It is 8 weeks out from Fitness-Dixie show and so now I have to really get serious. I am going to see what can happen with the Return of the Kettlebell protocol and try to gain a little lean mass.
DAY ONE 7/27
LIGHT DAY:
3 x (1,2,3) ladders 16kg+8kg - switching sides each time. Except I got distracted and did (1,3,3) for the second ladder
5 squats in between each ladder
2×4 40kg sumo deadlifts
Warrior Diet:
Coffee w/ a little cream
J. Robb shake with a banana
Greek yogurt
DINNER:
roasted brussel sprouts (olive oil, salt, and pepper)
Rice pilaf/lentils with vegetable stock/hummus
2 glasses of wine
Where I went wrong: Cream instead of milk in my coffee but the coffee house I was meeting someone in didn’t have any milk option, I should have had a salad before the brussel sprouts and had planned on legally cheating with Arden’s Garden “Salad in a Glass” (unpasteurized beet, carrot, and parsley juice) but both stores by my place were out. It also said that wine was best had with the high fat or high protein days and this is detox week, but I took the “best” to mean that it was “ok” this week.
Day Two 7/28
VARIETY DAY:
Z Joint mobility drills - RTK says to take it really easy on variety days.
Warrior Diet:
Coffee w/milk
banana
fruit cup
cold leftover brussel sprouts
DINNER 4:45PM:
roasted brussel sprouts
rice pilaf/jasmine rice/red lentils/hummus
Kombucha
Where I went wrong: again not eating (or drinking) a salad first, eating cooked brussel sprouts during undereating phase. Even though they were cold. Still have 45 minutes in my overeating 4 hour window… May have a glass of wine. Still debating.
I decided yesterday (for sure) that I am going to compete in the Fitness America - Dixie competition on September 19th and use only kettlebells and the Warrior Diet to prepare. I have been happy with results training with kettlebells only for fitness shows, but have never tried using the Warrior Diet. In my opinion, nutrition is 80% of what your physique looks like so we will see what happens. I started the “Warrior Diet for Fat Loss” protocol yesterday and am curious to see what happens by the end of the 3 week cycle. It has 3 phases: Week 1: Detox, Week 2: High Fat, Week 3: cycle between high carb days and high protein days. There are no sweeteners, alcohol, or animal products (aside from some dairy and eggs) the first week so I am a little moody right now :-) Next week, I can add in some meat and a glass (or two) of wine with the feast so I am looking forward to that! Until then, it’s detox time… I will let you know how it’s going…
Let me start by saying that this past weekend was one of the most fun and most challenging I can remember. The RKC II was a weekend of learning from and connecting with others in the RKC community and was an absolute blast. The instructors and team leaders delivered excellent information and helped us become better RKC’s. It makes me look forward (even more than I already was) to this coming weekend with Kenneth Jay, David Whitley, and Sara Cheatham and to the Oklahoma workshop with Whitley and Jeff O’Connor this Fall. I can’t wait to learn more from these amazing instructors.
Hey guys! Just wanted to write a post to say how excited I am that Dustin Rippetoe, RKC II has confirmed as an attendee for the Kenneth Jay/David Whitley workshop Fourth of July weekend at Condition and has also announced a workshop at his own place in Guthrie, OK (just north of Oklahoma City) October 17-18th with Senior RKC (and all-around good guys) David Whitley and Jeff O’Connor. It will be celebrating the opening of his new Way of Strength facility so if at all possible, get out there. That should be a great time for everyone.
Cost: $35 for Main Event Members, $50 for non-members
This workshop will cover in detail the 5 basic kettlebell exercises: swings, get-ups, cleans, presses, and squats.The workshop is mandatory for participation in the Main Event Kettlebell program.
Starting in just over a week, Condition partners with two gyms in the Roswell/Alpharetta area to bring kettlebells to their students and others in the area who live too far to travel the downtown location. On January 17th and 31st, Condition will teach beginner’s workshops (covering in-depth the how’s and why’s of swings, get-ups, cleans, presses, and squats) at LA Boxing on Holcombe Bridge Rd in Alpharetta. With the $35 workshop, attendees get a free kickboxing class and a free kettlebell class (to be offered Thursday night at 6:30PM.) On January 24th, Condition will offer the same workshop at On Your Mark Fitness in Roswell. With that $35 workshop, attendees will get two kettlebell classes (Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30PM.) If there is a great enough interest, we will be adding more kettlebell classes at these locations as needed. For more info or to sign up for any of these 3 workshops, contact Delaine Ross at delaine@gymcondition.com
The workshop will be from 11AM-4PM on Saturday, January 10th, 2009
Cost:$250
As long as you can properly execute the swing, clean, press, squat, and get-up you will be fine in this workshop. Brett will go over level two exercises designed to help you smooth out the edges and get more out of your training. The exercises covered will be:
-Bent press:
Develops wiry flexibility and profound trunk strength at the same
time. It was a favorite of old time strong men at the turn of the
century. If performed correctly the Bent Press and its variants can
fix bad backs because it addresses all the stabilizers of the spine.
