Tonight I met our trainee assistant Libby at the Aikido’Ka dojo. It was ominously dark there. Come to find out classes were canceled. People starting showing up anyway so we turned on the heater and got to work. I had Libby start people with progressive goblet squats. We did some long sets using intermediate level breathing techniques. This breathing method is not maximally powerful as regards torso stabilization, but it is more effective for a long stretch of respectably heavy squats. We also discussed how the intermediate breathing techniques work very well for people who have been told by their cardiologist to never hold their breath.
Because we had a small group I took requests. Libby asked for breathing behind the shield, Gabriel asked for heavy military press, and Big John requested Turkish get-ups. Breathing behind the shield is a technique used when you must maintain tension for a long period of time. The term is often used in martial arts, and has it’s origin in ancient warfare. We did Hardstyle, tough-love planks to illustrate the effectiveness of breathing behind the shield. If you don’t know what TL planks are, come to class on a slow night and make a request.
Next we worked on heavy military press, but really, we were already. Breathing behind the shield is not something you would do during a military press. However you would during a drill that supports better pressing, such as near maximally heavy, kettlebell halos or Turkish get-ups. Hmm, seems like everything we do is connected doesn’t it? That’s because a well designed system of strength & conditioning is like that. It is holistic. Everything is connected, and each element clearly supports the others. Our system is much more effective and user friendly than a mere collection of techniques. A holistic system makes functional training truly functional.
After practicing some visualization drills and supporting lifts for the military press we moved on to the Turkish get-up. John chose this one because “it’s difficult.” That is an excellent reason. John was still a bit rubbery in the legs from Thursday’s session, news that gratified me immensely, so he stumbled a bit even with the light kettlebells. I switched him to an evil technique you don’t see much outside of RKC instructor training. I had John get into TGU start position with no kettlebell, holding his empty fist aloft. I balanced a foam yoga block carefully on his knuckles, and gave him the green light. The “weightless” version is extremely difficult, but the challenge is not strength, it is balance and control. This changes the whole focus of the drill. It’s like playing backwards chess. Libby expressed a lingering desire to do the TGU like a sit-up. Of course it is not done that way. Power goes sideways at first, not up. So I showed her the kettlebell, get-up/sit-up. This put a smile on her face and satisfied her yearning for direct, abdominal training. We got all this done in 30 minutes.