GETTING PHYSICAL

I recently received a couple of reminders that practicing martial artists read my books and come here to the website. Thanks very much! Well, that's one thing... Another is, apparently I turned fifty earlier this year. Surely some mistake.


So I thought I'd talk about working out, just for one blog entry, since I've not discussed matters physical for a while. If my next blog is about psychological stuff, I'll maybe call it Going Mental.


This is my diary, not a training manual, and always see your physician before starting a programme of exercise, and you know all the rest of the legal disclaimer... Also bear in mind Mark Twain's dictum (which I got from Matt Furey): "Be careful what you read in health books. You might die of a misprint."


Actually, that reminds me, that I own several (otherwise decent) books on weight training that fail to properly highlight photographs of poor technique -- as in, do NOT do it this way -- alongside those showing the correct method. Hmm.


Personally, I don't do much scheduling in advance. Then again, I'm not a professional athlete; I'm someone who manages to train solo when there's no one around to motivate me. (And I used to do it while holding down a full-time day job that entailed over four hours a day commuting -- or else being away from home in a hotel somewhere -- and writing as well.) What I do is, select from a series of modules that fit together to form a workout.
I recorded a week's training, starting the Saturday before last, just to give you an idea. Another week will be different.


The week in question I trained solo, but with access to equipment, meaning my dungeon-like garage gym (which I used only one day) or just in the house, where I have dumbbells, plus running around the streets. There's plenty you can do with just your bodyweight and a pair of running shoes, and if you're in a hotel room you can always use flexible exercise bands -- use 2 or 3 together for proper tension, or buy one of the high-tension loops you can get nowadays, with up to 200 pounds of force to work against.


Well, this was John's training for 7 days. To begin with, my wakeup routine every morning was an exercise flow from Scott Sonnon's prasara yoga system. The main workout was later in the day (in fact, often late at night).

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Saturday:

3 mile run

then 4 sets of the following mini-circuit (tri-set)

* push-ups x 25

* chin-ups x 5

* ab crunches x 50

light stretch

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Sunday:

5 sets of the following circuit:

* Hindu push-ups x 50

* Barbell curls x 15

* Hindu squats x 100

* Ab crunches x 50

* Shadowboxing x 2 minutes

(total 250 Hindu push-ups, etc.)

then 3 rounds on the heavy bag under normal conditions (i.e., wearing gloves, ordinary lighting, techniques: punches/kicks/knees/elbows, all power shots)

then 1 round in darkness, no gloves (this tends to emphasise open-hand techniques)

then 1 extended round (over 10 mins) of groundwork on mats, with non-suspended heavy bag used as a wrestler's dummy (to practice striking techniques when lying on ground, and some body-shifting drills)

then wrestler's bridge (neck bridge) for 250 seconds,

finish with rolling breakfalls, then stretch into splits (1 minute left front splits, 1 minute right, 1 minute box splits),
followed by light stretch

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Monday:

6 miles run; splits (3 mins), light stretch

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Tuesday:

recuperation day (prasara yoga only)

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Wednesday:

Hindu push-ups x 250

Hindu squats x 500

Neck bridge x 250 seconds

4 sets of mini-circuit (superset):

* ab crunch x 50

* dumbbell floor press x 20

(a floor press is like a bench press... but without a bench!)

followed by 4 sets of 1-arm dumbbell rows, x 20 repetitions with each arm

followed by4 sets of mini-circuit (tri-set):

*dumbbell squat x 20

*dumbbell shoulder press x 20

*dumbbell alternating hammer curl x 40 (20 per arm)

followed by 4 sets of triceps kickbacks x 10 reps each arm

then light stretch

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Thursday:

3 miles run, then splits (3 mins), then light stretch

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Friday:

5 mile run, splits (3 mins), then rest for 10 minutes before:

5 rounds of this circuit:

*kettlebell swing x 10 each arm

*Hindu squat x 100

*Hindu push-up x 50

*Shadowboxing x 2 minutes

(shadowboxing includes kicks, knees, elbows, some takedown moves and anti-takedown sprawling)

followed by

Neck bridge x 250 seconds

Ab crunches x 100

light stretch

And that was the week that was! So, am I showing my age? Well, I trained to music just once during the week, and that was to ZZ Top.

Next week: how to turn your Zimmer frame into a deadly weapon...

Or to quote the magnificent Rickson Gracie, just 'flow with the go.'