StrongMan at the Weightroom

For those of you curious about the StrongMan workshop going on at The Weight Room, this is some of what you've been missing!

The following clips include: Stone Lifting, carrying a Yoke, Flipping a Tire and Dragging a Sled.

It's been great fun and a wonderful learning experience, especially working with such a knowledgeable coach and great athletes. I only hope I can convince Chris to host another workshop in the future so that more people can see what I mean!

ENJOY!

Clean digital coaching

review;

Swing Part 1

This will be part one of an ongoing series about the Kettlebell swing, one of the basics of functional strength training.

The first flaw that I see in many new gireviks' form is improper or incomplete use of the hips. Many 'swingers' want to squat the bell up and down or raise it up and down (like an 'anterior raise' of the shoulders in bodybuidling). Unfortunately this is missing out on what is undoubtedly the greatest benefit of the kettlebell swing; Fast, Hard and Heavy loading of the posterior chain, primarily the Hamstrings. Though a kettlebell often only weighs 20-70lbs, you must multiply that mass times its acceleration to have a true appreciation of the forces involved. This is part of the 'what the hell' effect many RKC devotees talk about, such as when an experienced powerlifter increases his deadlift just by doing swings. Well, when you consider the forces placed upon and exerted by the Hamstrings in the swing, it's no wonder. Even the Westside guys will tell you most lifters weak spot is the posterior chain.

What follows is a quick video of what I consider to be the 'standard' two-handed swing. The set starts with a hike, which I consider a quick, easy way to start the set. If you are a total beginner, I suggest that you pick the bell up like a squat or deadlift first, just to be safe.




Please take note of a few things;
-heels on the ground
-shins vertical
-some flexion at the knee
-a lot of flexion at the hip
-no flexion in the back
-straight arms
-shoulders over the heels (they don't move to far ahead of my feet, they don't end up behind)
-crisp snap of the hips forward

Ronda Rousey - America's Hope for Olympic Gold

Silver Medalist at this years Worlds, typically a reliable Olympic predictor;


Taken from the USJA site (www.usajudo.org):

Ronda Rousey Named USA Judo Athlete of the Month

In a new feature, USA Judo will recognize an outstanding junior or senior athlete for his or her accomplishments during the previous month. World silver medalist and Pan American Games Champion Ronda Rousey was honored this month for going undefeated to win two B-Level golds…

Twenty-year-old Ronda Rousey (Wakefield, Mass. / USA Judo National Team FORCE / NYAC / 70kg) has had a year athletes of any age would dream of.

By October, Rousey had six major international medals and had become the first female U.S. athlete to win a World Championship medal in 12 years when she defeated the previous World Champion and Olympic medalists to win a silver medal.

Now the #4-ranked player in the world, Rousey wasn’t one to rest on her laurels and less than a month after her Worlds win, she embarked on her quest to continue her undefeated streak at the U.S. Open and Rendez-Vous Canada Championships where she won gold medals in both tournaments in the 63kg division in both 2005 and 2006.

Although the two events were held during back-to-back weekends, Rousey dominated both tournaments, winning every match by ippon (instant win) and defeated three-time Pan Am medalist Catherine Roberge (CAN) twice at the Rendez-Vous.

Considered one of the sport’s prodigies when she qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team as a 17-year-old in 2004, Rousey continued to develop as a player and reached new heights during the past year.

“For a while there, I was training on my own and jumping from place to place,” Rousey said. “But a lot of people have really been great in helping me, including USA Judo, my coach Jimmy Pedro and my teammates because all of that’s what motivates you to get out of bed and run and train every day.”

As one of the top-ranked players in the world, Rousey will be an athlete to watch as she aims for her goal of becoming the first U.S. player to win Olympic gold.

“Ronda is one of the best athletes we’ve seen in the United States in a long time and seeing her win consistently throughout this year has been inspiring both to the entire team as well as to younger players coming through the ranks who hope to reach those heights someday,” said Eddie Liddie, USA Judo Director of Athlete Performance. “It’s been a privilege to work with her and we’re all looking forward to watching Ronda grow and improve on her road to Beijing.”

Wish her luck and visit her blog- the title is a direct link

Reminder!

One final reminder; Chris Lawyer of the Weight Room and RiverCity Strongman will be hosting a beginner's strongman workshop.

It will be held at The Weight Room, near Broad and Boulevard, for the following six Saturdays.

Cost is $120 for 6 lessons, each beginning at 2pm and ending at 4. Cost includes membership @ TWR.

See you there!

http://www.rivercitystrongman.com/