Sunday, October 30, 2011
We need to move - better! UK workshop, Nov 19.
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How are you feeling? Interested in feeling better? improving the performance in your sport or chosen activity - right now - which may mean reducing pain to move better?
As i've written about many many times, an important part of improving performance/reducing pain, is dialing in great movement - which may also mean,
Workshop: Own Our Movement
- One Joint at a Time Nov 19
If you're interested in learning more, please check the info on this UK only, places limited workshop, to own our movement, and perform better. It's at November 19, at Bodyology in Bracknel (outside London, not too far from the queen's windsor palace).
Again, places are limited; all the info overviewing the workshop and how to sign up is here. Look forward to meeting you on the 19th.
UPDATE: Discounts
Related Links
As i've written about many many times, an important part of improving performance/reducing pain, is dialing in great movement - which may also mean,
- improving balance,
- engaging vision, and
- enhancing movement function.
Workshop: Own Our Movement
- One Joint at a Time Nov 19
If you're interested in learning more, please check the info on this UK only, places limited workshop, to own our movement, and perform better. It's at November 19, at Bodyology in Bracknel (outside London, not too far from the queen's windsor palace).Again, places are limited; all the info overviewing the workshop and how to sign up is here. Look forward to meeting you on the 19th.
UPDATE: Discounts
- early registration discount of 15% by saturday, Nov 5 noon UK time
- a 10% discount by Nov 12, noon
- and a special 20% discount till Nov 12, noon for first responders, front line care workers and full time students.
Related Links
- The other side of the weight room
- fatigue testing
- training for the sprain
- r-phase - not your daddy's joint mobility
PDF
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Strength Matters II: a wee chat with Dan John about women's strength in general and the iron maiden in particular
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In Part 1 of this discussion with Dan John, we talked about patterns in building up strength. We focused on Dan's upcoming book Intervention (overview of differences with companion DVDs here). The motivation for the initial discussion was to get better insight into Dan's approach for thinking strength training program picking for women in particular. In Part II we get into two applications of the DJ approach to XX training: what's a measure of a strong gal, training a deadlift via kettlebells and preparing for the Iron Maiden Challenge. We close out with a few Dan spotting notes.
Intervention Interview Part the Second
Dan, before we get into the main topic of this part of the interview, let's set a bit of context. Last year - about just a year ago now in fact - you and Pavel did an RKC workshop together called Easy Strength (14 DVDs of it just came out, too with the book to follow).
The RKC is the Source for what's become known as the Hardstyle approach to kettlebells. It's interesting to see a senior coach get involved with and start writing so much about the value of this single implement and approach. What's the attraction?
Thanks for filling that in. So it is of kettlebells i wish to speak in this part of our discussion, and in particular women's strength development with kettlebells. Last time we closed with you saying
Initially i wanted to ask you about any rules of thumb you may have for gals re-interpreting any of your t-nation posts for various programs - esp thinking about appropriate loads which is where i usually get stymied. It's not obvious how to translate a 315lb deadlift given as a warm up into what's reasonable for a gal, you know?
I’m Canadian, Dan. We don't complain; just apologize. We simply ask how to do the best we can with what we’ve got, especially relative to our more affluent cousins to the south. It’s an attitude that helps us get by, by say, oh I dunno, winning gold in men’s and womens’ hockey at the last winter Olympics against our more affluent cousins to the North. Sorry. See? all apologies...Anyway:
Could we do a worked example of this one as well? Given the unknowns, then, of gals strength progressions, and some of us wanting to do the Iron Maiden (an RKC strength challenge for women to pistol, pull up and press a 24kg bell), how would you tune your five moves/four steps or anything else for that matter to support that goal?
Um. Yes. I’ve made this point before: Asha Wagner did the Iron Maiden by working only with 12s and 16s. Talk about making use of what you have. That’s a lot of volume work with, as Asha has said, tension, focus on form, greasing the groove…
Just before we say goodbye, what’s the plan for the book’s release?
You've moved through a variety of sports: from your throwing work to the highland games to lifting heavy stuff. Each of these seems to require a skill set and focus. Have any of these practices with competitions overlapped, or have you focused on competing for one at a time?
Intervention the DVDs are out and available now; Intervention the book on kindle, is expected in November. Kindle readers are available for PC's and mobile devices - and kindles, too. Easy Strength the Book is anticipated to be out and available before the december holidays.
Coming UP: Stong Women talking about Strength featuring: a chat with Fawn Friday (who does triples with the 24 in pistols), and Fawn's thoughts on training for the IM. Also, an in depth interview Valerie Hedlund most recent RKC to succeed with the Iron Maiden Challenge.
Related Posts
the Special Greetings of This Strength People
Intervention Interview Part the Second
Dan, before we get into the main topic of this part of the interview, let's set a bit of context. Last year - about just a year ago now in fact - you and Pavel did an RKC workshop together called Easy Strength (14 DVDs of it just came out, too with the book to follow).
The RKC is the Source for what's become known as the Hardstyle approach to kettlebells. It's interesting to see a senior coach get involved with and start writing so much about the value of this single implement and approach. What's the attraction?
First, of course, it was Pavel. I have known about him for a long time. I’m thinking out loud here: Jason Keen went to a twenty dollar workshop in Minnesota and wrote about it online. This is probably 1998. The guy, Pavel, interested me. We finally met in about 2003 when Charles Staley needed to fill a hole in his summit and asked me to come down. I was just “some guy.”
Pavel, Brett, Dan, RKC2, Feb2010
I think Pavel and I hit it off immediately. We both appreciate simplicity but are willing to dive into the depths to get there! Once I could fit an RKC into my schedule, I was lucky to have Brett Jones [b2d interview with Brett here -mc] as my Team Leader. He was put in a tough position in hindsight. I had no idea, and this is not some false modesty, that my name carried any weight or fame. So, Brett had concerns about his abilities. By God, he was amazing! So, it gave me a clue that this community was filled with people who knew lots and lots, yet were always humbled to learn more. Moreover, there is a mad thirst for “More!”
Easy Strength: 3 days, 14dvds. Easy
That’s why. And, the 10,000 other reasons…Women's Strength is?
Thanks for filling that in. So it is of kettlebells i wish to speak in this part of our discussion, and in particular women's strength development with kettlebells. Last time we closed with you saying
Maybe someday I will take the time to chart out age, gender, background, injuries and goals, but the idea of mastery is simply this: get the movement right without pain. Load and reps will be decided but what you need to do from there and, yes, I know that isn’t what people want as an answer!Thank you for raising gender. You are the one coach I know who describes himself as carrying more feminine hygiene products than his female athletes (see previous interview with Dan), so let's see if we can get a bit more particular about programs and women's strength.
