Keeping our heritage of natural animalistic instincts and movements in mind, let me introduce you to something that has hit the calisthenic (body weight training) world by storm over the last few years.

Enter ‘Animal Flow’.  If you have heard of animal flow, you have heard of Mike Fitch, this beautiful specimen is the non traditionalist trainer that with a passion for body weight training has developed what we know as animal flow and taken over the globe with his unique methodologies and result driven approach.

I have written many articles on the awesomeness that is calisthenics, I practice bar tending, I coach in body weight techniques and I sleep, dreaming of physiques like Fitch.  There are multiple body weight disciplines and each contender needs to find their niche.  I have a thing for Mikes niche it seems.

Animal flow in a nutshell, is taking the disciplines of calisthenics and combining them with fluid and efficient movements, much like the movements of an animal.  These 2 methodologies hand in hand increases mobility, flexibility, endurance, stability, builds raw power and assists greatly in neuromascular development.

Personally I see animal flow as more of a discipline than a workout that requires practice, as any skill would.

To save you from the split second it takes on google, check out Mikes site http://www.globalbodyweighttraining.com/

I have seen the gains, I have seen the improved efficiency and I have seen the changes in my clients and in my body personally from body weight training.  Some hit the pec dec, some hit the treadmill, I combine calisthenics, hill sprints, kettlebells and lifting heavy shit to get me mastering my body.  I strongly believe with a combination like that there is only one way, and that’s up.

Here’s a list of things that I do not go a day without:

  

Chin Ups/Pull Ups:  I cannot express how vital this exercise is to your physical diet.  They build wings that will literally make you fly and in turn assist you in all your heavy lifts.

Handstand Push ups: Pressing your entire body weight is tough, I do not need to explain that.  This move builds shoulders like nothing else will and improves your overall athleticism.

Pistol Squats: The one legged squat is a serious feat of strength, it builds every muscle in the lower body whilst building co-ordination, balance and raw strength

Bridges: Purely for the health of your spine, we spend hours bent over our computers, reverse that call, for your body, for your health – everyday.

Push ups: This exercise is too often forgotten, its loathed in every variation it comes in but it builds your back, your shoulders, your arms, your core, your strength endurance, and it builds serious mental fortitude in high numbers.

Its your body, its your vehicle, master it.

Those of you who know me, know that I have a fair ‘thing’ for the back.  I am not the average abs and pecs kind of girl, a man with a perfect v-taper is a man with a mission.

Another thing that is common knowledge is my slight obsession with the pull up, so a man with a master pull up is a man with a master v-taper.  Yum.

Not only is the pull up hardcore to perform but smashing out rep after rep is an honest feat of strength.  The pull up primarily targets the ‘latissimus dorsi’ which without a doubt is a power muscle of note.  This muscle hand in hand with the pull up is an obvious favourite of mine and gets little attention when much attention is due.

I am not going to go into full anatomical detail and explain its origin at the spinous processes of thoracic T7-L5 and send the meathead into overdrive, but what I am going to do is bring to light the awesomeness of this humble bundle of fibrous tissue and give it the credit that it is due.

Strong lats keep your hips, back and shoulders healthy, they effect the way you breath, the way you perform, adds to your endurance, to your speed, it has so many functions, you only need to learn how to use them.

The obvious exercise for strengthening your lats are your chins and your pull ups and what most people don’t realize is that the lats are the powerful stabilizers of your spine and are hugely responsible for the ability to lift big.  The squat and the deadlift demand from this area like a nympho at an orgy.

The lats play a huge role in your important lifts, the benchpress, squats, deadlifts etc.  We are so busy staring at our reflections while we curl those dumbells for the umpteenth time, working on our massive biceps and smashing crunch after crunch after crunch aimlessly trying to develop a six pack and are forgetting about those muscles that make real men and real women.

Strong lats play an important role in your body, they dont just work for pull ups , they dont just hang around back there, they are one of the most influential muscles in your body and strengthening this muscle and learning how to activate it will enhance your every move, in lifting and in life.

Not only does a mean lat look gorgeous, not only does a lat of steel allow you to lift heavier than your opponent but its the muscle that surgeons turn to for cardiac support.  For the failing heart the lats are wrapped around the heart and by electostimulation this procedure improves the cardiac output.  That’s a pretty hardcore job for a humble muscle.

