Philosophy

A NEW Way To View How The Body Works?

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THE 3 “COMPONENTS” OF THE HUMAN BODY

I’ve recently started “thinking” again. At least about our bodies and how they “work.”

The trend these days seems to be to make everything too complex. And the Experts are the people who can present the most complex solution to any problem. 

Sure, you need to be an expert to remove a tumor from someone’s brain, but understanding how the body works?

I think it’s easier than we have once thought. 

In fact, I’ve been thinking of the body as a “house” of sorts.

Look at this diagram – 

the 3 main "systems" of the body

And yes, it’s in a “hierarchical” format for a reason, which I’ll get to in a moment.

There are 3 components:

ELECTRICAL, STRUCTURAL, & MECHANICAL

Here’s what I mean by each:

  1. ELECTRICAL – This is the Nervous System. It conducts/produces electrical current that carries messages/information to the rest of the body telling it what to do. Think of this as the wiring of your house – the part that runs everything.
  2. STRUCTURAL – This is the Skeletal System – the part of your body that actually holds everything “up” and together.
  3. MECHANICAL – This is everything else: The Muscular System, Cardio-pulmonary System, Digestive System, etc.

Is it “right?”

I don’t know. But it’s simple. And easy to remember. 

It also seems to fit with that whole “tripartite” nature thing: solid/liquid/gas… body/spirit/soul… 

BACK TO THE HIERARCHY

Why the “hierarchy?”

From what I’ve studied, the Electrical part of the body is the part of the body the governs or rules the rest. Without it, the structure collapses and no mechanical work gets done. All three are important, but this is the most important.

Think about it: Cut off the electrical system – sever the spine in the lumbar region, and you can no longer walk. Cut it off in the mid trunk, and you have a hard time breathing or moving your upper body. Cut it off in the lower cervical spine, and you’re a quadriplegic. Cut it off in the upper cervical spine and you’re either a quadriplegic on a respirator because you cannot breathe on your own, or worse – you’re dead.

The Structural, is the skeleton. And it gives the mechanical a base of support and creates leverage from which to move.

And the Mechanical, well, that’s everything else. And some mechanical pieces can be replaced – in the early 21st century, we now have transplants for most major organs: Heart, lung, kidney, liver… and you can do without your gall bladder or appendix… and doctors can remove part of your bowels and you can still live.

WHY DOES ANY OF THIS MATTER?

For the Average Joe or Jane, it doesn’t.

For the person like you or me interested in getting stronger, living a stronger, more fulfilled life, it pays to know the fundamentals. That way, when things go wrong, which the inevitably do, you know where to look to fix that which has broken.

And where do you look?

Based on rehabbing my own injuries: both hips with torn labrums, congenitally deformed knees, one of which is missing cartilage, and a once injured lower back –

The symptoms present themselves at the top of the hierarchy – in the Mechanical piece. At least when we’re talking about muscular / musculoskeletal dysfunctions and “issues.”

Like tight hip flexors or a crabby lower back.

Unless of course you have true structural issue, like having a broken arm reset incorrectly, like I did, which then alters the form of your structure.

That’s what most of us address.

But as we see from “the triangle,” the Electrical System is the foundation of the entire organism. It controls the organism. Isn’t it possible that it just makes sense that if there’s a problem in the mechanical system, we might need to check the Electrical?

Of course, I’m not talking about things like your pectoral muscle ripping off your upper arm during a heavy bench press. That is clearly a Mechanical problem.

Or tearing the labrum in your hip as you jump under a heavy-ish barbell clean. (Although we do have to ask ourselves, “WHY did that labrum tear? What caused the environment for the tear?”)

No, I’m talking about the “everyday” stiffness, aches, and pains that we get from use – overuse or underuse.

Again, this is just a simplified lens through which to look, but as Einstein said, 

“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

I think this new lens qualifies. What do you think?

Reconsidering Strength

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What is Strength?

I’ve considered it many times before, and I still like “my” definition –

The ability to overcome.

With regards to physical strength, who is strong?

That’s obviously relative to the goals of the individual.

How about a Powerlifter who can squat 1000+ lbs?

Very strong.

If he can’t do a 1-arm Chin-up, does that make him weak?

It’s all about your definitions.

What about a rock climber who can scroll steel?

One of the most impressive things I’ve seen is my friend Kevin Perrone, who at 5’11” and 165lbs could do a pull-up with 130lbs hanging from his body, one-arm chins, scroll steel, tear phone books, and destroy the RKC Snatch Test. But he couldn’t Power Clean for anything. Does that make him weak?

