fitness training

Training Through Injuries (AKA: That Time My Friend Sat On My Thumb)

April 19, 2016 By Eric Bergmann 13 Comments

Eric Bergmann Calisthenics
Yup. My friend sat on my thumb.

We’ve all been injured at some point, and most of us are familiar with how it can derail our training. In response to the sprain I suffered, I had to decrease the size of my training repertoire and remove everything that required an opposable thumb.

Those who’ve had the dubious privilege of seeing me train know that my workouts consist largely of picking things up and putting them down with the help of said opposable thumb.

Switching gears was tough for me, especially since my training was going so well at the time. In fact, I was in the middle of the best training year of my life. It was tough for me to believe that an adjusted and, in my mind, adulterated training program could provide the same level of benefit. It was even tougher for me to be cool with doing only the following types of movements:

Squat variations, push-up variations, and pull-up variations (with thumb-less grip).

First, a confession…

I didn’t put my heart and soul into the planning of this thumb-less program. Looking back, I could have made some different choices and put together a more comprehensive regimen. Instead, I just looked at which exercises I felt I could do without risk of further injury and hoped that I wouldn’t lose much ground from my last several phases of training. Unconvinced that these bodyweight-only movements were going to successfully maintain my hard work, however, I was prepared to lose some strength.

That said, I didn’t just throw in the towel and half-ass my training. I pulled out my PCC manual.

Eric Bergmann with PCC Manual

I chose the hardest variations of each movement that I could manage for a handful of quality reps, backing those up with variations I could do for a moderate-to-high number of reps. In essence, this was an attempt to mimic what I had already been doing in successful programs rather than suddenly switching gears or starting all over.

As I explored the variations available to me I took advantage of the leverage concepts from the PCC Certification. This allowed me to transform movements that I could do for 0-2 reps into movements I could do for 4-6 reps, movements I could do for 25+ reps into movements I could only do for 15-20 reps, and so forth. These variations or “hidden steps” allowed me to tailor the movements to my abilities and to use that as a platform for continued growth.

During the “strength” oriented movements (I used multiple sets in the 4-6 rep range) I noted a marked increase in full-body tension/contraction/stabilization. What does that mean? It means that during one-arm push-up variations, I found abs of steel, quads of quartz, and rotator cuffs of coordinated reactive stabilization. It means I found and minimized imbalances between my ability to stabilize my left lateral chain and my right. It means I got strong. Really strong. Way stronger than I’d thought I possibly could with a busted thumb.

During the more endurance oriented movements (I used multiple sets in the 12+ rep range and in the 20+ rep range) I found minor but important losses in active stabilization. What does that mean? It means I found and was able to close gaps in endurance that caused subtle lumbar extension (low-back sag), thoracic flexion (upper-back rounding), and cervical flexion/capital extension (chin jutting). The higher reps gave me the opportunity to lock down my form during my sets, making my positions and joints healthier and stronger, thereby making me more bulletproof.

Overall, this has proven to be one of, if not the most successful training phases I’ve ever enjoyed. From the experience I’m taking improved strength, endurance, and ability to create balanced tension through my body, but the lessons I learned go beyond the physical changes.

I didn’t expect that using calisthenics alone could be brutally hard yet readily adjustable to my current capabilities. As a modern fitness culture we are so accustomed to adjusting loads rather than body positions, and to measuring success in pounds and kilos. What I learned during the calisthenics-only phases of my training has expanded my understanding not just of bodyweight movements, but all movement, and will impact how I train both myself and my clients.

Perhaps the most important thing I’m taking with me is that limitations can often free our creativity and expand our horizons. Injuries are going to happen. It’s what we do in response that determines our long-term success.

***

Eric Bergmann is a New York City based strength coach, movement specialist, and proud member of the PCC family. He co-owns Bergmann Fitness—a boutique training and nutrition service—with his wife, Beth. You can find out more about them at bergmannfitness.com

3 Steps to Getting “In the Zone” for EVERY Workout

February 17, 2015 By Eric Buratty 36 Comments

Al Kavadlo superman push-up

Want to know what it feels like to explode?

No, I’m not referring to those whack pre-workout supplements.

I’m referring to what it feels like to get “in the zone,” which naturally occurs during your superhero-like workouts. These are the moments when you look and feel deceptively stronger to the naked eye. These are the moments that ultimately allow you to push your limits.

