Conditioning Natural Method

Along with resistance training, I do conditioning. Call it cardio if you like, but that's not really what it is. Cardio is the stairmill, the treadmill, bike, some group exercise class.


I used to use the stairmill quite a bit, and since December I have only used it once, I started taking kickboxing class on Saturday's with Jerome Turcan and have incorporated his conditioning into my routine. I do this conditioning on my own 3 to 4 times a week.


I really have enjoyed it and I like how I can change it. It can also be done anywhere really, as long as you have the space.


Saturday I went into the gym and lifted, it was quad day and I felt good and strong. I was there an hour and 20 minutes then on my way home I started feeling like I was coming down with something, my stomach started churning.


I ate then laid down and fell back asleep. Kickboxing would start at 10:00, hopefully I would feel better by then. 


I don't get sick often, I started thinking maybe it was psychological. I have had a really rough two weeks and not only was I emotionally drained, I was physically exhausted. Perahps I was using this as an excuse to remain curled up in a ball on my bed....That's all I needed to kick start myself, I got out of bed at 9:45 and asked Cooper to wrap my hands, I was in a hurry to get to AKA.


I ran in the door and Jerome was shouting "run Kristy, run!" I pulled off my pants and jacket, grabbed my shin guards and gloves and hit the mat running with everyone else, I was glad I came.


We went through the 30 minutes of conditioning, and this time I was the one creating the pools of sweat on the soft blue mat. It felt good, I felt alive again. I was the leader! Ha, in the past I struggled to keep up with the guys and this time I was done first. Jerome looks at me and says "Where are you Kristy?" I say "10" and he shouts to everyone to stop, come to the center for a change. We went through the floor exercises, and as we transitioned between conditioning and kickboxing I stopped to say hi to the only other female. She said she was just trying to keep up with me, I advised I may not be the best to watch and we both laughed.


Then 30 minutes of kickboxing, Steve volunteered to be my partner- he was at Jerome's on New Year's Eve too, we sat next to each other at dinner. I struggled with the combinations, Steve would smack me with his glove once in a while and say "Can I at least see one part of the combination he asked for?!"


Jerome said they were easy- things like low kick, jab, cross, hook, upper cut, elbow, knee, high kick, hook, low kick. I was having a hard time remembering everything. I need to practice on my own more.


The conditioning is what I love so much, after class I talked with Jerome about it, I asked what made it so different, so special. Jerome explained it was a style of training developed by Georges Hebert called the Natural Method. Hébert was born in Paris. While an officer in the French Navy prior to the First World War, Hébert was stationed in the town of St. Pierre, Martinique. In 1902 the town fell victim to a catastrophic volcanic eruption. Hebert coordinated the escape and rescue of some seven hundred people from this disaster. This experience had a profound effect on him, and reinforced his belief that athletic skill must be combined with courage and altruism. He eventually developed this ethos into his personal motto, "Être fort pour être utile" ("Being strong to be useful").

Contrary to the widespread belief that his approach was exclusively based on his observations of the natural movements of indigenous people, his method is a synthesis of various influences, including but not limited to:

• The work of his predecessor Francisco Amorós, who published in 1847 Nouveau Manuel Complet d'Education Physique, Gymnastique et Morale and which encompasses already the full range of practical movement aptitudes
• The work of German Prussian gymnastics educator Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (August 11, 1778 – October 15, 1852), which has also probably influenced the early physical training of the United States Marine Corps
• The classical representations of the human body in Graeco-Roman statuary and by the ideals of the ancient Greek gymnasia
• The naturist (although strictly rejecting complete nudism) lifestyle principles of his friend Dr. Paul Carton (1875–1947)
• The influence of Georges Demenÿ (1850–1917), a French inventor, chronophotographer, filmmaker, and gymnast who emphasized the progressiveness and the scalability of the training

Hebert's system rejected the sclerosis of remedial gymnastics and of the popular Swedish Method of physical culture, which seemed to him unable to develop the human body harmoniously and especially unable to prepare his students with the practical and moral demands of life.

In the same way, Hébert believed, by concentrating on competition and performance, competitive sport diverted physical education both from its physiological ends and its ability to foster sound moral values.