Initially i wanted to ask you about any rules of thumb you may have for gals re-interpreting any of your t-nation posts for various programs - esp thinking about appropriate loads which is where i usually get stymied. It's not obvious how to translate a 315lb deadlift given as a warm up into what's reasonable for a gal, you know?
For women, we still are gathering information on things. It seems to me that women who meet their fitness, sport and physique goals “have strength.” Beyond that…and this is going to include height, weight, bodyfat and all the rest…I need more information! A 200 pound woman and a 150 pound woman seem to do “better” in sport after they deadlift 275 (125k). With guys, we would slap up a bunch of charts and tell the 200 pounder that they are “weaker.” But, hmmmm? Maybe we let the men get too good, too strong. I had great information about throwers from the 1950s and early 1960s and their numbers would be weak for a high school kid. Yet, their throws would still be world class. When “lifting is the answer” became, well, the answer, did we get ourselves so strong that other “qualities” got lost.
fawn friday, rkc: easy peasy 315 dl. we all do this - over coffee and gnosh
With women, we may be in those early glory days where ANY improvement in strength improves performance (and fitness and physique). The next generation of girls might have tremendous weightroom numbers, but, and I hope not really, lousy bodyfat and performance numbers.More? OK. more. Was ever thus, eh? Women = 2x work of men etc. Could we drill down on say the deadlift idea. Are there ways around this for gals who have kettlebells. That’s it. Bells. How would you get to 125?
So, I think the answer with women is great: lift weights! Now, I know the next question: how much? The answer would be, and this is scientific: more.
Well, if “just” kettlebells, the barbell becomes an interesting test. As you know, many people use the Vertical Jump or whatever to test a program. What an interesting idea it would be to have a less than optimally trained person do a heavy deadlift, then learn, master and advance with kettlebells. Then, retest. Now, obviously this can NOT be Max max max deadlifts…a heavy training lift at best. But, for my purposes, I have found that when a “sorta max” goes up (one’s daily or weekly heaviest lift without peaking or any kind of firing up) increases, performance zooms up in all other areas.
So, in a sense: here are your damn tools! Quit complaining about what you don’t have and focus on what you do have! It sounds cruel, but all too often, people will find everything they lack to hold them back. What holds one back is the lack of imagination to overcome any obstacle
Many people ignore the clarity of what Pavel said about higher rep DLs in "Return of the KB" and other sources. I found it to be absolutely true...and a major reason why the book "Easy Strength" has so much dedicated to my journey in coaching heavy DLs without doing heavy DLs. Three sets of double KB DLs for twenty will awaken the deadlift beast within you. And, I don't know why it works, but it does. And, that is the only thing I focus on. I know this: if you think you can explain something about the human body, more than likely, you are wrong. You have to trust experience more than explanations. It is the lesson of coaching that life has pounded into my head. That's why Barry Ross is a better sprint coach than me: he had the courage to throw out everything save what works. Then, the research backed him up!
It's like how I coach the discus without a discus. I'm always told I am wrong, but my athletes always win.I sense a theme. Picky detail: what load for those three by twenties?
So, get those reps in.
20-40% seems to be the right amount...with the high twenties being most sustainable.One other point in your discussion of what you credit as “the other 51% of the population” (really it's quite amazing and lovely to have a coach - especially on t-nation - mention women and women's strength) – you do attach some values to women hitting strength-ness. We have the 125k deadlift. You also quote Josh Hillis about a gal who can do 3 pull ups and three dips and triples a 125 DL also will (a) not only be strong but (b) has her bodyweight locked down if I have that aright?
It goes back to this odd thing about women: ANY strength training seems to get them to their goals. So, Josh has his set of standards and I have been seeking my own, but the answer is going to be something along the line that women who lift weights seem to get their body composition goals. Not a great answer, no, but it is right. That is the million dollar answer, by the way, that is where the money is…Iron Maiden Example
Could we do a worked example of this one as well? Given the unknowns, then, of gals strength progressions, and some of us wanting to do the Iron Maiden (an RKC strength challenge for women to pistol, pull up and press a 24kg bell), how would you tune your five moves/four steps or anything else for that matter to support that goal?
To nail the Iron Maiden, the woman seems to need a big deadlift.Hmm.
The four Steps would be grand as a big general conditioning aspect, but the three challenges (Pistol, Pull Up, Press) really seem to be strength moves with a technical aspect. In my language, that’s QIII or QIV [i.e. quadrant four: increasing specialization and “rare air” – more in easy strength and in intervention dvd –mc] . The issue for those quadrants is this: do you have the courage to do what you say you will do? Can a woman focus on the single goal of the Maiden for six plus months? That’s the challenge for anyone…any gender.
 |
| Asha Wagner, IM tamer, Pressing Out. |
Women who want to prepare for the Iron Maiden seem to come in strong. Now, obviously, right? Andrew Read believes that the deadlift is really the best prep for the Pistol and I would go on to add here that women who seems to get that deadlift "around" 300 while maintaining some reasonable (for them!) bodyweight don't struggle with Pull Ups. Absolute Strength is and remains the single most important quality for building upon any goal.
What? When it doubt: Get stronger.
And lives not only in my heart but my shoulders. Fellow readers, that two part discussion and program guide begins hereIM Pistol Many women in the community can do Pistols literally by tapping into
their background. Our martial artists, gymnasts and former cheerleaders seem to understand the tension issues needed to do the movement. Of course, it helps if you are not completely jacked up with blown hips or knees. The one thing that I would offer, and this is just an observation, is that ankle stability for some women is an issue, yes. Bad ACLs and too much of this and that give the ankle a few issues. But, that leads us to the Pistol issue, lack of ankle mobility. So, we have that FMS test for the ankle and that should be something that every Iron Maiden challenger should iron out early in the prep period. From my observations and what I hear from others, the movement of the Pistol trumps the load, so a 12 or 16 k kettlebell for lots and lots of singles...like a corrective, not a lift...might be better prep than going heavy.
Valerie Hedlund,
pistoling the 24
no probs -
b2d interview coming up
For the Pull Up, women thrive on Greasing the Groove. Again, nailing hundreds of reps (over time) with the 12 is probably a good idea as I think any failures with the 24 are going to catch up to you. One thing: in my heart, I am a thrower, so always remember my focus is going to be optimal performance. Nailing all the moves in the gym means nothing if you can't replicate on the field at the RKC.
So i'm imagining
pulling a 24...
IM Press. Women can't do enough Waiter Presses and Bottoms Up Presses. Much of the "I can't press" issue for women is the groove. Master it! I gave you advice earlier that women should press at least five days a week, not heavy, but the movement. It remains great advice.
