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Progressive Calisthenics - The Official Blog for the PCC Community

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Embrace the Journey – Lessons from the Pull Up Bar

October 3, 2017 By Carl Phillips 14 Comments

Carl Phillips and Danny Kavadlo

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities,
but in the expert’s there are few.” –
Shunryu Suzuki

Too often in life we want to rush ahead. We want to be better, more informed, more polished. What we don’t always want to respect is the process required for getting to that point. Our strength and fitness training journeys are a case in point.

The truth is, earning our stripes and getting good at just about anything in life takes time. It takes energy and focus. It takes a lot of hard work. It isn’t always pretty but the work involved in getting better is absolutely necessary.

Practice, persistence and patience are often requirements for improving. Not as sexy as “8 Minute Abs” or “Deadlift 500 pounds with These 5 Secret Steps,” but we know from bitter experience that the snake oil pitches rarely work. Hacks and shortcuts aren’t usually the road to our goals we hope they’ll be.

Learning to Appreciate the Grind

A certain amount of grind—showing up and doing the work—is necessary in most endeavours. Sticking points are inevitable the further we move away from beginner status. The more we spend time and effort engaged in a particular task, the more chance of hitting the point of diminishing returns.

How do we retain our enthusiasm for our goals when we hit these points?

One potential answer is to learn to embrace the journey. We immerse ourselves in the process of just trying to get a tiny bit better. We focus on incremental increases. and throw away comparisons to others. We’re doing this for us so the only point of comparison should be to ourselves, when we started out. Acknowledging and appreciating how far we’ve already come.

Personal Examples – Tussles with the Pull Up Bar

A personal example may be in order.

I’m a practitioner and fan of calisthenics. I’ve included some form of bodyweight basics in all my workouts for over two decades. As I’ve grown older, more and more of my workouts have become bodyweight based. It has been a constant for me. I find this form of training endlessly fascinating. I love the raw simplicity. I find the type of strength it develops to be so much more impressive than just lifting ever more external weight. A perfect front lever or pistol squat is a beautiful thing to witness.

However, along the way I have often run into spells of frustration with a perceived lack of progress, or when I hit plateaus. This frustration gets me nowhere fast and just leads to me enjoying my exercise sessions much less. Even dreading them a little at times, looking for an excuse not to practice. Not ideal.

Enter the Kavadlos

Along this journey I’ve sought out the lessons learned from those ahead of me, who possess a larger degree of expertise. In the world of calisthenics, the Kavadlo surname kept on popping up on my radar. The tattooed brothers from New York not only walk the talk, but also write with a stripped back clarity that is rare in the fitness realm. I became an immediate fan.

In a world of fitness bombast and dogma, the Al and Danny’s message was that many ways can work. Yes, they presented ideas and frameworks for their readers from their own hard won success and experience, but they also encouraged us to find our own way. To experiment and find what works and fits best for us.

The brothers approach their work applying an almost Zen-like “Beginner’s Mind.” They know that although many of us seek them out as experts, they are also still students in strength themselves. Never afraid to challenge their own ideas. Never afraid to learn more.

This message resonated with me deeply. I read every book the brothers put out. I nodded along, laughed at the humour and appreciated the deep wisdom in some of the words. What I wasn’t always good at was putting what I read into practice. There was a gap in me applying some of the lessons I was learning when it came to working out. This was particularly true in the case of embracing the process for its own end, rather than being focused on an external goal (more pull ups, less fat etc).

I’m pleased to say this changed in a big way last year. A major catalyst for this change was that I actually got some in person time with Danny Kavadlo.

Carl Phillips and Danny Kavadlo

While both the brothers are incredible writers from my perspective, nothing can really compare to an in person experience. I sought out some of Danny’s time on a visit to New York. To be honest, I wasn’t really expecting to be able to get any time with him as I knew there was a Dragon Door PCC workshop in town during our stay. However, I got lucky and Danny was able to find some time for me to not only have a 1 to 1 work session, but also spend a little time talking about his approach to life. The talk turned into a series of posts elsewhere (here, here and here.)

