Tuesday Max Vo2, 74 sets w/12kg

Tuesday 7:15 Bikram yoga
9:20 KB Max V02

I took Monday off from all workouts because I wasn't feeling good...I think I ate some chicken that was past it's fridge life the day before......so this morning I got home from yoga, shaved my calluses, and went to it. One warm up set of 10 swing, snatches and I started right in on the 70+ sets I knew I was in for this morning.

Work sets w/12kg

8 snatch R, 15 sec work,
15 sec rest,
8 snatch L, 15 sec work,
15 sec rest
x 74 sets = 32 min. total
part one:


part two

My heartrate stayed 150 and then, the rest of my workout....

15 min. 2 hand swing ladders w/16kg, 390 swings

This got me up to 170+ HR

Mark just informed me that if I have another day like today, I can just go for it and do as many sets as I can....now he tells me, lol!

Paralyzed by Perfection

What's up with this "perfectionism" thing and where the hell did it come from? Geez.....I seem to get paralyzed by perfection in so many ways.....

I started writing this blog post 7/28 almost 3 weeks ago. What stopped me from finishing is exactly what this post started to be about. Can I find the "perfect" words to describe how I'm feeling? Nope....well, maybe later.

Well later is now. I'm not perfect. I eat too much. I can get so caught up on stupid shit like not being able to eat an apple because it's "out of season" God forbid, that I end up tearing open a package of licorice in the grocery store because I torment myself that the apple is not only out of season, but not organic! Geez.

I can sit in front of a basket of celery at the farmers market for 5 minutes trying to decide which bunch is the greenest, for best nutrient value, andwhich one is not too big, not too small, so I won't waste any, and just the day before binging on Chick O' Sticks...so what the hell?

Right now, at this very minute I have 2 minutes to get out in the gym to start my workout, before a scheduled 7am phone consult. If I don't get out there I'll have less than 60 full minutes to work out....God forbid I work out less than 60 freakin' minutes! Geez, I might not be perfect if I my workout is only 45 minutes.

I have been paralyzed by perfection. I can't seem to get a blog post written unless I feel I've got something to say that can be anything anyone cares about, and the time to say everything I have to say about it....blah, blah, blah.

Time to train. not enough coffee, not enough time, the late night yogurt snack was probably not the perfect choice to make, but so what. I have to start moving again. Moving forward again. I don't need to be perfect, I'll start by cutting this blog post short, and my workout can only be 56 min.....55......54.......53

The Team Rif Kettlebell Workshop in Wine Country

Kettlebells in Wine Country : The Team Rif Kettlebell Workshop.

Swing, Snatch, Press: The Perfect Combination.

Mark and Tracy are pleased to announce their first dual workshop in beautiful Healdsburg, California September 6 and 7, 2008. Come train with us in the middle of wine county and learn the basics of the RKC way to swing, snatch and press a kettlebell as well as fundamental information about injury prevention , how to use the foam roller as well as Tracy’s unique program designs for losing bodyfat using her original high volume swing training.

Learn how just these three movements and one kettlebell can transform your body, your heart and your fitness program for LIFE!

This five hour seminar on Saturday PLUS an additional Master class with Tracy Sunday morning will be just $195 for those that sign up Sunday July 27th and Monday July 28. After that the price will be $245. I guarantee that you will get your moneys worth and more! We can only accommodate 20 people so make sure you get in quickly! This will fill up fast.

We will cover:

1)The Basic Kettlebell Swings; techniques, corrective drills, individuation for specific body types and how to maximize the most basic of kettlebell movements for a lifetime of results.

2) The Tsar of Kettlebell lifts: the Snatch. How to learn it quickly and easily, how to control the all important down stroke and how to train the lift for maximum cardiovascular, fat burning and muscularizing results.

3) The Press: The King of Kettlebell strength moves. Learn how to use the whole body to energize the press, how to protect the shoulder, and all the variations needed to keep your progress going with just ONE kettlebell.

4) Length Tension Relationships: Learn the basics of this all important concept for balancing the body’s muscle systems and staying injury free at work and during training.

