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Navigating a “Blog”

So, I give a series of workshops and people want more information on “this and that.” So, I tell them to go to my Blog. Some seem to manage finding everything by scrolling down the page and then going to earlier entries. Others, well…

It’s become something that I really think about. Many people have told me that my conviction of giving away things for free is actually costing me a lot of time, money and effort. There is a notion that “free” means “cheap.” Or, “Dan John’s time” is not as valuable as “My time.” Good question, really.

Here is my take: I am possessed with this idea that I owe much more than I can give. My life has been blessed by mentors, coaches, family and friends who took care of me and lead me on the right paths. How, honestly, can I ever thank Dick Notmeyer enough? Twenty-five cents a week to train 15 hours under his care…pay that back somehow. Ralph Maughan’s great math mind cut track and field to the simplest steps…so simple that it took years to believe it. I have a free education, paid for by lots of work and probably too many sacrifices.

So, I will continue to “give away” a lot. Now, that I have contractual agreements, some things will cost. But, few understand the great shoulders I stand on each and every day.

So, if you are new to my site, take your time. Click buttons. Download stuff. Read. Enjoy!

Oh, and to answer the specific question: this is the SteveO workout…

“Stevo Workout:”
I sure love my group at the Coyote Point Kettlebell Club. We trained on Thursday this week and had a lot of new people. We were going to do the “Humane Burpee” with Pull Ups, but SteveO (Steve Ledbetter) added a simple idea: “Let’s do Suitcase Carries so we can do all five human movements.” More on that in a second…

So, off we went:
10 Bulgarian Goat Bag Swings
10 Goblet Squats
10 Push Up
Suitcase Carry Left Hand to Pull Up Bar
One Pull Up (Trust me on this!)
Suitcase Carry Right Hand back to Swing area.

Now, you can do this 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 fashion or a bunch of sets of Five…it doesn’t matter. It steams you up, gets the heart beating and works on a lot of things. What it REALLY works on is your abs at they don’t even have a chance to catch up.

So, I think we called it “The SteveO Segue Super Sircuit of Sweetness” or something like that.

Lifetime Warrior Workout

I had a nice compliment paid to me by a family member this weekend. I was training in the hotel gym and my sister-in-law’s boyfriend noticed me doing Pull Ups. He later told her, then the whole family, how impressive it was to watch me to Pull Ups.

I didn’t have the heart to tell him that that is my worst movement and, if he ever got the chance, when I really lift or throw…stand back. But, it raised some good questions and I told him I would work out something simple for “most” people. I came up with a simple two-page overview of the “basics.”

The “muscles of youth” seem to make you taller. A tight butt, those external obliques, the deep abs, the deltoids, rhomboids, and triceps give off the appearance of youth. There is a great “Sex and the City,” the show not those dreadful movies, where we see the issue of “saggy butt.” So, do your presses, your one arm presses, your hills sprints, your swings and get younger.

At the same time, stretch out those muscles that are stiff. Doing bench and curls all the time leads to “the old man look.” Keep vigorous by stretching these daily.

LIfetime Warrior Workouts

It’s a very simple sheet, but it contains, in the simplest of ways, the gems of fighting age with weights and stretching.

The Warrior Spirit and The Divine Spark

As many of you know from my recent Facebook post, I lost several friends in the recent copter accident in the Middle East. I have been working as an SME (Subject Matter Expert) for at least eight years with certain military groups and, sadly, one particular group was hit hard this past weekend.

A few weeks ago, Laree Draper sent a “Care” package of On Target Publishing materials to the guys and I got a nice email back regarding how they were going to be following my advice on the Get Up and some training ideas. Sadly, the author and the others were all killed.

As many know, I am a strength coach but that is just a little part of me. I believe in the need for reflection, meditation and fasting as part of instilling the Warrior Spirit in myself and the people I work with in the field. I got this interesting email, as part of a series, where one of my friends wrote:

“I agree with you that many misunderstand the need for reflection in the warrior spirit. I would go further, based upon my experience over the past ten years, and say that many, many have forgotten the need for reflection in the warrior spirit. Musashi Miyamoto, Japan’s “Sword Saint” and the undefeated victor of over 60 duels to the death, said that the warrior should practice painting and poetry as well as the sword. His work, “The Book of Five Rings” is the deepest and yet most succinct treatise on the warrior spirit I have ever read. The warrior monks of the medieval orders such as the Knights Templar prayed and fasted regularly. But that tradition has been forgotten Reading, prayer, and meditation have been replaced with video games, alcohol (not that that wasn’t a part of things back in the day!) and surfing the internet.”

