Frog might take next big leap in physical fitness
Woodlands man’s invention — the Frog — could be the next big thing in workouts
The “Frog,” a piece of fitness equipment, is a peculiar-looking contraption, but all you need is 10 minutes on it for a head-to-toe workout, says Frog Fitness president Clark Bartram.
The men behind Frog Fitness know they have some convincing to do.
The “Frog,” a piece of mobile fitness equipment, is a peculiar-looking contraption. Users are down on all fours with their feet in stirrups and hands on a front bar. Wheels on each side propel the Frog forward, but engaging the core muscles creates the motion. Both feet and arms work together for a full body interval workout.
Resistance bands, which can vary from 20 to 240 pounds, on both sides can increase or decrease the intensity.
And you look like a frog doing it. Just 10 minutes, according to Frog Fitness president Clark Bartram, is all you need to get the heart rate up and the sweat flowing.
“The Frog eliminates the time excuse most people have when it comes to working out,” says Bartram, a former U.S. Marine, fitness model, actor and trainer. “I can workout completely head-to-toe in 10 minutes with this. Every muscle fires. This is a HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workout at its finest.”
Bartram lives in San Diego and travels monthly to the new Frog Fitness headquarters and gym in The Woodlands. The 12,000-square-foot facility, which opened in June, offers Frog Fitness training, as well as traditional gym equipment, boxing and martial arts. There’s also a 4,000-square-foot turf field and stadium-style bleachers for up to 150 guests for Frog training, classes, seminars and races.
Frog Fitness was created by The Woodlands resident Richard Pearce, a former software developer and body builder who happened to watch a friend who was a body building champion work out in the gym by doing leg presses on one machine, then
abs on another.
Pearce went home and began working on an idea to create a piece of mobile equipment that could duplicate many exercises in one movement. It has taken about five years and a significant investment in research and development for the Frog to become reality.
At the facility, Bartram positions himself onto the machine to demonstrate four key exercises: core killers (similar to a pike), superman (shoulder press overhead), leapers (overhead squats) and mojos (a combo of the superman and leapers).
Even though the gym is state-of-the-art, the air conditioning is often turned off to produce a more intense workout.
“So many people are used to doing hourlong cardio sessions, and they have a hard time believing you can do a 10-minute workout out and be done.”
Because the Frog exercises are done horizontal, there’s little pressure on the knees and hips, and it also works out the front and back of the body simultaneously.
Bartram and Pearce have dubbed it “The next big thing in fitness.”
Bartram says the Pittsburgh Steelers are using a dozen Frogs to train its players. The Louisiana State University football team and several NBA players are using the equipment. Houston Texans’
Jadeveon Clowney uses it, as well, Bartram says.
The Frog sells for $1,495 and can fold into a car back seat.
Woodlands resident Dana Clark read about the Frog in a neighborhood newspaper and wanted to try it.
“I’m always changing my mode of exercise, and I’ve been working out all of my life and have never seen anything like this,” said Clark, a former fitness trainer who worked with famed fitness trainer Tony Little and was featured in one of Little’s videos for his “Gazelle” equipment.
“I like that you can get a total body workout in a shorter amount of time. I think it’s versatile for anyone,” Clark said.
Siblings Cathya and Daniel Rivera (he is training for the Junior Olympics in hurdling) tried the Frog for the first time.
“I thought it looked
strange and hard, but it’s more fun and hard. I think it will help me with my goals,” Cathya Rivera said.
The Frog also can be adjusted to stand vertically so users can do standing bicep curls, upright rows, shoulder presses and dead lifts.
But there are skeptics, said Bartram, referencing a recent Frog Fitness event in Las Vegas, in which fitness professionals were invited to try the device for free.
“People were talking trash about the Frog,” he said, “until they tried it.”