IM Org. From simple observation, the Iron Maiden Challenge is held at an odd time. If you are an Assistant Team Leader doing the challenge, you need to have TL who "gets it." I would release you from everything save paperwork on the day of the challenge. Get out of the sun, fill out forms, hand out some water, and don't get drained. I have seen challengeres literally say "now?" when the time came to do it. That's not optimal!Thank you. Definitely more food for thought.
Just before we say goodbye, what’s the plan for the book’s release?
The idea behind the book is to come out as a Kindle. Then, I will add to it as time goes on. But, if you buy it when it first comes out, all the new material will be free, you just update. The price will go up each time after updates. The initial price will be low, by the way. This isn’t a money maker, the idea is to get “something,” of course, but I just want it to cover the hassle of typing it up.And for folks who like to track all things Dan, what is your main gig these days? When's your next competition?
I’m a writer recovering from total hip replacement. I was off pain killers the second day and my Physical Therapist said he has never seen this kind of recovery. My next competition, God Willing, will be something that the mere moment of hearing my name to enter the ring or field will bring me to tears.
You've moved through a variety of sports: from your throwing work to the highland games to lifting heavy stuff. Each of these seems to require a skill set and focus. Have any of these practices with competitions overlapped, or have you focused on competing for one at a time?
Overlapping is actually a secret of mine. I think that we pick up a great toolkit in every sport. That’s my knock against early specialization: you miss those gems that come from other sports. I played American Football late into my forties and could still dominate because I was using a toolkit (like superior strength and speed, not a bad thing) that my competition didn’t have.Where will Dan be in the near future?
I need to keep updating my website “events.” I need to keep my information in one place! But, Ireland, Hungary and all over the USA.Thank you again, Dan. Way cool. Have a great time in the UK and Ireland - hope you see the sun.
Intervention the DVDs are out and available now; Intervention the book on kindle, is expected in November. Kindle readers are available for PC's and mobile devices - and kindles, too. Easy Strength the Book is anticipated to be out and available before the december holidays.
Coming UP: Stong Women talking about Strength featuring: a chat with Fawn Friday (who does triples with the 24 in pistols), and Fawn's thoughts on training for the IM. Also, an in depth interview Valerie Hedlund most recent RKC to succeed with the Iron Maiden Challenge.
Related Posts
- Strength Matters - Part 1 interview with Dan John
- Pressing Matters: The first wee chat with Dan John
- Asha Wagner - and her bath to the Iron Maiden
- Claire Booth: building a strong body
- Return of the KB experience - first time through: b2d summary
Friday, September 30, 2011
Intervention DVD - the UnProgram Toolkit - from Dan John
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How do you figure out how to train for your goals? Whether that goal is to burn some fat or increase your DL 1 rep max? Do you talk with someone? read a book? a forum post? It seems most of us, at some point or other, are on the hunt for The Program - that best schedule to follow that will get us from A to well, if not Z, at least further down the alphabet.
This quest for The Program is no different for trainers or coaches looking for ways to help their athletes achieve their goals than it is for the individual.
There are likely 100s of programs promising awesome results all with fabulous testimonials. How decide? Or is everything as good as anything else? Wouldn’t it be nice just to sit back and have a trusted voice cut through all the noise, and provide some basic principles for performance? Dan John’s audio/video recording of his three hour Intervention workshop does just this: skips the programs (for the most part) and cuts to the principles, or as Dan calls them, the patterns. In a way, however, Intervention is if not the AntiProgram, the UnProgram.
Last week, i posted part 1 of an interview with Dan John about his book of the same name. Laree Draper, Dan’s publisher, kindly then shared the Intervention DVDs with me. While the core principles are the same in both book and DVD, the DVDs are sufficiently distinct to want to have both around. That's why i wanted to do this post in between part 1 of the interview with Dan, and part 2 coming up: why would someone want to purchase both a cool book AND a bunch of DVDs - are they the same? are they different enough? They're different enough, whether training yourself, or especially, training others.
The Phone Call; the ToolKit
As we saw in the interview, while the big take away from the book is the pattern concept in detail, the big take away from the DVD is the ToolKit - using the patterns - but more, the questions to run through one’s head when training oneself or a client. The dozen or so heuristics are the big payoff of the DVDs, both as the concepts themselves, but also applied in worked out scenarios. It’s a rich three hours.
Everything is Obvious in Hindsight
Dan’s set up the workshop around unpacking what goes through his head when someone calls him up to ask how to achieve a particular goal. The result is the ToolKit - summarised and explicated in the DVDs. The toolkit is the ta da. The important note is that there are no secrets here. There's no magic per se in any one of the tools provided, taken on their own, such as asking "how are you doing" in a way that elicits an athletes actual state.
Put together in a complete package of steps, however, guarenteed after going through them, one will feel an overarching sense of "oh wow" and "duh" combined. The magic - such as it exists - is that these "simple" insights are the results of 30 (dan says 40; he's 53 at time of recording) years of experience and consequent errors put into an effective way to work with athletes.
So this is material distinctly framed from the book with a complementary emphasis. And it’s that emphasis from Dan’s particular style of delivery that also makes the disks worthwhile.
Yes, the book is far more detailed than the DVDs (it’s a book) - that’s one reason to go for the book when it comes out in November 2011 - but part of the value of the DVDs (and associated supporting content of slides and docs referenced in the workshop) beyond the Toolkit Framing is that, well, it’s Dan John talking.
Dan is extremely easy listening. And sometimes that’s what i certainly want, don’t you? just to put the pen down and listen to someone who has chops we trust break it down in a clear way. Make sense? I mean this is why we go to talks or workshops in the first place, no? It’s not just the material (thought that’s critical) - it’s to hear it presented. When listening to Dan, as opposed to reading alone, some things in particular pop out; he puts the emPHAsis in particular places.And it’s that critical bit of emphasis or repetition where we can get the take aways.
Some of Dan’s favourite “pay attention” tropes: “i just made you money there,” “you can thank me later,” leave the cheque on the way out.” And those cues really do help make the point that if we just do X, we’ll have had a significant impact for the better on ourselves or on our athletes’ lives.
I asked Dan why he decided to do the DVD/book combo, and it’s exactly this emphasis point that underlay the approach:
For instance, the DVD’s discussion of the hinge (presented on a youtube clip) is a very potent demo of how to help correct form to get the hinge working right in say a single leg deadlift. But that’s one demo. In the book, there’s a full section dedicated just to the hinge, patterning it and progressing it.
The two sources are effectively complementary.
