Two very different and very cool events this week with two very good friends. Monday our friends over at Crossfit Fifty decided they’d press their luck and have us back again. Today it was Blue Coast out in Kapolei.

I’ll start with the take home from Monday. Your friends and coaches will tell you…

You’re doing it wrong.

Period.

You’re not.

Period.

There are two different schools of thought. Traditionally in Russia, the more familiar “hard” style of kettlebell lifting was the norm for the rank and file fitness nut. Hips back. Shoulders squared. Drive from the hips. Explode. It provided an amazing tool for developing explosiveness and power. However as athletes progressed, those that showed a particular proclivity for the tool were invited into the competitive side of training, the sport of kettlebells. The sport moved beyond developing on off power and explosion and shifted towards explosion over time, a sustained attack. How can you, the athlete, distribute the workload of lifting your bell across as much of the body as possible to create as many explosions as possible over a given amount of time. Greater work production over a prolonged period versus maximal individual explosions over an abbreviated period.

You have to decide what your goal is. Neither one is wrong. You have to decide which road is going to get you to your particular goal.

My goal is to achieve as many repetitions over a 10 minute period as possible without resting the bells. Several of the athletes we worked with this week have the goal to compete and kick as much ass as possible in a sport environment . Here’s the key. Ask any endurance or ultra endurance athlete. If you want to succeed, you have to find where in your movement patterns you can achieve rest and gain the recovery that allows you to push through the rest of your event. If your event includes kettles, barbell snatches, muscle ups and a C2 Rower…first off you’re f*cked. Secondly, you’re going to have to find a place in there somewhere to catch your breath, recover, prepare for what’s to come, overcome. 

Economy of movement.

Efficiency.

Sustainability.

Survival.

As for the rest of the athletes we worked with this week… Think back. What are the most common goals people come into the gym with? Lose a little weight, gain a little strength and build some cardio ability. So the question becomes one of focusing on your ability to produce massive amounts of explosive force in a few short reps versus developing the strength and stamina to produce more work over a greater period, thus producing a greater total amount of work.

There are pros and cons to both. I’m the first to say that anyone claiming to have the one true way is full of it. I have my preferences according to my goals. The key is in knowing the different roads to Mecca exist and exposing yourself to a greater array of tools and techniques.

This year we were privileged to host Hawai’i's first kettlebell competition. Next year we’re aiming for two. You should be there.

Jump in. Absolute and utter beginners are especially welcome. Wednesday nights at 6pm and Fridays at 2pm. Email me to reserve your spot in advance.

Also look for special kettle series coming to the leeward side and Hawaii Kai very soon. We’ll post more here as soon as we can.

Ok, so here’s how it went down. Jack and crew over at Crossfit Fifty were just about the greatest hosts anyone could ask for. Thank you guys and your athletes for being such a chill group to work with.

I live and breathe in a very strange and esoteric world. In fact, it’s the kind of world that old school Crossfitters are familiar with. Before Crossfit was the global powerhouse of athletic training it is, it was a small network of garage gyms, warehouse workout spaces filled with people marching to a beat everybody else called crazy. Then everybody else started catching on and began to feel that rhythm down inside their soul.

That’s just about where we are in the gs world right now. GS: Girevoy Sport, the sport of lifting kettlebells. Ten minutes of lifting anywhere from 26lbs to 140lbs with no rest, no stopping, no deviation, technical requirements and if you’re lucky one and only one hand switch. Chalky, grueling work born of the farmyards and markets of Russia. It’s our own beat. To the outside casual observer, crazy.

But it’s starting to catch on.

Here’s the thing. We set this one up specifically for our Crossfitter crowd. What is it you need to do in your WOD? Produce as much work as possible at each task and have enough left in the tank for the next, and the next and the next. It’s about spending energy. But in the world if increasingly gameified workouts that become competitive events, there’s a flipside; energy preservation and budgeting.

That’s where we come in. GS is all about rationing your energy so, as in my case, I can lift 122lbs at a constant pace for maximal total reps over a 10 minute period. One of the biggest energy killers Crossfitters run into is kb swings and snatches. So by looking at where and how you can use your body beyond just hip explosion to not simply move the bell, but to move it with an economy of energy, regularity of breath, minimizing impact and shock to the body…all the sudden it becomes thinkable to knock out those 75 or 100 rep chippers without losing time putting the bell down to catch your breath.