Since we’ve all experienced those days where we feel like crap and less motivated to train, it’s time to put a cap on that mental and physical stress once and for all. Here are three steps for a stronger workout and improved recovery rate, EVERY time.

Step I: First Things First – Eliminate Distractions!

Turn off your computers, mobile devices, and yes, even “high energy” music.

Responding to emails, text messages and social media notifications during the time you’ve set aside for working out is a good way to kill your training progress all together—due to their emotionally distracting capabilities. Playing “high energy” music may also upset the balance you want to achieve between feeling overly excited and feeling too calm.

Turn away from all timers, stopwatches and clocks.

Reaching the highest level of performance possible during a given workout requires an attentive mind and body. Therefore, it would be silly to try and gauge your performance in the moment right in front of you if you’re too focused on beating the clock. While in a utopian-like society we would make linear progress, the mind and body simply do not work like that. So, in reality, we must respect our body’s dynamic progress capabilities without training on the nerve from elapsed time.

Ditch the mirrors.

Mirrors create the illusion of space—which can sometimes be helpful in the short run for teaching body awareness. However, in the long run, too much reliance on mirrors can slow down your reaction time, affect your force and power development and interfere with your body’s natural balance and stability. These are the EXACT qualities you need to be mindful of when successfully getting in the zone

Step II: Select Your Secret Weapon – Choose a Movement for the Type of Workout You’re About to Do.

Choose a Jump Variation for workouts involving more lower body volume AND for total body workouts.

Here’s a video I put together that features some fun options for you to try.

Choose a plyometric Pushing Variation for workouts involving more upper body pushing volume.

This guy knows what I’m talking about.

Choose a plyometric Pulling Variation for workouts involving more upper body pulling volume.

Unless you’re proficient with chest to bar pull-ups or kipping muscle ups, stick to the horizontal axis for some explosive Australian pull-ups.

Step III: Get in the Zone – Activate Your Nervous System.

Regardless of what your current fitness levels are like, when you last worked out or what time limitations you may currently have, it’s imperative that you hit a warm-up that’s specific to the workout you’re about to perform. This is because the way you spend your first 5-10 minutes is the best indicator of how the rest of your workout will go. So we’re all on the same page, a solid warm-up will typically involve any of the following elements.

a) Active Stretch

Danny Kavadlo Toy Soldier — Danny Kavadlo demonstrates the “toy soldier”

b) Isometric or Dynamic Core Move (examples: plank or leg raise)

c) Lower Level Big Six Movement from Convict Conditioning for higher reps

d) Lower Intensity Cardio Exercise of your choice (light jog, jumping jacks, wall or some moderately paced mountain climbers with a training partner if you have one (see below))

Angelo Grinceri & Rosalia Chann of Couples Calisthenics

If you have a training partner, some moderately paced mountain climbers for as little as 15 seconds at a time will surely warm-up your core, and get some blood flowing through your entire body. Talk about killing two birds with one stone!

We’ll now kick up this baseline warm-up a few notches with that plyometric move you selected in Step II above. This is because, the more athletic your warm-up is, the better your chances are of putting yourself into the zone. Perform a superset between that plyometric movement and your warm-up movement(s).

In order to make the plyometric movement look and feel as graceful and explosive as possible, you’ll perform 3-5 reps ONLY at various points throughout your warm-up. Ideally you’ll want to get away from counting with such few reps as this habit encourages you to train on the nerve. But that’s the approximate range for those of you who need quantitative satisfaction in the beginning.

Not sure where to start?

I recently performed a total body workout that consisted of pike push-ups, hanging V-leg raises, reverse lunges and straight leg bridges for reps. So, to give you an idea of how to apply this info, here’s the specific warm-up sequence/circuit I used prior to that workout.

Burraty Pike To Pancake

Burraty Standing Plow Good Morning

Burraty Bear Crawl

Burraty Staddle Box Jumps 1

Burraty Staddle Box Jumps 2

You’ll learn to feel this, but your performance WILL increase with each successive set/rep of your plyometric movement if you’re completely engaged in the moment right in front of you. It should also go without saying that this info can be applied toward workouts with weights for those of you who choose to supplement your calisthenics training.