Packaging the ToolKit and the Patterns
And sometimes it’s just nice to listen. For such occasions, very wisely, the Drapers are offering an mp3 of the audio track of the DVDs, because let’s face it, for the most part, what’s presented from the workshop as a whole is largely the remaining lecture components. I stress for the most part - the demos are very visual as are the charts Dan creates to support his points, and the third disk’s discussion of the worked examples of the tool kit is very valuable. But for the most part, one is still listening to dan. So when in transit, listening to the lecture on an iPod is great - i went back later to check the vid bits and charts i missed.
Accessibility via InterWeb
If this presentation inspires you to want to grab the DVDs NOW, the Drapers anticipated a big wish about getting DVD content fast by getting rid of the disks. Oh sure, one can buy the physical discs in a package, but they’ve also made all the material available for download, including the audio files and the supporting materials. These can be bought together or separately. The audio file alone with the supporting visual material is a sixth of the price of the physical DVDs. The DVDs downloaded are half the price of the physical DVDs. And the book will start at 4.99.
I should note the quality of the DVDs is just fine - the charts are mixed into the videos, the demos are presented in different views. The only weak spot in audio is that a few bits of audience participation questions are not mic’d directly so the audio in those spots is weak. But that’s twice in the whole thing, and a niggle not an issue. The transcript provided with the mp3 clarifies what was said in any case. Oh yes, there’s even a transcript if you’d rather read than listen to the presentation.
Making it so easy and affordable -with multiple options - to connect with this material - is really cool and very progressive. And a little weird. As i noted in the interview last week, Dan’s put out a lot of the material in Intervention for free in places like t-nation. You don’t *have* to buy any of this material since so much of it is “out there” on what Dan calls the interwebs.
More-ness
The reason for purchasing each of the components? The more-ness. Intervention the Book gathers that material together and expands it in the detail of the patterns and progressions; Intervention the DVD set provides the emphasis (and the comfort) of Dan’s delivery with the framing on the ToolKit, and the Draper’s presentation means that all of this great material is pretty much accessible all the time to anyone
Indeed, the plan for Intervention the Book is: free perpetual update. Says Dan:
Adds Laree Draper:
I asked Dan how the Drapers became his publisher
That’s what one might call a lasting relationship. Indeed, quality social interaction plays a big role in Dan’s training principles, and in Intervention. One of the things Dan talks about in the Intervention DVDs considerably more than in the book - and that’s intriguing - is that what one does with one’s life to improve quality should make all parts of it bigger: if one trains harder, one needs not just more quality rest but more deep play, and more quality social interaction. He talks about everything we do should make each part of our lives spiral out wider.
Which brings us back to the challenge that began this post: trying to figure out what program to use to get us to our fitness goals.
After listening to Intervention, it’s pretty clear that getting to those goals is not about the program - or not about *just* the program. It’s really about one’s life. For Dan John, he mounts a pretty good case that getting stronger helps make everything better, but the bigger case seems to be that one gets stronger because of what that brings to the EVERYTHING else. One gets the feeling that for Dan John (and his grade school teacher who so inspired him to discern) it’s the quality of the Everything Else that really matters.
If you're interested in Intervention in all its manifestions, check out that myriad of options at davedraper.com
Part II of the Intervention interview with Dan John with a special focus on women's strength, coming up.
Related Posts
There are likely 100s of programs promising awesome results all with fabulous testimonials. How decide? Or is everything as good as anything else? Wouldn’t it be nice just to sit back and have a trusted voice cut through all the noise, and provide some basic principles for performance? Dan John’s audio/video recording of his three hour Intervention workshop does just this: skips the programs (for the most part) and cuts to the principles, or as Dan calls them, the patterns. In a way, however, Intervention is if not the AntiProgram, the UnProgram.
the unprogram nut? says laree draper "we grow these here too"
Last week, i posted part 1 of an interview with Dan John about his book of the same name. Laree Draper, Dan’s publisher, kindly then shared the Intervention DVDs with me. While the core principles are the same in both book and DVD, the DVDs are sufficiently distinct to want to have both around. That's why i wanted to do this post in between part 1 of the interview with Dan, and part 2 coming up: why would someone want to purchase both a cool book AND a bunch of DVDs - are they the same? are they different enough? They're different enough, whether training yourself, or especially, training others.
The Phone Call; the ToolKit
As we saw in the interview, while the big take away from the book is the pattern concept in detail, the big take away from the DVD is the ToolKit - using the patterns - but more, the questions to run through one’s head when training oneself or a client. The dozen or so heuristics are the big payoff of the DVDs, both as the concepts themselves, but also applied in worked out scenarios. It’s a rich three hours.
Everything is Obvious in Hindsight
Dan’s set up the workshop around unpacking what goes through his head when someone calls him up to ask how to achieve a particular goal. The result is the ToolKit - summarised and explicated in the DVDs. The toolkit is the ta da. The important note is that there are no secrets here. There's no magic per se in any one of the tools provided, taken on their own, such as asking "how are you doing" in a way that elicits an athletes actual state.
Put together in a complete package of steps, however, guarenteed after going through them, one will feel an overarching sense of "oh wow" and "duh" combined. The magic - such as it exists - is that these "simple" insights are the results of 30 (dan says 40; he's 53 at time of recording) years of experience and consequent errors put into an effective way to work with athletes.
So this is material distinctly framed from the book with a complementary emphasis. And it’s that emphasis from Dan’s particular style of delivery that also makes the disks worthwhile.
Yes, the book is far more detailed than the DVDs (it’s a book) - that’s one reason to go for the book when it comes out in November 2011 - but part of the value of the DVDs (and associated supporting content of slides and docs referenced in the workshop) beyond the Toolkit Framing is that, well, it’s Dan John talking.
Dan is extremely easy listening. And sometimes that’s what i certainly want, don’t you? just to put the pen down and listen to someone who has chops we trust break it down in a clear way. Make sense? I mean this is why we go to talks or workshops in the first place, no? It’s not just the material (thought that’s critical) - it’s to hear it presented. When listening to Dan, as opposed to reading alone, some things in particular pop out; he puts the emPHAsis in particular places.And it’s that critical bit of emphasis or repetition where we can get the take aways.
Some of Dan’s favourite “pay attention” tropes: “i just made you money there,” “you can thank me later,” leave the cheque on the way out.” And those cues really do help make the point that if we just do X, we’ll have had a significant impact for the better on ourselves or on our athletes’ lives.
