CrossFit

I started CrossFit with LaLanne fitness here in SF on 9 Apr 09. I went to an all levels class and the workout of the day (WOD) was the "Filthy Fifty". I should state that I thought I was in peak fitness before I started. I had been doing altered CF workouts for about a year (minus proper olympic lifts). Well, it was the most metabolically demanding session of physical exercise I think I have ever done. I finished dead last with a time of 47 minutes. I wasn't pushing myself in the beginning because I knew it would be long. It took me about 3 days to recover. I realized I was fit in some areas, but weak in others. That session uncovered that very quickly.

The next session I did was a beginner and level 1 class. That was a different experience. Slower, less of demand and a quicker recovery. As I've done sessions since, I've noticed something. When I was in the middle of the "filthy fifty" doing the burpees and not seeing how I could ever finish, I was completely exhausted and wondered if I'd finish. In the WODs since, I still find myself in those places of complete exhaustion wondering if I'll finish, but I have more to give. I have more reserve. I actually feel that is when I'm tapping into strength that is normally never even touched. I've never run into that before, physically. I think it is quite remarkable and gives one evidence of the untapped human physical potential.

Humans in captivity

Gyms are like a wheel in the hamster cage. In the case of an emergency and you need to carry another human, can you do it? Will doing curls and running on a treadmill prepare you to do that? You might get muscles, you might get cardiac benefit, but will you be able swim a person to safety? What are you training for? Looks or functionality? Do you want to look fit or look strong or do you want to be strong? Humans can utilize emotions through movement. Humans can use adrenaline to make extremely important things happen. Are you training with adrenaline? Do you know what crossfit is? Do you know what movnat is? If you are sedentary and you want to realize your potential, start moving. Move like animals do. OK, start in a gym if you want. But, to really get functional, you will have to leave the gym. You will have to move like animals do. Run, jump, climb, wrestle, swim, crawl, and lift and throw.

Tree Climbing leads to strong and agile

I didn't see any tools or machines...I just saw a tree. I didn't see a pedometer. I didn't see a treadmill. My body didn't do a prescribed motion. I just saw a tree. I saw branches. I wondered if I could leap to the branch. Could I get both hands on the branch? Could I get my feet on the trunk and could I get on top of the branch? I tried a couple of times and I failed. I leapt and didn't succeed. I tried again and again until I could reach and get a hold and move my body into the tree. I got a hold and then I had to move from under the branch to above the branch...swing from left to right until I could swing around and get an arm above the branch or up onto another. I swung and then got a hold. Then I was into the tree. Around the trunk and up again. Up as far as I could go and then back down the way I came. A jump to the ground and then backup again until I could do it with just a couple movements. Then, I sprinted to the next tree. This time a vault and then a climb.

Each tree is different. Each tree is not predictable, but my body is learning how to move from tree to tree. I know what I can reach. I know what is safe. At the same time, I am getting more and more fit. I am getting healthier and my body is getting to move in natural ways. Lifting weights has its place. It's more of a restorative place...it's not my end game. It's a path to rehabilitation. Being able to move through natural terrain is my end game.

Movnat - doing the wilderness workout

I did this kind of a thing yesterday in a wetlands preserve area in Mountain View, CA. First, I scouted my route…peeking into brush…examining the most appropriate obstacles to vault over…best trees to climb. Then, I ran through the brush, jumping branches, crawling underneath, all moving very fast. I climbed trees trying not to disturb all the geese around. The people strolling looked, but I got no comments. It was only when I was sprinting out of brush after doing some fast crawls under branches that I startled a couple kissing on a bench. Oh yeah, they thought I was a freak. I felt like a kid afterward, like I had broken the rules.

Check out "movnat"

Found great link to an article in Men's Health on Art Devany's blog about jungle-like workouts. The name is called "movnat"...it's the father of parkour I'd say.

See movnat video

I used to know a lot about fitness

I used to know all the muscle names. I used to know all about the endocrine system and all that. I used this to choose how to move and how to eat. I don't really know if all that knowledge was really necessary. What I've come to is pretty simple.