5) Foam Roller: Learn how to use this simplest of massage tools to assess and address muscle tightness’s and imbalances BEFORE they turn into progress stopping injuries.

6) TracyStyle Swing Progressions: Learn how to take the three basic swing movements and program your training for YEARS of non stop progress and fun and exciting combinations. If your goal is fat loss and serious toning you HAVE to have this information.

7) The Master Class : Come out Sunday morning and take a swing class with Tracy and put Saturday’s information into practice. See the exact routines and techniques she used to lose over 100 pounds in less than a year and transform her body. Learn just how efficient (and tough) basic swing training can be when done in this new and exciting way.

Where and when: American Karate Academy

Address: 424 Moore Ln. Healdsburg, CA 95448

Saturday Sept 6th : 9 am- 2 pm +

Sunday Sept 7th 10-11 am Master Class

How Much

$245 per person

How to Pay: Just click on the Pay Pal button at the top of the post

http://rifsblog.blogspot.com/

http://tracyrif.blogspot.com/

Cancellations: Please note that cancellations MUST be made no less than one week prior to the date of the workshop. We cannot offer refunds after that, sorry.

Questions: Please contact Mark at 650-273-2637

Sign up now, can't wait to see you there!

Mark Reifkind Senior RKC
Tracy Reifkind RKC

Wednesday, Max Vo2 36/36

Wednesday KB Max V02

Warm up
misc. swings, snatches w/12kg (18 snatch points), 2 min.





Work sets w/12kg

19 snatch R, 36 sec work,
36 sec. rest
19 snach L, 36 sec work,
36 sec rest
x 35 sets = 42 min. total

My forearms were fine but I was workoing with some pretty good blisters on my palms for about half of the snatch workout. In fact I was hoping to do some clean/presses afterwards but my hands were toast.

I finished the workout with a 15 min swing ladder w/12kg

Total workout 59 min.
Total snatches 683


Talk about low energy, I'm just now getting up yesterday's workout and video, lol! I was in a bit of a "funk" yesterday and it started right after 5:30am yoga....I got home with every intention of going straight into the gym to do the second 36 sec work to rest snatch workout of this weeks Max V02 training, in fact I was looking forward to it since the day before, but I let myself get distracted by the rice pudding in the fridge! Luckily there was only small amount, but it was enough to break my momentum.

After eating the pudding I thought I would push my workout to the afternoon when Mark got home around 12noon or the next day, so I took a shower, cleaned my house and planned on meeting at 9;30am with KB clients......but too bad for me, I marched my ass out to the gym at 8:15, now running late, and with bad attitude and all, got it done. My crappy mood lasted practically the whole day, even though I was more than satisfied with the strength and form of my snatches, and after watching the video I could tell I had more of a groove going than Monday's workout.

It's just too bad that the hands give out before the breath with this work to rest ratio. 36 seconds of rest is just too much time for me, not that 36 sec of work isn't hard, it is, but if I can still talk easily between sets my heart rate just isn't reaching it's intended goal for the cardio vascular benefits. But it's esstential to build up grip endurance and lactic acid tolerace for the SSST. Eventually when I'm ready I'll need to use the 16kg for this protocol.

A Mindless Cup of Sugar

So, as I'm sitting, waiting, in the barbershop while Mark is getting his haircut, there's a 7-Eleven store next door, and I see one person after another drive up, park, get out, go in the store, and come out with a Slurpee, Snapple, orange soda, Big Gulp, etc......every single person came out carrying a mindless cup of sugar.

Now, I have had, maybe, 2 sodas in over 3 years....soda's not my thing. And I'm not claiming I haven't had my share of "all out sugar binges", but, when I eat (or drink) sugar, I know what I'm doing, and what I'm choosing. Sugar is "dessert", and I'd rather eat it as such. Do most people know how much sugar is in everyday meals? I mean, processed foods are a given, if you eat alot of processed foods you are eating alot of sugar, and crappy sugars at that.

