Traditional combat sports like boxing, wrestling, and judo as well as more recent evolutions such as Brazilian Jiujitsu, are far more successful in real fights than "martial arts" like karate and taekwondo. There is a reason for this...
It's not really the techniques of these arts, since there is only a finite number of ways to move four limbs through space in relation to another body that allow you to cause damage. On an important level, the punches of taekwondo really aren't that different from the punches of western boxing. They both strike with the knuckles and they both travel along similar paths through space. Nevertheless, there is a statistically significant difference between the success levels of, let's say, Brazilian Jiujitsu and...Wally Jay's Small-Circle Jiujitsu. Both rely on submission holds and are grappling. Hell, both are Jiujitsu! Yet, they are drastically different.
Of course, most people interested in the subject are aware that the real difference is in the training method. That difference is that modern martial arts and combat sports allow practitioners the ability to practice the techniques at full-speed, full-force, against a resisting opponent.
The "jumping-spinning-reverse-outside-crescent-butterfly-kick" of "Who-Flung-Poo-Kung-Fu" falls apart as a viable fighting technique as soon as the opponent resists. It looks pretty, but it just doesn't work! It requires too much cooperation of the opponent. As soon as a bigger, faster, or stronger opponent jams the kick, the kicker ends up going ass-over-teakettle and being on the recieving end of a "Berkeley Stomp." (Think the beginning of American History X, when Edward Norton's character makes the black gangbanger place his open mouth against the curb before stomping on the back of his head!)
I have a student that we'll call "Suzie." Suzie is an 18 year old college freshman. She's 5'2" tall and weighs about 110 pounds....in jeans, shoes, and a heavy hoodie sweatshirt. She has no athletic background.
I have another student that we'll call "Collin." He is also an 18 year old college freshman (they went to HS together actually....). Collin though, is 6'2" and 240+ pounds. He played HS football, on the offensive line, and wrestled his sophomore year.
"Traditional martial arts" like taekwondo will tell you that, using their patented, secret techniques, Suzie can defeat Collin. They tell her that using a reverse punch, if she focuses her "chi" will allow her to punch or kick hard enough to injure Collin. They never allow the two of them to spar full-contact though, because they know, down deep, that it just doesn't work. It's bullshit!
I've watched Suzie use the hip heist sweep and the elevator sweep from the guard to reverse the bottom position consistently, while rolling against Collin, going full-speed. She KNOWS that this shit works, because she uses it successfully every time she trains. She can pull off a kimura lock against someone as big as Collin, and she knows it...because she's done it.
2) The second benefit of rolling as a training tool is that it develops genuine confidence in the fighter's ability. Suzie KNOWS that she can fight someone who weighs twice her bodyweight. She does it regularly. If she was studying taekwondo, she'd go years without sparring full-force, if she ever got the opportunity to do so...
This confidence allows her to use her training successfully in self-defense. She can stay calm and think her way through a situation, because she knows her skill level, and she knows that it really works. She's not forced to overcompensate by being "too" brutal or going ballistic before there is a genuine threat.
These are just two of the most important benefits that I've noticed after 20 years in this game. From judo and boxing to the last fifteen years of BJJ training, I've seen the value of rolling, or sparring, as a training tool.
There is a drawback to it though...too many coaches use it too much.
HOLY SHIT! DID I JUST SAY THAT COACHES HAVE THEIR FIGHTERS ROLL TOO MUCH?
You're goddamned right I did.
I don't know if it's laziness, or ignorance of better coaching methods, or just a desire to "train the way the teacher did." I don't really care either. It's a shitty method. Throwing brand-new beginners into the mix, rolling, is fucking stupid.
Contemporary sports science tells us that it takes several thousand repetitions of a specific skill in order to program it into the neural pathways for proprioceptive comprehension. Yet, coaches have their students, who might have drilled any given technique less than 50 times, jump in and try to use it while rolling. Then they expect them to succeed.
It doesn't work that way. What happens is they get pummeled by more advanced, or just bigger students, and what techniques they do try to apply fall apart completely. It's even harder to reprogram poorly programmed techniques than it is to program new techniques, but that's essentially what happens in gyms throughout the world daily. No fucking wonder it takes people ten years to earn a black belt. They use piss-poor teaching methods.
At Triumph Martial Arts, even though I've been taught BJJ the same way, we use a more modern training method. New students don't roll. They drill the fundamental techniques over and over. For the first month or two..sometimes three, they don't do anything but drill specific techniques, with little resistance from their partner.
Then, they'll slowly start being introduced to resistance through positional sparring drills. The "Guard Game" is one example. It is a pretty basic Jits drill, yet one I don't see used often enough. The guy on the bottom has to try and sweep or submit the fighter on top. The fighter on top, at the same time, has to try and pass guard. As soon as one or the other succeeds, they switch positions and start again. Basic positional sparring drills like this might make up the remainder of the first six months of training in some cases. (Usually it only takes about a month of this though.)
Once the student has demonstrated the ability to consistently use proper technique against a resisting opponent, under these controlled circumstances, then they will graduate to free-sparring, or what most people think of when they think of "rolling."
Even with advanced students though, only 5-10 minutes, at the end of a class period, will be spent free-sparring. Instead, most of a given class will be spent drilling basic techniques, with maybe one new technique introduced each week. Complete and total mastery of a few techniques is far more important than a passing familiarity with a whole slew of techniques.
I've found it to be a pretty efficient teaching and learning model. Let me know what YOU think though!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Accountability
I am a strength and conditioning coach (plus teaching a boxing class and an MMA/unarmed combatives class) here in Portlnd, Oregon. Other than my supposed expertise regarding nutrition, training methods and supplementation (which basically anyone can acquire with a little effort and study), one of the biggest services I provide my clientele is accountability.
They know they have someone who is keeping track of how often they are in the gym training and how much effort they are putting into it. It keeps them driven, because most of us don't want to let someone down. We'll work harder to appease someone else's image of us than we will to achieve our own goals.
Today was the first time all week that I've worked out. For the last three weeks, I've averaged one strength training session per week. That's not anywhere near enough to maintain my strength, let alone continue to improve it. My squat weight remained the same, but my push-press dropped from 205lbx5 to 155lbx5. Ouch.
So, I'm going to start putting my workouts up here, in the hope that somehow it will help me to remain accountable. So, if you happen to read this and realize that I haven't posted a training session in a while, drop me a line and chew my ass!