Danny has a motivating presence. He is truly the larger than life character you hope he will be. He also just seems a great guy, both interesting and interested. He exudes an energy and confidence that is tough to fake. In short, he seems very much like the real deal.

The lessons from that sunny and hot day on the legendary Tompkins Square Park bars will stay with me forever. It is an experience I truly cherish. One of the biggest takeaways from the many I had that day was the fact that there really are no shortcuts. No tricks that will get me to double my pull ups overnight. No hacks I was missing out on. We have to embrace the grind at a certain point. It’s part and parcel of the journey. However, our achievements are also all the richer for this journey.

The time with Danny inspired me but it also made me re-evaluate. It made me take stock. It has led to a shift in how I approach my workouts. I have chosen to embrace the journey. See the plateaus as a necessary part of the journey. Understand that sometimes they’re my body’s way of telling me to back off a little and/or change something. I hope to be at this for my entire life, so really, what’s the rush?

The result of this renewed approach is I get frustrated much, much less. I enjoy my workouts a whole lot more, even approaching them with a practice mindset at times (trying to refine a skill) rather than beating myself into the ground. As importantly, this has led to improved performance in a few areas of focus. I’m no Olympic level gymnast but I’m okay with that and that’s never been the aim. As long as I am improving from where I started and have been, something is going right.

For me, getting some expert tuition and cues from someone far ahead of me in capability and experience has been a game changer. I would encourage anyone interested in strength and fitness to seek out the same in person experience. If you are a bodyweight enthusiast like me, you can do no better than getting some of Danny or Al’s time (or both at a PCC).

The Obstacles Will Always Be There

I try to let this approach, and the lessons I’ve learned from it, spill over into other aspects of my life. Embracing the journey for its own sake in whatever I am applying myself to. I don’t always achieve that goal and still get frustrated at times but I’m getting better. I’m more consistent.

The pull up bar will always be there. However good I get at getting myself up to it, someone else will be able to do more reps, with a cleaner technique and that’s okay. It’s inspiring. All I can do is be committed to make my reps the best they can be for that day. Clean up my own technique, try not to leak strength or waste effort. Drive for that perfect pull up. Know that I gave the bar my best today and commit to showing up again and again to do more of the same.

We can all decide to embrace and appreciate the journey. Doing so often proves so much more fruitful than fighting it. The journey is where we spend a part of ourselves. Where we work towards our goals, where we earn our own prizes.

***

Carl Phillips writes short books full of big ideas and is the proud owner of Frictionless Living which is focused on helping readers live simpler, finding focus and clarity in distracted times. He is also a calisthenics enthusiast.

Filed Under: Motivation and Goals, Progressive Calisthenics Tagged With: Carl Phillips, Danny Kavadlo, goals, motivation, NYC, simple living, Zen

Progressive Calisthenics Returns To New York!

January 17, 2017 By Danny Kavadlo 8 Comments

Danny Kavadlo Human Flag NYC PCC 2017

The first PCC of the New Year was held in my hometown of New York City this past weekend, and if it’s any indication of what’s to come, then it’s clear that 2017 will be another incredible year for the Progressive Calisthenics Certification!

In our fourth foray into the Big Apple, over thirty-five calisthenics freaks assembled to train, learn and grow together. We started the weekend as strangers, but ended it as family. As my brother and fellow PCC Instructor, Al Kavadlo would say: Hey hey hey! That’s what PCC is all about!

Hey hey hey! That’s what PCC is all about!
Hey hey hey! That’s what PCC is all about!

There was a mix of calisthenics practitioners, martial artists, dancers, everyday working folks and lots of personal trainers at this one. Attendees came from as far as England, Canada, Bermuda and Puerto Rico to take part. The bodyweight community is even more widespread than we’d imagined.

This man came all the way from Canada to re-certify!
This man came all the way from Canada to re-certify!