I asked Dan why he decided to do the DVD/book combo, and it’s exactly this emphasis point that underlay the approach:
DVDs having ability to show and to show the flow. When you read, one might artificially put too much emphasis on a point that really isn't that big a deal. And the opposite, I might be typing REALLY loud the importance of something and you miss it because it blends into the page. So, a DVD allows you to act out, point out and lead the viewer to the point. With reading, I can complete the whole arc of the story...so both need to be done.In the DVDs, Dan also presents demonstrations of points that can only be described in the book. Likewise the three hour workshop can only make those Big Picture points whereas the book drills down into detail. They complement each other.
Dan John on hamstring firing for hinge movements
For instance, the DVD’s discussion of the hinge (presented on a youtube clip) is a very potent demo of how to help correct form to get the hinge working right in say a single leg deadlift. But that’s one demo. In the book, there’s a full section dedicated just to the hinge, patterning it and progressing it.
The two sources are effectively complementary.
Packaging the ToolKit and the Patterns
And sometimes it’s just nice to listen. For such occasions, very wisely, the Drapers are offering an mp3 of the audio track of the DVDs, because let’s face it, for the most part, what’s presented from the workshop as a whole is largely the remaining lecture components. I stress for the most part - the demos are very visual as are the charts Dan creates to support his points, and the third disk’s discussion of the worked examples of the tool kit is very valuable. But for the most part, one is still listening to dan. So when in transit, listening to the lecture on an iPod is great - i went back later to check the vid bits and charts i missed.
Accessibility via InterWeb
If this presentation inspires you to want to grab the DVDs NOW, the Drapers anticipated a big wish about getting DVD content fast by getting rid of the disks. Oh sure, one can buy the physical discs in a package, but they’ve also made all the material available for download, including the audio files and the supporting materials. These can be bought together or separately. The audio file alone with the supporting visual material is a sixth of the price of the physical DVDs. The DVDs downloaded are half the price of the physical DVDs. And the book will start at 4.99.
I should note the quality of the DVDs is just fine - the charts are mixed into the videos, the demos are presented in different views. The only weak spot in audio is that a few bits of audience participation questions are not mic’d directly so the audio in those spots is weak. But that’s twice in the whole thing, and a niggle not an issue. The transcript provided with the mp3 clarifies what was said in any case. Oh yes, there’s even a transcript if you’d rather read than listen to the presentation.
Dan John on"realistic reps" from Intervention
More-ness
The reason for purchasing each of the components? The more-ness. Intervention the Book gathers that material together and expands it in the detail of the patterns and progressions; Intervention the DVD set provides the emphasis (and the comfort) of Dan’s delivery with the framing on the ToolKit, and the Draper’s presentation means that all of this great material is pretty much accessible all the time to anyone
Indeed, the plan for Intervention the Book is: free perpetual update. Says Dan:
The idea behind the book is to come out as a Kindle. Then, I will add to it as time goes on. But, if you buy it when it first comes out, all the new material will be free, you just update. The price will go up each time after updates. The initial price will be low, by the way. This isn’t a money maker, the idea is to get “something,” of course, but I just want it to cover the hassle of typing it up.
Adds Laree Draper:
This new work of Dan's is especially interesting from a publishing point of view for two reasons. First, it's the type of material that stands solid and unchanging, but it will also benefit as he develops new ideas and learns new ways to teach the Intervention concepts. The second thing is the chaos of publishing today gives us a unique opportunity to test new publishing options.This is a pretty cool way for a publisher to investigate producing material with an author for an audience, and that’s partly why i’m writing this piece: i’m personally fascinated by the group’s approach to supporting athletes and coaches connect with material at the speed of the internet. Durn progressive.
For example, we'll release the new book Intervention in its edited state in November, whatever the length at the time. ... The initial release will be sold as an ebook at $4.99. In the following months as Dan adds more meat to the bones, we'll upload a new version, and move the price to $6.99; and we'll do this again in the spring or early summer 2012, moving the price to $9.99.
The way ebooks work is a book owner can delete a book from a device, and can download it again at a later date. This means the early buyers who paid $4.99 will be able to get the updated book without paying an additional fee.
This is a wonderful way to get new material to the public quickly, while it's still fresh, without waiting through the normal book writing and publishing timeline. I'm very enthusiastic about the new opportunities in publishing, and this, while it will require explanation, is one of my favorites new options.
I asked Dan how the Drapers became his publisher
I thought everyone knew the story: on the Power and Bulk forum, Steve needed helped moving stuff for a strongman contest. My brother, Gary, volunteered himself and his son, David, to do it. They spent the day there. While moving stuff, Laree Draper asked Dan Martin: "Who is this guy?"The Everything Else
Happily, Dan told Laree that Gary was MY brother and Laree should get in contact with me. Laree emailed me. The timing was perfect, she started handling my first three DVDs, then we agreed to do just a little two day workshop, which became the four part Utah DVDs...then the forum, the book, the next book, the next DVD, traveling, workshops and, well, there you go.
That’s what one might call a lasting relationship. Indeed, quality social interaction plays a big role in Dan’s training principles, and in Intervention. One of the things Dan talks about in the Intervention DVDs considerably more than in the book - and that’s intriguing - is that what one does with one’s life to improve quality should make all parts of it bigger: if one trains harder, one needs not just more quality rest but more deep play, and more quality social interaction. He talks about everything we do should make each part of our lives spiral out wider.
Which brings us back to the challenge that began this post: trying to figure out what program to use to get us to our fitness goals.
After listening to Intervention, it’s pretty clear that getting to those goals is not about the program - or not about *just* the program. It’s really about one’s life. For Dan John, he mounts a pretty good case that getting stronger helps make everything better, but the bigger case seems to be that one gets stronger because of what that brings to the EVERYTHING else. One gets the feeling that for Dan John (and his grade school teacher who so inspired him to discern) it’s the quality of the Everything Else that really matters.
If you're interested in Intervention in all its manifestions, check out that myriad of options at davedraper.com
Part II of the Intervention interview with Dan John with a special focus on women's strength, coming up.
Related Posts
- Part 1 of Dan John interview: Strength Matters
- The Perfect Rep Quest
- Bone Rhythm and the Kettlebell front squat
- Reps ya don't have to do
- Revisiting the Cup of Coffee
- The Pleasure of the Coach
- The irritation of "i want you to..."
Monday, September 26, 2011
The morning imaginary commute - getting in nepas/cardio without the whinge reflex response
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Do you find you need to cardio of some sort when either cutting fat or needing to sustain its off-ness? Do you notice when you do it, it starts to rock the scales?
Every step we take helps that lean process. We saw a couple weeks ago that 8-11k steps with at least 3k of them being in the medium to vigerous heart range (over 60% maxHR) is a great thing for weight effects.
