Plyometrics

Yesterday I spent a pleasant afternoon with my other half's father, he's as good as a father in law at this stage. We had some good bonding time as we (he) put together two 20 inch plyometric boxes! I figured I'd have a 20 inch box and a 32 inch box, however having seen the 20 inch built up we figured that 32 inchs would be way too much for some of my clients, and that I'd probably need a box smaller than 20 inches! So we built another 20 inch! Perfect I reckon for group sessions.

Plyometric exercises promote high movement speed, fast twitch fibre recruitment and elastic tendon energy release; yet seem to be largely ignored by the Ben Dunnes and Jackie Skelly's of this world. Indeed the only gyms I have seen these in are CrossFit boxes and 1 gym which will go unamed in my hometown - however they only got these because the local GAA team required them for training! I think if you are playing any sport which requires sudden bursts of energy and instant energy you should consider plyometric exercises, these can range from a simple jump onto a box (or whatever is available) to more complicated rotational moves requiring medicine balls - such as the twister or medicine ball toss!

So you see, I'm not all about the Kettlebells!

dc

God I'm Bored.....

Like the title says - I'm bored, rigid...I've just finished typing up my web content for the new website and now I'm at a loose end. It's pissing rain so I don't feel like getting out on the bike - the sooner I move somewhere warm and sunny the better!

Squats

Personal Training client this afternoon. I think I'll have squat clinic with her today, that is squats for 35 odd minutes and then tabata squats at the end - just to really make it hurt! Cruel I know, but sometimes ya gotta be!

Speaking of squats, my daughter, who I'm picking up after I've finished with my client has perfect form - she is 2 yrs old! Not only can she squat but she can perform a number of yoga moves and is a genius! She does not take after my side of the family....

Nothing more to say today, I'm a personal trainer - what do you expect!?

the first of many..

Today I had a fantastic day! First thing this morning went out on the bike for an 85km spin. Have to say there is nothing quite like getting out into the fresh country air for a cycle, the smells, sights and sounds of the country are all amplified when travelling by bicycle - is it any wonder that it is/was the choice of transport for many of the worlds literary greats - mind you I suppose some of them, the dead ones, probably had no choice.

I digress. From a fitness point of view this spin was interesting, we should be taking it easy at this time of year yet for some reason we chose a route with some big enough bumps on it, normally this would not be a problem, but today I was on my fixie - obviously in a vain attempt to appear cool to my peers ("us" and "my peers" of course been Naas Cycling Club). Anyway as a result of the fixie and the bumpy spin my heart rate was all over the shop rather than in the preferred zone 1 "fat burning" zone! So, I got home knackered and ate all the food in the fridge - another by product of exercise there - appetite, the key here is to try and reconcile your appetite against the level of energy used during your workout, otherwise you'll just get FAT!

After I got home, took a drive over to Glendalough with the Shin and Roz! Had a coffee, Roz played with her cousin Mia and then we found a haunted castle - I'll save the rest of this story for Hallowe'en!