This event was particularly exciting for many reasons. To begin with, it was the first PCC where Dragon Door partnered with CRUNCH fitness, one of the largest gym organizations on the planet. This alliance truly illustrates how much the calisthenics movement is growing. This partnership will undoubtedly lead to the continued education of more and more trainers in the future. No wonder there were so many in attendance! They came from many locations to improve themselves as personal trainers, fitness professionals and even human beings. The future is bright!

Crunch Trainers Side Planks

 

This weekend’s PCC was also host to some very special guests including living legend Jack Arnow, who dropped some time tested wisdom and demonstrated several septuagenarian feats of strength! Our Street Workout photo contest winner, Steve “Grizzly” Opalenik was in attendance as well. Additionally, Martin Dubovic from Street Workout magazine not only attended the course, but also documented the whole event. Be on the lookout for a special all-star video coming soon!

Street Workout contest winner Steve “Grizzly” Opalenik lets his freak flag fly!
Street Workout contest winner Steve “Grizzly” Opalenik lets his freak flag fly!

The three rigorous days of push-ups, pull-ups, dragon flags and muscle-ups, as intense as it is, seems to fly by in a flash. That’s why it’s up to us to stay in touch, preach the gospel and spread the word!

NYC PCC Dragon Flag

Personal bests were achieved, lessons were learned and strength was celebrated. It was a weekend we’ll never forget, and as everyone who’s ever attended a PCC already knows, there is no substitute for an in-person experience. With more events scheduled this year in Boston, California, London and Poland, we hope to see YOU soon! The posse’s getting bigger.

 

Keep the dream alive,

-DK

NYC PCC at Crunch Gym Group Photo 2017

 

Filed Under: Progressive Calisthenics, Workshop Experiences Tagged With: Danny Kavadlo, New York City, NYC, NYC PCC, PCC Workshop Experience, progressive calisthenics, workshop experience

Fitness, Fun and Failure: What I Learned at the NY PCC

July 19, 2016 By Joe Boffi 11 Comments

Joe Boffi Archer Pull-Up

A few weeks ago I had the honor of being a student at the Progressive Calisthenics Certification in New York City. The PCC was 3 days of learning how to bend, twist and leverage our bodies into chiseled masterpieces. There was talk about being turned into PCC ninjas, which immediately had me excited. However, I was just as quickly saddened to find out that we weren’t actually going to learn how to disappear behind a ninja smoke bomb. It was then that Head Master Ninja John Du Cane quietly whispered for me to be patient.

The information of the seminar was presented in short and precise modules. Keeping the presentations concise was great because it left a lot of time for the real learning to commence through a form of play and cooperative teaching. We were instructed to pair up or form small groups to practice teaching and performing the exercises. From the start, the instructors let us figure out how to move our bodies and guided us to the techniques that worked best for us as individuals. We were encouraged to also learn the movements by teaching what we took away from the modules in our own way to our fellow students.

NYC PCC

Along with cooperative learning, a very safe, fun and familiar atmosphere was created. The environment encouraged students to try movements that they normally wouldn’t have tried. People were laughing and smiling with each other in success and failure. In fact, failure wasn’t frowned upon, it was looked at as an opportunity to apply our new knowledge and work for a new goal.

One of my favorite examples of how failure was not looked at negatively came at the very end of the weekend during the illustrious Century Test. A student of advanced age was up. He crushed the squats, push-ups, and hanging knee raises. Going into the final exercise of the test, the pull-up, he had some trouble. But he also had the entire seminar cheering him on. When he dismounted from the bar he may not have had all 10 reps completed but he did have a large grin. Missing out on the pull-up portion of the test wasn’t a moment of sadness for him. I believe that his grin was from the immense encouragement and love given to him as his fellow students and new family cheered along.

I personally had a humbling, yet oddly comforting experience while practicing a new exercise during the squat module. Throughout my fitness journey I have been performing all sort of pistol squats from body weight to weighted pistols, pistols balancing on top of kettlebells or barbells, and even carefully doing depth jump pistols (that’s a whole other story). Needless to say, when we got to this portion of the day I felt rather confident. That was until I attempted my first shrimp squat.

