I still do gymnastics in my head

all the time.It soothes me and I know that doing the movement mentally teaches the body how to actually do it in real life. This way I can keep my skills up even though I can't move like that anymore :))

And most of the time I do mental gymnastics I do P bars. I don't know why but it's been this way for years. It just flows into and out of my brain when it wants to and most of the time my routine looks something like this:


This to me is the embodiment of perfect mens artistic gymnastics, the way I was taught.Not the most acrobatic movements in the realm of possibility but everything, EVERYTHING, is done to the Nth degree perfect.It SWINGS.This is 2008 Bejing's all around Gold Medalist Nastia Liukin's Dad.So cool.

Almost 200 24 kg snatches

I had the best of intentions today- to do at least 200 snatches ( hopefully more) with the 24kg.
Of course I am talking about total volume, sets and reps not all at once :))Just doing 200 total reps would be a solid comeback for me.It'll happen.

I have decided to shelve the 20 kg on Saturdays and try to go a bit heavier more frequently.I get plenty of light , speed work with on mvo2 days. So I hoped my hands were up to it and they were close.I stopped short of 200 as I knew any more and the starting to become hot spots would become real hot spots or worse. 180 isnt too bad.
I also wanted to make sure that although the rep tempo was slower,including a pause at the top, the speed of each rep was as high as I could make it; to maximze power as much as possible even here.Kenneth's article just confirmed with numbers what my intuition had already told me;the more power per rep the more work done, the more calories burned , the more speed is enhanced( and, as Pavel says many neural dis-inhibition takes place) and stronger one gets, with the same weight!
Not to mention the muscle building capability of such training.Which is precisely why I am staying with the 24 for awhile. Don't need excess conditioning at the moment.

Snatch
16 kgx5/5x3
20 kgx5/5x3 ( slow to warmup today. stiff)

24 kg x 6/6
7/7
8/8
9/9
10/10= 80 reps
two rounds of this followed by
5/5/5/5x two rounds ( hands give out)
180 reps
9450 lbs

As I wrote above this went very well and my lungs opened up after the first couple sets.Each set was stronger than the last.

Clubbell Mills
15 lb CB
15/15
20/20
25/25

I'd say short and sweet but it wasnt that short,lol. We took our time today with a three man rotation. Not slow but definitely not fast. Wanted to make sure each set had good power.

datsit. Been sleeping so well. What a difference :))

The Dane of Pain talks physics

and snatch speed on his blog.A bit complicated but right on the money. Faster snatches equal more power.Now of course these type of movements have to be balanced out with heavier, slower( by default) movements with complete extensions but the numbers don't lie. Faster equals more power and that's the name of the game for sport and strength.

http://thedaneofpain.blogspot.com/2008/08/lets-talk-physics.html]

Yeah, what he said.

It aint pretty but it's fast.I try the Boost protocol.

Got my first taste of the Boost Max Vo2 protocol this afternoon when I trained it with Tracy, her second session of the week.I got in the deep end as she had to do 6 sets of each of the two diffrent rep schemes and the first one lulled you into a sense of security. The second one let the hammer down, although truth be told it wasnt that bad.
Looking at the video though I can see how I am cutting both hip and shoulder extension quite a bit. will have to work on it but eight reps per fifteen second clip is FAST for a guy with chimpanzee arms like me.I do cleaner snatches on saturdays when the focus is on pause reps and longer sets.this is about speed and power and lungs.I try to throw the weight,up and down.
Next time better camera angle too,lol.
I was very happy with how well I did jumping into the deep end of the pool with this. Speaks well to the strength of the regular max vo2 protocols.

Snatch Vo2
16 kg x 8/8 x 6 sets 45 sec rest/ sets
here's some video


one minute rest
16kg x16/16x6 2 minute rest/set
heres some video of that

284 snatches
10,224 lbs

man that looks like nothing written down but it weren't a lot of fun to do ; although with all that rest I can now push myself to go pretty hard each set pretty safely.Compared to 80 freaking sets of 15 this doesnt seem so bad- yet.
Plus, I have to remember that the Boost is a peaking cycle, not a base volume one. I am a volume addict and get very weird when I see the numbers of total reps drop too low. Like trying to take a marathoner down from 100 miles a week to 50. Watch THAT freak out,lol.Especially now that I have some decent numbers to work with.
Tracy of course was doing 18 reps per 15 sec, a 38 rep per minute pace! Crazy. and with only 10 pounds less than me. I am ashamed,lol. :))


20 kg snatch
20 kg x5/5 x 3 sets

would have done much more but I was so sweaty I couldnt hold the bell at all,lol.nasty.paused the reps for stability. The volume addict was talking.Kill the demons, kill the demons, lol.But the sweat won out.

