The Coolest New Thing I’ve Learned…

by GEOFFN on January 30, 2010

I spent last weekend in Vegas at a Marshall Sylver seminar. For those of you who haven’t heard of Marshall, he’s one of the smartest, most entertaining speakers I’ve ever heard.

Anyway, one of his guest speakers, Chuc Barnes was speaking on Priority Management. (Great Presentation by the way…)

There was the usual Franklin-Covey type stuff, which is always helpful. (I like Chuc’s system better.) But the biggest take-away was Chuc’s view on time.

What is Time?

Many of us have been conditioned to think that Time is Money.

I guess it can be. But it’s more than that – much more.

Chuc’s definition hit me right on the forehead it was that profound to me. It may be to you as well.

Time Is LIFE.

Yeah, profound.

So I’ve been thinking lately, “Have I really been living?” Am I doing and being everything that I want to be? Because if time is life, then how much am I really living? How much time am I wasting, throwing away, or killing?

Here are some interesting facts about Time:

  • The average American spends four hours a day watching TV. Doing the math, that’s 28 hours of wasted life per week. That’s 1456 hours per year. Or approximately 61 days – 2 months out of every year.
  • The average person spends 35 minutes per day commuting. That’s an average of 3 hours per week. 13 hours per month. 156 hours per year. So the average person wastes almost a full week per year (6.5 days) commuting.
  • The average professional spends 2 hours per day processing email. That’s 14 hours per week. Or 56 hours per month and 672 hours per year. That’s 28 days or almost 1 full month wasted on email.

Of course, there are lots of other time wasters too. This is just the short list that seems to affect most of us.

This concept, this new definition of time has really lit a fire under my butt this week. Since I’ve been home I’ve been so much more focused than in the past and I feel, well, a little more at peace knowing that I’m actually living this week.

It’s true that I am always “chasing strength,” but it’s always different types of strength. And if strength is “the ability to overcome,” than I am overcoming old and bad habits and replacing them with good and more productive ones. Much of that is do to my new view of time.

What’s your view of time and how is it affecting your life?

{ 18 comments }

The Key To Success: Becoming A Student of Your Body

by GEOFFN on January 19, 2010

My buddy Adam T. Glass has been posting a lot on his success and results with biofeedback. Biofeedback is simply communicating with your body about its opinion of what you’re doing. It is a form of autoregulation, which is kind of a fancy way to say intuitive/instinctive training.

Regardless of how you define it, it’s good stuff.

I’ve been using this over the past two weeks to guide my training. I’ve built a small foundation from my 30 day experiment in December but what I discovered was absolutely startling:

After 4 years of Z-Health, my body no longer likes most mobility work and is craving heavy stability and strength training.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is all the Z I’ve done has stripped me of most of my compensations, and therefore many of my strength patterns. So I am left with imbalances and weaknesses!

This really isn’t bad news at all – it’s actually quite exciting. It allows me to truly find my weaknesses and eliminate them. To do so, I am using new and exciting exercises and making rapid progress on them. The biofeedback has been amazing.

Here is what I’ve noticed in the last 2 weeks:

  • My strength is up
  • My lean body mass is up
  • My body fat is down
  • My scale weight is up between 3 and 5 pounds
  • My posture is much improved
  • My energy is up
  • My powers of focus and concentration have improved

What do I attribute this to really?

Just finally listening to my body. After 20 years, I’ve stopped treating my body as my slave and seeing it more as a servant, a good employee, a partner to my mind and will even.

As hesitant as I was to do my 30 day experiment with the Program Minimum, it was arguably one of the best things I’ve done for my body in a long, long time.

Another thing I did that I strongly recommend that everyone who owns and uses a kettlebell should do, is pick up a copy of my very good friend Brett Jones’ Kettlebells From the Ground Up… It is arguably one of the most under-rated and wonderfully beneficial programs you can do for your body. And the results are very fast – like in the same training session.