NYC PCC Shrimp Squats
PCC Master Instructors Al and Danny Kavadlo making the shrimp squat look easy. It’s not.

This exercise appeared to be a single leg pistol regression so I thought to myself, “I got this.” Well, I didn’t. Since I considered my legs to be very strong already, I figured there must have been something that I was doing all wrong. I called Master Al over to watch and tap into his expertise. After demonstrating my new found nemesis, Al adjusted a few very minor details and told me I wasn’t doing it all wrong and that I just need to practice. I was humbled by the shrimp squat, yet at the same time comforted by Al and the knowledge that I can take my perceived failure and add it to my box of tools and goals.

Besides the amazing exercises that were taught, my two biggest takeaways were that a safe, fun and encouraging environment, coupled with the humble expertise of quality instructors, is the best way to facilitate learning for all. This seminar also reaffirmed for me that failure is just a way to add new goals in life, and not something to be discouraged by.

And don’t forget, ninja smoke bomb training is coming….

NYC PCC Danny Al Joe Boffi

****

Joe Boffi is a PCC, RKC and co-owner of Catalyst Sport in New York City, which will be hosting an upcoming SCC workshop this November. If you have questions for Joe, leave them in the comments section below or contact him at Joe@catalystsportnyc.com.

Filed Under: Progressive Calisthenics, Workshop Experiences Tagged With: Catalyst Sport, Joe Boffi, New York, NYC, NYC PCC, workshop experience

Introducing the SCC

September 8, 2015 By Al Kavadlo 22 Comments

Why SCC? By Al Kavadlo

When my brother Danny and I teamed up with Coach Wade and Dragon Door to unveil the Progressive Calisthenics Certification in 2013, we knew we were on to something big.

Coach Wade’s Convict Conditioning series had already established itself as the #1 calisthenics program in the world, and my book Raising The Bar was doing very well among calisthenics enthusiasts who wanted to, well, raise the bar with regards to their pull-up training.

These books exposed a huge new audience to moves like the human flag, one arm pull-up and muscle-up. The demand for a hands-on, in person experience to better learn these skills (and be able to teach them to others) was coming to a boiling point. In late 2011, Coach Wade, John Du Cane, Danny and myself began planning the PCC curriculum and assembling what would become the 600+ page manual.

When we finally conducted the initial PCC workshop in June of 2013, the reaction was even better than we had anticipated. Over 50 trainers, coaches and enthusiasts showed up for our first event and the positivity was through the roof! A good time was had by all and PRs were continually set throughout the weekend. Connections were formed that have not only persisted, but grown stronger to this day. Everyone came away from the weekend having learned a great deal–myself included.

Dragon Door CEO, John Du Cane, remarked to me after that initial weekend that typically in his experience, most certs take about 2 years to get the kinks ironed out. “But you guys knocked it out of the park this first time!” he added.

PCC has been rocking ever since, but there was something missing…until now!

What is SCC?
SCC stands for Strength Calisthenics Certification. It is Dragon Door’s one-day, entry-level bodyweight certification, based on Coach Wade’s “Big 6” foundational calisthenics movements: push-ups, pull-ups, squats, bridges, leg raises and inversions. Although an adequate level of strength and conditioning is required to get the most out of the course, the testing is far less severe than for the PCC. All you need to do in order to pass is demonstrate a baseline of calisthenics competency by completing the following in less than 3 minutes:

SCC Testing Requirements

Why SCC?
With PCC going full steam ahead, the number one concern we’ve been hearing from potential attendees is that the 3-day PCC curriculum can be a bit intimidating. Not everyone feels ready to embark on advanced modules like the human flag, back lever or muscle-up. The SCC is the perfect choice for anyone who needs more focused attention on the basics. Others simply can’t afford to commit an entire three days to taking the certification, but are still interested in gaining a legit credential in the field of calisthenics.

Al Kavadlo Coaching Squats

Who is SCC for?