I'm lifting 5 days a week (3x/week primary lifts- BB Back Squats, BB Deadlifts, BB PowerCleans, and BB Push-Press/Overhead Press, plus weighted sit-ups, weighted dips, and chin-ups. 2x/week auxiliary strength training- neck work, forearm work, extra ab/core work).
I'm doing Jitz on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I'm working on my Crazy Monkey Defense Boxing on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
My cardio is pretty well limited to Guerrilla Cardio/Tabata Intervals. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and I'm doing 3x sets of Tabata Intervals on the treadmill. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, I'm doing 3x sets of Tabata Intervals of kettlebell swings.
If that doesn't get me back to elite status again in a hurry, it's because I'm overtraining. I don't believe in overtraining. I believe in not eating or sleeping enough! We'll see.
Keep me accountable!
They know they have someone who is keeping track of how often they are in the gym training and how much effort they are putting into it. It keeps them driven, because most of us don't want to let someone down. We'll work harder to appease someone else's image of us than we will to achieve our own goals.
Today was the first time all week that I've worked out. For the last three weeks, I've averaged one strength training session per week. That's not anywhere near enough to maintain my strength, let alone continue to improve it. My squat weight remained the same, but my push-press dropped from 205lbx5 to 155lbx5. Ouch.
So, I'm going to start putting my workouts up here, in the hope that somehow it will help me to remain accountable. So, if you happen to read this and realize that I haven't posted a training session in a while, drop me a line and chew my ass!
I'm lifting 5 days a week (3x/week primary lifts- BB Back Squats, BB Deadlifts, BB PowerCleans, and BB Push-Press/Overhead Press, plus weighted sit-ups, weighted dips, and chin-ups. 2x/week auxiliary strength training- neck work, forearm work, extra ab/core work).
I'm doing Jitz on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I'm working on my Crazy Monkey Defense Boxing on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
My cardio is pretty well limited to Guerrilla Cardio/Tabata Intervals. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and I'm doing 3x sets of Tabata Intervals on the treadmill. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, I'm doing 3x sets of Tabata Intervals of kettlebell swings.
If that doesn't get me back to elite status again in a hurry, it's because I'm overtraining. I don't believe in overtraining. I believe in not eating or sleeping enough! We'll see.
Keep me accountable!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Abbreviated Periodization
I read an interesting article from Charles Staley today. http://www.staleytrainingprograms.com/reprintable-articles/strength/direct/structural-vs-random.htm
There's quite a bit I disagree with about what he wrote, but there is also some I have to nod my head yes to.
Considering the popularity of Crossfit and related methods in the media and online right now, it seems that the vast majority of people really, really like the randomized approach. As Charles points out in his article, there are two major benefits to this approach:
1) the new-car smell
2) specificity to randomized and/or varied professional or athletic needs.
"The new-car smell" is, of course, the big seller for shit like Crossfit.
People have short attention spans today.
Seriously, ask a guy in his mid-twenties to read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. He'll take one look at it, frown, and ask if there is a movie. (Yes, and it's good, but it's not the book.)
MTV and shitty half-assed articles on the internet are responsible for this shit. What's new is good, what's old is bad?
The use and throw-away mindset is appalling. Just because it worked for dad doesn't mean it won't work for you.
Hell, it's MORE likely to work for you! Call it genetics.
A total and complete lack of self-discipline leads to Crossfit. It gets people into "shape" but it doesn't make them elite. It sure doesn't make them a T-Rex.
"Specificity to randomized and/or varied, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseum..."
Let's look at this one from the .mil approach. I was a Ranger, I've got a pretty good grasp on this one, even this late in the day.
Let's take a Ranger private in Charlie Company, 1st Battalion. One morning, after PT and breakfast, they get an OpOrder to do a raid on a suspected Al-Qaeda safehouse in Kirkuk. They run the mission and Joe Snuffy is tasked with grabbing the suspected terrorist and flex-cuffing him. Cool. He's gonna need a few different fitness factors to accomplish that...
1) He's gonna need anaerobic power and endurance. Why? He's got to sprint off the helicopter, and to the target building. He's gonna stack on the door with his team for a couple of seconds, then go barrelling through the door weapon up. This is gonna take a total of less than 60 seconds. IF he's been trained and conditioned right, he's still in the anaerobic threshold zone. Then, he's got to wrestle the suspect to the ground. That calls for anaerobic power and
2) Muscular Strength and Power. He's got to be stronger than the suspect, as well as able to use that strength FASTER than the opponent. Let's say he shoots a double leg, smashes Harry Hajji to the floor, and swarms up into the mount. So far so good. He flips the suspect onto his belly, grabs a wrist and wrenches an arm around to flex-cuff. Now he needs to have...
3) aerobic endurance, because he has to slow his heart rate WAY THE FUCK DOWN in order to manage the fine motor skills task of putting the cuffs on. Cool.
4) Now, he's got to carry the suspect to the exfil bird, because the recalcitrant bastard refuses to walk. Joe Snuffy needs muscular strength and endurance now, cause he's got to walk all the way to the HLZ with his equipment load, PLUS the weight of the suspect.
Obviously, there is a variety of energy demands on the tactical athlete at this point. What is the best method of training them? Is it Crossfit, with its random amalgamation of methods and techniques? Or, is there a better way? I believe there is a better way.
It's called periodization.Now, for the tactical athlete T-Rex, whether a Ranger, police officer, or armed citizen, a classical seasonal-based periodization scheme is going to fall short. He doesn't know WHEN his season is. He needs to be conditioned as tight as possible, all year round.
The method to this is abbreviated periodization (I made that term up-I think- that's why it's a fucking mouthful to spit out. I have a talent with words that way....). Instead of eight or ten weeks for a meso-cycle, and a year for a macro-cycle, we abbreviate it. The entire macro-cycle might take a total of two months, and mesocycles are combined.
"How the fuck do you combine meso-cycles?" You ask. (I know, I asked myself the same question when I was devising this strategy!)
Really though, it's pretty simple, especially if you use the T-Rex Strength Training approach. I lift 5X5s doing a whole body routine with ground-based, multi-joint, compound movement exercises. My strength training workout, with a partner and lengthy rest periods, takes no more than 45 minutes. I do short-duration, high-intensity cardio intervals, in the form of Tabata drills on the treadmill or exercise bike earlier in the day on those three days. On the off-days I do long, steady-duration (LSD) training for 30-60 minutes, trying to keep my heart rate right around 120-140 beats per minute (BPM).
That's for my general conditioning/strength phase. It lasts about four weeks.
Next comes a two week power phase. I do the same 5X5 program, but the first lift is varied each day. One day I'll do the barbell back squats first, then on wednesdays, I'll do overhead push-presses first, and on friday, I'll do power cleans first.