One CB Sheild Cast
15 lbs 80 reps continous switching every 8

this was solid and its relatively easy to do a lot of continous reps like this.

2 CB Swipes
2 15 lb CBs x 4x 20 reps

havent done these in awhile and want more upper body mass now anyway. Should kb walk but just don't want to. I am getting weaker with age,lol. at least in the will power department.

Its so much easier doing this with Tracy. There is a palpable energy that is created when people are training seriously and it uplifts everything that it touches in that space. I've had the training experience with some serious competitive bodybuilding and powerlifting training partners and let me tell you; it's hard to come by.Most just aren't interested in training as hard as they can.At least not after any length of time.
But its beyond cool to have that now with my wife of 20 years.Especially when it's all I can do to hang on and keep up :))
So we now have a training date on wednesdays for max vo2 work and this will make training oh so much easier and stronger.It's just easier to push myself when she's there, go figure.
OH this too. The more z drills I do during the day the faster I can snatch. No doubt. Just have to make sure it gets done.

datsit.

400 one arm swings with 24 kg

Finally, some stinkin volume in a swing workout! It's taken forever, it seems, to get back into some kind of rythym but today gave me hope. It helped tons to have Tracy to work with too, and we did all kinds of " I go, you go" swings ( which she did after her boost Max vo2 work,lol).
Swing work , although vital for me, is deadly hard and straight forward and having a kick ass training partner really makes things easier. Same with squat training, or deadlift training, or, hell.,any type of real training where you try to make some kind of progress day in and day out. For years on end.I mean, ask any Olympic hopefull how much time it takes to "get in shape".Good training partners are worth their weight in gold. I just happened to marry mine :))

Busy weekend so not much rest and I was a bit concerned how this would go but I slept well and the month from hell is now officially over. Did not have a weekend off this month and now we get a little break.I hoped it would carry over to today and it did.

One Arm Swings
16 kgx5/5x2

24 kgx10/10 x20 sets
400 reps
21200 lbs

Not bad at all. I definitely got stronger as the workout went on and I 'warmed up" I say that even though I was sweating bullets from the get and had to put my grips on for the last 100 reps as I couldn't keep the bell handle dry at all! Even had to put wrestling shoes on too! Puddles aren't good for a training base,lol.

here's a set


Clubbell Pendulum swing and front press

2 15 lb CBs x 4 x 8

these were tough and unless I press upwards in a semi arc my left shoulder threatened to dislocate and I wasn't in the mood.
heres some vid


Snatch holds
20 kg x one minutes x 2 sets

these have to get back in the rotation. hate em but I gotta do em

datsit.

Pranayama, standing series and breathing

Back to the HOT class this am with yoga training partner and love of my life.We have decided to only go to this studio as the other one is basically too easy for Tracy and I'm only going twice a week so I can step it up a bit too. This stuff is too expensive to take it easy,lol.

During the first series, Pranayama breathing I realized I havent been breathing correctly into the back of my throat; not because I wasn't doing as the instructor asked, but because I couldnt figure it out. Today it dropped in and it made a big difference. A very different 'breath' than the one I had been doing and it will take a lot of practice now to really 'own' it but at least now I can do it.

Today was a 'blind' class as well as I was in the forth row and couldnt see a thing. I operate better this way as long as I don't try to switch back and forth from an internal focus to a mirror focus. Just have to get to class earlier I guess.

I also have to focus more on visualizing the sequence more often so I know exactly what is coming up next and I can prepare for it better. The opening series of standing series really works my legs hard and it's a good thing it's first up after the warmup series, which also works my legs hard,lol

First the three squats of the awkward poses, then the one legged twisting squat of the eagle pose (which I really dig but can't even come close to twisting enough on upper or lower), then the REALLY hard standing head to knee, then the CRAZY tough standing bow!!!Then its on to the one legged balancing stick , then the straddle head to floor, then MORE quads and hammies( these always get my leg to shaking) of the warrior pose followed by the hardest pose for me of all , the split legged forward head to knee.The series finishes off with tree pose which is supposed to turn into toe stand,another one that will never( well maybe never say never) happen. So it's just treee pose. Which is hard enough by this time.

