The CK-FMS was phenomenal . The approach is to treat the body as a movement. The lift as a movement. The FMS , like the RKC, is a system. A process. I am as excited about this as I was coming out of the RKC for the first time. It is a beautiful marriage. The crazy thing is.....it works. Every time ! This is going to have a lasting impact on the way we train. Strength will go up due to alignment and stability of the structure (out bodies) before we worry about the lift (or movement) portion. Everyone will be screened. The screen will identify asymmetries. We all have them. We all have them. We all have them. I cannot say this enough. CORRECTING AN ASYMMETRY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE AMOUNT OF WEIGHT YOU LIFT DURING A TRAINING SESSION ! We Good ? Clear ? We will need to dial back a little for a few weeks to fix the road before we drive on it again. It only makes sense. If your concerned that you didn't get your 'sweat on' that day....I can't help you. I only sweated twice over 4 days at the workshop and my strength and mobility increased. We need to get the repair work in. Some of you may be thinking that you feel pretty good....not much work will be needed. Brett Jones says he has never seen a perfect 21 (score). Doesn't exist. Let's get the screens done and see where we sit. I promise you, we are full of compensations for our weak stability. Don't think it's you? Here's a quick question. Would you rather I say "Press the bell over-head and hold it for 2 minutes" or " At your own pace, press the bell for 2 minutes" ? The first one requires no effort IF you have your stabilizers intact. The second one using your prime movers to blow past your stabilizers. DEEP STABILIZERS NEED TO FIRE BEFORE PRIME MOVERS FIRE. If they don't you will have bad movement with bad motor control. Then your body to compensate the movement and the problems begin. Foundation first. On to the next topic.
Chalk. We are WAY too dependent on it. Big lifts, big singles, going for Personal Records will require some chalk. I get it. I've done it. I do it. Chalk up to your elbows, all over the floor, the bell, in the air AND it's the bell you can 'hang with'.....Nope. Not needed. Un-necessary. Re-examine your relationship with the chalk. It is there to remove the oils from your hands. That's it. That requires a very, very light application and rubbing it into your skin. IF you can't hold on to it, that represents a weakness. It doesn't matter the origin of the weakness. It still represents a weakness (yes, it does.....yes, it does....stop arguing! ). Use a lighter bell OR, MORE IMPORTANTLY, USE A BETTER TECHNIQUE. It does come down to that. Soften your technique. Build the strength without the use of props.
Lastly....This past weekend was a bad experience for some of the attendees. We had some big names and heavy hitters in the attendence. They didn't get what they wanted from the experience. What they needed was there...it was. What they wanted was for the FMS to validate how they already train and validate their current belief system. That's what they wanted. What they needed was the FMS, but they didn't see it. They needed to do two things: shut their mouths and be receptive. Had they done that little maneuver, doors would have opened. I will tell you from personal experience, as a recovering chronic painer it is very, very hard to take the suggestions of somebody outside the body I know. It's the body I know. Not them. Trust is a HUGE factor because I will kick my own ass a lot harder for listening to the morons poor advice when I knew I shouldn't have in the first place. I (we) joke at work that I care for people...not about them. The joke ends there with a little chuckle. More to the heart of it is why. It has more to do with me and my frustrations and disappointments from living life. I have found there is a bucket full of frustration and disappointment if you care for someone more than they care about themselves. Or, if you want something (an accomplishment) for another (maybe your kids) more than they want for themselves. Even though I know it will work, my passions or goals gets smashed because the other person just isn't interested. After all, they can make their own choices. That is really the root of the cute joke from work. When dealing with someone who has drank their liver dead and they need a transplant, well, it comes with its dynamic. So, how does this apply to N.E.K.B. ? After this weekend....especially after this weekend, I see huge potential gains for everyone in class. Mobility, strength, agility, pain relief. I know your abilities. I know your strengths and weaknesses. I know your bodies and it's movements. I reflected back on the class every moment of the workshop and thought of examples in my life to each of the examples they played out. We are not a special or unique group. We are very predictable and correctable. The FMS is powerful and simple....that's its beauty. IF this is something your not interested in doing...I get it. My assumption is everyone wants to know if their patterns are symmetrical. This is the only time (over the next couple months) when I will offer screening for free. It's a learning time for me and Mark so I want to get my hands on as much material (new screens..a.k.a. people) as possible. I respect the FMS too much to let some one walk away with a score 'just because they were curious.' Seeing an asymmetry in some one, knowing they can correct it (not me..it's up to them) and then watching them not correct it is going to piss me off. Not hatred toward the other person. Just...piss me off because I want more for them than they want for themselves. I will dial this back but for now, the force is strong in this new Jedi.
The picture is from an old German gym circa. 1900
EITHER WAY => whether you want to follow thru with the corrections your given or not.......dial back on the chalk.
