It is a task of every person to specialize in something, be it mental, physical or spiritual. In every arena of specialty there is a point to dig in, to push and work toward greater comprehension, to re-delegate time and energy to making it through the tough spot. This is what separates earnest interest from "just a passing phase." This is "getting over the hump."
If you don't know exactly what you want to specialize in, here is my suggested starting place: What do you take the extra time to learn about? What fascinates you, and has always fascinated you? What will you loose track of time doing? This is where you stand a good chance to excel.
If you've read this far you may be wondering, What does this have to do with kettlebell fitness, Christian?
I'll tell you. Lately I've had the great satisfaction of hearing how extremely difficult kettlebell lifting actually is. Many athletes dabble in the beginning, but few will "get over the hump" as one expert trainer put it.
It's true, there is the awkward beginning of completely re-aligning the lower body posture in the chair squat, add to that the never-easy chest opening experience of wall-squatting, and then there is a weight to pick up. The initial learning curve will either enthrall or disenchant people.
And that's not the end. Next there is the brutal wrist-banging experience of learning to clean the weight. Enter the time and efficiency component. We have a finite amount of physical strength to focus on any one training session, so if "putting on the glove" solves it, great! You have the makings of a true kettlebell athlete! For most of us, bruise-free cleaning is a matter of going back to the beginning, re-learning the leg work of one-arm swings, and humbling ourselves to lesser weights as we embark on building more skills.
If you are at either of these major humps in kettlebell lifting, I offer this thought. Giving a season to kettlebell skills training will improve your focus and coordination for many other athletic pursuits. Great teachers acknowledge that training a form until boredom sets in is the only way to breakthrough. There are seasons to all things, the key is being present with the current.
Finally, consider the story of my kettlebell coaches Ken Blackburn and Steve Cotter. They are currently in Russia at a kettlebell sport training camp, learning from world class coaches and athletes. In one meaningful facebook post, Steve mentioned the humbling experience of having his form efficiently dissected on the first day of camp. This is a guy who rose to fame several years ago with his impressive kettlebell-specific DVD series, including Encyclopedia of Kettlebell Lifting, joined forces with his fellow trainer (Blackburn) to break the RKC mold and sweep the world with International Kettlebell and Fitness Federation in the course of 2 years, all the while hosting and competing in Kettlebell Sport Competitions.
If you really want to get over the hump remember this: It's never too late to learn and build on what you already know.
Best wishes to all for a fantastic season,
Christian Goldberg
www.MindBodyEnergetics.us
kettlebellfitness@yahoo.com
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Mobility and Auxilliary Exercises for Lifters
It's almost Kettlebell Skills Clinic time again, and by request I'm doing a two-hour session to teach joint mobility and auxiliary exercises to weight lifters. This is a sorely needed clinic in weight lifting circles.
Mobility and range-of-motion is a down played part of physical fitness. Leave it for the yogis, right?
Guess again. It is an actual fact that low-back (particularly sacral) pain is directly related with neck pain. Shoulder, particularly deltoids pain is typically a problem of incorrect alignment within the shoulder joint. If you are an athlete with chronic problems in these key areas, you have not incorporated enough flexibility into your workouts. Much pain and suffering can be alleviated with just a few recovery exercises in between sets.
Okay, so maybe you can boast the ability to squat your hip bones down to the floor. Can you do it with your arms locked out overhead? If so, excellent! Teach me how you did that! If you are like the rest of us, there are some gaps in your conditioning due to a top or bottom heavy lifting program. I mean literally, most lifters focus only on working body parts they want to build up and ignore the rest. A well-rounded athlete will put the extra 10 minutes into strengthening the underused angles before ending a workout.
I don't profess to be a world-class trainer, but I've got some ideas to pass along to gym folk and casual exercisers alike.
Take my Joint Mobility and Auxiliary Exercise Clinic Saturday May 14th at Flatirons Crossfit, 4847 Pearl Street. 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
http://mindbodyenergetics.us/kettlebells.html
For $20, it's the best price you'll get for long-term injury prevention and workout know-how.
Mobility and range-of-motion is a down played part of physical fitness. Leave it for the yogis, right?
