3.15.2013

Strength Bit

My brains a bit scattered right now as I write this post, probably because I have a lot of lifting related things on my mind right now. First and foremost I did a deadlift session this week for shits and giggles and also threw my wife a curveball and let her test her max. Needless to say she did not disappoint and once again stole the show with a 14# PR, 2.5x bodyweight, 300# deadlift - raw dog. Beast mode activated:

It's true, she serves as an inspiration to all the ladies and gentlemen out there, myself included. I suspect she'll be knocking on the 315# door in a couple of months.

Another thing on my mind is a good friend is about to get his smolov test day on and I can't help but feel like a parent watching their child step up to perform, knowing i'll be proud of him regardless of how he does. I'm not taking credit for his lifts, just saying i significantly contributed to him doing the routine to begin with, in a peer pressure kind of way. Peer pressure is kind of my super power. Additionally i know how much hard freakin work goes into completing this squat program, so whatever he PRs with he definitely deserves it. Although, so help me if this dude beats me on my squat PR, I will probably belt up right then and there and in a blind rage of fury crush me some squats which would be a fairly stupid idea, but sometimes you just have to throwdown. 

Final thought, I'm starting a Strength focused class at my crossfit gym to get all them yo pros strong. Most of them have an endurance-y background so getting them stronger will be a fairly straight forward project. However it's my first official crossfit class and I get to control programming and a WOD so i'm kind of excited, like first day of school excited.  I'll be basing the workouts off a conjugate style approach, and keeping their metcons fairly short and focused. The class will be a different vibe than what their used to, but it'll be fun. 

3.9.2013

Strength Bit

quick workout update:  i've been getting back into my olympic lifts lately after a frustrating winter break and some injuries that have popped up, but i feel my strength coming back around, and  hit a fairly solid weight in a snatch complex, definitely personal best range. The complex  was a simple, full snatch + hang full, here's my best lift at 175:

I have a bad tendency to leap forward; not sure if technique flaw or result of lifting form. One thing is for sure I need to get better extension in my knees and i think this will help my jumping forward problem. I'm also not as stable in the bottom as i have been in the past, but I feel that stability will come back as I get back into snatching more frequently.

I definitely feel stronger than I have in the past during my snatch work, just not as accurate and stable in the hole. I have a long standing competition to beat a good friend to a 100kg snatch, and I feel in a couple weeks I may be close to that goal. My friend may beat me to it though as he has recently and successfully completed a strength cycle for his squats and I foresee his olympic lifts jumping quickly once he reestablishes his groove. 

On lifting partners:

lifting partners can be a crucial component towards making progress. The competitive atmosphere can push you to break barriers that you may have been tentative to approach on your own. However, they can also cause you to push past reasonable work loads which could lead to injury.

within my experience I have made the best gains when my lifting partners were significantly  stronger than me. Their advanced level of development help to put my own  goals in perspective and help me to push appropriately, rather than be over competitive and just try to crush them continuously and in turn just crush myself.

3.1.2013

well, I fell of the boat on my bible reading this week which is truly unfortunate. I've been getting used to a new work schedule with hours all over the place and my sleep schedule even more erratic, so it's been hard for me to take control of my free time. This isn't really an excuse, just some insight into my life. I need to get back to reading.

Strength Bit: Movement (Ido Portal)

Ido Portal is an internet guru of sorts whose specializes in movement. He has a background in capoeira but admittedly dabbles in gymnastics, weightlifting and other forms of martials arts. I'm going to tell it to you straight - this guy is a mad scientist and moves with grace, precision, and clarity. Here is some highlights from an interview he did recently:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLogFAbTlDI

The vid is short and well worth the watch. Over the course of his interview he lays down some seriously profound wisdom. I mean, the first snippet is him saying he practices movement and not fitness, which quickly guides us towards his perspective. 

His essential philosophy is that we move for the sake of movement, that our human brains are meant to process and develop complex movement patterns. This suggestion is truly beautiful. Often we see individuals working out, practicing yoga, performing martial arts, and dancing with other people. time and time again, especially with exercise, people ask why perform this movement? why push your body to various limits? what's the goal? what's the purpose? How fantastic an idea is it that we move for the sake of movement itself; movement is what we are meant to do and it's a form of expression. Movement gives insight about a person and shows their inner spirit. 

This relates to a movie I watched the other day called Man On Wire. The movie is about a french tight rope walker who traversed the gap between the twin towers in New York on a tight rope and his fantastic journey towards that feat. After he performed the stunt, he was prodded to answer one simple question: why? His answer baffled the world. he did it because he could - walking that tight rope was an expression of himself and that walk between the towers was the ultimate form of his self expression. How awesome is that. It's so pure, so elegant. I implore anyone who has not seen this movie to check it out. 

I guess the point of this post is my recommendation that you move for the sake of movement. Realize that when you move, you are extending yourself into the world, expressing yourself in a very primal way. recognize your own self expression and let whatever movement you prefer to do develop you and grow you as a person.