JUST FOR THE POWER PHASE, when I do these exercises first, instead of doing 5X5, I'll do 5 sets of heavy singles, with ascending weight until my 5th heavy single is really my 1-Rep max, or damned close to it. My goal is to get it up as FAST as humanly possible. See, I've already got pretty good rate of power production because I do power cleans and push-presses heavy during my strength phase. This just maximizes it.
My cardio stays the same.
The third phase is actually pretty similar to what Crossfit does. It's the metabolic conditioning phase, and like the power phase, is very abbreviated. No more than two weeks, and usually just a week of three workouts. I mix high intensity intervals with multi-joint, compound movement exercises, from kettleball swings to sub-maximal squats and push-ups. By doing these combined, and then resting only long enough to let my HR drop TO 120 bpm, I'm training my energy systems to work harder, under more stress, with less of a rest interval.
So, in the course of two months, I've managed to increase my strength, power, and energy production, without letting any one factor go long enough, without training, for it to weaken. It's the perfect system for tactical fitness.
Of course, some would ask, "What about skills development?"
What about it? There is nothing in this conditioning program that says you can't keep rolling or sparring, or shooting, or all of the above combined.
For the soldier, the LSD work can be roadmarching. For the BJJ guy, LSD might be rolling, or it might be a run and rolling might be a separate activity.
The key is that the whole program is STRUCTURED. This means that, as long as you follow the structure, you don't miss anything in training your attributes. Too often in the randomized protocol, weaknesses get ignored because training them is not as "fun." Additionally, once a quarter I believe in a total fitness assessment, from blood pressure and resting heart rate, to strength, power, and endurance tests. If you discover a weakness in one area, the structured program allows you to modify the structure to address that weakness.
There's quite a bit I disagree with about what he wrote, but there is also some I have to nod my head yes to.
Considering the popularity of Crossfit and related methods in the media and online right now, it seems that the vast majority of people really, really like the randomized approach. As Charles points out in his article, there are two major benefits to this approach:
1) the new-car smell
2) specificity to randomized and/or varied professional or athletic needs.
"The new-car smell" is, of course, the big seller for shit like Crossfit.
People have short attention spans today.
Seriously, ask a guy in his mid-twenties to read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. He'll take one look at it, frown, and ask if there is a movie. (Yes, and it's good, but it's not the book.)
MTV and shitty half-assed articles on the internet are responsible for this shit. What's new is good, what's old is bad?
The use and throw-away mindset is appalling. Just because it worked for dad doesn't mean it won't work for you.
Hell, it's MORE likely to work for you! Call it genetics.
A total and complete lack of self-discipline leads to Crossfit. It gets people into "shape" but it doesn't make them elite. It sure doesn't make them a T-Rex.
"Specificity to randomized and/or varied, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseum..."
Let's look at this one from the .mil approach. I was a Ranger, I've got a pretty good grasp on this one, even this late in the day.
Let's take a Ranger private in Charlie Company, 1st Battalion. One morning, after PT and breakfast, they get an OpOrder to do a raid on a suspected Al-Qaeda safehouse in Kirkuk. They run the mission and Joe Snuffy is tasked with grabbing the suspected terrorist and flex-cuffing him. Cool. He's gonna need a few different fitness factors to accomplish that...
1) He's gonna need anaerobic power and endurance. Why? He's got to sprint off the helicopter, and to the target building. He's gonna stack on the door with his team for a couple of seconds, then go barrelling through the door weapon up. This is gonna take a total of less than 60 seconds. IF he's been trained and conditioned right, he's still in the anaerobic threshold zone. Then, he's got to wrestle the suspect to the ground. That calls for anaerobic power and
2) Muscular Strength and Power. He's got to be stronger than the suspect, as well as able to use that strength FASTER than the opponent. Let's say he shoots a double leg, smashes Harry Hajji to the floor, and swarms up into the mount. So far so good. He flips the suspect onto his belly, grabs a wrist and wrenches an arm around to flex-cuff. Now he needs to have...
3) aerobic endurance, because he has to slow his heart rate WAY THE FUCK DOWN in order to manage the fine motor skills task of putting the cuffs on. Cool.
4) Now, he's got to carry the suspect to the exfil bird, because the recalcitrant bastard refuses to walk. Joe Snuffy needs muscular strength and endurance now, cause he's got to walk all the way to the HLZ with his equipment load, PLUS the weight of the suspect.
Obviously, there is a variety of energy demands on the tactical athlete at this point. What is the best method of training them? Is it Crossfit, with its random amalgamation of methods and techniques? Or, is there a better way? I believe there is a better way.
It's called periodization.Now, for the tactical athlete T-Rex, whether a Ranger, police officer, or armed citizen, a classical seasonal-based periodization scheme is going to fall short. He doesn't know WHEN his season is. He needs to be conditioned as tight as possible, all year round.
The method to this is abbreviated periodization (I made that term up-I think- that's why it's a fucking mouthful to spit out. I have a talent with words that way....). Instead of eight or ten weeks for a meso-cycle, and a year for a macro-cycle, we abbreviate it. The entire macro-cycle might take a total of two months, and mesocycles are combined.
"How the fuck do you combine meso-cycles?" You ask. (I know, I asked myself the same question when I was devising this strategy!)
Really though, it's pretty simple, especially if you use the T-Rex Strength Training approach. I lift 5X5s doing a whole body routine with ground-based, multi-joint, compound movement exercises. My strength training workout, with a partner and lengthy rest periods, takes no more than 45 minutes. I do short-duration, high-intensity cardio intervals, in the form of Tabata drills on the treadmill or exercise bike earlier in the day on those three days. On the off-days I do long, steady-duration (LSD) training for 30-60 minutes, trying to keep my heart rate right around 120-140 beats per minute (BPM).
That's for my general conditioning/strength phase. It lasts about four weeks.
Next comes a two week power phase. I do the same 5X5 program, but the first lift is varied each day. One day I'll do the barbell back squats first, then on wednesdays, I'll do overhead push-presses first, and on friday, I'll do power cleans first.
JUST FOR THE POWER PHASE, when I do these exercises first, instead of doing 5X5, I'll do 5 sets of heavy singles, with ascending weight until my 5th heavy single is really my 1-Rep max, or damned close to it. My goal is to get it up as FAST as humanly possible. See, I've already got pretty good rate of power production because I do power cleans and push-presses heavy during my strength phase. This just maximizes it.
My cardio stays the same.