I think its time we raise our protein shakes, and acknowledge the greatness of the fair lat.

Whether you’re an athlete, weekend warrior, samurai or built like a Greek shit house, there are some things that you cant go without.  Conditioning.  Its these things that will break down the weak, break down the professional sportsman and break down the all star.

Strength to conditioning is like orgasms to sex.  You cant have one without the other, or you can, but the results are never good.

I love this side of training as much as a seven year old loves spinach. When my coaches put me on the prowler, I don’t just suffer from prowler flu, I endure full blown bird flu, I fall off the wagon straight into radical pneumonia.

However at the same time its that physical stimulation of pushing yourself beyond your last session that freaks like me thrive on.  Now when we talk building lung capacity, building endurance, putting the body under stress, increasing your speed and cardiovascular fitness, we talk conditioning.

Your strength is useless if you run out of gas.  If you are training you must be conditioning.

If you want to be faster, stronger, more efficient and look hot in spandex,  for ultimate conditioning you want to push prowlers, pull sleds, battle ropes, smash the skipping rope, tackle those hill sprints and fight the building stairs.

Why?  Because these are the shores upon which the weak are broken

The prowler is probably thee most effective training tool, I am no expert but I have spent the last 6 months on the prowl.  I have learnt that this simple piece of equipment builds your lungs, your hips and your legs and leaves you wanting to throw up a body part.  There is little room for wear and tear on the knees, shins and ankles and the gains I have experienced surrounding my level of conditioning are irremovable, whether you are a beginner, an athlete or a world class sportsman the prowler should fall in as part of your workout.

Walk into any garage style facility and you are going to find some powerhouse out of breath, red in the face and grunting like a troll.  Its not about looking fabulous its about getting results.  Battling ropes build muscular endurance, increase lung capacity, works your grip and is an invaluable tool for speed and endurance.

When does your body start adapting to the stress? Never ever.

Hill sprints and stair sprints are probably the most lethal in my books, making your strong, fast and lean while building your mental strength.  Another great exercise that only requires the outdoors, that target your legs and your lungs while attacking your mind.  As South Africans we have no excuse to be indoors staring into the screen on the treadmill, adjusting to an incline while your personal trainer barks “pick up the pace” from the side lines, this gets you results like McDonald’s salad gets you nutrition.
These tools and this knowledge are not going to just make you hard, but make you hard to beat.

You have to make time for conditioning or make time for failing

It seems that in this country the word ‘kettlebell’ is as fashionable and as common as crocs in Brakpan.

All the globo gyms are handing out coaching certifications like its a Friday night at the soup kitchen.  Hell, a lot of trainers are just attending a couple kettlebell classes and claiming mastery.  Its a revolution!!!

Then there’s those trainers who invest their time and their money into spending weekends with some of the worlds greats.  Learning, performing and enduring the mental and physical stresses of  legitimate, world class certifications. Not just in kettlebell fitness but are also fortunate enough to be moulded into athletes of ‘girevoy sport’ by these masters.

Something that cannot be given to you for ‘mahala’ by some Mickey mouse claiming to be a guru.

We pay the price, we learn the skill.  We become athletes in our own right.

Girevoy sport was popular amongst the old school strongmen both in Russia and the western circles.  GS has been around since the late 40′s and is internationally recognized, in fact it will make its first appearance at the Olympics in 2016.

GS is the pinnacle of kettlebell training, athletes who compete are lifting significant loads for extended periods of time.  A competitor weighing in at 65kg can be lifting 2 x 32kg kettlebells for 10 minutes straight.  Training in this sport builds a blend of power and endurance.

I have met many people who have laughed at the kettlebell lifters, many people who have claimed to have the strength of an animal.  Give us 10 minutes of your time and you may want to rethink your abilities and your statements, these tools will humble just about anyone.

The average sportsmen, gym junkie, soccer mom or weight lifter who trains in GS develops this incredible raw strength as well as focus, patience and discipline.  When you completing a 10 minute biathlon or 10 minute long cycle you have to have monumental strength endurance, 10 minutes weighted is massive volume.  Not only is this a colossal test of power but you need an exceptionally high pain threshold.

