Category: Recreation & Fitness

Hiromi Johnson

Runner-up:
Gordon Emery and Chris Goodbar (tie)

Earlier this year, Hiromi Johnson told C-VILLE this: “For me, a teacher plays about a 99 percent role in learning. If you don’t have a good teacher, everything you do is a waste of time.” Readers know that to make the best use of your time as a martial arts student, you need to learn from Johnson. As for Gordon Emery and Chris Goodbar, who tied for second place, we know how you can settle this.

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Hiromi Johnson passes on an ancient Chinese martial arts tradition one student at a time

Best martial arts studio 2013: Hiromi T’ai Chi

Bikram Yoga

109 Fifth St. SE
220-1415
bikramyogacville.com

Runner-up:
ACAC
200 Four Seasons Dr.
978-7523
111 Monticello Ave.
984-3800
Albemarle Square Shopping Center
978-3800
1015 Heathercroft Cir., Suite 100 (Crozet)
817-2055
acac.com

Death Valley, the hottest, driest, and lowest place in North America reaches temperatures well over 120 degrees on the reg. In 1913, one July day saw a high of 134 degrees Fahrenheit. Temps in Bikram Yoga’s Fifth Street studio don’t get quite that high (they heat the room to a balmy 105 degrees), but still the website warns, “Be ready to sweat!” We’d imagine that’s what it says on the welcome sign before you get to Death Valley, too. Over at ACAC, there’s a whole handful (sometimes two handfuls) of yoga offerings daily.

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Best Fitness Class 2013: Athletic conditioning at ACAC

Best gym 2013: ACAC

Kate Nesbitt

Runner-up:
Robin Truxel

A lover of movement in many forms, Kate Nesbitt got her start in Pilates in 1980 as a treatment for a dance injury (she studied ballet and modern). She opened Pilates Virginia in 2000, making it one of the oldest Pilates studios in town. Robin Truxel takes the runner-up spot.

What’s Kate passionate about in Charlottesville?

Humpback Rock

Runner-up:
Monticello Trail

“Humpback” is a bit of a misnomer, because hiking actually exercises almost all parts of your body—legs, knees, ankles, arms, hips, butt, abs, shoulders, and neck —instead of leaving you with a, well, humped back. Most folks can climb the four-mile trail in two and a half hours, which is perfect because that’s just what you need to reap the maximum benefits. At the Saunders-Monticello Trail, you can hike or bike the beautiful spot.

Birdwood Golf Course

410 Golf Course Dr.
293-4653
boarsheadinn.com/golf

Runner-up:
Old Trail Golf Course
4594 Golf Dr. (Crozet)
823-8101
oldtrailgolf.com

“Hit it. Hard.” That’s a simple enough instruction for Birdwood’s finishing hole, but the 18-hole course at the Boar’s Head is anything but simple. A par-72 course, it recently received a 4.5-star ranking on Golf Digest’s “Best Places To Play” list. In Crozet, Old Trail Golf Course takes advantage of its location at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains with a course worthy of its surroundings.

Hiromi T’ai Chi

609 E. Market St.
(877) 880-2479
hiromitaichi.org

Runner-up:
Charlottesville Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
601 Concord Ave.
825-6202
cvillebjj.com

T’ai Chi Ch’uan is Chinese for “supreme ultimate fist.” We can’t help but think that sounds pretty intense. But the practice is actually quite pensive. Readers turn to Hiromi T’ai Chi for strength-building in both mind and body. In second place, Charlottesville Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which means “gentle art,” is anything but, but carries the same values of health and discipline.

See more:

Hiromi Johnson passes on an ancient Chinese martial arts tradition one student at a time

Best martial arts instructor 2013: Hiromi Johnson