What happens to your overall output when the movements that used to drain you actually become refuges of rest and recovery in the middle of your circuit? How much more work can you accomplish when you spread the load out over many joints and muscles instead of one or two, recycling & channeling the energy of the last repetition into the next, and the next and the next? What happens when you save your hands by letting go of the bell with confidence that it will land where you want it?

Awesomeness happens.

I have to say, there were some hungry athletes doing some fantastic work out there on Monday. Snatch has to be one of the most complex movements in the kettlebell world. Looking at it, you wouldn’t think so, but when you turn a critical eye to the minutiae of each joint movement, you could write volumes. For having to take in so much information in so little time and then turn it right back around into a training evolution at the end…hardcore.

And my proudest moment…not a single stereotypical ripped callous photo to show for it. Awesomeness happened.

Our next big event is coming up Saturday, November 3rd at Blue Coast Crossfit from 2pm to 4pm. We’re going to sight in a little tighter on the sport side of things and spend a couple of hours hammering the long cycle clean and jerk. Click here for a map.

Join us for a 2 day Olympic Lifting workshop with Spring Fitness head coach Trevor Spring and NSCA Hawaii State Director Jt Netterville.

Over the two days we’re going to take apart the big three Olympic lifts piece by piece and look at how to create the mobility & power needed to properly execute them. Once we’ve got the pieces all together, we’ll work on setting up safe and effective programming for yourself and your clients.

This course will carry continuing education credits for certified trainers.

KCC Students $80 Early Registration (by 11/24/12)

General Admission $100 Early Registration (by 11/24/12)

This month on Hawaii News Now Sunrise, we’re taking the time to look at three of the most common kinds of back pain and what you can do to alleviate it.

A little background to get things started: The spine is composed of three main regions, the lumbar spine (the lowest 7 vertebrae), the thoracic (the middle 12 vertebrae) and the cervical spine (the top 5 vertebrae leading up in to your neck).

You can see in the illustration here that the spine general has somewhat of a backwards “s” or undulating shape as it works its way up through the body. Back pain generally occurs when we begin to chronically distort that shape either through injury or bad habits.

This morning, we’re kicking off the back pain series with a look at lumbar back pain, pain occurring in the lowest part of the spine. In any given week, the number one thing we see when folks come in complaining of back pain is an excessive anterior tilt, forward tilting, of the hip bone. When we’ve been standing or carrying heavy objects for long periods of time, instead of maintaining a good posture of slightly bent knees and neutral hip position, many of us tend to sink into what initially feels like a more restful posture. We lock out our knees, over arch our lower back. This generally takes pressure off our muscles, allowing them to rest, whie the bones of the legs, hip and spine take over and hold us up. The problem here is that excessive anterior, or front, tilting pelvis strains lower back muscles by leaving them contracted for long periods of time and overly arching the lower back. This is what leads us to lower back strain and even sets us up for pulled hamstrings. (when the back of the hip is tilted up and the front of the hip is tilted down in this posture, it pulls at the hamstring attachments in the pelvis, artificially tightening and lengthening them.) The other thing this does is to stretch out and weaken the abdomen while tightening the hip flexors (muscles in the front of the legs). With all this going on, the bottom line is, we’re creating all manner of imbalances around the base of the spine. Imbalances in our joints generally lead to pain & discomfort. This is particularly true here.

So what do we do about it? The key to regaining proper hip tilt and mitigating this kind of back pain is going to be stretching out the tight spots and strengthening the weak ones. Key areas for us, those tight hip flexors on the front of the legs and the weak, overly stretched abdominals.

Stretching the hip flexors: Steve was kind enough to demo one of my favorite hip flexor stretched for us. I’m also going to post a link to Mayo Clinic’s top 10 stretches for basic hip flexor flexibility here.

As far as strengthening the abs, we talked about planks.

Like I said in the video, for my money there isn’t a better, more functional and natural way to strengthen the abs. There are several ways you can make the plank harder or easier. For example, Steve showed up the harder variant by planking on the elbows. I’m demonstrating a slightly easier version by coming up on my hands. They key is to adjust any exercise you use to your own fitness level.

Next week we’ll be taking a look at common causes of thoracic spine pain and how to strengthen against it.

As a follow up to last month’s osteoporosis workshop, we have two more events coming up at the end of June.

