usefulness.

warmup:
5 minute airdyne - 15cal/minute pace

20 minutes airdyne with 10 second sprint every minute

25 single chest to bar pullups ( walk ~20 ft between each)

total calories: 297

this was the first hard workout in almost a week, it could have been worse - but thats about the best thing i can say about my performance. i had some friends who were really sick, i just had a taste, but can be hard to back off, and terrible when you can not perform where you want. im gad i didnt end up any sicker, and that it's over. back to work.


there was an interesting discussion at the gym this weekend - during a KB rack hold an athlete found how to settle her elbows into her hips and belly breathe, taking some of the pressure off - as a testament to her integrity, she asked if it was cheating...

i told her it was ok, initially because that's what i was told - but began to think of where we draw the line, and why. rack holds are interesting to see how a person recovers under a load, this has a rather apparent correlation to fight training, but i see it as psychological training for anyone whose sport will not allow them to wholly relax while they recover. when pinned on the mat, or hanging from a rock face, it is possible to work within certain confines, and being efficient (and sometimes a little creative) is a lesson worth practicing. it is here where we have to ask if our work in the gym is applicable to our real-world challenges. for example, i do not permit rolling the weight of the kettlebell on top of the shoulder, this transfer of stress deviates enough from the lesson to qualify it as "cheating". simply put - make the argument. train for a purpose, learn a lesson. if questions come up, simply ask is this useful? is it practical? it is easy to make a hard workout. it is easy to crush anyone. it takes a lot more effort to be useful. to improve.

kevins 1 minute max on the airdyne has jumped 4 calories the last two times he has attempted (32, 36 and 40 - respectively - in the last few months) it is true that his overall fitness is improving, but a large part is he is beginning to understand what "all out" really means..

holding a single heavy kettlebell eliminates many of the postural tricks, it can be an interesting test, or a punishment for straying too far from the lesson....

learning.