Freedom of movement seminar

Clubbells

Last month I gave a seminar that included joint mobility, kettlebell basics, clubbells, bodyweight exercises and battlerope work. I called it a "Boot Camp", an admittedly over-used term, because it was longer than the previous seminars I have given and because I wanted to get across the idea of the different disciplines being taught.

The term boot camp comes from the military and refers to a training camp for new recruits, with strict discipline. The term has been high-jacked by fitness professionals to denote a training camp with similar intensity as its military ancestor. It is the latter connotation that made me decide to change the name of the next seminar. I don’t want to scare people off. It’s not an intense training session; it’s a skill-based workshop broken up into sub-hour long segments, with a short break every hour.

My next seminar is called Freedom of Movement. In it, we will take 3 hours to explore joint mobility a bit deeper, kettlebells – a great tool for strength and conditioning, clubbells – excellent for improving mobility – and battle ropes – an amazing tool for cardiovascular conditioning. Each segment is going to focus on moving and applying load in a safe manner. By learning proper technique, participants can leave feeling better about their ability to control their own bodies with or without weight. And they will discover where they are limited in their range of motion so that they know what areas they have to work on.

Joint mobility exercises help the individual to isolate movement within their own bodies. Paradoxically, the more you are able to control one part of your body in isolation, the more you will be able to control your entire body. The goal is to be able to use the body as you wish: segmented or as a unit.

Kettlebells work wonders for the posterior chain. Or, to put it in layman’s terms, the muscles along the back of the body including the lower back, glutes (butt), hamstrings and calves. The posterior chain is a much neglected region of the body. Why is this so? This description from dynamic chiropractic sums it up best:

First, most people sit on their glutes all day, leading to quad dominance; in essence, their butt now becomes their feet. The glutes lose their primary role of hip stabilization and extension. Second, none of the primary muscles is a mirror muscle. It's the out-of-sight, out-of-mind theory. Even people leading an active fitness lifestyle that includes strength training, usually overwork anterior muscles. They end up neglecting the more important posterior ones.

Thanks to kettlebell training, this does not have to be the case! While kettlebells offer a myriad of health benefits, working the much neglected posterior chain is probably its number one advantage.

Clubbells offer their own unique advantages, which I have discussed in previous posts Clubbell training (29-09-14). In a nutshell, clubbells were designed to target the rotary and diagonal muscles, to target grip, wrist and forearm strength, and to enhance shoulder synergy.

Battleropes are 40- to 50-foot training ropes which can be used singled or doubled, one-handed or two. Their advantage lies in their weight distributed along their great length. Taking one end and making the rope move can put a great deal of stress on the cardiovascular system in a very short period. It’s a fun and unique way to strengthen the heart muscle. This exercise comes last in the seminar because all the joints are warm and fully prepped from the previous exercises. And when you are finished with the ropes, you are likely ready for a rest!

So that is the outline of the next seminar, Freedom of Movement. It’s going to be all about discovering pain-free movement and experimenting with different training tools. You will have so much fun, you will not notice the time passing by. The skills you learn there, you can take with you wherever you go!