Watching Brett Jones bend a Red Nail at an RKC Meet and Greet was also right up there.

Here’s another – watching Mark Reifkind tirelessly rebuild his body and recapture lost function for the last 10 years.

Or watching a video of John Brookfield tearing 59 decks of cards in 60 seconds.

And finally, one of my clients who I trained last night – a 71-year old, 110lbs grandmother who, despite being told by her Ortho that she has degenerative disc disease, can still deadlift her bodyweight. And, despite having severe arthritis in her hands still looks for ways to keep her dexterity.

Strength is really what YOU make of it. As long as you keep seeing progress and improvement in your life, you are still getting stronger.

When you’re not, it’s time to pull the old proverbial car off the side of the road and take it in for a check up.

For me, I used to measure strength by how much I could lift over my head. Now, it’s all about energy acquisition and management, which I realize after writing, seems nebulous. It really is that I no longer want to do anything or train in such a way that diminishes my energy levels to the point that I can’t participate in the life I currently have and create the life I want.

And that means having had to give up certain things. Like weightlifting. Who knows – maybe one day I’ll step back onto the competition platform, but right now, everything I’m doing is to undue all the stuff that was damaged by chasing that dream.

But I don’t want that to sound like a bad thing – it’s not at all. For example, yesterday was my first foray into “One-arm Chin Land.” And it was FUN! It’s a new adventure. And Sunday, I was able to do 15 consecutive (and explosive!) Pistols off a 1/2 inch block on my left side and 13 on my right – a new PR for me. Both of these things I either couldn’t do or wouldn’t have considered trying back when I was weightlifting.

(For the record: My Pistol is now more stabile, more explosive, more controlled, and I am able to endure longer doing it than I EVER have.)

So what’s my point in sharing all of this with you?

Simple.

Strength is how YOU define it.

And it’s different for different people. And no matter how you measure it or define it, never let anyone diminish your ideas of strength.

And, just as important, just because you can’t do one particular thing do to an injury or movement restriction, doesn’t mean you can’t alter that movement (mentioned in my last post) or do something else altogether.

What’s the key to getting stronger then?

As I see it, it’s constantly defining and redefining your own definitions of strength and then overcoming those momentary obstacles.

What’s your definition of strength?

The #1 Thing I Can Do Right Now To Help You Out

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Every once in awhile, you have a day that really stands out. Something major happens and it really influences your thinking, your actions, and, well – you.

Yesterday was one of those days for me. You might be able to relate. Here’s what happened.

I had 3 very important conversations – and the last one was the most important of the three.

My first conversation was with my business coach. (Yes, I have a business coach. I’m not naturally gifted in business – I’m a gym rat at heart. I lift heavy stuff. Put it down. And help others achieve their physical goals.) Anyway, he pointed out some mistakes I was making and how I was failing to fulfill my customers’ needs. (Ouch! And if you’re my customer – first, thanks, and second, sorry – will do better.) That’s a tough thing to hear.

My second conversation was with Pavel. Just love talking to him – he’s just brilliant. The thoughts he has and the info he knows about the human body and training is just staggering. Anyway, I asked him about a particular exercise and why I was struggling to see results with it. Long story short, because I was approaching it wrong. My view of it was incorrect. So he gave me the exact steps to perform it and be successful. Excellent.

At this point, I want to point out the not-so-obvious – I am successful (by my own standards) in some areas of my life because of my relationships. I pay my business coach because modeling is the fastest way to achieve your goals. He’s already walked where I want to walk. He knows the path. The same is true for my relationship with Pavel. Although now he’s my friend – which is very cool, I still work “for him” by teaching RKCs and our relationship still started with a business transaction – I bought one of his books, and then another, and eventually met him in person at the RKC in 2005.

Why am I pointing these two things out?

Because, there is ALWAYS a cost to success. Got a college degree? That cost somebody some coin – either your parents or you. (My dad was scholarshipped through college and then he paid my way.) You’re going to spend your time, your energy, or your money – and most likely, some combination of all three. That’s the first critical element to success – understanding, identifying, and expecting cost – time, money, and energy.

Ok, now on to the most important part of my day – the most important conversation I had, and the point of everything so far – both previous conversations.

I have a monthly gym membership. I use it when I want to lift really heavy stuff because I don’t have enough iron at my house or studio.

So I’m in there last night and the guy next to me has a chewed up 16kg kettlebell. Interesting. So I ask him, “Is that your kettlebell?”

“Yeah.”

“Cool,” I say.

“I love coming to the gym but I also love using the kettlebell – it’s hard to argue with the results I get from using it,” he says.

“I know what you mean,” I say.

