Embracing the 44

So I celebrated another birthday recently.  I love turning another year older.  Things grow dim, start to sag, balance decays, takes long time to rise from the dead of sleep.  I SAY BS ON DAT!

To most people I am weird anyway, but i see each year as another year stronger, another year tougher, another year healthier, another year smarter.  (Oops, that is over the line.)

I wander through my year watching people.  I watch them get older.  Yes, people get into the gym and get into shape.  And I watch them slide back into their aging patterns.  I do not think we get old by doing, I believe when we grow bored, we grow old.

This is why I love the martial arts.  Every day holds challenge, every workout encourages growth.  The students live in wonder and dread for my birthday workout.  I come up with a little challenge for them and they love to walk away grumbling breathlessly.

Here is the latest.



4 rounds for time.
11 Ball Burpees or Regular Burpees
20 Jump Rope or Jumping Jacks
11 Wrestlers or standard situps
20 Jump Rope or Jumping Jacks
11 Kipping Pullups or Ring rows
20 Jump Rope or Jumping Jacks
11 Squats

This workout took me 9 and half minutes.  Quite an easy one.  I did have to substitute ring rows for pullups due to my right arm.  But it is still a challenge.  Give it a whirl and see how you do.  Feel free to sub in exercises.  AND...remember to do all exercises full range.  Cheating the range, only cheats you.

A Burpee?  What is a burpee.  It is where you jump up as though shooting a basketball and then land and do a pushup.  This little exercise is named after psychologist Royal H. Burpee.  Who knew, a psychologist with upper body strength, go figure.  A Ball Burpee is where you hold a medicine ball and do the same exercise.  Balancing for the pushup is a kick in the shins.

Good luck and let me know how you fare,

C

Get a Grip

One of the most important and one of the most overlooked training aspects of martial arts training...is the grip.  We tend to train for strength; pushups, situps, squats and etc.  We train for speed and toughness, but we forget about the grip.

Having a strong grip means we can train longer.  Normally, our grip strength is used for making fist, blocking, holding and manipulating weapons.  Without grip strength we rely on clamping down and using more forearm and upper arm strength to compensate.

Grip strength comes in different forms, there is crushing, pinching and extensor strength.  These three uses of the grip are necessary for long term training.

I find every so often my tendonitis flares up in my right arm.  This causes the grip to fatigue rapidly.  I use grip training to rehabilitate.  I start with a 15lb gripper.  This is really weak.  Average strength for most people is 35 to 40lbs.

As my grip improves, I move up to the next level of gripper.  Grip strength training should be done every day.  Just a few days without training and your grip slides back in strength.  My left hand is still strong and gaining.

So just for reference my grip training is as follows:  50 reps of 30lbs for the right hand.  The left hand starts with 20 reps of 200lbs and then 30 reps of 145lbs.

I recommend grip training for anyone and once you start...keep it rolling.  Anyone can have grip strength, but it takes true dedication to keep it.

Train well,