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Quick Kettlebell Workout

Rededicating myself to getting stronger!

Pressed for 30 mins yesterday - Felt good

Today was 3×5 thrusters and 15 total snatches all with the 32kg bell

MonaVie Tasting Events

BW-PT will be participating in two  MonaVie Tastings in August.  MonaVie is a powerful nutritional beverage built around the Acai Berry. One serving is equivalent to 13 servings of fruits/veggies. I’ve been using it myself.  It really is a great high antioxidant, whole fruit beverage; it beats swallowing vitamin pills and it tastes good!  I would like to invite all of my clients to attend this no-pressure, casual, fun & nutritious event. Feel free to bring a friend!! We will have games and prizes! Please come for the fun!
Best, Brian Wright
Please RSVP: bwpt_bwright@yahoo.com.

Sat, August 7 from 2:30-3:30pm
OR
Sat. August 14 from 2:30-3:30pm

Kettlebell Workshop for Trainers and Athletes

When: Saturday, August 28th, 9am-12pm
Where: DC Corporate Fitness Studio
Cost: $139 per person

Learn proper biomechanics of major movements.
Apply for CEU’s with NASM and NSCA.

• Learn proper biomechanics of major KB movements.
• Learn safe instructional breakdowns for KB swing, clean, press, snatch, and windmill.
• Learn movement training programs that work the entire body through explosive power, grind strength, balance, neural coordination, and forced flexibility.
• Apply for CEU’s under professional development in most certification guidelines (NASM and NSCA approved).

Kettlebell fitness has grown in popularity over the past 5 years, but there are few opportunities for proper instruction from major certifications. Many trainers and studios are offering classes but few offer explanation and teaching. The certifications or workshops that are offered are few and far between or are vary exclusive and expensive.

Take advantage of this opportunity to learn proper kettlebell instruction from an RKC certified instructor. Brian Wright is an American University Adjunct Instructor and has presented for IDEA, NASM, NSCA. Brian earned his MS in Exercise Science from George Mason University and holds current certifications from CSCS, RKC, NSCA-CPT.

Why Kettlebells? Kettlebells provide the best overall general fitness – functional training – balance, core development, grind strength, and explosiveness. KBs are great tools for all types of training including Olympic weight lifting, bodybuilding, and power lifting, sports performance, and promoting general health and fitness.

Quick workout after vacation – get back in!

After TRX and running (sprints and pace runs) on vacation, I felt I needed to do a bit of everything.

Dynamic warmup included arm bars, get ups, and mobility drills

3 sets of clean  and jerk with 24kg, 28kg, and 32kg bells

3 sets of front squat with BB 135lbs, 185lbs, 205lbs

3 sets of TRX pushups – increasing instability

3 sets of snatch grip deadlift with 70kg, 110kg, 120kg

All sets were of 5 reps

Benefits of Corporate Wellness Programs

A company’s most valuable resource is their employees, meaning taking care of employees is integral to a company’s overall success.  In addition to other common incentive programs, Corporate Wellness Programs can be a cornerstone in maintaining employee’s satisfaction within a company. 

Corporate Wellness Programs have a long documented history of keeping employees healthy and happy.  These programs work on both an individual and group level, increasing employee’s personal health level while promoting team cohesion. In turn, this encourages workplace morale and company loyalty. Healthier employees show higher energy and concentration levels that increase overall productivity.  In addition, they experience a decreased risk of workplace injuries as well as reduced absenteeism and sick leaves.

Healthier employees, in turn, boast a company’s overall performance and productivity.  In addition, Corporate Wellness Programs can decrease employee health care costs and overall company expenditures. Investing in a Corporate Wellness Program, therefore, is an investment in your company’s future. 

BW-PT provides Corporate Wellness Programs tailored to your specific companies’ and employees’ needs.  Contact BW-PT to set up a meeting to discuss the details.

For further information on the benefits of Corporate Wellness Programs, refer to the following studies:

• Worksite Health Programs: http://worksitehealthprograms.com/
• “The effects of workplace health promotion on absenteeism and employment costs in a large industrial population.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1404872/
• “A Benefit-to-Cost Analysis of a Work-Site Health Promotions Program” http://journals.lww.com/joem/Abstract/1992/12000/A_Benefit_to_Cost_Analysis_of_a_Work_Site_Health.8.aspx
• “A Comprehensive Worksite Wellness Program in Austin, Texas” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2687866/
• “The Health & Economic Implications of Worksite Wellness Programs.” http://www.healthylife.com/template.asp?pageID=75
• “Implementing a Self-Care Program” http://www.healthylife.com/template.asp?pageID=34
• “Prevention Makes Common ‘Cents’” http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/prevention/

Examples of companies that have seen success from Corporate Wellness Programs:
Xerox, Aetna, Johnson & Johnson, Steelcase, Union Pacific Railroad, Citibank, Motorola, Caterpillar, DuPont, Large Company, Florida Power & Light

Kettlebells – a GREAT option for fitness

The following cut out is from my presentation to the NSCA workshop to a group of trainers and coaches.