At very high levels of GS you see athletes performing amazing feats of strength, Valery Fedorenko of the WKC and world champion kettlebell lifter completed 50 reps of the ‘jerk’ with a 60kg kettlebell.  That is strength.

You have to become comfortable with discomfort.

An athlete who develops the sort of durability obtained from training in GS is going to be harder, stronger, faster and more energy efficient than the average gym goer.  This is the guy you want on your team, this is the guy you want fighting for your win.

We do not just lift kettlebells, we do not just follow hard style training techniques as many coaches have pointed out, we train for volume, power and strength endurance.

This is what sets us apart.

Myself at Synergy in Motion and the team at Flux Motion are not offering the latest buzz, we are offering an opportunity to rise above the mainstream.
We combine the elements of kettlebell training into techniques that enable us to sustain our energy levels for long periods of time.  Skills needed for sport and for life.

We don’t just lift kettlebells, we lift boundaries.

Let me get one thing straight, I am not a muscle junkie.  I am not obsessed, I am determined.

This may confuse people, in fact I know it confuses people.  I was recently accused of being self-obsessed with my physique.  Yes, I am concerned about my figure.  If you meet a women who tells you otherwise, shes lying. Simple.

I spend a good portion of my day in the gym.  I train hard, I eat clean.

I do not spend my weekend smashing bottles of wine, and sitting around fires feeding off fatty pieces of meat.  I choose to be fit, I choose to be healthy and I choose to be strong.  I don’t go out of my way to tell people I follow a strict routine, I do not bop my head to “Girl look at that body, I work out”… one look at my body and you’ll know that I don’t sit on my ass, eating donuts and moaning about where I could be physically.

In no way am I saying that I have reached the pinnacles of physical perfection, but I am saying that I work my ass off to get where I’m going.  Nobody cares about where you want to be, if you not willing to commit to getting there.

I hate to disappoint but the concern surrounding my will to work hard on my body, is not for narcissism, arrogance, pretension or self-worship.  Its for longevity, its for the ability to combat sickness, to recover quicker, to self protect, for efficiency and most importantly,  as a women, a sister and a daughter it is for when my children come, to be strong and able to run with them, climb with them and simply be with them for a very long time to come.

I am not here to make you feel bad, or lecture you about your unhealthy diet or current levels of fitness.  I am here to stand up for what I do,  for what we fitness ‘chics’ do. I don’t do it for the vanity, I do it because its the one thing I have control over.  Its the one thing that I own.

You can take away everything, my property, my cars, my investments and my finance but I’ll always have my body.

My body is a vehicle to transport my brain and my brain deserves a ride that offers extraordinary performance.

My profile describes me as a local modern girl with old school philosophies.  I train hard and I train mean, and I strive to follow in the footsteps of those that gained real results from real methods for real reasons.  The Romans, the Greeks, the Soviets trained for optimal performance, not for show.  I believe in these methods because I train for ‘go’ and not for ‘show’, all though the ‘show’ comes nicely along with it.

 
Lets focus on the old school philosophies.  The word that has gotten my attention the most of late is ‘functional’, this term is being thrown around like a loose woman’s name at a frat party.  This buzzword is being described as something that is ‘new’, a ‘novelty’ and the fitness giants have latched onto it like sharks to an open wound.

Over the last few years there has been a huge transition in the fitness industry towards functional training, and facilities are branding this dynamic form of training as something new, advanced and cutting edge.  The only thing that is remotely new about this form of training is the tools that are being implemented into the training and being sold and misinterpreted entirely.  The bosu ball, the balance dome, the TRX, the bloody pvc piping and other bits of balloon that are being fed to the public as forms of functionality.

Functional training is and was where it all began, before the scientifically engineered machines came onto the scene, before our gyms were littered with false plastic gimmicks.  Functional training mimics every day activities, training the body for practicality.  At no point during your day, if you are classified normal, and not a circus act will you be balancing on one hand hanging from a cable from the ceiling while shifting heavy foam pipes with your eyes closed.  That is not practical, that is stupid.

