to pushing, lunging to squatting. “The idea of functional exercise is to feel natural in movements without discomfort and avoid any chances of long-term injuries,” says Karthik. Whether you want to lose weight, are sick of feeling stiff and achey, or simply want to feel stronger to carry those heavy groceries or play for longer with your children without getting exhausted, this class is for everyone. “Free weight exercises more accurately mimic the motions that humans engage in real life, allowing one to move better,” says Karthik.

Using his years of experience with the human body, Karthik will take you through a gentle warm up and stretch before moving onto everything from squats to press ups, burpees to planks and then on to more stationery stability work.

As a yoga teacher with more than seven years of teaching experience, he sees many imbalances in people’s activity patterns. “I have noticed most women have no issues with flexibility but greatly lack strength and stability, especially in the upper body and core. Considering at least 90 per cent of the yoga practitioners are women, it is high time that we address this imbalance.”

But this new training concept is not just for women. “As far as men are concerned, the strength and stability that they naturally have is compromised by the lack of mobility. The muscles resist so much that the joints are not moved to their fullest potential. Men are more inclined towards heavy weight training and neglect flexibility and mobility. What is the point of having big muscles that do not allow you to move? My teacher says; ‘Flexibility without strength and strength without flexibility is useless’. The training is designed keeping this quote in mind.”