Here is a great video that shows a bit of what the Natural Method might be if you were to train outdoors. (Email readers will need to navigate directly to the blog to view this video).


Jerome includes most of this in his conditioning, including the jumps and back crawls (I guess our own sweat is the water!)

My first kickboxing experience

The Pain and the Pleasure

I am smiling, but inside I am crying. Everything hurts, and that is not typical for me. I find it very interesting as I believe the order of my training split has really been the catalyst, and of course the fact that I have been off all week so I am training like a fiend! 

I switched up my split because I couldn't train with Roy on Monday, so I trained shoulders on my own in the afternoon after returning home from my father in laws house.

Tuesday I was at Courtside at 5:00 am and I trained calves and then ran through my kickboxing conditioning, all out, 100% effort. At 1:00 I trained with Roy and we trained quads. I was OK then, the split squats did not get the better of me. 

Wednesday I was at Courtside again at 5:00 am and did it all over again, the basketball courts are empty that early, I can run and box and the place is all mine. My abs were sore because I not only trained them with my conditioning on Tuesday, but I tried a machine on Monday afternoon that I had never used before. Brett was sitting on it as I sat resting in the squat rack between sets, we were talking and I laughed and said I had never used it, in fact I pretty much steer clear of machines. He told me to give it a try, it would cause me some pain. He was right.


At 4:30 pm I met Roy and we trained Hamstrings. My hamstrings and glutes were still sore from my hamstring training on Saturday, it was hard to go heavy. But I did, I failed at the end of my GHR but I killed the single leg barbell deadlifts, heavier than last week. These glutes will soon be their own person.

Thursday I was at Courtside at 5:00 am and trained back and biceps, then down to the basketball courts for conditioning again, but I couldn't go as long, my body ached all over and the heavy weight session wiped me out.

Friday it was Courtside again at 5:00 am for calves and conditioning, I took my time since I was still off work and I finished at 6:45 am. Then Roy at 12:00 pm for shoulders. 


Saturday I was at the gym at 6:00 am when they opened for leg day! And my glutes and hams were still sore from Wednesday, hmm that means they have been sore for a week non- stop right?  There would be no kickboxing class, in fact I would be going to Jerome's for dinner. I looked for a studio to do my conditioning, but every single room, plus the basketball court was full. Seems everyone decided to get fit on this one last day of the year.


Saturday night as I sat at dinner party on New Years Eve, I was massaging my very sore forearms, I guess from the rope training we did on Friday.


I got home at one in the morning, much later than I ever stay up but enjoyed myself at one of the best dinner parties I have ever attended! I think there were 23 of us, the youngest was 5 months and the oldest in their 80's. We sat for hours enjoying course after course (after all, most of the guests were French and the French know how to enjoy food!). Luckily I made sure to drink plenty of water and had two liters at dinner. I decided to sleep in and go to the gym whenever I woke, and unfortunately David had his cell phone by the bed and at 6:00 a.m. it ran low on batter power and an alarm sounded. Ugh...I couldn't go back to sleep, so decided it was about time for the gym! I went in, hit the back and biceps hard and went home after an hour an a half.


I am down three pounds and I think it's the cardio that I swapped for kickboxing style conditioning. Although I have been off all week, I haven't added any extra workouts in, although I have lingered longer that usual at the gym. I have been enjoying several good meals with the family so all I can attribute this to is the conditioning, I will definitely keep it up and just watch to make sure I don't drop much more right now, it's too early.

Change of Pace

I go through this every year, and you would think I would have it under control by now but I still do not. I am feeling Big with a capital "B". Yeah, I am not trying to make anyone feel bad, I know I am not BIG, but I am big for me. The funny thing is, I am trying to get bigger! It's just hard to accept it. I work so hard to get small, then I turn around and try to get big...go figure (no pun intended).

As you know, I am thinking of competing on Womens' Physique instead of Figure, but that means a lot more muscle, a lot more weight. Putting it on invariably causes some fat gain too, and realistically you don't want to maintain a stage ready physique year round, it's not practical or emotionally advised.