The breathrough in the opening Pranyama breathing also lead to a breathrough in endurance as I really focused the entire class on NOT holding my breath in the toughest poses, no matter how much tension they required. Holding my breath seems to put me into oxygen debt sometimes from which I never recover. By staying focused on making sure to breathe through every part of every pose everything got easier. Go figure. A little bit of O2 goes a long way.

It's a very good thing this series comes right at the start, otherwise I would never get through it.But it really working the strength of my legs, knees ankles and feet in a crazy good way and I am getting so much stronger and my balance so much better I can barely believe it.

10,000 Snatches

I noticed yesterday as I posted my snatch numbers on the snatch manager calculator that I had surpassed 10,000 snatches since I started keeping track of the on this board in late March. Now I am nowhere near the top of the list in points,; but I don't really care about the different points assigned to each kettlebell weight- what really matters to me is how many total snatches I do and when I reach the original goal of the snatch race:50,000 snatches.
Things have certainly changed dramatically in my training since Kenneth introduced the Max vo2 training at the Level 2 cert two Junes ago and this has made all the difference in my training.

Having the permission to go light has allowed me to go heavy again( relative for me) and has completely changed my body and my work capacity.Since I achieved 10,000 snatches in 6 months I should hit my goal of 50,000 in 24 months. AS I said earlier, I don't care if I win any race I just care that I accomplish my goal.

I feel so blessed and lucky that I can even pursue this.As the song says, 'you don't know what you got til it's gone'. I know what I've got cause I lost it and I know the importance of the 'little things' that, in reality, are not little at all.

180 24 kg Snatches and Tall Kneeling Press

Ah man, it's SO good to sleep. For those that sleep well easily please appreciate it because their is few things as sweet as a good nights sleep.Especially when your monkey minds keeps you awake for days in a row.So I felt good this morning, great ,in fact and was ready to hit the 24 kg for some reps. Mainly I wanted to keep the reps low per side so I could not tear up my hands and still be as explosive as possible on each rep. The combination of fast, explosive reps and high reps is always a hand destroyer for me and I've got to get back in better form now. No time for downtime or less intensity because of torn calluses.

Snatch
16kg x5/5/5/5 x2
20 kg x5/5/5/5x2

24 kg x5/5/5/5x9 sets
180 reps
9450 lbs.

Not a bad effort at all and I had to stop myself from going to an even 200 because I started to feel the beginnings of a beginning of a hot spot on a calluses and realized I didnt need the extra 20 reps. It was a solid effort but I could tell my strength endurance is down. No worries it will come back quickly.

Clubbell Mills
15 lb CB
1x10/10
1x 15/15
1x20/20

I really missed not doing this move and have now figured out how to load it properly so that it doesnt irritate my left elbow. Had to engage the lat and hip more directly to activate the left right rotation and problem solved! Was isolating the arm motion too much.

Split and tall Kneeling presses
split press 16 kg x1/1
tall kneeling press 16 kgx1/1
split press 24 kg x1/1
tall kneeling press 24 kg x1/1
32 kg x 1/1

this was fun. I wanted to replicate my press from the ck-fms cert which SO suprised me.I don't know if it's the tall kneeling position that creates a press motion that doesnt tweak my right shoulder or that my shoulder can press again. Too scared to try to press standing yet, though,lol.
This is fine.
Here the video


Way easy.Will have to try it split style next time.

datsit.

Bikram Pr. back in the saddle.

Got in an extra yoga class today and good thing I did. I finally held that stinkin standing bow on my left leg for the full minute! Bout freakin time! We were at the Los Gatos class which is hot but not oven hot and that helps a lot.It's not like I dont sweat like a pig, I do, but I'm not fighting ridiculously oppressive heat the whole time too. More practice than endurance.Good to have a balance.
I hit some pr's on every series and I felt like I could actually relax into my left leg for the first time ever . I could actually spread the toes on my left foot too, creating a wider base for balance. that might not seem like a big thing- IF you can do it. If you can't it is.
All the external rotation poses went really well and I actually got my hands to touch underneath me in full locust as well.This stuff is helping my shoulders WAY more than I ever thought it would .Such a great, and logical extension and progression of the gymnastics type stretching I have been doing.
Good things too in all the little details and the split leg forward to head is almost normal on the left leg. I never would have thought it possible.