The third phase is actually pretty similar to what Crossfit does. It's the metabolic conditioning phase, and like the power phase, is very abbreviated. No more than two weeks, and usually just a week of three workouts. I mix high intensity intervals with multi-joint, compound movement exercises, from kettleball swings to sub-maximal squats and push-ups. By doing these combined, and then resting only long enough to let my HR drop TO 120 bpm, I'm training my energy systems to work harder, under more stress, with less of a rest interval.
So, in the course of two months, I've managed to increase my strength, power, and energy production, without letting any one factor go long enough, without training, for it to weaken. It's the perfect system for tactical fitness.
Of course, some would ask, "What about skills development?"
What about it? There is nothing in this conditioning program that says you can't keep rolling or sparring, or shooting, or all of the above combined.
For the soldier, the LSD work can be roadmarching. For the BJJ guy, LSD might be rolling, or it might be a run and rolling might be a separate activity.
The key is that the whole program is STRUCTURED. This means that, as long as you follow the structure, you don't miss anything in training your attributes. Too often in the randomized protocol, weaknesses get ignored because training them is not as "fun." Additionally, once a quarter I believe in a total fitness assessment, from blood pressure and resting heart rate, to strength, power, and endurance tests. If you discover a weakness in one area, the structured program allows you to modify the structure to address that weakness.
Attribution
There is an issue on-going on Total Protection Interactive.com (TPI) with outsiders failing to attribute their work to the original developers.
I'm a big fan of TPI and guys like "Southnarc," "KIT," etc...I believe that what TPI has developed is the current and future of cutting-edge tactical application and theory.
Hell, I don't even really blame guys like Gabe Suarez and Richard Nance for "borrowing" the concepts and re-working them to fit their paradigm (as long as the paradigm isn't in conflict with reality).
What I have an issue with is outright theft. I didn't create any of the concepts I use in my training of clients, from strength training to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to Crazy Monkey Defense. I feel like I'm pretty good about attributing the concepts to the guys that I borrowed them from. The idea of theft appalls me.
Especially from Gabe. Hell, I respected the shit out of Gabe for a long time. Granted, his Bible-thumping kind of annoyed the shit out of me, but I can respect a man's religious beliefs without agreeing with him.
Now though?
I know he's a hypocrite and a liar. He goes on and on about "Hajji-this and "Hajji-that" (I'm opposed to Muslim extremists too, don't get me wrong!), but I think his real problem is their brand of justice.
According to Sharia law, you steal something, you get your fucking hand cut off.
So, Gabe is maybe afraid they'd cut his goddamned hand off because of his intellectual property theft? Maybe?
I don't know Richard Nance from Adam, but I know he tried, unsuccessfully, to use the Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) developed within the TPI community. I've seen clips of the video...dude failed, big time.
I've seen first month white belts in BJJ and Junior High wrestlers with better applications than that. I'm relatively certain that very few people read this blog, and I'm okay with that for the time being. If any of them read this though, I'd just say one thing...
"GROW THE FUCK UP AND DO THE WORK!"
I'm a big fan of TPI and guys like "Southnarc," "KIT," etc...I believe that what TPI has developed is the current and future of cutting-edge tactical application and theory.
Hell, I don't even really blame guys like Gabe Suarez and Richard Nance for "borrowing" the concepts and re-working them to fit their paradigm (as long as the paradigm isn't in conflict with reality).
What I have an issue with is outright theft. I didn't create any of the concepts I use in my training of clients, from strength training to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to Crazy Monkey Defense. I feel like I'm pretty good about attributing the concepts to the guys that I borrowed them from. The idea of theft appalls me.
Especially from Gabe. Hell, I respected the shit out of Gabe for a long time. Granted, his Bible-thumping kind of annoyed the shit out of me, but I can respect a man's religious beliefs without agreeing with him.
Now though?
I know he's a hypocrite and a liar. He goes on and on about "Hajji-this and "Hajji-that" (I'm opposed to Muslim extremists too, don't get me wrong!), but I think his real problem is their brand of justice.
According to Sharia law, you steal something, you get your fucking hand cut off.
So, Gabe is maybe afraid they'd cut his goddamned hand off because of his intellectual property theft? Maybe?
I don't know Richard Nance from Adam, but I know he tried, unsuccessfully, to use the Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) developed within the TPI community. I've seen clips of the video...dude failed, big time.
I've seen first month white belts in BJJ and Junior High wrestlers with better applications than that. I'm relatively certain that very few people read this blog, and I'm okay with that for the time being. If any of them read this though, I'd just say one thing...
"GROW THE FUCK UP AND DO THE WORK!"
Thursday, October 8, 2009
The Ideal Strength Gym
Here is my concept of the ultimate, T-Rex Gym. We'll call it T-Rex Training, for the sake of argument.
At T-Rex Training, the goal is to get stronger and more fit. Simple as that. It's not a social club, it's not a dating hook-up, it's not a psychiatrist's office. We come to get strong.
It's not the cheapest membership in town, but it's still the best deal. There are no fancy carpets, the paint is peeling, the television (yes, just one in the whole place) is turned to FoxNews. Nothing else, unless it's fight night or there happens to be a really good football game on!
You get all that ambience for $150 a month...
But wait! There's more! (I'm like a late-night television pitchman, huh?).
You don't get to just come in and do whatever workout you feel like doing. Every-single-fucking-training session that you do is planned. Each quarter, you sit down with a coach and discuss what your fitness goals are for the quarter. Then, the coach goes and plans your program for you. Then, every single time you come into train, the coach is there, coaching you. Granted, you're not alone. There'll be three or four other guys being coached at the same time, all of whom are on the same basic plan as you are.
So, if you're on a four-a-week program, you're getting each training session for less than $10.00 each! If you're on a three-a-week program, you're getting it for just slightly more...
Considering that a Globo-Gym like 24Hour Fitness will charge you $25.00 a month (if you pay for the entire year, up front), and $75-80/hour for personal training, how can you go wrong with T-Rex Training? Oh, that's right, you won't be impressing the blonde bimbo on the treadmill with the fake ta-tas by doing dumbbell curls with the 10-pounders...
What you will get is training by a coach that knows what the fuck he is doing, instead of some 19 year-old kid that was flipping burgers at McDonald's last year, until he decided he could make more money by teaching you how to do something he learned in a one-day training certification...
At T-Rex Training, the goal is to get stronger and more fit. Simple as that. It's not a social club, it's not a dating hook-up, it's not a psychiatrist's office. We come to get strong.