Turns out this guy – Robert – is an EMT. And better yet, he’s heard of the RKC and told me that an RKC – Joe Wagner, an EMT he works with, is on a mission to get all the EMTs using kettlebells. Awesome.

I tell him I’ve heard of the RKC.

So I’m training, doing my thing, watching Robert do his thing with the kettlebell – some high pulls, some clean and presses, and they don’t look too bad. Then he starts to Swing.

Uh-oh.

So I ask him I he minds if I give him some pointers.

I tell him to take his soft, cushy shoes off and give him the two reasons why and then give him one cue for the Swing.

Bingo! Swings look instantly better.

Then I give him another cue.

Blamm-o! Swings look even better.

Then I give him the final cue and literally – kid you not, he looked like he was an RKC! (What can I say – he must’ve been a fast learner.)

Now, I had only introduced myself as Geoff and when he mentioned Joe’s name I told him I heard of the RKC. I didn’t tell him my background or any of that stuff. Why not?

Because it wasn’t about me. It was about him – Robert – a guy trying to achieve a goal and using arguably the best tool for that job. And I was in a position to help him out. So I did. Gladly. Joyfully. I got to take all the stuff that’s been poured into me and for a few minutes distill that information and make a difference in one guy’s life.

So why am I sharing all this with you? Why should you care? Am I telling you about this because I want you to be impressed or whatever? Heck no – I could care less if you’re impressed with who I know or how my day went.

I’m sharing this with you for one important reason – your success in life is directly determined by the amount of success you help others achieve.

That’s it. That’s the Big Secret. Help someone solve a problem they have. That’s it.

You want that promotion at work but aren’t getting it because you feel you aren’t noticed? Find the biggest problem you’re aware of and then solve it. Want more love in you marriage? Stop waiting for you spouse to give you what you “deserve.” Go give your wife the biggest darn hug she’s had all year. Or buy her flowers. Or make her dinner. Or tell her how beautiful she looks. Or pick up your socks and clean the toilet. And don’t do it with the expectation that you’ll “get some action” later on in return.

And do it all with your whole heart. Seek to provide the whole solution to the problem – don’t go half way. Go all in. Give it all you’ve got. Make the solution simple yet profound. I stepped in when Robert started swinging yesterday because that was where I could make the biggest impact.

Why? Because giving to someone, more than getting, provides you – the giver -with joy as well as providing a solution to someone else’s problem. And JOY isn’t something we talk about much anymore. Just look at the world around if you need proof. Not much joy there. Too many people taking, not much giving…

And that’s the second and MOST IMPORTANT step for success – pouring your time, money, and energy into other people. “Give to get” is the current axiom. But I would caution, and say rather, “Give, but expect nothing in return except your own personal joy – to [maybe] get.” I guarantee if you seek to be a resource to someone else – to help them solve their problems, eventually you’ll get what you want immediately – which is more joy and quite possibly you’ll be on the path to get where you want to go, do what you want to do, and be more of who you want to be.

Don’t believe me? Here’s a promise that’s at least 4000 years old –

“Do you see a man skilled in his work?
He will stand before kings;
He will not stand before obscure men.”

– Proverbs 22:29

Thanks for your time last night, Robert – whether you know it or not, you really helped me out – to see what’s really important – and it was the best conversation of my day.

Rethinking “Fitness” – Industry Trends and Loading Parameters

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Rethinking “Fitness”

I got to spend this past weekend in Alexandria, VA where I was invited to present at the IDEA Personal Trainer Institute – an annual convention geared toward presenting the latest, greatest fitness/health/strength & conditioning ideas to personal trainers interested in becoming more highly skilled professionals.

On Friday, I presented for 3 hours on, what else – you guessed it – kettlebell training in an interactive lecture called “Kettlebell Fundamentals: Laying A Foundation of Success.” I introduced a group of 75 people to RKC principles and taught the basics of the Swing, Get Up, and the Goblet Squat. It was great to see so many people interested in kettlebell training.

It was great to see people grasp some of the major concepts. However, as wonderfully organized as this conference was, I am disturbed to see still just how complicated we, as professionals, have attempted to make “getting in shape.”

For example, I chose to use very simple language in my presentation painting pictures with words, and still many people wanted to know the 17 steps to a perfect Swing. What’s the exact knee angle during the Swing? How about the incline of the torso to the floor? And, honestly, it’s not their fault. It’s what they’ve been conditioned (unknowingly) to accept, look for, and embrace. Many couldn’t grasp the concept that as long as you felt the hamstrings and gluts at a bare minimum on the Swing, we were doing great. Again – not their fault – I believe it’s conditioning.

