Posts

A Weekly Fitness Bucket List

Image
Current Goals Over the next couple months, I will be following this general program for the snatch and the jerk. I will be training along with a few other friends and will be tracking my progress. If you would like to train with me (in-person or virtually), please reach out. I'm currently training for the A gatsu Level 2 Kettllebell Certification in June (link to fitness standards ) and planning to compete in the April Agatsu Kettlebell Comp as a milestone ... and to catch up again with kettlefriends :) Managing Goals and Expectations I also have a lot of interests, including kickboxing, CrossFit, BJJ, yoga, running, calisthenics, and experimenting with new stuff (e.g. mace). This can make it very hard to focus or make any significant progress. Knowing this, I'm managing my expectations and thinking long term. The time-specific goals help me train hard and focus. The long-term mindset helps me avoid shortcuts that can compromise my long-term success. Examples i
Post a Comment
Read more

Agatsu Level 2 Prep

Preamble Shortly after I completed the Agatsu Kettlebell Level 2 Certification (June 2017), a few people reached out on how I prepared. I was excited to share my journey, but when I started to write, I didn't know where to start. And I still feel like I don't have a complete answer. However, seeing how the certification is coming up this June, I figured I should put something out there. This is also about the time last year when I started to seriously prepare. And while I "passed" Level 2, I'm still working on the Level 2 fitness standards, and hope to get closer to 100% by June. Enough of the preamble. Here is a primer on how I prepped for Level 2. Questions and comments are most certainly welcomed. What is Agatsu Level 2? Agatsu is well known for its kettlebell certification program in Canada and worldwide. More notably, it is known for producing well-rounded generalists with high fitness standards. The Agatsu Level 2 Kettlebell Instructor Ce
2 comments
Read more

Siddhartha on the value of fasting

Today, I'm (accidentally) honing the skill to "ward off hunger for a long time and laugh at it." It's a superpower I don't have yet. I do have the "skill" of being overcome by my hunger and eating for a long time... My mindset of treating fasting as a skill is taken from a conversation between Siddhartha and a merchant. The last paragraph is particularly insightful. I'd love to here your experience with fasting if you have any, along with what worked best for you. Here's the convo: Siddhartha: "That seems to be the way of things. Everyone takes, everyone gives. Life is like that." Merchant: "Ah, but if you are without possessions, how can you give?" Siddhartha: "Everyone gives what he has. The soldier gives strength, the merchant goods, the teacher instructions, the farmer rice, the fisherman fish." Merchant: "Very well and what can you give? What have you learned that you can give? Siddhartha: I
Post a Comment
Read more

Agatsu Level 2

Image
My Introduction to Agatsu Two years ago, I did my first course with Agatsu, the Level 1 Kettlebell Instructor Certification. I had just started as a trainer and was looking to learn as much as possible. From the first course, Shawn & Sara-Clare helped me sharpen my technique and learn how to teach others of various skill levels. It's one thing to know how to do a move. It's a completely different thing to know how to teach a move, with meaningful progressions and regressions. I remember ending the course with the grueling "Chrissy" workout with the 16 kg. I heard about the Level 2 kettlebell cert, but could not imagine hitting the Level 2 benchmarks. I was already having a tough time getting 5-10 snatches at 24 kg, let alone 50/arm (without dropping). Level 2 started off as a goal, and slowly ... morphed into a wistful dream. Post "Chrissy" with Sara-Clare & Shawn Agatsu Kettlebell Level 1 (March 2015) Agatsu Level 2 Tra
Post a Comment
Read more

Agatsu Level 2 This Weekend!

Image
This weekend, I will be doing the Agatsu Level 2 Kettlebell Certification. This course teaches advanced training methods and includes a physical test. It's the physical test that I'm a bit worried about. The test includes the following: - Pistols (10 unbroken reps on each leg is 100%) - 5 Minute Snatch Test (100 snatches total is 100%, only one hand change, women 16kg, men 24kg) - Jerk Test (35 unbroken double jerks is 100%) (women 16kgs, men 24kgs, no time limit) - Pull Up Test (strict -no kipping, unbroken chest to bar, 10 reps is 100% for women, 15 reps is 100% for men) - Bridge Test (3 minutes is 100%) - Toe to Bar (10 unbroken strict no kipping is 100%, performed on stall bars) - Ring Push Ups (unbroken in external rotation, approx 1 foot from floor, 10 reps for women, 15 reps for men is 100%) To pass, I need to score 75% overall. I'm part nervous and part excited. The nervous part of me says ... - Your bridge mobility is not bad, but your enduranc
Post a Comment
Read more

Cutting (back) caffeine - A 7-day experiment

Coffee is delicious. I absolutely love the warmth, the taste, and the energy I get from a freshly brewed cup of coffee. But too much coffee can be dangerous. As can too much of anything. I came across an article on the Art of Manliness about how to quit caffeine, or at least cut back. Not everyone needs or wants to cut back. For me, I know I need to cut back. Here are some reasons I want to cut back: - Drinking coffee is like using a credit card on my energy. I borrow energy from the future, and usually end up paying it back with interest. - Too much coffee makes it more difficult for me to breathe normally. - I heard that caffeine can cause skin issues with some people. Not sure if this is the case for me, but I don't mind awesome looking skin :) - I find it harder to stay hydrated on too much coffee. And when I'm hydrated, my skin feels better :) along with everything else in life. - Caffeine can increase anger and aggression in some people. I'm not tota
Post a Comment
Read more

Superbowl LI - Finish Well

Image
Twitter: @WildmansWord I'm not much of a football/sports fan, but I do enjoy watching high stakes games with food & friends. When I left around half time, I was pretty sure Atlanta would take this. And I was also hoping they'd win. Why? For no profound reason at all. I like cheering for the underdog & the Falcons sounds like a cool name :) This was certainly a fun game to watch! Both teams worked very hard and are incredibly talented. With the pressure mounting, odds against you, and stakes high, I find it amazing that the Patriots (and any Champion / Championship Team for that matter) pressed on to the finish. They never gave up on their will to win. While I'm certainly no Tom Brady, I have my own race to run. There are days when I feel like a champion. In control. Confident. Strong. Happy. Excited. Motivated. Yet there are days when I'm down and out. Depressed. Hurt. Frustrated. Struggling. When my world seems like it'
Post a Comment
Read more