Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Programming

Hey all. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Every once in a while I go into stealth mode. Just wanted to report that I was still alive. Here’s what what.

I temporarily said bon voyage to my friend/neighbor/fellow trainer Elizabeth, who set off to join her husband currently doing a fellowship in Hanover, Germany for a year. So far she has been eat/pray/lovin’ all over Europe and then some. You can catch her adventures here.

I dressed up as the 90s Rock for Halloween and nailed it.

I learned what kettlebell sport was all about from the awesome team at Seattle Kettlebell Club. It was awesome to learn proper form and technique from Master of Sport Mikhail Marshak. SKC owner Nikolai also showed us how to endure long cycles. Talk about being soaked in sweat.

An adventure in the Olympics for the first time that involved lots of rain, unplugging and zero sightings of vampires in Forks, WA.

As part of my 2015 goals, I signed up for the STP. My official riders guide arrived in the mail this week and reminded me to step up my training. That’s 202 miles in two days, yo.

The year of many marriages and babies. A short visit back home to Chicago to see an old friend get married and to hang out with other people’s babies. The very next weekend? Another wedding here in Seattle. Two down, at least 2 more to go.

Diving into the world of rock climbing for the first time. My first visit to Stone Gardens was just about bouldering, and the second visit was just about belay climbing. I like both, they require different approaches, but there is a 5.9 route that I am determined to conquer on my next visit. I took their Women’s Intro to Climbing Class, where the class size is small and instructors do the belaying and let you explore the wall. Even though it was my first time on the ropes, the instructor said it didn’t look like it and I had great body awareness. It is probably all those years of dodgeball and derby.

You can start seeing some contribution posts from me on bootcampideas.com. If you are a fellow boot camp instructor, this site is a valuable resource for boot camp drills and examples, as well as tips for running a boot camp business.

Also look forward to reading some tips from me about injury prevention and training specifically for roller derby over at the Derby Injury Prevention Network blog. DIPN is a collaboration of health care professionals dedicated to promoting health, safety, fitness and athleticism in the sport of roller derby.

May marked seven years with the bf. It is funny how time flies, because it always still feels like the first year. I am looking forward to many more adventures with him.

It was that time of year again for Sara Problem’s Birthday Challenge. This year she requested 5 push ups a day for 45 days until her birthday in June. We finished the challenge strong and all of her friends participating were very glad to not have to do burpees like last year. I completed all 45 days this year, you can view the videos all over on Instagram.

Fellow Sync Fitness Trainer Steve and I collaborated and hosted a Movement Basics Workshop. We had an excellent turn out and taught our boot campers how to move better and really feel what it means to brace the core. With its success we plan to host more this summer. Stay tuned!

There are 4 weeks until STP. Insert freak out here.

I will now leave you with a start of Summer playlist to inspire fresh air workouts and wind (sprints) in your face.

Workout of the Week: Kettlebells, Core and Hill Sprints

Are you ready for this jelly? I have tweaking my workouts to be more efficient lately, as I start to get into my final weeks of endurance training for STP and having only small windows of time to do it. This week’s 45-minute workout was too fun not to share. And by fun I mean getting to lie on the floor while drinking a smoothie and watching a few episodes of The X-Files after.

KETTLEBELL (~30 min.)

30 Snatches (each arm)

20 Deadlift + High Pull

10 KB Sumo Squat Jump

40 Cleans (each arm)

20 KB Glute Bridges + Pullovers

10 Plyo Push Up Switches on KB

50 Swings (each arm)

20 Windmills

10 Half TGUs

CORE CIRCUIT (6 min.)

20s Holds, no rest inbetween x 3

Plank

Downward Dog

Half Plank

Cobra

Rocketman

SPRINT FINISHER (4 min.)

20s Hill Sprints / 20s recovery x 6

How did you do?

Freebie: Your Sweater Weather Playlist

It is officially fall. The weekend included one last beautiful warm day and a hike to Mt. Rainer to see it before snow covers the lush meadows below.

Break out the fleece pullovers, say farewell to those summer days and kick off the new season with this moody but motivating mix as the leaves fall where they may.

Form Fix of the Week: Lateral Lunge

When I first was drafted to my team, I literally knew nothing about skating for speed or power. I was a true rookie, learning everything from page one. My captain said this was a gift. She said that I could learn good form first then skill would come with ease afterwards. Most veterans who didn’t learn this way ended up with bad habits and found it harder to fix form after doing it a certain way for many years. Bad habits are truly hard to break!

So after a week of working with a few clients, I noticed a particular form fix that I had to address with those who were both new and old to exercise. As easy as it sounds, it is not as easy as it looks. Today’s fix is focused on the lateral lunge.