Osteoporosis Workshop Level I: Preventing or Delaying the Onset of Osteoporosis

Wednesday June 27th at 6pm at Pro Fitness Training Studio in Kakaako

Osteoporosis Workshop Level II: Strengthening Against the Effects of Osteoporosis and Osteoporosis Related Injury

Friday June 29th at 6pm at Pro Fitness Training Studio in Kakaako

This week on Hawaii New Now Sunrise, we covered the million dollar question when it comes to dealing with, or hopefully preventing osteoporosis in the first place: How do we cultivate healthy bones?

Last week we were talking about how exercise is the number one best treatment when it comes to osteoporosis and encouraging bone density. The other half of the equation is nutrition. We have to give our bodies the building blocks to generate as much new, healthy bone mass as possible. That means calcium and vitamin D.

As with any nutrition question, a lot of times we’ll look for the quick solution, supplements and medications to make up for what’s lacking in our daily food intake. The problem is, that no matter what medications or supplements we’re talking about, there’s always the risk for adverse reactions and consequences. Even with something as simple as calcium, there’s been a link to an increased risk of kidney stones due to the fact that the supplements carry so much calcium and it’s so easy to actually get too much!

Good, whole foods are always going to be our best first choice for your calcium needs. Vitamin D is actually best absorbed and used by the body when you get it from direct sunlight. The problem there is that if you’re following the Surgeon General’s advice and wearing sunscreen whenever you go out, you’re actually blocking out all the vitamin D as well. So I’ll include a list at the bottom of this blog entry for both calcium and vitamin D rich foods.

The National Academy of Sciences has developed recommendations for how much calcium and vitamin D you need at every age:

• Young children 1-3 years old should get 700 milligrams (mg) of calcium a day.
• Children 4-8 years old should get 1,000 mg per day.
• Teenagers should get 1,300 mg of calcium a day.
• Adults up to age 70 should get 1,000 mg per day. Women 51 and over should get 1,200 mg per day.
• Women and men 71 and over should get 1,200 mg per day.

To help utilize that calcium, many physicians and researchers are recommending as much as 800 to 12,000 iu of  vitamin D each day.

Keep in mind that every individual is different in his or her needs. So, as with anything else you read here, please consult your doctor to make sure you’re following the guidelines that best apply to your specific situation.

Please join us on Tuesday, May 22nd at 11am for a free 1 hour osteoporosis workshop. We’ll be talking and working in depth on how to apply exercise and nutrition to your best advantage against osteoporosis. Call Jt at 808-397-3280 or email at jt@movefitness.us with any questions. 

• Source: Healthlink BC Nutrition Series Healthlink BC file 68e March 2011

We’re kicking off a very special series this month on Hawaii News Now Sunrise. May is National Osteoporosis Month. With over 10million people across the country already affected and another 34million suffer from osteopenia, or a condition on low bone density that is often a precursor to full blown osteoporosis.

Just like with hair or skin cells, the body is constantly shedding old bone material to make way for newer, healthier bone material. Osteoporosis occurs when the body cannot generate as much bone material as it loses. This causes the bones to become very weak and fragile.

Typically 1 out of 2 women and 1 out of 4 men over 50 years old will suffer from an osteoporosis related fracture. The vast majority of those fractures will occur in the spine or wrist. All of this adds up to a staggering $14billion spent annually on osteoporosis and osteoporosis related injuries. Here in Hawaii, our population tends to be hit relatively hard with this condition in comparison to the national averages.

This month is all about what we can do about it and how we can keep ourselves safe.

Medications and supplements have been shown to help improve bone density, but research bares out that the number 1 treatment for increasing bone density and insulating them agains fracture is exercise, more specifically low impact aerobic work and strength training. By loading the bones thru free weights and moderate impact exercise like walking, we actually stimulate the body to generate an increased amount of bone matter, thus strengthening them.

**Key Thing To Remember: Always, always, always consult your doctor before engaging in any program of physical activity to ensure your maximum level of safety.**

Throughout the month, we’re going to be looking at both physical and nutritional ways to help combat the effects of osteoporosis. Look for our spot every Thursday in the 8am hour on Hawaii News Now Sunrise for our weekly spot. Then check back here and at the Sunrise homepage (click here) for additional web exclusive content that takes the discussion further.

Also, please join us on Tuesday, May 2nd at 10am at the Pro Fitness Training Studio for a free osteoporosis workshop.