But let's go back to the "dessert" thing......what is dessert? It's amazing to me when I stop to get a cup of coffee at any coffee shop and see almost every single person ordering a scone, muffin, cookie, "low carb" banana bread (etc.) in addition to their "Frappa Crappa"! Isn't the Frappa Crappa dessert?

I eat my share of sugar for sure, but when I read a recipe for something as simple as a salad dressing and it calls for 1/4 c. sugar or God forbid 1/2 c. sugar that salad just turned into dessert! I will not make a salad dressing with more than 1-2 tbl. of sugar or honey, and even then I count that salad as a "sweet meal", choosing savory foods for other meals that day. I mean, I can make dessert out of a bowl of oatmeal with enough sugar, honey, sweet cream, butter, rasins, etc, lol! (that's how Mark eats it BTW) As far as I'm concerned a PBJ sandwich is dessert too! (about 500 calories in one small stinkin' sandwich)

These last few months I been more aware of what it takes to mantain a healthy bodyweight, and for me, I have to make trade-offs, I don't think most people think that way. I don't think anyone goes into a 7-Eleven thinking that the soda they're drinking is dessert, that it's pure sugar, and it'll probably ruin their appetite for "good food", or that the calories in a Big Gulp are equivilent to a meal.....I think, they think they're just thirsty. No thought.

I admit I overthink food and at times may obsess about this calorie or that calorie, blah, blah, blah...but I'd rather be overly conscious than unconscious., mindful and not mindless....but that's just me.

Monday, Max V02 36/36

Monday 7:30am KB

Warm up, misc. swing /snatch (10 snatches L& R), 2 min. total





Work sets w 12kg

19 snatch R, 36 sec work,
36 sec rest,
19 snatch L, 36 sec work,
36 sec rest
x 30 sets = 36 min. total, 570 snatches

The hardest part of this work to rest ratio was how my forearm fatique affected my grip. It wasn't my hand it was my forearm, especially on my right side. I think my right side, since it is my dominant side, 'overgrips', while my left side stays a little more relaxed.

Looking back on this workout, it felt hard at the time, but my form could've been better, and my energy could've been better, and although I couldn't imagine doing this again so soon, either Wed. or Thurs., I'm anxious to make it better.

I finished my workout with the Gymboss still set at 36 sec intervals, and stayed with the 12kg.

23 R, 23 L, one hand swings, 72 sec. work,
36 sec rest
x 10 sets = 18 min total, 460 swings

This was probably not the smartest way to finish my workout, working my grip even more, since I have another 36/36 snatch workout to do this week, lol!

Total workout 56 min.

Max V02 w/16kg 60 sets

Wednesday
6:30am KB




Warm up

misc swing, snatch w/12kg & 16 kg 4 min (10 of each, 30 snatch points)

Work sets w/16kg

7 snatch R, 15 sec
15 sec rest,
7 snatch L, 15 sec
15 sec rest
x 60

Total 30 min., 420 snatches (840 snatch points)

I finished my workout with 1 set of 5/5 clean press w/16kg and, 2 min sets of swing, clean, presses w/12kg x 4 for an additional 15 min.

Total workout 49 min.

I made a batch of Chipotle Cauliflower Soup after my workout and now I'm off for my walk.....

Life is good.

Week 2 Max V02 52 sets x 7 w/16kg

Today was the second week of my new structured KB workout schedule. I start out on Monday with the first of 2 Max V02 workouts. I'm doing two Max V02 workouts, instead of one, to double the workload and increase the cardio vascular and muscular endurance capacity. This training is leading up to use the 'boost' protocol to peak for testing the USSST (16kg snatch for 10 min.) This is a 12 week cycle.

3 one week cycles done twice, (6 weeks) then 4 weeks of the boost protocol, 1 rest week, then the test week or weeks.

