A Little Old School With The New

 So, I've fallen a little short of my original intentions of blogging regularly. Between an upswing in business (and sometimes just busyness) and a hurricane taking power out for two days, and more recently devoting the holiday weekend to my wife and daughter, well... you get the picture. Anyway, no more excuses, and, as the commercial for an incredibly low quality beer states -"Here we go!"
 About two weeks ago, it was suggested to me through Facebook that I post a workout of the day type of thing (which I was kind of doing on Facebook in an unofficial way) I thought this would be a much better environment, since I have a little more room to go into detail. Since I blew it with yesterday, I'll post yesterday's and I'll put up today's a little later.
  My gym, Redemption Kettlebell Gym, is driven by semi-private group training, or group personal training, or whatever the industry chooses to label a class of 2-8 people. The majority of these people are 40 + in age, and are looking to lose weight and get "in shape", which means burn fat, build muscle, and not be out of breath walking a flight of stairs or playing with their kids. So, basically, general fitness. By now, we all know that training athletically is the fastest, shortest, and healthiest way to these goals, and that High Intensity Interval Training is the perfect vehicle in which to do it in. So, basically, my programming focuses on building strength first and foremost while developing power and endurance. The Average Joe and Jane need well rounded strength, so that's what I deliver.  Enough background rationale...
 We'll follow this weekly schedule with very little alteration for the next 3 - 4 weeks. The program is based of of a 4-5 day training week, so Mon, Tue, Thur, and Fri will have a specific upper or lower body strength focus, while Wed and Sat will be catchall days where conditioning is more the focus. This is where there will tend to be more strongman type training and power complexes. This month is where I'm also breaking out some of my old training sequences from a few years back. Hateful things that the new batch of members have never experienced (and never experienced anything like), but are guaranteed to build you up and knock the sissy out of you. Complexes that will definitely turn you nasty.
 A quick word on how I manage rest... We use a Peripheral Field Test to check the threat level that an exercise or complex puts on the individual. I'll go more into the science and rationale at a later time, but for now, trust me. It works awesome. Basically, find an area where you can repeat the test repeatedly without fail. For me, I find a spot on the edge of the mat where I can line my toes up, so I know I'm in the same spot each time. Once you've found your spot, bring both arms up in front of you, elbows straight, shoulder height. Bring your hands together with either your index fingers or thumbs pointing up. Keeping your eyes focused straight ahead, slowly move your extended arms out to the sides until you can barely see them using your peripheral vision only. It helps to wiggle your fingers or move your arms up and down slightly to be sure it's your hands you see (or don't) and not shadow. Once you've reached the edge of your peripheral view, look right and then left, and note where your fingers line up. This is your baseline. Each time you check, it should be equal to baseline, or farther back. If you do a set, and your peripheral closes, meaning you won't be able to get your arms back as far as your baseline, that means your nervous system is regarding what your doing as mildly threatening. Count to 10 or 15 and check again. Once your peripheral returns to baseline, go on to the next set or round. That's your rest time.


 Monday (Day 1) - Upper Body Strength Focus/ Lower Body 
                                Power, Endurance & Conditioning


Warmup:
                Dynamic Joint Mobility/Ground Movement followed by -
                10 Min. of As Many Rounds Possible
                 Pushup x 5
                 Body Weight Row x 5
                 Walking Lunge x 10/10
                 Pushup Plank x 30-45 sec
               Peripheral Field Test done after every round.
            


Upper Body:
                     10 Min. of As Many Rounds Possible
                     Double KB Clean & Press x 5/5
                     Pullup x 5
                     Farmer Walk x 2 Laps
                    Peripheral Field Test done after every round.
                


Lower Body:
                      10 Min. of As Many Rounds Possible
                       Double KB Front Squat x 5
                       Double KB Clean x 5
                       Double KB Swing x 5
                      Complete all 15 reps before putting the bells down.  
                      Check Peripheral after every round.


  This last complex is truly hateful. Double Clean & Presses, Pullups, and Farmer Walks can be tough when done at the appropriate intensity with the appropriate "get up and go", but working lower body double kettlebell complexes like the one above truly requires some commitment and dedication to a cause. 5 reps of the squat, followed by 5 Souble Cleans, followed by 5 Double Swings - no putting the bells down, only resting in the rack until all 15 reps are done.If you use the right weight, heavy enough to make you work but still control, you will transform.