RKC Here I Come!

After several years of waiting, I am excited to FINALLY be taking the RKC (Russian Kettlebell Certification) Course. Afterall, my twin brother Franz is a team leader as is my friend Josh Henkin. This upcoming course will take place in San Jose, CA from February 15th-17th.

One of the things I respect about this course, is that it is the only fitness certification that actually has practical fitness tests to pass. For one, you must demonstrate the ability to teach a total beginner how to use kettlebells safely. Additionally, you must complete a rigorous fitness test called the "Snatch Test." The snatch is an exercise with the kettlebell that involves bringing the kettlebell from between your legs to an overhead position in one fluid movement. It is a derivative of the Olympics lift of the same name.

Depending on your weight and sex. there's a specific amount of snatches you must complete between the two arms. For me, I need to be able to perform 56 between my two arms, switching only once during the test and never placing the bell on the groud.

On Saturday (November 24th, 07) I tried the snatch test after a few weeks of slowly ramping up my kettlebell lifting. The results were not overly impressive as I completed 24 reps on the right and only 20 on the left. I was a little fearful of ripping open my calluses on my hands so that stopped me from going to total fatigue on either arm (as a massage therapist, I can't afford to have ripped open hands). I really pooped out though while doing the second arm. However, I felt like I could of easily performed 30 reps on the first arm (right arm)if I had really pushed it.

All in all, the test was very humbling as I'm not too versed in performing feats of strength endurance since my forte is all out efforts (sprinting and maximal strength training mostly). However, I like the challenge; and the deep burning in my lungs let me knew just how much of a stress this movements places on the entire human organism. The 10 minute nausea after the test was nice too!

I plan on testing again next Friday to see if I can improve upon my first test. After that, I'll test every 3 weeks or so until I go to the certification in Feb. This strength endurance feat for me falls slightly out of specificity for my goals of sprinting some fast times this upcoming 08 track season; therfore, I always do my kettlebell lifting after my general strength work (max lifting with barbells). However, I feel that the snatching will build up a kind of work capacity that I've never really had before; and that I am excited about and will have to see if it helps my sprinting.

Staying Healthy During The Fall and Winter

As winter approaches (well, not really here in Phoenix, it's still been in the 90's for the past 2 weeks!), and more and more people spend time indoors, it's fairly commonplace to start seeing a lot more colds and flu's going around. In fact, nothing put's a damper into one's fitness training like a nice sinus infection or influenza virus!

So what is one to do? There's always the flu vaccine, and for many, that's a good choice as the influenza virus routinely kills around 30,000 Americans each year. Who should get the vaccine?
Well, basically anyone who wants to reduce their risk of getting the flu. It is generally encouraged that young children (over 6 months of age), the elderly, pregnant women, those with chronic diseases and medical conditions and anyone working in the healthcare field (and thus in contact with many people) get the vaccine each year. However, anyone with allergies to chicken eggs should NOT get the flu vaccine as that is how the vaccine is created, through chicken eggs. For more information on the flu, vaccines and treatment for the flu, check out the Center For Disease Control's informative website: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/keyfacts.htm

A More Wholistic Approach?

While the flu shot sounds like a logical choice, many millions of people will opt not to get the vaccine each year and instead rely on more "natural" choices such as herbs and specific "immune-boosting" nutritional products. Some of the more popular immune products that sell like hot-cakes during the cold & flu season include Zicam (a Zinc nasal spray which apparently can make some lose there sense of smell when over-used!), the herbs Echinacea and Goldenseal, vitamin C, a product called Airborne (created by a teacher who was tired of getting sick), Cold MD, Cold-FX, and too many other products to mention. I won't even give the homeopathic remedies a mentiond because there's really nothing in them to test(mostly water).

Of all the products mentioned, the only substances shown to have any effect on cold durations are vitamin C (may decrease colds by a day or so) and possibly Echinacea. However, a recent study by the National Institute of Health showed that Echinacea had no appreciable effect and cold and flu durations. I've taken Echinacea and Goldenseal in the past when I was getting sick and felt at times it helped me and at other times it didn't. It's really hard to determine how much of the effect you get when taking a nutritional supplement is just in your head (i.e. the "placebo effect"). All of the other products (including the very popular Airborne) have been studied and shown to do nothing substantial to merit their use or cost.

So What To Do Then!

Short of having a healthful lifestyle (eat well, exercise, sleep enough, control your stress, etc...), the best way to avoid getting sick is:

1) avoid sick people of possible, and
2)don't touch your nose, eyes, or mouth without first washing your hands!

Regarding hand washing, research shows that plain old soap and water work just as well as the anti-bacterial soaps (which apparently are causing bacteria to become more and more resistant to antibiotics!).

Great, Sick; Now What?

If and when you do get sick, stay home if you can while resting more, drinking lots of fluids, and counting the money in your bank you didn't waste on supplements that don't do anything to help you get better. I think good old-fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup is probably more effective that many of those products.

To end this blog, it is important to understand that when resuming your training post-illness, start with lower volumes and slightly reduced intensities for at least a week to allow your body to re-adjust to the workload. Too much too soon can hinder your immune function and send you back to bed. No bueno!