CLASS MUG SHOT 2011

Thanks to everyone that could make it to the Monday class. Hard-core and Hard-Style...nothin' wrong with that !

Because They Asked.......

I couldn't be more proud. Our cycle of training has been higher than usual. It all started Jan. 1st and ramping things for the Saturday boot camp. After boot camp we had the heavy snatch day. I had comments on both days to have another boot camp or another heavy snatch day. It would seem the punishment cannot be too great. Last night was a moderately heavy press day to get the shoulders back in the game. This morning I get a request for the Secret Service Snatch Test (SSST). What ?!? More over the top efforts ? What is Feb' going to look like ? Okay...SSST it is. The request wasn't actually for the SSST. It was for the SSST, THIS MONTH !!! I think we are in a groove.

Let's review. The SSST is a timed event. It last 10 minutes. In order to pass...just 'pass' the individual must complete 200 snatches in 10 minutes. Men use a 24kg bell (#5) and ladies use a 12 kg bell. This is the SSST. NO ACCOMMODATIONS FOR AGE !! Although I think it's wonderful your in your twilight years, you can mention that as you boast your numbers. The SSST is a standard. It is hard. It is not meant to be easy. If you get <100...it's a lethargic effort. Thank you for playing. Enjoy the beer. 150 reps gets you in the game. That is one snatch every 4 seconds...half the pace/rate of the VO2. Heart is pumping and body is shaking and taking a hit. 200 let's you know you've been somewhere. It is a tad slower than the VO2. It is not an easy path. You will feel it all over. Your heart will feel like it is jumping out of your chest. The room will spin. Your stomach will flipped. Your hammies are fried. IT'S MISERABLE...for a reason. We want to get the greatest 'suck factor' out of that ten minutes. You will want to die. But, it's only 10 minutes. The bell can be placed on the ground for a rest. Do not rest more than 5 breaths or you will suffer getting the bell moving again. Resting overhead is best. It's only 10 minutes. We will partner up. Your partner will count for you. You don't have to count...just focus on the next rep, and the next, and the next, and the next. The KB stud men and women get numbers in the 230-250 range. Hard-core nuts get the 260-280 range. I have never seen or heard of anyone breaking 300. That would be the VO2 pace for 10 full minutes. One rep every 2 seconds. In-freaking-sane. Personally, I don't know where I stand. I have not attempted the SSST in a long time. I don't know how many over the 200 I can get these days. We'll find out.

Here's what will happen...someone will walk up to me and tell me they "quit early", "rested too much", "they could have done more but".....BUT NOTHING. It's 10 minutes. Dig deep and pull this out out. It's the mother event. We will do this on Monday, 31st. We will do it in both classes. It is the only thing we will do. A nice easy day. 10 min drill. 15-20 minute rest for those that finished. 10 minute drill 15-20 minute rest. Enjoy the rest of the night.

Get some rest.

What can I say........

These are a few of my favorite things. Look at this group. How does a collection of people come together on a
Saturday morning to push themselves in sucha' way that so called 'athletes' or 'trainers' would never do. I had a crazy out of body experience as I was drilling the class. I felt the camera pull back...see the building by the track...see the neighborhood......keep backin' out till I saw the state of Minnesota and then the nation and the globe. Who was doing this at this hour and at this level?Normal people don't do this. They don't experience their potential or expect more from themselves. This is high level stuff. I am proud to be associated with the cool kids !!!! Even if I only watched.

That lived in look...2 years later.

It's a new Month !!!

We are officially into our third year at this location. The training and results continue to be the focus. There is no signs of slowing down. As a matter of fact, things are picking up. I dug up a couple old pictures to remind us how we use to drag these bells around. Cold bells. Puddles on the tile floors. Loading and unloading before and after every class. 'Below freezing' bells. Crazy stuff but we go thru it !!

HIGH TENSION RULES SUPREME !!

Say what you want. High intensity is only good if you add high tension. I love the H.I.T. Man.....and he H.I.T.s hard, but you have to have tension. Lots of tension. We have hit the shoulders pretty good in the last 2.5-3 weeks. If you only broke a sweat you should have been paying more attention to the weight. Meaning, more of it. Today I broke thru a huge barrier for me. Strict pressed the Beast on the left. Don't tell me Pavel's principles don't work. I just can't hear it. Hard-Style is not the only way to train strength but it has been the most effective and consistent method of training principles I have ever come in contact with during my travels. It works and it doesn't apologize for being hard.

SMOKIN' HOT LINK !!!! Picture Stinks !!!

This is by far the coolest tutorial I have seen. Shoulder
So here's the drill....show me the shoulder. Where is it. What muscles are considered the 'shoulder.' The picture above is the typical presentation of the shoulder. It lacks at best. If you see the website it shows the muscles of specific 'movements.' Awesome. A muscle function in the shoulder region changes depending on the movement your asking the muscle to perform. Last night over half of the training was a static hold. We didn't move. Our lats got hit very hard. Why the lats? Why did we walk around like we had wings? Look at the tutorial...do you still wonder? During the training we felt it to our waist....just holding a bell over head. I hear from people they are having 'pain in their shoulder' but when I ask more questions the response is, "No, not when I do that, or that, or that, or even that...but when I do this... well, not that time, but usually......" It is amazing. Play with the tutorial and try to find your pain within a movement. Label it...and then go see the great massage therapist Jc.