That’s of course why I value the kettlebell and the RKC methods so much – Swing the kettlebell, put it down. Repeat. Sweat. Get results. Of course there’s a little bit more to it than that, but not really that much more.

We, as professionals, are always looking for the next great big secret that will give us that extra edge, both with ourselves and in our businesses. The truth is, we could find those secrets just by practicing much of what we already know and if we wouldn’t let ourselves become distracted with bright shiny objects – which I myself have been guilty of many, many times in my career. The more scientific something sounds, and the more letters the guy has after his name, the more we are likely to embrace it. I know that was certainly my case in the past. I got caught on that 2 or 3 times.

Just so we’re clear – I’m NOT ragging on the IDEA conference here – it was great, wonderfully organized, and opened up a lot of possibilities to a lot of my fellow professionals seeking to improve their knowledge and their clients’ lives. What I am saying is that as an industry, we are still attempting to make things more complicated instead of less so.

Which brings me full circle to the kettlebell and of course the miracle that we call the body.

Ultimately, at the end of the day, we should be able to do anything that we choose with our bodies (within reason) and not only survive, but thrive. At least that’s what I believe. The kettlebell is a great tool to aid in that objective.

Speaking of, I had the privilege of teaching my first “Kettlebell Burn” seminar on Saturday morning. We had 21 people (I think) pack into the room and it was just fantastic to be able to help explain the methodology behind “Burn” and show them how to implement it into their own training. Great stuff – and so much fun for me to be able to share.

I then ran back over to the IDEA conference where I put about 60 people through a workout called “Rethinking Bodyweight Training” which was based on the bodyweight Get Up and its variations. I’d like to publicly thank Brett Jones, Gray Cook, and Jeff O’Connor for the influence they’ve had on me and my implementation of the GU into my training and my clients’ training. Nothing but positive results. Anyway, I got to share some of these ideas with these fine professionals on Saturday – 60 minutes of non-stop rolling around on the floor and getting up and down in and through various positions of the Get Up. I think most were surprised at how demanding of an exercise it could be without any form of external loading. Imagine how much fun that would be with a light kettlebell! (On a side note – it was great to have two fellow RKCs in the room.)

I hope that these fellow professionals saw the value in all the work they did that afternoon and will further investigate the wonderful benefits of the Get Up.

I’d like to think that in some small way I was able to help my fellow professionals rethink fitness in the simplest of terms – what can you do with your body compared to what you want to do with it.

On Loading Parameters…

It’s no secret that I want to lift fast and heavy. But the really strange thing is that overall, I feel much better lately NOT lifting fast and heavy. So, I’m rethinking my loading parameters and digging back into the archives. I’m running a 30 day experiment on loading parameters to see what this particular range and kind will do for my body. There’s some science to support my efforts so I look forward to reporting back to you about my successes around the end of March.

What am I doing? I’m not ready to say, but I will say it’s much different than anything that I have done over the last 15 years or so. Much different.

I’m experimenting on myself because I think it will help quite a few of you out – not to mention of course the benefits that I will receive. 😉

That’s all for today – gotta bounce. In the meantime feel free to drop a comment how you’ve tried to make getting in shape more complicated than it need be and what you did to overcome it.

7 Things I “Learned” On Vacation

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1. Nature is a good relaxer.

Some people like the mountains. Some people like the beach. I fall into the second category. We went to the Turks & Caicos – a group of islands in the Caribbean for our last vacation without kids. I splurged and got the ocean view room. What a great decision!

It was so refreshing to sit on the balcony and watch the ocean. It was even better to sleep with the french doors open and have the waves put me to sleep. And even better was to just sit on my lounge chair soaking up the sun and reading a good book or two.

In today’s fast-paced modern society, I don’t know how many people spend time outside in Nature, but I’d be willing to bet we’d see a pretty good drop off in anxiety medications if people spent more time outside. There’s just something incredibly relaxing about being outside, at least for me anyway.

2. Slowing down is good.

I am a very Type A individual. I have a hard time slowing down. With the approaching birth of our son, I have made some major scheduling changes to allow me to batch all my work into parts of the day and to batch all my relaxing into parts of the day. It used to be that I’d literally work all the time – during the day, between clients, before and after dinner, just before lights out… Many times busy, but not so productive.

Vacation was yet again another reminder that taking time to slow down is good for the body and the mind. We both slept a lot this vacation – especially the first couple of days. Apparently, we needed the rest and the change from the daily “grind.”