1st week, two, 12kg, 8 rep/15 sec intervals (50-60 sets)
2nd week, two 16kg, 7 rep/15 sec intervals (50 - 60 sets)
3rd week, two 12kg 19-20 rep, 36 sec intervals (31-35 sets)
4th week, two 12kg, 8 rep/15 sec intervals (60 - 80 sets)
5th week, two 16kg, 7 rep/15 sec intervals (60 -80 sets)
6th week, two 12kg, 19-20 rep / 36 sec intervals (up to 40 sets or more)
7th & 8th week, Max V02 Boost Protocol, details given at that time.

Here is video of today Max V02 w/16kg (as usual I lost count and ended up doing 2 extra sets for a total of 52 sets)




7:45 am KB
9:30am 1 hour 10 min walk

Warm up
misc swings and snatches w/12kg & 16kg, 4 minutes total

Work sets w/16kg

8 snatch R, 15 sec work, 15 sec rest
8 snatch L, 15 sec work, 15 sec rest
x 52 sets = 26 min.

Speed swings w/12kg

1 swing, 1 transfer ( 2 reps per) x 88, ( 44 reps per min) x 4 min. work
1 min rest x 5 sets = 20 min. / 880 swings
1 swing, 1 transfer (2 reps per) x 60 ( 40 reps per min) x 3 min. work 120 reps

23 min. total swing time
1000 swings w/12kg

53 minute total KB workout


*************************************************************************************
Here's my new KB workout schedule;

Monday
Max V02
speed swings

Wenesday
Max V02
clean, presses

Friday and/or Saturday
heavy 2 hand swings

A Moment of Defeat, a Life of Victory

A feeling of defeat is not the same as being defeated. A feeling of defeat can last for only a moment, being defeated can last a lifetime.

A feeling of weakness is not the same as being weak. A feeling of weakness can last for only a moment, being weak can last a lifetime.

I have moments of defeat, I have moments of weakness.

I have a life filled with victories, sometimes victories come from defeat. I have a life filled with strength, sometimes strength comes from weakness.

One arm swings with the 24 kg.PR

My battery on my camera ran short, but caught this much of work set rotation #1.



Friday 6:30am KB
Heavy swings

Warm up w/16kg

40 2 hand swings, 1 min. work, 1 min rest x 5 sets = 10 min.

Work set rotation #1, 8 min.

20/20 one hand swings w/16kg, 1 min work,
1 min rest
40 2 hand swings w/16kg, 1 min work,
1 min rest
10/10 one hand swings w/20kg, 30 sec. work, (video starts here)
30 sec rest
20 2 hand swings w/20 kg, 30 sec work,
30 sec rest
10/10 one hand swings w/24kg, 30 sec work,
30 sec rest
20 2 hand swings w/24kg, 30 sec work,
30 sec rest
repeat 4 x = 28 min. total

Work set rotation #2, 4 min.

40 2 hand swings w/16kg, 1 min work,
1 min rest
20 2 hand swings w/20kg, 30 sec work,
30 sec rest
20 2 hand swings w/24kg, 30 sec work,
30 sec rest
repeat 4 x = 16 min.

Total workout 54 min.

Friday or Saturday will be a regular scheduled heavy 2 hand swing workout. Last week I started a new structured training schedule including 2, Max V02 snatch workouts, on Mondays and Wednesdays. Details to be posted soon

The Calm, before the Storm

Since getting back from the Level ll Cert, in St. Paul, a couple of weeks ago I decided to give my training some structure, inspired by the new Max V02 'boost' protocol...but first a small break. Because I had been swinging with mostly the 16kg, and up, for weeks, I was having some upper back soreness that I kept irritating by these heavy workloads.

I still have to enter my snatch points from the training I did while in St. Paul, but first here's how my 1st week back home looked like....

Monday 6/30
9:30am KB 2 hand swings, uphill and downhill ladders w/12kg, 16kg, 20kg
48 min. total workout

Tuesday 7/1
11:30am 1 hour walk
no KB (well kind of...lol...does 600 2 hand swings w/12kg, count?)