By the end of your warm-up, you should feel ready to do more—with noticeable improvements in performance—but should NOT at any time feel excessive metabolic fatigue, out of breath or as though you’re doing the Valsalva Maneuver.

In sum, here are some key benefits you’ll experience from getting in the zone for EVERY workout.

Mood-uplifting, “neural-charge” effect—wherein eustress exceeds distress from an exercise standpoint
Greater body awareness through free space—remind upper and lower extremities of each other for total body synergy
More control over body momentum—reinforce a strong carryover between “loading” and “landing” positions (i.e., eccentric and concentric phases in a range-of-motion)
Make exercise fun, playful and less routine-like.

Do YOU have any favorite strategies that help you get in the zone for your workouts? If so, I’m sure we would love to hear about them. Just drop your tips in the comments below!

***Eric Buratty brings five years of experience to the DC Metro Area as a Certified Personal Trainer, Progressive Calisthenics Instructor, Nutrition Consultant and Sports Injury Specialist.
For more information about Eric, check out his website, EricBurattyFitness.com.

Technical Convergence

January 20, 2015 By Matt Schifferle 44 Comments

Al Kavadlo Push-up

Like many modern fitness enthusiasts, I first approached fitness in a very fragmented way. I used many exercises and different pieces of equipment to work on each separate muscle group with an individual focus. I also had a fragmented approach to conditioning. I had exercises for strength, exercises for endurance, exercises for flexibility, exercises for balance, exercises for rehab, and for muscle activation. I even had the same approach to my diet–individual supplements for protein, fats, carbs, vitamins and minerals.

This approach was like taking a chain and trying to bend each single link at a time.

Matt Shifferle Chain Metaphor As you can imagine, this approach has some serious disadvantages. While it is possible to emphasize a few choice links, the amount of actual workload you can place on those links is very limited. Compare this with pulling on the whole chain with your entire body, and placing far more total tension on each link.

Matt Schifferle Pulling Diagram

The fragmented approach also uses up a lot of time and energy when starting at one end of the chain and pulling on each link for 5 minutes before progressing. It took a lot of time and energy to work down the entire chain. But, when I started pulling on the entire chain, I got much better results even though my total workout time and personal investment was substantially reduced. If I pulled the whole chain for just 15 minutes, the workout might be shorter but the total time and tension on each link was far greater.

Matt Schifferle Chain Diagram 1

The other disadvantage to my segmented approach was that it caused imbalances to crop up over time. Like many eager young bucks in the gym, I started off wanting to grow bigger and stronger in some areas, like my arms and chest while other muscles like my hips and shoulders were neglected. This also went for certain aspects of my training where I was more interested in things like strength and power but not very interested in balance or flexibility. As a result, I had large imbalances due to less emphasis on certain links in my chain and an over emphasis on others.

Matt Schifferle Chain Diagram 2

These imbalances caused many injuries and progress in my training became almost impossible. I didn’t know it then, but Mother Nature herself was holding me back. Over the years, I’ve learned that Mother Nature doesn’t care if someone is strong, fast and ripped or fat, slow and weak. Her priority is to keep the body in a state of balance or homeostasis. As I strengthened certain links Mother Nature would force me back into homeostasis by causing pain and fatigue. She weakened those strong links to balance them with the weaker ones. Even though this would weaken my entire body, nature’s priority was balance.

Matt Schifferle Chain Diagram 3

When I started with bodyweight training I was suddenly focusing on a more holistic approach that required me to develop all of my links at once. The results were simply astonishing! Pain evaporated like a puddle in the desert. Strength and speed came in waves and sports performance hit all time highs. Because I was pulling on entire chains, my weaker links finally started to get stronger. Now the powerful law of Homeostasis was helping me rather than holding me back. As those weak links became stronger they fell in line with the stronger links and reached that state of balance. Now I was balanced by making weak links stronger instead of forcing strong links to get weaker.

My training was also only taking a fraction of the time and energy compared to my previous approach.

Matt Schifferle Chain Diagram 4

Looking back, I recognize just how technically divergent my training was. Sometimes, I was even trying to limit the involvement of those weaker links! I used various supports and wraps to ensure my weak links were not holding me back. If I was trying to work my biceps, I isolated them and made sure not to use my back and shoulders. I used to think this meant I was really focusing on my goals, but now I realize I was just creating more imbalance and the potential for injury. I was also holding back my stronger links.