  • Fitness professionals who want to improve their knowledge of bodyweight exercises, while earning a new credential.
  • Calisthenics enthusiasts who are looking to grow their personal practice and meet other like-minded practitioners.
  • Those new to bodyweight training who want a crash course in the fundamentals.
  • Anyone who is considering taking the PCC, but isn’t sure they’re ready for the financial/time commitment.
  • YOU!

It’s a No-Brainer
Signing up for the SCC is a no-brainer for anyone who’s seriously considering taking the PCC. It’s also a slam dunk for any fitness professional (or enthusiast) who wants to get in-person instruction from some of the most experienced calisthenics coaches in the world. In addition to Danny and myself, the entire PCC leadership will be on hand for the debut of SCC: Adrienne Harvey, Angelo Gala, Beth Andrews and Logan Christopher will all be there to ensure the best possible experience for all who attend.

The inaugural SCC event will take place this November in my hometown and favorite place in the world, New York City!

It’s going to be epic! I can’t wait to see you there!

Sign up for SCC by September 18th and save $50 on your enrollment! Space is limited – register today!

Strength Calisthenics Certification Workshop

Filed Under: Progressive Calisthenics, Workshop Experiences Tagged With: Al Kavadlo, calisthenics, certification, entry level calisthenics certification, fitness certification, inaugural SCC, New York City, NY, NYC, one day certification, progressive calisthenics, SCC, SCC Workshop, workshop

I ♥ NYC PCC

June 9, 2015 By Al Kavadlo 13 Comments

NYC PCC Workshop 2015

Last weekend, the Progressive Calisthenics Certification made its return to New York City with a sold out crowd of over 40 calisthenics enthusiasts from all over the United States as well as the rest of the world. Attendees hailed from Norway, Sweden, Spain, Guatemala, Australia, Austria, Singapore, England, Canada, and of course, my hometown, the Empire City herself. It was truly a melting pot of bodyweight strength practitioners!

Though calisthenics has existed since the days of the ancient Greeks, the modern street workout movement has its roots right here in NYC. Many of the world’s best-known calisthenics specialists hail from the Big Apple. It’s no wonder we had such a strong group of bar athletes in the house!

NYC PCC One Arm Chin Up
The city that never sleeps certainly hasn’t been sleeping on its calisthenics game. As always, new personal bests were happening left and right. From the muscle-up to the pistol squat to the human flag, attendees were constantly breaking new ground, unlocking new skills and refining existing ones.

NYC PCC Chamber Press
Besides becoming better practitioners, we also devoted a lot of our energy toward becoming better at training others. Everyone at the PCC gets to experience both ends of the personal training equation throughout the weekend.

NYC PCC Partner Cossack

It’s great to see more and more ladies taking to progressive calisthenics. This weekend’s event had the most female attendees of any PCC so far. It’s an honor to welcome 15 of the strongest ladies I’ve ever met into the PCC family!

NYC PCC Women

Time flies when you are having fun, and that would explain why the whole weekend seemed to go by in a New York minute. When the 3-day whirlwind was over, we were left with over 40 newly minted PCC instructors, a whole lot of wonderful memories and connections that will last a lifetime.

It’s been more than 2 years since the inception of the PCC, and the world’s #1 bodyweight certification continues to go strong. Next up is our long-anticipated debut in the United Kingdom and then it’s back to the US for our return to Alexandria, VA (there are still some spots left for both these events!).

A PCC certification is like a license to drive: it’s a big responsibility, but it can take you places!

2015 NYC PCC Group Photo

***

About Al Kavadlo: Al Kavadlo is the lead instructor for Dragon Door’s Progressive Calisthenics Certification. Recognized worldwide for his amazing bodyweight feats of strength as well as his unique coaching style, Al is the author of five books, including Raising The Bar: The Definitive Guide to Pull-up Bar Calisthenics and Pushing The Limits! Total Body Strength With No Equipment. Read more about Al on his website:www.AlKavadlo.com.

Filed Under: Workshop Experiences Tagged With: Al Kavadlo, calisthenics certification, calisthenics instructor training, NYC, NYC PCC, PCC women, progressive calisthenics, Progressive Calisthenics Certification Workshop, workshop experience

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