The snowball is turning into an avalanche...

Sara and Monica on the tire drags...

It keeps getting better and better....people of the PSKC are throwbacks to the strength and toughness of the steel mill and factory workers who built this town. In the last decade especially, southern Ohio has been infested with drug addicts, criminals, and pill mills. All these parasites have one thing in common...they are weak and afraid of pain. PSKC members accept and embrace the challenge each and every time they come in the warehouse. They know it's going to be hard; but that's why the come time and time again. It's their way of flipping the bird to weakness....and along the way they get into the best shape of their lives.

KB high pulls mixed with push presses. Start out with 20 a piece and ladder down to 4, not to mention the burpee/sprawls thrown in for good measure

Bear crawl sprint finisher..

Labor Day's Labor… SOCF putting in work Well over 20 people showed up to pay for the sins of the weekend. What is the only cure for bbq, beer, cake, chips, and cookies? Swings, burpees, slamball, sandbag carries, farmers carries, and running all done in a team format will typically do the trick. "Don't turn your back on the wolf pack.." Great work to all who showed up on a holiday to get their workout in. We even had four new folks show up to get their first taste of kettlebell training. It was great to have you guys and welcome to the family. "I am haunted by the idea of time passing by unused. The idea that I could look back on a period of my life and remember nothing significant about it terrifies me." – Craig Weller If you take a hard look at your life are you really dedicating the necessary time to those things that are truly important in life? Do you make time for God, family, friends, and health? Are you actively engaged in life, or are you content with letting your mind and body simultaneously rot, melting away into the couch all to consumed with learning about the details of Paris Hilton's recent drug arrest. Yesterday at the end of class we discussed the fact that each of us only has a certain amount days on this Earth. Please go to Barefoot Fitness http://barefootfts.com/blog/memento-mori and read Craig Weller's excellent post on Memento Mori. I have printed this sheet and fill in a block weekly, it's an excellent  visual aid to keep me focused on what is important. How you live your years is totally up to you. If your life is full on inactivity and stress, you might live a long life due to advances in medical technology; but how you spend those years is what counts. Are you destined towards a path of shopping  at Krogers in a scooter wearing an oxygen tank, spending the majority of your time and money in a healthcare facility? Or will be the example of health and strength for your family and friends to follow no matter what your age. You will always have a choice…when is it acceptable to choose the path that involves weakness?

Sunday homework...kettlebell swing

Here are some great instructional clips on the fundamental exercise of kettlebell training...THE SWING.


Jeff Martone is owner of Tactical Athlete, he is one of America's foremost experts on kettlebell training. He specializes in adapting kettlebell training for the military and federal law enforcement agencies. I was fortunate enough to have learned and obtain my kettlebell certification from him. He is truly a great instructor. Especially for my new folks, take some time to watch/listen to Jeff and learn from the best..

kicking off Labor Day Weekend...

Regularly scheduled class will be going down on Monday:
Kettlebell Intro at 6pm
Regular Class at 7pm

Beginning this Monday, we will offer intro sessions every Monday and Thursday at 6pm. Intro sessions are MANDATORY for people who are unfamiliar with kettlebell training. Cost of the intro is $20 which includes your first class, you don't owe the $20 until after you finished your first class.

Why?

 If you don't like training at the PSKC and never want to come back. Keep your money, plain and simple...you don't owe us anything. After your first class, simply tell one of the coaches "thanks but no thanks". You won't be judged. I'm not here to charge people something they won't use. My success is built upon your success. However, I'm confident in the fact that once you get a little taste, you will be back again, and again, and again. You will be a regular and you'll bring your friends along too. How do I know this?

The impossible starts becoming possible, you start to see results, you feel stronger, fitter, and just flat out better. It's a story repeated several times over. Just ask the people who have been doing this for a while...

Saturday's Pain Clinic Action:

Although most of the regulars were spending the day at the River Days Parade, we still had around 10 folks come in and get introduced to the concept of "partner suffering" aka BLUE FALCON workouts, specifically meaning the longer it took your partner to complete a task, the longer you remained under physical stress. The stations included sledgehammer strikes while your partner did shuttle sprints. The griptastic 15Xswings while your partner did a dead hang from the bar. 20Xsquats while your partner "rested" in the front leaning rest on rings, and finally bear crawls while your partner did farmers carry holds. No better way to start off a holiday weekend.

Big props to Tiffany and Tash....I love these girls' attitudes. What is it with all these West Siders wrecking shop at PSKC? I hate to say anything good about the West Side, but damn they do raise them tough out there.

SEE YOU GUYS ON MONDAY!!!

Friday's Victory Celebration...