My weight went from 118 on October 1 up to a high of 133 and I have maintained at about 130, 131 for quite some time. I look pretty good but when I see photos of myself at competition time it's hard to accept my newer "softer" look, although I do really like the bigger arms , legs and butt. I guess it's just the soft belly I don't like. Get rid of that and I am a happy camper! 

I always change up my training, that includes what I do with Roy and on my own. As much as possible, I will keep with his current protocol, for instance, I train shoulders twice a week, but only once with Roy. The second day is on my own and I try to re-create what we did. Ideally I would increase weights or reps but sometimes it's just not possible (I need a spotter, physically or emotionally), so I stick to the same. I try to stick to the same for legs too. Back is always on my own, but I try to follow the protocol, if we are doing fewer reps on everything else, I will do the same for back.

What I do vary is my mornings when I am at the gym and not lifting, because I will train with him that evening or afternoon. For quite some time I was hitting the stairmill and then training abs, I would do this Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings since those are the days I train with Roy later, and I would also throw in stairmill on weekends too after lifting.

He and I both agree (as did SC) that abs really pop when you have super low bodyfat, so crunching away day after day isn't what will make a difference. Abs come with squats, deadlifts, pull ups, full body moves, not all those ab exercises everyone toils away at day after day. I do plenty of squats, believe me!

At my last competition I was encouraged to "bring up" my quads and calves, that means make them bigger, and I have been diligently working on them and my quads look tremendously better. We train my quads and hams so hard that some days I don't know who enjoys it more, me, or Roy! 

A couple weeks ago I stopped my stairmill and and abs. I changed it up to train my calves and do the same type of conditioning I learned from Jerome at kickboxing. 

So I train calves then hit the basketball court and recreate the conditioning routine that Jerome taught me. It includes running, jumping, squats, burpees, push ups, crunches, boxing, jump rope and whatever else I feel like throwing in. It's hard, much more difficult than any old stairmill!

We will see how it all goes, I don't want to create too much of a calorie deficit or I won't gain muscle, I have to find that sweet balance we are all looking for, and then hold on tight!

Kickboxing Day 2

Thursday Cooper came home from training with Jerome. They have been kickboxing together almost three years now, Cooper is good, really good.

"Mom! Jerome said he is gonna teach you to kick on Saturday." "Cooper," I said, "How can he teach me to kick when I don't even know how to punch yet?!"

"You do- he said you were really good, he said you are a natural athlete and caught on fast. You just need to loosen up, it's not precise like weight lifting, it's more like a dance."

I smiled, I have always considered myself an athlete, and outside of my competitions where they refer to all of us as "athletes", no one has ever called me that. I felt good, accomplished.

He then told me Jerome asked him to come to Friday's "Fighter's Nights", a coaches invite only of full contact boxing and kickboxing for aspiring fighters, Cooper is to start training on a more serious level.

My heart skips a beat, but I am the one who pushed him into this, so I cannot stop him now. Thank goodness he is into kickboxing and not boxing. Not as dangerous.

Saturday I woke up at 5:00 a.m. and got to the gym at 6:00 for legs. I felt good, strong and excited. There would be no need for cardio since I was taking Jerome's class at 10:00.

I trained hams and quads. I did kneeling leg curl, RDL's, squats (100), split squats and GHR. I was there 2 hours, longer than I had planned, but I did sit around quite a bit waiting for the GHR, seemed everyone wanted to use it today, although not one person used it right. One women even came up to me and said "I am so glad I saw you doing this, I have never known how to use it properly!" She asked me how to adjust it, I asked her height and then adjusted it and showed her what to do. I then sat and waited while she readjusted it and used it completely wrong, doing sit ups like most people do on the darn thing!

I got home and ate, 1 cup egg whites, 1 whole egg, 1 slice of my favorite spelt and rye bread from Acme, with peanut butter and jelly. Coffee, but not too much as I remember last week having to pee the whole time during kickboxing, not fun.

9:50 I arrive and take off my shoes, pad across the mat and say hi to Jerome. There are only about 6 guys there and then he tells us to "run!" so we start. Now I learn not to arrive early. 

The class started with me and 10 guys (no Cheddar) and then a few more guys and one wicked looking gal joined in later.