Short term sacrifice for long term gain

Using the entire chain is sometimes frustrating for people who are new to Progressive Calisthenics. Most of the time this frustration comes from folks who have built up some links to be stronger than others through fragmented training.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so when many people start to pull on the entire chain they often get feedback from the weaker links. I hear this a lot when someone tells me that we’re doing “triceps push ups.” Or if I coach them to a narrow-stance squat, and they tell me it’s not a leg strengthening exercise but rather a balance exercise.

To a large degree, these individuals are correct because it is a triceps push up or it is a balance exercise because for that individual those are the weak links within their chain. However if they have the discipline to pursue the training long enough they will find that those links become stronger and then the next links will become the priority in their training. When this happens the triceps push up suddenly becomes a shoulder push up and the squat is no longer about balance but maybe more about flexibility or perhaps strength in the the muscles in the front of the shin.

The trick is sticking with the training long enough for the weaker links to catch up. It can take a lot of self control because someone might be focused on feeling their pecs get a pump, or their quads burning that they abandon the full chain exercises for a fragmented approach that easily satisfies the sensation of pumping up those target muscles. The down side is that while pulling on a single link may feel more focused, the long term potential of developing that link is limited.

Here’s a quick example:

Two guys want to get ripped for next summer’s beach vacation. Mr. Push Up can’t get to a gym so he’s stuck doing push ups in his basement. His buddy, Mr. Pec Fly, gets a membership to Bob’s Emporium of Pecs and Biceps and heads straight to the Chest-o-matic 9000 pec machine.

Al and Danny Kavadlo

At first it seems like Mr. Pec Fly has made the right choice. Every week he keeps adding weight to his machine and his chest is looking strong and pumped. Meanwhile, Mr. Push up is still struggling to build his shoulder stability and his triceps seem to be getting more of pump than his chest. However as beach season approaches, Mr. Pec Fly starts to wake up each morning with nagging aches in his right shoulder and can’t lift quite as much weight on the pec fly machine. He starts losing his motivation to train and his results back slide. Meanwhile Mr. Push Up has finally strengthened his weaker links, and now his push ups are pumping up his chest like crazy. Not only that, but his shoulders and triceps are also looking great and he’s sporting a hint of a 4-pack. Mr. Pec Fly wishes he could work his triceps but his sore shoulder won’t let him use any of the push-down machines and he usually skips his abs because he doesn’t have the time and energy at the end of a long workout to do a bunch of core exercises.

By mid-summer Mr. Pec Fly has quit the gym and keeps wearing loose fitting T-shirts while Mr. Push Up keeps looking for excuses to take his shirt off. He not only looks great, but feels great because all of his links are strong and healthy. While Mr. Pec Fly feels like his body is fighting him on every rep, Mr. Push Up senses that his body wants to keep getting stronger. He’s even come to expect progression with every workout! He’s working with his body, not against it.

While the push up is often used as a strength exercise for the chest and arms, it demands the strength of the core, hips and hands. It also requires flexibility in the wrists, stability in the shoulders, plus endurance, breathing, coordination and even awareness of where you are in space. As you progress in your training, you will not only develop more strength and muscle, but the advanced techniques also demand more of these other aspects of your conditioning. Technical convergence is the idea that the level of resistance you can place on a muscle is also directly in proportion to other aspects of your fitness required for you to perform a particular technique.

The technical convergence of progressive calisthenics requires every link to be strong. If any links are weak, they will be strengthened thus enhancing the stress the rest of the links in the chain can endure.

Al Kavadlo Chain Weighted Dips

People often tell me that the great thing about weight lifting is that you can increase resistance simply by placing more weight on the bar or moving a pin on a stack. I used to believe that adjusting the resistance with such ease was great, but my tune has changed. I spent so many years focusing on adding weight to the bar that I couldn’t tell that my technique was actually getting worse. I was technically divergent! Now I think “Yes, you can increase the resistance but you don’t have to improve anything other than your strength.” With bodyweight exercise, you have to earn that resistance, which is a built in safeguard to ensure you can control and use it in the most productive way.

Don’t avoid your weak links, seek them out and give them the love they deserve with the Big Six. They work every tiny link from one end to the other.

Right now, it’s -5 here in Denver but I promise you beach season is right around the corner and your weak links aren’t going to get strong on their own. The clock is ticking!