Guess again. It is an actual fact that low-back (particularly sacral) pain is directly related with neck pain. Shoulder, particularly deltoids pain is typically a problem of incorrect alignment within the shoulder joint. If you are an athlete with chronic problems in these key areas, you have not incorporated enough flexibility into your workouts. Much pain and suffering can be alleviated with just a few recovery exercises in between sets.
Okay, so maybe you can boast the ability to squat your hip bones down to the floor. Can you do it with your arms locked out overhead? If so, excellent! Teach me how you did that! If you are like the rest of us, there are some gaps in your conditioning due to a top or bottom heavy lifting program. I mean literally, most lifters focus only on working body parts they want to build up and ignore the rest. A well-rounded athlete will put the extra 10 minutes into strengthening the underused angles before ending a workout.
I don't profess to be a world-class trainer, but I've got some ideas to pass along to gym folk and casual exercisers alike.
Take my Joint Mobility and Auxiliary Exercise Clinic Saturday May 14th at Flatirons Crossfit, 4847 Pearl Street. 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
http://mindbodyenergetics.us/kettlebells.html
For $20, it's the best price you'll get for long-term injury prevention and workout know-how.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Kettlebell Safety and Definitions
It's worth doing at least once on my new blog. I welcome comments and discussion on the following opinions.
Build up gradually. No matter your previous training, work gradually when changing exercise formats or increasing work days to allow muscular structure to build naturally.
Practice the new and technical stuff first. If you have recently learned a new technique, put it at the beginning of workouts until it is familiar. Moves you have practiced before, such as Turkish get up and screw press, can be a dangerous challenge if attempted at the wrong time in a workout. If you need a spotter for specific lifts, don't practice without one.
Grinding work (defined as lifts that start with the weight at a stationary position, such as deadlift or squat). Select a weight that will be a challenge by the end of each set. Sometimes body weight is enough!
Super set (defined as practicing exercises that require different primary muscle groups back-to-back, such as shoulder press, followed by squat, followed by bent over rows). For a very efficient workout, make a circuit with 4 to 6 exercises that all require a different muscle action. Work through your circuit 3 to 6 times.
Momentum work (defined as exercises that initiates with the weight in motion and uses of a specific muscle firing sequence to propel the weight through it's entire range, such as kettlebell clean or snatch). Momentum sets work best when isolated away from grinding sets, as the breathing patterns are different.
Finish well. Sustained stretching and physical therapy-type drills are appropriate after a work out. Deck rolling, cobra stretches and neck recovery are excellent habits at the end of a training session. These little things will support total rest and prevent over-use stress from building up over time.
Have plenty of drinking water, a source of quick carbohydrates or protein after your workout.
See my website for more information about Kettlebell Fitness classes available in Boulder:
www.mindbodyenergetics.us
To be on my free event email list:
kettlebellfitness@yahoo.com
Build up gradually. No matter your previous training, work gradually when changing exercise formats or increasing work days to allow muscular structure to build naturally.
- Newbies may start with 1 or 2 kettlebell workouts per week and can build up to 3 workouts/week within the first few months.
- Seasoned athletes can start with 2 or 3 and work up to 5 kettlebell workouts per week for a deep conditioning phase.
- As a peak training phase, 6 kettlebell workouts/week is brutal, intense and will not last as a long-term program.
Practice the new and technical stuff first. If you have recently learned a new technique, put it at the beginning of workouts until it is familiar. Moves you have practiced before, such as Turkish get up and screw press, can be a dangerous challenge if attempted at the wrong time in a workout. If you need a spotter for specific lifts, don't practice without one.
Grinding work (defined as lifts that start with the weight at a stationary position, such as deadlift or squat). Select a weight that will be a challenge by the end of each set. Sometimes body weight is enough!
Super set (defined as practicing exercises that require different primary muscle groups back-to-back, such as shoulder press, followed by squat, followed by bent over rows). For a very efficient workout, make a circuit with 4 to 6 exercises that all require a different muscle action. Work through your circuit 3 to 6 times.
Momentum work (defined as exercises that initiates with the weight in motion and uses of a specific muscle firing sequence to propel the weight through it's entire range, such as kettlebell clean or snatch). Momentum sets work best when isolated away from grinding sets, as the breathing patterns are different.
