The Road to 2000 - Part 1

In the past year as I have started to train more clients at Instinct Fitness for Kettlebell Sport, my own training has been pushed aside.  Over the next 3 months I am going to dedicate the time to work on my personal sport goals.

Mission: Achieve a score of 2000 points in the World Kettlebell Club (WKC) Pentathlon

Start Date: 3/25/2013

Comp Date: 6/22/2013

Rules:  WKC Pentathlon Rules

The pentathlon consists of 5 exercises, each performed for 6 minutes with 5 minutes rest in between.

My Goals:

·         Cleans: 40kg x 120 reps = 600 points

·         Clean and Press: 24kg x 60 reps = 180 points

·         Jerk: 36kg x 120 reps = 540 points

·         Half Snatch :28kg x 108 reps = 378 points

·         Push Press: 24kg x 120 reps = 360 points

·         Total points: 2058

My Previous Best: 1750

Current overall place: 4^th (based off of results on WKC page)

Ivan Denisov: 2756

Andy Fitting: 2064

Simon Hikaka: 1802

Training session 1:

General Warm up:

Snow shoveling/Walking

Flexibility/ Mobility

·         Lax ball work trigger points on trap

·         Barbell Shoulder stretch

·         Barbell Cleans x 5 (just bar)

·         Barbell Close Grip Snatch x 5 (Just Bar)

·         Barbell Close Grip O.H. Squat x5 (just Bar)

·         Elbow repair with stretch band

Tissue Warmth (Rope)

• 100 reps alternating
• 100 reps circles
• 100 reps hip slams

Work:

Cleans

      Min 1: 20kg x 10L/10R
      Min 2: 24kg  x10L/10R
      Min 3: 28kg x 10L/10R
      Min 4: 30kg x 10L/10R
      Min 5: 32kg x 10L/10R
      Min 6: 36kg x 10L/10R

(Did a build up ladder to cleans due to a lack of heavy training with them since I have focused on biathlon for about a year)

10 minute break

Clean and Press:

      Min 1: 20kg x 5L/5R

      Min 2: 24kg x 5L/5R

      Min 3: 28kg x 5L/5R

      Min 4: 30kg x 5L/5R

      Min 5: 32kg x 5L/5R

      Min 6: 24kg x 5L/5R

2:30 break

Jerk:

      Min 1: 32kg x 10L/10R

      Min 2: 32kg x 10L/10R

      Min 3: 32kg x 10L/10R

      Min 4: 30kg x 10L/10R

      Min 5: 30kg x 10L/10R

      Min 6: 30kg x 8L/12 R

2:30 break

Half snatch:

      Min 1 thru 6: 28kg 9 reps per hand for a while then multiple switching probably totaled 100 reps

2:30 break

Push Press:

      Min 1 thru 6:  24kg 10L/10R 120 reps

Reflection:

My rep and weight schemes were chosen more of a feeler for where I am in relation to being ready. 

My weaknesses were in my quads on the jerk and gassing out during the sets.  I need to work on breathing a bit.  Due to limited time I did not take the full rest between sets.  Full rest may have helped, but conditioning still needs work.  Maybe I will go with metric obsession and buy a heart rate monitor finally.  Pressing strength is on target and could be where I see the biggest improvement. I may jump that weight up a bit.

Cleans were surprisingly tough and snatches seemed very manageable. 

Today reminded me of how unbelievably grueling this is and the mental will power it takes to push through. 

Post workout nutrition:

Immediately: Oatmeal and berry mix

Lunch*:

Half of a chicken

2 cups of mixed Vegetables

3 slices of Pizza (being honest)

           

*Thoughts on nutrition: When training last year I made numerous mistakes with nutrition in that I did not eat enough causing episodes of bonking.  I may do some fitness industry unapproved eating, but overall I plan on keeping it respectable.

I will keep updating as my journey continues.

-Justin Thomas 

Barefoot Training - Why I never wear shoes

Barefoot Training - Why I never wear shoes

“It’s a simple way to upgrade your workout and rediscover muscles you never knew you had. It’s critical to high performance and decreasing your potential for injury.

-Mark Verstegen, founder of Core Performance.

I often get asked why I don’t wear shoes.  Here is my reasoning behind this choice.

The goal of coming to the gym is to train your muscles and get your body moving better.  But did you know your feet have over 100 muscles and 33 joints?  So one of the simplest things you can do to make the most of your time at the gym is to take off your shoes.  Now that’s a bang for your buck exercise!

If I told you to wrap your bicep so it would atrophy you would call me crazy, but we do it to our feet all day long for most of our lives.   I understand we have to wear shoes in most public places, but I don’t understand missing the opportunity to not wear them. I first learned of training without shoes in 2006 as a student of Jason Turko and from watching CraigWolfley lift without them.  Without knowing it at the time, I went through a series of progressions to the point now where I rarely wear shoes. 

But here is the important word – PROGRESSION. Progressions are important as you have to rebuild your foot slowly to counteract all the time you have spent in shoes.  If you wore a neck brace every day for 20 years and then suddenly took it off, you wouldn’t expect to have the muscle strength to hold up your head.  The same holds true with your feet.  Think of it as a PennDOT project - it may take a while, and jumping right into working out barefoot may cause problems.