Training is not meant to be entertaining and fun, we do not paint faces and bounce around like the Easter bunny.  Training is only fun if you, like me, enjoy feeling the gradual onslaught of pain surging through your muscles, if you entertain the feeling of numbness through your entire body and enjoy the sensation of energy.  Yes to us, that is why training is fun.

Your training is your time of day you dedicate to improving your bodies performance, improving its function, strengthening its every element.  Doing this requires dedication to the boring, as my coaches always say to me, boring works.

Training like they trained back in the day, the old school way.  For unbelievable strength in the glutes, hamstrings, and back – you deadlift and you squat.  For core strength and upper body power you tackle the bars, your lift kettlebells, you drop and consistently tackle the push up, you flip tires, you do it again, and again and again.  For conditioning you push sleds, pull sleds, battle ropes, lift kettlebells and you do it again, and again and again.

These methods work, kettlebells, pull up bars, dipping bars, bar bells etc are what were used back in the day before the commercialized fad of gyming hit the world, these methods were tried and tested by soldiers in battle.  These methods work, and have always worked, they are not new, they are not advanced and they are not a fad.  They are effective.

Today’s functional is dysfunctional.

So its January, and some of us are sitting with that ghost of  the Christmas pudding hanging a little too comfortably around our waists.  No doubt the majority of the population had their fare share of candy canes, mince pies and one or two glasses too many of the fortified wine.

Now three weeks later, we back at the grindstone and sitting uncomfortably behind our stomachs. With more than half of you having set a new years resolution that included the words exercise, fitness or health. My advice to you is to get up and grab everyday by the bells

Kettlebells are not just strength tools but tools that melt fat off the body.  With correct coaching, within a matter of weeks you will be flushing Boney M’s last Christmas track down the toilet.  When training with kettlebells for fat loss it is essential that you lift heavy and explosively (with progression of course).

When lifting heavy and lifting explosively your body makes use of the strongest of the muscle fibres. Lifting heavy requires more energy, the higher the energy output, the more energy is required, resulting in a higher rate of calories burnt.

The majority of kettlebell movements are performed balistically and these movements such as the swing, clean, snatch and jerk all demand a high energy output.  High energy output again equals high calorie consumption.

Spending 40 minutes of your hour long gym session staring into the abyss while running on a treadmill is just not going to give you the kind of results a kettlebell workout will.  No doubt the treadmill will burn calories, but once you step off, the calorie burn stops.  Kettlebell training combines strength and cardio into its movements, so once that bell touches the floor and you walk away, you are still going to burn calories and this is due to the post exercise oxygen consumption being so high.

The natural movements performed, engage all your muscles, whereby your muscles work together in synergy, the more muscles working as an integrated unit the higher the consumption of oxygen and energy.  With the movements involved in kettlebell training, often your body is in an unbalanced or dynamic state, for example when snatching, there is more weight being distributed to the one side of your body than the other, and this state triggers a plyometric response from your body which results in a higher caloric burn.

There is just no waisting of energy when it comes to these awesome bells, you have to use a lot of energy to lift them, so with every lift, every swing and every movement you are generating a burn.

Make the change today, find yourself a certified coach and get fitter, get faster, get stronger and get leaner.

The only time it is ever too late to change yourself is when you’re dead. Until then, you are simply making excuses.  Write that down

I am one of those people who loses my breath when I get over excited.  As a sports fanatic, whether it be football, athletics, or curling, watching the final moments of a battle can be a life or death situation.  Ussain Bolt’s 100m world record left me hyperventilating.  Jason Lezak’s historic split literally had me blue in the face.

To put you on my page, you need to go back to the Beijing Olympics of ’08 – men’s 4 x 100m freestyle relay.

Possibly thee most exciting chlorinated race of all time, in my opinion anyway!

Jason Lezak, an American Olympic swimmer, all though a well regarded figure amongst the HTH henchmen, this single feat propelled him right into the sporting hall of fame. Lezak is no doubt an elite swimmer, who has no personal coach and in ’08 he was the oldest man on the US swim team.

He rose from behind in the final 25m of the 400m freestyle relay event, being led by world record holders France, who were convinced and had already claimed bragging rights to the Gold medal prior to the start of the race.  Lezak tailed Alain Bernard by a full bodies length advantage, yet split a 46 flat in the final moments, making it the fastest 100m freestyle split in the history of the sport.