Finish well. Sustained stretching and physical therapy-type drills are appropriate after a work out. Deck rolling, cobra stretches and neck recovery are excellent habits at the end of a training session. These little things will support total rest and prevent over-use stress from building up over time.
Have plenty of drinking water, a source of quick carbohydrates or protein after your workout.
See my website for more information about Kettlebell Fitness classes available in Boulder:
www.mindbodyenergetics.us
To be on my free event email list:
kettlebellfitness@yahoo.com
Friday, April 22, 2011
Spring Training
Spring Training, the gateway between Winter sports and Summer sports. Most athletes make a change of sport at this time. Weekend-warriors try to reinforce New Year's Resolutions. The Earth is so inspiring, many of us want to improve our skills and establishing new short-term goals in the Spring.
How to make the most of this new annual energy? Here are a few tips:
Decide what you want to focus on and get into it! Not everyone can motivate to do solo exercise, so find your workout group, practice buddy or team mates. Exercising alone can become too serious. All athletes can benefit from having friends around to keep it light. Don't give away your workout time. If it's on your schedule, do it!
Improve your habits at the beginning! If you noticed weaknesses or missing skills last year, make it better this time. Start with the full enchilada and keep all the parts of a complete workout. Warm-up, focus on skills, push your edge during the workout, and stretch out before calling it a day.
Find an advanced trainer or coach! If you are doing a sport year after year, why not take it up a notch. Nothing adds spice like training for competition or certification.
Start at a reasonable pace! Creaky joints and unused muscles will need some time to acclimate to higher levels of activity. Pace yourself and put extra time into cooling down for the first few weeks. Early season injuries put a kink in the joy of Spring, so keep your head, start gently until you hit a good stride.
Sign up for my Kettlebell Fitness email newsletter for updates on Open Park Practices/group hikes (free!), Kettlebell Skills Clinics ($20) and ongoing Kettlebell Fitness classes!
Email me at KettlebellFitness@yahoo.com
Ongoing Kettlebell classes and Registration available on my website: www.MindBodyEnergetics.us
How to make the most of this new annual energy? Here are a few tips:
Decide what you want to focus on and get into it! Not everyone can motivate to do solo exercise, so find your workout group, practice buddy or team mates. Exercising alone can become too serious. All athletes can benefit from having friends around to keep it light. Don't give away your workout time. If it's on your schedule, do it!
Improve your habits at the beginning! If you noticed weaknesses or missing skills last year, make it better this time. Start with the full enchilada and keep all the parts of a complete workout. Warm-up, focus on skills, push your edge during the workout, and stretch out before calling it a day.
Find an advanced trainer or coach! If you are doing a sport year after year, why not take it up a notch. Nothing adds spice like training for competition or certification.
Start at a reasonable pace! Creaky joints and unused muscles will need some time to acclimate to higher levels of activity. Pace yourself and put extra time into cooling down for the first few weeks. Early season injuries put a kink in the joy of Spring, so keep your head, start gently until you hit a good stride.
Sign up for my Kettlebell Fitness email newsletter for updates on Open Park Practices/group hikes (free!), Kettlebell Skills Clinics ($20) and ongoing Kettlebell Fitness classes!
Email me at KettlebellFitness@yahoo.com
Ongoing Kettlebell classes and Registration available on my website: www.MindBodyEnergetics.us
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
A note on Practice Partners
I give the words Practice Partners capital letters because, much like someone you would call Mrs. or Sir, they must be given respect. On an athletic team, one missing player will affect the entire game. In kettlebell lifting, the Practice Partner can make all the difference in a safe, efficient workout. Once you find a good lifting Partner you miss them when they're gone!
In the learning phase, Practice Partners can be a mirror for correct form. Proper guidance in those first 100 chair squats will set up long-term patterns, so we rely on our coaches and workout buddies to start on the right foot. Partner corrective exercises depend upon that person.