It's not the cheapest membership in town, but it's still the best deal. There are no fancy carpets, the paint is peeling, the television (yes, just one in the whole place) is turned to FoxNews. Nothing else, unless it's fight night or there happens to be a really good football game on!
You get all that ambience for $150 a month...
But wait! There's more! (I'm like a late-night television pitchman, huh?).
You don't get to just come in and do whatever workout you feel like doing. Every-single-fucking-training session that you do is planned. Each quarter, you sit down with a coach and discuss what your fitness goals are for the quarter. Then, the coach goes and plans your program for you. Then, every single time you come into train, the coach is there, coaching you. Granted, you're not alone. There'll be three or four other guys being coached at the same time, all of whom are on the same basic plan as you are.
So, if you're on a four-a-week program, you're getting each training session for less than $10.00 each! If you're on a three-a-week program, you're getting it for just slightly more...
Considering that a Globo-Gym like 24Hour Fitness will charge you $25.00 a month (if you pay for the entire year, up front), and $75-80/hour for personal training, how can you go wrong with T-Rex Training? Oh, that's right, you won't be impressing the blonde bimbo on the treadmill with the fake ta-tas by doing dumbbell curls with the 10-pounders...
What you will get is training by a coach that knows what the fuck he is doing, instead of some 19 year-old kid that was flipping burgers at McDonald's last year, until he decided he could make more money by teaching you how to do something he learned in a one-day training certification...
The Power of 5X5
Anyone who has been involved in strength training for any appreciable amount of time has probably heard of the 5X5 protocols. It's an old-ass method supposedly developed by legendary bodybuilder Reg Park in the 1940s. Many of the strength and physique athletes of the '60s and '70s used it to build the size and strength they are renowned for. The Governator used it, so did Lou "The Incredible Hulk" Ferrigno, and many, many others.
Legendary strength coach Bill Starr used it. He was the first professional, full-time strength and conditioning coach in the NCAA. All these guys used it and got results because it fucking works. Where did we get this idea that 3X10-12 was the key to hypertrophy? From lab studies on out-of-shape doughnut munchers that were strength training for the first time. Of fucking course it worked on them. ANY STRENGTH TRAINING would have worked, they were out of shape genius!
The 5X5 works for a couple of reasons. Most notably because, if you're doing it right, you're doing it heavy. Lifting heavy shit will make you strong. Lifting heavy shit and eating enough will make you big. It's really that simple. If your goal is to get big and strong in a hurry, you need to do two things- (1) you need to eat a lot. Unless you are already a fat body, that means you are goning to need to eat more than you already do. Don't whine at me that you will get fat. What you are eating now is not enough or you would get bigger. If you are maintaining weight now, at your current activity level and are strength training....add 3500 calories a week (that's 500 calories a day for the mathematically challenged!), and you will gain one pound a week. If you eat adequate protein and carbs, and lift heavy shit regularly, that pound will be muscle. That's the only way to get bigger and more muscular. Pretty goddamned simple, isn't it?
If you add one pound of muscle per week, you will get stronger. Again, pretty goddamned simple, isn't it?
So, how do you do the 5X5? One method is to start by lifting the first four sets as gradually increasing amounts of weight, until you do a maximum-effort 5-rep max on the last set. It works. You'll get stronger.
Another method is to do the first two sets as warm-ups, then do the last 3 sets as a 5-rep max effort, with adequate recovery time between sets.
The final method is "sets-across." This involves doing a couple of warm-up sets, then all 5 sets are as a 5-rep max loading effort. This is probably the best all-around method. It WILL make you big and strong, while also offering some level of stamina.
Rest intervals? Between set rest intervals are dependent on two factors, your recovery time and how much weight you are lifting. If you limit yourself to 30 seconds of rest between sets, your 5-rep max is going to be considerably less than if you rest of 2-3 minutes between sets.
If you rest for 5-10 minutes between sets though, you lose any sort of benefit at all in regards to stamina development. My rule, and the one I consider the most sensible and useful, is to wait as long as it takes...sort of...
I wait a minimum of 2 minutes, or 120 seconds. The intra-cellular supply of ATP has largely been replenished in that period of time. Your nervous system should be largely re-set by then as well. If I feel like I need a little more rest, I'll take it. I will not, however, let my rest interval go longer than 5 minutes. That's just kind of ridiculous I think. If I was training to be a competitive O-Lifter or Powerlifter, I'd take more time, for certain. For sports-conditioning strength training though, less than 5 minutes is pretty well the cake!
So, we're doing 5X5, sets across, with a 2-3 minute rest interval in between. What other details are important?
Exercise selection and training frequency.
For sports applications, from football to wrestling; from baseball, basketball, and rugby, to mixed-martial arts and self-defense, isolation exercises are, with a few VERY specific exceptions, a flat-stupid, fucking waste of time.
Let me put it this way...If you are doing bicep curls and can't do twenty chin-ups, you're a douchebag! I believe in whole-body movements as much as possible. Don't even try and throw the whole, "Ooh, but I'm so important, I don't have TIME to do a whole body workout." argument at me either. I can smoke your ass on a whole body program that works in less time than you can do a solid, bodypart-isolation workout.
So, what kind of exercises? Multi-joint, compound movement exercises, as absolutely much as possible. Your workout should be based around the T-Rex Five: Squat, Bench Press, Deadlift, Overhead Press, and Power Cleans. If you don't know how to do power cleans, and are too scared or too stupid to ask for coaching, you COULD replace them with bent-over barbell rows, or even something like high pulls. It'll be less effective, but hey, you're too much of a pussy to do power cleans anyway, so who cares, right?
Supplemental exercises should be used also...pull-ups/chin-ups, parallel dips, push-ups, and ab/core work, like the fucking ab wheel that I go on about.
Three workouts a week is the norm, but you COULD go to a four a week if you split them up into an upper-body/lower-body split, and just did deadlifts on the last workout day of the week. It's really not worth the effort though.
Just do a 3-a-week, split like I do mine. I do my powerlifts- squat, bench, and deadlift one workout, then my O-lift variations and the supplemental exercises the next workout, contintually alternating them. Each time you do a workout on your mid-day (making it the only time you'll do the workout that week), add 5 pounds to every exercise. This even gives you a lower-intensity (not LOW) workout regularly, cause the third time you do an exercise at a given weight it's going to be easier than it was when you added the weight.
It's a simple program, but one that has been proven over and over and over and over to work. Try it. Give it one month and see if you don't get bigger and stronger. You will. Then, you can come back and thank me.
