尋夢園

At first I was dead set against using gloves in class. "You should improve your technique" and all that was my usual answer. But I've slowly changed my mind on this. Couple of reasons.

This was my workout this morning. It's a kettlebell circuit from Kettlebell Athletics that was posted at IronGarm:

50L/50R snatches

First of all, if you weren't a man (or woman) before you trained with Steve Cotter, you surely will be afterwards. The International Kettlebell and Fitness Federation certification that I just went through in Malaysia was the hardest thing I've ever done -- both mentally and physically. I'm trying to think of something comparable and all I can come up with was going through US Army basic training. Even though that was two months of 4-hours-a-night sleep and 4-5 mile runs every day, it was also spaced out over two months. And I was 25 years old at the time. This cert felt like two months of basic training crammed into two days. That's how tough it was.

Talking about ecalating density training and what not might seem confusing. So what the heck am I trying to do lately?

Here's an IKFF clip showing the Chinese influence on the system. In CIMA terms, what's happening here is called han xiong ba bei -- rounding the back and sinking the chest. Notice that this isn't a permanent position that is to be held -- a bizarre belief still held in many areas of the CIMA world -- but a position to be moved into and out of as the technique requires.

This and the second part are the best interview I've seen yet with Steve Cotter. Highlights include Steve talking for the first five minutes or so about how his whole system comes from his background in Chinese internal martial arts. He explains how the IKFF teaches to balance the various aspects of fitness so that we are balanced in development and don't have the excesses seen in some areas of the fitness community.

Love Scott Sonnon's presentation here on the one arm clean and jerk. I did a long cycle with the 16kg KB this morning and loved it. The clean and jerk is more technical than many other lifts so give yourself time to get it right. I know I am.

I have a series of new kettlebell videos that I made to introduce complete beginners to the bell and how to use it. If you have any experience with the KB at all, you'd likely find the clips tedious to watch. Again, they're for beginners because that's what we have in Taiwan. Almost no one here knows how to use the KB so I'll have to spend lots of time introducing how to use it over the next few years and this is one way of doing it. Chinese translated versions will be coming soon.

The clips show basic techniques and finish off with a basic circuit that people can use to work out for 10-20 minutes.

Mike Mahler's tukish get up.

Kettlebells are just getting started here in Taiwan so while they're in their infancy, it might help to look at how kettlebell evolved in the US and how they will likely evolve here.