Ridiculous Exercises

This blog is more of an opinion but it is still based on practicality and functionality of exercise. With all of this craze towards 'integrative' exercise and new and challenging exercises, what the heck are half of these exercises for??? I have seen some trainers doing the wildest things. We can start with a very simple one that I see very often. I call it the "Doggie Leg Lift"- This one is where the exerciser is on hands and knees and lifts their leg out and up as if they were a dog doing it's 'business'. I know what this is 'for' (outer thighs) but come on! A- It is so unfounctional, B- It is minimal in effect. My solution would be to stand on a small platform with the uninvolved (non-used side) leg. The other leg can be lifted to the side or back. If you have resistance from a cable machine or bands or, even, manual. Another is the "Doggie Kick Back". Again, it is not functional and, I feel, very ineffective. Your glutes are VERY strong. How many of these can you do? Even if a plate is placed on your foot. My favorite single leg glute exercise is a split squat- Place the non- working foot on a bench (more advance can use a ball). The foot on the floor performs like a lunge.

Now on to the point of this. These trainers are getting so fancy that they are forgetting basic concepts of function, measurable performance and safety. If the exercise is so fancy, does it replicate your daily activity or sport? Is is something where you can gauge your performance level? Could it cause a traumatic or a harder to measure and determine chronic injury. Is it too fancy and involved for your fitness level? Many ab exercises are good but the person doing it isn't ready for it. They use compensatory muscles. This can lead to chronic problems later. If you don't really know how to determine if the exercise is good or not try this rule:
Would your trainer use/do this exercise??? I have seen many trainers take their clients through work-outs that the trainer wouldn't do for their life. The trainer is giving in to the commercial demands of the business and not training! Do your research. If you want to train for a sport, look up how to train for that sport. If it is just for general fitness and you don't have time to research, just use the "would your trainer do this rule".

You CAN'T Spot Reduce!!!

Let's put this out there in very simple language:
YOU CAN'T SPOT REDUCE!!!! (without lipo)
That bit of fat under your arms or inside your thighs will not come off by doing thousands of triceps extensions or thigh adductions. Your fat comes off in reverse order that you put it on. It's that simple.
If you want to remove the fat from any specific area on your body you just do what you do;
EXERCISE and eat properly!! Keep consistent and intense enough and things will happen.

Kung Fu and Keeping Your Cool!

After watching Serena Williams lose her cool and, thus, her semi-final match at the US Open I thought about how much Kung Fu has helped me in 'keeping my cool'. One of the reasons I started training in kung fu aside from fitness was that I have an extremely bad temper. I felt that the principles of kung fu would help me learn how to control it. It still amazes me how correct that thought was. Especially since I picked a Sifu who epitomizes the idea! I also saw that training, in general, should be intense and also has this affect.
One major part of Kung Fu is that you learn to fight. In Eagle Claw Kung Fu your main goal is to control your opponent through locking them by joints or muscles. This requires tremendous self-control as you want to be able to apply just the right amount of strength and pressure so as NOT to injure unless you need to. In order to do this one must truly attain Kung Fu (high level of skill attained through hard work and time). My Sifu (teacher- Grand Master Leung Shum) always said that when fighting you should keep a slight smile on your face. This helps you stay relaxed. It also can disarm any opponent since they won't know what you are thinking and can also see that you are relaxed. The way you get to this point is through intense training annd repitition of techniques. It also requires a large degree of high intensity fighting, as closely simulating the real thing as possible. In many cases I recommend that a student competes in full-contact fighting to get even more realistic. If you can handle this over the years, when a real life situation arises, you are much calmer and will react in the manner that you trained.
All of this can help you in real life with no fighting. If you are threatened, whether physically or just mentally, you have been put through far more stress than the average person. Your sense of 'time' slows down and you don't make those snap reactions that get you into trouble. Your calmness can affect your opponent and the will, in turn, also calm down. This will deescalate the situation and you may not even have to fight. If it is just a mental situation, the same principles apply since, in many cases, a person will try to intimidate you.
In your training you should push your limits physically and mentally. If you do, then any stresses that come at you in your every day life will seem minimal and not affect you as harshly. You will remain calmer and deal with the situation better.
In conclusion, when you train, whether in Kung Fu, Tai Chi or just fitness training, you should put your body through as intense a work out as you can at the time. Your physical AND mental body will get stronger! This will allow for you to deal with daily stress in a much better manner.

It's KUNG FU not Karate!!!

Alright, I was getting into my car with my uniform on. BOTH have Eagle Claw Kung Fu written BOLDLY on them. A lady who was going in to the house next door to mine asks if I teach Karate. I answer the school phone with "Eagle Claw Kung Fu, may I help you?" People ask me what style of Karate I teach?
I understand that most people don't know that there is a difference. It is also known that Karate is more commercially successful than Kung Fu. THAT is my main (certainly not the only) reason why I get so perturbed by this. In my trying to run my business it is very important to have my identity. Being Kung Fu and not Karate helps in that. In this day of internet searching, if people know that they are looking for Kung Fu and not Karate, it will also help me in finding me in search engines.
Now for the other reasons- Physically and philosophically, there are differences between Kung Fu and Karate. (One thing to note is that, in general, Kung Fu is the 'father' of Karate and most other martial arts. These others derived from Kung Fu so please don't think of Kung Fu as a style of Karate.) Most of these are generalizations but the ideas are there:
1- Kung Fu is more of a finesse art while Karate tends to lean towards muscle and strength.
2- Kung Fu tends to take longer to learn. This ties in with the finesse/strength- It is much easier to use power than 'perfect' technique. The words "kung fu" don't mean martial art. The word 'kung' means time and 'fu' means energy. When together they mean a high level of skill derived from hard work over time. The name tells you it will take time. When people call and ask if I teach the philosophy of kung fu, I tell them that I teach (as much as possible given Western condition) traditional Kung Fu.
3- Kung Fu is more circular and fluid than Karate. Again, this ties in with finesse.
4- Kung Fu is Chinese while Karate is Japanese. Enough said?
Please don't think this is a 'cut' on Karate. I respect all martial arts and Karate is a fine art. I just need to clarify that there are differences (since the general Western press doesn't do this) to help me in my business and to, simply, educate the general public.
When you talk with others about martial arts, you now have a basic understanding of this and can further help educate on the differences and, maybe, help more people come to my classes for Kung Fu!
THANKS!!!

"New" Look at Autism

While Autism is not Fitness, it does affect our CHILDREN and their health so I feel it important to post this article/link for you:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/why-current-thinking-abou_b_275753.html

Please read this and pass it on at anybody who has a child with Autism or Add or similar "Disorder"!