We go through a half hour of conditioning, it's not the same as last week although very similar. We do the same routine of running around the facility with four stops to perform an exercise, starting with one push up, run, one high knee jump, run, one jump sprawl, run, one squat. We do 2 of each, then 3, then 4, and on and on till we have done 10 of each.

It was much easier this week. Then jumping jacks, jumping jacks with one kick, with two kicks, mountain climbers in between, jogging in place and jabbing, jogging and cross, jogging and jab cross, jogging and drop sprawl, jogging and block kick, down on the ground and crunches, side crunches, frog crunches.

30 minutes later done! I survived.

Jerome shouted to everyone to get a partner and he gave instructions, I didn't understand what it was. He grabbed a guy  by the name of Jay and told him that he would be working with me on kicks. 

Crap! 

Last week I was in front of  a mirror practicing punches, this week I guess I am one of the guys. But I didn't have my gear, only my gloves, I wasn't expecting this. No wraps, no shin guards, no mouthpiece, no headgear. 

This too I shall survive.

Jerome told us what kicks to practice, demonstrated with Jay and then left us. Jay kicked me and I kicked him. I could tell immediately that I would have a very bruised left shin the next day.

Jerome would come watch and critique, then show us combos. Jab, cross, midkick, jab, block. High kick, cross, hook, low kick, block.

On and on for a half hour, Jay was good, he really helped me improve my hook.

11:00 and the class was done, I was dripping in sweat, my hair was plastered to my head and face, sweat everywhere, I felt high. Everyone shook Jerome's hand or got a slap on the back. I talked with a few of the guys, they are all very friendly. 

I left walking out in only my tank top, shorts and flip flops although it was probably 40 degrees out at most. With the top down and Citizen Cope blasting on the stereo, I drove home. My hands were shaking, my wrists hurt, my left shin was throbbing and I started crying. I wasn't crying from pain or sadness, it was just a wave of emotion that overcame me.

I have been wanting to do this for years, and last week I finally started, but last week was easy; it was play. This week was hard, I was the attacker, I was attacked. I learned to kick with all my body force, it was hard to do at first, I was afraid of hurting him. I learned my leg can kick up to someones chest, soon up to their head. I learned to block with my legs (my poor, poor unprotected legs), with my forearms.

If I was ever to be attacked, lord have mercy on the poor slob who makes that mistake.

Home, all I want is a long hot shower and a big glass of ice water. I take off my shirt, it was soaked, here it is.

I told Cooper about it, about my surprise at the difference between last week and this week. "Why are you surprised mom? You assimilated fast, just like I thought you would."

Nice.

Life is Good

How often do you have those days? Those days when you drive in the car, singing at the top of your lungs? I seem to do that a lot- but then I have a convertible and it makes it oh so much more fun!

I got an email from Roy, he sent it Thursday night but I didn't see it till I checked my email at 4:15 am on Friday.  Can we train at 2:00 instead of 12:00? 

Heck yes! It means I leave work at 11:30 and hit Santana Row right away - Lululemon just got a new shipment in the night before and they received one of my two favorite bra tops in Paris Pink! It's like the one I am wearing here, but HOT PINK - called the Hot n' Sweaty Bra. The name alone makes me all excited!

Then off to Vintage Wine Merchants for some stocking stuffers for Cooper. I cannot name them on the blog or he will see what they are. 

Then grocery shopping- we will have Chateaubriand with shallot sauce tonight- roasted potatoes for the boys, Brussels sprouts for me. 

Stacey emails just before 1:00 - "Aren't you training with Roy today???" She is there at his place at 1:00 and normally I would be there first but I am not.

Roy and I train shoulders. He said this is the first week that we have not been able to progress in weights since we started training. We started back in March, so that is quite some time. Keep in mind that he changes the program every three to four weeks, so each week I show progression, but not this. I think it is because we have been doing low reps, high weight.

For instance, I am doing a barbell shoulder press with 105 pounds, that's quite a bit. 5 sets, 5 reps each set.

I suppose Roy needs to have something new next week!

The heavy weights mean long rest periods. We chat about bodies, what people find attractive, what people like. I am still astounded by the women who want to be skinny, painfully skinny, with huge breasts and very thin arms. It just doesn't make sense to me.

