PRESS

 

How to Improve Your Grip Strength — So You Can Take Life by the Horns

Medically reviewed by Danielle Hildreth, CPT

This is a series where we break down simple fitness activities you can do anywhere — and not just do them, but do them right. With these helpful tips, you can take control of your exercise process at your pace.

Greatist Magazine

Written by Gabrielle Kassel on January 15, 2021

 

Everything You Need to Know About Hammer Curls

by KATHLEEN FERRARO

UPDATED ON OCT 20, 2021

Medically reviewed by BRIANA BAIN Physical Therapist

Fact checked by KARLI BENDLIN

After a year of working out from home, your stray dumbbells have probably become your best friends. And mastering some basic strength training exercises is the key to making the most of your home gym. Enter hammer curls: A twist on the classic bicep exercise.

But what are hammer curls, and how do you do them? To help you slay this exercise, trainers explain everything you need to know about hammer curls and whether or not you should make them a part of your fitness routine.

IN THIS ARTICLE

  • What Is a Hammer Curl?

  • Benefits of Hammer Curls

  • Proper Hammer Curl Form

  • Common Hammer

  • Curl Mistakes

  • The Best Hammer Curl Modifications

  • The Takeaway

 
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Keep Moving Even When Many Gyms Are Closed

Virtual classes from local meditation, dance, and fitness instructors.

While many gyms and studios are closed, you can keep moving—both mentally and physically—with virtual classes from local meditation, dance, and fitness instructors. Maybe you’ll even find a new favorite.

Portland Monthly
By Ainslee Dicken, Morgan Westling, and Riley Blake 12/9/2020 at 5:00am

 
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Emma Middlebrook of REP Movement: 5 Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Dramatically Improve One’s Wellbeing

I don’t believe in diets, they don’t really work in my opinion. They are often very restrictive and just not sustainable long term. I try to work with my clients and talk about intuitive eating. Listening to your body and understanding what it needs will create long term success and build a better relationship with food. I try to get my clients to slow down and think about what they’re consuming and encourage them to cook instead of takeout or dining out regularly. Understanding where our food comes from and understanding what’s in it is more beneficial than following a fad diet.

As part of my series about “5 Lifestyle Tweaks That Will Dramatically Improve One’s Wellbeing”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Emma Middlebrook.

Emma Middlebrook is the founder of REP Movement, a Portland based phobia-free, anti-racist, body-affirming, pro-queer gym. After 15 years of working with elite clients in NYC, Emma thought that getting someone into a dress for the Met Gala isn’t why she started training, so she headed out west to get weird in Portland and opened a sleek space with the core value of representation when getting in your reps at the gym.

Authority Magazine
By Candice Georgiadis Oct. 27, 2020

 
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Instructors Explain Exactly How Voting Impacts Your Fitness Routine

With the 2020 elections just on the other side of this month, voting is top of mind for a lot of people. There's a lot at stake in this election, and if you're turning to fitness to sweat the stress away, you're probably not the only one. But fitness and voting have even more to do with each other than you'd think.

"Promoting diversity isn’t enough; we have to address the issues that make diversity necessary," says Emma Middlebrook, the founder of REP Movement, a workout space in Portland, Oregon that emphasizes body affirmation, anti-racism, and queerness. "Bodies are highly politicized. Standards of health and beauty are embedded with racist ideas and the fitness industry thrives on a culture of whiteness and heterosexuality. People with trans bodies, Black bodies, women's bodies, and bodies of size have felt let down, unseen, unheard, and unsafe in more traditional gym settings." Voting helps shape what kinds of gym settings are available to people, creating opportunities to feel safe and welcome in fitness spaces — and your vote can help do just that.

Are you ready for Election Day? Start by registering to vote and making a plan for Nov. 3.

Bustle
By Jay Polish Oct. 13, 2020

Experts:

Nicole Cardoza, yoga instructor, founder of Yoga Foster, founder of Anti-Racism Daily

T'Nisha Symone, founder of BLAQUE

Ali Duncan, yoga instructor, founder of Urban Sanctuary

Helen Phelan, founder of Helen Phelan Studio

Emma Middlebrook, founder of REP Movement

 
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Fitness Pros Explain Why You Should Take More Rest Days

"We have been taught to go, go, go," says Emma Middlebrook, a personal trainer and the owner of REP Movement, a workout space in Portland, Oregon that emphasizes body affirmation, anti-racism, and queerness. Getting three hours of sleep might be a badge of honor around the office, but you don't have to work every weekend or drag yourself out of bed every day at 3 a.m. to hit up the gym in order to "earn" that four-hour session of Animal Crossing or that chocolate fudge cake.

BUSTLE
By Jay Polish Oct. 1, 2020

 
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If You’re Going Back To The Gym, Avoid These 9 Things

Make like Darth Vader and keep your mask on, Middlebrook says. Go a little slower and wear one that doesn't stick to your nose so you can breathe — but even if your gym allows unmasking, keep the darn thing on.

BUSTLE
By Jay Polish Sep. 30, 2020

 
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Move it Monday:

REP is SE Portland’s Anti-Gym

Are you ready to work up a sweat? For Move it Monday, Emily and Jenny was joined by Emma Middlebrook, of REP — an inclusive, safe space for all body types and fitness backgrounds in Southeast Portland.

KOIN NEWS
By Emily BurrisJenny Hansson Sep 14, 2020

 
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Maintaining a sense of humanity': Fitness for all in a new world

Emma Middlebrook and her partner Paige Hudson have been hosting virtual workouts since the COVID-19 pandemic. Her mission has always been to create a safe workout experience for everyone no matter their fitness level and she has extended that into a virtual space.

KGW
By Destiny Johnson May 22, 2020

 
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Meet the Portland fitness coach who is making inclusivity a priority

Emma Middlebrook is battling gym fear one client at a time in her training studio that feels more like a home gym.

By Destiny Johnson May 2, 2019

 
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How To Get Over Your Fear Of The Gym, As Told By A Personal Trainer

Advice for Lesbian, BI, and Queer women.

By Zara Barrie December 27, 2017

 
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Emma Middlebrook is not your typical bodybuilding cover model

But she's vying to win the world's largest online fitness competition.

By Ron Johnson June 24, 2018