”

As modern fitness professionals, we are always open to optimizing performance potential with “new” ideas, twists on older methods, or different combinations of quality movements. Functional fitness and athletic movement training or has become more the norm in the general population over the past 5-10 years. Those quality movements that strength coaches have been using with athletes such as squats, presses, pulls, functional core development, plyometric and explosive training are making their way into the weekend warrior, soccer-mom, or Joe-fitness’s programs. The key is to find safe and effective progressions in proper loads and volumes.

We understand that strength training and interval training is not only more efficient for our average clients that want to improve their total health and wellbeing, but it works better in terms of raising their resting metabolism, improving their cardio function, and increasing their quality of life through attainable results.

Circuit training has been shown to improve cardiovascular function as well as, if not better, than traditional steady-state cardio exercise. The inclusion of strong fast contractions, as in the form of a plyometric (rapid lengthening and shortening of muscle), not only can help to improve strength thereby raising metabolism, but help to increase caloric expenditure during the exercise bout. That is to say, that the combination of resistance strength training and plyometric training can produce time efficient and very effective results in the areas of cardiovascular fitness training, strength training, and performance training.

Balance, coordination,  and synchronization are all important factors to consider as well in a total fitness program. In the past decade, the BOSU ball and other balance equipment pieces have become favorite components to most trainer’s and strength coach’s programs. Balance training not only forces deeper muscular contractions allowing for more total muscle synchronization and coordination, but it also trains proprioception and neural pathways. These elements are all important not only for the athlete, but for our clients (who aspire to perform athletic movements).

Typically a trainer or coach must train many of these components of fitness separately. Certainly, some of them are tied together, but a program might consist of load training with a back squat, plyometrics through box jumps, DB cleans for explosive power training, single leg RDL’s for balance training (maybe on a BOSU for extra challenge), a woodchopper with a superband or cable for neuromuscular training and functional core training. All these might be in a circuit to raise heart and breathe rate. These are just examples to illustrate that separate pieces of equipment often times are used to accomplish what a kettlebell can do by itself.

I am not saying a kettlebell is better than all these movements or pieces of equipment, I am simply saying that its unique capability provides a VERY efficient and effective way of accomplishing all the components of fitness and athletic movement training. Through the design alone, the awkward shape and displaced center of gravity, we will have to activate deeper muscular contractions to move it trough space, hold it under tension,  and control it’s swinging momentum all under large neuromuscular coordination. Learning the skill of basic kettlebell movement (which anyone can do because the movements are so rudimentary – but they still require practice and proper movement to avoid breakdown and therefore injury) will give your clients and athletes a unique opportunity to train in a way that DB presses, and BB cleans, box jumps, and other movements cannot.”

I’m not doing that, It Makes Me Feel Silly

OK, maybe you can run a 5K without getting winded or bench-press 300lbs while chatting up the hottie next to you. But, can you do 5 perfect balance tees on the bosu? If you wouldn’t be caught dead trying, maybe you should reconsider. What’s with the balance tee suggestion? Working on unstable surfaces is a great way to strengthen your core. Core training has been proven to help improve posture, reduce the risk of injury, and improve athletic performance.

When someone mentions core strengthening, most people think, “abs.” But, working your core is not simply about making your abs burn with crunches or even doing planks (for what feels like hours). Core training is about total conditioning for all the muscles that attach to you pelvis. As the heaviest bone in the body, the pelvis is the center of all movement. Working the muscles that attach to the pelvis is the equivalent of working all muscles encasing your torsos from shoulder to thigh. The stronger these muscles are, the better you will be able to perform all movements. Also, exercises that strengthen core muscles involve stretching and balance routines that enhance flexibility. The stronger your core muscles are, the more likely you are to avoid muscular-skeletal pain and injury, particularly of the neck, back and hips.

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Balance to find fat loss – 5 keys

It is a common misconception that more effort produces greater results. The old adage work smarter not harder is a great way of summing up how body fat reduction is achieved. Let’s look at the facts: sure – it is a simple equation – calories in versus calories out, BUT what happens if that dips too low?! Your body starts to convert muscle into it’s energy source, which lowers your metabolism and stores more bodyfat! This is exactly what we do not want to happen.

The goal is lose bodyfat and save muscle. That’s what “cut or toned or ripped” means – reduce subcutanious fat so that the skin lies closer to the muscle showing off it’s natural contours! Six Pack, Baby!

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The Journey

I was at a business networking meeting yesterday and the closing quote really hit home with me and the fitness movement.
“The reward is the journey”

Nothing could be more true when talking about fitness. Certainly goals are necessary and fun to work for, but the real benefit to exercise is getting there. It’s the time to get back to you, to find a connection to your own body and concentrate on the goings-on that happen outside the stresses of life. Take a moment to feel increased heart rate and breath rate. Think of all the healthy blood flow and how good that is for not just your heart, but your entire body. Concentrate on the movements you ask your body to do. Especially the complicated ones – coordinate and synchronize a good quality kettlebell swing and think of all the neuromusclular connections that happen.

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Rededication

I just came back from the National Personal Trainer Conference through IDEA – www.ideafit.com.
I am inspired! I am rededicated to personal training on a deeper level. My action items to look for?
- A better more organized website
- A more regular and informative client newsletter
- A rededication to client accountatbility and therefore greater success through more regular assessments
- A more personal touch in reaching out to individuals to help solve problems, not just ackowledge them

To learn more, please get on the mailing list. Email me at bwpt_bwright@yahoo.com