Tick tock………..

****

Matt Schifferle a.k.a. The Fit Rebel made a switch to calisthenics training 5 years ago in an effort to rehab his weight lifting injuries. Since then he’s been on a personal quest to discover and teach the immense benefits of advanced body weight training. You can find some of his unique bodyweight training methods at RedDeltaProject.com.

Erwan Le Corre talks Bodyweight, Part II

August 6, 2013 By Paul "Coach" Wade 10 Comments

Erwan Le Corre is the founder of MovNat.

Erwan Le Corre is an icon in the fitness world. He is considered by many to be the modern-day inheritor of the French tradition of physical education (and that’s quite a compliment when you consider that the French created parkour, free running, and effectively invented the modern military “assault course”). Erwan is the founder of MovNat—an astonishing physical education and fitness system based on comprehensive movement abilities. There are many coaches who try to imitate what he does, but for people who have seen him in action—or learned from him—there will only ever be one Erwan Le Corre!

Paul “Coach” Wade (author of Convict Conditioning) recently got the chance to ask Erwan his opinion on all things bodyweight, on behalf of the PCC community. In Part I of this interview, Erwan shared his thoughts on his heroes, the thinking behind MovNat, and bodyweight efficiency.

In this second and final part of this interview, Erwan opens up about his status as “World’s Fittest Man,” his favorite bodyweight exercises, and performing sit-ups over an eight-lane superhighway!

Paul Wade: Erwan, what are your favorite bodyweight movements?

Erwan Le Corre: Probably the “muscle-up” (this name is just SO weird, what does that mean exactly?!) simply because it is such an explosive movement that demands power but also coordination and balance. It is also adaptable to different environments, not just gymnastic rings, you can do it on a tree branch, a platform, a cable or rope etc…you’re looking up and the next second you’re looking down from an elevated place. To many people it is an inapproachable feat but when you’ve trained to make it almost effortless it’s such a bliss.

But that’s thinking “bodyweight movement” for strength. You know, holding a simple deep squat, and be super relaxed in that position and hold it for a long time, this is maybe the simplest, most enjoyable human movement and position of all. How many people out there can fully squat and hold it minutes in a perfectly relaxed state? There is more to a functional, competent body than just the impressive stuff that demands strength or power.

Al Kavadlo is a master of the muscle-up!

Paul Wade: Actually, “muscle-up” still seems like a strange name to me—in jail, these were called “sentry pull-ups,” which kinda makes a little more sense!

Do you use progressions in your teaching? (For example, beginning with easier push-ups on the knees, and moving to one-arm push-ups.) If so, could you give us an example?

Erwan Le Corre: Of course! Do you seriously think I’d take a completely deconditioned person (I call them “zoo-humans”) in the woods and say, have them walk in balance across a fallen tree trunk above a raging river? That would be criminal! Where should people start? They start not in natural, unpredictable and complex environments but in controlled, or at least managed environments that are predictable and safe. Or else you don’t have a coaching and physical education system, you have no system and you’re a jackass.

So I place a 2×4 wood beam on the ground and voila, here you go, you’ve got an environment with basic, entry level of complexity but that does challenge the beginner. It demands not just “balance” but “balancing skills” and you start practicing safely and progressively that way. Another example, before you train muscle-ups you train explosive pull-ups, before you train explosive pull-ups you train regular pull-ups, before you train regular pull-ups you train a variety of hangs and hanging traverses (the “side-swing traverse”) etc…

The priority is always the establishment of movement quality and efficiency through technical work. Then you gradually increase volume, intensity and complexity. Gray Cook puts it simply like this, “First move well, then move often.” In most cases motor-skills and conditioning will develop symbiotically. Depending on the movement, and/or the environment complexity, a physical action may demand more motor-control, or more strength and conditioning. I’ve addressed this earlier but I like to hammer it because it is so important. So the way you train sometimes involves both aspects, or may dissociate them. I’ve seen guys who could do tons of pull-ups but were unable to climb on top of the horizontal bar, I mean even after trying a few times. No amount of general conditioning can compensate for a lack of motor-control and technical skill. An hour later they could climb on top 6 different ways after learning the techniques.