Bikrams is such a great example of a deep skill practice. You dont change the poses, you dont change the order, you dont change the length of time of the postures,you dont change anything. All you can do, all you can focus on is going further into the stretch,deeper into the position than you did before. There is nothing else to focus on. And, the better you get the easier it gets so you HAVE to concentrate on new ways to go deeper into the skill. This is what I was talking about to MC about simplicity of training. Its not that there is not an underlying complexity it's just that it IS underlying, the most basic of all movements.Whether it's the standing bow or the one arm swing.Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Just focus in and see where it brings you.
Actual day off tomorrow then some higher rep snatch sets with the 24 on saturday.

good stuff.

datsit.

Max Vo2 with Tracy

I lucked out today as Tracy decided to do her Max vo2 workout in the afternoon with me. SO much easier doing all those reps in one place with a training partner, especially one as intense and focused as Mrs Rif.I knew she had to do more than 52 sets this workout and that worried me as I havent done 8 rep sets in awhile and hadn't done a serious max vo2 workout with the 16 since my PR of 60 sets July 30th.
It hasnt been the best training since then so I was just a bit worried. Plus, sleep has been poor the last few nights which never make things easier. But as usual, when the environment is poor somethings the gods are kind and today they were.
58 sets of 8 in the 15: 15 protocol no problem.Except for the cascades of sweat that poured off me making my footing suspect, as well as screwing with my grip. Wet kettlebells, when you tryig to snatch as fast as you can and NOT tear calluses is not fun.
I have to replace the rubber mat on the platform with some kind of carpet, that's all there is to it.Tired of doing my snatches on a slip and slide. Plus, it make my feel filthy :))

Snatch Vo2
15:15 16 kg
no warmup

58 sets of 8 reps per cycle
464 reps
16,704 lbs

cardio was decent although sets 50- 58 were tougher. I was late on more than one set and made sure to get all my reps even though I wasnt getting as much rest/sets.right shoulder was just tight and I got zero warmup and not enough time to stretch.I can see where my old bottom was 35 sets now it's at leat 40-45. I can actually see where I will get 80 sets of 8 at some point!

not bad at all. here are the last sets.


One CB Sheild cast
15 lbs x 8/8 x 4 sets

Two CB Pendulums
2 15's x 5 sets of 8
for de pipes brah, de pipes.

datsit. I can feel my strength coming back due to the healing power of my stable routine, regular training, eating and ( sometimes) sleeping.

Power mind.

when I was strong

As usual, one never knows when a great workout is going to hit you.I told Tracy as I walked out to the gym today " I feel weak", and I did. Just flat.And I knew I had to fight with the 32 kg today because I havent done it in weeks and I know that's just what I needed to up my strength, and therefore my mass , a bit.But I thought it was going to be hell; getting back the momentum with the heavier bells and struggling to do even low rep sets.

Well,no.

I decided before I picked up the 16 kg for warmups that I needed to refocus and dust off my powerlifters mind set; the one I haven't used for more than three years but one I lived in 24/7 for more than fifteen.

I've been too afraid to use it the last three years as I was, as Gray Cook would say an "overpowered athlete". One whose stabilizers were way behind their ability to create force. I could, and have, easily rip myself apart. Ah, no more of that, thank you. Been there, done that, got the T shirt.So I totally backed off the idea of strength and focused on mobility stability and endurance, my weakest links.
Good idea and it's worked but today I am in a different hole. I need to gain back just a bit more bodyweight and mass so its back to a more 'strengthbased' mindset; at least for a bit. My stabilizers and overall symmetry can handle it. At least I hope so,lol.

I still want to obtain my ssst goals but first things first. Low reps, heavier weight and progressively higher sets.

Oh yeah, and more food throughout the day. Back to almonds and protein drinks for breakfast and lunch. Back to Warrior later.

So when I went to grip the bell today I cinched up on that bad boy and linked up like I was getting ready for a big deadlift.Then I loaded the lats and hips and thought about all the super crazy heavy good mornings and deadlifts I have done and how puny 72 pounds was and it should not even be a thought.

And it worked.Just like the old days.Nice.

One arm swings

16 kg x5/5x2

24kgx5/5x2

32 kg x

5/5

7/7

9/9 x 6 rounds

252 reps

18,144 lbs

these went very, very well.Pace was decent although I didnt rush at all. taking a very solid grip made a world of difference instead of trying to use a high in the palm hook grip. that just doesnt work for me with heavier weights.ALways focused mightily on compensatory acceleration and making each rep as fast and explosive as possible.