Lonnie Lowery is also an advocate of the benefits of fasted cardio. Lowery uses "non-panting" NEPA style cardio. On empty. Various work seems to suggest that the fasted state does good things for insulin response.
There's also recent work that John Berardi pointed to about endurance workouts prior to eating having great effects on fat burning and insulin response even AFTER the next meal. That is - workout, eat after that and voila good things just keep happening
So some fasted cardio may be part of a trifecta of
But it seems we have a lot of choices:
Any one is better than doing nothing; combining them may be very cool.
Getting Personal: Know Thyself. For me, if i'm trying either to cut fat (which i am) and then want to keep that cut stuff cut (and i do), for me, i just have to get in the cardio. I just do. I know that about me.
But (a) i hate that kiddy feeling of "oh, gee, do i have to?" that comes up in myself and i hate that "hmm" that's kinda looking for good excuses not to do it.
Getting to Work - literally/virtually
As per the recent Dan John interview - within his ouvre he speaks of "punch the clock" workouts - where you just show up and do them: they're not crap but they're not necessarily inspiring. They're showing up and getting it done. Inspiring lifter Fawn Friday recently reminded me that Rif (aka Mark Reifkind) says consistency more than intensity gets it done. So how to find the way to consist - esp. with the cardio i know i need?
Here's one way i've been looking at the trifecta that gets rid of all the head stuff - including how to weasle out of it: it's my new morning virtual commute.
During uni, i had to bike to class; in grad school, bike to uni; before i moved to england, bike to work -
awesome. Now i'm within walking distance rather than a 10mile ride each way along a lake. Hmm.
The thing about when i was biking, it didn't count as a workout because it was just what one had to do to get to what one had to do. This is not to say that i did not regularly try to beat my times or find interesting new routes. But the thing was: it's the commute.
So i've been thinking: what if i think about rowing or stationary biking like my morning commute?
As soon as i started thinking about the cardio - and lately it's been rowing on a waterrower - as my morning commute - then i don't have to think about whether or not i'm going to do it - it's just what has to be done to get to where i'm going. I don't do it, i don't arrive.
I find that that attitude has taken a lot of the snot out of the whole issue about ooo but i have to do this interval pattern at that intensity for it to be worth anything. No. No, i really don't. I have to get to work. It takes 20 mins some days, others it might take 30. who knows, some day i may find a scenic route and it will take forty (or more).
With this attitude i've been finding that i can have a go at doing 15 mins of 24/36 intervals, or power ladders of 24, 26 and 28kwatts for two minutes each and back up and down, or non-panting 120BPM. I can see that my total kilometers in the same time seem to be going up without thinking about it, meaning i'm getting stronger. without thinking about it. And my fitbit attached to the handle as i row says i'm getting my nepas in, and my HR tells me i'm being sane about the cardio intensity.
And because i can do this every day, i'm passing the dan john test of can i do this every day and keep coming back - every day - without getting fried.
And i can get my workouts in. This work is not to fry myself; it's to complement and support my practice.
And it's just my commute. No biggie, but it has to be done. So no sense even thinking about it too
much, sweating it, or getting carried away. It's also a great time to catch up on learning cool stuff - like listening to dan john's Intervention mp3, or my zhealth course vids' audio tracks, or any of the stanford podcasts on anatomy or anything else. There are advantages to not having to worry about the traffic and attend to the interval.
And heh it's not like i can't go for a run instead of a row - get outside get in the oxygen. Whatever. The important thing is to do. And right now, rowing is my commute mode. Maybe tomorrow it will be running. On saturday, wonderful day, it was both. I don't want to over think this about what's the more right thing to do. i just want to get there.
Not that getting there can't be beautiful. I do also think about my form when i'm doing this - so it's interesting all the little bits that can be practiced to make the commute interesting.
And the fringe benefits seem to be the trifecta of effects on strength, food processing and fat be gone'ing.
I may not love it - though when i have looked at the clock and thought i need x more minutes dam this is slow, i have tended to say yes but how grateful am i that i *can* do this. Imagine if i was injured or ill and i'd just yearn to be able to pull 20mins on this thing.
So oh gosh i hope i can keep this head space - but i have grown to appreciate the side effects of this virtual morning commute. It's changed the act from "having to get in cardio" to just doing what i need to do everyday to get where i need to be everyday. And that's just true. it's exactly what it is.
Maybe the concept of the morning (or evening) commute will help you, too?
best
mc
Related Posts
Every step we take helps that lean process. We saw a couple weeks ago that 8-11k steps with at least 3k of them being in the medium to vigerous heart range (over 60% maxHR) is a great thing for weight effects.
Lonnie Lowery is also an advocate of the benefits of fasted cardio. Lowery uses "non-panting" NEPA style cardio. On empty. Various work seems to suggest that the fasted state does good things for insulin response.
There's also recent work that John Berardi pointed to about endurance workouts prior to eating having great effects on fat burning and insulin response even AFTER the next meal. That is - workout, eat after that and voila good things just keep happening
So some fasted cardio may be part of a trifecta of
- contributing to NEPAs that keep us lean
- getting insulin levels primed for the first meal of the day and
- continuing to have a beneficial effect on fat burning and fuel processing beyond that meal.
But it seems we have a lot of choices:
- we don't have to do fasted cardio; we can do our NEPAs anytime - as long as we get them in
- we can do fasted nepas non-paning cardio in the morning by whatever way we wish.
- or we can do some more intense morning effort prior to eating or not and still give us a great benefit for the meal following.
Any one is better than doing nothing; combining them may be very cool.
Getting Personal: Know Thyself. For me, if i'm trying either to cut fat (which i am) and then want to keep that cut stuff cut (and i do), for me, i just have to get in the cardio. I just do. I know that about me.
But (a) i hate that kiddy feeling of "oh, gee, do i have to?" that comes up in myself and i hate that "hmm" that's kinda looking for good excuses not to do it.
Getting to Work - literally/virtually
Here's one way i've been looking at the trifecta that gets rid of all the head stuff - including how to weasle out of it: it's my new morning virtual commute.
During uni, i had to bike to class; in grad school, bike to uni; before i moved to england, bike to work -
awesome. Now i'm within walking distance rather than a 10mile ride each way along a lake. Hmm. The thing about when i was biking, it didn't count as a workout because it was just what one had to do to get to what one had to do. This is not to say that i did not regularly try to beat my times or find interesting new routes. But the thing was: it's the commute.
So i've been thinking: what if i think about rowing or stationary biking like my morning commute?
As soon as i started thinking about the cardio - and lately it's been rowing on a waterrower - as my morning commute - then i don't have to think about whether or not i'm going to do it - it's just what has to be done to get to where i'm going. I don't do it, i don't arrive.