Wednesday 7/2
no KB, no workouts

Thursday 7/3
7:15am Bikram yoga
11:30am 50 min. walk
no KB

Friday 7/4
7:15am Bikram yoga
no KB

Saturday 7/5
7:30am KB (finally!)
heavy 2 hand swings w/12kg, 16kg, 20 kg
66 min. total workout

Sunday 7/6
8:00am Bikram yoga (with my yoga buddy, lol)
no KB

Monday 7/7
beginning of my new Max Vo2 training......

Who Do You Hang Out With?

I recently read (on tape, lol) Dr Andrew Weils "Eating Well For Optimum Health" (loaned to me by Gayle Hunter), and Dr Weil mentions often, and suggests something that I've believed for a while, which is, if you want to live a certain kind of lifestyle, hang out with people that live that lifestyle.


For instance, since the book is about eating and nutrition, Dr. Weil talks about cooking and preparing your own foods at home, something I've avocated since practicing this habit myself for over three years, and if it's something that you're not good at, or you don't know how to do, then hang out with friends that do cook and prepare food at home...learn from them. I'm always inviting myself over to friends homes to show them how to cook and prepare their own meals, and obviously I have a blog about just this subject, 'Food and Thought'.

Another subject Dr Weil mentions in this book is the study of cultures that have a larger than 'normal' population of '100 year olds', and how these people have lived to this age by eating certain diets, staying healthy, physically active, and being a respected and an imporant part of their extended families. How many times do we meet a person in their 70's and 80's that can run circles around other people their own age? What do these people do differently? Hang out with them and see, ask them questions about how they young...learn what they already know. When I'm this age I want to be like them!

If you want to prepare and eat healthier foods, then hang out with friends that prepare and cook healthier foods. If you want to live longer healthier lives, then hang out with people that are living longer and healthier lives. If you want to move your body with exercise then hang out with friends that exercise. If you want to have a more positive outlook on life, then hang out with friends that have a positive outlook on life!

I love my life, my healthy life, and I'm willing to share it with all of my friends. I was motivated to find the answers for myself, and I'm lucky to be full of common sense, and lucky enough to have stumbled over miracles like kettlebell training. I'm also lucky to be able to 'hang out' with friends like Fawn, that can outwalk and out cook me, my sister Donna who always has good postive things to say and offers good advice, my friend Jill that shared with me information on small organic farms (CSA), and has loaned her kitchen for many a cooking 'get-together', our KB friends Gayle and Ross who invited us to visit and stay is their beautiful town of Healdsburg, CA, and loaned me Dr Weils book on tape and shared with me an awesome Ginger and Lemon Fruit Salad recipe, and many more friends that are living and moving in the direction of improving the condition of their lives in healthier more positive ways.

And now that my only job is to take care of my home and family I get to hang out with my own husband, Mark, more! He is not only a brilliant coach/trainer/teacher, but the smartest man I know, and is constantly there for me, helping me reflect on my own habits and behaviors so I can gain more awareness, not to mention how happy I am that he's my yoga partner!

The picture above was taken on Fawn's deck, at a barbeque she hosted for some of her 'blog friends' that attended this last Level 2 RKC. It was great for all of to meet eachother (Kate H., Lauren B, Christine S.) and 'hang out'. I'll be attending 2 more RKC's this year, LA in August, and St Paul in Sept. I'll also be traveling to St Paul again in Aug., where Mark will attend the FMS certification and we'll be staying and hanging out with the Friday's (Aaron and Fawn). We might get to visit Healdsburg again for another Russian kettlebell event and we hope to stay with Ross Allen and Gayle Hunter, swinging KB's on their deck overlooking the Russian River. And finally, maybe a trip to Italy in the fall or the early part of next year where again we will meet up in Milan with Max and Maurizio.

Wow, do I hang out with the some awesome friends or what? Life is good. Hanging out with good, healthy, active, positive friends is good. Being a good, healthy, active, postive friend is the best.

More pictures of food and recipes from Fawn Barbeque posted on Food and Thought later today (Monday).

