Friday, November 5, 2010

The Tao of The Kettlebell - Verse 12

The five colors blind the eye.
The five tones deafen the ear.
The five flavors dull the taste.
The chase and the hunt craze people's minds.
Wasting energy to obtain rare objects
only impedes one's growth.
The master observes the world
but trusts his inner vision.
He allows things to come and go.
He prefers what is in to what is without. 
-Lao-Tzu

I haven't visited with the Tao since June.  Lot's of things have happened for me and now seems like the best time to continue on in my journey to understand the Tao a little better while understanding myself though it.  With a little bit of luck and inspiration hopefully you too will find a pearl or two of wisdom for your own life as the Tao speaks to us all.

This twelfth verse of the Tao challenges us to go inside ourselves to find the answers to our questions.

"Your eyes can deceive you, don't trust them."
                                                          -Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars

To put too much weight on the physical senses can impair judgment.  Deep down, under the voice of the ego lies the inner voice of conscience.


"Always let your conscience be your guide."
                                                        -Jiminy Cricket

How often people enter the fitness craze and ignore the inner wisdom for the promise of a quick fix.  How often do we find ourselves looking for the magic machine or wonder pill that will transform our bodies into that of a Greek statue with little or no effort.

The effect of a good diet and exercise program goes far beyond the consequence of how you look naked.  In a recent blog post by Eric J Moss, he discusses the difference between training for yourself and training for the mirror image.  Which is more rewarding ultimately?  He called the blog, "Survival of the Sexiest/Fittest".  In it there's a great analogy about busting hump for 6 months to look good for your ex at a reunion only to find they didn't show.  HA!  Instead, Eric suggests to train for you.  Eric trains for the love of training and his appearance, as mentioned, is a consequence of the training but certainly not the prime motivation behind his training.  

For the love of the game.  Would Tiger Woods golf for free?  Would Kobe still play ball if he grew up in Timbuktu?  Would Dhani Jones play Football for free?  I'd argue yes.  Because their income is a consequence of their love for the game.   So it must be for you, the fitness enthusiast.

The chase and the hunt craze people's mind.  Wasting energy to obtain rare objects only impedes one's growth.

This can apply to so much, but we're talking strength, conditioning and health here so let's stay on that.  The Bowflex is the worlds most expensive coat hanger.  The Ab Roller is the thing you trip over when you come home after a night of drinking.  The Shake Weight got turned on by mistake an shook it self under the bed one day while you were at work until the battery died and now you can't find it.  Your 8 Minute Ab video tape collects dust because you haven't have a VCR for how long?

The master observes the world but trusts his inner vision.

Yes, as Eric put it, we are social beings and unfortunately the opinions of others have meaning.  But keep in mind, If you're in a room in front of 100 people, you'll have 101 opinions of you.  Which one is most important?  The challenge is to release the ego and realize that you are not your reputation or what others think of you.  You may not even be what you think of you based on what you think.

You are a divine being having a human experience and as that, train for the love of training.  If you don't love training, you're on the wrong type of training.  Find something physical that you love to do and do it often and let the mirror, scale and the look on your ex's face be a consequence of your effort and not the motivation.  Eric and I have a deep love and passion for Russian Kettlebells.  What's yours?

Allow things to come and go...  look within...  and what is without will not be an issue anymore.

Challenge for you!

40 days.  Cover the full size mirror, toss the scale, find a physical activity you love and for 40 days journal your experience with said activity.  Call it a training log.  Eat well.  Listen to your conscience and look within.  See what happens in 40 days.  You'll be different and for the better.

Are you up to the challenge?

In my next post I will reveal my plan for my 40 days... and also talk about why 40 days.  Stay tuned!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Last Night's Smoker

Well somehow I got roped into participating in wifey's Thai Pad class at her Krav Maga studio in Sherman Oaks. 

The class consisted of Thai Pads (of course) plus bodyweight exercises, stretching and some Kettlebells thrown in at the end for good measure.

We started with jumping rope.  I haven't jumped rope since Rocky III!  Needles to say I tried in vein to look cool but spent more time getting my feet tied up then actually jumping rope.

From there we moved into shadow boxing which did nothing but leave me in a complete state of self consciousness considering I've never shadow boxed (in public) in my life.  There was one cool move we did though here which was: shadow box, shadow box, shadow box, drop and sprawl, hop back up with a right knee.  That one was fun.  Like a martial burpee!

Then we did some bodyweight exercises and stretching.  Push Ups, Squats, Sit Ups, Downward Dogs, etc.  The pace was fairly high and the sweat really started in.

When the Thai Pads came out there was a lot of punching and kicking.  Not a martial artist, I did my best to kick high and punch well.  Mrs Bradley coached me and encouraged me to keep going and the Instructor was patient with my first timer ass.  Multiple combinations of punching and kicking, push ups and sit ups.  Trading off with my partner (in more ways than one) I had a blast training with Mrs Bradley.

The main part of the workout and what I think is the main reason for the cesspool of lactic acid in my calves and hams was this combination of punches and kicks that worked like Ladders almost.

1 right jab, 1 left side kick
2 right jabs, 1 left side kick
3 right jabs, 1 left side kick
4 right jabs, 1 left side kick...  all the way up to 10 and then switch sides!

Then Push Ups on your knuckles with the gloves on and then this flipped over to:

1 right kick, 1 left jab
2 right kicks, 1 left jab
3 right kicks, 1 left jab
4 right kicks, 1 left jab...  back to 10 again, switch sides and try not to fall over.

After a quick breather and swig of water the Kettlebells came out.  We did about 1 minute of each of the following:

-Still Legged Dead Lifts
-Sumo Squats
-Right Arm Cleans
-Right Arm Clean and Press
-Right Arm Press
-Left Arm Cleans
-Left Arm Clean and Press
-Left Arm Press
-Crush Curl
-Crush Curl+Press+French Press

Cooled down with more stretching and Yoga-esc poses and wrapped it up.  All in all the class was about an hour and 10 minutes, thoroughly invigorating and a nice change up for this Hard Style Kettlebell fanatic.  All in all a good time was had by all.  I enjoyed the challange and was happy to have kept up and not completely embarrased my dear wife!

Sunday, October 17, 2010

101 Kettlebell Workouts Goes Stacking

101 Kettlebell Workouts goes Stacking

Working through David Whitley's ebook 101 Kettlebell Workouts and journaling the experience on HubPages.

This morning I posted the Stacking workout.  The Article is up on Hub Pages now if you'd like to read it and you can see the video of the workout right here!

Thursday, October 14, 2010

No Equipment Required

This is a little article I wrote for HubPages. No need to let time, money or equipment get in the way of a good workout!


Let me know what you think!

No Equipment Required

There's an accompanying video too...

Top 10 Reasons Why Swinging Like This Is A Good Idea



10.  You lost your P90X DVDs.

9.  You just received a years worth of free Chiropractic adjustments.

8.  You've used up all your vacation time at work and need a week off.

7.  You think wearing a back brace to the gym like those guys at Home Depot looks cool.

6.  You 're one of those people who likes to say one thing and do another, just for effect.

5.  You need to drop 5 pounds in a week.

4.  You've always wanted the L.A. Times to slam you.

3.  You've always wanted the L.A. Times to get your name wrong.

2.  You promised your spouse you'd spend the weekend in bed and are looking to get out of it on a technicality...

1.  Number one is up to you!  Put you're number one reason in the comment section here and the winner will get a free set of Kettlebell Stickers.  I'll pick and announce a winner on Monday night (the 18th).