I find that that attitude has taken a lot of the snot out of the whole issue about ooo but i have to do this interval pattern at that intensity for it to be worth anything. No. No, i really don't. I have to get to work. It takes 20 mins some days, others it might take 30. who knows, some day i may find a scenic route and it will take forty (or more).
With this attitude i've been finding that i can have a go at doing 15 mins of 24/36 intervals, or power ladders of 24, 26 and 28kwatts for two minutes each and back up and down, or non-panting 120BPM. I can see that my total kilometers in the same time seem to be going up without thinking about it, meaning i'm getting stronger. without thinking about it. And my fitbit attached to the handle as i row says i'm getting my nepas in, and my HR tells me i'm being sane about the cardio intensity.
And because i can do this every day, i'm passing the dan john test of can i do this every day and keep coming back - every day - without getting fried.
And i can get my workouts in. This work is not to fry myself; it's to complement and support my practice.
And it's just my commute. No biggie, but it has to be done. So no sense even thinking about it too
much, sweating it, or getting carried away. It's also a great time to catch up on learning cool stuff - like listening to dan john's Intervention mp3, or my zhealth course vids' audio tracks, or any of the stanford podcasts on anatomy or anything else. There are advantages to not having to worry about the traffic and attend to the interval. And heh it's not like i can't go for a run instead of a row - get outside get in the oxygen. Whatever. The important thing is to do. And right now, rowing is my commute mode. Maybe tomorrow it will be running. On saturday, wonderful day, it was both. I don't want to over think this about what's the more right thing to do. i just want to get there.
Not that getting there can't be beautiful. I do also think about my form when i'm doing this - so it's interesting all the little bits that can be practiced to make the commute interesting.
And the fringe benefits seem to be the trifecta of effects on strength, food processing and fat be gone'ing.
I may not love it - though when i have looked at the clock and thought i need x more minutes dam this is slow, i have tended to say yes but how grateful am i that i *can* do this. Imagine if i was injured or ill and i'd just yearn to be able to pull 20mins on this thing.
So oh gosh i hope i can keep this head space - but i have grown to appreciate the side effects of this virtual morning commute. It's changed the act from "having to get in cardio" to just doing what i need to do everyday to get where i need to be everyday. And that's just true. it's exactly what it is.
Maybe the concept of the morning (or evening) commute will help you, too?
best
mc
Related Posts
- - Optimal HIIT intervals for Fat Burning
- - Optimal Cardio for non-HIIT days
- - Weight loss ups your power
- - Fitness in 6mins - a week?
- - Viking Warrior Conditioning
- - Running up that hill - via kettlebells
- - will cardio wreck my strength program? how bout no?
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Exercising options: another barefoot run insight for the wider view
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Tweet
Have you tried running barefoot yet? like really - no foot covering. unshod.
It's a revelatory experience, as per this four part chat about the topic with Dr. Mick Wilkinson, barefoot runner and researcher. interesting things happen when trying to achieve a quiet relaxed gait without footware. But so do other things.
Some context: i'm midway through reading this awesome book by Frank Forencich of Exuberant Animal called Change Your Body, Change Your World - will have more on this anon. In the early part of the book there's this great section on barefoot running.
It situates barefooting as a great way to connect with one's environment. What resonated for me in Forencich's discussion of barefooting is that one of it's biggest benefits is that one has to PAY ATTENTION. In deed, this is how Forencich deals with the question that always comes up about running barefoot and the anticipation that one will come home with a foot pierced by shards of glass and riddled with virus infected needles. Won't that happen? Amazingly enough, no. Because when running barefoot we get to PAY ATTENTION.
And here's the take away for me today from my little barefoot jaunt. It's the fall right? ok it's hard to admit that it's here but the signs are everywhere apparent: the tree detritus all over the sidewalks of leaves, sticks, nuts rather suggests this is what's going on (though if you have ever lived in manitoba it seems that the acorns drop from the trees all year long to plant your yard with the toughest little suckers to dislodge ever - but i digress).
So it's fall. there's tree kack all over much of the pavement. and i'm thinking ya right Frank i am definitely paying attention. isn't it amazing how my bod is adapting to avoid crushing these half cracked nuts through the soles of my feet; my goodness one could run forever because my respiration is not particularly challenged at this tippy tappy exploratory pace. Yup, foot's amazing - and the sole is particularly astounding.
Houston, we have OPTIONS And then - somehow - perhaps, don't know what happened but i muast have relaxed a bit - because instead of focusing on the more cack ahead and where my next foot fall will be, i look up. just a bit. shifting from my big paying attention to where im treading.
And what happens? i see this whole area of road that has no crap on it. And it's coming up. And there's no traffic. It's early saturday morning in a quiet-ish area. And then it hits me (can you hear it coming?) i don't *have* to run through this crap like i would if i had shoes on - because i'd have shoes on. but i don't.
I don't have shoes on AND
i don't have to run like i do AND
i don't have to run where i would AND
i can deek! i can go lateral
dam it, i can run right down the middle of this road.
I am now running AROUND the crap - even faster than going THROUGH the crap.
I am a genius.
I am an idiot.
Oh come on that was just a little clever
Hey, i am having fun.
and this little tune starts to go through my head like some slightly odd sesame street lesson
I don't have to go through it; i can do something else. There are no rules here - that it's not a run if i don't stay on the shod path. Over and Under Around and Through....
Openning the Field of View = Feeling Safer = Better Performance
My feet are still not used to going all day running on the outside world so i would have liked to have gone off path more, but had to head home, and that was fine too.
So i'm reflecting:
sometimes i (and perhaps you, too, once in awhile) pay attention but to the narrow rather than the broad field of view.
From the direction in this space from z-health i've had, we do seem to know something about stress/fear/fatigue - that our peripheral vision starts to narrow - to support a very particular survival oriented focus.
Maybe my ability to look up a bit more when out for my jaunt just meant i was starting to feel a little safer unshod, and so could take in more of the ambient area of action - and that gave me some more choices.
Letting Go - Deliberate Practice of - in the weirdest places
Even more connections - some of you have heard me go on about the sedona method and its perspective about letting go of "stuff" in order to get a wider perspective (here's the b2d overview). Well, maybe it's a sign - if we feel we can't let go, or more, perhaps like me this morning: if i don't even see that there is anything beyond this field of cack, i just don't know at some level i'm in a narrowly focused state of fear/stress.
We don't know what we're not seeing (there are tests). And i sure didn't see my happy run as a place where i needed to let go. But of course it was - cuz i'm learning a new skill and am both very focused on the skill rather than deploying it to enable me to reach higher and yes there's still some residual cringe around the bare-foot-as-needle-glass-nail-magnet in me.
