I attended the PAVIGYM Master Trainer course at Optimum Performance Studio together with a group of dedicated fitness professionals in Hong Kong earlier this month. The system is excellent for general physical preparation, and can be catered for people and athletes of all levels. I later invited professional boxer Rex Tso and his boxing trainer Jake Verano to utilise the system to improve Rex’s footwork and reflexes!
The First PRAMA studio in Asia!
PAVIGYM is a Spanish company that started selling shoe soles and currently makes floor surfaces for fitness studios, indoors and out.
Their PRAMA turnkey system offers a fully functional purpose-built facility that features performance and functional training, LED-enriched stations, pressure-sensitive floors and walls, and various lighting options. The system offers a truly unique training session!
Optimum Performance Studio in Hong Kong has the first PRAMA studio in Asia and held a PAVIGYM Master Trainer course recently, conducted by Daniel Gonzalez.
I took part in the course and once I master the different systems and pass a few exams, I will be one of four Master Trainers in Asia. PAVIGYM are partners with TRX and Life Fitness, with whom I am also a Master Trainer, so there are very positive synergies I can offer with their various training systems.
The Course
You may have seen markings on the floor in some gyms and like me wondered what they are for? Chances are they were made by PAVIGYM and their modular system.
They have a functional zone and a 3.0 zone which demarcate what type of exercises you can do in them, although they actively encourage creativity throughout the hands on course. PAVIGYM also have options for “pre-choreographed” programs.
Training Rex Tso
The PAVIGYM 3.0 (Three Point Zero) is a fun and exciting technological tool to use with your clients. As it was revealed to us I immediately thought of how I could utilise the system to improve professional boxer Rex Tso’s footwork and reflexes as he builds towards a world title fight.
I have been privileged to have been training Rex as strength and conditioning coach for the past few months and I knew his work ethic and dedication would mean we could use the system to its full potential.
The PAVIGYM 3.0 is an intelligent and interactive floor with integrated LED lights, controlled by touch screen software. It allows trainers to design and track training sessions and to control lights and music with a simple touch of a button.
The software program is connected to music, surrounding lights and to sensors behind the numbered pads that are set out in grids on the wall and floor, called combos. There are many exercises that aim to improve reflexes, agility and coordination and I have set myself the task of mastering the system with a Boxing specific focus to improve Rex.
Fast Feet World Record!
Fast Feet is a program set for 30 seconds with the aim to alternate each foot as fast as you can to record as high a score as possible. I felt this was a perfect program for Rex to try out.
The first week we tried, Rex scored 333. This was behind the 350 that was set during our Master Trainers weekend course by Donald.
The second week (and I might add, at the end of a tough HIIT session), Rex hit 351. I sent this photo off to PAVIGYM and Rex now holds the official world record! (The unofficial record is 400, set by a French sprinter.)
Rex continues to improve with each training session. At time of writing this blog, he continues to break records, hitting 354! Over the next few weeks we will be aiming to get closer to 400.
We are able to track these scores because of the “Events” mode that lets us set and track exercise scores. It is fun for my clients to score themselves against arguably Hong Kong’s top professional athlete.
Fun and Fitness
Another motivating aspect of the PAVIGYM ethos is to incorporate as much fun to a fitness session as possible. Many of the exercises in the functional zone and 3.0 have partner elements.
We brought in Jake Verano, Rex’s boxing trainer to compete and raise Rex’s scores. People are always smiling after finishing one of the 3.0 challenges!
The sprint track has various agility, reflex and coordination exercises. The idea is to chase the lights as fast as possible to score as high as possible. Of course there are lower intensity versions that suit the grandson and grandmother at the same time- PAVIGYM is an inclusive company and we spend a lot of time learning how to scale each exercise version.
A Versatile System
As a Strength and Conditioning coach I am most interested in the reflex aspects of the 3.0.
As a Personal trainer it is a fun addition to add into a client’s movement periphery.
As a group exercise instructor I see great potential for general physical preparation. You can use the functional zone and 3.0 together, using your iPad to write and control a class of up to 16 people.
As a father and rugby coach of children I can see the potential of manipulating the colours of the lighting to create exercise parties with animal movement or superhero themes.
This was an excellent course and I am excited to introduce PAVIGYM to clients!