There are tons of articles that go over proper squatting form (like this, this and this) and it is surprising how a basic strength move is so elusive to tame. But, as difficult as it can be to tame a wild pegasus, that beautiful beast will later help conquer a princess-hungry krakken. All mythical creatures aside, if you have learned from proper squatting technique that the squat comes from the hips and NOT the knees, then you will quickly learn that the lateral lunge uses the same principal.

To execute a lateral lunge in proper form, there are a few points on the body to pay attention to:

- First, the hips. Remember that like the squat, the hips initiate the movement, as if sitting back in a chair. Keeping the chest upright, hinge the hips back and keep the knee and ankle in alignment with weight in the heels. Be sure not to hunch those shoulders and arch that back just to get closer to the ground, only go as far as the lower body will support the weight and in time the lower the lunge will become.

- Secondly, keep in mind where the foot falls in the lunge position. The tendency is to step the foot out and leave it pointed in that direction. Instead, keep both feet pointed forward, in the same direction that the rest of the body is facing. This exercise is focused on the upper leg and not the lower, so leave the lateral movement focused there.

- Lastly, try not to lunge so far that the legs are overextended. We aren’t trying to do the splits or Van Damme it between two semi trucks. If it is too difficult to stand back up without having to hop out of the lunge or wiggle awkwardly back to the center (or end up failing to Van Damme and pulling a Channing Tatum), then adjust for a shorter distance so form (and groin muscle) doesn’t suffer.

HIIT It or Quit It: Agility Ladder Edition

I love agility ladders. I love them because they constantly challenge my clients to think as quickly as their feet move, and those who complain about being completely uncoordinated find themselves just as foot loose as Moose himself after adding it to their training once or twice a week. Adding speed and agility to training doesn’t just help during the game though. IKEA on a Sunday? You should see how fast I can dart through the unpredictable paths of furniture hungry masses. For real.

You know what I also love? HIIT. What is HIIT? High Intensity Interval Training is a type of workout that is extremely short and high effective. According to the American Council on Exercise, HIIT is a cardiorespiratory training technique that alternates brief speed and recovery intervals to increase the overall intensity of a workout. This technique can increase both aerobic and anaerobic capacity and also burn fat. There isn’t really a specific formula for duration, but can be as short as 30 seconds or as long as 5 minutes. The key is to work hard during the work period.

So what happened the day I decided to combine my favorite training tool and HIIT? Mind blown. No. Entire body blown. I present to you, the exquisite pleasure of Agility Ladder HIIT.

 

The Formula

Each drill lasts 30 seconds followed by 10 seconds of rest. Perform the six drills 3 times each for a total of 18 rounds. (30:10:18) I use my GYMBOSS timer, but there are some great interval timer apps like Impetus to help keep time.

 

The Drills

High Knees

Starting at the beginning of the ladder, perform high knees as each rung is hit with both feet. When the end of the ladder is reached, turn around and repeat in the opposite direction to return to start.

Lateral Plank Walk

In a plank position, start at the beginning of the ladder. Walk your right hand and foot to the next rung, followed by the left. Repeat until the end of the ladder is reached, then return to start in the opposite direction.

Forward Load N’ Explode

This one is a fun explosive drill. At the beginning of the ladder, quick feet through the first rung and land on the left side of the ladder with the left foot. Loading the left leg, quickly jump laterally onto the right foot on the right side of the ladder. Repeat the sequence for each rung until the end is reached, then turn around and repeat in the opposite direction to return to start.

One-Foot Drop Squat Hops

Ode to ankle strength and stabilization! Starting on the left foot, hop forward two rungs. In the second rung, drop into a single leg squat as low as you can go while staying balanced over the left ankle. Repeat the sequence until the end of the ladder, then switch to the right leg to return to start.

Lateral In N’ Outs

Standing parallel to the ladder, start with the right foot immediately following it with the left into the first rung. Quickly step back out with both feet just on the outside of the ladder. Advance to the next rung to the right. Repeat the sequence until the end of the ladder is reached, then repeat in the opposite direction to return to start.

Lateral Push Ups

Using the same technique as the lateral plank walk, add a push up each time the hands meet in the same rung. Easy peasy.

 

Pro Tips

- Use your whole body to perform the drill: swing your arms and drive the actions with both your hips and legs.

- Look up! Train as if you were training for your sport, so don’t be caught looking at your feet when you could be focusing your eyes on what is happening around you.

- Form over speed: do a run through once or twice at a slower pace to get the rhythm and form right. Speed in these drills won’t benefit you if you are running through them like a wacky waving inflatable tube man. Once you’ve gotten a handle on technique, go for speed.