So i'm gonna let myself off the hook a bit here.
Note to self: DO i remember to Look Up? Practice that
But it may just be if you find yourself in a situation where suddenly you get heh, i have options here i didn't know i had: congratulations to you. It may be your skill level at that thing you were doing just went autonomous enough for a moment to let you see a bit further and apply that skill to do something new. Or maybe some fear or stress calmed down.
It's a cool thing - to observe, explore and celebrate - observe that that openning happened, explore it deliberately and do a happy dance about what more is coming in on all sensory, emotional, intellectual and other channels.
To come back to Forencich, i got to keep paying attention, but to a wider field of view - to more of the environment - while still being aware of how i was contacting the ground beneath my feet. And Forenich's right: it's fun, and it feels great to connect, to attend better, more. Pay Attention doesn't have to be narrow - sure learning can be rather focused - and i guess that's how i've always thought about it: pay attention = serious/narrow band focus.
Today i think i got a sense that paying attention might also be a broader field of view, lighter, a bit more playful. Goodness that's nice. Maybe learning could be a bit more like that too and still work.
Hope you give that kind of connected attention a go - please leave a note if you do and let me know how it goes.
Related Articles
It's a revelatory experience, as per this four part chat about the topic with Dr. Mick Wilkinson, barefoot runner and researcher. interesting things happen when trying to achieve a quiet relaxed gait without footware. But so do other things.
Some context: i'm midway through reading this awesome book by Frank Forencich of Exuberant Animal called Change Your Body, Change Your World - will have more on this anon. In the early part of the book there's this great section on barefoot running.
It situates barefooting as a great way to connect with one's environment. What resonated for me in Forencich's discussion of barefooting is that one of it's biggest benefits is that one has to PAY ATTENTION. In deed, this is how Forencich deals with the question that always comes up about running barefoot and the anticipation that one will come home with a foot pierced by shards of glass and riddled with virus infected needles. Won't that happen? Amazingly enough, no. Because when running barefoot we get to PAY ATTENTION.And here's the take away for me today from my little barefoot jaunt. It's the fall right? ok it's hard to admit that it's here but the signs are everywhere apparent: the tree detritus all over the sidewalks of leaves, sticks, nuts rather suggests this is what's going on (though if you have ever lived in manitoba it seems that the acorns drop from the trees all year long to plant your yard with the toughest little suckers to dislodge ever - but i digress).
So it's fall. there's tree kack all over much of the pavement. and i'm thinking ya right Frank i am definitely paying attention. isn't it amazing how my bod is adapting to avoid crushing these half cracked nuts through the soles of my feet; my goodness one could run forever because my respiration is not particularly challenged at this tippy tappy exploratory pace. Yup, foot's amazing - and the sole is particularly astounding.
Houston, we have OPTIONS And then - somehow - perhaps, don't know what happened but i muast have relaxed a bit - because instead of focusing on the more cack ahead and where my next foot fall will be, i look up. just a bit. shifting from my big paying attention to where im treading.
And what happens? i see this whole area of road that has no crap on it. And it's coming up. And there's no traffic. It's early saturday morning in a quiet-ish area. And then it hits me (can you hear it coming?) i don't *have* to run through this crap like i would if i had shoes on - because i'd have shoes on. but i don't.
I don't have shoes on AND
i don't have to run like i do AND
i don't have to run where i would AND
i can deek! i can go lateral
dam it, i can run right down the middle of this road.
I am now running AROUND the crap - even faster than going THROUGH the crap.
I am a genius.
I am an idiot.
Oh come on that was just a little clever
Hey, i am having fun.
and this little tune starts to go through my head like some slightly odd sesame street lesson
I don't have to go through it; i can do something else. There are no rules here - that it's not a run if i don't stay on the shod path. Over and Under Around and Through....
My feet are still not used to going all day running on the outside world so i would have liked to have gone off path more, but had to head home, and that was fine too.
So i'm reflecting:
sometimes i (and perhaps you, too, once in awhile) pay attention but to the narrow rather than the broad field of view.
From the direction in this space from z-health i've had, we do seem to know something about stress/fear/fatigue - that our peripheral vision starts to narrow - to support a very particular survival oriented focus.
Maybe my ability to look up a bit more when out for my jaunt just meant i was starting to feel a little safer unshod, and so could take in more of the ambient area of action - and that gave me some more choices.
Letting Go - Deliberate Practice of - in the weirdest places
Even more connections - some of you have heard me go on about the sedona method and its perspective about letting go of "stuff" in order to get a wider perspective (here's the b2d overview). Well, maybe it's a sign - if we feel we can't let go, or more, perhaps like me this morning: if i don't even see that there is anything beyond this field of cack, i just don't know at some level i'm in a narrowly focused state of fear/stress.
We don't know what we're not seeing (there are tests). And i sure didn't see my happy run as a place where i needed to let go. But of course it was - cuz i'm learning a new skill and am both very focused on the skill rather than deploying it to enable me to reach higher and yes there's still some residual cringe around the bare-foot-as-needle-glass-nail-magnet in me.
So i'm gonna let myself off the hook a bit here.
Note to self: DO i remember to Look Up? Practice that
But it may just be if you find yourself in a situation where suddenly you get heh, i have options here i didn't know i had: congratulations to you. It may be your skill level at that thing you were doing just went autonomous enough for a moment to let you see a bit further and apply that skill to do something new. Or maybe some fear or stress calmed down.
It's a cool thing - to observe, explore and celebrate - observe that that openning happened, explore it deliberately and do a happy dance about what more is coming in on all sensory, emotional, intellectual and other channels.
To come back to Forencich, i got to keep paying attention, but to a wider field of view - to more of the environment - while still being aware of how i was contacting the ground beneath my feet. And Forenich's right: it's fun, and it feels great to connect, to attend better, more. Pay Attention doesn't have to be narrow - sure learning can be rather focused - and i guess that's how i've always thought about it: pay attention = serious/narrow band focus.
Today i think i got a sense that paying attention might also be a broader field of view, lighter, a bit more playful. Goodness that's nice. Maybe learning could be a bit more like that too and still work.
Hope you give that kind of connected attention a go - please leave a note if you do and let me know how it goes.
Meanwhile here's a little note about change your body change your world - it's certainly been changing my point of view.
Related Articles
- The Sedona Method, Five Months On And More Letting Go
- Rannoch Donald, Monk of the North
- Michael Castrogiovanni, kettlebell thrower and catcher
- how many reps of this drill?
- other side of the weight room
- it's ok not to finish this set
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