I also have seen guys who could do tons of pull-ups unable to climb a horizontal bar even with technical instruction, do you know why? Because the bar was too thick, smooth and slippery for them and they couldn’t hang to it very long, let alone attempting to just pull themselves up, as they simply didn’t have the necessary grip strength to do so. You’re only as strong as your weakest link, and not amount of technical instruction will compensate for a lack specific conditioning or strength. And if you want to know, all these guys were highly trained CrossFitters. Take the test I mentioned above and see how it goes. If it doesn’t go as well as you thought it would, you have two options:

– re-assess the way you train (and maybe the reason you train), and modify your training regimen consequently. Maybe take a MovNat course or certification workshop.

– just forget about it and get back to your routine.

Paul Wade: Erwan, so far I am surprised by how much your thinking has in common with what I would call the “old school calisthenics” approach to training—you make a throwaway comment “you are only as strong as your weakest link,” but very few people will realize how important that understanding really is.

What’s your personal training regime like now, in brief? How many days per week?

Erwan Le Corre: I rely on my intuition. Not everyone is endowed with good intuition about themselves, their body and what’s the best way to train, I am fortunate that I’ve got a lot of experience and I know myself well, I have explored many training modalities and mastered a few. I’m also opportunistic. If I am somewhere with water I might swim, if I’m in a gym my training will be slightly different, or in nature, or at a martial art academy, depending on what a particular place has to offer. Personally, routines are not my cup of tea, but this being said routines and programs are very important for beginners, or when you have a very specific objective, like an event you want to participate in and you want to kick ass, or at least survive. Programming IS part of MovNat. It’s just that at the moment, my training doesn’t follow a particular structure. It’s free, intuitive and opportunistic, and I am mostly maintaining a decent general level of skills and conditioning. It can change tomorrow and I can decide to structure my training again, with particular goals. There’s no rule. I also want to say that it is very important to manage health for longevity.

Bodyweight-based training can be opportunistic—use whatever is around you to build your skills and abilities.

There’s only so much your body can take. Aging is real. You can’t prevent it, but you can decide how fast it goes, and avoid poor lifestyle choices that make you age even faster. Overtraining and under-recovery participate in aging faster, including uncomfortable symptoms such as joint pain etc…At almost 42 I am fortunate that I experience so far very limited symptoms like that, and it has to do with the way I train, in term of movement quality but also the way I treat my body overall. If I were to tell you I train X number of days a week, or X number of hours, or X number of sets and reps, does it actually mean something THAT objective? What is the quality of each movement performed? At what intensity? How prepared is my body? How do I recover? How do I treat myself? You know the latter questions only seem more subjective, but IMO they are actually more objective than any indication of numbers. The body doesn’t know anything about numbers. It only knows about movement patterns and sensations. How you FEEL should be your number one indicator or adequate training and practice. Feel amazing and don’t settle for less. You’ve got one life. At the end of your journey you will have forgotten all the details and numbers of your programs. But you will never forget how they made you feel.

Paul Wade: An amazing attitude—a lot of advanced guys think the same way.

Guys like Demenÿ and Hébert believed that an athlete should have mastery of their body in any environment—underwater, on rough terrain, even high above the ground. You are known for having performed some very unusual feats in this tradition. (For example, Erwan famously had a sit-up competition with Jean Haberey, while both men were hanging from a bridge over an eight-lane superhighway!) Could you tell us some of the thinking behind this please?

Erwan Le Corre: I think lots of people lack motivation to exercise because the purpose behind it is either unclear or too superficial. It can be unclear when you’re aiming at general aspects of “fitness” but without ever really assessing their transferability to real use. Because of this vagueness, you need to focus on something that is more tangible to you, like number of sets and reps. That may be rational in some way, but your mind needs something more substantial and real to be really excited. My mind at least, and that which of people who train with us. Superficial goals like a better looking body are legit, but they are not deeply satisfying.

So I’m not saying that having specific goals that can be measured is unimportant, it actually is very important for a number of reasons, such as assessing progress, the effectiveness of a program and motivation for instance. All I am saying is that when there’s a truly practical goal in mind, let’s say I’m going be able to carry somebody on my back a whole mile, or I am going to train to hold my breath 3 minutes straight so I could dive and rescue someone if needed, or I will become fast at running so I could escape a threatening situation swiftly…you see, these are practical goals. The indications of the one mile firefighter carry or the 3 minutes breath hold only matter because the objectives are practical performance, but if you remove that and just look at “one mile” or “3 minutes” then it doesn’t mean much anymore.