Roy asked if I know of Jessica Biel. I told him yes, I think she is stunning. 

Roy said polls have shown that most women think she is too manly- too muscular. 

WTF??

As David always says: The masses are asses.

Roy and I finish shoulders and we box- although the air is cool we end up taking it outside in the sunshine, the cool air and sunshine feels good. I can feel myself feeling more confident, I cannot wait until my next session at AKA tomorrow!

After I am home, we visit Mark and Virginia, then come home and eat. I have two great emails waiting for me.

One is from Alicia. She lives across the street from my father in law and reads my blog everyday. She has been working diligently since we met last Christmas on shaping up and trimming down. She told me she has lost 12 pounds! That is amazing! 12 pounds is a huge accomplishment, especially for someone who works taking care of children in her home. This is probably one of the most challenging jobs you can have, and she has done a great job!

Great Job Alicia!!

Then I had an email form Rita Barry of Fitblooger. I will be their featured blogger on January 2, 2012!  An auspicious day for all fit people! I am so excited and cannot wait to come up with a great post for this day. 

Soon to bed, It's leg day and the gym opens at 6:00 am. then I have kickboxing with Jerome Turcan at 10:00. 

And then....lunch with the boys and Lauren at The Cellar Door restaurant in Santa Cruz!

Kickboxing

Woo Hoo! I did it and I loved it! I am also a smelly mess.

Kickboxing!

I have written about AKA many times, Cooper has been training there for a few years with Jerome Turcan. I have always wanted to but didn't want to infringe on Coop's territory. AKA is known as the best kickboxing academy in the entire United States, really.

A couple weeks ago I was shopping at the store next to American Kickboxing Academy when the side door flew open and Jerome was standing there waiving and shouting Kristy Kristy! I walked over and he gave me a big sweaty hug. I told him I was boxing with my trainer and loved it. He said "Come box with me! I will teach you how to kickbox!".

Two weeks later I am here at AKA on a Saturday at 10:00 am with my gloves. 

Jerome's class is called High Energy Kickboxing and it is everything plus that.  I arrived and Jerome stood there with his arms out "I don't believe it! You are here!" "Yes I am!" The young woman at the desk had me fill out the release and went to take my fee. Jerome told her "NO! She is trying it out!"

The place is sparse, one ring, many hanging heavy bags, pads all over the floor and a small weight room area. I immediately started talking to the only other woman there and asked if she had been taking the class long. No, she just started. But she said "I started kickboxing 11 years ago...and quit 10 years ago. My name is Cheddar- like the cheese"

I liked her immediately. She explained that her husband is actually one of the founders of AKA and an instructor, Andy Fong. I think I am sticking with Cheddar for the morning.

Cooper told me the drill so I knew a bit about what to expect. The first half hour would be conditioning, then the second would be technique with a partner.

We started jogging indoors around the facility. There were about 15 males and me and Cheddar. I followed her and just copied what she did after Jerome barked out the commands. First we were to stop and do one push up, jog then do one jump, knees to the chest, jog and do one burbee, jog and do one squat, jog and start over. But the next time around was two of everything. Then three, then four, then five, all the way to ten of each. 

Um....that was:

55 pushups

55 high knee jumps

55 burpees

55 squats

I was starting to wish I hadn't lifted weights for an hour and half at 5:00 a.m. Cheddar told me the key to this class was to "pace yourself". Yes indeed.

So we had been in class for about 15 minutes. Crap

Next we jogged to the center of the facility and he called out commands, jumping jacks, kicks, leg blocks, cross with the right, jabs with the left, both hands, hooks, it went on for a long time. Then more jogging, but we would stop half way and do table crawls across the room, jog and frog jumps, jog and squat walks, jog and butterfly's (those were kinda gross, by then almost the entire area was wet with sweat and I had to hop/jump on my belly), jog then back crawls (moving along the mat with your shoulder blades, pulling yourself through the sweat). 

Back to the center and we did mountain climbers and all sorts of crunches, frog leg crunch, side crunch on the left, side crunch on the right, feet up in the air...100 of each. Jerome kept right up with us.

30 minutes done and I was dripping.