Legendary strength coach Bill Starr used it. He was the first professional, full-time strength and conditioning coach in the NCAA. All these guys used it and got results because it fucking works. Where did we get this idea that 3X10-12 was the key to hypertrophy? From lab studies on out-of-shape doughnut munchers that were strength training for the first time. Of fucking course it worked on them. ANY STRENGTH TRAINING would have worked, they were out of shape genius!
The 5X5 works for a couple of reasons. Most notably because, if you're doing it right, you're doing it heavy. Lifting heavy shit will make you strong. Lifting heavy shit and eating enough will make you big. It's really that simple. If your goal is to get big and strong in a hurry, you need to do two things- (1) you need to eat a lot. Unless you are already a fat body, that means you are goning to need to eat more than you already do. Don't whine at me that you will get fat. What you are eating now is not enough or you would get bigger. If you are maintaining weight now, at your current activity level and are strength training....add 3500 calories a week (that's 500 calories a day for the mathematically challenged!), and you will gain one pound a week. If you eat adequate protein and carbs, and lift heavy shit regularly, that pound will be muscle. That's the only way to get bigger and more muscular. Pretty goddamned simple, isn't it?
If you add one pound of muscle per week, you will get stronger. Again, pretty goddamned simple, isn't it?
So, how do you do the 5X5? One method is to start by lifting the first four sets as gradually increasing amounts of weight, until you do a maximum-effort 5-rep max on the last set. It works. You'll get stronger.
Another method is to do the first two sets as warm-ups, then do the last 3 sets as a 5-rep max effort, with adequate recovery time between sets.
The final method is "sets-across." This involves doing a couple of warm-up sets, then all 5 sets are as a 5-rep max loading effort. This is probably the best all-around method. It WILL make you big and strong, while also offering some level of stamina.
Rest intervals? Between set rest intervals are dependent on two factors, your recovery time and how much weight you are lifting. If you limit yourself to 30 seconds of rest between sets, your 5-rep max is going to be considerably less than if you rest of 2-3 minutes between sets.
If you rest for 5-10 minutes between sets though, you lose any sort of benefit at all in regards to stamina development. My rule, and the one I consider the most sensible and useful, is to wait as long as it takes...sort of...
I wait a minimum of 2 minutes, or 120 seconds. The intra-cellular supply of ATP has largely been replenished in that period of time. Your nervous system should be largely re-set by then as well. If I feel like I need a little more rest, I'll take it. I will not, however, let my rest interval go longer than 5 minutes. That's just kind of ridiculous I think. If I was training to be a competitive O-Lifter or Powerlifter, I'd take more time, for certain. For sports-conditioning strength training though, less than 5 minutes is pretty well the cake!
So, we're doing 5X5, sets across, with a 2-3 minute rest interval in between. What other details are important?
Exercise selection and training frequency.
For sports applications, from football to wrestling; from baseball, basketball, and rugby, to mixed-martial arts and self-defense, isolation exercises are, with a few VERY specific exceptions, a flat-stupid, fucking waste of time.
Let me put it this way...If you are doing bicep curls and can't do twenty chin-ups, you're a douchebag! I believe in whole-body movements as much as possible. Don't even try and throw the whole, "Ooh, but I'm so important, I don't have TIME to do a whole body workout." argument at me either. I can smoke your ass on a whole body program that works in less time than you can do a solid, bodypart-isolation workout.
So, what kind of exercises? Multi-joint, compound movement exercises, as absolutely much as possible. Your workout should be based around the T-Rex Five: Squat, Bench Press, Deadlift, Overhead Press, and Power Cleans. If you don't know how to do power cleans, and are too scared or too stupid to ask for coaching, you COULD replace them with bent-over barbell rows, or even something like high pulls. It'll be less effective, but hey, you're too much of a pussy to do power cleans anyway, so who cares, right?
Supplemental exercises should be used also...pull-ups/chin-ups, parallel dips, push-ups, and ab/core work, like the fucking ab wheel that I go on about.
Three workouts a week is the norm, but you COULD go to a four a week if you split them up into an upper-body/lower-body split, and just did deadlifts on the last workout day of the week. It's really not worth the effort though.
Just do a 3-a-week, split like I do mine. I do my powerlifts- squat, bench, and deadlift one workout, then my O-lift variations and the supplemental exercises the next workout, contintually alternating them. Each time you do a workout on your mid-day (making it the only time you'll do the workout that week), add 5 pounds to every exercise. This even gives you a lower-intensity (not LOW) workout regularly, cause the third time you do an exercise at a given weight it's going to be easier than it was when you added the weight.
It's a simple program, but one that has been proven over and over and over and over to work. Try it. Give it one month and see if you don't get bigger and stronger. You will. Then, you can come back and thank me.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Even I Make a Mistake Once in a While!
I started a new version of the Primitive Power T-Rex lifts yesterday. Unfortunately, I messed up and put deadlifts first, before power cleans. Bad idea Jose!!!!
While it is generally true that we want to program our exercise order so that the largest demand exercises come before the least demanding, specialization-type exercises, there are times when that is not going to be ideal.
Yesterday's workout was an example of this. Since I'm still weak after my five year hiatus from strength training, I'm only deadlifting 295 pounds. I did one set of 5, but on my second set only managed to pull the first 3 reps. I missed the 4th. No big deal really; I'm not a competitive lifter and I'm only 33, so I've got plenty of time left to get the load intensity up.
I normally do 5 sets X 3 reps for my power cleans at 185+ pounds. Not yesterday. I managed to hit 165lbs, but the 185 was just not going to happen. I attribute this solely to the heavy deadlifts prior to that.
So, my choices are left as:
1) I can move the deadlift to my other workout, meaning I'd do it after squats and bench press, or I can move it to the end of the same workout, meaning it would be after power cleans and overhead presses. Six of one, half-dozen of the other I think.
My program for the time being looks like this:
Lift on monday, wednesday, and friay. Alternate between the two workouts.
Workout A
BB Power Cleans 5X3--sets across
BB Push-Press 5X5--sets across
BB Deadlift 2X5--sets across
Chin-Ups 5X5--sets across
Ab Wheel Rollout 5X5--sets across
Workout B
BB Back Squats 5X5--sets across
BB Bench Press 5X5--sets across
BB Straight-Leg Deadlift 5X5--sets across
Parallel Dips 5X5--sets across
Ab Wheel Rollout 5X5--sets across
You will notice that it is comprised of simple, primitive barbell exercises. There is nothing wrong with using dumbbells either. I just don't see the point.
A "Functional" trainer would tell you that using DBs makes the exercise harder, because it activates more of the stabilizer muscles. Maybe, but maybe not.