It’s on! We had such a great response to the HoneyBadgers and their work that we’re rolling the same program for anybody looking to kick off their own weight loss program. Starting on Tuesday, April 24th at 5:30pm! (I think we said 29th this morning on the air, so check your calendars, the 24th is the correct date).  We’ll run for 6 weeks, meeting every Tuesday and Thursday at 5:30 for an hour. Class size is limited so email me at jt@movefitness.us to reserve your place.

Absolute total beginners are 100% welcome. Let’s get your weight loss goals kicked off now!

Class includes:

• 12 60min sessions of combines cardio/strength conditioning
• Weekly homework to keep you on track between class times
• Nutritional tracking and guidance to help establish sustainable, healthy nutritional habits
• Weigh in assessment on day 1 and weigh out on day 6

Where:

Pro Fitness Studio

863 Halekauwila St (Just off Ward Ave)

When:

Every Tue/Thu Beginning on April 24th.

Class Fee: $180

After our Honeybadgers did such an awesome job and took home gold on the Sunrise Slimdown, we’re back on Hawaii News Now KGMB!

Look for us every Thursday in the 7am  hour. Each month we’ll choose a different health & wellness oriented theme and look at four different aspects or approaches to that theme.

This month it’s all getting started and maximizing your time in the gym. In 2000, CDC reported that just 10% of Hawaii residents fell into the category of an obese population. By 2010, that number increased to 24%. Here’s the catch, once we expand that number to include residents that fall into the overweight category along with the obesity numbers, that percentage skyrockets to show 57% of Hawaii residents are currently overweight or obese. Click here to see the official CDC obesity map.  We have got to get ourselves up and moving. To to that, we’re going to look at four tools you can use at home or at the gym to create a fun and dynamic weight loss and strength training program.

This month we’re starting with one of my personal favorite  tools in the gym, kettlebells. The Honeybadgers learned all about several different kettlebell movements during the Slimdown. This morning, we took a look at a couple of the more basic kettlebell movements, the clean and jerk and the two handed swing. I’ll post the instructional videos for each here in the blog.

If you’re interested in getting yourself started or want to get into a little kettlebell work yourself, join us for our Kettlebell Group Training  every Monday night at ProFitness Training Studio. 863 Halekauwila St. As a special introductory rate, your first two classes are just $10 each. Absolute, utter and total beginners are welcome!

Also, please join us next Friday night, August 13th for Hawaii’s very first Kettlebell Sport Competition! All the details here.

Kettlebell Clean & Jerk

2 Hand Kettlebell Swing

Thank you

I just can’t begin to describe the awesomeness that was watching everybody get out and kick some serious ass for a good cause yesterday. There’s still a huge need for more support and aid, so if you were not able to make it yesterday, please consider clicking here and making a donation to the American Red Cross.

For those of you that were there…thank you. Thank you very much.

And thank you to Ty over at Warrior Hardware for lending us bells and med balls for the occasion. If you’re in the market for some equipment Ty’s the man to talk to. Follow this link to the Warrior Hardware homepage.

Now, on to what went down. What did we learn?

1. Pacing. This was all about a mix between getting through each station’s reps as quickly as possible. The only thing is, with 6 stations and damn near 100 reps at each one, you have to balance pacing with all out effort. While maximal exertion is something we want to train and increase, sometimes pushing to the absolute limit as fast as possible doesn’t get you to the goal fastest. Pulling back just before you hit that wall of physical failure allows you to recuperate more quickly to continue your set.
2. Work to your level! Yesterday’s training session was rife with opportunities to push yourself too far. Beyond considerations of recuperation vs total time, there’s the issue of your body, what it can accommodate right now and what it can’t. You know how people say that listening is the most important skill in communication? Well, the same is true in the relationship between you and your body. It talks to you all the time. Listen to what it has to say. If you hear when your body is telling you that it’s coming up on its limit in one way or another, by listening to it and taking care of it, you’ll end up getting a better training experience, better results, a safer program and all in much less time. Training movements, rest intervals and other stimuli can ALWAYS be adjusted to your level.
3. That being said, there are benefits to winning these challenges. I do have to say I was seriously impressed by how fast you all got through that redemption. 10 wind sprints up that hill AFTER 45 minutes of training ain’t no small thing. Proud of you! Congratulations to our first place finishers!

Thank you all again! For those of you interested in continuing this work, or getting more into the technique of competitive kettlebell based lifting, click here to see the schedule of upcoming classes. Thank you all again.