Jerome told me to get my gloves and wait for him. Everyone else paired up and he gave them combinations to practice. He took me aside and for the next half hour instructed me on the proper basic moves. He would tell me how to hold my body and jab with my left, then leave me to practice. If I stopped as he was watching he others the shouted for me to continue. Then I learned the cross. Upper cut. Jab. Move like a dancer, I am too stiff.

Protect my face, always keep the gloves up by the cheeks.

He then showed me a combination to practice. Jab, cross, upper cut, upper cut, hook, hook. Then another jab, cross, hook, upper cut, upper cut, hook. And another. Keep practicing. Jerome was laughing and he told me that I wouldn't even have to diet for my next competition now, I will be lean and ripped year round!

30 minutes alter I was done. Jerome gave me a big hug and asked if I was staying for the second class.

Hell No!

He asked if I was coming back next week.

Hell Ya!

I talked to the woman again about what I needed. She said "You are ripped!". "Yeah, I can lift some heavy weights, but this was tough, really, really tough". I walked out on air, I loved it. I treated myself to an entire banana. I haven't had one since October 2.

I got home and Cooper wanted to know what I thought. I told him I loved it and I needed equipment, he said he would go help me get the right stuff. We got out of the car and I said "could I be sore already? It's only been 4 hours". And he looks at me, the way only a 17 year old can do and says "yep" with a smirk on his face. "wait till later". I got wraps, mouth guard, and shin guards. 

Here is Cooper with me in the kitchen showing me how to wrap my hands, oh I think this will take me a while to master.

Did it! David asked him if he would get up early next Saturday to wrap them for me. I think I will learn, it might take a while but I can do it. I can do anything.

If you are interested in seeing Jerome in action, take a look at this video, even if you only look for the first couple minutes. He is impressive, and frightening. Thank goodness he is on my side.

(Email readers will need to navigate directly to the blog to view this video).

Kickboxing

Cooper was in a tournament this past Sunday- it was sponsored by N.A.S.S.A, North American Sport Savate Association at AKA, American Kickboxing Academy where he trains with Jerome Turcan.  


He won first place in the kickboxing division and best fighter at the tournament (there was also some submission wrestling matches). 


I think competition is a healthy, great way to boost self esteem for all of us, and I am glad that Cooper has gotten into it too! Growing up is difficult for all of us, and some of us never feel confident in our own bodies, or just as "us". We are constantly comparing ourselves to others, or sizing ourselves up, and when we enter a competition, it shows we care enough about ourselves, that we like ourselves enough to go against everyone else!


Cooper has another tournament in two weeks.  He started kickboxing because I wanted to do it, but never had the time. I would go to AKA and just watch the fighters. They are amazing athletes, almost like svelte animals in the jungle. The facility is located near a store where I shop, so for years I would stop by and just watch them all in action, just for a few minutes.


One day I made him go with me and talked him into taking lessons, and he liked it! Shortly after he started training one on one with Jerome, and has been for a few years now.

The fights were easier than I thought to watch, maybe because he is good. If he was getting hurt I may not have been so relaxed about the whole thing. We are lucky that AKA is just a couple miles from our house, and Cooper has such a great trainer. Many of the top fighters train from AKA, although most of them now train at the newer AKA facility recently opened in South San Jose.

The tournament consisted of two one minute rounds, with a 30 second rest in between. He had 6 opponents. The tournament was judged on technique, agility, finesse, actual kicks and hits that made contact, but not on pummeling your opponent. 

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There was one female fighting, but not in Cooper's division, she was a beginner and was competing against two other beginners.


The submission wresting was odd for me to observe, it just didn't make much sense to me, Cooper attempted to explain it but the kickboxing was more exciting. 


Can you imagine what it must be like to be 17, win 1st place for kickboxing, and the Best Fighter out of all the fighters, and have your girlfriend there watching?  She even kissed him with his mouth guard in, now that's love!

If you have kids, I encourage you to get them involved in a sport where they can feel successful, and one that they can compete in. It can be individual or team based, some people prefer one over the other.

Cooper's sense of accomplishment was evident to anyone around, and although I really don't want him to grow up to be a fighter, I am happy to see he can hold his own!