Why is it that I can do a combined weight of only 130 pounds with dumbbells, but with a barbell I can go 5-10, or even 20 pounds more? The synergistic effect of the muscles makes this possible. If I can do 20-30 pounds more with a barbell than I can lift with two dmbbells, do you honestly think I'm NOT going to be able to lift the lighter DB load? Of course not. Barbell exercises demand activation of the core region too, it's just thoe fucking god-awful machines that don't!
While it is generally true that we want to program our exercise order so that the largest demand exercises come before the least demanding, specialization-type exercises, there are times when that is not going to be ideal.
Yesterday's workout was an example of this. Since I'm still weak after my five year hiatus from strength training, I'm only deadlifting 295 pounds. I did one set of 5, but on my second set only managed to pull the first 3 reps. I missed the 4th. No big deal really; I'm not a competitive lifter and I'm only 33, so I've got plenty of time left to get the load intensity up.
I normally do 5 sets X 3 reps for my power cleans at 185+ pounds. Not yesterday. I managed to hit 165lbs, but the 185 was just not going to happen. I attribute this solely to the heavy deadlifts prior to that.
So, my choices are left as:
1) I can move the deadlift to my other workout, meaning I'd do it after squats and bench press, or I can move it to the end of the same workout, meaning it would be after power cleans and overhead presses. Six of one, half-dozen of the other I think.
My program for the time being looks like this:
Lift on monday, wednesday, and friay. Alternate between the two workouts.
Workout A
BB Power Cleans 5X3--sets across
BB Push-Press 5X5--sets across
BB Deadlift 2X5--sets across
Chin-Ups 5X5--sets across
Ab Wheel Rollout 5X5--sets across
Workout B
BB Back Squats 5X5--sets across
BB Bench Press 5X5--sets across
BB Straight-Leg Deadlift 5X5--sets across
Parallel Dips 5X5--sets across
Ab Wheel Rollout 5X5--sets across
You will notice that it is comprised of simple, primitive barbell exercises. There is nothing wrong with using dumbbells either. I just don't see the point.
A "Functional" trainer would tell you that using DBs makes the exercise harder, because it activates more of the stabilizer muscles. Maybe, but maybe not.
Why is it that I can do a combined weight of only 130 pounds with dumbbells, but with a barbell I can go 5-10, or even 20 pounds more? The synergistic effect of the muscles makes this possible. If I can do 20-30 pounds more with a barbell than I can lift with two dmbbells, do you honestly think I'm NOT going to be able to lift the lighter DB load? Of course not. Barbell exercises demand activation of the core region too, it's just thoe fucking god-awful machines that don't!
Fictional Functional Fitness
I work in a gym. It's not the first gym/fitness center that I've worked in and may not be the last. It's a good one for the time being though.
There are certainly issues here however, as there are everywhere. I'm tired of "functional fitness" experts and the strange concepts they utilize in training their clientele. The owner of this gym (and I should add, my best friend in the world) is an advocate of this.
The "swiss ball" thing is stupid. I get what people think it is supposed to be for. I really do. It's all about inducing activation of the stabilizer muscles of the "core region." Great, so sitting on a ball and doing shoulder presses with light dumbbells will make me work on my balance? Cool.
However...doing heavy-ass barbell squats- with the bar across my shoulders and loaded with 300+ pounds- does the EXACT SAME FUCKING THING! Barbell squats offer two additional advantages as well. One is, they actually make you stronger. Why else would we lift weights, if not to be stronger?
Two, you don't look like a fucking retarded sissy if you're doing heavy barbell squats. If you're doing 20lb dumbbell presses while seated on a "swiss ball," you look like a retarded sissy.
Don't try and tell me that barbell squats don't activate the stabilizers either. Have you ever had 300+ pounds across your shoulders? If you have, you know what I'm talking about. If you haven't, you need to keep your fucking piehole shut about shit you don't know.
Same thing with crunches and shit. The abdominus rectus and the obliques-external and internal- are designed for stabilization. Not for spinal flexion. Not for torso rotation. Spell it out, S-T-A-B-I-L-I-Z-A-T-I-O-N.
If you are going to claim that all your exercises and programs are designed to promote core stabilization, don't then tell me I'm doing it wrong because I don't do crunches. (I do do crunches and sit-ups, just not every single workout.) The fact is, other than lifting heavy weight during the basic T-Rex lifts, the ab wheel rollout is the single best "ab" or "core" exercise you can do.
"Functional Fitness" should be about making life easier. That part of of the Paul Chek fan club mantra is accurate. Lifting heavy weight during the five T-Rex lifts is the way to accomplish that.
So, quit telling me about your awesome personal trainer at 24 Hour Fitness who made you do prone planks off the "Swiss Ball.Just do the exercises I've put in your program. You will get stronger and fitter. Isn't that sort of the fucking idea?
There are certainly issues here however, as there are everywhere. I'm tired of "functional fitness" experts and the strange concepts they utilize in training their clientele. The owner of this gym (and I should add, my best friend in the world) is an advocate of this.
The "swiss ball" thing is stupid. I get what people think it is supposed to be for. I really do. It's all about inducing activation of the stabilizer muscles of the "core region." Great, so sitting on a ball and doing shoulder presses with light dumbbells will make me work on my balance? Cool.
However...doing heavy-ass barbell squats- with the bar across my shoulders and loaded with 300+ pounds- does the EXACT SAME FUCKING THING! Barbell squats offer two additional advantages as well. One is, they actually make you stronger. Why else would we lift weights, if not to be stronger?
Two, you don't look like a fucking retarded sissy if you're doing heavy barbell squats. If you're doing 20lb dumbbell presses while seated on a "swiss ball," you look like a retarded sissy.
Don't try and tell me that barbell squats don't activate the stabilizers either. Have you ever had 300+ pounds across your shoulders? If you have, you know what I'm talking about. If you haven't, you need to keep your fucking piehole shut about shit you don't know.
Same thing with crunches and shit. The abdominus rectus and the obliques-external and internal- are designed for stabilization. Not for spinal flexion. Not for torso rotation. Spell it out, S-T-A-B-I-L-I-Z-A-T-I-O-N.
If you are going to claim that all your exercises and programs are designed to promote core stabilization, don't then tell me I'm doing it wrong because I don't do crunches. (I do do crunches and sit-ups, just not every single workout.) The fact is, other than lifting heavy weight during the basic T-Rex lifts, the ab wheel rollout is the single best "ab" or "core" exercise you can do.
"Functional Fitness" should be about making life easier. That part of of the Paul Chek fan club mantra is accurate. Lifting heavy weight during the five T-Rex lifts is the way to accomplish that.