Here’s a case in point: I took a couple of my clients through some Kalos Sthenos inspired Get Up movements tonight and it opened both of them up in different ways. We tested their 2 Hand Swing between each set and the Swing just got cleaner, tighter, and crisper. So not only are we opening the body with safe mobility work and creating more efficient movement patterns, we can start to cement those patterns with load – the Swings.

For as much controversy as the Kalos Sthenos created in the kettlebell community last year when it was released, it truly is an epic piece of work.

(Ok, I’ll move on – I realize I’m off topic – point is – you need it and are cheating yourself if you don’t get it…)

Back to becoming a student of your body.

So learning how to listen to my body with regards to loading it, whether my mind wants to or not, has been highly beneficial so far. I’ve created new mobility, stability, and strength in both hips, which was the point of doing all this in the first place. Unfortunately, I’ve had to depart from what my mind wanted to do on many days. The great part has been competing against myself to become better in each training session. And I have.

I test out some of my newfound strength on old movements. My barbell clean baseline has moved up from where it was last year. I’ve still got about 25kg to go until I meet old baseline numbers, but I’m sure that gap will close very quickly as I give my body what I need.

I have also regained my overhead squat. I no longer need to look down at the floor. This, although a good idea at the time, was an aberrant movement pattern. I was using eye reflexes to initiate gross core musculature activation and stability instead of its natural reflexive pattern. I can now look straight ahead without any pain in the hips or knees and keep my torso much more upright. As a result, I can *almost* do a kettlebell Sots Press. Almost. I’ve never been able to do those. Now I know why…

So what’s my point with all this – where am I going?

First, you need to know what your body likes and needs. Because what your mind wants may not be what your body needs at this time. As an aside, I have a theory about body fat and this, but I’ll discuss that in the future… So how do you do that?

Simple. Three things:

  1. Get a training journal. Write down everything you do.
  2. Check your movement ability before and after each exercise. If you are moving better after each exercise, it’s good for you and your body likes it. If your moving worse, it’s a bad movement for you – at least on that day. Make sure you record this in your journal.
  3. Review your training journal before and after every workout – to check progress or lack thereof – and do the same on a weekly basis. Look for trends.

And that’s pretty much it. Nothing fancy. Nothing over the top. But, if you start doing this – becoming a student of your body – a partner with it if you will, then you will make faster progress than you are used to, perhaps faster than you can imagine.

I’ll keep you up to date with my progress. Try this out and let me know of yours.

{ 9 comments }

Kettlebells: How To Maximize Your Results In 2010.

by GEOFFN on January 6, 2010

I was thinking about how to maximize your results from your kettlebell training and your kettlebell workouts.

I came up with 3 easy steps:

Step 1. Pick a program and follow it to completion.

Step 2. Always focus on your technique over the quantity of your reps.

Step 3. Repeat steps 1 & 2.

Let’s break it down, because although it appears simple on the surface, it isn’t necessarily easy.

Step 1. Pick A Program And Follow It To Completion.

Follow a program with a successful track record.

Not all strength training programs are created equally. And the same is certainly true for kettlebell programs. You should pick a program developed by a local RKC or by Pavel himself.

The reasons are two-fold:

1. Your local RKC can’t stay in business if he/she’s not producing results with his/her current customer/client base.

Why an RKC and not somebody else?

Because the RKC is the original Kettlebell Training System. It was first and all others are essentially derived from it.

You can find an instructor near you here.

2. Pick a program by Pavel (or one of the books/videos on Dragon Door) and follow it.

Pavel has plenty of kettlebell programs for you to follow. They are very detailed and usually have accompanying videos. Enter the Kettlebell is THE kettlebell training primer. If you’ve never used kettlebells, or need to brush up on your technique, you owe it to yourself to have this in your library.

Follow the program the way it was written.

