Work it Out
IX Innovations sets new standard for training and recovery
Feb 1, 2018, 10:14 am
IX Innovations allows members to receive professional training and receive therapy all under one roof. Photo by Joshua Jordan
The landscape of neighborhood gyms has been changing over the last several years. CrossFit has increased the traffic in workout facilities and many workout warriors are looking for a place that provides the full experience, not just some dumbbells and a treadmill in the corner. Serious athletes are also looking for a place to get their work in without any distractions, and have the convenience of being able to marry treatment for injuries with professional training. Pro athletes, especially, are finding specialized treatments and training that are outside of, or work in conjunction with, what their team’s training staffs design for them.
Tom Brady, for example, has his TB12 brand that helps educate people about training, recovery, and diet. Brady is just days away from attempting to win his sixth Super Bowl and I think I have heard more about his documentary, Tom vs Time, than anything else. People clearly have an interest in holding off "Father Time" for as long as they possibly can. Obviously, not everyone has the same opportunities and resources as Tom Brady, but that doesn’t mean you can’t receive some of the best workouts and treatments that modern science has to offer.
Many professional Houston athletes already know that IX Innovations is where they can find some of the best treatment and personalized workouts that the city has to offer. If that name sounds familiar, there’s a good reason for that. It was featured on HBO’s documentary Hard Knocks in 2016. That season featured the Houston Texans and RB Arian Foster was shown working out with his trainer, Abdul Foster, who is Arian’s brother. Abdul opened the gym in 2014 and had success almost immediately. When I spoke with Abdul he joked that “we had close to 80% of the Texans’ payroll. It wasn’t hard to get the word out. “
When you walk in the complex, you see some of the same equipment that you would find at most gyms, but the philosophy at IX Innovations is clearly different from the others. In fact, high-end corporate gyms are starting to fall out of favor with members that are looking for more. The facilities’ chiropractor, Dr. Tony Tran, told me that IX Innovations members “don’t feel beat up after their workouts.” Which seems like it would be an obvious selling point, especially if you are trying to rehab an injury. In fact, many of the injuries they treat occur from workouts at CrossFit gyms.
One of the advantages of working out at IX Innovations is that it’s basically a one-stop shop for professional training and treatment. Dr. Tran is able to communicate with the trainers about their patients’ rehab and give a much more hands-on approach to therapy. Proper communication can be critical between the trainer and therapists because these athletes are “strong and have a very high pain tolerance,” according to Dr. Tran. This communication helps the athletes to focus on their workouts and allows the professionals to deal with the science behind recovery and training.
There are currently around 120 members and everyone must have a trainer that they are working with. This is not the type of gym where you just show up, get in some cardio and take off. Every gym member has a specific plan that is designed for them and a custom diet to help them reach their goals. If there is one word that describes the atmosphere and vibe, it would be hospitality. Hospitality is an overriding theme that has been instilled by the Foster family patriarch, Carl Foster. Before working in the fitness field, Foster worked closely with the hotel industry for quite some time and learned how important the guest experience truly is. “If you don’t treat them right, they won’t come back,” Carl said while giving a tour of the complex. After talking with Carl, Abdul, and Dr. Tran, you immediately notice their passion for helping their members reach their goals, and the amount of knowledge and experience they possess in fitness, recovery, and the business of professional sports.
They were able to share with me some of their incredible success stories of patients that have come to them for help, and in many cases, they were able to help their patients in ways that others places could not. So much of the recovery process is in the hands of trainers and therapists after surgery. Once the surgery is performed, doctors are very often out of the picture, and this is where IX Innovations serves a crucial role in recovery.
Of course, not everyone that works out at IX Innovations is recovering from an injury or a professional athlete. Many members come in for the specialized attention they get from trainers, and the opportunity to use state of the art equipment. They also offer sport specific training for members looking to improve certain muscle groups based on the sport they play. IX Innovations is clearly on the radar of many of the A-List athletes in Houston, because members of the Texans, Dynamo, Dash, and other NFL players come here when they want some personalized attention away from the team facility. They also enjoy a great gym atmosphere with good music, and don’t have to worry about stopping their workouts to take a selfie or give out an autograph.
IX Innovations, 5805 Star Ln, Houston, TX 77057; Monday through Friday 6am to 6:30pm; Closed Saturday and Sunday 832-987-3708
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Each football game of a season carries much more weight than one game in a 162 Major League Baseball schedule. That reality, combined with the National Football League campaign opening and with it the most anticipated season in Texans’ history, the Astros are relegated to second banana this weekend. Just the way it goes despite the Astros’ phenomenal extended run from 10 games out of first place in mid-June to now having control of the American League West race and a likely (though definitely not yet certain) eighth consecutive year of postseason play.