The practical goals go beyond the current perception of what is “functional.” You step on a bosu and do rotational lunges and that’s functional. Fair enough. But what actual practical physical action are you performing? If it is not clear in your mind what you’re trying to replicate, then you might get bored very soon because it won’t click in the back of your head. Practical goals give you, and your training, a deeper sense of purpose, that increases and maintains your drive to exercise hard and consistently. Because you want to acquire real-world physical competency, or to maintain it. You want to know what you are capable of, what you are made of. There’s a sense of reality and realism that is undeniable. You can walk the streets with the self-confidence of a person who knows they won’t be completely helpless to themselves and others if a difficult situation arises. Be useful, know you are. This is a great feeling!

Paul Wade: What, in your opinion, is the biggest barrier to fitness in the modern age?

Erwan Le Corre: Mentalities. There are gyms everywhere, parks everywhere, nature, cities. There are millions of fitness videos online for people who seek motivation, and books or trainers for those who seek knowledge or guidance. But the sad reality is that the average Joe and Jane are real “zoo-humans.” Why on Earth would they even want to move or exercise? Why such a physical punishment when you can be comfy at home and hide your physical suffering with pills and entertainment? Comfort is weakening, but people seem happy to be soft, they joke about it, every TV commercial makes people laugh about useless, helpless human beings who are completely disempowered. There’s a global culture of voluntary disempowerment. It is both a mass-condition and a mass-conditioning.

Bodyweight fitness is about more than strength and huge muscles. How is your running? Your climbing, your swimming?

Change this mentality and you will have legions of people who realize that exercising, especially moving in natural ways, is not a chore, not a punishment, not an option, but an expression of their most beautiful human nature. It belongs to all of us regardless of what makes us different. It has the potential to bring us all together. I want to awake in a world crowded with self-actualized, self-empowered individuals. Instead I wake up in a world crowded with dormant minds and lazy, soft bodies. The people who train physically and want to stay healthy and strong within a society that is sick and weak are modern heroes. They may not want to be part of an elite, but in some way they are. But my point is the opposite of trying to create elites. It is rather that everyone would be liberated and empowered. I have created MovNat with this vision in mind. It is quite the romantic, utopian and delusional vision, yet I am innocent enough to believe a change will take place. In my inner world, the change is taking place NOW.

Paul Wade: Wise words, my man. Are there any long-standing myths about strength and fitness training you would like to see vanish from the face of the earth?

Erwan Le Corre: Probably the idea that all there is to fitness and building a body is to grow bigger muscles. It is not really a myth but an overwhelmingly common perception. There is more to building a body than building muscles, and there is more to building a human being than building its body. To me fitness is the level of your energy at every level, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. This is old school, in the sense that the ancient Greeks thought like that, all the main pioneers of physical education in Europe all thought like that. They didn’t seclude themselves to a purely physical realm. They wanted people to be whole. The mainstream, commercial fitness industry has absolutely no interest in you thinking like that. You don’t make much money on self-actualized people, that’s why.

Paul Wade: You have been called The World’s Fittest Man due to your wide-range of abilities. Any final tips from the World’s Fittest Man?

Erwan Le Corre: This is one of the myths you were mentioning earlier and that needs to be debunked. Christopher McDougall, NYT Best-seller author for “Born To Run” has written in a article he wrote for Men’s Health a few years ago that I may rank as one of the fittest men on the planet. Well, it all depends on what criteria. Few people, I admit, are able to follow me in my “world” and keep up with every type of physical challenge they could encounter, on any terrain. I’ve met many inspiring specialized athletes that all could kick my ass in their specific field of predilection. I’ve met guys who are generalists, like high level CrossFitters, but who forget that reality is specific and that specific training is required for every aspect of competency you want to be ready for. But don’t be mistaken. I couldn’t care less about competition and rankings. I’m not here to prove anything, but to embody my philosophy and spread the MovNat system. All I hope is that MovNat will produce many “fittest guy on Earth.” Most importantly, just train smart and hard and become YOUR fittest, this is what truly matters. The rest is just ego. Don’t neglect areas of your physical competence and potential and leave them under-developed. It’s really a loss for yourself. Become the fittest you can be in all areas of natural human movement is probably the best tip I can share.

