Monday, June 06, 2005

Bodyweight Conditioning progress and questions from an adventure racer (Coach Sommer?): Kettlebells, Strength, Fitness, Martial Arts

Bodyweight Conditioning progress and questions from an adventure racer (Coach Sommer?): Kettlebells, Strength, Fitness, Martial Arts

Very good post by an adventure racer reporting results from bodyweight-only strength training, using Coach Sommer's Building an Olympic Body through Bodyweight Conditioning program. Check out Coach Sommer's response as well. The "pelvic bridge", if I understand Steve Maxwell's post that was quoted by the good coach, is any bridging movement which raises the pelvis but leaves the upper back and shoulders on the ground. This Pilates article shows one example. The first version I learned was of a Paul Chek Swiss Ball videotape, with the legs resting on a Swiss Ball. There is another version for use with the Power Wheel, which is harder than on the Ball because of the Wheel's instability.

I don't really take sides in the old bodyweight-only vs. weight lifting argument, because of specificity. If you are training to compete in powerlifting or strongman competitions, you have to lift weight. If you are like me and want to get your body to do things some people consider impossible, such as pushups with your feet completely in the air (planche pushups), you need to strength-train with the appropriate bodyweight drills. Mixing it up adds more fun and variety. For us wannabee-gymnasts, low volume weight training for the legs and lower core (hips, glutes, low back, etc.) would round out our training. Perhaps the powerlifters and strongmen could benefit from something like Body-Flow, Yoga, Qigong, or something along those lines on their active recovery days.

Everybody should be doing a daily joint mobility routine, regardless.

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