One CB Arm cast

15 lbs x8/8 x 2 sets

25 lbs x5/5 x 2 sets

WOW that 25 lb CB for sets of 5 in the single arm cast is NO JOKE!!! It took some serious control and I knew it was no joke as soon as I cleaned it. Which was no joke.It got my attention immediately. It was good to push a little extra heavy for a change.

Barbarian Casts

25lb x 8 reps x 6 sets/

this is great work for the lats, triceps,pecs and upper back. as well as shoulder mobility.Should help in the mass department as well.

datsit.time to eat.

Serious.Simple.

I've always been a serious guy. More than one person in my life has said they can't imagine me as a kid because I'm so serious and have been for so long. I guess it's true but it's just the way I am. If I'm going to do something I want to do it right, and if I want to accomplish something I always look at what the best are doing and try to imitate them.

In fact, one of the breakthroughs as I had as a gymnast was when I realized that there was no difference, performance wise, from trying to "learn" a trick and "copying" how the other person did it. I'm not sure that was ( is) the best path to Mastery, but at that point I cared more about repeatable performance than any Zen concept of Mastery.

I picked skills up much faster trying to just 'copy' what they were doing, kinesthetically, than "trying" to coordinate all the different sequences just so.

I had to know, definitively, what those positions were, and what the sequence was, so I could analyze it in my head, but when it was time to try the move I just had to "go".

I needed to "feel" it more than anything.

Once it got locked in the body, rather than the mind, I had a much better chance of being able to repeat it on demand.

So I've alwasy taken a pretty serious approach to any physical, on mental for that matter, endeavor and Bikrams is no exception. If I'm going to do something I want to be as progressive as possible to be the best I can.It's just 37 years of programming and I don't think it's going to change now.
Of course it changed when I was so injured I couldnt move but not really. Because I took as serious approach to my rehab and restoration as I did athletic competition.

I just thought of this this am as I 'warmed up' for class by doing z drills and stretching.Everyone else is just lying there waiting and I know if I dont do my ankle and hip circles my overhead work and my balancing single leg work won't be strong. So I gotta do it.

Two times per week seems to be good now as I had another very strong class with the exception of my first standing bow.I have to take some time and actually practive this asana outside the class and work on it.It's just so easy for me to miss my very very small balancing point I have on my left leg and fallout. Which pisses me off to no extent cause I KNOW I can do one minute continuously.

I also have to struggle with either looking in the mirror, as they prescribe, or being internal which I prefer.If I use the mirror it seems I have virtually NO margin for error when I start to lose balance. If I'm internal I have much better reaction time. More reflexive and less reactive to the "image" of myself losing balance. So much to work on :))

I also was taken by the simplicity of the class and the structure and how much that resonates with me and how it has throuhgout my training life.All throughout my training I have striven to make my training as simple as possible and plumb the depths of it as much as possible.It wasn't really a choice, it was what I was driven to do, and still am.There is that calm still place when It happens that brings me back again and again to it's peace and it's strength. The calm in the eye of the storm of life. That "zone" in the middle of the chaos.I loved to be there. Lived to be there.Still do.

But things need to be as simple as possible but no simpler( I think Einstein said that) so there is always that tight rope to walk with training and Bikrams is no exeption. In fact it freakin PUTS you on the tightrope.Great fun.

When I ran I just ran. When I did bodybuilding I picked the most intense moves and killed them( or I should say myself) rather than a smattering of low intensity movements here and there. Same with powerlifting. What's left in the tank after you get everything you can out of heavy squat or deadlift work?Simple, but not easy.Deep is always hard(er) but its the only way. At least that I know or can swear by.

It's the same with Z. I LOVE the freakin simplicity of doing circles with every joint in all the most basic ways they can make a circle and using that as the assessment tool. As much as I enjoyed all the crazy state of the art information that CK FMS gave to me the absolute simplicity and accessiblity of Z to everybody , immediately as a way to get better so appeals to the Zen monk in me.

And last but certainly not least; Enter the Kettlebell, the ultimate minimalists training tool.And the RKC School of Strength -simple as can be, but no simpler.Brilliant.

Simple.Doable.All one has to do is do.

And go figure, that's the hard part.