For example, if you have a very little time to train and want to push up your maximum strength, Power To The People would be an idea for you. It’s a program that’s based around the Deadlift and the Side Press. Now, if you decided that you wanted to do the same thing with double kettlebells, it would not be the same program at all. It would be something completely different. Different sets. Different reps. Different loading parameters. Bad outcome. If you did it this way, it would be easy to complain about the program “not working.” But, that wouldn’t be a fair assessment at all for the simple fact that you didn’t follow PTTP the way it was designed and planned.

And, if you didn’t complete the program, you have no way to know if it works or not, or it’s potential to fully work for you.

Pick a program suited to your needs.

For example, if you’re new to kettlebell training, you will want to start at the beginning with Enter the Kettlebell. Or, if you’ve been through ETK, made the progress you wanted, then you may want to try something else to challenge yourself, like Return of the Kettlebell. But, RTK would be unsuited to your needs if you were a newbie – too much information to assimilate and apply that needs to be learned in ETK.

Make sure your program is actually a program.

In today’s “training ADD” world, the “Workout of the Day” model is the trend. That’s a great model if all you were doing was working out one day. But, and pay attention here, a collection, or string of WODs strung together does not make a program. Here’s a hint about whether a program is really a program: It has a theme.

For example, Kenneth Jay’s, Viking Warrior Conditioning is a program. It’s theme is developing cardiovascular conditioning using a kettlebell. So, if improving your aerobic fitness is important to you, you would follow a program like Kenneth’s.

Step 2. Always Focus On Your Technique Over the Quantity of Your Reps.

Don’t fall into this trap.

This is a trap that many trainees, new or advanced, fall into. You get so focused on getting a specific number that you forget or just plain ignore the fact that it’s as much “how” you reach that number. If your form is sloppy, you’re pretty much setting yourself up for injury.

For example, when pressing, it’s easy once you get tired to forget about the basics. In order to get the kettlebell overhead many trainees forget to squeeze their gluts. Not only does this rob you of the power you need to press the bell successfully, but your pelvis now tips forward creating sheering forces on your lumbar spine. Over time this hyperextension of the lower back will hurt you.

Not only that, you have just installed a program in your brain (your neuro-software if you like) that essentially tells your body to relax your gluts and hyperextend your lower back every time you get tired when pressing. The more you do this, the more you will do this and the harder it will be to correct your technique. (Here’s a depressing thought: Noted Physical Therapist Shirley Sarhmann has discovered that for every 1 rep performed incorrectly, it takes 3 to 5 reps performed correctly to overcome the old motor pattern. Take home point? Do it right the first time, every time!)

Guarantee faster results.

Another example: 99 out of 100 people fail to realize when they start training that proper technique, although slow at first to acquire, will produce faster results in the long run than short cutting it with sloppy form. The proper technique allows you to train safely, keeps you from expending too much neural energy and frying your nervous system, and allows you to train more frequently for faster results.

You should always cease training with any particular exercise when your form fails. Give yourself one more rep to get it right. If you can’t, you’re done with that exercise. Move on to the next exercise. If your form is off on that exercise then you’re tired and you’re done training for the day.

Focusing on technique over quantity of reps is one of the keys to long term sustainable progress.

Step 3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2.

This seems like a no-brainer but some will always ask “then what?”

That’s fine. But essentially these are the only two variables you need to be successful with your kettlebell training or any training for that matter.

Of course, Steps 1 and 2 don’t just apply to a kettlebell training program.

They apply to anything in life you are trying to master.

Give them a shot and let me know how you’re doing this year compared to last year.

{ 15 comments }

Pain v. Performance: An Interesting Paradox

by GEOFFN on January 2, 2010

Just got back from training where I experienced some very interesting results.

I am programming my Olympic lifting training back in.

Yesterday I snatched lightly and performed a snatch-based chain.

Today, I performed Presses and barbell FSQs.

Neither day was anything to write home about performance-wise. But both days felt “interesting.” I felt more solid – more grounded than I have in a very long time. The last 6 weeks paid off apparently. But as I said, nothing special in the gym except this:

Pain inhibits performance.

Today, it didn’t.