Skid Row Sprints

How do you top off OSU's annihilation over Marshall (sorry Jay)? Come back with an awesome workout. Friday's training consisted of:
7 rounds of:
7X heavy kettlebell swings
7X handstand push ups
7 X pullups
Skid Row sprint

PSKC coach Monica- leading by example

This was a great work and got people familiarized with some movements they've never attempted before. Also, it got people to pick up a heavier bell and feel the associated effects.

props to Sara, she killed this workout

Looking in the mirror...

REMINDER: NO CLASS TONIGHT; WE WILL MEET BACK UP ON FRIDAY AT 5PM.


Another great crowd yesterday! We worked on the refining the kettlebell clean and press technique for the newer members, while the more advanced folks worked on finding how heavy a bell they could clean and press with solid technique. It’s an awesome thing to witness people nail a clean and press a weight they never thought they could lift, or hit their first box jump (way to go Jennifer!)

The clean is a tricky thing to learn especially if you’re new to it…so check out Uncle Mike from the Training Room give some excellent coaching points;


We are always striving to find that perfect balance between strength and conditioning. What good is it if you can deadlift 700 pounds but it takes you 20 minutes to run a mile? Or vice versa, you are a marathon runner, but don’t have the strength to carry your significant other out of a burning house/car/etc…

After the cleans and presses, we went into a sprint style workout of descending/ascending ladders of one arm kettlebell swings and box jumps;

10X 1 arm swings w/s
1X box jump
…
…
all the way down to;
1 X 1 arm swing w/s
10X box jumps

Times came in anywhere from 6-12 minutes, most left exhausted but a few left looking like there still might have been some gas in the tank. Sometimes during these shorter sprint workouts, a few of the advanced trainees leave wanting more compared to (for example) Tuesday’s 30 minute workout. Just because something is shorter in time does not make it easier;  IF MAXIMUM EFFORT IS APPLIED.

Look at it like this; if I told you to run one lap (400 meters) versus 4 laps (1 mile) around the track, there is going to be a significant difference in power output on the one lap versus a sustained effort on the mile run. The difference in that power output is directly related to intensity/effort level that is being produced.

Some of you are much more comfortable staying at the medium/moderate levels of intensity that you would apply on the mile run versus an extremely high level of intensity required (outside of your comfort zone) for an all out no holds barred 400 meter sprint (shorter distance).

I did the same workout earlier in that day in just over 6 minutes and I was spent/exhausted/wanted my mommy to tell me everything is going to be okay. 2-3 minutes later I was fine as I recovered. But I would not have felt that way if I only put forth a moderate level of effort and finished the same workout in say 8 minutes. I would have been cheating myself…

Only you know if you gave it all you had; you’re the one who has to look in the mirror that day and ask if you gave it your best on that day.

For some of you, this may be an unfamiliar concept, and that is perfectly fine. If you’re willing to learn, we can show the way…

Tuesday's Circuit Training and SOCF

Class schedule announcements:


Intro class tonight at 6pm, followed by class at 7pm.

No class on Thursday for the Buckeye opener.

Makeup class will be this Friday at 5pm. Plenty of time to get home and go watch your local high school team.

Another awesome day of training went down yesterday with a few more people being introduced to PSKC. Tuesday's training consisted of:

5 Rounds of 40 seconds work/20 seconds rest of:
Battling Ropes/Slamball
Wall Ball
Knees to Elbows/Windshield Wipers
Double KB Push Press
Odd Object Squat (pick something awkward off the ground and squat it)

Would like to throw a big shout out to the employees at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility (SOCF); you think you got a tough job? Try everyday to deal with Ohio's most dangerous inmates; not only do you have to be physically tough, but just think of the mental and emotional toughness you have to possess in order to deal with society's criminals each and every day.

The least we can do at PSKC to show our appreciation is to offer a discount to our law enforcement/military/and first responders; you know… the people who actually protect society from the wolves of the world.

As a sheepdog/warrior  of the public you have to be physically prepared for the worst case scenario; the better physically conditioned you are the more confidence you will have to conquer these worst case scenarios. However, it’s important to note that this philosophy not only applies to the first responders, it applies to the business man, school teacher, etc as well. It doesn't matter if you're a SWAT operator or a restaurant owner. You owe it to yourself to be in the best physical condition possible. Why?

Sometimes life is going to punch you in the face, then try to kick you while you’re down. You have to have the confidence and the mental toughness to know you can get through any situation (sickness, loved one passing away, job loss, divorce, etc). If you aren’t continually subjecting yourself to challenges, how do you know you have what it takes to overcome them? These workouts are tough, demanding, and challenging but fun at the same time. Some of you just starting out may think “There is no way in hell, I can do that.” But I promise you, you will get through them and some interesting things will happen along the way:
• greater self confidence
• greater strength and conditioning levels
• greater capacity for physical performance
• greater attitude in general

Don’t believe me? Ask some of the folks who have been training this way for a month or two and see what they say.