Tracy said the class today was as hot as always but for some reason it didnt seem as hot as normal.that's good and having made it through a full week of my normal training and work schedule makes me realize even more how vital routine, regularity and calm stability are essential ingredients if one is to make training progress. I don't know how anybody does it anyway. I'm not sure they do.

I also Really focused on breathing continuously through all my toughest poses and I know this made a big difference.When you hit a move that requires a lot of strength the natural( and correct) response is to hold the breath to increase tension, which increases strength( remember tension= tone= strength) I have to give up some of the strength so I don't gass out in that series and the remainder of the class.
Course it couldnt just been a good day:)) I'll take that too.

Swings tomorrow and I will be ready.

Snatch workout default: 5x5

Some pain from Monday

I need to up my body mass a bit so I have to get some heavier loads in and that means the 24 kg for me.But my hands are a mess from the max vo2 work on wednesday so that means low reps. Its a good set/rep scheme for me: I love being explosive for only a set of 10 and then taking a decent rest before repeating for as many sets as I can keep the bell speed up, and my hands together :))

I also always use these low rep sets to hold the top position extra long and work on that as well as get some static strength into my rotator cuff. I firmly believe that all the snatch hold work I've done for the last year and a half was mainly responsible for me being able to press the 32 kg last week from the tall kneeling position with no pain. A what the hell effect to be sure.Most excellent.

Snatch

16 kg x 5//5 x2

20 kg x5/5

24 kg x5/5x15 sets

150 reps

7960 pounds

Clubbell swings

2 15 lb Cbs x 20 reps x 5 sets

DId these as my elbows felt the need for the wonderful traction and resistance against an externally rotating torque at the top of the swing. Just really locks the scapula in so easily.The actual swipes are harder on the ankles for me and I dont get as much traction of the elbow and locking in of the shoulders.

Two hand shield cast

15 lb x10/10

25 lb x 8/8 x 4 sets

Havent done this in awhile and it was heavier than expected! Good to get this back in the mix as well. Clubbell work is so solid for tension through a 3D range of motion. hard to get any other way.

Thats it. A real week of training will be complete tomorrow when I make my second Bikrams class this week. Finally.I can feel the energy and strength returning to my body.Sleeping helps too :))

Next week will be even stronger.

datsit.

Bikrams is strength training.

At least for me.I was very happily suprised, when, after my two week layoff from my yoga practice my first day back was seriously strong.Now, conversely, my kb work was weak, go figure.I have definitely noticed when doing back to back yoga days how much weaker I am on day two. Not from an endurance standpoint but from a muscular strength perspective.
I am still at the level where I am fighting for full range of motion in the poses and my own body provides quite a good bit of resistance, making almost everything strength work.So I must rest more after each session as they tend to be higher intensity than volume for me. At least at this stage.
Except for my first standing bow where my left leg was just tired from the warmup and not grooved yet all the poses were solid and I had some prs as well,especially improved was my split leg forward head to knee pose. I couldnt even Start to put weight on the left leg for the first four sessions. today I got all the weight on the leg and halfway down with head to knee. Crazy!
I really could tell as well how tight my external rotation got so quickly. All the rear reaching poses were very hard to get started.But they opened up well and man could I feel how internal and flexed I have been from all the travel and NOT doing yoga.
It felt great to sweat and stretch hard again, although this studio is decidedly less hot that San Jose.This will be my strength day and sundays will be my 'just survive" conditioning day.The third day will be catch as catch can.

Dats it.namaste ya'all.

circles on the floor perhaps the best transverse plane movement of all time .

Bloody Kettlebells

I decided to not do the scheduled 36:36 protocol today and I knew I needed some heavier load,both weight wise and volume wise to get this old body back on track. the 36:36 primarily stresses my grip endurance and I don't need that right now.

Getting volume and intensity ramped back up now is the key.

So I chose the 20 kg for sets of 6 reps and 'lets see how many sets I can get" figuring up to an 85% effort or so.

But man, the 20 kg did not feel light at all today. And I ended up stressing the grip as well coming up with three blisters on two hands. Lovely.

I freaking HATE to miss workouts,lol. Coming back stinks.I tore about the 30th set and ended up fiddling with my grip a bit and almost tweaked my right shoulder. Big Important rule: as MRKC Brett Jones says, " an arm disconnected from the body will be punished". And he is right. I relearned that lesson today at a cheap price and won't forget it soon.

I can't believe how deconditioned I feel in only two weeks of relative slacking.I mean it's not THAT bad but compared to how I was just a few weeks ago it stinks. I know my first Bikram class(tomorrow)




will kick my ass hard.Oh well.

Snatch Vo2 15:15

20 kg

40 sets of 6

240 reps

10,560 lbs

used hardstyle over the top for both arms and it was a slow start. Like I had forgotten how to snatch I started in slow motion. Things picked up after set 15 or but MAN that 15 second went by fast. I tried to use the full 15 second by holding the top position a bit more. but this was more than I had planned for. Dats how it goes. Thank God Tracy was there to kick my ass a bit or I probably would have stopped at 30 sets, lol.

This was one tough workout and really showed me how fast and easy it is to get out of top shape.The reason I was quiet in the workout was because I could barely breathe,lol.

I also used the fan and Tracy asked " are you actually going to use the fan?"I said " hell yes" I just wanted to survive today. Wait til Bikrams gets me ".

Clubbell Mills

15 lb CB

20/20

18/18

15/15

good to do these again but there were tough,mainly cause the sweat was killing my grip,lol.hands were trashed.

Clubbell Barbarian press

25 LB x 20

20x2

15x2

always interesting pressing in the transverse plane.Great for the pecs, triceps and elbow lock.need to up the mass a bit for awhile.

so dats it. Will try to make bikrams r

It's good to be back in the body again.

Man I hate traveling. Just freakin hate it.I love teaching at certs but I sure do hate getting out of my routine. It totally messes up my training and anything that messes with my training and my simple, basic life is tough.I have trained for shit for the last two weeks and I can really feel it. I have just never been one of these "catch as catch can" workout guys. I need regularity, consistency and stability to make progress. Otherwise I feel like I am just going backwards, perhaps slowly,perhaps not so slowly, and it makes me nuts.
Plus I require lots of 'downtime' in the form of active and inactive rehab: stretching, Z drills, yoga, meditation and just rest to really be at my best and being on the road is just not conducive to it.
That being said I am SO glad I went to the CK FMS workshop although my head is still spinning from all the insane data ,exercises and drills. Hell, the SYSTEM itself, that it will take some time to really "grok" it. But this is the real deal for corrective exercise. Of that there is no doubt. Gray Cook is a freakin genius , the Pavel of corretive strategies if you will, and his system is as good at what it does I would bet, as the RKC is as what we do.
But getting back to my home, and my routine feels SO good.
I did do a little swing/snatch workout at the cert yesterday during lunch time and it felt good. I have to learn how to do these little workouts and not stress about them not being " real" training. Just something to get the blood where it needs to be

Sunday's workout
snatches
16 kg
20 kg
24 kg x 5/5 x 5 rounds

these were done as straight sets. A set with the 16, rest, the a set with the 20 then the 24 the start over.Light and fast.Got to train alongside SRKC Jeff O'Conner which was great. The man is just freaking STRONG.

Swings
24 kg one arm swings
5/5 x10 sets
100 reps
short and crisp work

THEN

during the corrective exercise lab we were doing we had to do Tall kneeling presses.SO basically you are kneeling withe the hips in full extension and pressing a kb with one arm
I haven't pressed ANYTHING in a year and a half and brought out a 16 kg so as not to mess my delicate :) right shoulder up.
Long story, short I pressed the 16, the 24 and then the 32 kg EASILY and Team Leader doug Nepodal was my partner and witnessed it. It's no big deal as far as weight except for the fact I ahvent pressed anything in so long, weigh 10 lbs less than I did when I pressed it before AND it didnt hurt at all.ALl those snatches and snatch holds really DID re-build my rotator. way cool.

Today

One arm Swings
16kg x10/10
20kg x10/10

24 kg x10/10 with 36 seconds rest between sets
10 sets
200 reps

24 kg transfers
20 rep sets with 36 sec rest between sets.

this was very cool as I was alternating work sets with Tracy as she did her 36:36 mac Vo2 protocol.I didnt think I would get near as far as I did with 1:.5 work to rest ratio,especially after all those missed workouts but it was no problem.

Clubbell Arm Casts
15 lb clubs x 10/10 + 5/5 sheild casts as well

just trying to time things to Tracy's work to rest ratio. This was just a get back on the horse workout.

Snatch holds
16 kg x 72 sec per arm, 4 sets each.

again more work to her work rest ratio. It was so good to hear Gray validate how solid these and waiters walks are for stabilizing and working the rotator cuff and the shoulder in general.One of these days I will be able to do waiters walks on the right side. Can't wait.FOr now these will have to do.

datsit. REALLY REALLY REALLY need some sleep and some rest.And get back in my routine.