Once the basics are in hand, Practice Partners are not only our mirrors, but can be our motivation. Take the Kettlebell Fitness group, for example. We can fit 5, maybe 6 people into a class. When we have that many, the energy is palpable. People feed off each other, watch for subtle lifting moves, follow recovery ideas, it's a contagious learning environment. If a group has worked together for even 3 practices, and one person is gone on the 4th practice, everyone wants to know where he/she is.
In our second season of Kettlebell Fitness and Mountain Club, I'm looking forward to seeing you all in the Open Park Practices and hikes. More participants make it educational and fun!
You are all invited to Scott Carpenter Park this Saturday, the 16th from 10 am to 2 pm for however much kettlebell fun you can endure.
Thanks for practicing with kettlebells!
In the learning phase, Practice Partners can be a mirror for correct form. Proper guidance in those first 100 chair squats will set up long-term patterns, so we rely on our coaches and workout buddies to start on the right foot. Partner corrective exercises depend upon that person.
Once the basics are in hand, Practice Partners are not only our mirrors, but can be our motivation. Take the Kettlebell Fitness group, for example. We can fit 5, maybe 6 people into a class. When we have that many, the energy is palpable. People feed off each other, watch for subtle lifting moves, follow recovery ideas, it's a contagious learning environment. If a group has worked together for even 3 practices, and one person is gone on the 4th practice, everyone wants to know where he/she is.
In our second season of Kettlebell Fitness and Mountain Club, I'm looking forward to seeing you all in the Open Park Practices and hikes. More participants make it educational and fun!
You are all invited to Scott Carpenter Park this Saturday, the 16th from 10 am to 2 pm for however much kettlebell fun you can endure.
Thanks for practicing with kettlebells!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Consistency and the Three P's
Much as I dislike being one of those coaches who harps on people about establishing healthy habits and routines, I'm going there today because, well, it's my second blog post and I must do it at least once.
Most of us have come to understand that we are, in fact, creatures of habit. We establish rote routines throughout life via a process of careful experimentation.
"Wait, What?! Experimentation?" you might be saying. "I thought we were talking about habits here. Aren't those the mindless, autopilot activities I do without thinking?"
One word, consistency. All habits are designed with near scientific precision. We teach ourselves how to produce specific result with consistent actions. Through repetition these consistent choices develop into habits, which we use to efficiently free our energy for relaxation and more immediate problem solving.
At this point let me pass along the most complete examination of habits I've found to date. The Three P's. (My kettlebell students will recognize the Three P's as reasons for doing joint mobility and recovery exercises before, during and after a workout.)
P #1: Preparation. In practical terms this is a 5 to 15 minute physical routine, such as range of motion drills and core warm-up exercises, to prepare your body to work under load. In higher level training, this is periodically meeting with a coach to evaluate your form and develop a workout program to meet your goals, or taking workshops to freshen up your technique. Preparation is a habit that separates casual gym goers from serious athletes.
P #2: Prevention. Injury prevention is an important habit for longevity in a sport. Many kettlebell lifters use joint mobility, range of motion and recovery exercises to keep them active for decades. Another side of prevention is knowing when to stop. Overwork is a main cause of athletic injuries. High-level athletes use post-workout recovery routines to prevent soreness and overuse injuries from intense workouts.
P #3: Performance. Often overlooked in casual workout situations, performance habits are the small physical twitches, gestures and exhalations Olympians use when preparing to compete. Consistent use of recovery exercises, specific breathing patterns and unweighted movements influence our ability to achieve higher levels of mastery.
Next time you go to the gym I invite you to take a look at how you approach the entire experience. Have you built consistency into your workout routine? Can you identify the Three P's in your athletic training habits?
Having fun is just as important as staying focused on the workout, so please take all habits lightly.
Most of us have come to understand that we are, in fact, creatures of habit. We establish rote routines throughout life via a process of careful experimentation.
"Wait, What?! Experimentation?" you might be saying. "I thought we were talking about habits here. Aren't those the mindless, autopilot activities I do without thinking?"
One word, consistency. All habits are designed with near scientific precision. We teach ourselves how to produce specific result with consistent actions. Through repetition these consistent choices develop into habits, which we use to efficiently free our energy for relaxation and more immediate problem solving.
At this point let me pass along the most complete examination of habits I've found to date. The Three P's. (My kettlebell students will recognize the Three P's as reasons for doing joint mobility and recovery exercises before, during and after a workout.)
