Island Fitness Cycling Instructor Upgraded on Racing Circuit

To Michael & Alexa, from Kathi McMahon, Island Fitness Cycling Instructor:

"Hi Michael and Alexa, I just wanted to share with you that I was officially upgraded to Category 2 by USCF/USA Cycling last week! This was a major goal of mine this year so I'm psyched! My experience teaching and taking classes at Island Fitness has helped me become a strong, competitive cyclist and a more balanced athlete. So, thank you, thank you!" - Kathi

Island Fitness Helps With Seattle Opera's "Ring"
Two personal trainers from Island Fitness have been selected by the Seattle Opera again this year to accomplish a fascinating task. Since January, Alexa Rosenthal and Ishya Silpikul have been training three performers who will play the physically demanding roles of the Rhine Maidens in Seattle Opera's upcoming production of Wagner's Ring cycle, which opens August 9th.

In Seattle's Ring, the Rhine Maidens portray swimming by means of an elaborate aerial technology that suspends them in the air while singing. The performers wear adjustable hip harnesses that are attached to a network of trapeze wires, allowing them to move laterally, rotationally, up or down. Sporting spectacular giant mermaid tails, the Rhine Maidens "swim" with remarkable verisimilitude, performing forward and backward flips as they flutter and slither as gracefully as fish through the "water." Click here to see a preview video of the Rhine Maidens' amazing flying performance >

According to Ishya, personal training for the Rhine Maidens extends over the course of a year. "We gave them a take-home program to do on their own from January until May," she says, "And since May we've been doing three individual training sessions per week." Once the production opens they'll cut back to twice a week. "We don't give them a set routine," adds Alexa. "It changes every time."

Alexa had designed a training program for the Opera's Ring in 2004, so she was already familiar with the unique challenges that would be involved. "Our primary training goal is core stability and endurance," she explains. "These singers have to be able to spend as much as 20 minutes suspended at the hips while supporting the weight of their legs and upper bodies, so back fatigue can become a major problem. Without exceptionally strong stable cores they might end up flopping in the harness like a sack of potatoes."

But while working on core strength, the trainers have the extra challenge of making sure specific muscles don't become too tight in the process. "We have to be extremely careful that each performer doesn't tighten the 'singing muscles' in her neck, shoulders, and upper back," says Alexa. "These need to stay loose or it will affect her ability to sing."

Another unusual challenge is that the trainers can't coach breathing like they normally would, since breath patterns will be determined by the singing. "We always need to remember that we're training for function," says Ishya. "And flying is not the end goal here. Ultimately, it's really the singing."

"With any client, trainers look at the complete picture of what you do in everyday life," says Alexa. "It's not changing what you do, just making it easier for you to do it."

Learn more about the Seattle Opera's world-renowned production of Wagner's The Ring cycle here >