MovNat students learn to use their bodies in different environments—not just in an air-conditioned gym!

Paul Wade: Erwan, you are a phenomenal example of natural fitness! Thanks for your time.

Erwan Le Corre: Compliment taken. You’re not bad yourself! Resiliency is a beautiful thing. I want to tell people this: whatever you thought or told yourself you were, whatever you are or were told you are, it doesn’t matter anymore the moment you decide to redefine and remodel yourself into the most self-actualized person you can. ON YOUR OWN TERMS. Because if you can’t empower yourself…who will?

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Erwan Le Corre is the founder of MovNat. To find out more about his training approach, head on over to http://www.movnat.com/.

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Paul “Coach” Wade is the author of five Convict Conditioning DVD/manual programs. Click here for more information about Paul Wade, and here for more information on Convict Conditioning DVD’s and books available for purchase from the publisher.

How Training with Progressive Calisthenics and Kettlebells Prepared Me for the Unknown at an Intense 2 day Photoshoot

March 26, 2013 By Adrienne Harvey 7 Comments

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You may remember an earlier post on the PCC blog describing an example of how the “Good Behavior” routine from Convict Conditioning could easily accommodate kettlebell training. One of the absolute highlights of this past week was participating in a rigorous two day–two FULL days–photoshoot for the upcoming Dragon Door book, Neuro-Mass by Jon Bruney. While I had had a few days to look over the extensive collection of unique kettlebell, bodyweight, and specialized equipment drills and exercises, what I would be asked to specifically perform was somewhat of a mystery. Fortunately, the strength, flexibility, and coordination from long-term training with Convict Conditioning’s progressive calisthenics, and basic kettlebell work prepared me very well for this highly-varied shoot.

Even though my at-home and outdoor workouts are not especially spectacular on their own, it’s the long-term consistent practice of meticulous movement patterns and reasonable, safe strength challenges which add up solidly over time. This somewhat conservative approach helps me to maintain my strength and physique while avoiding injury. With a heavy schedule of workshops, travel, and instructing, there simply isn’t time for injury, which is all the more reason for strategic training and knowing when to back off. The approach in Convict Conditioning is absolutely perfect for the situation. Not to mention, when traveling, it’s rare that I even have to leave the privacy of my hotel room in order to finish my workout for the day. In all honestly there’s usually more useful floor (and wall) space in the room than a typical “fitness center.”

Many people ask if Convict Conditioning on its own is “enough.” Generally speaking, the short answer is yes, absolutely. The long answer is yes, but what is your specific goal? While my hybrid training with Convict Conditioning and kettlebells was entirely to credit for allowing me to shine at two days of unknown (and highly athletic) drills performed meticulously at relatively low reps for photos, I will need to do the actual Neuro-Mass routines for their full effect. Same with your sports and the specific skills required for them.

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One of my absolutely most favorite new drills from Neuro-Mass is the pull-up bar walk. All the grip work from Convict Conditioning 2 along with the coordination I’ve gained from inching towards the 1-arm chin up with so much isolateral work really prepared me for that drill in particular. So much that I was able to go forwards and backwards with ease. Jon Bruney has now recommended that we all man or woman-up and work towards going forwards and backwards with this interesting drill. I also like it as it brings the fun and coordination challenge of “monkey bars” to the gym with something as simple as a pull up bar.

The strength and coordination gained from Convict Conditioning as a whole also allowed me to successfully perform (on the first try!) an incredibly cool and difficult drill–this drill is so cool that I’ve been specifically asked to not describe it before Neuro-Mass is published! Before trying it, I had no idea if I’d even be able to do it at all! Consistent practice of Progressive Calisthenics and the seemingly simple workouts from Convict Conditioning had absolutely prepared me for the unknown!

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About Adrienne Harvey, RKCII, CK-FMS, Primal Move Nat’l Instructor: I started studying kettlebell training over three years ago and became RKC Certified in October of 2010, and became an RKC Level 2 Instructor in July 10th of 2011. Kettlebell and bodyweight training have been absolutely crucial in my personal quest for fitness, and I love sharing these ultra-effective modalities with small groups and individuals. Similarly, developing recipes to further support performance, body composition, and general enjoyment is another passion.

Go to http://www.giryagirl.com/ for more information about Adrienne.