Meet Tj Pierce | B.S. Exercise Science, CMT, ELDOA Trainer, CHEK 3, HLC 1

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tj Pierce and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi TJ, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
One piece of conventional advice I disagree with is that cardiovascular activity is more important than resistance training. Here are my top 7 reasons why:

1. Muscle Health and Longevity:

Maintaining and building muscle mass is crucial for long-term health and aging. Resistance training directly targets muscle growth, which is essential for metabolic health and disease prevention.

2. Metabolic Flexibility:

Resistance training improves metabolic flexibility, meaning your body can efficiently switch between using carbohydrates and fats for energy. This flexibility is key for overall metabolic health, and resistance training is more effective than cardio in this regard.

3. Hormonal Benefits:

Resistance training has a significant impact on hormones, including boosting testosterone and growth hormone levels. These hormones are critical for muscle growth, fat loss, and overall vitality, these hormones are less affected by cardio.

4. Increased Bone Density:

Weight-bearing exercises involved in resistance training are crucial for maintaining and improving bone density. This is especially important as people age, and resistance training is much more effective than cardio for this purpose.

5. Fat Loss and Body Composition:

While cardio can help with fat loss, it doesn’t do much for improving body composition. Resistance training helps increase muscle mass while reducing fat, leading to a healthier and more toned physique.

6. Insulin Sensitivity:

Resistance training enhances insulin sensitivity more effectively than cardio. Improved insulin sensitivity reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes and helps with better blood sugar control, which is a cornerstone of overall health.

7. Myokines:

Resistance training plays a pivotal role in the production of myokines, which are signaling proteins released by muscle fibers during contraction. Myokines have been shown to have profound effects on various bodily systems, including metabolism, inflammation, and overall health. They help mediate the beneficial effects of exercise by promoting fat oxidation, improving insulin sensitivity, and reducing systemic inflammation. Additionally, myokines can influence other organs, such as the liver, adipose tissue, and brain, contributing to a lower risk of chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular conditions. This emerging understanding of myokines underscores the importance of resistance training not just for muscle growth, but for its systemic health benefits.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Our system provides you a lifestyle that teaches you move pain free, enjoy increased athletic performance, and embrace years of longevity, so you can accomplish the life of your dreams. We converge the expertise of our team of Personal Trainers, Licensed Massage Therapists, ELDOA™ Certified Specialists, CHEK™ Practitioners, Registered Yoga Teachers, and Martial Arts experts to provide pain management, athletic training, and longevity exercises. We work with many clients as an alternative to surgery, an alternative to traditional pain management, and an alternative to living life on the sidelines. With online and in-person options in Centennial, Colorado and Elizabeth, Colorado we are the gym near you wherever you are!

Our specialties include:

ELDOA:
ELDOA™ exercises use the fascial lines to create global tension in the body around a joint to increase space within the joint. The newly created space, reduces pain and pressure on the discs, while improving joint mechanics, blood flow, spinal disc rehydration, posture, and a sense of wellbeing and awareness.

Certified ELDOA™ Trainers at Pierce Family Wellness will teach you to do the ELDOA™ postures properly and precisely, regardless of your current ability, to achieve the most efficient and effective results. World-renowned French Osteopath, Guy VOYER, DO spent over 35 years mastering the function and harnessing the power of the fascial systems to create specific exercises and manual treatments to normalize the body. VOYER developed the ELDOA™ techniques to treat the spine, accessory joints, pelvis, and cranium. The spine is a fundamental structure of our body and the basis of our health and longevity. The complex structure of the spine drives many of our health conditions that cause dysfunctions of the joints, tissues, and nervous system that link the body from head to toe. Structural and postural stress from gravity, poor awareness and movement patterns create long-term imbalances. ELDOA™ addresses these imbalances by normalizing the space, alignment, strength, mobility, and quality of tissue and joints, by moving fluids throughout the body.

Somatraining:
SOMATRAINING™ is a unique methodology for rehabilitation, strength & conditioning built on osteopathic principles. These techniques are indispensable tools that support the care of physical therapy, osteopathy, chiropractic, and other health/wellness models. SOMATRAINING™ Program for people that want improve their general health and function and athletes at all levels. The program is designed to teach you precise exercise techniques and myofascial stretching to reach optimum health and maximum performance. SOMATRAINING™ isolates the individual muscles within their fascial chains. It can work any muscle, at any depth, precisely. This increases awareness, flexibility, blood flow, and strength. All of these functions of the body that are necessary for long term health and wellness.

Massage Therapy:
Massage therapy is treatment for your chronic or acute holding patterns due to poor posture, trauma, or repetitive use injuries. At Pierce Family Wellness, we utilize Somatherapy techniques for our massage treatments. Somatherapy consist of 3 primary modalities: Osteo-articular pumping (or Joint pumping), Transverse Tendon and Ligament Stretching (or 2TLS), and Fascial Normalization. Each of these modalities have a specific goal to improve function.
MOVEMENT IMPROVEMENT
Osteo-Articular (joint) Massage directs the movement of fluid within the joint complex to be more efficient in managing acute inflammation. In a chronically painful and tight joint, osteo-articular pumping moves stagnate fluid to improve mobility and functionality.

RELEASE
Transverse Tendon and Ligament Stretching Massage directly corrects muscle, tendon and/or ligament dysfunction. This technique addresses the structural and sensory functions of muscles tendons and ligaments to normalize tension.

HOLISTIC APPROACH
Fascial Normalization Massage focuses on the quality of fascial chains. Fascial chains are a traceable continuity of the same tissue throughout a kinetic chain and indirect tissue links that have a significant influence on the function of a chain. This continual process linking and unlinking of free and bound fluid is fundamental for the health of the fasciae and the health of the body as a whole.

RELAX
Some days you just need to relax. On these days, the gentle hands of a skilled massage therapist are warmly accepted. You can expect to leave relaxed AND knowing that the massage was geared, toward relaxation and improved function. This provides added value for you healthy, active lifestyle!

What really sets us apart from other facilities is our ability to help you out of pain the way of physical therapist would, help you train your body the way an athletic trainer would, help you balance your life with our holistic lifestyle coaching, and help you relax your nervous system with our massage therapy techniques. Very few, if any other facilities are able to offer all of these modalities under one roof at a reasonable price. I am most proud when people come to me who have tried everything from surgery to physical therapy to multiple alternative therapies without success and our style is the one that helps them get out of pain and into performance and longevity. I am also particularly proud of our group classes and the way that they build not only accountability but lifelong friendships.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I spend most of my time on our property in Elizabeth. So I would probably spend most of our time with our guest enjoying our animals, hiking on our community bridal trails, shooting archery in the back pasture and cooking from our home grown organic garden and farm fresh eggs.
If we were to venture into Elizabeth and Franktown I’d take them to eat at Catrina’s in Elizabeth and Adriana’s in Franktown. Also, a hike at Castlewood Canyon to enjoy the hummingbirds is always a good time.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to give a shout out to Dr Guy VOYER and Paul Chek for their amazing courses. They have lifted my education to a level that enables me to help people in ways I never thought possible.

Website: https://Piercefamilywellness.com