There are gems in this paragraph and I will keep these concepts close to my heart. He followed up by saying:

“The evidence for this I find in the gradual evolution of religions from pagan and sacrificial to enlightened and protective of human life and the human spirit; and of societies from barbaric to civilized, from monarchial or tyrannical to democratic. I see this as evidence of an ever-deepening realization of the inherent, sacred value of the individual, a value that finds its root in the divine spark that each one of us carries within us.”
:

Obviously, I have little more to add…

May they rest in peace and may perpetual light shine upon them.

Recovery and a Good Question

First, I am about ten days into my recovery from total hip replacement. I should have done this probably three years ago and I can’t get back all those missed Highland Games and Track Meets. But, I learned a lot! I think I have a handle on Yoga…at least the Bikram model, Martha Peterson’s work was very insightful, Laree Draper really expanded my vision of joint mobility (there are a lot of “schools” here, but common roots) and, most important, I learned that sometimes medical intervention is the right choice. All too often lately, we get these bizarre forms of physical voodoo that one can learn in a few weekends…or a belief that stopping eating this or that will stop something…but, really, a dead hip socket is probably going to remain dead because, and in all candor, it is dead.

To assist, from “Young Frankenstein:”
Medical Student: Isn’t it true that Darwin preserved a piece of vermicelli in a glass case until, by some extrordinary means, it actually began to move with voluntary motion?
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: Are you speaking of the worm or the spaghetti?
[the class laughs]
Medical Student: Why, the worm, sir.

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Nice Review of “Intervention.”

As the reviews come in, I am more convinced that we did this right. My, old friend, Troy, sent this one in:

Today I have a quick review of outstanding strength and conditioning Dan John’s latest dvd projected titled: Intervention

Here are some of the major points that really stood out to me:

1. The 3 disc package in 1 case is super cool and included on the DVD are PDF notes as well as, audio files from the presentation, Laree Draper went beyond herself on this one.

2. The H.A.T could be the most valuable tool anyone who works with clients/athletes, using kettlebells can have. I have already used it and it works like a charm

3. The meat of the videos walk the budding coach or fitness professional down of funnel of progression, programs, and how to’s, capped by audience case study participation is great.

4. Dan is the master of create, simple, hard and VALUABLE training programs and he does it again in this DVD with kettlebell workouts like the “Eagle”

5. Last but not least the “Quadrants” allow the fitness professional a systematic and accurate way to determine who their client is, what they want, and what the coach so focus on to get them there.

Watch the Video for more details

Troy M Anderson
Lose Fat With Kettlebell Training
Kettlebell Workouts on Facebook
Have a Question about Kettlebells Fat Loss Training Email Us
FREE Kettlebell Fat Loss Community

If you want it, get it HERE

Thanks, Troy!

Delightful Conversation with Dick Notmeyer

I love the man. He took me from a 162 pound high school grad to 202 pounds of thrower in four months. He insisted on the basics and nothing fancy.

So, we keep in touch. Laree Draper, all around hero and good person, sent him my new DVD, “Intervention.” I’m not sure Dick will watch it or not, but he loved “Never Let Go.” He called one time and said: “Hey, I want to talk to you about some of the stuff, but, well, I can’t remember! But, I loved reading the book.”

The reason he struggles with memory is that he is 80 years old. Eighty. So…let’s go back to our phone call.

Me: “Dick, how is your training?”

Dick: “Well, pretty good, I am lifting five days a week and bicycling three. I had to cut back on the cycling because I just wasn’t recovering as well. Age. You can’t NOT get older, but you can fight it all the way.”

Dick’s lifting?
“I squat, press, work my arms a little, and do lots of sit ups. Lots of sit ups.”

Let’s review: Dick is 80 and squatting regularly. Why aren’t you?

He went on to warn me that “recovery” is the key as you age. You have to train, but keep an eye on it.

And don’t stop.

As a bonus, here is my famous Glossary of Dick Notmeyerisms:
Here

Getting Ready to Go Again

June was a “month!” We had guests, I went to Ohio for discus camp, and I had more fun than legal in most states. In the last few months of this blog, I have been sharing a lot of my insights about my method I call “Intervention.” Again, it might not make sense with a piece here and a piece there, but there is still a wealth of good information on these blog posts.

