Friday, December 30, 2011

WOD- Max Effort 1 Repeat

WOD:

3 Rounds of Max Weight (Ramp up the load each set)

Turkish Getup: 1 rep max
Bottom-up Clean and Press: 5 rep max (each side)
Suitcase Deadlift: 10 rep max (each side)

Compare with: 10/20/11

Saturday, Dec 31st Schedule Change

READ CAREFULLY!!

There is ONLY a 9am and 10am class.  There will be no 8am class.

Look for your name so you know which class I have you attending.  If you have to change the time (or else not attend), please feel free to do so, although the numbers work better for me if we stick to what I have below.

9am Class

Gabe
Mark
Kathy
Linda
Jaime
Leslie B.
Amy
Mahmood

10am Class

Larry
Fritz
Sharon
Maria
Mary
Doug
Victor

Thanks,

Jason

Thursday, December 22, 2011

WOD- Cardio 6 REPEAT

AMRAP (as many reps as possible for each exercise in the given time frame prescribed.)

Turkish Getups- 5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Clean and Press - 5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Snatches -  5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Compare to 9/16/11

Friday, December 16, 2011

WOD- Max Effort 4 REPEAT

Directions:  End with the highest weight possible for the given exercise and repetitions. Spend 3-5 sets getting to that heaviest weight.  Log the weight, and if it is different on the left and right arm.

Windmill - 5RM

Reverse Lunge- 5RM

Lateral Lunge- 5RM

1 Arm Swing - 10RM

Compare to 9/30/11

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Kettlebell Workshop Jan 29th, 12noon-4pm

Hi Everyone,

    I will be holding a kettlebell workshop at CrossFit Diesel on Jan 29th from 12noon- 4pm.   It is open to the first 40 registrants.  I have  included the direct link to pay online for registration.  If you are interested, please register asap.  If you know anyone who might be interested, please pass this email onto them.  I could really use everyone's help in promoting this workshop.  It's success will allow me to continue holding workshop at their location in the future, and as such, could be great for growing Maryland Kettlebells.  So send this email to everyone you know in the local area, and tell everyone how great of an instructor I am, as well as how kettlebells has changed your life! 

Registration: http://clients.mindbodyonline.com/ws.asp?studioid=6845&stype=43&prodid=127

Friday, December 9, 2011

WOD- Cardio 6 REPEAT

AMRAP (as many reps as possible for each exercise in the given time frame prescribed.)

Turkish Getups- 5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Clean and Press - 5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Snatches -  5 minutes (prescribed weight: 35# male/ 8k female)

Compare to 9/16/11

Friday, December 2, 2011

WOD- Max Effort 3 REPEAT

Directions: Over the course of 3-5 sets, work up to the heaviest weight possible for each exercise assigned.  Post your max weight in the comments section for each exercise.

Clean and Jerk - 5RM (Max weight for 5 repetitions on each arm)

Snatch -  5RM (Max weight for 5 repetitions on each arm)

Thrusters -  5RM (Max weight for 5 repetitions*)

* Use 2 kettlebells (1 in each hand) for the thrusters if possible.

Compare to 9/23/11

Saturday, November 26, 2011

What Are You Thankful For?

Right now we’re living in a time when the economy is rough, Sundays are no longer days of rest, the risk of diseases and cancer are high, and there are more broken families than ever before.
With all the negative, we’re all still finding a way to survive and get strong(er).
Extraordinary Resolve.
We find a way to conquer no matter what, no matter how.
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we want to know what YOU are thankful for. Let us know in the comment section below.

What are you thankful for?

And for you those of you like me who work hard to be strong, this compilation is for you! 

Extraordinary resolve is not just found in adults....

 

Friday, November 25, 2011

WOD- Cardio 5 REPEAT

Descending Ladder ( Record time to completion and weight used)

Turkish Getup - 1 rep each set on each side

             Followed by:

1 Arm Snatches - 10, 9, 8,....1 reps

Directions: Start on your back. Use turkish getup to stand up, perform your 10 snatches, then leave the bell up on the 10th snatch.  Return to the ground, reversing your turkish getup.  Switch sides, repeating the same sequence.  When you return to the first side, once you are standing, you will only perform 9 snatches, then go back down to the ground.  You will continue in the descending pattern until you end with 1 turkish getup and 1 snatch on each arm. 

Compare to 9/3/11

Monday, November 21, 2011

You Have to Swing Those Bells!

Do you face three of the same challenges that I regularly confront with my conditioning?
  1. I hate doing cardio in pretty much any form.
  2. I don’t have huge amounts of time to focus on conditioning because getting time to do my strength work can be an issue.
  3. I don’t have (or have access to) a Prowler.
Before some douche bag trainer from the Biggest Loser goes all medieval on my arse and tells me to find a hill and sprint up it until I lose my cookies or grow a pair, indulge me for a moment. I never really saw the point in running unless it involved someone chasing me or me chasing a ball. The whole concept of a “Fun Run” is really one of the great oxymorons of the modern age. However, I have found an alternative that allows me to complete some butt kicking conditioning work without going anywhere near a hill, all in the span of twelve to seventeen minutes (twenty if you include a warm-up period).

The answer—kettlebells. In my mind, there are four main kettlebell exercises—kettlebell swings and their variations, kettlebell snatches, kettlebell clean and presses, and Turkish get-ups.

My conditioning program is simple. I pick two of these exercises, do one of them for ten to twelve minutes, and then do the other exercise for five minutes. With kettlebell swings, two arm, single arm, and alternating arm versions are all fine, and I often mix each of them into the same session, particularly when they form the longer portion of the workout.

At the end of this workout, your heart will be pounding and almost your entire posterior chain will be screaming. Put the kettlebells away, walk around to get your breath back, get your bag, and get on with your life.
I will acknowledge up front that the workouts can be as boring as hell, but I make no apologies for this. I’ll take boring but brutally effective over mind numbing treadmill work any day. Focusing on holding on to your last meal can make the time pass quickly. Believe me. The key to getting through the workout is to focus on ensuring your technique is sound and remains that way for the duration. Once you get over the five-minute mark, fatigue will set in, and for the next five to seven minutes, a technical failure may result in an unwanted injury. If your technique starts to fail you, stop the exercise and move to another exercise. As my mother use to say, an ounce of prevention beats a pound of cure.

Pavel Tsatsouline has written extensively on all things kettlebell related, including proper technique. Sample technique videos are available on my blog and my youtube page and I strongly recommend you study these prior to commencing with this protocol. The protocols presented here are variations on work presented by Pavel, particularly the ten-minute clean and press challenge. For this, I will forever be indebted to him.

One of my favorite variations is to line up four kettlebells of progressively lighter weight and perform twenty repetitions at the heaviest weight. Then I move to the next lightest for twenty repetitions and continue down the chain to the lightest weight before working my way back up the chain. While it’s mentally pleasing to move down the chain with the weight getting lighter, the mental challenge in moving back up the chain is significant.

For those who don’t have access to kettlebells, dumbbells can be used, but take care with your grip if you use two hands when doing swings. I also suggest that you give alternating arm swings a miss with dumbbells.
So the next time you’re contemplating another boring conditioning session for you, mix it up and bring on a kettlebell challenge. Even a two-minute challenge will be significant for an inexperienced client. Remember, you have to swing them bells!