I’ve attached this clip so you can really understand the sheer exuberance of the race:
Jason Lezak

I have watched this video over and over, I have downloaded several versions of the race to allow me to dissect every stroke.  Lezak smashing a historic split in the time that he did is phenomenal, it is almost as if someone hooked him and dragged him like a tuna on steroids through the final meters of the pool.

Getting behind the physical swim I saw that Lezak gets into the water at 2.38, to a first time viewer his stroke looks pretty similar to his french opponent.  His first turn is at 21.50 next to Bernard’s 21.27, he is trailing behind like a dead fish, yet in the final 25m he runs down Bernard like he has been fuel injected.

Analyzing Lezak, I learnt that he is a full inch shorter than Bernard. His swim form displays a change in the last 50m, his left arm delays longer than the right which causes an interference with his breathing, therefore he is taking in less oxygen, which just poses more questions.

The lack of oxygen  effects the maximising on the purchase of the water and looking at Bernard, his efficient strokes vent smaller bursts and Lezak is literally launching his torso further out the water, requiring more energy, so physically how did he propel forward at such a pace?

I just cant get my head around it, the change of form, the interfered breathing, the energy required to plummet his body further out of the water, yet he rockets a full 9 inches forward in a matter of seconds to win the race!

I can only put it down to chemical synthesis.  Epinephrine or adrenaline as we know it, caused this incredible feat.  When the body surges adrenaline there is an increase of energy sent to the muscles, which boosts their ability to react.  Adrenaline finds its way to the heart which immediately boosts its rate and strength which increases the respiratory exchange.  More oxygen equals better performance.

Lezak is the human equivalent of a formula 1 car with fuel injection.  The science behind this victory is mind boggling.

Simply amazing feat of strength and power!

I used to be absolutely shocking at kettlebell snatches, a few months ago I’d hang from a bar like a dead fish, and doing one rep of a deadlift (correctly) was something I always struggled with.  Training for hours every week made me physically strong and fit, no doubt, but I just wasn’t performing as optimally as I knew I could.

Doing high repetition drills were nightmarish, I felt like I had the physical strength, but my hands just couldn’t keep up with the pace. The same goes for my pull up power, I could pull off one rep of a chin up, on a narrow bar while kipping, but the chance of me completing a strict wide hand pull up on a 2″ bar was as believable as Bill Clinton’s statements surrounding Monica Lewinsky.

It just made me realize that there really is no such thing as a person with weak hands and a strong body, it just does not work that way.

The sad reality of the situation is that very few people actually work on this area of strength, and we can only put that down to ignorance.  If you are going to attack the gym day after day with no guidance from a professional, its an area you are going to think very little about.  Improving your grip strength has a positive correlation on your over all strength.

Try flipping a tire or grabbing a sandbag and actually pressing it, running with it, rowing it, or throwing it.  If you cant hold the damn thing, how are you going to move it? Weak hands are going to effect your potential in so many areas.  Weak hands, wrists and fingers are only going to limit your potential.

Improving this strength is not only for enhancing your lifting potential but is essential for combat athletes too.  Weak hands are disastrous for performance in battle, your hands are what generates and transfers your strength throughout your body.  Weak hands produce very little force and strong hands do damage.  Weak hands equal weak fighters.

A strong grip improves your dexterity, enables you to lift heavier, builds endurance in your hands and builds injury resilience.  Then again its also not what you do, but how you do it.  There are so many gadgets on the market today for improving your grip strength, but if you don’t want to get your ass handed to you its going to take a lot more than some mechanism to enable you to bend horse shoes.

When using kettlebells probably one of the best things you could do is juggling, and anything that involves bottoms up moves and pinch gripping, otherwise incorporate bar hangs, rope work, rope pull ups, wrist rolling (I was recently introduced to this, and it has already done wonders for me) otherwise if you with a trained professional work on levering and plate pinching.

I still have much to learn about grip strength, but with the little work I have done improving this area I can already feel the vast difference and have already broken more personal records having incorporated it into my training.

So come to grips with your weaknesses and get a grip on your strengths.