It is reality that getting swept out of Cincinnati cost the Astros two games in the standings to Seattle the last two days and trimmed their division lead to four and a half games going into this weekend. There was nothing shameful about getting swept. It’s not as if they choked. They got outplayed and beaten in all three games. Stuff happens within a 162-game season. The 2019 Astros were vastly better than the 2024 Astros. The 2019 ‘Stros posted the best record in franchise history at 107-55. In Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole they had the two best pitchers in the AL. The Reds finished 75-87 in ’19. In the lone Astros-Reds series five years ago, Verlander and Cole started two of the three games. The Reds swept the Astros out of Cincy by scores of 3-2, 4-3, and 3-2. Stuff happens. The following week the Astros called up Yordan Alvarez. There is no Yordan coming to fortify the offense now, but wait! Is that Kyle Tucker's music?
The Astros host the NL champs this weekend
It’s highly unlikely but it’s still a possible World Series preview at Minute Maid Park this weekend with the Astros home for three games versus the Arizona Diamondbacks. The reigning National League Champions woke up under .500 July 11, but since then have been sizzling with 33 wins against just 15 losses. Over the same time frame the Astros are 27-21. The Diamondbacks by a large margin have scored the most runs in MLB this season, and that’s while playing the last nearly three weeks without Ketel Marte because of a high ankle sprain. Marte has been far and away the best second baseman in the game this year. He may return this weekend in a designated hitter role. The Arizona offense overall has been sensational, however it has vulnerability against left-handed pitching, in significant part because it typically takes lefty-hitting platoon beast Joc Pederson out of the lineup. The D’Backs are 55-35 in games facing right-handed starters, just 24-27 in games started by opposing southpaws. The Astros have lefties Framber Valdez and Yusei Kikuchi set to go in the first two games this weekend. While the Astros deal with the Diamondbacks the Mariners are in St. Louis for three against the Cardinals.
Eleven Diamondbacks have had at least 200 plate appearances this season. Only one of them has an OPS below .725. The Astros also have 11 guys with at least 200 PAs. Five of them lug around sub-.715 OPSes: Jeremy Pena (.714), Jake Meyers (.664), Mauricio Dubon (.645), Jon Singleton (.697), and Chas McCormick (.566).
Maximizing Tucker's return
Speaking of returns, Tucker fiiiiiiinally should see action for the first time since his June 3 bone bruise. Oh wait, broken leg. Shame on the Astros for their BSing over this and other injuries. Yeah, Alex Bregman slept funny. Whatever. To boost the lineup Tucker doesn’t have to be the .979 OPS MVP candidate he was when felled. Ben Gamel has done some good work, but over time he’s Ben Gamel. Same for Jason Heyward. If Tucker's legs are under him his power is a B-12 shot and only Yordan is in his league in on-base percentage. Joe Espada has decisions to make as to how slot the batting order. Against a right-handed starter Jose Altuve, Tucker, Alvarez, Yainer Diaz, Bregman one through five makes sense with Tucker dropping down below Yainer against a left-handed starter. No question those are the top five in some order. How much of a workload Tucker is ready for bears watching. Presumably he doesn’t initially play the outfield day in day out. When Tucker DHs obviously Bregman (and Yordan) can’t so Alex’s ailing elbow holding up is key. One might say hopefully the bone chips don’t fall where they may. Tuesday the Astros start a stretch playing 16 days in a row.
Keep hope alive!
If you’re an Astros fan holding out hope of chasing down the second seed to avoid having to play the best-of-three Wild Card series, say it with me, whatever nausea it may induce: “Go Dodgers Go!” Hurt as it might, business is business. The Dodgers play host to the Guardians. The Astros trail Cleveland by five games with just 22 to play, but do finish the regular season with three games at Cleveland. It's pretty much over for the Astros to catch both the Orioles and Yankees.
Season-long trends mean nothing once the playoffs start, and that’s a good thing for the Astros provided they are in the playoffs. They continue to flat out stink in close games. Thursday’s 1-0 loss to the Reds has the Astros record in one-run games at 15-24. In two-run games they are 10-14. Correlatively, the Astros also continue to routinely fail late in close games. The Astros have played 14 games that were tied after seven innings. They have lost 11 of the 14. In games tied after eight innings they are 7-13. Every team loses an extremely high percentage of games when trailing after eight innings, but the Astros haven’t pulled out a single game they’ve trailed going to the ninth. 0-50. Oh and fifty. But hey, the White Sox are 0-92!
*Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.