When working back into barbell FSQs, the pressure in my elbows is less than comfortable. I’m able to block it out while under the bar, but afterward, it’s, well, painful.

Knowing this, I tested various ranges of motion: unilateral shoulder flexion, both arms, and then the torso flexion with locked knees. Both tested better after each successive set of FSQs. Except for the last one, where my gut was telling me not to do it, but I did it anyway. (You’d think I’d learn…)

What does this mean?

I have no idea.

Really, I don’t care to either. I’m just going to note it and move on.

I guess sometimes theory is just theory.

We’ll see how this holds up day-to-day and with a substantial increase in load. Of course I will be testing everything each training session and reporting back.

{ 3 comments }

Program Minimum 30 Day Experiment: Completed.

by GEOFFN on January 1, 2010

As I sit here and write this, it’s New Year’s Day.

So Happy 2010 to everybody reading – I hope 2010 is even better for you than 2009.

I’ve been offline pretty much for the last 2 weeks just getting ready for the New Year. There was a ton of stuff to do and I want to make this year even more successful than last year.

So, I finished up my Program Minimum 30 Day Experiment.

Looking back over the last 2 weeks, my training frequency dropped and so did my the duration. But I was still faithful to work the pieces of the Get Up. My Swings dropped off significantly when I ran into some trouble on the 1H Swing. (I’ll be working on that this year.)

So yesterday I tested myself and had a PR to show for my labor. It wasn’t much weight-wise, but from a quality and pain perspective, it was excellent.

It was simple:

Get Up:

16kg/5,5, then

24kg/1,1, then

32kg/1,1 for 5 sets.

These were the best I’d done probably ever.

My hips were finally under me – strong and aligned. The Lunge/Ascend portion of the lift was better than ever. Shoulders were strong, packed, and fully engaged. And my abs were working the way they were supposed to be. And they were all performed Kalos Sthenos style with the high bridge.

Here are my thoughts about the last 30 days in no particular order:

  1. For as much Z as I have done over the last 4 years, there was still a noticeable difference between my left and right sides regarding strength, mobility, and coordination. This was disappointing.
  2. For as much Z as I have done over the last 4 years, I still had not corrected the dysfunctions and asymmetries that led to the low back injury and resulted from the lower back injury. This too was disappointing.
  3. The Get Up is a great screen – in fact, it might be the perfect screen. It really lets you know what is going on inside your body from front to back and right to left, especially when performed Kalos Sthenos style. Although I spent a month “inside” the Get Up, there is plenty more work to be done here for me.
  4. Everybody, EVERYBODY, needs to perform the Get Up routinely. Whether once or multiple times per week, it needs to be in the program. Perhaps as a warm up, perhaps as a finisher. It needs to be there. It will stay in mine.
  5. The Get Up is a natural movement pattern – or more specifically and better put – a series of natural movement patterns linked together. Lying to sitting. Sitting to [half] kneeling. [Half] kneeling to standing. And back again. And of course there’s also some rolling in there to load the bell onto the body.
  6. The Get Up might well be the best “core” exercise there is. If we agree that the core is at least 27 muscles, including the lats, hamstrings, adductors, and gluts, along with of course the erector spinae and the abs, then it leaves no muscle untouched. It works the posterior chain, the anterior chain, and teaches the body how to stabilize the spine under asymmetrical loading and counteract rotation. What more is there?
  7. The 2H Swing is arguably the best exercise for overall body power and conditioning. Ever. There is a reason it is the foundational exercise in the RKC System. Get this one exercise right and everything else is a piece of cake.
  8. The 2H Swing also provides excellent feedback as to what muscles are working when and how. It is arguably the best exercise for strengthening the posterior chain. Possibly the anterior chain as well.
  9. For best results (I’ll explain best in a minute), the 2H Swing should be performed Hard Style. Many people are experimenting with this and using supposedly efficient techniques with this. Don’t. You’re wasting your time and energy. There will be lots of arguing this point I’m sure and it will upset some, but seriously, let me be your experiment – just do them Hard Style and get on with your life. I have mixed the two systems for the last 4 years (Non HS and HS) and found it incredibly difficult to get my full HS Swing back. Once I did, my hips started feeling connected to my body again. (Important for someone with hip damage.) As I walked, I finally understood what Pavel meant by Russians walk from their hips, unlike Americans who walk falling forward from tight hip flexors.
  10. Stability and Mobility do exist as separate entities. And they exist on a continuum. My Z friends will want to argue with me on this point. That’s fine. We probably mean the same thing but just use different words. If not, that’s OK too. But, I used to believe the same way – that there was no such thing as the Stability-Mobility continuum. Now I don’t. Here’s the deal: I was strong. I was stable. I became too stabile. I lost my mobility. I regained my mobility. I became too mobile. I became unstable. I lost my strength. I will get it back. I’m already on my way. (This will have to be a separate post in the future…)
  11. The Get Up is arguably the perfect exercise to demonstrate the Stability-Mobility continuum. (Think about it – and yes, this will probably be another post.)
  12. While the Nervous System indeed rules the body, we cannot exclude the importance of all the body’s other systems. We must respect them as much as we respect the NS. The musculo-skeletal system is important too. Very important. All systems are vital otherwise they wouldn’t be included in this wonderful machine – our bodies.
  13. Exploration is important. All too often we pay our money (lots of it) and take verbatim what others tell us. This is a big mistake. Yes, we can use others as guides in our journey, but ultimately, our journey is just that – ours. We owe it to ourselves to vet everything that we learn from others and want to apply to ourselves and more importantly, our clients. For example, you cannot learn about strength from someone who is not or has not been strong.
  14. Testing is more important than exploration. Just because I say something with regard to the human body, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s true, regardless of how much science I use to back it up. It might be true for others, at least in the particular experiments that confirmed the scientific hypothesis at that time, but it may not be true for me right now. (Adam T. Glass has an excellent series of blog posts on this…) Therefore, test everything, including what I’ve said earlier in this post. Everything I have done this past month has tested well for me and it showed with my PR in the GU.

Well, that about wraps it up for now.

It’s been a great, but fast month. I’ve learned a lot about my body and the body in general and I will share more of that with you in future posts.

As far as what my future holds, I start training today for my beloved sport of Weightlifting. I have some big numbers I need to put up and I have 5 1/2 months to qualify for Nationals.

I’ll keep posting and look forward to seeing what happens to my numbers after my 30 Day Experiment.

If you joined me in my 30 Day Challenge, please drop me a line and let me know how it went for you.

Happy New Year!

{ 1 comment }

Shaky – Sensorimotor Amnesia And The Get Up

by GEOFFN on December 19, 2009

Thursday, 12.17.09

Thursday’s training was, well, interesting to say the least.

I had big plans for myself – thought I was going to push the volume on the Half-Kneeling Presses (HKPs) and bang out 50 reps per side with the 24kg, but once I got into the training, everything changed.

Just as an aside, I am approaching training from an intuitive perspective during these 30 days. Each day is basically what I think I need to do based on what I have done. For example, the Get Up Sit Ups are coming along nicely. So on this day, I left them out because I didn’t feel like I needed them. I keep the Lunges in the program because I really need them – they are an opponent I feel the need to conquer. And as such, they are really coming along – much more stabile than they have been since I can remember. I am gaining much more control over them in each and every rep as well.

Here’s how the day’s training broke down.

(As an aside, I have really been focused lately on the “Random Practice” concept – where I am practicing several skills in each session. Each skill I use builds on the previous skill/drill. Not a new or novel concept, but very valuable for learning “whole” exercises/skills like the Get Up. Hence, all the lunges…)

A. Walkouts x10

B1. HKPs: 24kg/15

B2. Lunges: Bodyweight/15-20 each leg

B3. Half Kneeling Windmill with Cervical Rotation: 16kg/5,5

Perform circuit twice. Rest as needed – approximately 60 seconds between drills.