" This is where the fun begins"

So said the Dane of Pain Kenneth Jay before we embarked on the newest version of the Snatch Vo2 protocol, the "Boost", the peaking program for the max vo2.


heres the workout:




Although I wasn't participating in the Level 2 cert, I did get to train alongside the best of the best of the RKCs, including Kate Hawbaker( yellow shirt) and Christine Staunch ( blue shirt) next to me on either side.

My number was ten snatches each arm before time was up, before it increased to twenty, and, as you can see, it was tough! Although I had never used the "downstroke transfer", it became obvious to me that I had to try it to get 10/10 in 30 seconds. By the time we got to our last sets, however, I just didn't have the strength to get the timing of it down. (Yoana Sneideman had commented to me that she had video on her blog about how to do this transfer for the SSST, but I hadn't had time to review it, so I just winged it...turned out pretty good, huh?)

Can't wait to get in the gym and put this new training to good use. My coach, my love, my husband, is going to help me put this new method into use. Last year I was doing max vo2 and got great results. I stopped after my surgery and never really re-implemented it.I saw dramatic differences in my training from it not being included.
With this new addition to the max vo2 I am really excited about the possibilities about getting to new heights of strength and conditioning.

Stay tuned for the next level of snatch training,lol!

Welcome to the Real World

Wow, I thought I was ready for this trip. Ready and motivated to resist all (or at least most) of the junk food, and 'free food'. Wrong.....

See how happy I am in these first photos of my trip, LOL! Happy and not hungry! But we don't always eat because we're hungry...that fact, I knew. I purposely decided to not prepare the usual amount of homemade food to take with me. Usually I would of packed an ice chest with preportioned salads, and this trip I would have included some frozen soups and checked it through with my luggage...but I didn't do that. I didn't do that because I thought I should experience being away from home, at the mercy of having to choose and purchase food like most everyone else that has to travel, or be away from home. I wanted to experience the 'real world', not Tracy's world!

At the airport I was reminded of how much crappy food is, practically, all that's available. Yes, you can get a salad, or an apple, but compared to all of the other choices...wow! Topping the list is the sweet stuff. Candy, tons of candy. Cookies, snack cakes, crackers and chips, tons of that stuff. Nuts...super high in calories. And then ready made food loaded with salt, and it seems as if everything has cheese on it! And as I looked around me everyone was eating it, especially kids.

I started out the day with a peach, blueberry and ginger salad on the way to the airport....I took 2 small broccoli salads w/chicken with me,(I chose broccoli because it doesn't wilt as fast), one to eat on the plane, and one to eat at the Meet & Greet.....so far so good..... Let's see.....nothing real special to eat at the M & G, but what is it about free food? Damn. Salty and sweet meatballs, although I did go for the blanched green beans first....cheese and crackers, a 'treat' for me....and then I saw Fawn eating M&M's. Hey, if she can eat M&M's, then so can I! Arrgg... I forgot one important fact, Fawn can stop at any point.....that's the part I have trouble with, lol!

So, I abandoned my original strategy of resisting, or at the very least moderation (a word I'm not real familiar with, lol), and traded it in for fasting! (by fasting I mean a very low calorie count) It was all I could do. My 'all or nothing' personality took over.... it was the free 6 inch cookies that really did me in, big trays of them at the Cert lunch break AND at the hotel desk. Dozens and dozens of big, chewy, soft cookies....my favorite.

Thursday... fast/M&M's
Friday... free cookies/ fast
Saturday... fast/ dinner out with bread and dessert
Sunday... fast (soup, and spinach from the St Paul farmers market)

Thursday....no workouts, travel day
Friday...600 swings, yoga with Fawn, walking and shopping w/Amy J., 50 minute walk, downtown St. Paul
Saturday...co-teaching 2 KB classes w/Fawn (speed swings and some snatching, about an hour of KB's total), 4 mile walk w/Fawn, Max V02 snatch workout at Cert, 20 minutes over 200 snatches
Sunday....4 mile walk w/Fawn

So, there you have it! I have a whole new respect for those of you that are constantly out in the 'Real World', whether its socializing, or work related, it takes some serious motivation, or some serious planning.....don't take anything for granted.