It will also help you military press heavier.
-Viking push press:
A hybrid of the jerk and the push press, I develops explosive strength
and will also help with your military presses.
-Pistol:
Also known as a one-legged squat, the pistol develops all around
explosive leg strength.
-Windmill:
The kettlebell windmill is a tremendous core exercise for the
shoulder girdle, rotator cuff, trunk rotators, side flexors, butt,
and hamstrings. This exercise will develop strength, increase
flexibility, and develop body awareness in the hips, spine, torso,
and shoulders.
-Clean and jerk:
This is one of the more technical kettlebell lifts. The clean and
jerk itself is a whole body, intense movement. It is an explosive,
compound movement utilized by power athletes at elite levels.
-Tactical pullup
This is a pullup with a thumbless grip. The tactical pullup is most
appropriate for athletes because you learn to channel the power from
your abs and hips instead of kipping into the pull-up.
email delaine@gymcondition.com to reserve your spot!
We have been talking a lot lately about Kenneth Jay’s VO2 Max snatch workout, but we havent said exactly what VO2 Max IS. The following is an article from About.com.
What Is VO2 Max?
VO2 Max Measures Aerobic Fitness and Maximal Oxygen Uptake
VO2 max, or maximal oxygen uptake, is one factor that can determine an athlete’s capacity to perform sustained exercise and is linked to aerobic endurance. VO2 max refers to the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual can utilize during intense or maximal exercise. It is measured as “milliliters of oxygen used in one minute per kilogram of body weight.”
This measurement is generally considered the best indicator of an athlete’s cardiovascular fitness and aerobic endurance. Theoretically, the more oxygen you can use during high level exercise, the more ATP (energy) you can produce. This is often the case with elite endurance athletes who typically have very high VO2 max values.
How Is VO2 Max Measured?
Measuring an accurate VO2 max requires an all-out effort (usually on a treadmill or bicycle) performed under a strict protocol in a sports performance lab. These protocols involve specific increases in the speed and intensity of the exercise and collection and measurement of the volume and oxygen concentration of inhaled and exhaled air. This determines how much oxygen the athlete is using.
An athlete’s oxygen consumption rises in a linear relationship with exercise intensity — up to a point. There is a specific point at which oxygen consumption plateaus even if the exercise intensity increases. This plateau marks the V02 Max. It’s a painful point in VO2 max testing where the athlete moves from aerobic metabolism to anaerobic metabolism. From here, it’s not long before muscle fatigue forces the athlete to stop exercising. The test usually takes between 10 and 15 minutes and requires an athlete to be completely rested and motivated to endure the pain long enough to find the true VO2 max.
Vo2 max also can be estimated. There are a variety of protocols used to estimate VO2 max, one is called the Bruce Treadmill Test, but none are as accurate as direct testing.
Can You Change Your VO2 Max?
Research shows that although VO2 max has a genetic component it can also be increased through training. The two methods for increasing VO2 max include increases in both training volume and intensity. Research also indicates that the less fit an individual is, the more they can increase their VO2 max through training. In fact, novice exercisers have been able to increase VO2 max by 20 percent through proper training. Fit athletes have a harder time increasing their VO2 max, most likely because they are already so near their genetic potential.
Aside from genetic factors, three other components have a large influence on VO2 max:
Age - Although it varies greatly by individual and training programs, in general VO2 max is the highest at age 20 and decreases nearly 30 percent by age 65.
Gender - Many elite female athletes have higher VO2 max values than most men. But because of differences in body size and composition, blood volume and hemoglobin content, a woman’s VO2 max is in general about 20 percent lower than a man’s VO2 max.
Altitude - Because there is less oxygen at higher altitude an athlete will generally have 5 percent decrease in VO2 max results with a 5,000 feet gain in altitude.
V02 Max Highs and Lows
VO2 max results vary greatly. The average for a sedentary individual is close to 35 ml/kg/min. Elite endurance athletes often average 70 ml/kg/min. One of the highest recorded VO2 max results (90 ml/kg/min) was that of a cross country skier. Cyclist Lance Armstrong’s VO2 max was reported at 85 ml/kg/min.
Does a High V02 Max Mean Better Athletic Performance?
Most elite athletes will have VO2 max values well over 60ml/kg/min, this number alone is not a guarantee of elite performance. A high VO2 max may indicate an athlete’s potential for excellent aerobic endurance, but many other factors can determine the winner of a particular race. Some of these factors include:
