Thursday 5 April 2012

Breakfasts come and go Renee, but Hartford? The Whale? They beat Vancouver maybe once or twice in a lifetime-

***A beer to the first peep who can name what we are really excited about (No homo)**

It’s Thursday once again and you all know what that means!  Put your caption spectacles on and give this one a go:

The Plan-

Embrace your inner self and become comfy in your own skin:

Keith Apicary…You Rock!!!

The Workout-

Rest Day or if you happen to live in your parent’s basement:

Dear God the world really is going to hell!!!

Notes:

Please take a moment today to pay yourself first and realize all the hard work you have been doing is not going without notice…REST!!!  Be safe and no matter what the season may be, ENJOY!!!


Wednesday 4 April 2012

In the hopes of reaching the moon men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet-

Every once in a while (about three times a week) we find ourselves overwhelmed by life.  A little bit of this and a little bit of that and before you know it?  Life is completely out of balance.  Honestly this is more of a “Life” piece than a “Fitness” piece today.  NO, we are not getting all soft and timid peeps!  It’s just that stepping back a few steps to put things in a wider perspective is always a fairly decent idea.

So how do you write about finding balance in all aspects of your life without offering some bit of self-serving advice?  Into murky waters we travel…Conviction:  The conviction to make the difficult choice; to exclude other possibilities in order to choose the one that suits you best (why does CrossFit and Yoga come to mind); to let go of fearing the disapproval or disappointment of others.  Take the time to care about yourself and soon enough “things” will eventually become more balanced, we hope!?!

The Plan-

Our Philosophia could be considered a living breathing document.  Just like life it is always changing…Here are a few things we have been kicking around as they pertain to “Fitness” and the “Logic” central to the programs we put together for you daily.  Other blog-o-sphere types throw in your general direction daily: 2 Minute Kick Ass Ab Workout, 30 Day Burpee Challenges, Blah, you get the point!  The problem is that there is little or no thought about “YOU“…Uncle Brandon swears by his workout routine although it may not work for you:

Big shout out to: Twisters Sports Center!!!

CultFit Universal Program Principios

These apply to all of our programs:

• Use of the stretch–shortening cycle of muscle contraction.

• Minimization of energy used to perform the task (Extreme/Elite fitness peeps will NEVER grasp this concept!!!).

• Control of redundant degrees of freedom in the segmental chain.

CultFit “As We See Fit” Principios

These apply primarily to speed work (whenever we get around to it):

• Sequential action of muscles.

• Minimization of inertia (increasing acceleration of movement).

• Impulse loading and/or absorption (we have been writing about this for the past two months).

• Increasing efficiency in the acceleration path.

• Overall stability.

That sums up our training theory for the year.  Thank you for reading!!!

The truth hurts peeps:

The Workout-

So how do we begin to feel whole again after basically breaking ourselves in two with Push Ups and Walking Lunges?  Tricky question…

Gently pulled from our “If it smells and looks like yoga” series here at CultFit HQ:

Certainly not for time:

Trail Run/Walk/Hike/Bike/Run (Not to be confused with jogging!  You might as well walk)…Off into some Random direction.  Followed By:

30 Minutes or so of a flowing, graceful Sūryānamaskāra series

During your journey home pick a number between 500 and 750…And behold: This is the number of Perfect Push Ups to perform during the course of your day!

Simply:  We are adding perfect volume broken up neatly into 15-20-25 rep chunks.  If we smacked you up side the head and stated: Perform 500 Push Ups in an hour?  The first 50 or so would be good and the rest would go to hell, quick!

Every rep today is perfection…Pattern the movement to a point where it is second nature to you.  The simplicity in this is just that, keep it simple.  Too many times we are barraged with complex kettelbell, Olympic lifting etc moves “recommended” from a dear blogger…Pattern, Load, Progressions…Four people understand why this is important today?!?

**(Note if you are stuck inside feel free to use a treadmill, stationary bike or a big wheel)**

Notes:

Push Ups are but one example, a simple one at that.  Pull Ups as well and Goblet Squats easily fall into the same category (sense a theme here?)…Be safe today and most importantly, ENJOY!!!


Tuesday 3 April 2012

Benjamin is nobody’s friend. If Benjamin were an ice cream flavour, he’d be pralines and dick-

Spring is in the air and nothing quite captures or so eloquently describes the essence of what it means to us here…This Dude, We worship at his feet:

We have a dirty little secret we need to confess to you this morning:  We genuinely do not like weight training.  More specifically, destination weight training like driving to a gym to pick up stuff and gently put it down.  Long time readers know why this is true: Its tedious, limited and boring.  Scientific studies have shown that exercising helps you live a longer life…A longer life to spend in the gym!?!

Ask yourself this morning as you drive off to the gym in your fancy new yoga pants that scream look at my glorious rear(this applies to you as well chico)…Why do I want to live longer in the gym?

The Plan-

The Workout-

As always: Outside in the elements, with the kids/family/friends…

Spend 10 Minutes Tumbling (Forward rolls-Backwards etc…Loosen Up)

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 Inverted Rows (Playgrounds are full of spots to do these) followed by:

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 Feet Up Perfect Push Ups (Park Bench?  Swings…?!?) followed by:

3-5 Perfect Pull Ups

And now the fun part!  Look off into the distance, not through the trees maybe right up to them?  Ready…Walking Lunge’s all the way until you finally reach a pine tree and want to give it a big hug!!!  400 to 800 Meters maybe?

If you are feeling frisky feel free to pick up little Jasper and carry him in a Rack Position or Over the Shoulder?  And why would Inverted Rows and Walking Lunges be important…Feel free to comment if you have an idea?