C. Get Up 16kg/1,1

Thoughts…

  1. HKPs: These felt better than they ever have. I was really able to “lock in” on the kneeling leg. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t get any popping from my subclavius on my left side while pressing with the left arm. Lat fired more than normal. Right hamstring worked harder than normal.
  2. Lunges: The first set, I elevated the front leg on a phone book and hit 15 reps. Those extra 2 inches in hip flexion on the front leg made for some new proprioceptive input. I decided to get rid of the phone book for the 2nd set and just focused on the movement. I was finally able to push from the back foot into the front foot while standing. It’s amazing the lack of coordination I had in this movement. Hamstrings, gluts, and Vastus medialis all fired the way they should have.
  3. Half Kneeling Windmills: This is the area I had been actually been a little hesitant to get into because of the lack of hip mobility and the lumbar hyperextension I had been experiencing previously. I decided to perform some cervical rotations, a la Kalos Sthenos, during every rep and it really made a difference in the alignment of my pelvis.

On the left side, with left arm in the Windmill position, I literally had no idea where my hips were. Nor how to use them. I’m not sure which rep it was, but it was on the first set, I heard 3 sequential and loud cracks come from my right hip while my right knee was down. It didn’t hurt a bit, but something happened. On the next set, in the same position, my right leg started shaking uncontrollably. It wasn’t at all unnerving, but it was very interesting to watch.

I also was unpleasantly surprised between the noticeably major differences in how the left and right sides felt. The right side felt normal – natural. The right side felt, well, almost like a first date – awkward, uncomfortable, etc. By the end of the second set, I was feeling better about the left side. I had more control, more coordination, and more muscular activation.

By the time I got to the Get Ups, I was spent. Neurologically, the combination of the previous 3 exercises must’ve fried me.  I only hit one rep on each side with the 16kg. I felt much, much more put together, but boy was I shaky and tired! Pretty freaky!

Overall, it was a fantastic training session. I was surprised that what I had written above took a full 50 minutes to get through.

Friday, 12.18.09

Swings.

Single hand and single kettlebell training really show you your asymmetries and highlight your dysfunctions. Since I chewed up the sides of my pinky fingers doing 2 Hand Swings on Tuesday, I figured it was as good a time as any to re-introduce the 1 H Swing. I had an aversion to these since my pelvis comes unglued from the rest of my body. This day didn’t disappoint. Same was true. As I swing with one hand the hips/pelvis rotate toward the opposite side of the body. For example, swing left hand, right hip leads the backswing and vice versa. Admittedly, it is much worse with the left hand.

So, I modified them to the best of my ability. After trying to correct on the fly, I performed dead-stop 1 H Swings. Essentially, you line up your hips, hike the kettlebell, and then recheck your hip alignment. The repeat. It works to a point. I only used 24kg kettlebell, but it was more than adequate to do the job.

25 minutes later, I was done. Sweating. Lower and upper body pumped. Breathing heavy.

Addendum.

What is truly amazing me is how time truly flies doing these workouts/training sessions. I literally get lost in the process. And it’s all without trying. I recall Jeff O’Connor telling me he could spend about 2 hours just messing around with various components of the Get Up. When he did, I thought to myself, “how boring!” But now, I can see why.

The more I play and massage the Program Minimum concept/design, the more and more value I place on just these two simple exercises. The reality is, there is nothing simple at all about either of them. In today’s fitness landscape where we move toward “in-the-moment” entertainment-style workouts and forget about long-term results, there is so much good to be had physically and psychologically in these two movements.

I’m looking forward to seeing what the next two weeks hold in store for me.

{ 12 comments }

Swings – The Harder the Better

by GEOFFN on December 16, 2009

The foundational exercise in the RKC – The Russian Kettlebell Challenge - School of Strength, is the Swing. It doesn’t matter if it’s two or one hand, it’s still the Swing. Of course, we teach the 2 Hand Swing first and then move to the 1 Hand version after some semblance of mastery has been demonstrated with the 2 Hand Swing.

Of course this seems elementary to most of us – if not all of us. So, many of us, pay the Swing lip service and then move on to other sexier kettlebell exercises like the Snatch. Many of us know that if there is a problem or technical issue with any exercise, its roots can usually be traced back to the Swing.

Last night, in a fit of anger, I just did Swings – the 2 Hand variety. No Get Ups. No prep work, mobility or otherwise. Nothing. “Just” Swings.

And it rocked!

Coincidentally I am limited to “Program Minimum” exercises and their variations this month, so that helped. But I just grabbed my 32kg and went into the basement. I cranked up the stereo with some 80s metal, and banged away. Hard.

17 minutes later without the skin on my pinkies, I decided I was done.

My heart rate was extremely elevated and my legs were quivering.

And my anger had subsided for the most part.

But here’s the thing: I literally had tunnel vision. I only focused on moving that kettlebell as hard and as fast as I possibly could for only 10 reps. I was slamming that thing back under my hips between my legs and slamming on the brakes at the top. Every muscle was working. It felt exhilarating.

Why am I writing about just doing Swings?

Because in today’s fitness landscape we confuse complexity with progress.

I accomplished exactly what I wanted to accomplish last night:

  1. I needed to blow off steam and harness my anger into something productive and by 830pm had yet to train.
  2. I wanted to push my heart rate up and get a metabolic workout in, preparing me for January.
  3. I needed to focus on the Program Minimum, which I committed to do 16 days ago, to work on my base, my foundation, and set myself up for new gains in 2010.

Today, as I write this, although I “only” used a 32kg kettlebell for my Swings, I feel every muscle in my lower body as well as my abs and upper back. Surprisingly more so than when I perform my beloved double kettlebell drills with twice the weight. That should tell me something right there.

I plan on getting at least 2 of these types of training days each week until the end of December.

It makes me wonder how many people would start seeing results if they just kept their training program simple, like 20 minutes of hard, fast Swings two or three times per week.

I know – it’s too boring.

You know what is really boring? “Working out” for years and seeing no visible or measurable change in your body’s appearance or performance.

Here was Monday’s training program (12.14.09):

A. Walkouts x10

B1. Tall Kneeling Lifts: 12kg/15,15

B2. 1/2 Kneeling Bottoms Up Press: 12kg/15,15

B3. Reverse Lunge, bodyweight: 15,15

B4. Get Up Sit Up: 16kg/5,5

B5. 2 Hand Swings 24kg/20

B1 through B5 was performed as a circuit with 60 seconds rest between each exercise. The circuit was performed twice.

Everything is getting much stronger and much more controlled.

I’m really starting to feel “put together” and very, very strong. I can feel my strength returning behind the scenes or beneath the surface, so to speak. I can’t wait to see how I feel when I get on the bar in January.

Will write about the visit to the Iron Tamer’s in a future post. It was a GREAT time to say the least.

{ 6 comments }

Program Minimum Update: Days 6-9

by GEOFFN on December 11, 2009

So, I ended up bailing on my training session for Sunday night. Got done with the seminar at 930pm and just wanted to eat and crash. So I did. Another big NY Strip and twice-baked potatoes. Honestly, kettlebell training was the furthest thing from my mind.

Monday, 12.7.09

Focused in on the Get Up and it’s variations.

A. Tall Kneeling Press, 24kg/10,10, 32kg/10,10

B. Half Kneeling Press, 24kg/10,10

C. Get Up Sit Ups, 24/5,5 (can’t remember if I did more – seems to me the 32kg was out…)

D. Lunges, bodyweight/10,10, 12kg, overhead postion/10,10, 2 sets

E. Get Up, 16kg/1,1, 24kg/1,1 – Success! Felt great! Especially being “back” to the 24kg.

F. 2 H Swings, 32kg/10, 20

Tuesday, 12.8.09

Swing Emphasis.