3. Time is precious – use it wisely.

Time. I love it and hate it. I love it because of all the stuff I can do. I hate it because of all the stuff I fail to do. But when you really stop to think about it – you never get time back once it’s spent. It’s the only thing I know of that is “non-renewable.”

I was forced to look at how I spend my time and how I want to spend my time. I have to admit, as much as I love to train – it wasn’t a top priority on vacation. Sure, I went to the gym, but the work I did was minimal – just some maintenance stuff to counteract all the sitting around. (One thing I’ve learned over the years is my body won’t let me just sit around even on vacation – I have to do some exercise.)

But honestly, I wasn’t overly concerned with “missing my workout.” The older I get, the more I truly view workouts, or training, as a means to an end, not the end in and of itself. (More on that later…)

So the best use of my time on my vacation was spending time with my wife. Speaking of…

4. My wife is truly my best friend.

It’s amazing how you can go through your daily grind and say “I love you” and not that it becomes ritualistic, but that it almost becomes habit. The grind is just that for many of us – it wears us down if we let it. (I do my best not to…) And because of this, sometimes we just take for granted that our spouse will always be there. It’s not until something bad happens that your jolted awake to the possibility that she or he might not be there. (Yes, everything’s fine – no, nothing bad happened.)

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately as I’ve watched her belly grow.

In about 3 months or less, life will no longer be about us.

And that was the point of this vacation – the last true “us” time for probably 20+ years. It made me realize how long we’ve know each other, how long we’ve been together, and how well we know each other. And I’m incredibly thankful that God put the two of us together. I can’t imagine life without her and don’t want to.

Vacation just reinforced this. Sometimes it’s easy to take your spouse for granted.

5. Food is meant to be enjoyed (within reason).

Admittedly, this sounds strange coming from me. It would be fair to say that I am perceived as Draconian in my approach to food – “it’s only fuel and that’s all it needs to be.” But there is something intensely pleasurable about a really good meal.

As I age, I have been slowly changing my stance and exploring my views, beliefs, and perceptions about food, diets, and eating. For example, a couple of years ago, I departed from my 6 meal-a-day regimen and went on the Warrior Diet. That lasted 6 weeks before my body rebelled and I ended back up at a 5 meal-a-day plan.

Recently, I came off most protein powders and started eating 95% of my food as whole foods and dropped my meal schedule down to 4 meals per day as an experiment. (I hate that extra prep time…)

But, I LOVE a nicely prepared and tasty meal. What does that look like? On this vacation there was a lot of fish in various cream and butter sauces with mixed veggies and even some potatoes. And of course the obligatory glass of red wine with dinner (good for digestion and overall health you know…).

It was nice just to sit down and enjoy a meal together that someone else prepared. I’d like to do that way more often.

And now, with the boy on his way, I’m looking for ways to enjoy my favorite foods even more often than I have in the past – to go beyond the “tricks” that I’ve used with such success. (More on that later too…)

6. Reading fiction is good for the mind.

Up until a couple of years ago, all I read was non-fiction – anything I could get my hands on regarding strength and fat loss. All the time.

Then, my wife gently poking fun at me, suggested I read some fiction. “What a waste of time!” I thought. How wrong I was! I really enjoy reading fiction – especially military fiction like Tom Clancy. So I took The Cardinal and the Kremlin with me and finished that up on Day 2 I think.

There is something so relaxing about reading something that transports your mind to a far away place (and time). Tom Clancy may not be your cup of tea, but if you want a great night’s sleep, read some fiction before bed. You’re brain will shut down and you’ll sleep much better. I always do.

7. Simplifying life is one of the keys to happiness.

Accumulating stuff. It’s the American Way. Bigger. Better. More.

We stayed in a studio suite on our vacation. There was a small kitchen with a place to eat, a really nice bathroom, a balcony with a chaise lounge and a table and two chairs, a dresser, a closet, nightstands, a chair with an ottoman, and of course a big king sized bed.

Although it was probably 600 sq ft or so, we really didn’t NEED anything else. It was freeing in a way to “only” have that much space. And even after a week, I was perfectly fine with “only” that much.

It’s funny how the American way of life convinces us that the lie is true – the more the better.

I was thinking about it – at the end of the day do we really want more stuff? No! I think we all want more time to do the things we love. The less we have to tend to, the easier this is to do.

But we always tend to think that more is always better.

Take workouts for example.

Why spend an hour when 30 minutes will do? Why use 3 exercises when you really only need one? Is it because we have “freedom of choice?” or live in the “land of opportunity”? I don’t know.

I just know that moving toward the simpler sure felt more freeing – more liberating. And that’s a direction I want to move – more free with more time to do the things I want to do – enjoy my family more and my life more.