Here is a simple way to start your transition:

Start with warming up barefoot for about 3 weeks

Then move to barefoot for 1 round of the workout for 3 weeks

Then move to barefoot for 2 rounds for 3 weeks

Then move to barefoot for 3 rounds for 3 weeks

Another way to progress into barefoot-ness is to buy shoes with less and less support over time.  Don’t go crazy right away buying “barefoot” shoes, but instead shoot for ones with a thicker but flexible sole (look for the word free in the name).  You can gradually build up the length of time they are worn or start wearing them every other day or every other workout.  Once those shoes have worn out you can move down to a more minimal style, and then down to no shoes at all.  Minimal shoes are a happy medium, and if your feet hurt you can always take a break and put the heftier shoe on for a bit.

There are some concerns about working out barefoot, the most common being plantar fasciitis.  Going barefoot most likely exposes a problem and does not causes it.   The longer you have been wearing shoes the slower you have to progress out of them.   Build up gradually!  You also want to be cautious when your feet are leaving the ground (such as running, skipping, jumping, etc).   You may want shoes for this.

My favorite question is “what if you drop a bell on your foot?”  A shoe is not going to protect you much anyways.  Watch your feet!   And what about germs?  As Pam says: “Can you put your feet in the same places you can put your hands?”  You have more risk of germs from a doorknob than bare feet on a floor. 

So remember, running shoes are for running not the gym.  In general, a flatter and more flexible sole is a better choice for the gym.  You are born without shoes, so let your feet be free!

-Justin Thomas

Owner and Head Trainer at Instinct Fitness

Here is some more testimony to going barefoot:

“Anatomy of the Foot and Ankle

The human foot combines mechanical complexity and structural strength. The ankle serves as foundation, shock absorber and propulsion engine. The foot can sustain enormous pressure (several tons over the course of a one-mile run) and provides flexibility and resiliency.

The foot and ankle contain:

• 26 bones (One-quarter of the bones in the human body are in the feet.);
• 33 joints;
• more than 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments (Tendons are fibrous tissues that connect muscles to bones and ligaments are fibrous tissues that connect bones to other bones.); and
• a network of blood vessels, nerves, skin, and soft tissue.

These components work together to provide the body with support, balance, and mobility. A structural flaw or malfunction in any one part can result in the development of problems elsewhere in the body (such as back pain). Abnormalities in other parts of the body can lead to problems in the feet.”

IKFF Nationals 2012 Recap

Team Instinct:

Alison Dempsey 16kg Long Cycle 101 Reps

Molly McQuaide 12kg Long Cycle 99 Reps

Michelle Eannace 20kg Long Cycle 98 Reps

Eric Macintosh 24kg Biathlon 29 Jerks 62 Snatches

Justin Thomas 32kg Biathlon 44 Jerks 81 Snatches

All results

Overall it was a fantastic event for Team Instinct.  The IKFF put on a great show, keeping it well organized and managed to efficiently run 175 competitors through in one day.  Thanks to the IKFF for holding such a great competition, we are already looking forward to next year.

Michelle had an impressive performance in her first competition using the 20kg bell for long cycle.  She achieved 98 reps, 10 more than her previous best set and only 2 reps shy of CMS, which is a great achievement in the sport of kettlebells.  She is well on her way to great numbers with heavy weights.  She has good solid form and a tough mentality that will never let her quit.

Molly is even newer to the sport of kettlebell lifting, having just started learning in late August.  She has quickly picked up the sport, and has a ton of potential to become a great lifter as she continues to work.  Molly is a highly motivated lifter and is driven to train.

Eric Macintosh not only made a late decision to compete in this meet, but also moved from the 16kg bells all the way to the 24kgs.  Even though he made a big jump in weight, his form and technique still looked great.  With continued hard work his numbers will continue to grow.

All three athletes moved up to a new bell weight, and even more impressive than their numbers was their solid form.  Instinct Fitness takes pride in performing technically correct reps.   Their technical performance honors the sport and provides them a solid platform on which they can move up in weight and achieve greater numbers.  It is important to understand that the sport is a journey, and we are not full time athletes.  Being patient and working through the process is important.  My personal journey has taken 3 years to even begin competing with the 32kgs, and I still have tons of room to grow and much to learn. As I grow and learn I will continue to pass this knowledge along to anyone willing to try to the sport.

We consider the Russians to be the masters of this sport, and even after their lifts you could see them analyzing their technique trying to figure out how they could improve.  Every competition is a learning process.  It takes courage to step on the platform and there are so many unpredictable factors that play into your set.  Instinct Fitness will train to make you as prepared as possible to step on the platform.  

Kettlebell Sport is a great because in the end you are really competing against yourself, trying to beat your own records and push your body as hard as you can.  It is an amazingly supportive community of people cheering you on.

We hope to continue to do our part to grow the sport.  If you are ever interested in learn to compete, talk to me.

Justin Thomas

justin.morgan.thomas@gmail.com