I am off to St. Paul, then Chicago, then New York, then Utah, and then I get to come back to the City by the Bay. I am starting another long stretch of road trips, but I have to admit I like it. I’m reviewing a lot of work now and I am also very excited about learning even more this year.

Life is good. I sure appreciate the work Laree Draper has put into my new DVD. Check out these two freebies:

and

Doing my best to keep training lately…lots of hypertrophy, yoga, fasting and Kettlebells!

Great Workout Based on “Intervention”

I sure love my group at the Coyote Point Kettlebell Club. We trained on Thursday this week and had a lot of new people. We were going to do the “Humane Burpee” with Pull Ups, but SteveO (Steve Ledbetter) added a simple idea: “Let’s do Suitcase Carries so we can do all five human movements.” More on that in a second…

So, off we went:
10 Bulgarian Goat Bag Swings
10 Goblet Squats
10 Push Up
Suitcase Carry Left Hand to Pull Up Bar
One Pull Up (Trust me on this!)
Suitcase Carry Right Hand back to Swing area.

Now, you can do this 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 fashion or a bunch of sets of Five…it doesn’t matter. It steams you up, gets the heart beating and works on a lot of things. What it REALLY works on is your abs at they don’t even have a chance to catch up.

So, I think we called it “The SteveO Segue Super Sircuit of Sweetness” or something like that.

My new DVD, “Intervention” will be available soon. It is the culmination of four decades experience in the weightroom, track, pitch, field, and life in one understandable package. I don’t think I am overstating that this will change the way you approach your training and how you train others at any age or goal. Check it out HERE.

To get a sense of it, look at these two clips:

You can see why I think our SteveO workout was such an excellent idea. I think, honestly, that this is why “community” is the missing link in most people’s training.

I’d love to hear some feedback on workouts like this and some others!

My Conversations…what I am “listening” for…

(Quick note: I had someone mention that they couldn’t find the original of this piece. Here is a follow up, that I may or may not have posted here on my blog. This is part of my “Intervention Toolkit.”)
Everybody assesses and, as my friend Wil Heffernan says it, “if you ain’t assessing, you’re guessing.”

My tools are pretty simple. I am a huge fan of the Functional Movement Screen and I recently sat in a cold, dark auditorium for four days with Gray Cook and Brett Jones at the CK FMS workshop (Certified Kettlebell Instructor Functional Movement Screen). Although my skill set with the FMS is, at best, rudimentary, I insist on two of the basics for everyone I work with in the gym: the Active Straight Leg Raise and the Shoulder Mobility screens.

True, you could use all seven screens and strive for the mantra: “14 and no asymmetries,” the standard results for a “cleared exam.” In other words, someone with this score will statistically NOT get hurt doing their sport. The problem with our fighter or our football player: he puts bread on the table by contact so I am not comfortable saying: “Sorry, you can’t work because you have a tight calf muscle.” (Okay, that was a gross overstatement, but I think you get the point).

The reason I use the ASLR and SM screens are that I get an instant insight into what Doctor Mark Cheng calls the “Four Knots.” The shoulders and hips need to be in an interesting balance between tension, mobility, stability, strength and looseness. Like a knot on your shoelace, too loose and it doesn’t hold (bad) and too tight and you can’t untie it (bad). It has to be “just so.”

In just minutes, I can have a handle on the four knots. As Gray and Brett pounded into me, if there are asymmetries between Right and Left, that’s where we begin to work. We will be doing hip, shoulder and thoracic mobility work probably every day available for the next six months, so have some kind of basic starting point will be helpful.

Okay, so I am in two minutes and have a basic sense of how much time we need to spend on basic mobility work. It’s the next part that I take real pride in: Intervention!

The idea is based, of course, on the way some addicts are confronted by loved ones about their addictions. I actually see the same thing, in a sense, with athletes: we become some single focused on our strengths that we need to have a bunch of people point out our flaws.

The official title in my notes is this: “Best lifts…oral exam.” My fun little subtitle is
“Waddya Bench?’ from the classic SNL telecast. In just a few minutes, I usually can discover what the focus of the athlete has been and the glaring omissions!

I am NOT listening for the maxs, I am listening for this list:

1. Push
2. Pull
3. Hinge
4. Squat
5. Walk/Run/Sprint under load

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