So, quit telling me about your awesome personal trainer at 24 Hour Fitness who made you do prone planks off the "Swiss Ball.Just do the exercises I've put in your program. You will get stronger and fitter. Isn't that sort of the fucking idea?
Why the Fuck am I Writing a Blog?
The purpose of this blog, like that of most people's blogs, is to share my personal views, beliefs, and opinions on matters. I am a strength and conditioning coach in Portland, Oregon. I also teach a vale tudo-mixed martial arts based system of self-defense.
While this blog is intended to focus on those subjects, it will undoubtedly venture into other areas as well...politics, philosophy, interpersonal relations, and much, much, more. My goal is to share, with whomever may find interest in it, my conceptual reality of a post-modern liberal arts education.
To begin with, I believe any author seeks to carry on a conversation with his readers. In order to do so, you need some sort of a frame of reference to know who you're talking to, right?
Right. Of course I'm right. It's my blog, so I'm always right!I am a 33 year old male. As I noted above, I work in the fitness industry. I've lifted weights since I was 18. I grew up in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, graduating from Rogers High School in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1994. I immediately enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving with 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. (Yes, those were Rangers in Blackhawk Down. No, I do not know Josh Hartnett or Eric Bana!)
I learned a great deal ab0ut life there. I started exercising for real as a Ranger. (High School martial arts hardly count!) I started running. We ran a LOT!!!!! 6-8 miles a day, Monday through Friday. I started lifting weights as a Ranger. I learned to shoot, move, and communicate as a Ranger. Despite my HS martial arts training, I learned to fight as a Ranger. I started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a Ranger (as you'll see if you read this blog for long, THAT is as important as the weight training and running!).
I learned how to drink and party as a Ranger. I learned how to chase girls, successfully, as a Ranger. I learned how to survive life as a Ranger. Rangers Lead The Way!
I ended up leaving the Rangers because of injuries that wouldn't heal without more rest than I could get in that high-speed unit. I spent some time at the 101st Airborne Division (AASLT), then ended up with the 1/19th Special Forces Group (ABN).
In March of 2001 I ETS'd from the military for the last time. I spent about nine months in Alaska. It sucked. The country was beautiful, but the people were...not so much...
Upon returning CONUS (CONtinental United States), I ended up in Portland, Oregon and working as a personal trainer for two different "Globo-Gyms" and a small personal training facility called EMPower (where I work again now). I had some serious reservations about both of the Globo-Gyms" (24Hour Fitness and Bally's, since I KNOW you're dying to ask!). I ended up giving it all up.
I moved to the desert and became a working ranch cowboy. From Utah and Arizona, to Eastern Oregon, Montana, and Idaho, I worked all over the Intermountain West. Riding horses all day, taking care of cattle. Sounds pretty cool, huh? It was.
Except that, in March of 2009, I realized I weighed 145lbs. The day I ETSd from the Army though, I weighed 210 pounds with 10% bodyfat. Something wasn't right.
What wasn't right was the fact that I was working 16-18 hours a day, six and seven days a week, and eating one small meal a day! So, I returned to Portland and started working out again. Now, I'm back in the fitness industry, working as a strength and conditioning coach and a MMA coach.
I was married once, for two years (although we were separated after the first year). I have been divorced since 2007. I am currently dating a very nice young lady who acts like she actually cares about me instead of just herself. It's refreshing.
In this blog, I will attempt to focus on vale tudo self-protection subjects, as well as the TRUTH of "functional fitness." Good reading and good training!
While this blog is intended to focus on those subjects, it will undoubtedly venture into other areas as well...politics, philosophy, interpersonal relations, and much, much, more. My goal is to share, with whomever may find interest in it, my conceptual reality of a post-modern liberal arts education.
To begin with, I believe any author seeks to carry on a conversation with his readers. In order to do so, you need some sort of a frame of reference to know who you're talking to, right?
Right. Of course I'm right. It's my blog, so I'm always right!I am a 33 year old male. As I noted above, I work in the fitness industry. I've lifted weights since I was 18. I grew up in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, graduating from Rogers High School in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1994. I immediately enlisted in the U.S. Army, serving with 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment. (Yes, those were Rangers in Blackhawk Down. No, I do not know Josh Hartnett or Eric Bana!)
I learned a great deal ab0ut life there. I started exercising for real as a Ranger. (High School martial arts hardly count!) I started running. We ran a LOT!!!!! 6-8 miles a day, Monday through Friday. I started lifting weights as a Ranger. I learned to shoot, move, and communicate as a Ranger. Despite my HS martial arts training, I learned to fight as a Ranger. I started training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a Ranger (as you'll see if you read this blog for long, THAT is as important as the weight training and running!).
I learned how to drink and party as a Ranger. I learned how to chase girls, successfully, as a Ranger. I learned how to survive life as a Ranger. Rangers Lead The Way!
I ended up leaving the Rangers because of injuries that wouldn't heal without more rest than I could get in that high-speed unit. I spent some time at the 101st Airborne Division (AASLT), then ended up with the 1/19th Special Forces Group (ABN).
In March of 2001 I ETS'd from the military for the last time. I spent about nine months in Alaska. It sucked. The country was beautiful, but the people were...not so much...
Upon returning CONUS (CONtinental United States), I ended up in Portland, Oregon and working as a personal trainer for two different "Globo-Gyms" and a small personal training facility called EMPower (where I work again now). I had some serious reservations about both of the Globo-Gyms" (24Hour Fitness and Bally's, since I KNOW you're dying to ask!). I ended up giving it all up.
I moved to the desert and became a working ranch cowboy. From Utah and Arizona, to Eastern Oregon, Montana, and Idaho, I worked all over the Intermountain West. Riding horses all day, taking care of cattle. Sounds pretty cool, huh? It was.
Except that, in March of 2009, I realized I weighed 145lbs. The day I ETSd from the Army though, I weighed 210 pounds with 10% bodyfat. Something wasn't right.
What wasn't right was the fact that I was working 16-18 hours a day, six and seven days a week, and eating one small meal a day! So, I returned to Portland and started working out again. Now, I'm back in the fitness industry, working as a strength and conditioning coach and a MMA coach.
I was married once, for two years (although we were separated after the first year). I have been divorced since 2007. I am currently dating a very nice young lady who acts like she actually cares about me instead of just herself. It's refreshing.
In this blog, I will attempt to focus on vale tudo self-protection subjects, as well as the TRUTH of "functional fitness." Good reading and good training!
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