A. Get Up: 16kg/1,1

B. Swing Series, 10 reps on the minute, every minute,

32kg/10, 40kg/10, 48kg/10

5 rounds. 15 minutes total.

These kicked my butt. Literally. Gluts super-sore the last 2 days. Hamstrings not as worked as they should be. May have to stretch quads between sets. (Did I really just say I’d have to stretch? Really? I thought I swore I’d never stretch again… Oh well – Never say never… I’ll test drive the idea and report back.)

Wednesday 12.9.09 – Off

Thoughts so far:

  • The “Program Minimum” is far from “minimum.” There’s a lot to be gained from just GUs and Swings. Yes you can argue that I’m pressing, but this is really just part of back rehab…
  • GUs really teach you body awareness, a kind that reminds me of wrestling. A very good kind. They are very underrated and especially by me, but that wasn’t because I didn’t like them per se, rather, just that I couldn’t do them [well] because of the hip(s).
  • Swings are just good ol’ fashioned foundation work/basic skill training. How can you go wrong here? Still a ton to be learned about how your body moves / doesn’t move. When performed correctly there truly is not a muscle in your body that has not worked.
  • I’m really looking forward to where I’m going to be come January 1 from doing this program. I suspect that my bar work will be much “tighter.” I suspect I’ll notice a slight dip in strength levels, but maybe not. I felt like the Swing session Tuesday night was very beneficial and taxing to my body.
  • My thoughts after Monday’s session were of the Kalos Sthenos. Everybody, I mean everybody should be doing this for at least one month out of twelve. There really is a TON to be learned about yourself in the Get Up. Oh wait, I think I already said that. Must need emphasizing…

Those are all my thoughts for now.

Getting ready to talk to Charles Staley for Kettlebell Interrogations. Will definitely be a great call – He’s a “program design master” for sure.

Afterward, I will hit tonight’s session – Get Up based again.

Flying to Nashville tomorrow night to spend the weekend with David Whitley, Sr RKC, where he promises me he’ll put some hurt on my Get Up. Sounds like fun…

{ 3 comments }

Program Minimum Day 5: Steak.

by GEOFFN on December 6, 2009

I came up early from my seminar last night and started writing almost immediately.

Before I knew it, three hours had passed.

I kept going.

Then another hour passed.

I finally ate dinner at about 10:30pm.

I guess I really like writing.

Anyway, I had a nice big (and overly-priced by about $10) NY Strip. Always like those. One of my favorite cuts. Also had asparagus and twice-baked potatoes. Very nice!

I probably should’ve trained because I have been doing so much sitting and my hips and knees are getting a little sore. A workout would do them some good.

I will however be tossing around the kettlebells tonight.

I will most likely do some more half Get Ups and then hit some hard Swings for about 20 minutes or so.

I need to hit it hard and early because I’m getting up early to drive back home tomorrow. Six more hours of sitting. Fun!

{ 3 comments }

On Task – PM Experiment Day 4

by GEOFFN on December 5, 2009

Thought I’d get a quick update in here while on hold with hotel…

Last night was Day 4. Some different variations of the same theme.

Decided to really focus in on the lunge portion of the GU and de-emphasize the Swing.

A. Walkouts x 10

B. Half-Kneeling Presses, 24kg/15,15

C.. Band Lunge x 10,10

Circuit:

D1. Lunge x 10,10, bodyweight only focusing on positioning

D2. Get Up Sit Up x 24kg/5,5

D3. 2 Hand Swing x 24kg/10

Repeated circuit 3 times, rest not specified.

The Walkouts and Half Kneeling Presses were done to get the hips to loosen up and the abs to fire up because I had been sitting most of the day…

Lunges felt really decent. Looking forward to pounding on these later with a kettlebell in hand. I’m very close I think to getting the new/correct pattern set.

Get Up Sit Ups were awkward because the room is really small, and at 220lbs, I don’t fit well into the room.

Swings were done just to do them. Will move to 1H Swings next week probably.

That’s it.

{ 6 comments }

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →