Indie Fitness
local trainer’s new DVD has Bon Iver on board
Alright, I was going to start this story with some dumb joke about hipsters working out, but here’s the thing: While writing about this Bon Iver workout video that’s been all the rage, the indie-rock blogosphere has overdone the jokes about the flexibility of skinny jeans and working off that PBR-belly.
“That’s the thing with On The Road, you can literally take this DVD and take this workout anywhere. … The idea is to be able to work out wherever you are.”
– Jeff Rogers on his new fitness and lifestyle DVD
I want to convey that this DVD isn’t ironic and it’s not just for hipsters. It’s about Jeff Rogers’ philosophy that fitness and living a healthy lifestyle should be engrained in everyone.
“Following the footsteps of my mom and dad and older brother, they just always were constantly making fitness a priority,” Rogers said. “Without saying it, they just kept proving how much more energy they had from feeling better and eating healthier.”
Jeff Rogers, of RogCity Fitness, is an Eau Claire resident and personal trainer who released his first DVD, On The Road, on February 7. For those of you who don’t read Pitchfork every week/day/hour, let me bring you up to speed. In December, a trailer was released for a workout DVD featuring members of Bon Iver, set to a local soundtrack. The trailer, which was for the upcoming On The Road, explained how Bon Iver’s frontman Justin Vernon had met local Eau Claire trainer Jeff Rogers at the YMCA and began working with him to relieve some back pain he’d been having.
As time went on, Rogers began working with many of the band members, creating workouts for them while they were on the road. After a while, we end up with this DVD, which was shot in just one day outside of Eau Claire.
One of those band members is Bon Iver drummer and solo artist Sean Carey. He began working out with Rogers a few years ago and has since kept up with him, even training for a half marathon. Carey said he likes the exercises because they are low weight and work your full body, as well as the portability.
“As far as the amount of travel I do, it’s perfect and it’s awesome being able to have that knowledge to be able to work out in our hotel room,” Carey said, calling from New York before playing Saturday Night Live. “We just did that last night.”
The video is soundtracked by local songs handpicked by Rogers, including tracks by Megafaun, We Are the Willows, Meridene, and Laarks.
While the workouts are demonstrated by musicians, Rogers stressed that this DVD is for a greater audience. He said anyone who travels, or even those who may be stuck at home with the kids, can benefit from the portability of the routines.
“That’s the thing with On The Road, you can literally take this DVD and take this workout anywhere. … The idea is to be able to work out wherever you are.”
The video is broken up into three circuits: body weight, weighted, and abs. While it’s a good workout, Rogers said it’s very casual and I’m sure the outdoor setting and local music gives it a nicer vibe than the techno-pounding videos you might purchase from an infomercial.
It certainly helps that Rogers himself is a down-to-earth, easy-going person. He and his brother, who is also a certified trainer, work with everyone from professional athletes to physicians in their homes to cater the program to the individual in order to keep them interested and able to keep fitness a part of their lives for the long haul.
“It’s more about trying to always stay healthy and keep it sustainable, not just going for a quick fix.”
You can order the DVD on his website, www.rogcity.com or at The Local Store.