Walk everyday.
Sprint occasionally.
Play games.
Lift heavy things occasionally.
Eat vegetables, meat, nuts, fruits and seeds.

Seems pretty simple. We are made to walk and run and play. We are made to eat what I wrote above. We are made this way...I could have just looked at that. I felt like I needed to know the latest information and get the blessings of gurus. I felt like it needed to be proved. It's so simple. I think from now on, I'll try the simple things first.

Rain more

I used to be afraid of rain sticks.
Just bumping them seemed to cause a storm.
Now the creeks are dry and I heard
it said no more sierra snow by
end of century.
Who really knows about that?
I always figured I would move north
as the north would become more and more
like the south over time.
I like this time now though, even with
the drought of water and money.
The basics are more of concern than luxuries.
Even so, what we consider basics are luxury to many.
But now, more rain would be good.
A nice cold rain for a long time.
We've been turning our rain sticks
and hoping for more rain.

my mother is in remission

I talked with my mother two days ago. Her CT scan shows no evidence of cancer. She is done with this session of chemo. She is in remission.

It's been a while...

Beautiful morning in San Francisco right now. Sky is pink to purple to dark blue. It's still quiet even though it's almost seven. Tuesday seems to be quieter than other days of the week. I expect it's probably second only to Sunday.

Early morning and late evening are my favorite times of the day. It's the quiet time in the city. Although, you have to wait until 3am sometimes for the quiet on the weekend. Still, San Francisco has its quiet moments. I recommend those times for anyone interested.

My Experience with LSD (reposted)

Hey! I mean Long Slow Distance exercise! I'm talking about running.

I spent quite a few years running. I did it for most of my late twenties. I loved it, especially trail running. I believed it kept me fit. I ate and drank whatever I wanted and just ran the miles to keep any sign of fat off. Things seemed to be just grand.

As time went on (about 5 years of this), I started to wonder why my back was hurting. Also, I found I had knee pain...every time I would kneel to pick up kid's toys and especially when I ran.

In about Aug 2000, after I had finished a solo bike trip through Alaska, my back was in terrible shape. I ran when I could, but ended up having back surgery in 2002. I generally held off on the running until about 2 years after the surgery. As my back problems persisted, my frustration led me to learn how to train better.

While in Personal Training school, I got deep into the mainstream thinking on endurance exercise. While my "cardio" time was only about 20 min 4 days a week (of mostly interval type) and my weight lifting was varied, my body weight stayed the same except my body fat percentage was decreasing. I was quite happy with that as it meant lean tissue was replacing fat. I was building muscle and didn't have any pain.

I thought I'd kick it up a notch and really drop the fat and get back into running. Bodybuilders would do cardio for longer periods and sometimes twice a day to shed the fat. So, I figured I'd start doing long runs (just doing the cardio longer). I had a period of about a month of running 8 miles at a time. I dreamed of running the Western Endurance 100. I kept my diet and weight routine the same.

There was a problem though. Actually, more than one. Luckily my back didn't bother me as I had that figured out, but my knees started to hurt again. My calcaneal tendon (Achilies heal) started to bother me. And, to top it off, I was losing muscle! I regained 2% of body fat and lost weight! I got fatter! I had to do this measurement quite a few times to make sure it was correct. It was.

I have since dropped the LSD and moved into sprints (barefooted!) and brief but intense strength sessions. I have regained my gains in the body fat department. In short, all of this added up to a conclusion that LSD wasn't for me.

Now I should state that walking long distances is a different story altogether.

Kipping Pullup Stares

I just went into 24 hour fitness for a brief and intense session. While there I did the kipping pullup. Granted, this is San Francisco and people do lots of different things here, but I sure did get some funny looks. One guy had to stop his work out, come over, do dead hang pullups and then give me a good stare. I'm not sure what it meant, but I felt like he was accusing me of "cheating" or something.

The kipping didn't get any love at 24hour fitness.

I just smiled. I can do plenty of dead hand pullups and my heart rate gets to about 145 bpm max. When I do kipping pullups, I reach over 180 bpm.

I should also note I was in Mustang, OK last week at a great little community gym and did my kippings there. I think people thought I was weird, but I didn't get any "cheater" stares.