Notes:

As always play around with the rep scheme this morning to something that may suit you better.  It truly is awesome to do this stuff outside…Granted there are more people looking at you like you are insane and delusional.  The albóndigas at the gym miss you right now.  Be safe and ENJOY!!!


Friday 30 March 2012

Talents are best nurtured in solitude, but character is best formed in the stormy billows of the world-

Quite a few things rattling around in the old noggin this morning here…A fresh crisp morning and the warming glow of the sun serve as an easy distraction to what we planned on talking with you about this morning.  Ease on over if you like?

This is not a coming out party or a hand holding, step by step guide to the inner workings here at CultFit HQ.  This week we have touched upon a few key concepts critical to engaging in a healthy fitness program.  Some have been rather transparent: Loading, Patterning and Basic Human movements (no-picking your nose is not one of them!).  Others, only four people understood and took away the “True” meaning: Kinesiophobia, Tampa Scale and the Tegner-Lysholm Knee scoring scale…Warm-Up into a lather!  This is where our tale could get twisted and go off in different directions…It’s rather deep and seeing that three minutes of your time is too much to ask of you?  We called on our residential expert on all things pithy and blunt:  Uncle Mo!

“…Mobility work is not even remotely close to being considered a warm-up!  If you are not sweating before you pick up your kettle bell, shake weight etc?  You did it wrong!”

Thanks for that tasty little morsel of information.  In essence this message falls into our: Sweat, warm up thoroughly, pretend to be an “athlete” on the weekend…train of thought.  Couple of thoughts:  During the next big marathon (Olympics maybe?) watch the starters, the ones running to win at the at the starting line- Sweating like heck before the start.  This is even more pronounced in cycling etc.  But who cares, right?  Big 5k tomorrow at 7am and you know what?  You’ll show at 6:15, stretch the groin and calves and literally kill yourself in the next 20 minutes…

The Plan-

The Workout-

Pulled from Uncle Mo’s “Told Ya So” Series here at CultFit HQ…(This is assuming you did the program on Wednesday)

Specifically for those who refuse to warm up into a lather and would rather roll their groin muscles out before a program (Hint- Normal peeps?  Seriously get “moist” before you try this on for size today…Your soft muscle tissue will thank you tomorrow!

Not for time…

Run 200 meters (out and back)
10 Bent Over One Arm Rows (Hinge-Pulling arm is opposite of standing leg-Each Arm)
Run 200 meters
10 Perfect Pull Ups
Run 200 meters
30 Kettlebell Swings, 1.5 pood

Do this for lets say…5-8 times through?

Notes:

Listen to your body today and pay keen attention to where you are sore.  Shoulders/neck bothering you…You sank into the hand stands and failed to actively press.  Lower back/chest sore…You need work on perfect push ups.  Listen to your body…Be safe and have an awesome weekend, ENJOY!!!


Wednesday 28 March 2012

Where beams of imagination play, The memory’s soft figures melt away-

Today’s sign of the Apocalypse: Broga  Yeah you read that right and trust us:  It is what you are thinking it is…Now as much as we poke light-hearted fun at all the yoga/soccer moms sitting in their shiny black suv’s today.  Of course they are wearing their “toe” concealing Lululemon pants…Silly question!  It’s only fair that we throw the dudes under the bus as well.  Just the other day outside a local co-op we overheard the many “benefits” that Broga has for the male species.  The only item we would like to add:  Dudes, if you are going to do this do it right…Speedos just like the Spanish fellows were wearing in Majorca last summer!

Moving on…What better way to follow-up the pop quiz from yesterday…Oh, a test!  It won’t hurt we promise…CLICKY HERE when you have a free moment sometime this morning.  We understand life is busy right now.  Really, there are so many choices of organic baby carrots to choose from at the market today.  “Who has the time to worry about “my body”?  Certainly not me!?!”  Take solace in the fact that these posts do in one way or another flow together.  Just like the concomitant injuries you keep tossing around from day-to-day.  Chances are tripping on a twig during your morning trail run closely correlates with the fact you left the toilet seat up last night and the old lady proceeded to put a beat down on you (rather a brisk beat down to boot)!

Simply: Take the time to listen, daily: Every waking minute of the day.  Who knows one of these days you may break in two only to try to explain to the doc how it’s your wife’s fault!?!

The Plan-

This concludes our diet chat for the year.  Thanks for reading…Watching!

The Workout-

Pulled from our “300th post and no we are not going to lament over it” series here at CultFit HQ.

Warm Up into a thick hardy lather…Followed by our signature and hardest program (new peeps, give it a go and prepare to be humbled quick.  Like Grandma quick!!!)

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold followed by:

35 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

30 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

25 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

20 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

15 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

10 Perfect Push Ups

45-60 Second Hand Stand Hold

5 Perfect Push Ups

Six to seven minutes or so in a hand-stand and 140 Perfect Push Ups…How hard can it be?  Pretty darn hard especially if you don’t use a wall…

Notes:

Well this is what 300 hundred feels like…300 posts that is.  Like life this has been a journey, albeit a splendid one due to one simple reason: You!!!  *Fighting back crocodile tears*  Throw out all the self glorifying stats that drive some here on the blog-o-sphere to do some pretty profound and lame things.  When we get a comment or an email from a passionate peep who shares our simple message: “Listening to and respecting your body”?  That’s all that matters to us here, honestly!  Be well friends, yeah life sucks at times (not as much as the 8am class at YogaMed…JaJa pervs!!!) just keep in mind that “You alone are the best workout tool you will ever need“, ENJOY!!!