P #1: Preparation. In practical terms this is a 5 to 15 minute physical routine, such as range of motion drills and core warm-up exercises, to prepare your body to work under load. In higher level training, this is periodically meeting with a coach to evaluate your form and develop a workout program to meet your goals, or taking workshops to freshen up your technique. Preparation is a habit that separates casual gym goers from serious athletes.
P #2: Prevention. Injury prevention is an important habit for longevity in a sport. Many kettlebell lifters use joint mobility, range of motion and recovery exercises to keep them active for decades. Another side of prevention is knowing when to stop. Overwork is a main cause of athletic injuries. High-level athletes use post-workout recovery routines to prevent soreness and overuse injuries from intense workouts.
P #3: Performance. Often overlooked in casual workout situations, performance habits are the small physical twitches, gestures and exhalations Olympians use when preparing to compete. Consistent use of recovery exercises, specific breathing patterns and unweighted movements influence our ability to achieve higher levels of mastery.
Next time you go to the gym I invite you to take a look at how you approach the entire experience. Have you built consistency into your workout routine? Can you identify the Three P's in your athletic training habits?
Having fun is just as important as staying focused on the workout, so please take all habits lightly.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Kettle Balls?
A bowling ball with a handle?
Yes, that is frequently how both steel and cast iron kettlebells are described.
An old strength endurance tool from Russia, the original word "girya" indicated a counter weight for shipyard scales. The person who moved the girya was known as the "giryvek" or "kettlebell man."
This all makes since to look at the things. They are bottom-heavy, like a rounded bucket full of metal with a built-in handle for ease of maneuvering.
Once a person as seen one the shape is unmistakable, but the name is often mistaken.
As a trainer of kettlebells I've heard everything, kettle balls, cow bells, cow balls.... it's a little out of control.
In the early days of my kb lifting practice I even asked "do they ring..?" Well, some of them actually do have loose steel inside which creates a chiming sound when in action.
So to de-mystify the name for my friends and fellow lifters, I looked it up on good old Wikipedia and found the original us of the word "bell".
It all starts with dumb bell. According to my Wikipedia source, and the Oxford Dictionaries online, the solid clacker of a church bell was in fact used for strength training back in the 18th century. As it was the silent part of the instrument, the word "dumb"discribed it as being soundless.
oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0248810
This does not explain why weightlifters carried over the suffix with "barbell" other than the convenience of word recognition. Infact, many "old time" strongmen trained with a variety of objects, both symetrical and asymetrical, farm tools, mechanical parts, some even resembling train axles. A main characteristic of these object is that they are made of metal. This makes them very consistent, which is my favorite feature of my training tool of choice, the kettlebell.
Yes, that is frequently how both steel and cast iron kettlebells are described.
An old strength endurance tool from Russia, the original word "girya" indicated a counter weight for shipyard scales. The person who moved the girya was known as the "giryvek" or "kettlebell man."
This all makes since to look at the things. They are bottom-heavy, like a rounded bucket full of metal with a built-in handle for ease of maneuvering.
Once a person as seen one the shape is unmistakable, but the name is often mistaken.
As a trainer of kettlebells I've heard everything, kettle balls, cow bells, cow balls.... it's a little out of control.
In the early days of my kb lifting practice I even asked "do they ring..?" Well, some of them actually do have loose steel inside which creates a chiming sound when in action.
So to de-mystify the name for my friends and fellow lifters, I looked it up on good old Wikipedia and found the original us of the word "bell".
It all starts with dumb bell. According to my Wikipedia source, and the Oxford Dictionaries online, the solid clacker of a church bell was in fact used for strength training back in the 18th century. As it was the silent part of the instrument, the word "dumb"discribed it as being soundless.
oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0248810
This does not explain why weightlifters carried over the suffix with "barbell" other than the convenience of word recognition. Infact, many "old time" strongmen trained with a variety of objects, both symetrical and asymetrical, farm tools, mechanical parts, some even resembling train axles. A main characteristic of these object is that they are made of metal. This makes them very consistent, which is my favorite feature of my training tool of choice, the kettlebell.
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