Metabolloxed - The Sequel

Here we go again! Its been a long while since I've had some fun with the tire and sledge hammer. With today being Thursday (Thors-day) I thought it only right that I honour the Norse God with my own hammer time action.

With the sports science theory firmly parked on the bench (never been a big fan of theory - I prefer fact). I got on with the 270 rep protocol that I used last week. Here's how it went down.




Warm up: Joint Mobility


Main Session

Section A (The "warm up")

Single Arm Kettlebell Jerk (24kg) x 10 minutes (5 minutes per arm)

1 minute rest

Single Kettlebell Snatch (24kg) x 6 mins (3 miutes per arm)

2 minutes rest then.....


Section B

Sledge hammer slams onto truck tire (12kg) x 10
Burpee off the tire onto floor and land on tire x 10
Pull ups x 10

Cycle x 3 = 1 Set (no rest between each cycle)

Complete 3 sets

Rest 1 minute between sets

Total: 270 reps

Tasty? Well, put it this way, my grip was smoked and I felt like I could use my lats as wings by the end of this session!!

Are You Taking Care Of Your Star Player?

How you doing? No. Really. How YOU doing? Complete health should not just be about how fast you can run, how much you can lift, how far you can reach. Its also about personal and mental well being.

Too many people worry about pleasing others first, or subordinate their needs to make others happy. Look, when people are in a good mood they like you, when they are in a bad mood they don't. Be a little bit nicer to yourself, after all you can't give what you don't have. Do what works best for you. This may sound selfish and yes it is - self interest. However that doesn't necessarily mean that its at the expense of others. Hence the importance of having the right team if you are going to be the star player.

Not every one is going to make it to the FA Cup final or the play-offs. That's just life. But you can put yourself in with a good chance to achieve success. Having the right people on your team that know how to play their position is a wonderful wonderful thing. There is no point in having a soccer team consisting of only strikers. Mark my words, you will come unstuck. Surround yourself with the right positive people that love what they do (and this is key) but to do this they have to know what makes them happy, what makes them tick (self interest). As Star player and MVP its imperative to consciously put yourself in the right environment to help you grow. Take note: roses do not grow in concrete. The right conditions, the right environment. You see where I'm going with this right?

Everyone should be the star player of their own team. So ask yourself, how are you doing? Then ask "Hows the team doing?". If needs be, give the team a pep talk, see if everyone is playing the right position for them, if not, make changes. Hell, transfer some players if you need to! Its for their own good and yours (who knows, they maybe on the wrong team, thinking they're stuck in a career long contract). Besides there are finite spaces on any one team, and you may draft another valuable player in return.

I'll leave you with this thought from Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach, if you haven't read it, I'd strongly suggest you take it in.

"Are they also special and gifted and divine? No more than you are, no more than I am. The only difference, the very only one, is that they have begun to understand what they really are and have begun to practice it."

Play on player.

Metabolloxed? Sure Enough!

Ribs healed? Check. Strength cycle complete? Check. Shoulder rehabilitated? Check. Time to bring on the extreme conditioning.

I was at South Bank Gym in Vauxhall, and decided to spice up some metabolic training. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Luckily my endurance outlasted my enthusiasm. If you spotted a sweating, weeping, tattooed mass in the corner of South Bank gym last week - that was me, Cj, regretting my decision.

Here's what I got up to

Warm Up

Joint Mobility + Dynamic movement

Main Session

A) sub 7 minute mile repeats x 3 (1 minute rest in between)

Then straight into

A)

1) Burpee onto 50 inch plyometric box (and jump back down into burpee) x 10
2) Bear Crawl x 10 reps (set a distance of about 10 - 15 feet)
3) Pull ups x 10 reps

This equals one round.

3 rounds = 1 set.

Complete 3 sets


Rest 90 seconds - 1minute between sets.
No rest between rounds

Cool down and stretch.

This workout was interspersed with praying, and frequent bursts of profanity. But in a weird sort of way, I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge.

Try it. You might like it!

If you're up for some Industrial Strength style metabolic training, why not come down and join us for the Christmas special at Balance physiotherapy in December.

The Art Of Movement

To flow seamlessly from one movement to another with complete bodily control would be included in my definition of athleticism. The ability to express your body without being restricted in your range of movement is something to aspire to, and something that Scott Sonnon achieves so well. Sometimes your body is all the gym equipment that you need. Welcome to the art of movement.