I am writing this blog as I sit in the CVAC pod at the Sporting Club – Aventine in La Jolla, Ca. For those of you that have never heard of CVAC, let me share about what this Mork & Mindy (test of age to see who understands this reference) looking pod is all about. Above is a picture of me in the pod with the pod open.

Here is a great explanation of what CVAC is from their website (www.cvacsystems.com):

“CVAC, which stands for Cyclic Variations in Adaptive Conditioning. The pod-shaped CVAC looks a little like a personal-sized spacecraft. But instead of flying, it only simulates the air pressure, density and temperature that the person inside would experience if he or she climbed to a high altitude.

The CVAC can simulate conditions at up to 22,500 feet above sea level, which is slightly higher than the tallest point in the Andes mountain range in Peru, for sessions that last up to 20 minutes. The idea, according to CVAC’s website, is that brief, rhythmic exposure to simulated altitude changes will trigger the user’s body to adjust by increasing the flow of oxygen to tissues, and also speed the removal of toxins and waste products from the body.”

The best way for me to describe the benefits is to ask people to imagine a closed, empty water bottle in their hand. Now go up to altitude with that water bottle and that water bottle compresses and caves in on itself, now come back down and the water bottle expands again. Now image that water bottle represents each and every cell and organ in your body going up and down in altitude at a rhythmic cycle over and over again …. I feel this squeezing and relaxing of each and every cell and organ in your body is the ultimate massage, a virtual cellular cleansing.

There are various program settings at various levels of altitude that are custom geared toward your own personal body type and intensity of cellular cleansing desired. You start off at the lower altitude setting to ‘train’ your body to adapt to the altitude variations and then increase the levels over time.

For those that know me, know that I am an adapter type person who has a hard time recognizing small changes… maybe because I have a million things on my plate each and every day. 🙂 When I first started using CVAC, I really didn’t notice any recognizable differences after using it, but after I worked my way up to level 3 (about 1/2 way thru the 6 levels), I was at a criterium bicycle race and was racing with the men for a hard workout. While I was racing, I noticed that instead of my mouth hanging open for breath as I normally do during such a hard workout, that I actually felt like I had greater endurance with less effort. When I looked around, every guy around me had their mouths open and was breathing hard, yet I was relaxed and felt faster and stronger! It was one of those ah-ha moments where it finally hit me that the CVAC is working! I was lucky enough to have a photo catch me in that exact moment in that race as a visual example:

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I have been a regular user of the CVAC system since then, and have enjoyed the preparation and recovery benefits it offers. I can say that it has been one of my “secret training weapons”, that I hope to share with everyone who is interested in achieving the same benefits that I have realized!

There are CVAC pods available for people to try in many locations throughout the States as well as a great vacation location in Turks & Caicos. I use the CVAC pod at The Sporting Club at the Aventine in La Jolla,Ca. Here’s a link to The Sporting Club press release: http://clubindustry.com/sporting-club-introduces-cellular-fitness-revolutionary-high-tech-wellness-experience-innovative-pod

If you are interested in learning more or trying out CVAC, I recommend for you to contact Ian Robb at IRobb@GoCVAC.com or 858-922-0860 and tell him you want to try out Denise’s secret training weapon 🙂