Snatch practice.

Talking with Zachariah Salazar, one of my assistants and Z health genius.I learned TONS from him this weekend. Totally cool guy as well.


The most frustrating part of teaching at certs for me is the traveling. I am the total homebody and hate leaving my cave,especially since my gym is attatched.I love the stability and simplicity of having everything I need right at my fingertips; it makes hard training and the recovery needed to actual adapt and progress to a new level of fitness possible.It makes progressive training so much easier to do.Your intensity of training is ALWAYS limited by your recovery ability.So the more stable your home life the harder you can train. This has always been a guiding pricniple in my life because, quite simply, my life has revolved around training since I was 14. I'm used to it this way.I like it.
Travel always messes with me badly, although nowhere near as bad as when my knee and back were so jacked up I could barely walk two blocks without needing an hour on the foam roller.
This was much different though when I was a powerlifter:lifting WAY more weight than my body should have and requiring tons of recovery, both active and passive( can you say feet up protein shake in hand?).
Now that my goal is a " back of iron, and legs that never quit" and my focus is on work capacity training and overall resilient endurance travel, and life are WAY easier. But it still messes with me and I still have lessons to learn.
Or, more acurately, to remember.
Now I remember why I don't train on wednesdays; it's called a taper and I still need it.My 60 sets of max vo2 were great but DOMS set in the next day( 24 hours early) and on Thursday night my knee felt like it usual does on Sunday night. It didnt shake out til Saturday but I learned a good lesson.
Sometimes not training is better.Yoga would have been better.Live and learn.
Plus, it totally jacks up my training schedule.Normally I would train on mondays but we got in way late and I was back up at 4am for a full compliment of clients. Come 2 pm there was no juice.Which means I missed saturdays and mondays and have to take off wednesday 'cause I just learned a lesson: taper.
Course the CK FMS will have lots of training, albeit a different type, with bells for me.I guess the next thing for me to adapt to is the 'very short' travel workout. For me, unless it's in a gym with a plan it's not training and its hard for me to get my head into "just go outside and bust out some snatches" between lectures. Not my thing.But I will have to get something together cause it looks like I'm gonna be traveling ,lol.
So just a light, get back on the horse workout. Its said that "eating just makes you hungry" and it looks like "not training makes you lazy". I think that never losing momentum , no matter how small, is the key to long term training progress.Overcoming inertia is a bitch.Time for some snatch practice, low reps and multiple weights

Snatch
16 kg 5x5
20 kg 5x5
24 kg 5x5
300 reps
13,300 lbs

10 rounds of each laddering up in weight. this was suprisingly easy and fun. it should be, only 100 reps with the 24 kg but it still felt right to do.

H2H transfers
20 kg x 25 reps x 4 sets
100 reps
4400 lbs

these were solid. more in the legs and hips. rest periods getting shorter. but still a minute or so.

Swipes
2 15 lb CBs x 15 reps x 4 sets
60 reps

Two hand CB flag press
15 x10/10
25x 8/8x2

alright. Bikrams tomorrow( lol, how much am I going to get my ass kicked tomorow?) then off to the CK FMS. This is gonna be a blast; it seems like the entire Master, Senior, Team Leader, and RKC 2 team are going to be in attendance. Cool shoes.

datsit. gotta eat more.

Master Instructor

It was one long, hot hard weekend at the first ever UCLA RKC certification but as usual how the weekend ended was far different than how it began. Team Rif came together and transformed itself from the ragtag group of kettlebell neophytes to a smooth strong group of RKCs in short order! It ALWAYS amazes, impresses and suprises me just how much a person can transform in such a short time,ESPECIALLY after spending two exhausting days doing utnold hours of swings, snatches presses, getups and squats! And each minute,their form, their attitude and their heart gets better and better and better.

We did not have internet access due to being in the dorms at the University( another story,later) so we couldnt post til now and it O dark 30 and I have to get to work , so a full report has to come later.
BUT, I am very pleased and honored to announce that at the end of the weekend both Kenneth Jay and I were promoted to the rank of Master RKC Instructor .I had no idea this was coming and I couldn't be happier with this incredible honor.I will do my best to live up to the expectations and responsiblities that the rank requires.

More later, Tracy has tons of photos we need to download and organize so there will be lots to see. Who needs sleep?